The government plans to nurture some 200,000 professionals in the fields of offshore plants, embedded software, “ppuri” manufacturing and fashion for the development of new growth engines.
In an economy-related meeting presided over by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok on Tuesday, officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said that the plan to increase the number of specialists in “strategic” sectors by 2017 would create more than 65,000 jobs.
“Ppuri” refers to the craftsmanship, manufacturing process and techniques of molding, casting, plastic working, welding, and heat and surface treatments.
Almost 90 percent of automobile parts are developed by small and medium enterprises through such techniques, which are also used for making mobile handsets and ship components.
The National Fundamental Manufacturing Industry Promotion Center has been spearheading the ppuri industry to help the six manufacturing processes to become “automatic, clean and easy,” or ACE, industries.
The officials said the ministry would set up scholarship programs through specialized curricula at universities for students studying offshore plant engineering for master’s and doctoral degrees.
It will also support students in the fields of embedded software for machinery control systems, and develop university programs to foster professionals in ppuri manufacturing.
The same goes for developing the textile and fashion sectors where students can be taught to become professionals in producing “advanced textiles” such as outdoor apparel, the ministry said.
The plan comes after the deputy prime minister last month urged the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to implement a road map to take Korea’s logistics industry to the next level of growth.
They also set out to foster logistics professionals by providing special education programs through universities.
Logistics companies are required to not only provide ground transportation services but also air and sea.
Such services should also include purchasing, for instance, raw materials for customers as they are as important as the industry’s basic delivery services.
The two control towers for the advancement of the logistics sector aim to achieve 10 percent annual growth and create more than 72,000 jobs in the industry over the next five years, the ministries said.
