At this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings, held from 29 to 31 October, Korean shipbuilders advanced new global partnerships to accelerate digital transformation and expand their presence in overseas markets.
HD Hyundai announced that it signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Siemens to support U.S. shipbuilding revitalization. The agreement, concluded on the sidelines of the APEC CEO Summit, focuses on enhancing design quality, minimizing process risks, and reducing costs in ship production.
By combining HD Hyundai’s shipbuilding expertise with Siemens’ digital twin and business platform technologies, the two companies aim to accelerate digital transformation, improve automation in block assembly, and optimize quality and productivity based on data integration.
HD Hyundai said it will pursue technological innovation “step by step” throughout the entire shipbuilding process. The companies also agreed to utilize Siemens’ educational facilities across the United States to train industry personnel. HD Hyundai plans to send instructors to about 30 Siemens-run training sites to provide technical instruction.
The partnership will further expand HD Hyundai’s cooperation with the University of Michigan and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where the company is developing programs in engineering, digital planning, and automated shipbuilding. Since 2023, HD Hyundai and Siemens have been co-developing a unified manufacturing platform to digitally simulate shipbuilding processes, helping reduce human error and improve production efficiency.
“Digitization and automation are key to rebuilding the U.S. shipbuilding industry and enhancing manufacturing efficiency,” an HD Hyundai official said.
HD Hyundai has also established separate partnerships with Huntington Ingalls Industries, the largest U.S. naval shipbuilder, and Edison Chouest Offshore, to jointly build a coordinated shipbuilding network in the United States.
Meanwhile, Hanwha Ocean is expanding its presence in the Philippines through defense and industrial cooperation. According to the Philippine presidential office, company representatives met with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to discuss collaboration on the Philippine Navy’s submarine program, part of the country’s third-phase military modernization plan approved in February last year.
Discussions included plans for a submarine base, a local maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) center, and training programs for Filipino naval operators, maintainers, and commanders using advanced simulators and systems.
Hanwha Ocean also presented its proposal to deliver KSS-III Dosan Ahn Changho-class submarines, equipped with modern sonar and combat systems, lithium-ion batteries for longer underwater endurance, and commitments to technology transfer and industrial cooperation with local partners.
The modernization program, valued at 2 trillion pesos ($34 billion), seeks to acquire the Philippines’ first submarine and strengthen the country’s naval defense capability.
Source: The Koea Times, Hellenic Shipping News
