On the Threshold of 30+ Years — Alkur's Manufacturing Journey from 1993 to Today

In the autumn of 2023, during the factory visit where we celebrated our 30th anniversary, a dealer partner of ours asked: “Over thirty years so much has changed, what is the one thing that has always stayed in mind?”

It took some time to think about the answer. Because between where we started in 1993 and where we have arrived today — on both the production and the corporate identity side — more bridges have been built than fit on a balance sheet. This piece is an attempt to answer that question.

The distributor era — 1993-2004

Alkur Kapı Sistemleri was founded in Istanbul by our founder Reha Kurtuluş in 1993; at that time, the industrial door market in Turkey relied almost entirely on imported products. In the early years the work was this: to be a distributor for world brands, bring the products to the field, and connect quality with dealers and end users.

Our first distributorships came one after another:

• 1994 — Raynor (garage door) + LiftMaster (motor)
• 1997 — CLOPAY (first distributor of sectional garage doors in Turkey)
• 2001 — NICE (first Italian door automation distributor in Turkey)

It was the preliminary period during which we acclimatised our dealers to the international standards of the sector. But eventually we realised: staying a distributor means quality control is not in your own hands. We started planning the transition to manufacturing.

First steps into domestic manufacturing — 1999-2009

The first manufacturing step came in 1999. By importing THYSSEN panels and combining them with FLEXI FORCE mechanisms, we began our own assembly. This was still not fully domestic; but on the engineering side, the first touch came from us.

In 2004, we established our first 1,500 m² factory in Tuzla OSB. In those same years, our export map also began to move. In 2005 we made a decision: we would move to 100% domestic-panel sectional door production. We introduced the brand that would carry this decision: NORMTOR.

The 2008-2009 period was a year in which multiple milestones overlapped:

• 2008 — We moved into the production of rapid PVC (HPVC) doors
• 29 October 2009 — Opening of the new 5,000 m² factory in Hendek/Sakarya
• 2009 — In the same year, we became the first TÜV NORD CERT certified domestic HPVC door manufacturer
• 2009 — We participated in R+T Stuttgart for the first time (the sector’s international showcase)

The Hendek facility was not just an expansion in space; it was also a leap in our production discipline and certification infrastructure.

The formation of brand architecture — 2011-2015

After NORMTOR, two sister brands followed:

• 2011 — NORMDOCK (dock leveler, shelter)
• 2012 — r-tec (automation and control range)

The positioning of r-tec was an important decision: in those years, both foreign brand distributorships (NICE etc.) and the products we developed ourselves were being sold under the same umbrella. In 2015 we clarified the decision: we terminated our foreign distributorships and concentrated on the 100% Turkish-made r-tec brand.

This decision had two outcomes — first, engineering experience and brand control passed entirely into our hands; second, the product development cycle accelerated significantly.

Documentation and international expansion — 2006-2018

The certification side is the quiet but determining piece of the business. In 2006 we launched the export programme and participated in the Dubai fair. Our map expanded over the years:

• 2006 — Dubai
• 2007 — Syria + Georgia
• 2010 — Paris Equipbaie + Qatar
• 2009-2024 — R+T Stuttgart (biennial; regular participation)

The critical step in certification came in 2013: the first domestic-panel NORMTOR sectional door CE certificate in Turkey (EN 13241-1, SP Sweden Class 2/3). The word “first” carries both material and symbolic meaning for a country’s manufacturing sector.

In 2014, we made a launch that made waves in the domestic market: the G-24 multi-purpose control unit. This was the world’s first single-board control for the 24 V gate group; it simplified stock management on the dealer side and accelerated field installation.

The r-tec product development period — 2017-2024

After brand control passed into our own hands, the product range accelerated. Year-by-year expansion:

• 2017 — Launch of r-tec DinamixBAR + Dinamix barrier production
• 2018 — r-tec sliding gate motor
• 2019 — DinamixBAR WM wall barrier, A-FLA flasher, MF-A safety photocell
• 2020 — KING series sliding motors (524F, 1224F, 1000-2000)
• 2022 — FU inverter control board, King 3000 FU
• 2023 — DinamixBar L 9000 + Alkur 30th anniversary celebration
• 2024 — r-tec EV charger (WCU-22 Wallbox + WCU-11 Portable)

The addition of the EV charger was a step that carried 30 years of door + automation experience into the infrastructure for electric vehicles; the same dealer network, the same authorized technicians, a new category.

Today and beyond

Under the coordination of the 5,000 m² production facility in Hendek/Sakarya and the head office in Ataşehir/Istanbul, we connect five product families with five commercial brands under a single engineering discipline: ALKUR (HPVC), r-tec (automation), NORMPANEL (panel), NORMTOR (sectional), NORMDOCK (loading).

Our export map covers nearby geographies and global markets, predominantly Europe. With the EAC certificate we supply products to the Eurasian Economic Union market; with EN 13241-1 to the EU market; and with the Domestic Product Certificate to public tenders.

Still the same slogan: “Doors that Open to the Future”. The line our founder spoke when setting out thirty years ago today still stands at the foundation of our brand values.

For a detailed year-by-year chronology and photo archive, you can visit the About Us > Chronology and Fairs > Fair Photo Archive pages.