Making anti-terrorist security systems in Korea

The roadblock system for anti-terrorism installed at the purification plant in Amsa-dong, Seoul. / Courtesy of D&S Technology

D&S Technology pioneers security roadblock, seeks overseas expansion

By Kim Ji-soo

In a video showing D&S Technology's roadblocks being tested in Buffalo, New York, an 8-ton truck is building up speed on a test lane. As the truck races ahead, a roadblock pops up out of the asphalt to stop the truck.

"The roadblocks should be able to work again after the crash, and ours does," said Lee Won-woo, president and CEO of D&S Technology.In a video showing D&S Technology's roadblocks being tested in Buffalo, New York, an 8-ton truck is building up speed on a test lane. As the truck races ahead, a roadblock pops up out of the asphalt to stop the truck.

The company's roadblocks are installed at state security sites around the country and the world, such as the government complex at Sejong City, the Korean embassies in Beijing, Manila and Tokyo and the Korean Consulate in Shanghai. The roadblocks are also installed at a handful of Korean military bases, water purification centers and nuclear reactor facilities.

A captured image of the crash test that D&S Technology's roadblocks underwent last year in New York./ Courtesy of D&S Technology

In today's world, where acts of terrorism are not uncommon, these roadblocks have become familiar.

But when the company first started in 1989, it was a computer company, and anti-terrorism products were not at the top of its portfolio. Now, anti-terrorism or special security products, such these roadblocks, make up about 80 percent of the company portfolio.

"I was studying abroad, but I returned home in 1990 when my mother, who founded the company, asked for help," Lee said.

Having studied electrical engineering at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles after graduating from Yonsei University in Seoul, Lee found his mother being isolated by the employees she had recruited. He set out to correct the situation, enlisting the help of lawyers to reset the company. But soon afterward, Lee had to come back to take over his mother's business, as she had grown ill from all the frustration and stress.

"I had to start a new business that would bring in money, to alleviate my mother's stress and obsession with money," he said, smiling.

Lee Won-woo, president and CEO of D&S Technology

Lee, like his mother, went through many trials and errors as a first-time entrepreneur. "I found out it was a jungle out there," he said. But the company had many successes, such as winning a $1 million bid for creating the security system master plan for Incheon International Airport.After pondering what new project to tackle, Lee seized the idea of a smart building, or more specifically an integrated security system (ISS) for buildings. He had attended a course while in the United States about the smart buildings that United Technologies was constructing. He started out by installing an ISS for Daewoo Securities in Gwacheon, during which he won the trust to install an ISS for the POSCO building in Daechi-dong, southern Seoul. The company became known as an academy for ISS during the 1990s, where its employees were later recruited by larger companies.

"But as a medium-sized company, I experienced some difficulties," Lee said. Lee exhibited a happy demeanor during the interview, as he explained how his devout Buddhist belief gave him the will to go on. He travels once a week to a temple in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province.

His ordeals are similar to those of other owners of small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Even for the Incheon International Airport project, he had to cosign with a large company because fellow bid competitors had raised the issue that an SME would not be able to take on a project that involved preparing for national security risks.

Lee continuously looks for new business projects, like when he decided to invest in a 900-megawatt radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag project. He poured 10 billion won into the project over five years, only to fail to win a government contract.

What really turned the company around, however, was when they earned, in 2006, the patent for a hydrodynamic roadblock, the first for a Korean company. The roadblock is made of a steel H beam, high-tensile steel plate and stainless steel; it has a width of two to four meters, the ability to rise from 65 centimeters to 100 centimeters and an operating time of 1 to 3 seconds.

While Sept. 11 heightened the awareness of and preparation for terrorist attacks in the West, North Korea's attack on South Korea's northwestern Yeonpyeong Island in 2010 led to the installation of 60 of D&S Technology's roadblocks at 17 gates in the administrative city.

In addition, the performance of its roadblocks at South Korea's provincial reconstruction team in Afghanistan enabled the company to surmount its 10 billion won debt and led to contracts with the Korean military. Last year, it achieved another milestone when it became the first Asian company to earn the U.S. government-approved M50/P1 certification after its roadblocks passed the crash test.

With the roadblocks being the company's main product, Lee said D&S Technology achieved 5.2 billion won in sales in 2016. The company is looking to increase its sales figure this year, setting its eyes on U.S. military bases that are slated to relocate to Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, sometime this year.

janee@koreatimes.co.kr