TUV SUD Korea and Smart Factory Partner to Certify Product Reliability

The Korea Electronics Technology Institute (KETI) announced that it signed a business agreement with the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) for cooperation in smart factory testing/certification technology, together with the Korea Smart Factory Promotion Team (KOSF) and TUV SUD Korea.

The government has been actively promoting and expanding smart factories since 2014. Currently, there are approximately 5,000 smart factories, but this number is expected to increase to 20,000 by 2022. The goal is to elevate the current level of production history tracking and management, focusing on specific processes and partial automation, to the level of advanced smart factories capable of customized, flexible production.

Testing and certification is the starting point for industrial revitalization. The results of interoperability and compatibility tests between various products, including equipment, networks, energy, and security, that enable smart factories serve as a stepping stone for companies to smoothly enter the market. However, the diversity of smart factory technologies and the ongoing competition for international standardization (IEC, ISO, IIC, etc.) make it challenging for even large corporations, let alone small and medium-sized enterprises, to achieve global certification.

TÜV SÜD Korea, which recently announced its collaboration with KETI and KOSF, is headquartered in Munich, Germany, the birthplace of Industry 4.0. A global testing and certification company with over 150 years of experience, TÜV SÜD Korea is participating in the development of modular testing and certification standards for German smart factory systems. Through this collaboration, KETI will conduct joint research and development and technical cooperation related to testing/certification of smart factory products.

Additionally, the two organizations plan to collaborate on the popularization and expansion of smart factories, including the establishment of demonstration factories. Specifically, this process will involve exchanging information and personnel among partner organizations, providing smart factory-level diagnostic testing to companies, and even jointly building a global testing and certification infrastructure for mutual recognition of product certifications.

KETI President Park Cheong-won stated, “In the nascent industry of Mujukongsan, where there is still no clear winner, credible testing and certification are what can help our companies advance into the global market.” He added, “Through this collaboration, we will establish Korean-style smart factory testing and certification standards and use this as an opportunity to reflect relevant standards for key industries, such as the electronics industry, where we have strengths, in international standards.”

Park Jin-woo, head of the Smart Factory Promotion Team, also emphasized, "The development and certification of smart factory technology will serve as a bridgehead for related companies to enter the global market," and "Through today's business agreement, the Smart Factory Promotion Team will strive to further strengthen the domestic industrial ecosystem by helping many companies enter overseas markets in addition to domestic distribution projects."

Meanwhile, KOSF and KETI have been working on the Smart Manufacturing Innovation Center project since 2016 with support from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Gyeonggi Province, and Ansan City. Currently, they operate a world-class testbed and interoperability testing lab for machinery, electronics, and other industries, with 25 participating companies. Starting in 2018, they plan to expand the testbed to include industries like cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.