POSCO Air Solution, the industrial gas subsidiary of the POSCO Group, has obtained an international quality certification for the production of high-purity rare gases used in aerospace and defense applications.

The company announced on Aug. 6 that it received AS9100D certification, the globally recognized aerospace and defense quality management system standard, from LRQA.

AS9100D is an international standard based on ISO 9001 that incorporates additional quality requirements for the aerospace and defense industries. POSCO Air Solution said it is the first company in Asia to obtain the certification in the field of high-purity rare gas manufacturing.

In June, the company completed construction of a high-purity rare gas production facility at the Donghoan industrial site within POSCO’s Gwangyang Steelworks complex. The plant has an annual production capacity of 130,000 normal cubic meters (N㎥).

POSCO Air Solution recently participated in propulsion technology development testing conducted by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, where the performance of domestically produced xenon (Xe) and krypton (Kr) gases was successfully verified for electric propulsion applications.

“The certification will serve as an opportunity to expand our supply of rare gases for aerospace and defense applications,” Chief Executive Officer Kim Dae-yeon said.

Gaon Cable, a subsidiary of LS Cable & System, will participate in a Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) power infrastructure project for the first time.

The company said on Aug. 6 that it will supply approximately 60 billion won worth of distribution cables for an MRT power grid construction project commissioned by Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA). The contract marks Gaon Cable’s first order since it was registered as an approved LTA vendor last year.

Singapore plans to expand its MRT network from approximately 240 kilometers today to more than 360 kilometers by the early 2030s. With new rail lines under construction and power infrastructure upgrades planned for existing routes, demand for distribution cables is expected to remain strong.

“We will continue increasing the share of overseas revenue by focusing on strategic markets such as the United States and Singapore, while improving both profitability and growth,” Chief Executive Officer Chung Hyun said.

LS Electric has begun mass production of its next-generation power conversion system (PCS) for energy storage systems (ESS).

The company said on Aug. 6 that it held a first-shipment ceremony for its next-generation ESS PCS, known as G2, at its DC Factory in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, on Aug. 5, marking the start of full-scale production.

The event was attended by Chairman Koo Ja-kyun and company employees. Koo toured the dedicated G2 production line and reviewed manufacturing plans and quality management operations.

G2 is a next-generation PCS developed for the global ESS market. The system incorporates liquid-cooling technology, improving thermal management performance and durability compared with conventional air-cooled designs. It also features a space-saving architecture designed to enhance installation efficiency.

The product will be manufactured at LS Electric’s Cheonan DC Factory, a facility operated entirely on direct current (DC) power distribution. The factory employs DC-based equipment, including solid-state transformers (SSTs), solid-state circuit breakers (SSCBs) and ESS infrastructure, improving overall energy efficiency by more than 10%, according to the company.

“Following the launch of mass production for our next-generation ESS PCS, we plan to further expand our presence in overseas markets,” an LS Electric official said. “We will secure global customers based on our competitiveness in DC technologies and product quality.”

HD Hyundai said on Aug. 5 that it has launched a pilot project aimed at improving productivity at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Mississippi.

The initiative is a follow-up to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on advanced shipbuilding technologies signed with Huntington Ingalls during the Sea-Air-Space (SAS) 2025 exhibition in the United States last year.

As the first phase of the pilot program, HD Hyundai will introduce its proprietary intelligent welding system at the Ingalls shipyard. The technology has already been deployed at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Samho.

The intelligent welding system automatically recognizes workpieces and welding conditions, enabling real-time adjustment of welding positions. A single operator can manage multiple welding robots simultaneously, while production data is collected and stored in real time for quality control and process optimization.

The two companies plan to expand cooperation across a broader range of shipbuilding activities, including production automation, development of digital shipyards using robotics and artificial intelligence, improvements in naval ship construction productivity, workforce training, and supply chain development for shipbuilding equipment and materials.

Joo Won-ho, president of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, said the pilot project is expected to serve as a foundation for deeper collaboration between the two companies and help improve the efficiency of naval vessel construction.

LIG Defense & Aerospace (LIG D&A) said on Aug. 4 that it successfully completed the Critical Design Review (CDR) in June for the electronic warfare system to be installed on the third Jangbogo-III Batch-II submarine. CDR is a key milestone that verifies design maturity and development readiness before prototype manufacturing begins.

LIG D&A signed a research and development contract with Hanwha Ocean in April 2025 for the electronic warfare system of the third Jangbogo-III Batch-II submarine. Since then, the program has progressed through the System Requirements Review (SRR), System Functional Review (SFR) and Preliminary Design Review (PDR), culminating in the successful completion of the CDR.

The Jangbogo-III Batch-II program is a national defense project aimed at building 3,000-ton-class submarines using domestic technology. Electronic warfare systems for submarines have historically relied heavily on foreign suppliers because of the high technological barriers involved.

Following the CDR completion, LIG D&A plans to proceed with the remaining development work and system qualification testing to ensure the program stays on schedule for military deployment. The company also intends to leverage the technologies developed through the project to create export-oriented variants.