LS Mtron (CEO Yeon-soo Kim) completed its restructuring by selling off its auto parts business and now plans to accelerate its growth by concentrating on its core capabilities, such as focusing on its machinery business which includes the tractor, injection molding systems businesses, etc.
The reorganization of the business portfolio to focus on machinery has been ‘completed’…and a new forward-looking roadmap that includes M&As and investment expansion has been presented
On May 10th, LS Mtron announced that it has divested its auto parts business by selling 80.1% of its stake to Cooper Standard. Total ownership of the auto parts division is now approximately 36 billion won. In July, 2017, LS Mtron sold its shares of LS Automotive and its copper foil and thin film businesses to ‘Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR)’, and last March, it agreed to sell its electronic parts and ultra capacitor businesses to ‘Sky Lake Investment’ through physical divestiture.
LS Mtron has since presented a roadmap for development of its tractor and injection molding system businesses. The goal is to achieve ‘2 trillion won in sales by 2023’, and to encourage and expand M&As, innovate technology (R&D, production, etc.) and accelerate development of global markets, etc.
The injection business will develop into a solution provider based on its know-hows and advanced technologies
The Injection System Business Division aims to ‘become a solution provider that realizes production innovation based on Industry 4.0’ with its 49 years of accumulated experience and know-hows. The global market for injection molding machines is about 20 trillion won with an annual growth rate of 6% forecast as of 2018.
In order to target this market, the Injection System Business Division plans to strengthen its product line-up and secure differentiated technologies. In order to achieve this, it will continuously provide globally leading specifications for electric injection molding machines, target the high-end market with ‘the ONE’, which is a new, premium-level hydraulic injection molding machine, and use China as a production base to target China, which is the largest market in the industry, etc.
Furthermore, LS Mtron will promote operational efficiency. To achieve this goal, lead times will be reduced and the supply network reinforced through enhanced SCM (supply chain management) innovation, and its Industry 4.0 Plan will be realized through process management and logistics innovation such as improved MES (manufacturing execution system).
Mr. Cha-eun Koo, Vice-Chairman of LS Mtron, said, “The market is changing rapidly due to the 4th industrial revolution and other reasons. We have come up with a development strategy to further reinforce our strengths. In the future, LS Mtron will grow into a major global player of the machinery industry through technological innovation and targeting of global markets.”
