Kordsa Reaps Returns on Right Investments

Kordsa increases operational profitability by 41% year-on-year. Net profit reached TRY 178.1 million. Kordsa, a subsidiary of Sabancı Holding, announced its 2016 financial results. Efficient management of its operations and positive results across all indicators from gross margin to net margin brought Kordsa's net profit to TRY 178.1 million.

Supporting its presence in the reinforcement market through Asia-Pacific investments, polyester capacity increases, and composite and construction reinforcement investments, Kordsa maintained its position as global sector leader in its 44th year of operation.

Sabancı Holding Industrial Group Chairman Mehmet Hacıkamiloğlu:

"As Sabancı Holding Industrial Group, we regard offering value-added products manufactured with advanced technology and exporting innovation as core focus areas of our operations. While Kordsa continues to lead in innovation within the global reinforcement market, through the open innovation approach it has adopted in recent years, it shares its knowledge and technology, thereby growing both itself and the sector. The successful results Kordsa achieved in 2016 and the awards it won on international platforms are proof that we are on the right path."

Kordsa CEO Cenk Alper:

Made the following assessments regarding 2016: "2016 was a successful year in terms of our profitability, export results in our markets, positive returns from our investments, and awards we received. With our technologies that are transforming the reinforcement market, our effective R&D efforts, and our open innovation approach, we continue and expand our leadership in global markets. Kordsa, which leads in the tire market, completed a successful year. Today, one out of every two car tires and two out of every three aircraft tires produced worldwide are reinforced by Kordsa. In 2016, we were selected as export champions in Turkey and Indonesia, and succeeded in entering the top 100 fastest-growing companies in Indonesia. As a global brand that properly manages our growth and carefully analyzes customer demand, we decided to invest a total of USD 29.5 million in polyester yarn at our Indonesia and Turkey plants, and we aim to bring these investments into production in 2018. In 2016, we put into operation the Composite Technologies Center of Excellence, where R&D and manufacturing processes for composite technologies are brought together under one roof. Composite products from the center serve the automotive, energy, and aerospace sectors. The R&D unit at our center, where we conduct R&D and production of composite materials, was approved by the Turkish Ministry of Science, Industry and Technology, and thus Kordsa now has its second officially approved R&D center. In 2016, our R&D approach was recognized once again. According to the 2015 R&D Centers Performance Index organized by the Ministry of Science, Industry and Technology, we ranked among the top three R&D centers nationwide in Turkey. To sustain this success, we are working to introduce new technologies to the reinforcement market through our collaborations across a wide geography from America to Asia-Pacific. We have a total of 32 inventions and 103 patent applications filed in 2016 alone. With a total of 407 patent applications and 128 inventions, we continue to lead in innovation in the global reinforcement market. At the same time, the value we place on people has resulted in the awards we receive in global markets. While we are recognized as one of the best workplaces (Great Place to Work) in Brazil, our Kordsa leader earned the "Best Employee" award in Indonesia for the creative approach, improvement areas provided, and value added to employees through the project implementation. Our future vision is to strengthen more areas in the world while implementing our "Strengthening Life" vision across the globe. In doing so, we want to continue creating value for our customers and investors."

About Kordsa

Kordsa is a global player in tire, composite, and construction reinforcement technology markets. As the world leader in tire reinforcement technology, Kordsa serves reinforcement technologies worldwide through production spanning a wide geography from America to Asia-Pacific. With R&D and innovation as the foundation of all business processes, Kordsa holds 407 patent applications globally.