The Korea Institute of Materials Science, a government-funded research institute under the Ministry of Science and ICT, opened the 'Han-Germany Materials Center' in September 2017 in cooperation with Changwon City, and is playing a significant role in resolving core technical difficulties for local companies.

The Korea Institute of Materials Science announced on the 9th that the Korea-Germany Materials Center has entered its fifth year of operations this year and is producing tangible results.

The Handok Materials Center is carrying out various forms of international cooperative R&D corporate support, such as joint research, technology transfer, technology commercialization, and technology exchange with companies in Changwon, in cooperation with world-class research institutions specializing in commercialization, including the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany and the Institute of Lightweight Engineering and Polymers at Dresden University of Technology.

While numerous international cooperative R&D projects for the development of source and applied technologies have been operated by various ministries to date, the Handok Materials Center is the first in Korea to launch a project aimed solely at 'corporate support.'

In particular, the cooperation between the Korea Institute of Materials Science and Changwon City can be seen as establishing a new platform for corporate support through collaboration between government-funded research institutes and local governments.

Looking at major achievement cases, Nextop Korea Co., Ltd., a manufacturer of composite defense components, [is] a core material It has been difficult to quantify the viscosity of resin.

Accordingly, the Korea-Germany Materials Center identified the technology of Germany's NMB (Neue Materialien Bayreuth GmbH), conducted on-site visits to Germany to verify its practicality, and led collaborative research between the Korea Institute of Materials Science, NMB, and Nextop Korea Co., Ltd.

As a result, the quality management system of Nextop Korea Co., Ltd., which has been managed qualitatively and empirically, has accumulated quantitative results for each product item, making it possible to produce with reproducible quality.

The related technology is expected to lead to increased sales for companies around the end of the year, as the Agency for Defense Development (ADD), a research institution dedicated to defense components, has also expressed interest.

Doosan Heavy Industries, Inc., which is dedicated to the wind power industry, is also a representative beneficiary of the Handok Materials Center.

Doosan Heavy Industries is focusing on wind power generation as an alternative new business in line with the government's nuclear phase-out policy.

In 2017, we received continuous monitoring technology for wind turbine blade fatigue cracks from Fraunhofer IKTS in Germany, and in 2020, the fourth year, we collaborated with WINDnovation to build research data on improving the aerodynamic performance of extra-large blades.

In addition, through technical cooperation support with DNVGL regarding blade root connection design and testing technology, self-reliance in 8MW blade design technology was achieved.

The operation of the Korea-Germany Materials Center by the Korea Institute of Materials Science and Changwon City has been continuously pursued over the past four years, yielding gradual results that lead to actual sales for companies.

To date, a total of 28 companies have participated, and this year, 8 projects from 5 companies have been selected to conduct commissioned research through the search for relevant German experts and technology matching.

Lee Jeong-hwan, President of the Korea Institute of Materials Science, stated, “We are now at a point where technical support for local companies is bearing fruit,” adding, “Materials(KIMS) "We will strive to contribute to the local community by not only fulfilling our core mission of serving as a central hub for materials research and development, but also by continuously cooperating with Changwon City to strengthen technical support for materials, parts, and equipment tailored to on-site needs," he said.