Invest KOREA

A Key Investment Base for Asia

Parker Hannifin Korea supplies systems and solutions for cars, trains, ships - you name it

By the numbers, Parker Hannifin Korea may not stand out as a Parker Hannifin company. The domestic operation is a $400 million company; the U.S.-based Parker Hannifin is a $12 billion company. The former has 1,000 employees, the latter has 52,000 employees. But Parker Hannifin Korea’s significance lies beyond numbers.

Established in 1986 as a joint venture with the Korean company Hwaseong, Parker Hannifin Korea became the starting point for investment in Asia by Parker Hannifin, a leading motion and control company. Significant acquisitions and investments in the Korean market followed, as did company growth. New investments are now focused on China, but this can be attributed partly to what the global company has achieved in Korea.

“Korea is very important in terms of assisting with some additional investment or new operations out of Korea to Asia,” said Shi Tak Yoo, Country Managing Director of Parker Hannifin Korea.

Headquartered in Seoul, the company has four manufacturing divisions and five offices throughout the country. It provides solutions related to motion (fluid connectors, hydraulics and automation) and control (filtration, climate and industrial controls, instrumentation and seals) for OEM customers and distributors mainly in the industrial sectors, with the largest being construction.

Main customers for construction equipment include Doosan Infracore, Hyundai Heavy Industries and Volvo Construction Equipment. Other major customers across industries include Samsung, Hynix, POSCO, Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, SK and Cuckoo.

Sales have grown nearly four-fold in the last 10 years, with export sales exceeding $60 million today. Eighty percent of the revenue generated in Korea comes from local manufacturing, with the remaining 20 percent being sourced from the United States or Europe. The impetus for that growth was the growth of global corporate customers after the Asian financial crisis of 1997/1998, said Yoo.

It was immediately following this crisis that Parker Hannifin fully acquired Parker Hannifin Connector Korea and expanded operations in Asia. It was also during this time, in the early 2000s, that such global Korean companies as Samsung, LG, Posco and Hyundai - Parker Hannifin Korea’s customers - grew tremendously and sought global partners, Yoo said.

Another undeniable factor in Parker Hannifin Korea’s growth is its broad range of products, including the fluid connector hoses and fittings used everywhere from cars to drill ships, pneumatic cylinders for factory automation, climate control systems and fuel filters also for cars and hydraulic valves and pumps for industrial machinery and ships.

“All movements are made by hydraulic and pneumatic technologies,” Yoo said. “So we are at the center of those.”

Good customer service is another factor, and it is their first, second and umpteenth priority, according to Yoo. Walk into Parker Hannifin Korea’s Dogok-dong office and you’ll see a bright yellow floor sign that asks, “How can I thrill a customer today?” Part of the answer involves shifting business along with shifts in trends. Korea’s focus on green growth has led Parker Hannifin Korea to be involved with renewable energies, energy storage, hybrid vehicles and life science industries.

Looking to the future, Parker Hannifin Korea aims to reach $600 million in annual revenue in two years and $1 billion in four, said Yoo, who is also optimistic about developments associated with the company’s new domestic R&D center for Asia.