Remarks at 2025 Employee Achievement Sharing Event
Lee Commends Productivity Gains at Georgia Plant
Awards Presented to 60 Employees, Boosting Pride and Sharing Experiences
Lee Yongwook, CEO of SK On, emphasized, "To survive in a fiercely competitive market, we must combine cost competitiveness with product competitiveness to secure order-winning capabilities," adding, "It is crucial to create a virtuous cycle in which cost, product, and order competitiveness reinforce each other."
On December 19, SK On announced that CEO Lee made these remarks at the '2025 CEO Recognition' event held on the afternoon of the 18th at SK On Gwanhun Campus in Jongno-gu, Seoul. He also stated, "Despite a challenging business environment this year, we achieved meaningful results through cooperation and communication," and added, "Next year will also be challenging, but I am confident we can overcome it based on the experience we have accumulated together in the field."
Lee Yongwook, President and CEO of SK On, is speaking at the '2025 CEO Recognition' event held on the afternoon of the 18th at SK On Gwanhun Campus in Jongno-gu, Seoul. SK On
The CEO Recognition is an official awards ceremony designed to boost employees' pride and share outstanding achievements and creative experiences. Established in 2023, it has been held annually since then. This year's event was attended by CEO Lee Yongwook, Head of Manufacturing Pi Seungho, Head of Operations Shin Changho, and about 100 other executives and employees. To accommodate members around the world, the event was also broadcast live online.
The awards were divided into two categories: 'Onbuilders' and 'Onpreneurs.' The Onbuilders award is given to teams and projects that have delivered results by tackling challenging tasks. After an executive evaluation, the top 10 achievements are selected, and the best achievement is chosen by employee vote. The Onpreneur award is given to individuals who set an example in the process of collaboration. A total of 60 individuals were selected through employee nominations and voting.
This year’s top 10 achievements included: maximizing productivity at the Georgia plant (SKBA) in the United States; improving the operating rate at the Komarom Plant 2 (SKBM) in Hungary; transitioning to intelligent manufacturing based on artificial intelligence (AI) technology; and securing a large-scale energy storage system (ESS) supply contract in the United States. These results highlighted improvements in manufacturing efficiency and enhanced product competitiveness, enabling effective market response.
The project at the Georgia plant in the United States, which was selected as the best achievement, responded to rising domestic production demand by rapidly increasing production efficiency. A task force of experts in technology, production, and other fields was formed to address initial yield issues on new lines in a timely manner. Through close collaboration between teams in Korea and the United States, the operating rate was raised to over 95% in a short period.
The achievements of the European manufacturing subsidiary also drew attention. The SK On Hungary plant strengthened overall process efficiency, including improving equipment speed, to respond to increased order volumes in Europe. As a result, the operating rate at the Komarom Plant 2 in Hungary was raised to approximately 90%. These achievements coincided with strong sales by major customers amid the growth of the European electric vehicle market.
Results achieved through the use of AI technology also stood out. SK On established an AI-based intelligent manufacturing plant environment to enhance manufacturing competitiveness. The company developed an 'Automatic Process Control (APC)' system for key battery manufacturing processes to reduce process deviations such as minute errors, and implemented 'Auto Defect Classification (ADC)' inspections based on Vision AI to detect defects that are difficult to identify with the naked eye.
The large-scale ESS project in the United States was also selected as an Onbuilders achievement. By expanding its business portfolio from electric vehicles (EVs) to ESS, SK On was recognized for its financial performance and business diversification. In September, SK On signed a supply contract for 1GWh with U.S. renewable energy company Flatiron Energy Development. The company also secured the right of first negotiation for Flatiron's 6.2GWh project in the United States by 2030, raising expectations for supplying up to 7.2GWh in total.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
