Recruitment of SMEs Participating in Carbon-Neutral Smart Factory Promotion Project

Support for Carbon Neutrality, Data-Driven Process Innovation, and High-Efficiency Equipment Replacement

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (Minister Kwon Chil-seung, hereinafter referred to as the Ministry) and the Small and Medium Business Corporation (Chairman Kim Hak-do, hereinafter referred to as SBC) announced on the 16th that they will recruit small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in the carbon-neutral smart factory dissemination project until the 5th of next month.

The carbon-neutral smart factory dissemination project supports companies in high carbon-emission industries by promoting energy efficiency and ICT-based carbon reduction process innovation to help establish a low-carbon management system. The target industries include the top 10 high carbon-emission industries among small and medium enterprises and 14 root technology industries such as casting and welding. The number of target industries has been significantly expanded from 6 last year to 24.

The main support includes ▲ energy diagnosis and design consulting that measures and analyzes energy usage by process and suggests carbon reduction strategies ▲ support for energy management and process innovation solutions along with linked controllers, measuring instruments, and energy efficiency facilities ▲ support for replacing utility facilities such as high energy-consuming and aging equipment with high-efficiency equipment effective for energy reduction.

Applications can be made in two ways: designated project type and open competition type, allowing companies to choose the method that suits their circumstances. The designated project type involves selecting a task suitable for the company’s status from tasks presented through an investigation of high energy-consuming processes. The open competition type allows applicants to freely write a plan for building a carbon-neutral smart factory suitable for their current status and production processes.

Choi Hak-su, Head of Innovation Growth Division at SBC, said, "Small and medium enterprises recognize the necessity of carbon neutrality but cite the costs of process improvement and equipment introduction as challenges in responding to it." He added, "We expect the carbon-neutral smart factory dissemination project to serve as a catalyst for improving energy efficiency and transitioning to a low-carbon management system for small and medium-sized enterprises."

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