We conducted a comprehensive interview with Sabahattin Okur, General Manager of EMS Elektronik, an electronics manufacturing plant, about the electronics market. We talked with Okur about the company policies and investment goals of EMS, which has the capacity to produce in international standards.
Would you like to tell us a little about yourself?
I was born in Tarsus district of Mersin in 1972. I completed my primary and secondary education in Tarsus and my high school education in Adana. I came to Istanbul in 1990 for my undergraduate education after I graduated from the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Istanbul Technical University (ITU). After completing my undergraduate education with 1st rank in 1995, I started my master’s degree in ITU Control and Computer Engineering program in the same year. I also entered the business life as I needed both money and field experience for my professional development. I was continuing my education and also working at the same time. I have worked at almost every level in business life: Several positions that I took, such as R&D engineer, R&D manager, production manager, sales and marketing, purchasing, foreign relations etc. have made significant contributions to my personal development. After nearly 10 years of experience, I have decided that it was time to found EMS.
Can you give us some information about EMS Electronics?
Recently, we celebrated our 15th anniversary. Our purpose when founding the company in 2004 was to provide design and production support to our customers in the electronics sector under the same roof. With this approach, we have designed and manufactured hundreds of products for many different customers. We were also growing our customers together with ourselves. Based on our annually increasing business volume, we increased our investments on machinery and equipment, as well as expanding our workforce. In 2009, we had to move to a larger area as we needed to expand our production lines. After the partnership we made with DMY Holding in 2015, we moved to the facility where we are currently located. Many new investments have been made with the partnership. Our investments continue every year in parallel with the development of technology. Our sector is very dynamic, new technologies are constantly being put into operation, and this makes us obliged to invest constantly. Otherwise, we will lose our ability to produce in international standards.
Where are your production facilities located? Which sectors do you produce products and offer solutions for?
Our facility is located at Dudullu Organized Industrial Zone in Istanbul. We are not a “board placement company” as the market terms it, rather we are a complete electronic production facility with equipment in international standards. We serve in almost every sector. We produce solutions for almost every sector such as military, medical, automotive, industrial, either for designing or production, or both. We produce many different products, from fire alarms in houses to the buttons of the elevators, or the control cards of high-tech devices, which you may encounter and use every day.
Do you export the electronic cards you produce? Are there any specific markets that you target?
The economic volatilities caused the domestic market to shrink. This forced us to search for new foreign markets. We started our export activities by the end of 2018, and it will continue to increase this year. At the moment, our priority target is European countries. After we reach a sufficient volume there, we aim to expand to other markets as well.
What would you like to say about your partnership with DMY Holding?
Since our establishment in 2004, we have received many partnership offers since 2015, but we were not interested in any of them. When we received a partnership offer from DMY in 2015, however, the opportunity to partner with the right party attracted us and we took this offer into consideration. With the positive approaches of both parties, the partnership was completed in no time. DMY boasts the leading companies of the industry, but this was not what attracted us. The main determining factor in our positive decision as EMS, was that the Davut and Mustafa Yurttas brothers were focused on production rather than on a merchant mentality and were trying to create added value to our country.
“We see ‘doing an excellent job’ as a priority, rather than making money.
I think this is our most important difference in the industry.”
Can you give information about your machinery on your production line?
We have three fully equipped SMD board placement lines consisting of the latest technology machines. These lines were equipped with 3D image processing machines (AOI and SPI). We also have three manual board placement lines. Of course, we also have many machines such as X-ray, testing, A/C, washing, nitrogen, depaneling, filling, coating, press-fit, which are used in other stages of the production process to support the capacity of these lines.
What would you like to tell about your new investments?
We have devices and machinery that we have placed an order for and are waiting for delivery. The most important of these is the Selective Soldering machine. We have also placed orders to support our numerous test and measurement infrastructure. In addition, we have a large number of devices and machines that we purchased at the beginning of this year but have recently commissioned. In fact, currently we are not lacking in the production side and we are trying to strengthen our testing infrastructure in accordance with our increasing capacity. We can say that we have no shortage for now, but six months later we can face new requirement. Due to the fact that we are in a high-tech sector, we have to invest constantly.
What differentiates you from your local and global competitors?
We see “doing an excellent job” as a priority, rather than making money. I think this is our most important difference in the industry.
How was the year 2018 in terms of your industry?
2018, like all sectors, has greatly affected the electronics sector. The electronics sector is a sector that supports other sectors rather than being an individual industry. If things stop in construction and automotive industries, it will impact the electronics sector as well. From the fire alarms in construction industry to electronic boards in the automobile industry, almost everything directly impacts our sector. For EMS specifically, we can say that 2018 was a positive year.
What are the expectations of EMS Elektronik and the sector for 2019?
We have to work harder than ever in 2019. In this sense, we have set big goals. Export is also among our main goals. We have also shaped our new investments in accordance with these goals. Despite the intense pessimism in the industry, we have a 100% growth target for this year, and we believe that we will achieve this.
“We have three fully equipped SMD board placement lines, and they are equipped
with 3D image processing machines (AOI and SPI).”
Are you manufacturing in an ESD protected area? What are the characteristics of these areas?
ESD (Electrostatic Discharge) means the discharge of static charge. Sometimes we get slightly shocked while getting in the car, opening the closet door or even shaking hands. This happens when the static charge is suddenly discharged. Electronic components are damaged beyond repair by static load discharge. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent the formation of static load or to ensure discharged in a controlled manner. The use of anti-static products in the production area, the anti-static coating of the floor covering, equipping employees with anti-static aprons, wristbands and shoes are mandatory applications for electronic production facilities. The worst part of ESD is that it is difficult to determine whether the damage is caused by ESD and the damage it causes cannot be understood immediately. At EMS, ESD measures are applied meticulously at every stage of the processes.
Can you tell us about your R&D activities?
The investments we made in recent years have turned us into a production-oriented structure. However, we provide design support to companies that cannot design within their own structures. This can sometimes be a simple button board, or a comprehensive control board that controls a complex device.
“Despite the intense pessimism in the industry, we have a 100% growth target for this year, and we believe that we will achieve this.”
What kind of support do you offer to your customers? Do your services continue after the sale?
In addition to design support, we also offer the necessary on-site technical support. Especially, we receive requests such as commissioning, on-site testing etc. We offer support even to the customers of our customers whose technical infrastructure is insufficient. In cases where we do not design, we also provide consulting support and ensure that the customer’s original design becomes suitable for mass production. We provide quality and cost advantages with simple touches.
