Domestic Plant Construction
Comes on Strong Again
PROMAT Chairman Kim stress significance of PM

The domestic plant construction industry is forecast to witness exports surpass the $10 billion mark this year, a rise from $8.4 billion thanks to an increase in new project orders from oil exporting countries, particularly from the Middle East, Kim Jong-shin, chairman of Korean Institute of Project Management & Technology (PROMAT), said.
Kim, concurrently CEO-president of Western Power Company, said, "With a rush of new projects being ordered by countries like oil exporters from the Middle East, riding on crude oil price hikes, the Korean plant construction industry is likely to gain momentum."He made the remark during a keynote speech during the 2005 Grand Conference on Development of Plant Construction Industry, held at the Korea Electric Power Corp. grand auditorium on May 20th. The symposium was organized by PROMAT and sponsored by the International Contractors Association of Korea, Korea Plant Industries Association and Western Power Company.
The PROMAT chairman stressed the need for fostering the plant construction industry as a high value-added one that can involve not only construction, but also equipment and material exports, based on Korea's unique experiences in construction and technology.
With KEPCO taking the initiative, power generation companies have continuously explored ways of strengthening their presence abroad by capitalizing on the experiences and technology they have accumulated.
The local plant construction industry is expected to see demand increasing as developing countries in Asia, suffering from a shortage of power supply, need to expand their power generation capacity.
The Illiyan power generation plant in the Philippines and the Malaya power plant in Malaysia are the representative success stories of the Korean power generation industry that has made profits and raised its status abroad by taking charge of business sectors ranging from construction and renovation to operation, Kim said.
The chairman said it is encouraging for the government to strengthen support for exploring overseas plant markets together with plant associations, KOTRA and public corporations. Such plans as financial support and a plan to help small and medium enterprises equipment and material supply the government is now contemplating are expected to contribute to the development of the domestic plant construction industry, he said.
In his keynote speech, Minister of Construction and Transportation Chu Byunk-jik reconfirmed the government's support, including the establishment of a mid- and long-term overseas plant construction promotion plan calling for offering diverse support steps between 2005 and 2009. In particular, the ministry plans to build a database for supplying equipment and materials in the course of implementing overseas plant construction projects this year, while pushing R&D projects related to standard plant project models and designs by the year 2010.

About PROMAT

The Korea Institute of Project Management & Technology, established in January 1991, is a non-profit organization registered under the umbrella of the Ministry of Science and Technology. PROMAT, with a membership of 39 organizations and 3,000 individuals, is aimed at developing and disseminating expertise related to project management.
Kim, elected as the fourth-term chairman of PROMAT, is one of the most active project management professionals in Korea. He once served as the first secretary general of the organization.
PROMAT's primary goal is to raise people's concern in project management said Kim, adding that Korea is falling behind China in terms of quantitative and qualitative aspects.
Mid-level managers recognize the significance of project management, but the field is unfamiliar to the top-level managers, Kim said in an interview.
Many universities do not give lectures on project management, including even a top managers' course at Seoul National University Business Administration Graduate School, he said.
Heavy industries and the construction sector have accumulated expertise on project management, but the levels are negligent in other industrial fields, said Kim, adding that massive projects like state R&D development outlays exceeding 10 trillion or more must introduce project management in a bid to raise efficiency on investments. nw

Kim Jong-shin, CEO-president of Western Power Company and concurrently chairman of Korean Institute of Project Management & Technology (PROMAT)