Chairman Kwon Oh-joon of POSCO will personally lead the steel maker’s solution marketing moves in an attempt to realize the steel company’s vision, “POSCO the Great,” which he concocted after becoming chairman of the 5th largest steel maker in the world on March 14.
POSCO said it held the Early Vendor Involvement Forum at the Songdo Conventia in Incheon from Oct. 27-29 with the participation of representatives from some 1,200 customers, such as auto and shipbuilding firms and home appliance makers. Over 500 key global customers attended, including Ford, Volkswagen and Nissan.
POSCO kicked off the EVI in 2008 and has held the event every other year. The goal is to strengthen relations with global automakers and potential customers in the form of a tailor-made marketing campaign.
The forum, with the theme “from Steel Supplier to Solution Partner” got underway with Chairman Kwon’s opening speech. He said POSCO will redouble efforts to help its customers make progresses in their endeavors and succeed in them by providing segregated technologies and steel products with top quality steel materials and solutions marketing.
During the forum, POSCO signed around 100 contracts on R&D activities for lighter, stronger steel plates with auto makers, technologies, products and sales behind closed doors. What attracted the largest attention from participants was POSCO’s high-tech production of TWIP, hot press forming steel and magnesium steel plates the same plates that went into the production of Renault’s Eolab, the French auto maker’s hybrid concept car that was introduced during the forum.
The steel maker also showed off steel products supplied to such industries as auto, shipbuilding, energy, marine structure, construction, electric and electronics, amongst others, along with solutions and technologies.
POSCO wanted to show off its new materials that will be used in the production of the new French hybrid car Eolab, particularly its the super-light magnesium panel and TWIP steel. The steel maker eyes lighter steel plates that Volkswagen might need to make lighter cars in the future and the steel products that Daewoo Shipbuilding might need to make high-manganese LNG tanks, amongst others.
POSCO also signed an agreement with Seoul City to develop anti-corrosive stainless steel pipes that go into the tap water supply system of the city in cooperation with both domestic and foreign companies in such areas as construction, home electric appliances, stainless steel, and ship materials in such areas as technology and marketing.
When it opened in 2008, the forum was centered on its auto company customers, but lately has included other sectors such as energy, shipbuilding, construction and electric and electronics, amongst others.
In the meantime, POSCO plans to build a 110,000-ton steel assembly plant in the Gujarat State in India, where Prime Minister Modi is from, th steel maker announced on Nov. 13. The projected steel assembly plant is to be built in the Sanand region near Amadabad, the largest city in Gujarat State, POSCO said. The work on the projected steel plant will begin in March next year targeted to be completed in 2016 so that it will be able to supply various steel products to the plants operating in the Gujarat state such as Tata, Maruti, Suzuki, and other auto makers. POSCO has a steel plant completed in May, 2010, in Maharashutra State, India, capable of turning out key steel plates used in auto and home appliances and three steel assembly plants in Dehli, Pune and Chennai. The steel maker still is trying to build an integrated steel mill in Odessa State, India, dince June, 2005. President Park Geun-hye asked for Prime Minister Modi's help on the matter when they met on Nov. 12, during Three+ASEAN Summit in Myanmar.
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