In 1991, Tekmar established a production facility on approximately a 470,000-square-foot parcel of land in Bilecik,Turkey, with the specific intention of producing marble for the foreign market. This goal was achieved, as a total of 99% of the company's production is for export purposes, and today, Tekmar's marble and limestone products are shipped to more than 66 countries globally.

All of the factory's export and marketing activities are conducted by Tekmar's head office in Istanbul and by the administration office in Bilecik. The company strives to be a continuous production plant in the fields of block quarrying and semi-finished and finished products, where production is carried out under international standards.

In September of 1996, Tekmar opened a second factory in Bilecik, which sits on about 150,000 square feet of land. Almost adjacent to the first facility, the company considers this to be one unified operation, which it refers to as the Tekmar Bilecik Factory Complex. Of the total 625,000 square feet of land that the complex occupies, approximately 108,000 square feet is sheltered area, according to Tekmar. The capacity of this plant is about 21.5 million square feet per year, reports the company, adding that it loads 400 containers per month.

Additionally, Tekmar has built a production facility at its Yatagan quarry to minimize turnaround time and provide its customers better service. Annual production capacity of this plant totals approximately 4.3 million square feet.

Tekmar's standard production is shaped according to the demands of the international market. The company offers 2 cm and 3 cm thicknesses for polished and unpolished slabs. Standard tile sizes include 12 x 12, 16 x 16, 18 x 18, 12 x 24 and 24 x 24 inches. The company will also produce custom-sized pieces based on the demands of its customers.

According to Tekmar, quality control is an essential part of the fabricating process. A material is kept under close survaillance from the moment of entry into the line until the completion of the process by the necessary adjustments, Tekmar reports. The first step in the process is polishing and quality control. This is followed by matching the color to complete the selection of material. During the quality control phase, the cracked, damaged and improperly beveled pieces are put aside. The company even goes as far as placing a sample of the ordered material into the inner front face of the tile crates to show the type of the stone.

The materials that Tekmar processes derive from a variety of the company's own quarries. These include the Yatagan marble quarry, which produces Rosa Bellissima, Bianco Rosa, Bianco Royal and Rapsody; the Finike limestone quarry, where Cremo Bello is extracted; and two different beige marble quarries in the Bilecik Region, which produce Crema Nuova and Rosalia. The Yatagan quarry has an annual capacity of approximately 1.8 million cubic feet, while the Finike limestone quarry produces about 350,000 cubic feet of material per year. Additionally, the Bilecik Region quarries combined produce approximately 1.4 million cubic feet of marble each year. Tekmar also is a supplier of material that it obtains from quarries other than its own. These include Salome, Rosso Levanto and Rosa Tea.

Quality service

All of Tekmar's customer service representatives are educated to provide knowledgeable service to its customers. Each representative continuously updates their education by attending sales and exporting courses that are held in the area, according to the company. In total, Tekmar employs seven sales representatives, who among them can communicate in six different languages. The sales areas are divided into the U.S., Far East, Europe and Middle East. For unspoken languages, translators are provided.

In another area, Tekmar decided to improve both its administrative and production systems by taking on ISO 9002 quality certification. Documentation preparations for this certification are currently in process.

Tekmar also places significant value in exhibiting at international marble fairs all around the world. Some of these include Stonetech China in Shanghai and Beijing; Izfas in Izmir, Turkey; Coverings in Orlando, FL; Stone +Tec in Nürnberg, Germany; CarraraMarmotec in Carrara, Italy; Marmomacc in Verona, Italy; Stona in Bangalore, India; Japan Stone in Tokyo, Japan; and the International Tile & Stone Show in Las Vegas, NV.

Side bar:
Tekmar Equipment Inventory

Bilecik factory

4 Barsanti gangsaws with 80 diamond blades
1 Barsanti slab polishing line with one bridge milling machine and 13 polishing heads
7 Pedrini bridge milling machines
2 MBM bathroom and kitchen countertop production machines
1 Barsanti mono-blade block cutting machine
1 Monlevi one-head polishing machine
1 O.M.G.M. edge polishing and bevelling machine
4 Simec gangsaws with 80 diamond blades
1 Simec slab polishing line with one bridge milling machine
2 Pedrini Brema slab polishing lines with two bridge milling machine and 18 polishing heads
1 Zonato trimming machine
1 Benetti narrow diamond belt block saw machine
1 Sei automatic slab resin line
8 Pedrini multi-disc block cutters
3 Pedrini complete tile polishing lines
1 Pedrini complete tile polishing line with 12 heads and complete automatic loader for marble strips
1 Donatoni cross-cutting machine
2 Guglielmi automatic horizontal splitting machines with 4 heads
1 Guglielmi automatic horizontal splitting machine with 6 heads
7 Pedrini cross-cutting machines
2 Zonato 30 x 15 trimming machines
1 edge cutting machine
2 Zhang Zhou Longjiang Imp & Exp. Paledian marble cutting machines
1 Pedrini tile polishing line with strips plastering section

Mugla factory

2 Guglielmi column cranes with semi-automatic vacuum collector for block cutters
1 Guglielmi automatic marble strip loading machine
1 Zonato cross-cutting machine with 4 heads
1 Guglielmi horizontal splitting machine with 4 heads
2 Pedrini block cutters
2 Pedrini gangsaws with 80 diamond blades
2 Pedrini bridge saws
1 Pedrini slab polishing line with 16 polishing heads, complete with slab automatic loader for marble