Veteran know-how goes digital as Korea's foundational industries embrace AI

South Korea has staged a showcase for the best practitioners of "root technology" — the foundational manufacturing skills underpinning the country's automotive, shipbuilding and semiconductor industries. For the first time, the event also unveiled a plan to digitize the accumulated know-how of veteran craftspeople and pass it on to the next generation through AI.

The National Root Industry Promotion Center under the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology held the awards ceremony for the 2026 Root Technology Competition on Tuesday at Texpa Hall of the Korea Federation of Textile Industries in Seoul.

The competition began in 1991 as a plating contest and marked its 34th edition this year. It is the country's premier root-technology contest, dedicated to identifying skilled workers on the factory floor and cultivating the next generation of technical talent.

This year, 1,065 participants competed across six fields — casting, molding, plastic forming, welding, surface treatment and heat treatment — over five months from April through August. Companies were evaluated on process technology and product quality, while students and employed workers were assessed on hands-on skills in areas such as design, machining, welding and heat treatment.

The top honor, the presidential award, went to Yeongpung Heat Treatment in the carburizing heat treatment category. Carburizing heat treatment infuses carbon into the surface of high-wear components such as gears and bearings, hardening the exterior while preserving the core's resistance to impact. Yeongpung Heat Treatment earned high marks for surface hardness, effective case depth, microstructural analysis and process documentation.

The prime minister's award went to four companies: IS (casting), Hyundai Steel (welding), Sewon Metal (surface treatment) and Dream Heat Treatment (heat treatment). IS presented a turbocharger turbine casing for high-heat-resistant marine engines, while Hyundai Steel showcased an ultra-high-pressure vessel produced using CO₂ arc welding. Sewon Metal was recognized for its eco-friendly trivalent chromate process, and Dream Heat Treatment for its quenching and tempering heat treatment control technology.

In the individual category, 46 people received government commendations, including employees at root-industry companies and students and teachers from Korea Polytechnics and Pohang Iron and Steel Technical High School. Award recipients will be offered job placement assistance at root-industry firms and opportunities to obtain technician certifications.

A highlight of this year's event was the first introduction of a method for digitally transferring the "tacit knowledge" — the experience and intuition of skilled technicians — built up across the root industries. Quality in root-industry processes often hinges on the judgment of experienced workers, but concerns are growing over a potential break in the chain of expertise as the workforce ages and labor shortages deepen.

The Korea Institute of Industrial Technology shared case studies in which veteran technicians' experience and judgment had been compiled as digital assets and integrated with AI. The initiative aims to convert the hands-on skills that risk disappearing when seasoned workers retire into data that future generations can draw on.

"The Root Technology Competition has served to identify skilled workers who have quietly honed their craft on the factory floor, as well as future technical talent," said Choi Tae-hun, director of the institute's Intelligent Root Technology Research Center. "We will work hard to raise awareness of the value of root technology."