Carbon Fiber Company Gumi Ilseong Composite Honored with Technology Innovation Award at Paris International Composite Materials Exhibition

Gyeongbuk Province announced that Ilseong Composite Co., Ltd., a manufacturer of carbon fiber intermediates and production equipment located in Gumi, received the Technology Innovation Award in the sustainability and recycling sector of composite materials at JEC WORLD 2025, held from the 4th to the 6th.

This achievement was made possible through R&D funding supported as a provincial lead project by Gyeongbuk Province.

Kim Ki-young, CEO of Gumi Ilseong Composite, who received the Technology Innovation Award (third from the right), and Kim Je-yul, Director of the Materials and Components Industry Division of Gyeongbuk Province (fourth from the right), are taking a commemorative photo with other awardees.

JEC WORLD is the world's largest composite materials exhibition held annually in Paris, France, where innovative technologies related to composite materials and their applications can be seen in one place through product displays, conferences, and startup competitions.

Moreover, the Innovation Award is given annually before the event opens to creative projects that maximize the potential of composite materials. This year, companies and co-development partners that developed innovative technologies in 11 fields, including aerospace parts, circularity, and recycling, were honored with the award.

The technology submitted by Ilseong Composite Co., Ltd. was developed jointly with excellent local research institutions such as the Korea Textile Machinery Convergence Research Institute and the German Institute of Textile Machinery and High Performance Materials Technology (hereinafter ITM). It aims to recover, recycle, and reutilize carbon fibers constituting carbon fiber reinforced polymer plastics (hereinafter CFRP) based on a non-crushing process.

Unlike conventional pyrolysis or solvent methods that involve a crushing process to improve process efficiency, this award-winning technology selectively and rapidly heats carbon fibers within seconds at high temperatures using a high-frequency electromagnetic field without a crushing process. This decomposes the resin surrounding the carbon fibers, enabling the production of various forms of intermediates and CFRP, thereby significantly expanding the scope of resource reutilization.

Additionally, this innovative technology boasts far superior energy efficiency and higher preservation of carbon fiber strength compared to existing technologies. It reduces waste and allows for the recovery of carbon fibers in their original raw material state as much as possible, offering the advantage of obtaining eco-friendly and economical recycled carbon fibers.

Yang Geum-hee, Deputy Governor for Economy of Gyeongbuk Province, stated, “With the Innovation Award at JEC WORLD 2025, the collaborative results of companies and research institutions in Gyeongbuk Province have been recognized for their technological excellence in the global composite materials industry, allowing us to showcase the innovative capabilities of the advanced materials industry in our region to the world. Moving forward, Gyeongbuk Province will actively support local companies to achieve greater leaps in the global market based on this achievement.”