[Localization Mid-term Story] Possessing Unique Technology of ‘Eunbansa Film Material’

②Functional Film Development and Production Company 'Ubilight'
Item Previously Highly Dependent on Japan, 100% Domestic Raw Materials
CEO Lee Dongchun: "Materials, Parts, and Equipment Technology, the Driving Force of Manufacturing"

Dongchun Lee, CEO of Ubilight.

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] "Whether manufacturing competitiveness exists or not determines whether an industry makes money. Only when an industry makes money can money be spent and everything functions."

There is a company contributing to the 100% localization of film, a material essential in various electronic products ranging from tablet PCs and mobile phones to LED TVs and automobiles. U-Bright is a small and medium-sized enterprise specializing in parts materials that develops and produces functional silver reflective films, functional adhesive tapes, and metal coating and metal adhesive products. It holds outstanding technology in the domestic film production sector. U-Bright's 'color correction silver reflective sheet' is a core component used in QLED TVs and smartphones produced by Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, and others.

Silver reflective film material is an item with very high entry barriers and has been heavily dependent on Japan until now. To win in the fierce global market competition, U-Bright developed its product raw materials 100% domestically, eliminating problems arising from raw material procurement, and differentiated itself by developing products that allow film thickness adjustment.

Lee Dongchun, CEO of U-Bright, said, "Because research and development require enormous funds, only large corporations dared to attempt it, and technology was not accumulated over a long time. Large corporations did not trust the technology of domestic SMEs and went with an 'assembly' system of importing from famous overseas brands and using them, which led to a major shake-up last year due to Japan's trade sanctions."

U-Bright is gaining attention as one of the promising SMEs as the government’s policy to strengthen the technological competitiveness of the materials, parts, and equipment (SoBuJang) industry is activated. U-Bright applied for and won government national projects that it had prepared for two years. The materials currently under research and development include ▲ LED optical heat-generating materials ▲ insulators ▲ automotive driving control devices (brakes), among others.

CEO Lee emphasized, "SoBuJang is the driving force that instills pride that the manufacturing industry, a smokestack industry, can survive and thrive for a long time. There should be a system that continuously and long-term supports investment and R&D, favoring companies with craftsmanship spirit." Regarding the government’s SoBuJang competitiveness enhancement policy, he said, "It was a good move for the government to announce the nurturing of 100 strong SMEs and the Big 3 sectors before it’s too late. Follow-up measures such as tax benefits and promotional campaigns should be implemented to help these 100 companies take root well."

U-Bright has introduced invention reward systems and performance reward systems to compensate employees for their creativity. In affiliated subsidiaries, the CEO has divided his shares and appointed outstanding employees as presidents. CEO Lee also lectures as an adjunct professor in the Department of Electrical Control at Gyeonggi Science and Technology University to foster future talent alongside running the company. He said, "Truly excellent people can create companies and start businesses, which leads to job creation. I want to operate the company with a system that favors employees who have worked for a long time."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.