57th Founding of the Korean Economy Talks about the future
Relay interview (5) Kim Geun-ha, CEO of Intops
Intops CEO Kim Geun-ha is explaining the business direction at the headquarters in Anyang, Gyeonggi-do. / Reporter Shin Kyung-hoon
Intops, a mid-sized company listed on the KOSDAQ, rallied last summer. It jumped 20.2% in 12 trading days from 28,400 won on June 21 to 34,150 won on July 8. Expectations from the listing (July 16) of the SD biosensor that the company supplies Corona 19 diagnostic kits were reflected.
Intops has been producing diagnostic kits at its Gumi plant in North Gyeongsang Province since the first half of last year in partnership with SD Biosensor. Intops is also producing medical devices such as smart watches for epilepsy diagnosis, artificial intelligence (AI) robots, and electronic price indicators (ESL).
Kim Geun-ha, CEO of Intops (pictured), diagnosed on the 13th, “The limitations of the millennial manufacturing industry, which depend only on the production of products ordered from customers, are becoming clear.” He said, “We will take a new leap forward as a ‘manufacturing platform’ where various companies can trust and entrust the production of high value-added parts and products.”
Founded in 1981, Intops is the No. 1 manufacturer of smartphone cases in Korea. This year’s earnings are expected to improve significantly as the main case business leads and various new businesses push forward. Following the record of 777.8 billion won in sales last year, the securities industry is predicting that this year, the company will rejoin the ‘1 trillion won in sales club’ for the first time in eight years.
Intops set out to find ‘second and third platform business items’. It is to be reborn as a manufacturer suitable for the era of great industrial transformation such as the 4th industrial revolution and acceleration of digitalization. CEO Kim said, “‘Smart manufacturing innovation’, which combines smart factory with manufacturing capabilities accumulated through 40 years of collaboration with Samsung, is shining. The goal of the Intops platform is to provide production technology.”
He said, “The rate of change in the last five years is faster than in the previous 20 years, and it will be even faster in the future. emphasized that
“In the manufacturing industry, cheap labor is the best? … Need to switch to ‘custom manufacturing’ with AI and IoT”
Flexible manufacturing processes are important… The era of competing with added value
“Manufacturing is dead.” It was a word that was talked about in the domestic industry in the early 2000s, when China sucked up factories around the world like a black hole with cheap labor costs. Intops CEO Kim Geun-ha said, “I understand this, but I do not agree.” His philosophy is that ‘unusual manufacturing’ is possible if flexibility is applied while thoroughly observing the basics of manufacturing.
“Manufacturing is honest, so if you see it once, see it twice, the yield goes up,” said CEO Kim. He added, “Depending on whether the employees have penetrated the core of this manufacturing industry, productivity can be at the extreme.”
Perspective is also an important issue. “In terms of labor cost, the facility should be moved to a place where it can be made cheaply, but the story may be different if it is based on added value.” He emphasized, “The manufacturing platform that Intops pursues is the future manufacturing platform that Intops must go to to produce high-value-added products in a safe and hygienic environment with optimal materials, processes, and mass-production technologies.”
CEO Kim is the eldest son of Intops Chairman Jae-Kyung Kim, who founded Shin Young-Hwa Industrial Co., Ltd., the predecessor of Intops in 1981. He received a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Washington’s Michael Foster School. He joined Intops in 2005 and became president in 2015. As a second-generation manager, he is drawing attention as he expands his business to various fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), electric vehicles, and medical devices with a ‘manufacturing platform’ appropriate for the era of industrial transformation.
▷ The Corona 19 diagnostic kit is a completely different product from the smartphone case, but was there any difficulty in producing it?
“We received a request from SD Biosensor and started making molds in April last year. Although the mold was completed in such a short time, I did not expect that the production volume would increase so much in such a short time. At times, it produced more than 1 million units per day. SD Biosensor has world-class technology and is an agile company, so there was no problem. The fact that Intops is a smartphone parts maker also played a positive role. Smartphones are highly sophisticated products, but their development cycles are short. Since new products are released every year, Intops is second to none in terms of agility. With over 40 years of experience, both professional managers and employees understand the essence of manufacturing. After introducing the smart factory three years ago, we have also seen a 25% increase in productivity through continuous advancement.”
▷ Aren’t diagnostic kits, which are medical devices, items that can’t be produced anywhere?
“The production of medical devices is more demanding and stricter than general industrial products. The Italian company Empatica is producing the smart watch Embrace for epilepsy patients. Since it is a medical device, it had to acquire ISO 13485 certification, an international medical device quality management system. As we started to produce the COVID-19 diagnostic kit, we received Korea Good Manufacturing Practice (KGMP) certification and registered as a manufacturer with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Not only medical devices, but also electronic price indicators (ESL) and autonomous driving service robots, which are rapidly growing in the market these days, are being mass-produced on the Intops platform.”
▷ The word platform has been used a lot, but the expression ‘manufacturing platform’ is unfamiliar.
“It is natural to be unfamiliar. It’s like I made it myself. (Laughter) In the US, some companies invest in hardware startups and help with production. However, there are many cases where the project does not proceed properly because it is all about connecting factories in China. Intops is different in that it has a manufacturing base and can mass-produce even high-value-added products. We also operate a separate platform called ‘Paper Program’ for hardware startups. We also opened Hida Lab, a platform for designers, and it is very popular. Through Hida Lab, which proposes various materials and process technologies, dozens of calls from various companies around the world are being made every week, and new projects are being created.”
▷You are not directly involved in the 4th industrial revolution, but do you have any other plans?
“It is difficult for mid-sized companies to secure talent like startups and to respond nimbly to technological changes. This is why Intops actively invests in startups in the 4th industrial revolution, either directly or through its new technology business finance subsidiary (Intops Investment). Intops is already deeply connected with various 4th industrial revolution-related businesses, including medical devices, robots, and personal mobility, in the form of manufacturing or investment. A good example is the recovery of funds by investing in AI startup Sua Lab and electric vehicle charging system company Signet V. Sua Lab was sold to a NASDAQ listed company two years ago, and Signet V was sold to SK Group this year. Dozens of startup investments are still in progress, and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are being seriously considered.”
▷ In the era of great industrial transformation, will the qualifications required to do manufacturing change?
“In the past, diligence was the best in manufacturing. It’s still important, but standards are changing a lot. It is a concept that improves the degree of completion and efficiency within a given time, rather than leaving the office early and leaving work late as in the past. If you ask what qualities are important to our company, the answer will be flexibility. Because the pace of change is getting faster and faster, it is important to flexibly change the direction of the organization and business accordingly. Last year, there were many difficulties due to the unexpected variable of Corona 19, but thanks to the smart factory started three years ago and the ‘Business Intelligence’ project focused on improving work efficiency across the company, we were able to save. Business intelligence is an ongoing project that helps companies quickly collect data and make decisions faster.”
▷ What kind of company will Intops grow into in the future?
“As a second-generation founder, I have benefited. If you compare it to a marathon, you start running in the middle, not the starting line. This is the reason why founders and executives and employees have to work harder so that companies that have been hard-earned can have continuity. We will grow into a platform where employees and the company can grow together and combine technology, investment, and core competencies with a focus on manufacturing.”
By Kim Byung-geun, staff reporter bk11@hankyung.com
