KOYO JICO Korea (CEO Yamazaki Teruhisa) opened a water pump bearing manufacturing plant for cars in the Hyeongok Industrial Plant, which is located in Cheongbuk-myeon, Pyeontaek-si.

The opening ceremony took place at 11:00 in the morning on May 16. Over 150 people participated in the event, including familiar faces such as Hwang Seong-tae, the Head of Gyeonggi Province Economic Investment; Pyeongtaek Mayor Kim Sun-ki; CEO Yamazaki Teruhisa of KOYO JICO Korea; Shimatani Hitosi, an executive of JTEKT Japan; CEO Lee Myeong-gun of JICO Co. Ltd.; and executive members of affiliated companies.

KOYO JICO Korea is a company that was established in May 2003 by JTEKT Japan, which is a world-renowned car parts manufacturer, and JICO Korea.

KOYO JICO’s technology is based on JTEKT’s advanced technical skills. The MOU for the investment in the car water pump bearing plant was signed in July 2011 when the delegation from Gyeonggi Province visited Japan. The recent event celebrated KOYO JICO’s 10th anniversary along with the opening of the first manufacturing plant of its kind in Korea.
KOYO JICO has invested 13 million USD and is expected to hire 120 employees, 53 of which are already on working. The company will hire about 67 more employees until the year 2015.

The water pump bearing that will be manufactured at KOYO JICO’s new plant is an original design that was developed by JTEKT. Its patented technology will be applied to the products produced in the new plant, which will hopefully meet Hyundai and Kia Motors’ “10 year 10,000 miles” goal. The all-new technology is expected to boost the competitive strength of Korean vehicles.
With KOYO JICO’s investment, parts that were once imported from Japan will be manufactured and even exported right here in Korea. Cooperation with other companies will stimulate the local economy.

Gyeonggi Province’s head of investment, Hwang Seong-tae, who was at the ceremony, said, “I hope Korea KOYO JICO utilizes Gyeonggi Province’s advanced industrial infrastructure and highly trained workforce to succeed in their business. Foreign investments boost the local economy by creating jobs and localizing high-end technology. The Gyeonggi Province government will continue our administrative support to create an investment-friendly environment.”

JTEKT Co., Ltd. Japan is based in Osaka and was founded in 2006 when KOYO SEKO and Toyota Koki merged. In 2012 their sales reached 955.4 billion yen and they had 36,775 employees. The company runs 155 plants worldwide, including in the US and Europe.