COVER STORY
new infrastructure and the company’ s increasing focus on electrical actuation. Safety valves represent another important part of the portfolio. Through its second company, Varnasan, SMS TORK manufactures ball valves, safety and control valves, with a particular focus on stainless-steel valves. Mr Kaya identifies chemical and food and beverage applications as important markets.“ When the valve is installed, SMS TORK has a service team that is capable of servicing safety valves in whichever industry, by servicing the valves in the field are returning them for company servicing. We find it important to support our customers, wherever and whatever their needs are.”
‘ Made in EU’
SMS TORK also sees potential changes concerning the treatment and designation of Turkish-manufactured products within the European market as an important future development. During the interview, Mr Kaya discussed the possibility of products being able to benefit from a‘ Made in EU’ designation and suggested that developments could take place around 2027. However, he also stressed that the details were not yet clear, particularly concerning customs treatment and origin requirements.
Lean first, digital second
Behind the expansion of the product portfolio is a broader transformation in the company’ s manufacturing operations. SMS TORK began its Lean Manufacturing project in 2019.“ Lean manufacturing had to come before digitalisation,” explains Mr Kaya.“ The reasoning is straightforward: attempting to digitalise a complicated manufacturing process would simply make that complexity digital.” Instead, the company first sought to simplify and streamline its processes. The results, according to SMS TORK, have been significant.“ We have reduced the number of people required on certain production lines by approximately 25 – 30 %, while increasing manufacturing output by around 50 – 60 %,” says Mr Kaya.“ For example, on a line that previously required 10 people, it was reduced to seven while production increased substantially.” Once those processes had been streamlined, SMS TORK began expanding its use of digital tools. The company has used ERP systems since 2012 and has subsequently introduced Power BI reporting across areas including manufacturing, sales and accounting. Manufacturing execution systems( MES) are also used to collect data from machinery, including maintenance information, helping the company monitor equipment and investigate potential problems or causes of production stoppages.
From digitalisation to AI and automation
The next stage of development is increasingly focused on artificial intelligence and automation. SMS TORK is exploring how AI can be applied to areas such as product selection, preparing customer quotations and transferring customer orders into its ERP system. At the same time, the company has invested in automated machinery and robotics.“ In some production areas, we aim to develop machines capable of carrying out complete assembly processes automatically,” explains Mr Kaya.“ These investments have contributed to an increase of more than 35 – 40 % in turnover per person over the past two years, alongside improvements in efficiency and profitability.” Production targets are compared with actual output, with any deviations investigated using data from the company’ s digital systems. Whilst on the face of it this might seem a simple practice, it also demonstrates the company’ s approach that digitalisation is being used to support day-to-day manufacturing decisions rather than treated as an objective in itself.
Expanding capacity
Since the company’ s previous Valve World interview, SMS TORK has increased its manufacturing area by approximately 5,000 m 2. The additional space is intended to support the expansion of electrical actuator production. Mr Kaya describes the additional space not simply as preparation for future growth, but as a current requirement. The existing production area is already becoming too small for electrical actuator manufacturing. The expansion should therefore allow SMS TORK to increase capacity while responding to the demand it is already seeing for its electrical actuator products.
10 Valve World October 2026 www. valve-world. net