The Small and Medium Business Ombudsman held the "S.O.S. Talk small business roundtable" with the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME) on the 13th at the Daegu Trade Center in Dong-gu, Daegu.
At the roundtable, key agenda items included support for chemical substance registration, equipment replacement by partner companies due to tougher environmental regulations, technology transitions, and management difficulties arising during the process of verifying new product performance.
One small business suggested that, regarding support for preparing chemical substance registration data such as hazard information, companies located in agricultural and industrial complexes with poor business environments be given priority selection in consulting support programs.
In response, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment explained that, for existing registration application data, joint use is possible if the owner's consent to use is obtained and the expense is shared. It said that, regarding disputes between corporations over usage fees, a ministry-led mediation system has been in place since May. It also said it would consider reflecting in the 2027 project call a plan to award extra points or grant priority selection to councils that include small and medium-sized enterprises in agricultural and industrial complexes.
Concerns were also raised about revenue gaps at semiconductor partner companies due to tougher environmental regulations. As semiconductor manufacturing has been included in the integrated environmental permit system, large corporations such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix completed integrated environmental permits for their business sites by Dec. 2024, but partner small and medium-sized enterprises are struggling with technology transitions associated with equipment replacement. After partner SMEs develop new parts, it takes more than six months to go through prototype production, performance testing, customer approval, and mass production verification, during which time part orders may be suspended.
Kim Jae-hwa, head of OH Engineering, said, "There is a risk that sales will be cut off while meeting regulations, even though we have not lost clients or become less competitive."
The ombudsman agreed that, because tougher environmental regulations affect not only prime corporations but the entire supply chain, it is necessary to consider the technology transition period of partner SMEs together. It plans to ask relevant ministries for supplementary measures and support so that large corporations provide partner companies with sufficient information on regulatory changes and secure time for SMEs to respond.
Participants also proposed various on-site concerns, including: ▲ rationalizing personal information regulations and clarifying standards to spur AI development ▲ streamlining procedures for importing existing chemical substances ▲ protecting SMEs in relation to the anti-dumping investigation into Chinese special steel bars ▲ improving the rules of origin under the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA).
Choi Seung-jae, the Small and Medium Business Ombudsman, said, "If the field cannot keep up with the pace of regulatory change, the burden falls squarely on small and medium-sized enterprises," adding, "We will continue to consult with relevant ministries on today's proposals to lead to improvements that corporations can tangibly feel."