KIST Europe (Korean Institute of Science and Technology) and gwSaar (Saarland Economic Promotion) decide to develop a new EU hub for Korean start-ups in Saarland. With KCL Korea Conformity Laboratories, a further important Korean institution opens its German branch in Saarbrücken on the same day.
Today, two important events took place at KIST Europe on the campus of the Saarland University. KCL, South Korea’s biggest testing and certification organization, opens a German office in Saarbrücken which will be based at KIST Europe and will strengthen the Korean infrastructure there. The new settlement is another component of the network between Saarland and Korea.
`In Saarland, synergies arise through proximity. Large German research institutes such as Max Planck, Fraunhofer, Helmholtz and Leibniz are united here on the campus. And with the opening of KCL Germany, we will continue to support Korean companies entering the European market and strenghten our cooperation with Saarland,´ says Yung Tae Jo, President of KCL.
The opening event of the German branch of KCL which was attended by Dr. Soo Hyun Kim, Director of KIST Europe, Economics Minister Jürgen Barke and Thomas Schuck, Managing Director of gwSaar, was also the opportunity to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) which defines the framework for future cooperation. Its most important element is the joint development of InSaar, an EU hub for Korean start-ups. KIST Europe, which is located on the campus of the Saarland University, will make its infrastructure available for InSaar and support the young businesses in their mother tongue.
`27 years ago, KIST Europe Forschungsgesellschaft mbH was successfully established at the Saarland University to conduct research in the areas of forecasting and analyzing future environmental risks. Furthermore, it is an important interface between research institutions and companies in South Korea and Germany. The founding of the German branch of KCL is considered to be a crucial starting point for cooperation in German-Korean research and raises expectations that this cooperation will gradually also be extended to business cooperations in the future. By bringing together dynamic South Korea and technologically advanced Germany, we hope for mutual synergy effects in both countries,` declared Dr. Soo Hyun Kim. `That´s why we would like to express our sincere thanks to the Saarland government for creating the essential prerequisites for this opportunity.`
gwSaar will support the newly established companies with its whole range of instruments for investors. Both partners will provide advice to the mostly technology and research-intensive young businesses on entering the European market. `I am convinced that with InSaar we are establishing a unique and highly attractive bridgehead for Korean start-ups and SMEs. The combination of Korean infrastructures at KIST Europe and the established consulting and networking services of gwSaar can make it much easier for companies to get a foothold in the European market`, Thomas Schuck summarizes the project, `We are already in touch with the first interested parties.`
`We appreciate very much that with KCL, an important Korean player has chosen Saarland as its location. In addition, IBK (Industrial Bank of Korea), with which gwSaar and KIST Korea have signed an MoU at the end of June, announced that they would install their own office responsible for their start-up program at InSaar,` adds Economics Minister Jürgen Barke. `Currently, IBK supports 300 start-ups in a pilot project that will soon be rolled out nationwide. These companies now have the chance to push their internationalization from Saarland. At the IBK Changgong Day at the end of June, I could speak with some of the start-ups supported by IBK and was impressed of their potential for innovation and success.`
