l On March 17, the launching ceremony of “Shared Growth Support Group” held in Pohang
l The Support Group is to provide consulting to 14 SMEs in 2021
l Area of support will include Smart Factory building, ESG issue resolution, facility & energy efficiency, and introduction of new technologies
l The support aims to enhance the competitiveness of the overall supply chain as well as improve productivity of target companies
▲ On March 17, POSCO held a launching ceremony for the “Shared Growth Support Group” at Sinil Intec, Pohang. The Support Group will provide customized support for SMEs with POSCO’s professional capabilities. (From left) Ju-Tae Lee, POSCO Head of Purchasing and Investment Division, and Gyu-Sung Noh, CEO of Sinil Intec.
POSCO (CEO Jeong-Woo Choi) decided to apply its expertise and provide customized support for SMEs.
On March 17, POSCO held a launching ceremony for the “Shared Growth Support Group” at Sinil Intec, Pohang. POSCO and representatives of seven SMEs, including Dong Joo Industrial, Daiyang Metal Co., Ltd, Sinil Intec, Simpac Industries, IEN Hanchang, Intel Steel, and JU Korea Co., Ltd, were present at the event.
POSCO set on operating the Shared Growth Support Group taking into account two factors: 1) SMEs have difficulties securing new workforce or developing technologies, and 2) they each have different needs to strengthen competitiveness, thus requiring customized support.
At the event, Ju-Tae Lee, POSCO Head of Purchasing Investment Division, said, “We look forward to resolving the difficulties faced by SMEs and to seeing them take the next step forward.” He added, “POSCO will devise optimal plans based on cooperation with SMEs so that the provided consulting would be highly effective.”
With the launch of the Shared Growth Support Group, POSCO expects to fabricate a cycle of cost reduction and quality & productivity improvement in SMEs, which will eventually improve the competitiveness of the overall supply chain.
The support areas that POSCO Shared Growth Support Group offers is divided into the following four: 1) Building a Smart Factory, 2) Resolving ESG issues, 3) Improving the efficiency of equipment and energy, and 4) Introducing new technologies of the future. The Support Group is composed of qualified professionals with an average work experience of 25 years or more in relevant fields. They will look into the problems of the target SMEs fundamentally, find out the causes and ways for improvement together with SMEs, and eventually come up with a solution.
As for detailed support plans, POSCO will support establishing a smart work base and conducting related training with IT technologies, like AI and Big Data. In case of ESG issues, which has recently been emerging as a major issue of the industry, POSCO will analyze fundamental cause and derive improvement measures since it is difficult for SMEs to resolve these issues on their own. Furthermore, POSCO will utilize its specialized facility diagnostic equipment and discover signs of equipment failure and energy waste elements to provide an optimal working environment. POSCO technology will also be applied to SME sites for technology innovation and operational improvement.
In January, POSCO selected 14 companies after receiving recommendations from 28 companies wishing to participate in the consulting from relevant departments in charge of purchasing and sales, the Korea Federation of SMEs, and local governments. POSCO plans to conduct consulting for 7 companies in the first half of 2021.