“Our brand is known worldwide, and our efforts to be a brand sought around the world continue with rapid steps. With our faith in our work, brand and particularly our quality, we continue to take new investment decisions. We will increase our total production area to two hundred thousand square meters by establishing an additional factory of one hundred thirty thousand square meters. We try to reach our goals without pausing. I believe that we will be the biggest silo and equipment producer in the world by increasing our capacity substantially.” Sefa SAATÇİOĞLU MYSİLO - General Manager So far, we read many different success stories from politics to art, sport to the business world. Sometimes we are inspired by these stories, and sometimes we just read these stories by praising successful people. The story of Sefa Saatçioğlu, the General Manager of MySilo, active in grain storage and conveyor equipment, is another inspiring story. Founded in 2010 in Aksaray with ten personnel, the firm has established a factory of seventy thousand square meters that employs more than one thousand personnel in a short period of time. The company is now the biggest silo producer in Europe. Since its foundation, the company realized more than two thousand projects in sixty countries. We sat down with Mr. Saatçioğlu to listen to his story. Stressing on innovation and improvement, Saatçioğlu said that the company can manage more than forty building sites simultaneously and emphasized that this success will not be a limit for the company. “We will increase our total production area to two hundred thousand square meters by establishing an additional factory of one hundred thirty thousand square meters,” he said. Saatçioğlu said that the company has plans for “delivering orders regardless of their sizes within fifteen days,” and said the company’s vision is ‘to be the world’s largest silo and equipment producer.’ Here is the interview with Mr. Sefa Saatçioğlu on MySilo’s story, innovations, projects and plans. Mr. Saatçioğlu, Mysilo is the biggest silo producer in Europe. It is a firm that the sector knows a lot about. But will you briefly describe Mysilo for our readers? MySilo has been established in 2000. There were not too many silo manufacturers outside the Europe and America in those days, and the advantages of storing grain in steel silos were unknown. Market prices were also very high due to the small number of producers. Importing companies were trying to sell silos at incredible prices. Due to the high prices of these silos, there was very little demand for them. What I did in 2000 was to identify this deficiency and to invest in this sector. We started our production life with ten personnel in an area of 1500 square meters, but now we continue our production at seventy thousand square meters employing more than one thousand people. We have production lines equipped with the latest technology. With our newly established R&D centers, we continue our way by optimizing our ERP systems according to our own needs, increasing productivity, reducing costs and maintaining a sustainable quality policy. Believing in the sector and the team, we are aiming for a stable growth. Our brand is globally known and our efforts to be a brand sought around the world continue with rapid steps. With our faith in our work, brand and especially our quality, we continue to take new investment decisions. We will increase our total production area to two hundred thousand square meters by establishing an additional factory of one hundred thirty thousand square meters. We try to reach our goals without pausing. I believe that we will be the biggest silo and equipment producer in the world by increasing our capacity substantially. The project of our additional investments is in its final stages. We will start our construction in a very short period of time. Additionally, as a result of the decision we took last year, we have also established a new company to carry out licensed warehousing activities in Turkey and around the globe. Mysilo Agricultural Products Licensed Warehousing Co. (MYLIDAŞ) continues to invest quickly. MYLİDAŞ has received permission in Turkey to build the licensed warehousing with 500 thousand tons in total. 160 thousand tons of licensed warehouse in 2018, 200 thousand in 2019 and 140 thousand in 2020 will become functional. I believe that we will become Turkey’s largest and the most professional company in the licensed warehousing business. We will reach this target. MYLIDAS has planned to reach two million tons in the licensed warehousing around the world at 2025. What factors played a role for your company to become a leading company in the silo sector? The work distribution and organization of our group (SFA Group) are among the most important criteria. “Siloport Grain Storage Systems Industry Inc.” is the production company, “Silopark Grain Storage Systems Industry Inc.” is the company that manages the domestic sales operations and “Mysilo Grain Storage Systems Industry Inc.” is the company that manages the sales and operations abroad, “Mysilo Agricultural Products Licensed Warehousing Inc.” is our licensed warehousing company. WE ALLOCATED USD 1 MILLION FOR R&D We attach great importance to the healthy operation of the planning and control mechanism. Objective and independent units created in this respect fulfill their tasks properly. It is a very important difference for us to have the ability to manage more than forty construction sites at the same time with more than one thousand personnel including our worksites. Of course, the management of such a large organization goes hand in hand with a very good human resources management. It is our greatest source that we value our personnel, and these people adopt the job as their own. Research and development work is a must for us. We are proud of being the company to establish the first R&D center in Aksaray and in the sector. We allocated USD 1 million for research and development. This allocation proves how R&D is important for us. Nobody can underestimate the importance we attach to the quality with machine lines that carry out production on CNC benches without touching. “Target 15” is our motto. We want to have the standard that the company will deliver any order within fifteen days regardless of their sizes. That standard will differentiate us from our competitors. We have not carried out this standard, but we want to reach this target with improvement and investment every day. Also, our successes within a very short period of time also rely on other factors: We prioritize our clients’ interest before ours and we also pay attention to customer satisfaction; we act with a motto that “do what you say; say what you do.” At this point, can we say that you realized the vision “being the first company that comes to mind on grain storage and conveyor equipment”? What kind of role and place does MySilo have in its sector? It is too early to say that we have realized this vision. For some countries, we can say that, but for some other, we cannot. In this case, we continue our works to increase brand awareness and marketing activities. You put a lot of importance on ‘do not repeat yourselves,’ and ‘continuous improvement.’ In this respect, can you talk about innovations and new technologies that MySilo has brought in the sector? There is no way to be successful if you repeat what you have done in the past. We know very well that we will be valuable to our customers if we are dynamic and quick, and also we will become successful and survive if we follow our customers’ feedback and adapt to the change. We keep up our works with this philosophy. We have certificates of Quality Management System, Environmental Management System and Occupational Health and Safety Management System that are in line with ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 standards. We actively implement basic quality management systems in all our activities. In our products, we have completed the design works in compliance with the European norms and have completed the certification works by taking “CE” certificate for almost all products. A FIRST IN THE GRAIN DRYER MACHINE PRODUCTION We realized a first in the grain dryer machine production. We brought a great know-how to Turkey on dryer machine through the licensed production of American company NECO. Thanks to this technology transfer, we do serious fuel oil saving and increase dryer quality. Our research and development works continue intensively on diesel and different models on dryer machines. Truck loading conveyor, new and patented production became very popular. This conveyor we use in loading the grain to truck works by connecting the shaft of the tractor shaft. This conveyor, which can be installed in a very short period of time and makes the loading easier, brings great flexibility and convenience to the user. Our grain mixer machine facilitates the discharge of non-fluid materials at conical silos. Silo and product damages are also minimized. Additionally, we work intensively on loading and unloading equipment that can make a thousand ton per hour. That equipment will be used in the country’s ports for the first time. As known, one of the main purposes of grain storage in steel silos is that grains can be preserved for long periods without deterioration. In this regard, we have brought a lot of different innovations to better ventilate the grain waiting in the silo. Only the improvements we’ve made in this ventilation makes our company special in Turkey. There are many improvements to the Atex and dust explosion risk in silo and grain handling equipment. Thanks to these improvements, our customers are able to feel safe and sleep at home peacefully. Your company operates in more than eighty countries across five continents. Such operation requires serious supply and logistics management. How do you manage this? Do you have plans to set up a production center in different regions as you enter into the new locations? You brought up a good subject. Our procurement and logistics management is completely managed with special software that we designed according to our own needs. Thanks to this software, we make saving on employment. Also, we have automatic warning systems on forgotten or delayed subject. Our software can produce spectacular analysis and statistics. This makes our decision-making processes easier. Can you tell us about the projects you realized recently? I can talk about European Union projects we realized in Turkey. It is very difficult to store hazelnut for a long time due to its structure. So far, there has not been any success to store this precious product for a long time. The nut storage facilities we built for the Giresun Commodity Exchange in Giresun province have been the first in the world. In this facility, our silos have conical structure and are supplied with nitrogen gas as well as a special automation system. Thanks to these, nuts can be stored up to two years and can be stored in a healthier way. The grain storage facility with a capacity of 100 thousand tons we built for the Urfa Commodity Exchange in Urfa province entered into use as a European Union project; this project contributed a lot to the region for its development. In Turkey, until now, we realized over five hundred rural development projects and we have more than thirty licensed storage facilities. They contributed a lot to the development of the regions in which they were built and for farming. In abroad, rice storage facility we built at Rotterdam Port eased our clients’ life because of specially designed container loading-unloading equipment. Again, I can proudly say that special solutions on rice and paddy storage in the Far East and South America made the company being sought out. I cannot list all our projects in this interview since they are too much. Shortly, we install turn-key facilities with an average annual storage capacity of around two million tons. You established an R&D center in Aksaray. Can you talk about your works and targets at this department? What will your R&D department offer to customers in the coming period? For our company to gain international competitiveness as a result of R&D works, we aimed to make innovations in products and production process, to increase the quality and standards of products and efficiency and to decrease the production cost. Thus, along with the realized targets, it will create more value and employment in Turkey. So, what can you tell us about the state of grain storage in Turkey that has the biggest silo producer? Licensed warehousing is being supported. Under the leadership of Turkish Grain Board (TMO), there are efforts to build licensed warehousing with a capacity of four million tons within two years… Licensed warehousing, which was realized in 2005 in Turkey, is a system that allows the storage and financing of the products needed in conjunction with the harvest, enabling the products to be kept in modern and healthy warehouses. In order to promote licensed warehousing investments, interest rate reductions are provided in investment loans and business loans. With all these supports and incentives, licensed warehousing is rapidly developing and spreading. As a matter of fact, now, the licensed warehousing capacity reached 1.9 million tons, and the number of companies has climbed to forty-two. The total licensed warehouse capacity will increase exponentially if the 103 companies that have obtained the establishment permit operate. With licensed warehousing companies becoming fully active and spreading throughout the region, the producers’ wealth level will increase and they will present their products to commodity exchange whenever they wish. Turkish Grain Board and the Ministry of Customs and Trade pioneer the sector and offer serious incentives for continued investment. At the end of this process, Turkey will become a leading hub in the world in grain storage. That’s why MYLIDAS is involved in this process.