By incorporating Hardox® and Strenx® steels in tippers, Fesan makes sure not to compromise on quality

“Seeing our customers smile makes us happy,” says Mehmet Baypınar, who is responsible for domestic sales at Fesan. “We’ve made a name for ourselves in Turkey and we now want to be a big name in the rest of the world, and we do that with the help of Hardox and Strenx steels.”

The Turkish company constructs tipper trailers, container carriers and low-bed products in its vast facilities in the booming city of Konya. Being part of the continuously growing market, Fesan also looks for contracts outside the country. To reach its export goals, Fesan turned to SSAB for new solutions. The implementation of Hardox® wear plate and Strenx® performance steel met the company’s expectations and more.

Flagship lightweight tipper model

“We have a product called Dangal, which is used for multipurpose loads, such as bulk cargo, pallet loads and scraps,” Baypınar explains. “It withstands harsh conditions, and by introducing Strenx 700 and Strenx 960 instead of the previous thick mild steel we have shaved off about 800 kilos in the chassis. Fesan was the first company to use Hardox steel in the side and rear doors of the containers, and the change to 1.5-millimeter Hardox 450 from 3-millimeter thickness in the doors has made the vehicle another 600 kilos lighter just from the doors.”

The new design including only three side doors has been revolutionary. First, it offers flexibility as customers can transport logs in one direction and, thanks to the automated top cover, carry chipboards or sawdust on the way back. Second, it saves time when opening the doors. Before, users had to open a total of 12 covers using hammer and pins, and the process of opening and closing took 90 minutes. The new design’s easy grip-open system takes only five minutes, which also improves safety. Third, Dangal was designed for easy and fast on- and off-loading, and it loads twice or three times as fast.

In an ordinary month, the factory produces around 80 different trailers and tippers. For Dangal, the new lightweight flagship model, Fesan uses 100 percent Strenx® steel in the production of the structural parts, and the company is also using Hardox® wear plate in the tipper bodies. But Fesan also prefers Hardox® wear sheet whenever possible for less material waste thanks to suitable dimensions for tipper body production.

Extensive steel material knowledge

Selim Selvi, the company’s founder, is active as a production manager. With 34 years of experience in the superstructure sector, he has extensive knowledge of steel materials.

“The reason why we use sheet material is that it leads to less scrap, which is beneficial from both cost-conscious and sustainable viewpoints,” Selvi says. “We can get SSAB to produce sheets in whatever size we need, and this helps us produce without waste. We use 1.5-millimeter and 1.6-millimeter Hardox wear sheet and then design our products from these parameters. Hardox wear sheet materials are just as strong and durable as plates, so we prefer sheet material. It’s cheaper for us due to less material waste, and the workshop behavior is consistent. We save 150 to 250 kilos of steel waste per tipper depending on the tipper model, which is a very important cost saving.”

Selvi is also happy with the functioning of the Strenx® performance steel. “It doesn’t break during cutting and bending,” he says. “This of course makes production easier for us.”

Withstand wear and tear through high-strength steel

For those of Fesan’s customers who carry heavy loads, the side doors of the tippers must not be deformed by the cargo. Hardox® steel has traditionally always been used in the floor of the bodies, and as a result it has not been deformed by wear and tear thanks to the high-strength material. But for the doors, which earlier were made out of mild steel, deformation and severe dents were a big issue. In 2015 Fesan decided to test using Hardox® 450 steel for the side doors with supporting parts made of Strenx® steel, and the result was extremely positive.

“We got remarkable feedback about the quality, and customer satisfaction was exceptionally high,” Selvi says. “This has made us stand out in the market. There is also a significant weight-loss advantage supported by increased strength.”

The big advantage is that the 6,200-kilo vehicle can provide the same performance as the 9,000-kilo one. It has the strength to carry the same weight and still meet the 2 percent weight-loss regulations for vehicles on the roads that have been in force since 2011. “Before Hardox and Strenx entered our lives, the trailers in Turkey would weigh about 9 or 9.5 tons. After we began using Hardox and Strenx we were able to decrease the weight in phases, first to 8,000 kilos, then to 7,000, and now 6,200 kilos,” Selvi says.

Why is less weight so important to your customers?

“Less weight of the vehicle means the possibility of carrying more product load, and this translates into better productivity for the end user,” Selvi explains. “There are also money saving in less fuel consumption, which is also positive from a sustainability point of view.”

Fesan became a Hardox® In My Body member in 2019 to certify the quality.

“We wanted everyone to know that we’re producing a quality product and use Hardox. This also creates sales advantages with our customers abroad. In Turkey, the biggest competition is in lowering prices, but we compete by increasing quality.”

The Hardox® In My Body membership includes material support from SSAB. This is something that Elif Kaderli, production realization manager at Fesan, is extremely pleased with.

“The delivery quality and the technical advice we obtain is excellent,” she says. “SSAB is a trusted partner, and when we place an order we receive our materials swiftly and in full.”

The company gets on-site support about the materials during production.

“It is especially valuable to learn how to bend the sheets and how to weld accurately,” Kaderli says. “We’re very happy with the result in the workshop. Also, the Hardox In My Body label will increase the value of the vehicle in a secondhand sale. These vehicles will definitely have added value.”

What are Fesan’s plans for the future? Do you have your eyes on Hardox® 500 Tuf?

“Yes, we do,” says Selvi. “We have a new design and we’re going to get technical support from SSAB to start incorporating
Hardox 500 Tuf. We want to start using it as soon as possible. Fesan is an innovative company and our trademark is producing quality products and for that, you need quality material.”