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| LG Display brings in manufacturing equipment for plastic organic light-emitting-diodes (POLEDs) to its E5 plant in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. / Courtesy of LG Display |
By Lee Min-hyung
LG Display said Wednesday it will start mass producing plastic organic light-emitting-diode (POLED) panels in the first half of next year.
The POLED uses plastic as a substrate, making displays bendable, rollable and foldable, LG Display said in a statement.
The company said it brought POLED manufacturing equipment to its E5 production line in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, which it says is part of its aggressive investment drive to be a first mover in mass producing such next-generation display panels.
LG Display has invested a total of 18 trillion won ($15.44 billion) in the Gumi manufacturing facility since 1995.
"In the display industry, bringing in core manufacturing equipment has a symbolic connotation as a successful investment drive," LG Display Chief Production Officer (CPO) Jeong Cheol-dong said in a statement. "The latest move will allow the Gumi plant to become a key venue to manufacture small- and medium-sized POLED displays."
The company will conduct a pilot test for the new equipment this year before starting to supply POLED displays to its clients within the first half of next year, the company said.
The new equipment will be placed at the firm's E5 production line for which LG Display invested 1.5 trillion won in July last year in its bid to meet growing demand for flexible displays used for such products as smartphones and automobiles.
Gumi City offered substantial tax incentives in return for the firm's bid to revitalize the regional economy.
The investment drive is expected to make a huge contribution in generating new jobs and revenue sources for the people of Gumi, which is suffering under the economic slowdown, the company said in the statement.
A group of 200 representatives and corporate executives from LG Display's partner companies joined the event to celebrate the company's acceptance of the POLED-manufacturing equipment.
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