Closed School Transformed into Robotics Testbed... Nonsan Launches as Advanced Defense City

Hwanghwa Elementary School Site to Become Integrated Testing Center for Robotics and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Aiming to Emerge as a Hub for Advanced Industries Linked with the National Defense Industrial Complex

From the left in the photo: Seungyoung Lee, Head of Future Battlefield Research and Development Division at LIG Nex1; Seonghyun Baek, Mayor of Nonsan; Yongha Kim, President of Konyang University; Joohyun Baek, Head of Science and Technology Promotion Division at Chungnam Research Institute / Nonsan City Hall

A former elementary school, once filled with children's laughter, is being reborn as a cradle of advanced robotics to prepare for future battlefields. Nonsan City in South Chungcheong Province is transforming unused educational facilities into cutting-edge testing grounds, aiming to become a central hub for the national defense robotics industry.

On October 14, the city announced that it had signed a four-party agreement for "expansion of the robotics ecosystem and establishment of a collaborative partnership for mutual growth" with Konyang University, Chungnam Research Institute, and LIG Nex1 at the city hall situation room.

Through this agreement, the site of Hwanghwa Elementary School in Yeonmu-eup, which closed in 2022 and covers 35,947 square meters, will be reborn as an integrated robotics performance testing center.

The city plans to create a state-of-the-art testbed that replicates environments similar to actual battlefields, enabling demonstration, testing, research and development, and performance evaluation of robots and unmanned aerial vehicles.

Through this project, the city expects to achieve spatial innovation by utilizing the closed school, establish a foundation for advanced industries, and create youth jobs to help revitalize the local economy.

In particular, the city aims to maximize the synergy between the defense industry and robotics by linking this initiative with the National Defense Industrial Complex currently being developed in Yeonmu-eup, which spans 860,000 square meters.

Mayor Baek Sunghyun stated, "The defense industry is the field where Nonsan excels the most, and robotics is the core industry of future battlefields. With this agreement as a starting point, we will foster a research, talent development, and demonstration ecosystem to establish Nonsan as the mecca of advanced defense robotics."

Meanwhile, Nonsan City is currently pursuing the construction of the National Defense Industrial Complex, which is expected to generate economic benefits of 2.8 trillion won and create 1,492 jobs. The city is in the process of negotiating land compensation, aiming to complete the project in the second half of 2029.