İrfan Serim is one of the ‘dedicated’ craftsmen who opened his first shop in 1969, started production in the aluminum sector in 1982 with his brother, aluminum joinery master Ali Osman Serim, joined the OSTİM family in 1983, and handed over the business to his brother and son 20 years ago. İrfan Serim, a metal joinery master, started his working life as a welder.
Serim, who occasionally visits OSTİM and breathes in the industrial atmosphere, recounted the turning points in his story, which stretches from Ata Sanayi to OSTİM.
Accepting our invitation for an interview, Serim, who spent years working tirelessly with his machines, reflected on the past and present. When asked, "What do you see when you look at OSTİM?", he responded, drawing on his experience: "In OSTİM, I see the future of Turkey. Don't dismiss OSTİM so easily, but it's becoming too small. Larger organizations need to be built urgently."
How did your working life begin?
My original profession was welding. I worked for 5 years at a workshop that made safes, starting with my master. In 1969, I opened my first shop in Ata Sanayi. We used to say, "Who would go to a place called OSTİM?" Back then, it was all fields. Everywhere was muddy, there were no roads, no paths. The late Cevat Dündar did us a great favor, saying, "Come in, we'll manage you." But we didn't have faith in ourselves. We had just opened a new shop. I was only managing to get by. When I opened the shop, I only had 100 lira in my pocket.
When did you come to OSTİM?
I came in 1983. I rented my first shop. It was my master Kamil Örüç's shop. He sold it to someone else. It was fate, so we came here and became tenants.
I worked in the basement at Ata Sanayi for 17 years, never seeing the sun. That's why we paid 10 lira more to rent this shop that gets sunlight. When we arrived here, we felt like we'd landed on a football field. Believe me; back then, there was no asphalt, it was all sandy and muddy... There were no roads. The car would get stuck in the mud, and we'd have to bring a tow truck to get it out. That's how things were in the early days.
After Ata Sanayi, OSTİM seemed too big. There, it was a basement. I was getting electricity from the shop upstairs; they wouldn't even provide electricity. In 1968, there was a flood. The shop was filled with 50 cm of silt. I carried that silt on my back all the time and poured it into the tea…
When we first came to OSTİM, seeing how big the streets and avenues were, we said, "What's the point?" It seemed too big to us then. The workshops looked like palaces. But now these streets and avenues feel narrow.
Those who planned OSTİM had foresight far ahead of their time. May they rest in peace, may God be pleased with them. They did so much good for this country. Those contributions are invaluable.
We came here from difficult circumstances. We are very grateful for today, thank God.
“ART WAS SUPERIOR BEFORE”
Why did you choose not to become a member here?
It wasn't a choice, it was a matter of impossibility. I never became a member here. First, I came here renting, then I partnered with my brother Ali Osman Serim, and we switched from blacksmithing to aluminum work. I was in charge until 1995. But I got tired of this check and promissory note business, these impossibilities. Ali Osman and I are partners. When my son finished university and completed his military service, I said, "Son, I'm tired now."
How many workers did you start with here?
When we came here, we had 5 workers. By the time I left, we never exceeded 7, 8, or 10. I left the business to my children. I said, "I'm fed up, I'm tired." After me, my son and his uncle took over the side business. They ran both workshops together. They developed the business and continued with his uncle. He has a son, and I have a son.
Why did you give up?
At that time, there was an economic crisis, checks weren't being paid, I couldn't pay them, I couldn't get paid for the work I did, I couldn't get anyone to like my work. We were bringing materials from Ata Sanayi and Siteler. There weren't even any material sellers, not even aluminum sellers, in OSTİM at that time. We went through very difficult times. After that, I said to my son, "May God grant you success in your work."
Today, many workers are employed in your workplace; you provide people with a livelihood. Could you please consider this? You yourself were an apprentice, a journeyman, a worker…
Five of us came from the village to Ankara. We went to learn a trade in industry. Now, there are 60 tradesmen from our village in OSTİM. They all came as apprentices, and we guided them afterward.
Is there anything like art? Our village was the poorest of the surrounding villages. All the labor came from our village; shepherding, farm work, manual labor, craftsmanship. Looking at it from an artistic perspective, art was superior in the past. It was about rewarding labor. Now it's mechanized, developed, and grown.
“YOU MUST NOT DEVIATE FROM INDUSTRY”
What was the apprenticeship training policy like during the time you worked?
In the 90s, we couldn't employ anyone without apprenticeship training. They would come from the Apprenticeship Training School, spending half a day training there and half a day working here. The children were learning things. If you hadn't gone to a vocational school, you couldn't get a master craftsman certificate or open a shop. My master, Kamil Örüç, said, "You have to get a master craftsman certificate." We took a three-day course as craftsmen at a vocational school in Gazi Mahallesi, and we received our master craftsman certificate.
What do you see when you compare the conditions in Ata Sanayi with those in OSTİM?
I see the future of Turkey in OSTİM. Don't dismiss OSTİM so easily, but it's becoming too small. Larger, more organized industrial zones are urgently needed.
Cevat Dündar, may God rest his soul, made a huge contribution in the early days. It was his first project. Today, when we look at OSTİM, we see trucks and trailers filling it up and leaving. Wouldn't anyone be happy about that? Many of the businesses you see today were run by people who lived hand-to-mouth back then. The point we've reached today is incomparable. But this was inevitable; that was the purpose of OSTİM's establishment. Now, my son and nephew employ 30 people, depending on the location. When I was starting, it never exceeded 10 people. What else could there be here if not a future?
When you look around, everyone wants to be a civil servant, work in the service sector, and have a salary. That's wrong; you shouldn't stray from industry. I don't know about that. There's a hadith of our Prophet: "Nine out of ten is trade." So you still have to work. Everyone is graduating from university now, everyone is studying, but there aren't enough skilled workers. I had a master craftsman, may God rest his soul... He was such a skilled worker, a true artist. I say artist, but they didn't appreciate him; he came and went like that. If he were alive with the opportunities we have now, what wouldn't he have accomplished?
Many of our friends came from Ata Sanayi and became factory owners. We were all friends from our village. They wouldn't let us herd sheep in the village because they considered us incompetent, but now many of them are factory owners here. Actually, we all fled the village to get here. My late father worked, he was a craftsman. He made fountains and things like that. Making a living was hard. It wasn't like it is now.
What does it take to be successful in business?
First of all, ethics. Almost no one who grows up in industry lacks good morals. Believe me, if there were no industrialists, the country would starve. They have the resources for everything, and they cultivate skilled people. Craftsmanship, manners. In terms of honesty, the industrialists in Ankara are the most honest people. They are also trustworthy; we have all experienced this.
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