The fact that electronic components have a wide range of uses in our digitalized world increases the component demands daily. Ozdisan Elektronik, the largest component distributor in Türkiye, imports the necessary components and offers them to the manufacturers. Capacitive Crown Panels, TFT, GSM Modules, HDI PCB, Presence Sensors, measurement integrations that can make precise measurements, as well as current and voltage sensors, are just some of the products that have stood out in the sector in recent years. Although still not on a large scale, significant R&D studies are being carried out in the electronics component sector in our country, which is not in a manufacturer position yet. We talked with Okan Abdi, Deputy General Manager of Ozdisan Elektronik, about the electronics market in Türkiye, Ozdisan’s distributorships and the current agenda of the sector.
Which departments are you responsible for at Ozdisan Elektronik?
I am responsible for Component Sales, LED Lighting, Import/Export, R&D and Technical Support, E-Commerce, Aluminum Cooler Production, and Board Placement departments. In addition to these, a new department called “Project and New Product Development”, established about a month ago, continues its operations under my supervision.
What is the trend of the electronics market in the world?
I can say that electronics are now used in every point in our lives. New revolutions such as Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things (IoT) have brought a new era to technology. From televisions to refrigerators and smartphones to tablets, the electronics industry has turned into an environment where machines are talking to each other and we are just watching them. Since it is a constantly developing sector where it is difficult to keep up with the speed of electronics, the companies need to constantly refresh themselves in terms of information. That’s why the companies have to be innovative. In the developing electronics industry, the consumers’ interest in smaller and stronger devices has also increased the need for the components to be produced in smaller cases. Speed is very important in electronics sector too. Fast and easy access to information is a criterion that everyone should focus on. Software is now at least as important and effective as the design itself. That’s why the cloud technology is a new disruptive in this game. Companies are just realizing what Industry 4.0 means. Each production company and factory should adapt itself to this structure and increase their productivity. The future of companies that cannot adapt to this will not be bright.
Can you share the sectoral figures?
There is a huge market in the electronics sector in the world, and our country also holds an important market. Important players in the world are also located in Türkiye. Ozdisan is a distributor of electronic components. In terms of distributorship, Ozdisan is the company with the highest turnover in this market. Some large companies are able to make their purchases by themselves. The cap of the distributorship market, on the other hand, is estimated as just over $250 million. I can say that Ozdisan is in a leading position in the market with a share of about 40 percent.
How do you assess the current situation of the Turkish market in the field of electronic components?
The wide use of electronics in almost every sector in Türkiye results in a huge demand for electronic components in industrial applications. Recently, in particular, the demand for electronic components in the defense industry and the medical sector has increased. Products that work more efficiently and with fewer errors, such as robotic devices manufactured with nano-technology, are very much in demand. On the other hand, electronic designs and software are also important. There are a lot of innovative companies in Türkiye in this regard. The support or incentives offered to innovative and designer companies needs to be increased. It takes time to get to a certain point in the industry.
“Important players of the electronic component sector are now in our company thanks to Ozdisan Elektronik.”
What are the prominent trends in the sector?
The products show periodicity. There is a trend from large devices to small devices. Therefore, the materials also began to shrink in size. The demand for surface-mounted electronic components is gradually increasing in the world. Devices that are more functional, more powerful and lighter are in huge demand. People have recently started to attach importance to visual aspects when selecting a product. The demand for the devices with larger screens has also begun to grow. For this reason, the demand for high-brightness, high-resolution displays that the industry needs is increasing. One of the most preferred products recently is Capacitive Crown Panels. Ozdisan has recently made an investment abroad in this field. This panel is a precision-working product that gives the screen, which is mostly used on mobile phones, the ability to be touch-sensitive. One of the most important products used in the sectors where everything is electronic, security is of essence, and monitoring is severe, is the GSM Modules. Products used in vehicle tracking systems for remote monitoring are also in huge demand recently. At Ozdisan, last year we made an agreement with ZTE WELINK company, which sells module products of ZTE, the second largest company in China. We now offer 2G, 3G and 4.5G GSM modules to Turkish product designers. The requirements in electronics sector are increasing daily, and each company has different demands. Wireless communication, data and power transfer are now very important.
Wireless charging has now started to take its place not only in our homes or mobile phones, but also in our vehicles. OLED displays have become the most important display product used in new designs as they offer low power consumption. When we look at the medical sector, on the other hand, the chips that can make more precise measurements and the occupation sensors in smart home systems have started to be used. The HDI PCBs, required by developing technology and advanced technological products, also stand out as a strong trend.
Can we get information about your R&D investments?
At Ozdisan, we provide technical support for every product that we import as the distributor. We are examining whether the product used is suitable for the application. We support companies during designing phase. We are not an R&D company. However, occasionally we carry out “small” R&D studies in order to support the companies that need us. We have an R&D and Technical Support department within Ozdisan, which mostly consists of our technical support staff. We are making investments for this team. We are able to invest in a measurement instrument, device or any machine that will be used in designing another product. Of course, these are not very big investments.
What are the leading technologies in the LED market?
There has been a strong movement within the lighting sector for many years. Everyone wants to get a share in this industry. Under current conditions, prices of LED lighting have now reached rock bottom. We are importing 35-35 cases, 3030s, COB cases of different sizes or 3528, 3020, 3014 size cases as low-power components in this field, which we call Power LEDs. 2 years ago, we made a distributorship agreement with Cree, one of the leading global companies. In this regard, we distribute their products to the manufacturers in Türkiye. No matter which company you go to in lighting sector, Cree is a well-known company. In addition, we are importing the products of Seoul Semiconductor, the largest LED manufacturer in Korea.
You are the distributor of the leading global brands. What do you pay attention to when determining the brands that you will become a distributor of?
The number of companies represented by Ozdisan is over 60. In fact, power electronics was the main sector for us when we started the business but now we are distributing several different products to meet the needs of various sectors. We pay attention to the fact that companies have a say in the sector. The fact that the product range is wide is also an important criterion. We offer the buyers a wide range of product options. Product quality is also an important factor. When we visit the product fairs, we carefully examine the products there. When undertaking distributorship, we pay attention to the fact that the brand in question is a brand that has not been represented by another company in the sector. We want the company that we will be a distributor of to be strong, to look positively at sole distributorship, to be popular, innovative and creative, and to be readily available to support their products both now and in the future.
Can Türkiye become a producer in this import-oriented sector in the near future? Are there any existing investments in this regard?
From the point of view of the electronics sector, it seems difficult for Türkiye to become a manufacturer at the moment. Unfortunately, the production of electronic components has not been supported in our country sufficiently. Making huge investments without receiving incentives is difficult. A resistor production was planned in Türkiye many years ago, but although the resistor is the simplest but most widely used component of electronics, we failed. I can say that we missed the train for the production of electronic components. Although certain studies have been carried out at TUBITAK, and transistors used in high technology products have been manufactured, it does not seem to be a production activity that will manage to globalize in terms of mass production at the moment. Ozdisan has no investments directly into products yet, but our company owners Mustafa Yurttas and Davut Yurttas may have plans for the production of TFT screens in Türkiye in the future, which we currently produce in China.
“We are bringing the sales figures of global brands in Türkiye to the desired levels.”
Are there any brands that have recently joined your distribution network?
I can give UTC, ZTE Welink, Core Master, and Lifud companies as a few examples. There are also new companies that we are conducting researches on but have not officially announced yet. We keep adding new companies each and every day.
Can you tell us about your company’s short and long term plans?
Ozdisan is the leading company in electronic components field. For the short term, we aim to support the manufacturing companies in the sector and maintain our leading position in Türkiye.
For the long term, on the other hand, we aim to be a global company that sell products to many countries with our infrastructure and the electronic platform we have recently established. We aim to create “Ozdisan dealers” in Europe in a short time.
Anything you want to add?
Ozdisan is an innovative company that leads the sector. With this vision, we founded a website using our own equity capital. I invite all R&D employees of manufacturing companies to visit ozdisan.com. I hope that they visit our website, review our products, and use them during their own designing processes. They can also give us feedbacks about the site. Ozdisan will continue to offer all of its capacities to the manufacturers, from the company owners to its employees.
