Berk Seckin, (Group) CEO of the company talks about the hardware availability, compatibility, challenges in terms of hardware quality and prices, supply and selection of the right product in terms of application, hardware durability and test standards, etc. with WFM Media.
As one of the top players in the industry, do you think that Indian hardware brands are facing competition and challenges in terms of quality and prices, from the Turkish, Chinese and European brands available in the Indian market?
The truth is, if you do your job properly, plan your capacity correctly and control your quality standards, I do not see any danger for Indian brands. In fact, I see that brands coming to India with globalising markets are also bringing innovations and offering them to the market. It is a great chance for local manufacturers to choose the ones that are popular in the market from these new products and produce them locally. The most important problem I see with Indian manufacturers is that they cannot reach the desired level in terms of quality and they do not understand the definition of optimum capacity. They have a perception like, “Let’s not compete with the Chinese, let’s provide service to places the Chinese cannot reach”. This is very damaging to them. They need to turn back from this mistake.
Different profiles/sections need different hardware. Do the hardware brands manage to supply the right product in terms of application and what challenges do you face?
I don’t see any difficulty here. Remember, the world is bigger than you. There is no need to waste time changing the world. After all, there are accepted standards in the world and all accessories are designed according to them. If a profile manufacturer wants to go beyond this, of course, they can do it, but it would be really expensive to pay the price. In today’s rational and competitive markets, I don’t think anyone would dare to do this. The industry has come to such a point that, let alone dimensional standards, formal standards have started to be accepted. Sometimes I find this unacceptable, but go and look, you see almost the same arm models in all projects. I think this will change soon as users’ perceptions increase and architects want to make a difference.
Is there enough awareness on performance criteria for hardware among architects, fabricators and procurement experts from real-estate developers?
A big no. Unfortunately, except for some large window manufacturers in the sector, there is a serious insensitivity on this issue. The vast majority just copy what they see and do not examine performance.
Could you please brief us on hardware durability and test standards followed in India?
Frankly, it is not very correct to call the tests performed as ‘regional’. With the globalizing world, standards are now becoming ‘Global standards’. The issue is to understand what these standards are and to ensure the spread of institutes and accredited laboratories that will ensure the implementation of these standards. Unfortunately, I observe that even in large companies that care about quality, some standards are misunderstood or applied incorrectly. Otherwise, tests such as cycle tests, wind load test, water leakage test, salt spray test are applied in some companies as well as all over the world. I would like to underline an important point here, laboratories established in local hardware companies are generally used to show customers. These laboratories should be a part of production in a way that truly contributes to quality.
Please brief on hardware compatibility in system design.
In fact, when it comes to a system company, it is necessary that every part – from the profile to the screw – is considered an inseparable part of the production; that every service – from the order of the materials to the manufacturing, packaging, assembly and after-sales service – is defined with operational procedures; as a standard of the system, that it has rules, and that it has been tested with material and service quality.
In some cases, the system company must have done all kinds of tests – tested and approved the compatibility of every part including the accessories. In short, this question you asked will not have any meaning for a real system company. Because the compatibility of every hardware has been clearly tested or hardware with quality compliance has been selected. However, the so-called system companies, which I call chameleons, who look like system companies but think that they only sell systems by copying, unfortunately, leave their work to chance. The sad part here is that not only the ones who put the system on the market but also the factories that use it and the manufacturers who choose it leave their work to chance. No comments for the rest.
With the BIS certification becoming mandatory for most of the building materials, how is it going to affect the import of hardware or its raw material supply chain?
Every step taken in terms of quality is certainly beneficial. However, the implementation of the steps taken should be suitable for the purpose and the standards should be followed. Otherwise, a structure emerges as if those who receive this certification do their job as they wish and if the quality element is not followed, then this certification will take us backwards. I hope everything will be as it should be and quality control will always be the priority.
uPVC has seen the downfall because of quality issues (installation, application problems, hardware quality, reinforcement, etc.) and system aluminium is taking share. What’s your comment on this?
The market is still growing and companies that do their job properly continue to grow. Even large pipe companies that produce with extrusion are entering the window industry. Of course, we observe that aluminium systems are starting to take a larger share of the market. I think this is a trend and I don’t think it will continue in the long term. Everyone has started to produce systems in the aluminium market and most of these systems are just profile designs. Some of them even stick their own protective foils on ready-made profiles. They don’t even have technical offices. Such companies cannot survive in this industry for a long time and real system companies will eventually enter the market with thermal brake systems to make a difference. The system aluminium craze I see today will then turn into the thermal brake system craze. That’s when aluminium systems will be preferred in very expensive elite projects and other projects will prefer PVC. In addition, I think India will have a visible growth potential shortly. This will pave the way for very large façade works in commercial projects. Those who are ready for this wind of change in the aluminium market will sail well and reach safe shores.
What are the major innovations that you would like to see in the market in the next 10 years?
Of course, looking forward to seeing more smart home projects and hardware that can be connected to these projects. We will hear the “Hey Alexa close my window” command very often.
