Vice Chairman & CEO Woo Yoo-cheol of Hyundai Steel

 Hyundai Steel won the $4 billion Export Tower medal at the 51st Export Day ceremony held on Dec. 5 at Coex, in southern Seoul.

 The steel maker is a product of Hyundai Motor Group’s daring gamble to challenge POSCO’s domination of the steel market just like David  versus Goliath.

 To the surprise of the entire business community, Hyundai Steel looks as though it came out as the victor thanks mainly to its overseas market, growing more than 40 percent annually and diversification of its steel product portfolio, which has been one of the best in the world in the eyes of so many in the steel industry in Korea. The steel maker’s capture of the export tower medal is no surprise to many under a strong leadership of Vice Chairman and CEO Woo Yoo-cheol.

 The steel maker’s main products include H-beams, steel rods, and hot and cold-rolled steel plates, steel plates, steel board, steel casting, heavy machinery, and rolling roll, among others, whose annual sales amounted to 14.12 trillion won in 2012, 12.81 trillion won in 2013 and 16.3 trillion won expected for this year.

 Six steel products produced and marketed by the steel maker have been tops in their respective world market which include H-beams, rolling rolls, caterpillar track, stem steel sheet, angles, and key type steel sheet pile.

 Officials of the Korea International Trade Association said the steel maker has been not only doing a great job improving the nation’s trade surplus, but also boosting the reputation of Korea while doing so at the same time. The steel company’s exports from July last year to June this year amounted to $4.286 billion, up 43 percent year-to-year.

 Hyundai Steel produces steel from crude iron ores from its blast furnaces including hot and cold rolled steel for automakers and also from scrap iron with its electric furnaces. The steel mill gets the supply of scrap iron from its car recycling center where junk cars are scraped and supplied to steel mills with electric furnaces to produce H-beams and steel rods for construction companies. The construction companies in turn send old H-beams and steel rods from old dilapidated buildings to the steel maker with electric furnaces again to be used as scrape iron to produce new steel products.

 Hyundai Steel has also been of great help to its customers to enhance their competitive strength by providing them with supports in various areas including technology, education/training, and technology exchange with overseas customers under the steel maker’s programs designed for mutual survival with its customers.

 The steel maker has also been holding sessions with its customers to hear their complaints if any or suggestions for mutual growth with smaller vendor firms.

 From 2006, the steel maker has been inviting the CEOs of its customer firms in various parts of the world for meetings in Korea to discuss various matters for closer ties with them by sharing the understanding on global steel industry trends and tailor-made services to satisfy their demands to the maximum possible. 

 Hyundai Steel keeps its country -- and others -- building. South Korea's #2 steelmaker (behind POSCO), Hyundai Steel was established in 1953 as the country's first steel company. Its steel products are used the world over in everything from rail lines and ship anchors to bridge support mechanisms and power transmission towers. Hyundai Steel operates three production facilities in South Korea and one in China from which it produces about 10 million tons annually. It markets its products to North America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and throughout Asia..