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“With our Glaston Jumbo furnace and insulating line, we can now produce the biggest IG units in the Balkans, and our business is taking off internationally. The line helps us serve architects who want ever-larger, top-quality windows for offices, schools and even shopping malls with glass sizes up to 3.5 meters or more,” says Jelena Blagojevic, Marketing Manager of Pavle.

Pavle Pančevo, located about 20 kilometers northeast of Belgrade, Serbia, has grown from humble beginnings. Founder Pavle Tmušić began as a delivery driver for glass products and went on to become a reseller. From there, he decided to start processing glass himself and founded Pavle Pančevo with his late wife Zorica in 1992.

A FAMILY AFFAIR OF CARE

Today, the family-owned business is still very much in the hands of the family members. Jelena Tmušić Blagojevic, Marketing Manager; Marko Tmušić General Manager, and Marija Jovicevic, CFO, are the owner’s children.

The younger Tmušićs started with summer jobs and have had a natural interest in the business. Today, they and their spouses work alongside Pavle Tmušić.

“We’re very family-oriented at Pavle. We take care of the business even more because we’re all involved – it’s an inherent part of our lives. Since my father started from zero, we’re really proud to see how the company has grown,” Jelena says.

ONE OF THE BIGGEST AND NEWEST IN SERBIA

In 2006, Pavle invested in its first Glaston tempering line – the ProE.

“At the time, it was not very easy to get information on glass processing machinery like you can today through the Internet,” Jelena says. “So, my father traveled to meet a few companies with furnaces – and at each location, he was told that the best machinery came from Glaston, then Tamglass.”

Pavle Tmušic jumped on a plane and flew to Finland to see the ProE. He quickly decided that this was the furnace for his company. The furnace was one of the biggest and newest in Serbia when he bought it, which helped Pavle position itself as a leader in the market.

QUALITY SETS GLASTON APART 

“We’re thankful for that decision. It wasn’t easy then – and it wasn’t any easier this time either, because the Jumbo line was a huge investment for us,” Jelena says.

“We received many bids, honestly,” she continues. “When we sat down and talked about it, we realized we were so happy with the quality of our Glaston ProE, the service, the installation support – there was no other option. But we know we made the right choice. The furnace quality really sets Glaston apart from the rest.”

A BIT OF LUCK – AND CERTIFICATION

Pavle made the decision to go with the Glaston Jumbo around the beginning of 2021, while still during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This made things even more difficult for us,” Jelena recalls. “We didn’t know what would happen with the market or the world economy. But we were lucky that Serbia is still developing. We have a lot of new buildings and offices. There’s a new building site every 50 meters in Belgrade. So, even during COVID, we were fortunate to have a lot of business.”

Today, the majority of Pavle’s customers are construction businesses in Serbia needing high-quality façades and balustrades.

Then three years ago, Pavle received the French CEKAL certificate, guaranteeing the quality and durability of a manufacturer’s insulating, laminated and tempered glazing for different applications. As a result, Pavle has been able to enter the French market, where the company currently has a considerable amount of work for window processors.

SIZE MATTERS

The Glaston Jumbo was delivered in February 2022 and started running the same summer. To house the line, Pavle built a new hall with room for the blowers and all the needed auxiliary machinery. The ProE was then turned off.

“It has been most important for us to use the size of the furnace to our advantage,” says Marko Tmušić. “We can process a lot of glass simultaneously, which drastically improves our production time. If an order needs to be ready in two weeks, we can process it in 7 to 10 days, greatly speeding up our deliveries.”

“In the beginning, we had some issues with anisotropy, but Vesna Pavlovic, Glaston’s Area Sales Manager, visited and advised us to clean the rollers. Since then, we haven’t had any problems at all.

The issue was solved very quickly,” he adds.

Pavle’s operators received training for the Jumbo line, but operating the machine was very similar to that of the earlier furnace. “Since they’re able to produce greater quantities much faster, the operators really enjoy running the machine,” says Marko.

Today, Pavle is producing larger glass sheets – and faster. “For our customers, the most important factor is the speed, especially with colored or enameled glass. Even with Low-E and special coatings, our production speed has given us a competitive edge,” he says.

INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION CONTINUES

“In the future, we aim to upgrade our existing lamination line and add an IG line and edge polishing machinery to support our expansion,” Jelena says.

The family also plans to expand more on the international market. They have even supplied glass to a few high-rise construction projects in the US, as Pavle is certified to produce bird-protection glass with very thin lines visible to birds.

“Thanks to the Glaston Jumbo line, our products are comparable to the very best in the world in terms of quality,” she concludes.