Stahl focus on quality and colour

The first Stahl laboratory was opened about two years later in 1998. There are now two laboratories, one in Tuzla and one in Menemen, near Izmir. Tuzla supports the tanneries in Tuzla/Istanbul, Çorlu, Bursa, Güney, Kemalpasa, Ezine and Gerede. The Menemen laboratory supports the tanneries in Menemen/Izmir, Usak and Manisa. They offer technical support to the tanneries, to help them create new leathers, new effects and meet their customer requirements such as fashion or technical demand/specification. R&D is centralised and coordinated by Stahl Holland. Tate said: 'We have a full range of products available in Türkiye - from those required in the beamhouse to those needed in the finishing department. Stahl in Türkiye is mainly known for our finishing products - we aim to promote the total 'Leather Product Group' package.' Asked how successful Stahl Türkiye has been, he replied: 'We are successful and are actively improving product/technology awareness by working in the tanneries and we intend to improve our 'presence' in Turkey. Q Are there any other products that are new to Türkiye? A We are always looking to introduce new products to satisfy new requirements. Q How long does it take for a product range to arrive in Türkiye compared with, for example, in Holland? A There are no delays - once a new product is introduced, our customers will be made aware as soon as possible. Q Are there any product ranges that are only available in Türkiye? A No. Q Have there been many major changes since you moved to Türkiye last year? A There are always changes to cope with - ask me again next year! Q What do you hope to achieve over the next year? A To improve my knowledge of the Turkish leather market so that we can together improve the way in which we offer support - ultimately of course to improve our sales and market share. Q What do you think is the key to Stahl's success in Türkiye? A The technical support that our experienced leather technicians can offer our customers. Q What is your opinion on the Turkish leather industry? A The quality leather and leather articles produced compete well with those from any other part of the world. Q Where do you think it will be in 5-10 years time? A I don't have a crystal ball - but I reckon it will become a far bigger contender in the world leather trade - and I could still be here. At Leather Days Stahl's display of leather finishes at Deri Günleri was designed to reflect closely the fashion needs, raw materials and traditions of the Turkish leather industry and focused on quality and colour for the autumn 2002/winter 2003 season. The emphasis was on deeper, clearer and more intense colours and on subtle and refined pastels. Around 75% of the leathers on the display were produced using Stahl wet-end, dyeing and finished products on local Turkish crusts, therefore offering local tanners products that are relevant to the Turkish market. About a quarter of the finished leathers on display were shoe upper leathers. A wide range of garment leathers were also on view, plus upholstery leathers, all featuring classic soft dressings on sheepskins and bovine raw materials. The latest synthetic retanning resins, Renektan BN, the Synektan range, the softening fatliquor Corilene AF and Corilene WP-1, WP-2, WP-3 technology for preparing soft, low density hydrophobic crusts were used on most of the leathers. The new WT-13-485 Poly-Matte dull top coat was used on some of the leathers to achieve a soft touch and quality performance. Poly-Matte technology was also featured on upholstery leathers which produces a soft matt finish that dry mills without crease whitening and offers a high resistance to abrasion and flexing. Other leathers featured the company's cationic base coating technique and incorporated F1-17-701, a soft cationic filler, as the backbone of the formulation. A1-13-749 is a newly developed low VOC aqueous lacquer emulsion designed for intermediate and top coats used on leathers where luxurious handle and gloss are required. One very important and common theme throughout the display was that of softness and touch. The leathers presented were prepared by experienced local technicians at Stahl's modern Applications Laboratories based in Tuzla and Izmir, supported by colleagues at Stahl's Leather Technology Center at headquarters in Waalwijk, Holland.