Gyeonggi Province to Support Micro-businesses in Entering Smart Factories…Provides Up to 30 Million Won

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hoon Reporter] Gyeonggi Province is recruiting companies in the province until the end of next month to participate in the "Gyeonggi-type Smart Factory Construction Support Project," which provides up to 30 million won to support smart factory construction costs for micro and small enterprises in the province to enhance productivity and competitiveness.

The "Gyeonggi-type Smart Factory Construction Support Project," which has been in progress since 2019, targets micro-businesses in Gyeonggi Province that have given up on factory smartification due to high cost burdens, and supports the adoption of automation equipment to facilitate smart factory entry.

At the same time, professional consultants support comprehensive consulting from on-site diagnosis to smart factory construction to enable micro and small enterprises to build smart factories more systematically, which has gained considerable popularity among SMEs in the province.

The results from the Gyeonggi-type smart factory construction support are clear.

According to data analyzing 45 companies that adopted smart factories over a two-year period from 2019 to 2020, SMEs that received support for Gyeonggi-type smart factory construction experienced an average productivity increase of 128.1% and a 67.9% improvement in quality.

At the same time, costs decreased by 37.5% and on-time delivery rates improved by 28.2%.

Gyeonggi Province plans to continue the "Gyeonggi-type Smart Factory Construction Support" targeting micro and small enterprises this year, and plans to newly implement education for dedicated smart factory personnel through large enterprise cooperation to strengthen the smart manufacturing capabilities and expertise of companies in the province.

Recruitment targets are small and medium-sized manufacturing companies located in the province, with priority given to micro-businesses with five or fewer employees. The following are excluded from eligibility: ▲companies in closure or suspension ▲entertainment and leisure facilities, accommodations and restaurants ▲companies with national and local tax delinquency ▲manufacturers of unhealthy recreational products ▲beneficiary companies that have already received support from the Gyeonggi-type Smart Factory Construction Support Project.

For the 15 selected companies, smart factory construction costs will be supported up to a maximum of 30 million won, and free construction consulting from professional consulting organizations will be provided to resolve any difficulties that may arise during the construction process.

Company applications should be submitted from the 30th through the Gyeonggi Technopark website (www.gtp.or.kr) after checking submission documents, and then submitted to the person in charge's email (ndohee@gtp.or.kr). For more details, refer to the announcement or contact Gyeonggi Technopark at (031-500-3089).

Lim Moon-young, Gyeonggi Province's Director of Future Growth Policy, said, "We hope the Gyeonggi-type Smart Factory Construction Support Project will serve as a stepping stone for micro-businesses in the province to enter smart factories," and added, "We ask for active participation of companies in the province that wish to pursue factory smartification."

Meanwhile, for small and medium-sized manufacturing companies larger in scale than the Gyeonggi-type project, the province plans to expand smart factory support for companies in the province by additionally providing provincial funds to the large and small business co-prosperity-type smart factory construction support project promoted by the nation.