POSCO Produces Korea's Master Craftsmen for 4 Consecutive Years

Selected 5 as Outstanding Skilled Technicians

Master Craftsman of Korea Awarded to Top-Level Technicians

Five employees from POSCO Gwangyang Steelworks and Pohang Steelworks were selected as Korea’s Excellent Skilled Technicians at the 2023 Vocational Competency Month Ceremony.

Excellent Skilled Technicians is a collective term for Korea Masters, Excellent Skilled Technicians, and Skilled Technology Instructors. At this year’s ceremony, 16 Korea Masters, 77 Excellent Skilled Technicians, and 5 Skilled Technology Instructors were selected.

Five POSCO employees selected as Korea's master craftsmen and excellent skilled technicians, and Deputy General Manager Hong Jong-deok of POSCO Human Resources Innovation Center, who received the Industrial Service Medal

The Korea Master award is given to technicians who have worked in occupations designated by the Minister of Employment and Labor for more than 15 years and possess the highest level of skills. This year, Manager Lee Gi-sik of the Cold Rolling Department at Pohang Steelworks was selected as a Korea Master.

Manager Lee Gi-sik of Pohang Steelworks succeeded in developing core technology that secured the stability of ultra-thin and ultra-low gauge* production for the first time in Korea. He also improved the surface quality of cold-rolled steel sheets, laid the foundation for producing steel sheets for nickel plating in secondary batteries, and contributed to process and quality improvement activities, registering 15 patents.

Among those who have worked in the field for more than seven years and are recognized for their high-level technical skills, the Excellent Skilled Technicians selected include △ Manager Kim Jae-geun of Rolling Equipment Department 2 at Gwangyang Steelworks △ Deputy General Manager Moon Wan-jin of the Ironmaking Department at Pohang Steelworks △ Manager Shin Jae-seok of Rolling Equipment Department 2 at Pohang Steelworks △ Manager Yuk Sang-seok of the Automotive Materials Research Institute. Four POSCO employees were among the 77 selected, marking a remarkable achievement.

Manager Kim Jae-geun of Gwangyang Steelworks contributed to improving plating equipment performance by developing electric plating parts restoration technology and registered 39 patents, including the development of electric plating quality improvement devices.

Deputy General Manager Moon Wan-jin and Manager Shin Jae-seok of Pohang Steelworks were recognized for their technical skills in smartizing operations through the development of a raw material measurement system using artificial intelligence and improving the quality of stainless steel cold rolling.

Additionally, Manager Yuk Sang-seok of the Automotive Materials Research Institute developed a continuous measurement method for molten metal temperature and enhanced the performance of temperature measurement devices inside blast furnaces, advancing measurement technology in the ironmaking process field.

Manager Lee Gi-sik of Pohang Steelworks, who was selected as a Korea Master, said, “I believe this master selection recognizes the efforts made with my team to achieve quality that satisfies our customers,” and added, “I am grateful to my team members and the company for creating an environment where we can devote ourselves to technology development.”

Meanwhile, Deputy General Manager Hong Jong-deok of POSCO Human Resources Innovation Center also received the ‘Industrial Medal’ on the same day, and with this Korea Master award, POSCO has set a remarkable record of producing Korea Masters for four consecutive years since 2020.

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