By Kim Yoo-chul
Staff Reporter
Doosan Group, which embraces Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction as its key money-source, said Sunday that it is targeting an annual operating profit of 10 trillion won by 2015 on sales of 100 trillion won.
To achieve this goal, the group plans to pour millions of dollars into the development of original technology focusing on desalination plants, boilers and small-sized heavy equipment such as excavators.
``Without original technology, it is impossible to achieve the upwardly adjusted sales target and it is nonsense to reap over 90 percent of sales in overseas markets,’’ group Chairman Park Yong-sung said on the sidelines of the first ``Doosan Technological Excellence Awards’’ ceremony held in Gangwon Province with some 200 employees, last week.
``So far, Doosan has been successful in portfolio diversification as the group generated some 50 percent of sales in overseas markets. However, we are having trouble moving forward,’’ Park added.
The group plans to spend a maximum of 1 billion won for incentives annually to boost the morale of employees.
``Our group has secured growth momentum by acquiring Bobcat, the nimble skid-steer loader. However, concerns are high that we can’t survive in the challenging market only through mergers and acquisitions,’’ a group official said.
To add a compact equipment niche that Doosan was lacking, the company bought Bobcat from Michigan-based Ingersoll Rand in November last year for $4.9 billion. Doosan is well-known for large construction equipment, desalination plants and liquor products and sells large excavators and earth movers in its key North American and Chinese markets.
Boosted by increasing excavator orders in China ahead of the Beijing Olympics, its excavators business has been maintaining strong momentum there, selling a total of 50,000 ― a sales record.
Also, Doosan Heavy last month secured an order worth $320 million for desalination plants in Kuwait and the company now seeks more of such orders in accordance with brisk demand for large-scale plants.