Tesla Motors Inc.'s Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk is known for making the future come early. And yet, somehow, he's always running behind schedule. Some would call this a failure of management. But it might just be a business strategy: call it the Musk Doctrine. It goes something like this: People only do paradigm-shifting work when they’re under tremendous pressure, so the key is to ensure deadlines are always impossible. This could help explain why Musk has never launched a product on time

Mobility May 9, 2016

Dongkuk Steel Mill, the country’s third-largest steelmaker, said Monday that it would start the operation of its Brazil-based steel mill in June, in the hope that it would be able to reduce its reliance on imported steel plates. The steelmaker has imported steel plates, which are mainly used for shipbuilding, from Japan and China at a relatively higher price, company officials said. (Dongkuk Steel Mill)“We will now be able to have a stable supply of steel plates from the mill in Brazil, which is

Industry May 9, 2016

South Korea’s car-sharing market is fast expanding with a growing number of young consumers wanting to experiment with a wide range of vehicles rather than own a car. To cash in on the subtle change in the car market, the nation’s industrial giants are responding to such consumer preferences. Retail giant Lotte Group and the nation’s third-largest conglomerate SK Group are already involved in businesses that cater to such demand and the nation’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor is also considerin

Mobility May 9, 2016

Hyundai Heavy Industries is highly likely to push for massive layoffs amid a prolonged recession in the global shipbuilding sector and the government’s move to restructure the ailing industry. Over the past few weeks, the troubled world’s No. 1 shipbuilder is rumored to be planning an additional cut of 3,000 employees -- most likely from its production line -- in the form of voluntary retirement programs. The firm already cut around 60 executives in April and around 1,500 office workers last yea

Industry May 4, 2016

Money-losing Hyundai Merchant Marine and Hanjin Shipping have recently filed for creditor-led rehabilitation programs. There is another thing in common between the two shipping giants. They were led by female leaders, who suddenly transformed into chairwomen from housewives after the deaths of their husbands. Hyundai Group chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun, 61, who stepped down from the HMM board of directors in March, began to run the conglomerate in 2003 when her husband Chung Mong-hun -- fifth son of

Industry May 3, 2016

포스코그룹의 대표계열사 포스코에너지가 수년간 지속된 사업 부진을 타개하기 위해 그룹 최초로 5월 초 인력 구조조정에 나선다. 포스코에너지의 감축 대상은 신성장동력으로 추진하고 있는 연료전지 사업분야로 알려졌다.민간 최대 LNG 발전사인 포스코에너지는 전력 공급과잉으로 지난 수 년간 주력사업인 LNG 발전소 가동률이 급격히 떨어져 매출 하락세가 지속되어 회사 전체가 위기에 직면해 있다. 현 추세가 계속되면 작년 3분기에 창사 이래 최초 적자를 기록한 포스코에너지는 올해 처음으로 적자로 전환될 것으로 예상된다. 업계 관계자는 코리아헤럴드에 “포스코에너지는 최근 400명 정도에 달하는 연료전지사업부에서 조기희망퇴직 프로그램(ERP)를 통해 약 40퍼센트의 인력 감축을 단행하기로 결정했다”고 말했다. 그는 ‘‘포스코에너지의 LNG 사업은 기술인력이 많아 인력 감축이 힘들어 최근 지지부진한 연료전지사업을 축소하는 쪽으로 결론 낸 것으로 안다“고 덧붙였다. 포스코에너지는 2003년 연료전지를

한국어판 May 3, 2016

POSCO Energy, a key affiliate of steelmaking giant POSCO Group, is set to cut its workforce via a voluntary layoff program early this month, targeting the fuel cell business that is considered its future growth engine, an industry source told The Korea Herald.The nation’s largest private natural gas power generator has suffered from dwindling profits for the past few years, affected by the continued fall in its LNG power plant operation rate. “With the approval of POSCO management, the energy ar

Industry May 3, 2016

Koreans who seek fulfillment in their lifestyle need to add more colors to their homes, said eminent Italian designer and architect Alessandro Mendini in an interview with The Korea Herald on Thursday. “Korean apartment buildings, which are stereotyped as gloomy gray and rectangle, have hardly changed since I first came here 15 years ago,” Mendini, who has visited Korea around 40 times during the period, said in an interview at POSCO Engineering & Construction’s headquarters in Songdo. The Itali

Industry April 28, 2016

GM Korea, the Korean unit of General Motors, unveiled its all-new Malibu on Wednesday, with the goal of becoming a game changer in the midsize sedan market. Hyundai and Kia have dominated the sedan market in Korea, but the newly-launched SM6 of Renault Samsung is changing the landscape of the market competition. During the launch at Gocheok Sky Dome, the automaker expressed confidence in overtaking the sedans of three local rivals -- Hyundai’s Sonata, Renault Samsung’s SM6 and Kia Motors’ K5.  G

Mobility April 27, 2016

Hyundai Motor Group on Tuesday categorically denied market speculation that it may be interested in buying Hyundai Merchant Marine and Hyundai Heavy Industries, to put the two ailing firms under its umbrella. The automaker has been mentioned in the market as a potential candidate to take over the debt-ridden firms. “The company plans to concentrate on having a competitive edge in the auto sector. We have nothing to do with and have no interest in the shipbuilding and shipping areas,” Yonhap News

Mobility April 26, 2016

Hanjin Shipping’s former chairwoman Choi Eun-yeong has come under scrutiny by financial authorities over suspicions that she might have used insider information to sell her shares in the troubled firm. According to sources Tuesday, the former chief and her two daughters sold their 970,000 company shares -- 0.39 percent of the total shares -- worth 3 billion won ($2.6 million) three days before the company’s board of directors decided to file for creditor-led rehabilitation on Friday. Hanjin Ship

Industry April 26, 2016

Hyundai Motor said Monday that it plans to roll out its first electric sport utility vehicle by 2018. Hyundai’s Namyang R&D Center is currently developing the electric SUVs, which can go up to 320 kilometers on a single charge, nearly double the mileage of sedan-type Ioniq Electric’s 180 kilometers. “It is true that we will launch a new electric SUV,” a company spokesman said.Hyundai Motor vehicles bound for export await shipment at a port near the company’s plant in Ulsan. (The Korea Herald fil

Mobility April 25, 2016

Korean automakers will showcase mainly eco-friendly, hybrid and compact vehicles during the Beijing motor show that kicked off Monday, in an effort to capture greater market share in China. Hyundai Motor, the nation’s top carmaker, has unveiled concept car Verna and hybrid vehicle Ioniq at the Beijing International Automobile Exhibition.  Hyundai Motor’s concept Verna (Hyundai Motor)“Verna is a representative model in China’s compact vehicle market with more than 1 million unit sales since its l

Mobility April 25, 2016