IFEZ Journal

Construction Starts on YMT’s R&D Center 

Developing IFEZ’s Material, Parts, and Equipment Industry

YMT, a small giant company in the materials, parts, and equipment industry, announced the beginning of the establishment of its R&D center.

The R&D center, scheduled to be completed in 2025, is expected to contribute significantly to developing IFEZ’s materials, parts, 

and equipment industry by enhancing technological prowess in electronic parts and biofields.

Research on Technology in the Field of Electronic Parts and Biotechnology

On June 27, a groundbreaking ceremony for the YMT R&D Center was held in Songdo Zone 5 (210-6 Songdo-dong). About 70 people, including IFEZ Commissioner Kim Jin-yong and YMT CEO Chun Sung-wook, attended the groundbreaking ceremony, sharing congratulatory messages.

YMT is a company whose core business is chemical materials and copper foil used in printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturing, an essential component of the electronics industry. Their products are used as core materials in electronic parts, such as for application in smartphones and tablets made by Apple and Samsung, as well as electric vehicles from Tesla in the US and BYD of China. The R&D center is scheduled to be completed in 2025, comprising of one basement floor and six floors above ground on the Ks10-3 site of Songdo High-tech Industrial Cluster (B). In 2021, as a result of a contest to attract a leading research institute to the Songdo industrial and research facility site, YMT was selected as the preferred bidder. Accordingly, YMT signed a land- sale contract with IFEZ, and construction began within a year and a half. With a total investment of KRW 48.6 billion, the center is planned to serve as a technical research center for various businesses, including chemical materials for electronic parts, ultra-thin copper foils, and metal fabrics in the biofield.

Location 210-6 Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon

Area 25,874㎡ 

(1 basement floor and 6 floors above ground)

Budget KRW 48.6 billion

Completion Scheduled for 2025

Aerial view of YMT’s R&D Center

One of the Top 100 Materials, Parts, and Equipment Companies: A Repository of Technology

YMT boasts excellent technology to succeed in localization through continuous research and development in the gold and copper plating technology market dominated by Japanese and German companies. Recently, it developed ultra-thin copper foil using the electroless method for the first time in the world and entered the market monopolized by a Japanese company. Based on this, in 2020, it was selected as one of the 100 Small Giants in Materials, Parts, and Equipment by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

When the Songdo R&D center is opened, YMT plans to expand its business areas to high-tech materials and biofields, such as ultra-thin copper foil, 5G-related chemical materials, antibacterial masks using 100% copper fabric, and composite wound dressings. If this plan is realized, YMT is expected to contribute greatly to developing IFEZ’s materials, parts, and equipment industry, leaping forward as a global company by establishing a top-notch research environment for electronic parts, materials, and bio.

“We are trying to establish a new research center in Songdo to secure the world’s no. 1 technology in the domestic chemical materials market, which has a high share of advanced countries. We will do our best to contribute to Incheon’s economic development.”

Chun Sung-wook, CEO of YMT

“Congratulations on the construction of YMT’s R&D center. In the future, we will focus on making IFEZ a top-notch global city by attracting additional global companies, including small giants in the materials, parts, and equipment industry.”

Kim Jin-young, Commissioner of IFEZ