Selection of 100 Small and Strong Companies in Materials, Parts, and Equipment Completed

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] The government has finalized the selection of 100 strong small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the materials, parts, and equipment (hereinafter referred to as "SoBuJang") sector.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 27th that it has selected all 100 SoBuJang strong SMEs aimed at achieving technological independence in SoBuJang and creating future new industries.

The 100 SoBuJang strong SMEs project focuses on nurturing specialized SMEs in SoBuJang to respond to rapid changes in the global value chain. Selected companies will receive priority support through exclusive and preferential programs promoted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. Following the first selection of 54 companies in December last year, an additional 46 companies were selected on the 28th, completing the selection of 100 companies eligible for project support.

In the second recruitment held in May, a total of 779 SMEs applied, recording a competition rate of 16.9 to 1. Subsequently, in-depth evaluations including on-site inspections and technical assessments were conducted on 223 companies that passed the document screening, resulting in the selection of 75 companies.

The second selected strong SMEs consisted of 19 companies (41%) in parts, 14 companies (30%) in materials, and 13 companies (28%) in equipment. By technology field, 12 companies in machinery and metals, 10 in semiconductors, 9 in electrical and electronics, 6 in automobiles, 5 in basic chemicals, and 4 in displays were selected.

The proportion of regionally based strong SMEs increased to 58%, up from 49% in the first selection.

Among the selected companies, 27 companies (58.7%) were selected without recommendations from demand companies.

One of the second selected companies, Ram Technology, produces semiconductor manufacturing process chemical materials such as ultra-high purity hydrofluoric acid and silicon oxide etching solution, which were among the three major export-restricted items by Japan. When its Dangjin plant is completed in the second half of next year, it plans to produce 13,000 tons of hydrofluoric acid per month, about five times the current production volume.

JinChem is developing bio-materials that can be used in various fields such as food, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices based on its own enzyme database of about 500 types. It has developed technology to mass-produce deoxynucleoside triphosphate (dNTP), a core material for COVID-19 diagnostic kits, with high purity from low-cost substances. Although it has the smallest sales among the selected companies, it was recognized for its technological capabilities related to COVID-19 diagnostic kit materials, which mostly depended on imports, and was selected as a SoBuJang strong SME.

Won Youngjun, Director of Technology Innovation Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "The second selection of strong SMEs, which began in May, has concluded amid enthusiastic interest," and added, "We will spare no support to help the selected companies quickly achieve results."

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