An Enjoyable Conversation with Hayri Ünal, General Manager of Netzsch Makine

We conducted a pleasant conversation with Netzsch Makine General Manager Hayri Ünal about the company's development from its founding to the present, its entry into the Turkish market, product groups, projects and investments.

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

I am a Mechanical Engineer. I work as General Manager of our company. I completed my Mechanical Engineering education abroad, in Germany. Later, I did an MBA in International Business in Canada. I live in Izmir. Our company headquarters is also in Izmir. I am married and have one daughter.

Could you tell us about Netzsch Makine's development process from its founding to today? What kind of process has developed? What has happened since its initial founding?

First, I would like to speak globally about Netzsch Holding. Netzsch Holding is a family company founded in 1873. We are not listed on the stock exchange. The Holding has 3 main divisions. One of them is the subject we are active in Turkey - Grinding & Dispersing, that is, Grinding and Milling Technologies. A second is what we call Nemo Pump, the mud pump and Netzsch pump manufacturing facility that handles the transfer of heavy viscous products. Our third business line is our company that manufactures thermal analysis equipment. Our headquarters is near Nuremberg, in the town of Selb. Other countries where the company manufactures are China, Russia and Brazil. We, Netzsch Turkey, are a company established under the Netzsch Grinding business division of the holding.

When was Netzsch Turkey founded? What developments have occurred since then? What were Netzsch Global's expectations from the Turkish market?

For many years, I was the Turkey representative of the Netzsch grinding and milling group. We have been operating in Turkey for exactly 3 years now. Netzsch's expectations from the Turkish market were, of course, first and foremost to be close to our customers. The company was established to be close to Turkish manufacturers, to serve them better. Netzsch is a completely 100% German-capital company. The first of our establishment goals here, as I said, was to be close to our customers, to be able to respond quickly to their needs, to be able to respond 24/7 to technical and after-sales services, spare parts and service. We are continuing to develop and maintain this quite successfully.

Could you tell us about your product groups and product characteristics?

The Netzsch Grinding Dispersing group has 2 main divisions. One is Wet Milling, the other is Dry Milling. In our Wet Milling group, we have machines such as various bead mills, mixers, dissolvers, in-line mixers. Netzsch is a company that produces technology and we do not see ourselves as merely a machinery manufacturer. Because in a developing world, the adaptation of developing products, the adaptation of machines must be done very quickly and correctly. If you cannot keep up with technology and update your innovations, you remain only a machinery manufacturer in technological terms. We have no such goal. Netzsch is a company that produces technology and applies it to various machines. Within this scope, in addition to these production machines, Netzsch also has laboratory machines. Because a customer who wants to develop a new product can conduct various recipe trials on these laboratory machines, and once adapted to their system and market, they have the opportunity to apply the exact recipe ratios to large production machines. Accordingly, our capability in wet milling certainly allows us to serve our customers very well, to work with us while updating their technologies. In Netzsch Dry Milling, whether it is minerals or chemicals, water-based or solvent-based, micronized grinding is done without wetting. Various mills and machines are used in our technology here. Again, as I said, we are a company that performs applications in micronized grinding of pigments, chemicals and minerals. Both of these companies also have laboratories in Germany. Here we can use all types of laboratory systems. Within this scope, we are continuing our work with our customers and partners accordingly in Turkey.

Could you provide information about your laboratory and R&D activities? Are your R&D and laboratory divisions only available at headquarters, at your Germany office? What are your activities in Turkey?

In addition to our laboratory in Germany, we also use various application machines used in what we call laboratory-type small-scale laboratories in Turkey. We follow such an approach in this. Generally, we send laboratory machines to our customers. After training is provided there, according to need, for 15 days to 1 month they conduct trials with the machine adapted to their own recipes, their own needs and their own rheologies. This is of course a great advantage. That is, in our laboratories in Germany, products that our customer could not send, or sometimes when long-term testing needs to be done, we conduct tests and trials with our machines with our customers. After-sales technical service continues at all times. But before the sale, to establish the technology, their recipes and products, we share these types of laboratory machines with our customers and offer them this opportunity. I would also like to tell you a bit about our laboratories in Germany. We divide our laboratories in the Wet Milling group into 4 categories. These are: Red Laboratory: This is a laboratory where our solvent-based laboratory machines and large-scale production machines are located. White Laboratory; we also have a chocolate group, that group's laboratory. Completely food-grade, a laboratory suitable for food. Our Green Laboratory is our research and development laboratories. We also have Blue Laboratories. That is also a laboratory for water-based products and production machines, and there are not just laboratory machines but we also have the opportunity to trial our customers' large quantities of products as if conducting actual production. I would like to tell you about our laboratories in Dry Milling. We also have 2 different laboratories there. One of them is what we call the Food Lab, again a food laboratory. And another laboratory where we grind normal other minerals and chemicals, where we both conduct their trials and tests and again conduct one-to-one trials with large machines with or products from our customers. We have a laboratory there as well. Within this scope, we truly have a very serious data bank. This certainly provides great relief for us. When a new product comes or there is a request, being able to immediately see "what we have tried, what we have done", being able to respond quickly to our customers is very important.

Could you provide information about Netzsch's projects and innovations?

Netzsch in Germany has had 2 major acquisitions in the last 2 years. We have acquired 2 large companies. One of these companies - which is a different sector - is still chemistry but a sector that completes our product range. Two years ago, Netzsch acquired Vacumix GmbH, a company based in Bremen, Germany. Now the company continues its production as Netzsch Vacumix. The technology and machines made here are applied in the sectors of cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. We divide this into 2 parts. In the cosmetics sector, every type of cosmetic product you can think of, you know better, personal care, lipstick, eye shadow and other chemicals... Then shampoos, creams and other dermocosmetic personal care products, and pharmaceuticals. We particularly distinguish pharmaceuticals. Since pharmaceutical machines are FDA-approved and must comply with pharmaceutical specifications, I would like to mention this separately. We are currently launching our activities in Turkey as well. In this regard, we are visiting various trade fairs. We are also considering participating in a cosmetics fair as Netzsch in the near future. This is an innovation for us, a new market. As you know, the cosmetics and pharmaceutical market in the world is very wide and this is a very important matter. This was a very good activity and a very good acquisition for us to bring our products and technologies to even more advanced levels. Our second acquisition was 2 years ago when we acquired a contract manufacturing facility established in Bobingen (Germany). This company has various mills, dry and wet production mills. New ones are constantly being added to these, of course. A customer, before investing to test the market, when they will launch or offer a new product to the market, we conduct large-scale production there. That is, we do this production on a contract basis. They, of course, also guide us. And with monthly, yearly, tonnage-based agreements, the company tests the product it has produced and newly developed in the market. After achieving success in the market, the product can go into investment. This is a very important point for our partners and customers.

Here Turkey's disadvantage as a location is distance. It is, of course, costly to send product to this location in Germany.

For this reason, we have done these contract productions twice so far. But we don't do it in very large quantities, in fact smaller, 1 ton, 2 ton, 3 ton, 5 ton, 10 ton, etc. we have sent cement. Accordingly, because of the distance, it's not very much but for Europe it is a very important activity for us. We have made changes and additions in sectors. We have current mills and sectors we are currently conducting trials in. Sectors like cement. These, of course, also push us toward other sectors. Accordingly, we are very satisfied with this situation. I have one more second point to add. Under the Wet Milling group of Netzsch, to which we belong, we have a separate department working. This is also Netzsch Confectionary - that is, Netzsch Chocolate Machines. In partnership with Netzsch Brazil, some technologies produced in Netzsch Brazil are now being taken to the headquarters in Germany and we are manufacturing chocolate machines as a new Netzsch Confectionary for the European market. Here we produce very new, completely closed-system chocolate machines, conch machines, mills and integrated operating systems. Our activities have already begun in Turkey.

Your product range is very wide. You are present in many sectors. Do you have new future products you plan to introduce to the sector?

Currently, there is nothing in the short term. Nothing is visible over the next 2-3 years. We have complete turnkey facility projects and work specifically directed toward the paints and coatings industry in Turkey. Netzsch is perhaps the only company in the world that builds complete turnkey process-guaranteed facilities. Both a company that produces technology and machinery and a company that builds turnkey facilities. Within this scope, we have built and started operation of an industrial paint facility for one of Turkey's largest companies in Istanbul. The facility is operational. It will soon be announced to Turkey with an official opening. Here we have built an industrial paint facility with the latest and newest technology, fully automatic SAP-integrated highest-class protection systems, as well as EU-compliant protective nitrocellulose grinding facility. Netzsch's this capability continues in many countries around the world. We are building complete turnkey facilities in India, Malaysia, Russia, Argentina, China, and especially the United States. We are excited to apply this for the first time in Turkey. This is a great success for us and also an innovation worldwide. Netzsch is rapidly continuing its work on building these turnkey paint facilities in Turkey. This is an innovation that has occurred in the last 1 year. So I can say we are very happy as Netzsch.

When you make an assessment regarding the sector, what would you like to say?

Speaking of the paints sector, I observe standard growth and also renewal. The application of new technologies is in question. These are, of course, encouraging things. Companies began to produce more products compliant with standards with higher added value. What I can say for the paints sector are these things.

What are Netzsch Global's efforts regarding sustainability? Do you have social responsibility projects?

Of course. As Netzsch Global, Netzsch at the headquarters is engaged in various social activities. One of them is that Netzsch Germany provides funding support to various charitable organizations, sponsors and supports Classical Music groups in Nuremberg and Bolvingen. In terms of sustainability, I believe the company's renewal of itself, development of its products, and increased environmental awareness are among the most important points. We, as Turkey, pay great attention and care to this issue. We have started to provide support to various charitable organizations to our extent and will continue to do so.  

Could you tell us about your in-house training programs?

We have work on that issue as well. We organize various seminars. We do these divided as Grinding and Dispersion. In Izmir, Istanbul, other cities. And we also established an academy called Netzsch Academy. Here we have entirely technological maintenance, service, after-sales service for our customers and customers who do not have our machines, machine operation, seminars aimed at increasing operators' ability to run machines and we have established a Netzsch Academy. We have had 2 seminars on this. In Kocaeli Gebze and Izmir. Our Netzsch Academy seminar system will continue in the near future. In fact, a 3rd Academic Seminar is on the agenda in May.

Is there anything you would like to add in closing?

I would like to mention the Paintistanbul&Turkcoat fair. This year was truly a very lively, very productive fair for everyone. There were many participants and new participants. Therefore, I would first like to thank Artkim Group. The second point I would like to add is that I see serious growth in the Turkish market. Especially foreign-based large companies continue to invest in Turkey and new ones are coming. Accordingly, we, as Netzsch Global and Netzsch Turkey, continue to serve our customers and partners and will continue to do so.       Save