The First Groundbreaking of the 'Autonomous Ship Demonstration Center' in Ulsan... Securing Global Leadership and Establishing a Next-Generation Ship Research Hub

Groundbreaking Ceremony on the 19th at Dong-gu Goneul District, 21.9 Billion KRW Invested

Ulsan City Hall.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The 'Autonomous Ship Performance Demonstration Center,' which will create a new growth engine for the shipbuilding and marine industry, is breaking ground in Ulsan.

On the 19th at 2 p.m., Ulsan City announced that it will hold the 'Autonomous Ship Performance Demonstration Center Groundbreaking Ceremony' at the Goneul District in Dong-gu, Ulsan, and officially begin construction.

The groundbreaking ceremony will be held with the attendance of Ulsan Mayor Song Cheol-ho, Kim Bu-gi, director of the Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering, the city council chairman Park Byung-seok, officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, and related organizations. The event will include a promotional video screening, progress report, and a blasting ceremony.

The Autonomous Ship Performance Demonstration Center is being built to demonstrate the autonomous ship technology development project jointly promoted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.

Since the regional selection evaluation committee chose the Ulsan area in 2018, all procedures have been completed, and the project implementer was selected in October this year to start construction, aiming for completion in June next year.

A total project cost of 21.9 billion KRW will be invested, and it will be built on a 9,128㎡ site at 35 Ilsandong, Dong-gu, with a total building area of 1,278㎡, consisting of one basement floor and three above-ground floors.

The first floor will house the land-based integrated performance test room, the second floor will have the integrated simulator room, and the third floor will include the maritime control room and commissioning room.

Once completed, the center will establish the foundation for equipment and systems for the development, testing, evaluation, and verification of core autonomous ship technologies.

The center will demonstrate equipment, ship performance, and autonomous navigation systems, providing accumulated data on commissioning, operation, and ship performance to shipping companies, shipyards, and ship equipment manufacturers.

It is expected to create a new growth engine for the shipbuilding and marine industry, establish a research hub for next-generation future ships, foster an industrial ecosystem, pioneer future markets, and strengthen the competitiveness of Ulsan’s key industry, the shipbuilding and marine industry.

Ulsan Mayor Song Cheol-ho said, “To lay the foundation as a leading city in the shipbuilding and marine industry with global competitiveness, it is necessary to achieve a leap forward in the shipbuilding and marine industry suitable for the Fourth Industrial Revolution era and secure the world’s strongest shipbuilding industry competitiveness.”

Mayor Song added, “We plan to systematically promote the project according to the strategic development roadmap for the future shipbuilding industry.”

‘Autonomous ships’ refer to next-generation high value-added vessels where intelligent and autonomous systems can replace crew decision-making by integrating artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), big data, sensors, and more.