Chungnam Is Korean Tech Success Story

Dujeong-dong, Chungnam, where restaurants, beer houses, cafes, and singing rooms line the streets, was lit up and filled with people on the night of December 20, despite heavy snow and a severe cold snap.

These days, the area is no different from the busiest neighborhoods of Seoul. But only three years ago, the area was just a vast stretch of land.

Lee Seung-woo, an official from the regional economic department of Cheonan City said, “Thanks to the establishment of the Tangjeong LCD complex in Asan, Chungnam, Dujeong-dong is changing fast. Even I sometimes get lost in the streets.”

The LCD complex, which went into full operation in April, is expected to post over 30 trillion won in the total sales this year. And the northwest area of Chungnam is emerging as the core economic area of the middle part of the country. The expected total sales of the area are the same as the estimated total sales of the L group this year.

A Regional Economy on the Rise-

An owner of a restaurant in Dujeong-dong said, “Most of my customers are young workers residing in the dormitory in the Tangjeong industrial complex.”

Model apartments and one-to-three high rises are being constructed on every block all over Baekseok-ro in downtown Cheonan. Development is in full swing as evidenced by the fact that there are some restaurants with signs saying, “Open in December.”

Jang Jeong-hoon (47), a local taxi driver for 18 years, said, “Most taxis go to the Tangjeong industrial complex more than twice a day.”

Creating Something Out of Nothing -

Chungnam Province declared 2002 as the starting year for making a “Business friendly Chungnam,” set five major priorities, and made efforts to attract businesses into the area. The province enhanced its capacity to give practical help to businesses by introducing one-stop civil affairs management, expanding national funding for the industrial complex, providing a variety of benefits to companies that move to the area, and reducing the time of the establishment and registration of factories.

Samsung’s affiliates and related small- and medium-sized companies in the Tangjeong LCD complex have received the biggest share of the benefits.

Samsung affiliates that are leading the success of the complex have begun to return the favor. Cafeterias run by Samsung Electronics for its Tangjeong workers now only use “Asan clean rice.” Some 3,000 people eat breakfast and dinner, and about 6,000 people have lunch in those cafeterias.

Park Han-kyu, the director of the economy and trade department in Chungnam province said, “In order to make Tangjeong a successful model of cooperation among residents, businesses and self-governing communities, we will attract public and private educational institutions equipped with the best facilities and personnel, and we will spare no effort in providing them with support.”