Recep Durul (Durulsan Makina Ltd. Şti.)

DURULSAN from Körfez

Exports in 6 continents

Recep Durul, the chairman of the board of directors of DURULSAN,which was born in the Körfez and became a company that exports to the whole world in a short time, answered the questions of the editors of Körfez Vizyon Magazine. Answering the curious questions, Recep Durul explained his goals. DURULSAN, the pride of our Körfez, which has managed to become a giant company starting from scratch and exporting, will make new investments in the coming period.

Could you give some information about your company DURULSAN?

We established the Durulsan Makine company in 1995, after working in a company operating in the LPG Sector for 9 years. As Durulsan, we manufacture LPG filling machines and equipment. A total of 65 people work in our company, 15 of which are engineers. There are 20 CNC lathes, 4 processing center machines, 2 laser cutting machines, 3 press brake bending and form machines, electrostatic painting ovens and many production-related machines in our machine park.

What are the areas that DURULSAN give serves?

While we were a domestic corporation until 2005, we expanded abroad after 2005. Auto gas systems, bulk gas systems, LPG cylinder filling and weighbridges in the energy sector, we have all international certificates. We can sell our products to all countries in the European Union and to all countries of the world with our own brand.

Can you tell us about your goals as DURULSAN?

Our biggest goal is to start fuel pump production after 10 years, reach 50 countries and create 20 distributorships by 2023, create a new customer portfolio in new geographies, increase our dealer chain and increase our market share by making new products every year that continue to provide added value to the country's economy.

R&D CENTER

Apart from this, we aim to establish an R&D center here with a team from Kocaeli University who came to our company. Our studies and meetings about it continue. We are in cooperation with KOSGEB and MARKA. We continue to work on what kind of support we will receive for the nationalization of products. No stopping for us. In the near future, we will have taken another step towards achieving these goals by creating our company constitution.

What does "Company Constitution" mean?

I think that companies should have a constitution just as states have a constitution like the state constitution. Of course, the important point here is that this constitution should not be considered as strict rules limiting the activities of the company, but as the principles that regulate the relations and ensure the longevity of the company. For this reason, we create our company constitution by considering the necessity of creating an organizational structure suitable for the purposes, making and writing job and job descriptions, creating internal regulations, and transitioning to a professional management by distributing influence and responsibilities.

Can you tell us about your work in terms of import and export?

As of 2018, we have exported to approximately 35 countries, and we have reached 6 continents in total, including Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Gulf countries. We have distributors in Chile, Peru, Iraq, Kenya, Nigeria and the UK.

What are your recommendations to members who want to export?

I think the most important factor is to have a trade education. There are many books written in this field, and I can recommend Ahmet Şerif İzgören's books in this sense. Apart from this, you, as the Körfez Chamber of Commerce, have many trainings in this field. I think that members should reach this awareness by benefiting from these trainings. I think that the biggest obstacle to the growth of traders is that they do not know how to use money, and that reaching this awareness is through education and reading.

THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF EXPORT IS FOREIGN LANGUAGE

So, we used to go abroad with translators when we first started exporting foreign languages. By seeing and completing our shortcomings in time, we made benefit from this process correctly. We have come to a position where we represent ourselves and our company abroad in the best way. By the way, the most important point is to have the right teammates. Everyone who works at Durulsan is qualified to represent us abroad in the best possible way.

IMPORTANCE OF FAIRS

Apart from this, I think one of the most important points is to attend fairs. As Durulsan, we attend 8-10 fairs every year. I think that participating in the fairs provides the opportunity to catch the "relevant demand" directly, in a short time and in the most effective way, thus providing significant gains in terms of both sales and promotion. Fairs are an important opportunity to demonstrate the superiority of the equipment and systems we produce in terms of performance, price, quality and service, and in this respect, we attach importance to fairs.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Apart from these, I think that company promotion and strong website are very important factors. In this sense, we are trying to be better known in foreign countries by opening 22 websites. As Durulsan, I can say that we are also very active on social media.

You took part in joint projects with our chamber. How do you evaluate this?

During the visit of the Körfez Chamber of Commerce to the Disabled Association, we resolve the biggest problem of the disabled people. It is a very simple detail about life for most of us, but it was an important detail for our disabled citizens. Disabled people, who could not be weighed on a scale due to their physical condition, asked us for help.

While talking about what can be done to solve this problem after the visit, it was discussed that this scale can be made by us as a manufacturer. Abdullah Baki Susam, a member of the Board of Directors, was called and asked whether this scale would be made by our company, and I said that I could make this scale as a company and we started the process. At the end of 20 days, we solved this problem of our disabled citizens with the precision scale that we designed and manufactured in our own factory. Together with the managers of the Chamber of Commerce, we delivered it to the disabled association. I am extremely pleased to be involved in such a project.

Finally, do you have any message you would like to give to Körfez Vizyon readers?

There is enough work for everyone in this world, just try to do your job in the best way. Don't use that effort in a job you don't like. All you need is to believe that your dreams can come true. It is very important to catch up with the technology of our era and to use these arguments in our work. Foreign language is indispensable for international trade. Let's try to learn at least one foreign language...

Who is Recep Durul?

I was born in Ağrı in 1964. I am a primary school graduate, married and the father of 3 daughters. My working life started when I was in primary school, and the unfavorable conditions of that days forced us to work.