Şişecam Continues Investments in Turkey

Şişecam, one of Turkey's most established industrial enterprises, has commissioned the renewed flat glass furnace number six at its Yenişehir flat glass production facility following a cold repair investment of approximately TRY 400 million (approximately EUR 42 million). Through the modernized 240,000-ton-capacity furnace, Şişecam—which supplies flat glass to numerous sectors ranging from construction to furniture, white goods to automotive—will deliver state-of-the-art products to the market, responding to domestic demand that has surged rapidly in recent times following an uneven trajectory during the global pandemic. Prof. Dr. Ahmet Kırman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Şişecam, stated that during the global pandemic, Şişecam prioritized sharing developments in the glass sector with all stakeholders on a regular and continuous basis, saying: "The world is navigating a challenging period marked by global supply chain disruptions due to the pandemic, imbalanced supply-demand dynamics in many sectors, and prevailing uncertainty. From the beginning of this difficult period, Şişecam has maintained continuous and regular communication with all stakeholders in the glass sector, rapidly implemented numerous measures and actions to meet the needs of all sectors it supplies, and made intensive efforts to address the extraordinary yet gratifying surge in domestic demand that has emerged in our country and sector."

Kırman, noting that throughout its more than 85-year history, Şişecam, the founder of the Turkish glass industry, has continued to create value for Turkey despite extraordinary circumstances, as it has done in every period, including during the global pandemic, stated: "Despite the uncertainty created by the global pandemic and extraordinary conditions, we have continued our investments without interruption as part of our priority to meet Turkey's glass demand and create value for our country's economy.

Following our Polatlı facility, which we transformed into Europe's largest flat glass hub by commissioning its eighth furnace in October 2020, today we are commissioning our sixth furnace at our Yenişehir flat glass facility after completing its cold repair. With the 240,000 tons of additional annual capacity provided by this furnace, we will have the supply capacity to respond to the intense demand from the construction, furniture, white goods, and automotive sectors. After commissioning the fifth furnace, which also has a 240,000-ton capacity and will complete its cold repair at our Yenişehir facility in the final quarter of the year, Şişecam will continue creating value for Turkey by actively utilizing our installed flat glass production capacity reaching 2 million tons in Turkey, despite the uncertainty created by the global pandemic."

Kırman, noting that throughout its more than 85-year history, Şişecam, the founder of the Turkish glass industry, has continued to create value for Turkey despite extraordinary circumstances, as it has done in every period, including during the global pandemic, stated: "Despite the uncertainty created by the global pandemic and extraordinary conditions, we have continued our investments without interruption as part of our priority to meet Turkey's glass demand and create value for our country's economy.

Following our Polatlı facility, which we transformed into Europe's largest flat glass hub by commissioning its eighth furnace in October 2020, today we are commissioning our sixth furnace at our Yenişehir flat glass facility after completing its cold repair. With the 240,000 tons of additional annual capacity provided by this furnace, we will have the supply capacity to respond to the intense demand from the construction, furniture, white goods, and automotive sectors. After commissioning the fifth furnace, which also has a 240,000-ton capacity and will complete its cold repair at our Yenişehir facility in the final quarter of the year, Şişecam will continue creating value for Turkey by actively utilizing our installed flat glass production capacity reaching 2 million tons in Turkey, despite the uncertainty created by the global pandemic."   "We continue creating value for Turkey with our production capacity reaching 2 million tons" Prof. Dr. Ahmet Kırman, noting that the global pandemic has also negatively impacted the glass sector, stated that as economic measures were taken and implemented precautions were relaxed, sectors receiving flat glass inputs gained positive momentum. Expressing that this intense demand, which arose during a period of supply chain disruption, created supply-demand imbalance in the sector, Prof. Dr. Kırman continued: "The glass sector, which is based on melting technology, is an energy-intensive production field with a requirement to operate 24/7. In addition to high initial investment costs in this sector, the glass furnaces have a capital-intensive characteristic stemming from the continuous investment requirement due to the necessity of periodic furnace renewal (cold repair). Due to the continuity of our investments and the necessity of periodic furnace renewal, our fifth and sixth furnaces at our Yenişehir facility were scheduled for cold repair during the normal planned process, also considering supply-demand balance. After completing the cold repair and outfitting with new production capabilities, we have commissioned our sixth furnace today, which we renewed with an investment of approximately TRY 400 million (approximately EUR 42 million). With the commissioning of our 240,000-ton-per-year sixth furnace, we will have the supply capacity to respond to the intense demand from the construction, furniture, white goods, and automotive sectors thanks to increased supply options." Kırman, drawing attention to unforeseen surge in flat glass demand during the global pandemic and stating that multifaceted measures have been taken to address the demand increase, said: "Today we conduct our flat glass operations in three different categories: architectural glass, energy glass, and white goods glass; we supply inputs to important sectors such as construction, furniture, energy, and white goods. With a total of four production facilities in our country—Bursa Yenişehir, Kırklareli, Mersin, and Ankara Polatlı—eight furnaces, and production capacity reaching 2 million tons, we continue creating value for the national economy and pursue our investments without interruption despite the uncertainty created by the global pandemic."  

"We supply approximately 90 percent of our flat glass production to the domestic market"

Prof. Dr. Ahmet Kırman, referring to the important applications and major investments that Şişecam has implemented during this period to increase production capacity and support the sectors it supplies, stated: "To address the extraordinary demand surge in the domestic market, all measures supporting economic activities in our country have been taken, including most notably new furnace investments and increasing the share of domestic sales in total sales. Within this scope, while utilizing all 100,000 tons of our monthly flat glass shipment capacity, we significantly reduced our exports and supplied approximately 90 percent of our flat glass production realized in our country to the domestic market. Additionally, in response to the need to increase production capacity in parallel with domestic market demand, we completed and commissioned a new furnace investment with a capacity of 240,000 tons annually with an investment of TRY 1 billion level (approximately USD 130 million) at our flat glass production facility in the Polatlı district of Ankara. Through this investment, which is also an important indicator of our confidence in our country, we continued to support the sectors we supply. As always, every effort has been made during this challenging period stemming from the global pandemic to support our ecosystem. In this regard, we thank our stakeholders for the understanding and spirit of solidarity they have demonstrated during this process."  

With the new furnace at its Yenişehir facility equipped with new production capabilities, Şişecam will join the select group of flat glass producers manufacturing up to 16-meter flat glass

In addition to increasing capacity supplied to the domestic market, Şişecam's sixth furnace at its Yenişehir flat glass facility, which has been renewed and modernized with advanced technology in accordance with Industry 4.0, will also provide the opportunity to market high-value-added new products such as ultra-clear flat glass. The largest glass size currently used in the flat glass sector is Jumbo glass with a length of 6 meters. Mega Jumbo flat glass stands out as an important design element of prestigious structures in modern architecture. By creating the possibility of seamless glass application, it offers different architectural design possibilities in structures such as shopping centers, museums, office buildings, and exhibition and congress centers, while adding an extraordinary dimension to the space. Stating that with the commissioning of the sixth furnace, Turkey's first Mega Jumbo glass will be produced at Şişecam's Yenişehir facility in the architectural glass field, Kırman said: "With the completion of Mega Jumbo production investment at the Yenişehir sixth furnace, Şişecam will become one of the select producers worldwide manufacturing flat glass up to 16 meters. With its innovative approach enabling the development of all sectors it serves and its investments pursued with a commitment to creating sustainable value for all stakeholders, Şişecam will continue contributing to the Turkish economy and the glass sector."