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SPC to build smart bread factory in Eumseong next year
SPC Group Vice Chairman Hur Jin-soo, right, and North Chungcheong Provincial Gov. Kim Young-hwan, second from right, pose at the provincial offices in Cheongju, Thursday, after signing a memorandum of understanding to build a new manufacturing plant, along with Rep. Lim Ho-seon of the Democratic Party of Korea, far left, Eumseong County Gov. Jo Byung-ok, second from left, and SPC President Do Se-ho, center. Courtesy of SPC
By Ko Dong-hwan
Major food conglomerate SPC Group will start building an automated smart factory next year in North Chungcheong Province to enhance workplace safety and strengthen its production capacity.
The plan comes after a recent series of workplace deaths at the group’s manufacturing plants prompted SPC to launch a compliance committee in July to strengthen internal monitoring and improve workplace safety. The committee proposed the new plant to the group’s leadership as part of efforts to improve worker conditions.
The new plant will be built inside Human Smart Valley in Eumseong County. Powered by artificial intelligence and equipped with automated pipelines and Internet of Things sensors throughout its operations, it will be the group’s most advanced production facility to date.
SPC has secured a 183,000-square-meter site inside the valley. The area accounts for 20 percent of the valley’s entire footprint, the largest among tenant companies, and is 2.5 times larger than the group’s current largest manufacturing plant, SPL, in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province.
SPC plans to complete construction by the end of 2028. The group aims for the plant to be selected as a Global Lighthouse Factory, a designation jointly granted by the World Economic Forum and McKinsey & Company to the world’s most advanced operational sites utilizing Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies. The Global Lighthouse Network currently includes 201 production facilities.
SPC Vice Chairman Hur Jin-soo and SPC CEO Do Se-ho met with North Chungcheong Province Gov. Kim Young-hwan, Eumseong County Gov. Jo Byung-ok and Rep. Lim Ho-seon of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, who represents the county, on Thursday. They signed a memorandum of understanding to introduce the plant, with a final project contract scheduled for next year.
SPC said the plant’s geographical location offers strong connectivity to the group’s production and logistics infrastructure.
“The new plant will be a critical turning point for SPC’s new direction focused on workplace safety and innovation. It will introduce the highest level of safety features and, hopefully, earn trust from our employees, customers and other stakeholders,” Hur said.