Incheon Airport Corporation Localizes Airport Operation Technology... "Partnering with SMEs"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Hyun-seok] Incheon International Airport Corporation announced on the 3rd that it has successfully developed three essential airport operation technologies, including airport airside rigid pavement repair materials, in collaboration with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) for domestic production.

Since 2012, the corporation has been working jointly with SMEs to localize core airport technologies and promote the development of new technologies, strengthening national technological competitiveness and fostering mutual growth with SMEs. Additionally, the corporation focused on domestic development by enhancing research expertise through its dedicated R&D organization, the Airport Industry Technology Research Institute. This effort addresses chronic issues of imported products such as high costs and long delivery times while promoting the growth of domestic airport operation-related technologies.

A corporation official stated, "Recently, the necessity for domestic technology development has greatly increased due to cost, quality, and other issues related to essential imported consumables for airport operations," adding, "The technologies developed by the corporation are consumable materials and equipment that have been heavily dependent on imports, and this successful localization is expected to lay the foundation for self-reliance in domestic airport operations."

The airport airside rigid pavement repair material is used to repair runways that have aged or deteriorated. It is essential to complete repairs quickly without disrupting aircraft operations and to maintain performance for a long time. The new repair material has been optimized for the airport maintenance environment, guaranteeing shorter work times and long-term performance compared to existing materials. Field performance verification has been completed, and it is scheduled to be applied on-site starting this winter.

The non-powered aircraft movement area foreign substance removal equipment and aircraft heating and cooling supply hose are essential technologies for safe and eco-friendly airport operations. Although these consumable parts and equipment are repurchased annually, imported products have significantly long average delivery times and difficulty reflecting on-site improvement requirements, leading to ongoing discussions about the need for localization development. In response, the corporation developed domestic products through continuous research and field application tests. Both products demonstrated superior performance compared to imported ones through airport demonstration evaluations and will be introduced on-site from the second half of this year.

The corporation plans to reduce operating costs through the localization of high-cost consumables essential for airport operations and to maintain safe airport operations by performing appropriate maintenance in a timely manner. Furthermore, by strengthening technological competitiveness, it is expected to establish a technological competition system with overseas companies in the future.

Kim Kyung-wook, President of Incheon International Airport Corporation, said, "The corporation will actively lead the self-reliance of airport operations through continuous investment in the localization of new technologies and support for domestic and international market development and overseas consulting for the jointly developed technologies."

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