[Column] The Reason Samsung's Message Was Powerful in 'Giheung' Rebound

On the 18th, the message delivered by Jeon Young-hyun, head of Samsung Electronics Semiconductor and Vice Chairman of the Device Solutions (DS) division, left a strong impression in many ways. At the equipment installation ceremony for the next-generation semiconductor research and development (R&D) complex held at the Giheung Campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, he said, "We will lay the foundation for a new leap forward in Giheung, where the 50-year history of Samsung Electronics semiconductors began, and create a future for the next 100 years." This is a resolution to unravel the clues to the crisis the company currently faces starting from Giheung and move forward into the future.

The resolution conveyed from Giheung is special. Giheung is where the legend of Samsung Electronics semiconductors began. Turning back the clock 41 years, around February to March 1983, the late Lee Byung-chul, founder of Samsung, took a helicopter to survey the Giheung area of Yongin City from the sky and made up his mind. "Let's build the new semiconductor plant here." At that time, Lee had declared the ‘Tokyo Declaration’ in Tokyo, Japan, signaling his full-scale entry into the semiconductor business and was searching for a site to build a semiconductor factory. He needed a stage to replace the factory in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, and open the curtain on the company’s semiconductor business. Giheung was one of the candidates along with Suwon in Gyeonggi Province, near Singal Reservoir in Yongin, near Gwanak Golf Course in Seoul, and the Pangyo area in Gyeonggi Province. After inspecting the candidate sites with domestic and international water quality and geological experts, Lee reportedly instinctively felt that Giheung was the optimal location. He also liked the place name very much. The Chinese characters for ‘Giheung (器興)’ literally mean ‘a place where ceramics prosper.’ The name Giheung was created in April 1914 during the administrative district reorganization under Japanese colonial rule. Since Joseon was famous for its white porcelain, ceramics were a flagship industry, and Giheung was a transportation hub with an environment conducive to smooth distribution of ceramics. It seems the Japanese paid attention to this and named the area Giheung. A place where just making ceramics would bring prosperity. For Chairman Lee, it must have been impossible not to build a factory in such a Giheung.

The passion for semiconductors that Chairman Lee held in his heart at that time seems to have flowed through time and connected to today’s message of a new leap forward from Vice Chairman Jeon. Vice Chairman Jeon likely wanted to convey that meaning in his message. The impact of his words was even greater considering that the day after was the 37th anniversary of Chairman Lee’s passing. It also encompassed everything as it came three days after Samsung Electronics announced it would purchase 10 trillion won worth of treasury shares to boost its stock price, and about half a month before the 50th anniversary of its semiconductor business on the 6th of next month. According to the industry, it is very rare for an equipment installation ceremony to receive such attention. This occasion was special partly because of the semiconductor business crisis Samsung Electronics is currently facing. The timing was exquisite, and because it was in Giheung, the meaning of the message was amplified.

Now is the time to leave behind past glories in Giheung and write a new history. Samsung expects the cutting-edge integrated R&D complex, ‘New Research & Development-K (NRD-K),’ to serve as an outpost. It will invest 20 trillion won by 2030. Full-scale operation will begin from mid-next year. It will research the technologies needed across the semiconductor spectrum, including memory, system, and foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing), and produce products. Through this, Samsung will continue its journey as a ‘comprehensive semiconductor company.’