[KOSDAQ REPORT (14)] Phoenix PDE set to soar through the skies

This is the 14th in a series of articles analyzing companies listed on the Kosdaq, Korea`s secondary stock market loaded with tech firms - Ed.



By Yoo Soh-jung



GUMI - Phoenix PDE may be the first Korean company to localize glass powder used to make plasma display panels, but it is not resting on the laurels of its success.

Choi In-ho, chief executive officer of the medium-sized company with about 200 employees, has set out to become a global leader in producing and supplying lithium manganese, the key ingredient for making batteries to power automobiles and power tools.

The 50-year-old entrepreneur said the company has embraced this segment as the next key growth driver for at least the next 5 to 10 years. The strategy is in tandem with the global trend of endorsing green policies to sustain economic growth, while preserving the environment amid rising concerns over climate change.



"This second major step for the company is not only timely with respect to industry trends, but it is also the chance for us to focus on an area where there is still a dearth of players," Choi said in an interview with The Korea Herald at the company headquarters in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province.

The company`s LMO-producing plant now under construction is scheduled to begin official operations in mid-August.

Phoenix PDE, founded in 1983, has established itself as a leading supplier of display materials and semiconductor materials, with major clients including key local players and multinational ones. Choi, who assumed the top post in February, says the company is responsible for continuing to build on and improve its existing products in accordance with industry trends.

"We need to keep advancing our production technologies so they fit with the ongoing changes in industry trends," he said.

The chief executive noted that the company`s global competitiveness lies in its savvy production methods and cost competitiveness.

Choi`s quick and shrewd executive decisions can be traced to his role as the company`s chief finance officer, which he served from January 2007 to February 2009, which was when he was designated as the CEO. As CFO, he led a massive restructuring drive to re-stabilize the corporate foundations, which slipped into the red in 2007 due to a reckless plant construction investment. He took the initiative of selling off burdensome affiliates and cutting the number of employees by halve to 200.

As of this year, Phoenix PDE has returned to a profit-making business.

"We have now begun reaping the benefits of our cost-saving measures, and the company is on the road to stabilization," Choi said, humbly and cautiously noting that the company still has a long way to go.

To go the next mile, the entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience at Samsung Corning professed that skillful management of the employees will be the key.

"I think employee mindset and attitude are most important for a company`s success, and my responsibility is to instill and encourage the necessary changes in them," Choi emphasized. "It`s important for me to help the employees have passion for their work and be motivated," he added.

(sohjung@heraldm.com)