Taiwan MIRDC organizes metal forum, inks MOU with Korea

Taiwan MIRDC, the government-funded central research institute of metal technology, is organizing “Taiwan Metal Technology International Forum” in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan. The venue is in the biggest exhibition hall in the Southern Taiwan. MIRDC invites additive manufacturing expert Prof. Dr. Reinhart Poprawe, who is the director of Fraunhofer ILT in Germany. Dr. Poprawe is well known for his laser and plasma technology researches. He will share about the development of additive manufacturing in the Europe, together with the extended application trend.

After Dr. Poprawe’s lecture is KIMM President Yong Taek Im. Korean Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM) is a research institute currently focuses its research on five primary fields: extreme mechanical engineering, nano-convergence mechanical systems, mechanical systems safety, environmental and energy systems, and advanced manufacturing systems. President Yong Taek Im will share about the AM development in his country and talk about the future trends in the market. Besides the two, there are also important Japanese and Taiwanese scholars and officials who will talk about AM, as Taiwan is focusing on the 3D printing for years; and the government recognizes the technology as important strategic technology.

On that day, Taiwan MIRDC will sign an important MOU with KIMM President Yong Taek Im. This is expected to bring further interactions between Taiwan and Korea in the metalworking, machinery development, and material science sectors. In the future, MIRDC and KIMM will share key information with each other regarding coordinated projects and will send experienced researchers to both sides. The researchers will participate in the institutional projects and will take significant roles in seminars and meetings. The MOU signifies something never seen before. As the two nations, Taiwan and Korea, are always treated as competitors in terms of machinery production, material development, ICT, and semiconductor, etc. This action demonstrates that Taiwan is working hard to surf the waves of world economy and survive in the manufacturing trend, and make critical moves to keep its advantage in the world market.