Interview with Suna Ayvazoğlu, Marketing Manager at Bostik

We conducted an enjoyable interview with Bostik Marketing Manager Suna Ayvazoğlu. Ayvazoğlu provided detailed information about Bostik's innovation and R&D activities.

Could you briefly tell our readers about yourself, your education and professional background?

I graduated from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, Department of Graphic Design in 1996. I began my career at an advertising agency as a graphic designer, later continuing as an art director. In the meantime, I received training in public relations from London School of PR. I then served as Advertising and Public Relations Manager at Çuhadaroğlu Holding for approximately 8 years, and have been working as Marketing Manager at Bostik since 2006. I am married and a mother of two children.

Could you provide information about Bostik's founding process and its current structure?

Bostik will be 130 years old next year. Looking at its history, it has made major acquisitions and mergers and grown globally through innovations. Bostik was acquired by Arkema in 2017. Bostik is a leading global adhesive specialist in industrial manufacturing, construction and consumer markets. For more than a century, it has been developing smarter and more versatile innovative adhesive solutions to address the challenges people encounter in their daily lives. From cradle to grave, from home to office, Bostik smart adhesives are found everywhere. The company operates in more than 50 countries with a turnover of EUR 2 billion and 6,000 employees. It entered Turkey in 2005 by acquiring Çekomastik, the brand that gave its name to the sector, and was structured as Çekomastik Kimya San. ve Tic. A.Ş. In 2008, it incorporated Tekbau A.Ş. into its portfolio, further enriching its product range that sets direction for the construction sector. Today, we continue as a single company in Turkey under the name Bostik Kimya San. ve Tic. A.Ş. Bostik Turkey is a very strong brand in the fields of sealants, adhesives and construction chemicals in the building and industrial sectors, while maintaining a very broad product portfolio. Bostik has production facilities in İnegöl and Çorlu.

What sectors does Bostik primarily serve and what types of products does it supply? What are Bostik's products, brands and services?

While serving three areas globally—"End Consumer (Hygiene), Industry and Construction"—in Turkey we provide adhesives, insulation and construction chemicals in the industry and construction sectors. To elaborate on the construction sector, we have a very extensive product range that primarily covers sealants and adhesives for facade applications and all areas of construction, waterproofing and ground solutions (preparation and multi-surface adhesives), tile joint sealants and adhesives, thermal insulation and technical mortars, and essentially everything you might need from A to Z for a construction project.

Could you tell us about your domestic and export sales activities? What products and regions are you primarily focusing on for domestic and international sales?

We conduct our sales domestically and project-focused through our dealer network. We reach all our product groups to different sectors through our dealers, with heavy focus on waterproofing, technical mortars, sealants and adhesives.

What kind of work do you carry out at Bostik in the areas of innovation and R&D?

Our ongoing collaboration with customers and suppliers provides us with information about market needs. Our innovation strategy is supported by three important objectives. These objectives can be described as: designing adhesives with functional value, reducing impacts on health and the environment, and developing adhesives for new applications that provide added benefits. For this purpose, a "Smart House" was created in France. The Smart House was designed to test, validate and develop new solutions in the construction sector. With this unique house concept, Bostik aims to transform its know-how on material and energy efficiency into a real-life demonstration.The Smart House project is a living pilot laboratory and exhibition hall reflecting how sustainable construction will look in 2030. This house allows the group's research team and scientific partners, companies and universities to test innovations in real conditions for future buildings based on four main pillars: Environment, Energy Efficiency, Comfort and Health. The Smart House comprises two complementary buildings: The first is a 160 square-meter futuristic house built with ultra-sophisticated solutions and technologies. This real full-scale ecosystem dedicated entirely to research and development contains experiments involving daily life scenarios. These experiments are evaluated by our R&D center that opened in 2014 in Paris Venette, leading to the development of more efficient products for future generations and a sustainable world. Two other equivalent major R&D centers, one in Milwaukee, America and the other in Shanghai, China, further strengthen our global research and development capacity.

Could you provide information about Bostik's environmental policy and sustainability approach?

When planning new products and applications, we conduct work considering environmental impacts. Solid and liquid waste from our facilities are managed in accordance with applicable regulations without harming ecological balance. Our aim is to determine the amounts of waste generated from production areas and offices first, and then ensure their planned reduction in future years. We work to take all necessary measures to reduce pollution impact to zero, control and encourage regulatory activities. At our facilities, we use the energy that causes the least harm to the environment in the most efficient manner. We are working to play an active role in the market regarding energy saving systems and develop new technologies to contribute to the environment and natural life. By analyzing accidents, identifying their root causes and ensuring continuous improvement of procedures, we aim to achieve "Zero Environmental Pollution" through continuous operational improvement.

What can you tell us about your work related to occupational health and safety?

We have training concepts that promote individual awareness and participation regarding occupational safety and worker health. We effectively implement these trainings and notifications as they come from our Paris headquarters and maintain this awareness. I can say it is very important. We are adapting Bostik's global concept to all our production facilities as well. "Safety" is our company's primary priority.

What criteria are prioritized when Bostik formulates investment plans? Does Bostik have investment plans for the upcoming periods, and if so, what are they?

Turkey is a developing country, and while we have experienced and will continue to feel the effects of an economic difficulty for some time as a nation, we believe Turkey will overcome this. And I am confident that, just as global investments continue in the long term, investments concerning Turkey will also continue. Last year, Bostik strengthened its position by acquiring XL Brands, a leader in floor covering adhesives in the United States. Restructuring continues within our new global branding strategy. In line with our passion to create a global market leader; the integration of Den Braven, which has a production facility in Turkey, into the Arkema group in December 2016 marked a new milestone for Bostik in reaching its long-term goals in high-performance adhesives and sealants. The most recent acquisition announced on 31 October 2018 took place in Spain. Arkema announced its expansion with the acquisition of Afinitica, a Spanish company specializing in engineering adhesives and fast adhesives. Consequently, our hand is strengthened in product diversity and new technologies.