KPS: Bracing for
Future Market Changes

Steps up its overseas presence by capitalizing on its expertise and experience

Korea Plant Service & Engineering Co. Ltd. (KPS), Korea's top-notch company specializing in the maintenance of power generation facilities, is bracing itself for tremendous changes, including the opening of the domestic maintenance market, in the wake of an acceleration of global competition following the launch of the World Trade Organization regime and the spread of Free Trade Agreements.
Recognizing the effects of a rapidly changing global business environment, KPS has declared its mid- and long-term management strategy plan, dubbed "ACT KPS 2015"during August of last year. Under the plan, KPS sets its sights on becoming a world top-class plant service provider with sales worth 1 trillion won by the year 2015. In order to reach this goal, KPS has adopted five strategic policies and ten key tasks, based on its corporate values - customer satisfaction, innovation, a focus on technology, manpower development and globalization.
KPS under the helm of President Ham Yoon-sang is focusing on the following management policies during the year 2007 as part of its efforts to translate the long-term vision into action. First of all, KPS President Ham said his company strives to realize customer-oriented management. KPS'steady growth despite unfavorable business condition it experienced during last year was owed to its continuous efforts to always seek new values for the customer by using innovative approaches.
The company wants to settle down the "Change-up 10-10-10% Drive,"designed to raise efficiency and launch innovative work processes, including the inauguration of Enterprise Resources Planning systems (ERPs) that integrate all of the company's data and processes into a unified system. These innovative moves are designed to ultimately understand customers and offer the right value for them, he said, stressing the fact that they could end up with hollow slogans without all staff member's voluntary participation.
Second, President Ham said,
KPS plans to develop technology with an internationally competitive edge. Recognizing the reality that the opening of the domestic power facility maintenance market is a matter of time with foreign facility manufacturer's entry looming imminent, he said, KPS is putting its heart and soul into arming itself with technology with a competitive edge on the international market. Countries are scrambling to take an upper hand in the "Mega Knowledge"competition through joint projects and collaboration on a state or a civilian basis. KPS has a collaboration effort with GE and other advanced equipment manufacturers under a win-win strategy regarding the exploration of foreign markets and product development.
Third, he said, KPS is devoting itself to securing new growth engines. A few years ago, KPS performed only maintenance orders from its clients., but the company now serves as a comprehensive plant service provider by offering a wide range of services, ranging from the production of power equipment parts to new and renewable energy development, construction and inspection of power transmission line and commissioned start-up operation. KPS strives to fortify its position in the maintenance market while exploring new foreign markets to recoup the shortfall stemming from increased competition of the existing businesses.
Fourth, he said, KPS endeavors to foster gifted manpower that emerges as a driving force behind strides of world-class corporations. The company has continued to cultivate supervisors in order to raise international competitiveness of power maintenance technology and cope with rapidly changing business circumstances while expanding advanced training facilities to meet the demand for acquiring new technologies necessary for the production of diverse and cutting-edge power equipment and devices. KPS plans to step up mentoring relationships in the event of an acceleration of a "scouting war"among competitors while making the worksite worthwhile by offering incentives to capable employees under a merit performance system.
Fifth, he said, KPS strives to ensure ethical management and amicable labor-management relationships based on the sprit of co-prosperity. Ethical management is a norm of voluntary self-regulation and a management paradigm to have corporations beloved by shareholders, customers and concerned parties. Staff members at KPS are on the frontline of translating ethical management into action by following the Chapter of Corporate Ethics and Code of Conduct, unveiled by the company.
KPS'labor and management has been maintaining amicable ties as KPS became the first power subsidiary company of the KEPCO Group to ink a wage contract and cultivate a productive and cooperative labor-management culture by introducing a wage system based on productivity.
KPS was founded in 1974 as subsidiary of the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) in charge of maintenance services for power generation facilities, power transmission facilities and industrial plants with a combined 60 million kW across the nation.
Taking a look into KPS'major businesses, KPS performs the start-up operation, the final stage of power plant construction,; conducts regular maintenance checks on equipment in operation,; carries out period planned outage maintenance where entire operations are suspended to disassemble and check facilities to preempt sudden stoppage; and forecasts and diagnoses to maintain optional capability of equipment and components.
In the power transmission business, KPS carries out projects on the maintenance of power transmission lines, inspection, design, construction and safety checks of power facility structures and maintenance of super-voltage direct circuit underground cables.
Besides, KPS performs such specialized technology services as maintenance of gas turbines and replacement of nuclear fuel.
KPS's success domestically is not the entire focus of the company. A renewed effort is being placed on expanding into foreign markets given brilliant achievements on the overseas front prove its technological prowess.
KPS singed MOUs on a 250MW-class thermal power plant in Orissa, India and a 1,000MW-class thermal power plant in Haryana, India in cooperation with India's Jindal Group as well as an MOU on a 250MW-class thermal power plant O&M project in Indonesia.
On February 2, 2007, KPS officials discussed with senior leaders of Fauji Foundation in Pakistan on KPS's participation in power plant operation and maintenance and technological assistance prior to the upcoming engineering, procurement & construction contract on 175MW-class Daharki combined cycle plant.
On January 9, KPS and GMR Group of India inked an MOU on the joint participation in the "Ultra Mega Project"on the construction of thermal power plants in India. The Ultra Mega Project is a state-initiated mega-project to build thermal power plants with a combined capacity of 4,000MW. Under the MOU, KPS will be a given preferential right to land O&M projects being implemented under the Ultra Mega Project.
GMR Group has already won the nod for the construction of a 1,000MW power plant from Orissa State under the Ultra Mega Project, and starting with a thermal power plant project in Jharkand State, GMR Group and KPS will join forces in attempting to land orders.
During this past March, KPS President Ham signed an agreement with Macquarie Generation of Australia to conduct maintenance of Bayswater thermal power plant operated by the Australian company for three years and one with Eraring Energy to provide maintenance services to Eraring thermal power plants for two years. KPS beat international competitors like Toshiba of Japan and Alstom of France in biddings for Bayswater and Eraring plants, whose maintenance work has been dominated by Japanese powers. KPS'win in the latest bidding races proves to have competitive maintenance prowess.
On this past April, KPS officials visited Sudanese state-run power company and signed an MOU. KPS will participate in maintenance technology consulting and overhaul maintenance services for Kartum North thermal power plant in Sudan. The Korean company is expected to offer maintenance services for Malawi hydro electric power plant and Gary combined cycle power plant projects under way. Lately, a slew of senior officials from the Sudanese state-run power company visited KPS'head office and discusses ways of exploring the African maintenance market.
KPS has landed a project to overhaul a pumped storage power plant in Bendela, Australia. The project was initially awarded to Toshiba late last year, but the Japanese was unable to proceed due to lack of construction capacity. It is rare that KPS has won the nod in the rebidding, serving as a good opportunity to publicize its construction capability outside of Korea.
In the latest development, KPS visited Mongolia's Fuel and Energy Department and inked an MOU on KPS's participation in the Mongolian power plant maintenance projects, setting up a bridgehead for its entry into the Northeast Asian country.
Besides, prospects for overseas maintenance business are upbeat as requests for partnerships from power equipment companies from Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are flooding in.
KPS is striving to strength business strategies with the 2007 goal of posting 30 billion won in sales on the overseas business front. The company makes all-out efforts to land more orders in the markets such as India, the Philippines and Australia where KPS performs projects. It is considering options of making a joint entry with other Korean power companies to such countries as Lebanon, Nigeria and UAE with a potential for sustainable development. KPS plans to conduct marketing activities for landing orders through local agents by agreeing to MOUs with them.
KPS is putting more energy into offering technology consulting services through self-sufficiency in the development of original technology. The company plans to step up a technical ties-up with such advanced countries as KH and TurboCAre, who own the original technology.
KPS'COMPETITIVE EDGE. Excellent maintenance technology and expertise KPS'field staffs have acquired over more than 30 years emerge as precious assets to maintain a competitive edge in the global maintenance market. KPS educates top-caliber maintenance manpower through in-house training programs, overseas and Korean institutions commissioned for education and training courses in foreign equipment manufacturers.
KPS has Integrated Training Institute and Nuclear Power Training Institute with lecture rooms, professor's offices, maintenance training labs with state-of-the-art equipment and components and other amenities to educate theories and hands-on experiences on the introduction of new technology and conducting advanced research.
KPS has been issued 44 certificates, approved by the Labor Ministry, in turbine maintenance and 10 other categories. KPS staff owns 9,414 in-house qualifications and 7,979 nationally-certified qualifications, representing the highest qualification rate in Korea - 4.7 certificates per staff member.
KPS boasts of 21,694 pieces of advanced maintenance equipment worth 120.4 billion won, including LVPS Coating System, the first in Korea, and Non-Contact 3D System. It has developed such maintenance technology as KPS-Upper-bundle Lancing System (KULAN) through its own R&D activities.
BEST VALUE FOR CUSTOMERS. KPS is devoting its all energy to realize a goal of achieving the "best value for customer,"given the stark reality that KPS cannot survive unless it gains confidence from the customer. The ultimate goal of KPS'innovative activities is to fully understand customers and treat them.
INNOVATIVE MANAGEMENT. KPS organized the "Dream 30 Management Innovation Town Meeting by 30 representative staff members who are creative and have strong desire to challenge changes. It is designed to accelerate innovation by establishing a regular and systematic management system. All staff members join forces in conducting innovative activities by establishing a management innovation master plan that contains specific innovative tasks and a long-term vision.
The master plan calls for the construction of a company, dubbed "NNO-KPS'that stands for ?nnovative?services, "Nice and Necessary"to customers and "Optimistic"company. Under the plan, KPS purses the "Change-up 10-10-10%,"a drive designed to spread to the whole work sites a wind of innovate changes.
Thanks to these innovative efforts, KPS has received the 2007 Korea Service Grand Prize in public corporation category from Korea Standards Association for the second year in a row on June 26. KPS has gained wide recognition over its efforts to innovate services for the customer as KPS President Ham has also been honored with the Management Grand Prize by KSA.
KPS had the honor of winning the special award of the 2007 Korea Social Contribution Award in the public corporation category. The prize was presented with KPS in recognition for promoting ethical management and "Sharing"management as a public corporation. KPS has been credited with conducing activities contributing to society by offering maintenance services to provincial communities and conducting environmental protection campaigns. nw

KPS President Ham Yoon-sang

KPS has won the special award of the 2007 Korea Social Contribution Award in the public sector category on July 20.

KPS President Ham Yoon-sang exchanges an MOU with the minister of Mongolia's Fuel and Energy Department.

A delegation from KPS visits the Sudanese state-run power company to sign an MOU.

KPS President Ham discusses ways of boosting business ties with GMR Group of India.