Kolon Plastics Inc. will increase production of compounds whose application in vehicles has been recently rising in line with growing demand for lightweight, high-performance vehicles.

Kolon Plastics said on Monday it has completed Gimcheon Plant II with 66,000 square meters of space for the production of compounds under a 47.3 billion won ($41.3 million) investment project in Gimcheon Industrial Complex in Gyeongbuk. Kolon Plastics integrated compound production facilities divided into Gimcheon Plant I and Sangju Plant into Gimcheon Plant II, increasing output by about 40 percent from 35,000 tons to 50,000 tons.

The plastic compounds have been steadily replacing metal materials in producing vehicles as they help to reduce vehicle weight. With growing demand for eco-friendly vehicles and high-performance cars, more car makers have been seeking materials like composite materials and compounds that could help to lighten vehicle weight.

The latest plant applied new IT technology developed by Kolon to optimize the production process. Kolon Plastics chief executive Jang Hee-gu said: “The smart factory plant combines the company’s production know-how and cutting-edge facilities and has the world’s largest production capacity. We will lead a continuous growth by preemptively expanding our investment.”

Meanwhile, Kolon Plastics announced Monday that its net profit for the third quarter ended September more than doubled to 5.4 billion won from a year ago, and operating profit grew 16.8 percent to 5.0 billion won. But its third-quarter revenue slid 3.6 percent to 56.1 billion won from a year ago, the company said. Operating profit and net profit for the first three quarters gained 62.4 percent to 17.1 billion won and 135.6 percent to 14.4 billion won, respectively, which are a record high.

By Kang Young-woon

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