Daejin Machinery supplies battery production equipment for LG Energy Solution's ESS line

Company also holds technology in semiconductor ingot growing systems

SM Kuk-il, a manufacturing and services affiliate of SM Group, has been named the preferred bidder to acquire Daejin Machinery, a specialist in secondary battery and semiconductor production equipment. [Provided by SM Group]
SM Kuk-il, a manufacturing and services affiliate of SM Group, has been named the preferred bidder to acquire Daejin Machinery, a specialist in secondary battery and semiconductor production equipment. [Provided by SM Group]

SM Kuk-il, formerly Kuk-il Paper MFG and a manufacturing and services affiliate of SM Group, announced Friday it has been named the preferred bidder to acquire Daejin Machinery, a company specializing in secondary battery and semiconductor production equipment.

The selection is part of SM Kuk-il's broader push to identify new businesses and diversify its operations following a recent management overhaul. The company has changed its name and is pursuing a merger with Handeok Iron Mining Industry, South Korea's only domestic iron ore producer, as it works to move beyond its traditional paper business and secure new growth engines.

Founded in 1980, Daejin Machinery is an industrial equipment maker whose core products include automated assembly systems for secondary battery modules and packs, and ingot growers used in semiconductor wafer manufacturing. In the secondary battery segment, it has supplied battery production equipment for energy storage systems to LG Energy Solution. ESS-related revenue accounts for roughly 70 percent of its total sales, giving the company a solid foothold in the ESS equipment market.

Daejin Machinery's automated battery module and pack assembly systems are used in production processes that combine multiple battery cells into modules and packs. The ESS market is expanding rapidly, driven by rising power demand, the wider rollout of renewable energy, and investment in power infrastructure including AI data centers. Beyond its secondary battery capabilities, the company also holds technology in ingot growers that produce single-crystal silicon for semiconductor wafer manufacturing.

Through the acquisition, SM Kuk-il plans to restructure its business away from paper products — primarily industrial specialty paper — and expand into secondary battery and semiconductor production equipment.

The company also intends to draw on its accumulated expertise and supply experience to shape its new businesses, while maximizing synergies within the group by linking up with SM Vexcel, another manufacturing and services affiliate that produces batteries and specialty cells for the defense, drone and ESS sectors.

"By pursuing the acquisition of Daejin Machinery, we will move in earnest into new businesses including ESS battery and semiconductor wafer production and processing equipment, while strengthening synergies with SM Vexcel, which already operates a battery business, to lay the groundwork for medium- to long-term growth," an SM Group official said. "We will actively cultivate this as a future growth pillar, reinforce our capabilities in advanced industrial equipment, and consistently enhance corporate value."

Meanwhile, SM Group Chairman Woo Oh-hyun has been carrying out a range of corporate social responsibility activities, including donating scholarship funds in September to fully cover national scholarships for incoming students at Yeoju University for the 2027 academic year.


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