Sepect Responsible for Workshop Door Safety... "Increased Demand Due to Enforcement of Serious Accident Punishment Act"

Localization of Industrial Safety Products such as Interlock Switches
Increased Demand Due to Enforcement of Serious Accident Punishment Act
Exports to 8 Countries Including the US and China

Hwang Hyunseung, CEO of SEFECT, is explaining his company's product.

On the 14th, we visited Sepect, a company specializing in industrial safety solutions located in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province. Sepect is a small and medium-sized enterprise that produces safety-related products such as safety controllers, interlock switches, and emergency stop switches in the field of factory automation. To prevent safety accidents caused by robots or machinery, they mainly manufacture equipment that controls access to specific workspaces only to employees who possess safety devices. Hwang Hyun-seung, CEO of Sepect, whom we met at the headquarters, said, "We succeeded in domestic production of industrial safety equipment for the first time in Korea 15 years ago, which was previously dependent on overseas sources," adding, "Since the recent enforcement of the Serious Accident Punishment Act, the importance of safety has increased, and the market is also growing."

Founded in 2000, Sepect initially signed contracts with overseas companies such as JOKAB SAFETY and FORTRESS INTERLOCKS to distribute their safety switches domestically. From 2008, they began promoting the localization of various industrial safety equipment, including safety switches, and in 2012, they successively launched products such as the safety key switch (STK), interlock switch (CLS), and safety controller (SSM MG4). Since then, they have continued to release various safety equipment used in industrial sites, such as the safety controller (SSM MG3) and small door switch (CLA), transforming from a distribution business to a manufacturing company.

Sepect has supplied its products to domestic and overseas factories of major Korean companies such as Company P and Company S. When Company S built a large-scale factory in Vietnam, Sepect supplied products worth 16 billion KRW. They currently export to eight countries, including the United States, China, Vietnam, and Hungary. Last year, they recorded sales of 8.6 billion KRW. CEO Hwang explained, "When domestic conglomerates build factories overseas, we pioneer sales channels by supplying our products and then operating sales in those regions," adding, "Demand is higher in developed countries that pay more attention to worker safety than in low-wage developing countries."

Door interlock switch displayed in the product showroom at Sepect headquarters. [Photo by Sepect]

Sepect currently holds 10 proprietary technologies, including 4 registered patents and 6 patent applications. Through continuous research and development (R&D), they steadily upgrade existing products. Recently, they developed a tag recognition system based on wireless identification technology (RFID). This equipment matches door switches and operation keys one-to-one to prevent safety accidents caused by arbitrary equipment operation using spare keys.

Last year, Sepect obtained the Inno-Biz certification from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. Inno-Biz is a system that provides preferential benefits to companies with excellent technology by combining the words Innovation and Business. It grants additional points when applying for military service exemptions or government R&D support projects. They have also acquired various certifications such as ISO quality, environmental, and occupational health and safety management. CEO Hwang said, "Institutional certifications mean that our company’s technology is recognized, but they also help with recruiting personnel," adding, "We plan to challenge more certifications in the future."

Sepect’s headquarters feature various leisure facilities such as a gym, screen golf course, karaoke room, table tennis room, and billiards room, installed by CEO Hwang for employee welfare. Sepect provides incentives equal to 100% of the base salary quarterly. They also offer early leave and special bonuses to employees on their birthdays. CEO Hwang said, "After transitioning from distribution to manufacturing, I deeply realized the importance of people," adding, "We will pay more attention to welfare to make the company a great place for employees to work."

Safety controller developed by Sepect.
[Photo by Sepect]

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