In mid-March 2019, Turkish plastics industry association Pagev (Istanbul; www.pagev.org.tr) elected its board of directors as scheduled. President Yavuz Eroğlu and his team – including deputies Ahmet Meriç and Ali Zeki Karadeniz – were confirmed in office.

A few days earlier, the association had staged the groundbreaking ceremony for Turkey's first "Pastic Excellence Center, which is currently taking shape in Istanbul.

Construction of the building, which will cover an area of 30,000 m² in the Küçükçekmece district of the city, is divided into three phases. The complex is located in the immediate vicinity of the Pagev Technical and Industrial Vocational High School with its approximately 1,500 students. Construction is set to cost TRY 70m (around EUR 11m). Eroğlu reports that “Phase 1” will be available to Turkish plastics companies in 2021. The aim is to provide support to processors, producers and machine builders through research and development, laboratories, certification and training as well as consulting.