The Reshaping Construction Industry: '3040 Owner Families' Preparing New Business Opportunities

79-born Heo Yunhong, CEO of GS Construction
Expansion of new businesses including prefab
78-born Kwon Minseok, CEO of IS Dongseo
Diversification into businesses such as used batteries
89-born Kim Dongseon, Vice President of Hanwha Construction Division
Overseas projects including Iraq Bismaya

In the construction industry, owners in their 30s and 40s are stepping to the forefront of management. These third- and fourth-generation owners are moving beyond simply receiving management training and are leveraging their own growth drivers to restructure the traditional business models of construction companies.

CEO Heo Yunhong Steps Up as GS Construction’s Savior

Heo Yunhong, who took office as CEO of GS Construction last October, is the son of Heo Changsoo, Honorary Chairman of GS Group. Born in 1979, he started at GS Construction in 2005 as an assistant manager and has worked his way up through all ranks from manager to vice president. As a result, employees regard him as a management figure well-versed in internal affairs and focused on the field.

Heo was appointed during the worst period following the collapse of the underground parking lot in Geomdan and was tasked with a major organizational overhaul. Upon taking office, he immediately carried out a large-scale reorganization, appointing 17 managing directors and replacing about 20 department heads at the executive level.

Since his appointment, CEO Heo has emphasized ‘business portfolio restructuring.’ Since 2019, as head of the New Business Promotion Office (vice president), he has been actively fostering new businesses, spearheaded by the prefab (modular) business. He also led the acquisitions of Elements, a UK-based modular specialist, and Danwood S.A. in Poland. Thanks to his proactive nurturing efforts, new business sales reached 10% as of the third quarter of last year.

GS Construction’s core business, housing construction, accounts for 76% of total sales. Industry watchers are closely observing whether he can solve three key challenges: restoring trust in the Xi brand, securing new revenue streams, and restructuring the business.

IS Dongseo CEO Kwon Minseok Drives Business Diversification Including Battery Recycling

Kwon Minseok, who returned as CEO of IS Dongseo this year after three years, was born in 1978. He is the son of Chairman Kwon Hyukwoon. After stepping down as vice president and CEO in 2021, he resumed the CEO position earlier this month. The industry expects CEO Kwon to focus on diversifying businesses such as battery recycling and wind power generation.

IS Dongseo has been expanding its battery recycling business by acquiring Town Mining Company (TMC) last year, Saehan Environment and Koentec in 2020, and Inseon ENT in 2019. Based on its vehicle dismantling network, the company collects batteries, processes them through pre- and post-treatment, and recovers materials like lithium and cobalt. In December last year, it also completed a 2,500-pyeong (approx. 8,264 m²) pre-treatment plant in Hwaseong.

An IS Dongseo official explained, "We are currently refraining from housing construction orders and are accelerating the battery recycling business that we have been preparing for a long time. We believe the battery recycling market will grow as electric vehicles complete their lifecycle."

Upon taking office, CEO Kwon also increased his control over IS Dongseo. His shareholding rose from 0.06% to 0.47% through additional stock purchases in October last year. Although his stake in IS Holdings decreased from 30.57% to 27.10% due to Ilshin Holdings’ participation in a paid-in capital increase that same month, his control over the holding company strengthened. CEO Kwon is the largest shareholder of Ilshin Holdings with a 70% stake.

Vice President Kim Dongseon Leads Overseas Business with ‘Iraq Bismayah’ Project

Kim Dongseon, vice president of Hanwha Construction and the third son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seungyeon, returned as head of the overseas business division after seven years. Born in 1989, Kim joined Hanwha Construction in 2014 as a manager and has experience working on the Iraq site and as head of the New Growth Strategy Team. His return coincides with the resumption of the Iraq Bismayah New City development project. Having achieved results in the distribution sector, attention is focused on whether Kim will also excel in overseas construction business.

The Bismayah New City development project is famous for Chairman Kim Seungyeon personally securing the contract and visiting the site to encourage employees. Awarded in 2012, the project involves constructing roads, water and sewage systems, infrastructure, and 100,000 housing units. Construction was halted due to COVID-19, and Hanwha withdrew from the site in 2022 without seeing results. However, in December last year, Hanwha Construction received $230 million (approximately 300 billion KRW) from the Iraq National Investment Commission (NIC) as partial payment of outstanding receivables. They have resumed finishing works such as civil engineering and landscaping for the supply of 9,480 units out of the 30,000 completed units. Negotiations remain for new contracts to build the remaining 70,000 units of the 100,000 planned for Bismayah.

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