Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., the world's largest shipbuilder, said Wednesday it will integrate its industrial plant business with its offshore engineering division and cut 1,500 jobs through a voluntary retirement program to tide over its financial crisis.

The integration will help the company cut its costs through the bulk purchase of components and materials and raise efficiency in production, the shipbuilder said in an e-mailed statement. 

Under the move, the company will utilize the workforce in the industrial plant division, a money-losing sector, in designs and sales of the offshore engineering division. 

The company said it will minimize losses in industrial plant projects under way by pooling available manpower with experience.

Hyundai Heavy also plans to conduct a voluntary retirement program among some 10,000 senior office workers in order to cut 1,500 jobs, or 5 percent, of its 28,000 workers.

About 1,000 employees are reported to have applied for the program so far.

Hyundai Heavy has been pushing reforms to overcome its financial problems after posting huge on-year losses in the second quarter of last year.

The shipbuilder reduced the number of executives at the company and two affiliates -- Hyundai Mipo Dockyard co. and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co. -- by one-third.

In October, Hyundai Heavy set up a new sales headquarters, merging its sales division with those at the two affiliates. (Yonhap)