National Productivity Conference marks 50th anniversary
First joint ceremony with sustainable management awards
Manufacturing innovation, carbon neutrality among key themes
19 individuals and 53 companies honored for productivity
24 firms recognized for sustainable management
![The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Productivity Center hold the 2026 Korea Productivity and Sustainable Management Innovation Awards ceremony at KBS Hall in Yeouido, Seoul, on Thursday. Park Seong-jung, chairman of the Korea Productivity Center, delivers opening remarks. [Korea Productivity Center]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/10/29/news-p.v1.20261029.242c95cc76ef4c5299550e0acc050c7e_P1.jpg)
South Korean industry finds itself at the center of sweeping change — AI adoption, supply chain restructuring and the push for carbon neutrality are reshaping the competitive landscape. As technology rivalry intensifies and production costs climb, companies are staking their survival on productivity innovation.
Simply expanding output and cutting costs, as in the past, is no longer enough to stay competitive. Leveraging AI and digital technology to upgrade production processes, while improving energy efficiency and strengthening ESG (environmental, social and governance) management, has emerged as the new imperative.
Productivity innovation has grown beyond a cost-cutting tool into a core driver of corporate growth potential and industrial competitiveness. AI-powered manufacturing innovation, in particular, is delivering gains not only in output and quality but also in workplace safety and energy savings.
Against this backdrop, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Productivity Center (KPC) held the 2026 Korea Productivity and Sustainable Management Innovation Awards on Thursday at KBS Hall in Yeouido, Seoul, drawing more than 600 attendees including award recipients and industry executives. The National Productivity Conference, now in its 50th year, was held jointly with the sustainable management awards ceremony for the first time — a move intended to establish productivity improvement and sustainable management as twin pillars of corporate competitiveness.
The National Productivity Conference is the country's premier productivity event, designed to raise awareness of productivity innovation on the factory floor and strengthen national competitiveness. Over the past half-century, it has identified and honored companies and individuals who have achieved results through management innovation, technology development and production process improvement, while spreading best practices across industry.
This year's event was notable for bringing productivity innovation and sustainable management onto a single stage. It reflects a shift in how corporate competitiveness is measured — beyond production efficiency and quality improvement to carbon reduction, resource recycling and responsible supply chain management.
As environmental regulations and supply chain requirements tighten in global markets, productivity improvement and sustainable management are increasingly difficult to treat as separate concerns. Reducing energy use in production processes simultaneously cuts costs and lowers carbon emissions. Process optimization through digital technology is also drawing attention as a way to boost production efficiency while reducing resource waste.
The National Productivity Conference focuses on raising overall corporate competitiveness across leadership, human resource development and business process improvement. This year's ceremony also highlighted achievements in AI- and digital technology-driven manufacturing innovation and productivity gains on the factory floor.
At the National Productivity Conference, Lee Myeong-su, chairman of Jinyang Oil Seal, received the Gold Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit, and Ryu Sang-woo, chief executive of Poongsan F&S, received the Silver Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit. In all, 19 individuals and 53 companies and institutions were honored.
In the corporate and institutional category, A-jin Industry, Korean Air Lines C&D Services, Innotech and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power each received a presidential citation for overall excellence. Air First received a presidential citation in the manufacturing safety excellence category.
In the sustainable management category, Naver and Kolmar Korea received presidential citations, while LG Energy Solution and HD Hyundai Samho received prime ministerial citations. A total of 24 companies and institutions were recognized.
The joint ceremony also carried a broader message: that corporate growth and sustainability must be pursued together. While productivity-driven cost competitiveness supports near-term performance, management that accounts for environmental and social responsibility underpins long-term competitive strength. Companies participating in global supply chains face growing demands not only on product quality and price but also on the environmental impact of their production processes and their supply chain management capabilities, making both areas increasingly critical.
Prime Minister Han Seong-sook, in a video address, said AI is transforming the way people work and how production sites operate, adding that a company's future competitiveness now depends on how smartly it produces and how sustainably it grows. "The government will work to translate AI into on-site productivity gains and actively support companies in meeting global standards from production through exports," Han said.
Park Seong-jung, chairman of the Korea Productivity Center, said productivity is the key factor determining an economy's growth potential and industrial competitiveness, while sustainable management is crucial to a company's long-term competitive strength. "The Korea Productivity Center will stand as a partner supporting innovation on the factory floor in this era of great transformation driven by AI and digital technology," Park said.
boo@heraldcorp.com
