Mr. Serdar Baykal, Vice President Klas Kablo Executive, has expressed the following: Klas kablo has reached the position of being the pioneer, reliable and established brand of Turkey's cable industry due to the 30 years of experience thereof in the sector.

Mr. Serdar Baykal, as KLAS KABLO you are one of the companies that come to mind first in the cable sector . Could you please explain the process that led to that achievement?
Klas Kablo which has been founded in Istanbul in 1984 and has left 30 years behind had come to the fore with the production of coaxial cable in the first years . It has increased the product diversity in the 90’s with the production of internal and external telephone cables, signal control cables and data cables. It has become a leading company in the sector by launching KD series data cables in RS-232 and RS-422 protocol with KlasData brand Klas kablo which follows up the changes in the world and its country has included in its product range the fire-resistant cable group and instrumentation cables the use of which has become legally mandator y in those years through new investments in the 2000’s. Our company which as the identity of a manufacturer of special cables has reached a product diver sity of around 17 thousand today and that number is increasing evieryday.
The german VDE and russian fire cer tificate (GOST) is available in the field of fire while TSE and TSEK certificates are available in other product groups . 30 % of the employees are white-collar and 6 engineers are employed in different departments. Our colleagues working in the research and development depar tment are continiously making new designs, trials and carrying out technical studies in line with the demands of the customers. We are working with a laborious and dynamic staff which is open to novelties. We take care for setting up a realist and transparent structure in which everybody can express himself/herself in a clear way and use his/her creativity by working with right people thanks to our human-focused system.The satisfaction of the employee and consequently of the customer is our priority. Besides the central sale Of fice in Şişhane/ Istanbul we provide service to our sector with our regional directorates in Ankara, Izmir and Antalia. Our company which puts its products on the market through a selected channel of dealers which is leading sales network in the sector has reached the status of a leading, reliable and well-established brand of the turkish cable sector throughout the period of 30 years since the date of its foundation..
Our product groups :
• Control cables,
• Coaxial cables,
• Instrumentation cables (PVC, PVC-HR, PVC-ö, LSZH (HF FR), fire resistant, UV resistant…),
• Halogenfree flame retardant / fire-resistant cables
• information communication cables,
• Close-circuit camera system (CCTV) cables,
• Fire alarm cables,
• Internal telephone cables,
• Bus cables,
• Silicone cables,
• Special / compound cables .
It is as much difficult to maintain the rise of a brand against the effect of time factor as it is to create a brand at all. This means that you have managed to realize, what is dif ficult to be realized,, in an easy way. What is its secret? Right target, right strategy, right investment, right planning, right step and finally right man and right product Right target ; maybe you may not succeed at attaining your targets 100 % but you must not never make any concessions from working hard to attain them
Right strategy; inside of all the works that you do for the market may be filled only with right data. The way to create a good brand passes through information technologies in our age while it was very easy to create a brand through good service and adver tisement activities previously. Management of customer relations, data stores and internet plays as important role in the development of brands. If we consider that the way for being successful in creating a brand passes through being progressive and innovative I may say that the use of the means of information processing is very impor tant and effective . Thanks to the ERP program that we use we know how to make use of every stage of our commercial activity in an effective manner and obtain a significant added value Right investment ; if you tr y to cover your investments through the credits which your payment capital is unable to repay, this period shalll cer tainly turn against you. Your investments may be the end of your existence . On the other hand the right step has to do with when and how you should take your steps. Steps which are not taken in a right manner and untimely activities may damage the sustainability of your brand . You can not plan your future if you do not’ know your power.A wrong step and a wrong plan would bring about losses rather than benefits for your company .
You must produce the right product and not bind your objectives to short-term interests . The period of deceiving the consumer has ended in all respects because the consumer has become conscious about the products. On the other hand if our subject matter is a critical product with a vital importance like cable we can’t simply live it to the voice of our conscience. I think that factors such as the cer tificates that we have, our references from big and prestigious projects which have made a difference in their respetive areas and the confidence shown by the well-established companies of our sector, which operate as dealers in our country, for our company are the most effective indicators of our quality . While we are super vised by the international companies by which we are cer tificated, the issue to which our sales unit pays attention the most, is the consisMr. Serdar Baykal, as KLAS KABLO you are one of the companies that come to mind first in the cable sector . Could you please explain the process that led to that achievement?
Klas Kablo which has been founded in Istanbul in 1984 and has left 30 years behind had come to the fore with the production of coaxial cable in the first years . It has increased the product diversity in the 90’s with the production of internal and external telephone cables, signal control cables and data cables. It has become a leading company in the sector by launching KD series data cables in RS-232 and RS-422 protocol with KlasData brand Klas kablo which follows up the changes in the world and its country has included in its product range the fire-resistant cable group and instrumentation cables the use of which has become legally mandator y in those years through new investments in the 2000’s. Our company which has the identity of a manufacturer of special cables has reached a product diver sity of around 17 thousand today and that number is increasing evieryday. The german VDE and russian fire cer tificate (GOST) is available in the field of fire while TSE and TSEK certificates are available in other product groups .
30 % of the employees are white-collar and 6 engineers are employed in different departments . Our colleagues working in the research and development depar tment are continiously making new designs, trials and carrying out technical studies in line with the demands of the customers. We are working with a laborious and dynamic staff which is open to novelties. We take care for setting up a realist and transparent structure in which everybody can express himself/herself in a clear way and use his/her creativity by working with right people thanks to our human-focused system. The satisfaction of the employee and consequently of the customer is our priority. Besides the central sale Of fice in Şişhane/Istanbul we provide service to our sector with our regional directorates in Ankara, Izmir and Antalia. Our company which puts its products on the market through a selected channel of dealers which is leading sales network in the sector has reached the status of a leading, reliable and well-established brand of the turkish cable sector throughout the period of 30 years since the date of its foundation..
Our product groups :
• Control cables,
• Coaxial cables,
• Instrumentation cables (PVC, PVC-HR, PVC-ö, LSZH (HF FR), fire resistant, UV resistant…),
• Halogenfree flame retardant / fire-resistant cables
• information communication cables,
• Close-circuit camera system (CCTV) cables,
• Fire alarm cables,
• Internal telephone cables,
• Bus cables,
• Silicone cables,
• Special / compound cables .
It is as much difficult to maintain the rise of a brand against the effect of time factor as it is to create a brand at all. This means that you have managed to realize, what is dif ficult to be realized,, in an easy way. What is its secret? Right target, right strategy, right investment, right planning, right step and finally right man and right product Right target ; maybe you may not succeed at attaining your targets 100 % but you must not never make any concessions from working hard to attain them
Right strategy; inside of all the works that you do for the market may be filled only with right data. The way to create a good brand passes through information technologies in our age while it was very easy to create a brand through good service and adver tisement activities previously. Management of customer relations, data stores and internet plays as important role in the development of brands. If we consider that the way for being successful in creating a brand passes through being progressive and innovative I may say that the use of the means of information processing is very impor tant and effective . Thanks to the ERP program that we use we know how to make use of every stage of our commercial activity in an effective manner and obtain a significant added value Right investment ; if you tr y to cover your investments through the credits which your payment capital is unable to repay, this period shalll cer tainly turn against you. Your investments may be the end of your existence . On the other hand the right step has to do with when and how you should take your steps. Steps which are not taken in a right manner and untimely activities may damage the sustainability of your brand . You can not plan your future if you do not’ know your power.A wrong step and a wrong plan would bring about losses rather than benefits for your company .
You must produce the right product and not bind your objectives to short-term interests . The period of deceiving the consumer has ended in all respects because the consumer has become conscious about the products. On the other hand if our subject matter is a critical product with a vital importance like cable we can’t simply live it to the voice of our conscience. I think that factors such as the cer tificates that we have, our references from big and prestigious projects which have made a difference in their respetive areas and the confidence shown by the well-established companies of our sector, which operate as dealers in our country, for our company are the most effective indicators of our quality . While we are super vised by the international companies by which we are cer tificated, the issue to which our sales unit pays attention the most, is the consisMr. Serdar Baykal, as KLAS KABLO you are one of the companies that come to mind first in the cable sector.
Could you please explain the process that led to that achievement?
Klas Kablo which has been founded in Istanbul in 1984 and has left 30 years behind had come to the fore with the production of coaxial cable in the first years . It has increased the product diversity in the 90’s with the production of internal and external telephone cables, signal control cables and data cables. It has become a leading company in the sector by launching KD series data cables in RS-232 and RS-422 protocol with KlasData brand Klas kablo which follows up the changes in the world and its country has included in its product range the fire-resistant cable group and instrumentation cables the use of which has become legally mandator y in those years through new investments in the 2000’s. Our company which has the identity of a manufacturer of special cables has reached a product diver sity of around 17 thousand today and that number is increasing evieryday. The german VDE and russian fire cer tificate (GOST) is available in the field of fire while TSE and TSEK certificates are available in other product groups.
30 % of the employees are white-collar and 6 engineers are employed in different departments. Our colleagues working in the research and development depar tment are continiously making new designs, trials and carrying out technical studies in line with the demands of the customers. We are working with a laborious and dynamic staff which is open to novelties. We take care for setting up a realist and transparent structure in which everybody can express himself/herself in a clear way and use his/her creativity by working with right people thanks to our human-focused system . The satisfaction of the employee and consequently of the customer is our priority . Besides the central sale Of fice in Şişhane/ Istanbul we provide service to our sector with our regional directorates in Ankara, Izmir and Antalia. Our company which puts its products on the market through a selected channel of dealers which is leading sales network in the sector has reached the status of a leading, reliable and well-established brand of the turkish cable sector throughout the period of 30 years since the date of its foundation..
Our product groups :
• Control cables,
• Coaxial cables,
• Instrumentation cables (PVC, PVC-HR, PVC-ö, LSZH (HF FR), fire resistant, UV resistant…),
• Halogenfree flame retardant / fire-resistant cables
• information communication cables,
• Close-circuit camera system (CCTV) cables,
• Fire alarm cables,
• Internal telephone cables,
• Bus cables,
• Silicone cables,
• Special / compound cables .
It is as much difficult to maintain the rise of a brand against the effect of time factor as it is to create a brand at all. This means that you have managed to realize, what is dif ficult to be realized,, in an easy way. What is its secret?
Right target, right strategy, right investment, right planning, right step and finally right man and right product Right target ; maybe you may not succeed at attaining your targets 100 % but you must not never make any concessions from working hard to attain them
Right strategy; inside of all the works that you do for the market may be filled only with right data. The way to create a good brand passes through information technologies in our age while it was very easy to create a brand through good service and adver tisement activities previously.
Management of customer relations, data stores and internet plays as important role in the development of brands. If we consider that the way for being successful in creating a brand passes through being progressive and innovative I may say that the use of the means of information processing is very impor tant and effective . Thanks to the ERP program that we use we know how to make use of every stage of our commercial activity in an effective manner and obtain a significant added value
Right investment ; if you tr y to cover your investments through the credits which your payment capital is unable to repay, this period shalll cer tainly turn against you. Your investments may be the end of your existence . On the other hand the right step has to do with when and how you should take your steps. Steps which are not taken in a right manner and untimely activities may damage the sustainability of your brand . You can not plan your future if you do not’ know your power.A wrong step and a wrong plan would bring about losses rather than benefits for your company .
You must produce the right product and not bind your objectives to short-term interests . The period of deceiving the consumer has ended in all respects because the consumer has become conscious about the products. On the other hand if our subject matter is a critical product with a vital importance like cable we can’t simply live it to the voice of our conscience. I think that factors such as the cer tificates that we have, our references from big and prestigious projects which have made a difference in their respetive areas and the confidence shown by the well-established companies of our sector, which operate as dealers in our country, for our company are the most effective indicators of our quality . While we are super vised by the international companies by which we are cer tificated, the issue to which our sales unit pays attention the most, is the consistency between the demand from the customers and the offers made by us. If there is a discrepancy between the two (especially differences that would mislead the consumer ) this would be mistake of the its own sake. . Weak current cable is a not very much known subject which may be said to be quite complex in itself. We are able to offer products independent from the demand of the customer in order to be attractive in the dimension of offer. . We continue our efforts in order to determine such opportunities .
Even if ypu produce the best quality product in the world using the best technology it is the human factor which is the most effective factor that completes it. We have never left our business to chance in this regard and accepted the investment made in the human factor as the most valuable investment . If you can not adapt yourself to the novelties in this age of technological change in which even the previous year is called the “old times” and can not take the pulse of your customer and customer good it might be very difficult for you to do business . If you pay attention I am talking about not to create wonders but only doing business, because nowadays an enterprise has to show a serious performance even only for doing business, let alone creating wonders. The dynamics are changing so rapidly that they may dizzy you if you fail to adapt yourself to them. As a team, we study our lessons, do our homework and enter the exams just like a student. We continiously undergo training and do not leave our business to chance. Success does not come as a result of coincidence and even if does, it shall not be a lasting one. As you have stated if it is dif ficult to reach a definite point it has become even more difficult to remain at that point. . We overcome the difficulties and challenges through right products, the values that we believe and right people . I may readily say that we meet and shall continue to meet with companies and people with which we speak the same language .
Do you search new markets in the coming period ? To which factors do you pay attention regarding your search for new markets as KLAS KABLO ?
We are of course searching new markets . We first determine target markets and then complete the feasibility studies about them. We have to ensure the congruence between the product and market af ter having completed the desk based investigations and investigations on site. For that purpose the price policy in that market as well as our ability to adapt ourselves to that policy is also important. We prefer to use right data banks and confirmed information in our investigations. We tr y not to carr y out market investigations based on a chance or trial and error basis. It is very important to obtain effective results for us in our activities which we carr y out on the basis of the principle of existing in the right market on the right time with the right product and right strategy. The process which begins with investigation and marketing is further followed up and recorded until the end of the sales and even collection in all details. We are not discouraged by challenging tasks thanks to the accumulation of knowledge of our foreign trade department, team work and our confidence in our company. For that reason you may easily see KLAS KABLO in the projects the export of which is difficult and requires effort and time. We do not forget that we also represent our country everytime we enter into a new market and carry out new activities just as we don’t in those markets in which we already exist.
Could you make an evaluation of the first half of the year 2014 from the point of view of your company?
As Klas Kablo we have an experience of 30 years . We have reinforced this experience even further with our renewed energy gained through the renewal of our staff in the last quarter of 2013. Our customer structure has totally changed. Our team has been totally renewed. We had underwent ver y fundamental changes in a short time . Our product, reference and certificate catalogues have been prepared. We follow-up all the trade fairs in our country as well as all over the world and try to participate in all of them. We have moved our sale Office to a new place and renewed our image. We have reorganized our expor t department . and realized our first export in significant amount to an oil refinery project in Uzbekistan in cooperation with a company in Moscow. On the other hand we continue to engage in projects in the domestic market in line with our strategy of dealing only with big projects which are the most important and prestigious ones in their respective lanes.
They are long-term projects (like Melen 2 project, Malatya GES project, Athletic arena and Vip Hotel within the scope of the olympic park in Turkmenistan, Torun Center, Maslak 1453, Taksim Acıbadem hospital, Beylikdüzü Hilton, moskovakuntsevomultıfuncsıonel, Toki Çerkezköy, Şanlıurfa, Ödemiş, Ümraniye State hospitals, TAV Adnan Menderes İzmir airpor t, Dostyk Plaza, Mriya Hotel Türkmenistan, Harran University State hospital, Seamelia Antalya, MARoyal Antalya, Karmir Hotel Antalya projects). These are only several of the projects undertaken in the year 2014). Our relations with our dealers are increasingly becoming stronger. Besides these, we are trying to regain our previous customer portfolio that we had lost in OEM sectors in which we were active as the producer of special cables. Yes we are working very hard as a team and believe and trust in our brand and ourselves. We are acrive in the cable sector which is the most risky sector. This is a big disadvantage when viewed from outside . What do you think about it?
It is true we have always been against this risk albeit more intensively in the past. You may change this disadvantegous situation into an advantage if you know well where to stop and where you must become active regarding your activities in the markets and if you have the strength to run the risk of stopping and if you are knowledgeable about your business and finally if you do not have ambitions that foreshadow your logic. We are company which has adopted the principle of carrying out its commercial activities according to the rules without violating the hierarchical order. We have undertakings and promises against ourselves and our customers . However as you have stated, we are compelled to compete with companies which have no ethcal values and can take risks, when we put our products on the market. What exhausts us the most are those companies which have absolutely no quality related problems but do not follow a stable sale policy . Quality awareness has reached a certan level in Turkey. Factors such as the activities of the consumer associations as well as the negative experiences that the consumers themselves have lived have led some criteria to be established in the minds of the consumers . However there are those companies in which ethical understanding of doing business has not been established sufficiently. We produce our products without making any concessions from quality and offer them to the market through a network of dealer s which have a quite developed awareness of quality and believe in our company and brand wholeheartedly. We are absolutely not the competitors of our dealers but their solution partners on the contrary . We follow-up all their problems and difficulties closely and have adopted a solution focused approach towards them.
I would like to point out that we aim at providing the best service to our dealers and letting them enjoy working with us and we are conscious of our responsibility as a producer which have succeeded in becoming a brand in Turkey and preferred by the wholesalers. We seriously wage a war for the purpose of doing what is to be done in the sector despite all the negative conditions of competition impor tant the sector.
Together with our stakeholders who believe abnd trust us we shall continue to offer to the consumers the weak current cables which shall meet the needs of people for security, comfort and communication. On the other hand we are trying to overcome all the adverse circumstances in the sector by means of our distribution channels.