Major Industrial Hubs in South Korea and Areas of Expertise

June 25, 2024

South Korea is one of the top exporters in the world, ranking 8th in export volume (WTO, 2024). A major contributor to South Korea’s success in the international market is its abundant industrial hubs. These hubs consist of industrial parks, which are government-funded complexes of manufacturers, and these industrial parks have become incubators for South Korean technologies, driving innovative manufacturing sector growth. These hubs are also the birthplace of South Korean conglomerates such as Samsung, Hyundai, SK, and POSCO. 

Many members of US Korea Hotlink, the largest consortium of South Korean manufacturers and fabricators, are also located in these industrial hubs, taking advantages of the hub supply chain and logistical convenience.  US Korea Hotlink’s contract manufacturing facilities are also stationed in Daegu.  

This blog post will introduce some of the most prominent industrial hubs and their areas of expertise.  

Daegu  

Major Industries: Robotics, Automotives, Machine Manufacturing 

Daegu is the fourth largest metropolis in South Korea. Using their rich capital from light industry throughout the 1980s, Daegu has been attracting robotics, automotive, power plants and fabrication players to the hub.  Daegu based robotics companies include Hyundai Robotics, YASKAWA electrics and Doosan Robotics.  Utilizing this robotic automated assembly and process technology, LG Electronics has stationed compound industrial complexes for robotics, and development centers for collaborative mobile robots in Daegu industrial hub.  

Daegu based automotive parts production contributes to 70% of Daegu’s exports. Automotive makers and automotive parts manufacturers or tier 1s have plants in Daegu for their competitiveness in Automated Guided Vehicles.  Such companies include Renault, Valeo and THN.  

Ulsan

Ulsan industrial hub is known for ship building, steel mill and Oil & Gas .  

Known as the first industrial hub city in South Korea, Ulsan is located in the southwestern end of the Korean Peninsula, serving as one of the biggest ports in South Korea.  Since large barge cargo ships have easy access to Ulsan, it attracted major manufacturing companies for the petrochemical, steel mill, and shipbuilding industries. Thirteen percent of South Korea’s exports are from Ulsan’s industrial manufacturing hub (KITA, 2023). 

Korean conglomerates with presence in Ulsan include Hanwha, Hyundai Heavy Industry, SK Chemical. 

Changwon

Strategically selected for defense and nuclear industries by President Park Junghee in the 1970s, Changwon industrial hub focuses on defense, machine manufacturing, automotive, and nuclear. 

Changwon industrial hub was planned and developed by the Korean government for defense projects due to its easy access to 3 major industrial hub cities: Daegu, Ulsan and Busan. Changwon remains one of the biggest manufacturing hubs for the defense industry. Companies such as Hyundai Rotem, Hanwha Aerospace, and Doosan are the backbone of the Korean defense industry today. 

This focus on defense manufacturing has fostered a thriving environment for precision parts manufacturing in Changwon. Who took advantage of high precision part manufacturing shops in Changwon?  Machine manufacturers.  Changwon is a great hub for machine manufacturing companies. 

Pohang

Major Industries: Steel mill, Machine manufacturing, Secondary Battery

Pohang is a home to major steel plants such as POSCO, Hyundai and Dongguk steel. Due to their global presence, Pohang has become the biggest industrial hub for the steel industry in South Korea and one of the biggest in Asia. In 2023 Pohang alone produced 8.6 billion USD of steel.  

Aside from steel manufacturing, Pohang has evolved into an industrial hub for battery material production. With POSCO FUTURE M and ECOPRO BM leading cathode production in the global market, Pohang is coming to lead the secondary battery production industry in South Korea.

Ansan

Major Industries: Semiconductor, Machine Manufacturing 

Ansan is better known for its Banwol-Siwha industrial complex rather than the city itself. The Banwol-Siwha hub in Ansan is the biggest industrial complex in Korea, specialized in the semiconductor, electronics and machine manufacturing industry. The semiconductor industry has been the driver of Korean manufacturing; Korea boasts a 60% market share in semiconductor memory production worldwide.  

Ansan hub has many innovative machine technologies, catering to the demand from electronics, home appliances and automotive manufacturing companies. A few US Korea Hotlink machine manufacturing companies are also located in Ansan.  Our rotary friction welding machine is also designed and manufactured in the Ansan hub.  

The Korean economic environment demands manufacturers to be competitive in the international market. South Korean conglomerates use the benefit of industrial hubs working with a vast supplier network, made accessible to the Western world through US Korea Hotlink.  

US Korea Hotlink represents more than 370 manufacturers and fabricators from precision part production for machinery to heavy metal fabrication.  

Contact us to learn more about our metal fabrication and contract manufacturing services or to speak with a specialist.