Hyundai Movex, a logistics solutions corporations under Hyundai Group, said on the 28th that it was selected as the lead research and development institution for the Shipbuilding and Offshore Industry Technology Development Program and will join a Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation project.
The program is a state project supported by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources and the Korea Planning&Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology (KEIT) to fund original and core technologies and equipment development in shipbuilding and offshore plants.
Hyundai Movex was designated as the lead institution for research and development of the project titled "development and demonstration of core technologies for an intelligent Autonomous Driving transporter for ultra-large block transport to shift the smart ship manufacturing paradigm" among new shipbuilding tasks. It will receive 19 billion won in government support.
Hyundai Movex will develop Autonomous Driving technology to transport shipyard blocks (large structures for ship assembly) and demonstrate it on-site at a U.S. shipyard. The project period is 42 months.
Hyundai Movex said it plans to secure shipbuilding process innovation technologies through the development of ultra-heavy Autonomous Driving transport robots, integrated control and virtual driving verification, AI-based block transport stability simulation, and development of overseas demonstration support scenarios.
Eight institutions, including Samsung Heavy Industries, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, and Hanwha Ocean, will participate as joint research and development institutions.
Hyundai Movex said the project will be pursued through technology exchange and cooperation between Korea and the United States. The two countries held an opening ceremony for the Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Cooperation Center in Washington, D.C., on the 23rd.
Hyundai Movex that day signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) for technological cooperation with the U.S. nonprofit research institution Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). At a technology exchange meeting, it also announced a research and development plan for "Autonomous Driving transport technology in the ship manufacturing process."