Ismail Onder Kartal, President of Corum Soil Industrialists’ Cooperative, said, “Just as Corum comes to mind when ‘leblebi’ is mentioned in Turkey, it also comes to mind when the brick tile is mentioned.”
Realizing approximately 50% of Turkey’s total tile production and 15% of brick production, the industrialists in Corum aim to close the second production season, which started in the shadow of the new type of coronavirus (Covid-19) epidemic, with growth.
The soil industry production, which started with the discovery of suitable raw materials in Corum in the 1950s, has become a sector with 18 factories, 13 of which are tiles and 5 of which are bricks, each with an annual average production capacity of 10 million, in the last 70 years.
The industrialists, who have made Corum one of the important production centers of Turkey in brick tile production, which has developed with the partnership culture, continue their production by joining forces under the roof of Corum Soil Industrialists Cooperative.
Ismail Onder Kartal, President of Corum Soil Industrialists Cooperative, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that Corum is one of the leading cities in Turkey in the production of soil industry.
Expressing that they have a very serious weight especially in tile production, Kartal said, “Nearly 50% of the tiles in Turkey are produced in Corum. In other words, one out of every two tiles on roofs in Turkey is produced in Corum. We have a market share of around 15% in brick production.”
Emphasizing that the Corum tile is as famous as the Corum roasted chickpea ‘leblebi’, Kartal said, “Just as Corum comes to mind when ‘leblebi’ is mentioned in Turkey, it is also Corum when brick tile is mentioned. The brick tile we produce here is in the market as ‘Corum brick tile’. This is a proud moment for our city. We have shipments everywhere, we are quite successful in terms of branding.”
Pointing out that the soil industry is an important employment area, especially for unskilled labor due to labor-intensive production techniques, Kartal stated that there was no unemployment problem in the sector during the epidemic, and an average of 2,500 people were employed.
“We started the season on a positive note”
Kartal stated that they started the season a month late in 2020 due to the Covid-19 epidemic, and that they had problems in product shipment due to the contraction in the construction sector, and explained that they gained a good momentum in the last quarter due to the tendency of citizens to renovate their homes.
Expressing that they started this year with hope, Kartal noted that they aim to reach higher sales figures than last year.
Kartal continued:
“We started production about a month ago in the 2021 season. Since people’s demands for vineyard houses and hobby gardens continue, our sales continue. The active start of the construction sector this year also reflected positively on us. There are new demands, the need for housing continues. We started the season on a positive note, we expect it to go well. We think there will be an increase in demand in the coming days.”
Emphasizing that alternative products are being produced in brick and tile with the developing technology, Kartal said:
“We only cook the soil without adding any chemicals in our brick tile production. It is a product that should naturally be preferred for healthy buildings. We experience this more frequently, especially in tile. Alternative roofing materials can cause serious problems in heat, storms and fires. People who see this return to tile again.”
Source: AA / Translated by Irem Yildiz