Establishment of 'Cement Day,' Cement Industry Leading 'Energy Security' with Elevated Status

Hyun-Jun Lee, President of the Cement Association, "Leading Energy Security through Carbon Neutral Technology Development"
"Inspiring Pride among Cement Industry Workers, Turning It into an Opportunity for a New Leap"

Lee Hyun-jun, Chairman of the Korea Cement Association (Executive Representative of Ssangyong C&E), is delivering a commemorative speech at the '1st Cement Day' ceremony.
[Photo by Korea Cement Association]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] The cement industry has established "Cement Day" and pledged a new beginning.

The Korea Cement Association announced on the 3rd that it held the "1st Cement Day" commemorative ceremony on the 1st at the Federation of Korean Industries Conference Center in Yeouido, Seoul, with about 200 attendees including CEOs and executives of the cement industry, political and business figures, and heads of related industry organizations.

The cement industry decided to designate and commemorate July 1st, the founding day of the Korea Cement Association initiated by the pioneering chairmen of the early cement industry, as "Cement Day" to remember the cement industry’s contribution to national development as a key industry and to enhance the pride of its employees.

The Cement Association was launched on July 1, 1963, as the "Korea Cement Industrial Association" with five founding member companies: Dongyang, Daehan, Ssangyong, Hanil, and Hyundai Cement. To grow the cement industry in line with national economic development, there was a need for a unifying point for the industry. At that time, the chairmen of the five companies?Lee Yang-gu of Dongyang Cement, Lee Jeong-rim of Daehan Cement, Hong Jae-seon of Ssangyong Cement, Heo Chae-gyeong of Hanil Cement, and Chung Ju-young of Hyundai Cement?agreed on this and established the association.

Since the name was changed to the Korea Cement Association on January 1, 2011, the need to establish "Cement Day" has been steadily raised. This year, Ssangyong C&E celebrated its 60th anniversary, and next year the association will also mark its 60th anniversary. However, since the cement industry still lacks a separate commemorative day, there has been strong public opinion that "Cement Day" should be established as soon as possible. In fact, most manufacturing industries such as automobiles, steel, shipbuilding, semiconductors, petrochemicals, and paper have industry commemorative days, but the cement industry does not.

Accordingly, the cement industry attempted to establish Cement Day once at the association level in 2011, but due to the global financial crisis causing difficulties across the industry, the effort had to be postponed.

The commemorative ceremony was held with the reading of the joint declaration for the establishment of "Cement Day" and the signing of the declaration by representatives of the cement industry. Assemblyman Eom Tae-young (Jecheon, Chungbuk, People Power Party) congratulated, saying, "It has been 80 years since the cement industry was born in this land, and it feels late to establish Cement Day only now," adding, "It has been recognized as a national key industry."

As of the end of 2021, Korea’s cement industry produces 48 million tons of cement annually and exports 6.5 million tons. Its production ranks 13th in the world, and exports rank 12th globally.

Lee Hyun-jun, chairman of the Korea Cement Association, emphasized, "Recently, the cement industry has been actively responding to government policies such as recycling of circular resources and carbon neutrality," adding, "We will actively engage in technology development for carbon neutrality, which will bring a paradigm shift as a key industry supporting Korea’s sustainable growth and development, and take the lead in energy security."

The Cement Association plans to use the establishment of "Cement Day" as an opportunity to raise the level of government awards and expand the number of recipients, thereby enhancing the status and importance of cement through the commemorative ceremony. A representative of the Cement Association said, "The perception of the cement industry by the government and the public is also changing positively," adding, "We will boost the pride of workers in line with the status of the cement industry and use this as an opportunity for a new leap forward."