On November 6, the KICT, the city of Goyang, and Korea Aerospace University (KAU) signed an MOU to promote the smart mobility and aerospace industries at Goyang City Hall. The MOU signing ceremony was attended by KICT President Kim Byung-suk, Goyang Mayor Lee Dong-hwan, and Korea Aerospace University President Heo Hee-young, among other officials from the three signatories.

When the smart mobility industry and aerospace industry come together, the resulting synergy will see developments in urban air mobility (UAM). As the KICT and KAU are both institutes located in Goyang, the new MOU and the expected advances in UAM are expected to increase the competitiveness of the envisioned Goyang Free Economic Zone. The KICT is a world-class construction technology R&D institute. With autonomous driving becoming an element of infrastructure, the KICT is engaging in a wide range of R&D aimed at improving the safety and efficiency of autonomous driving. KAU is Korea’s only university that is wholly dedicated to aerospace disciplines. It includes the Research Institute of Aerospace Engineering and Technology.

The MOU will see the three signatories work together to promote the smart mobility and aerospace industries through efforts that include the development of industrial-academic-research cooperation models for global applications, personnel development and administrative/technical support in smart mobility and aerospace, the establishment of testbeds in the Goyang Free Economic Zone, and the planning of smart mobility and aerospace innovation clusters. The KICT, Goyang, and KAU will form a cooperative network pooling their expertise and resources to work toward a consistent vision for the Goyang Free Economic Zone, while ensuring the success of the smart mobility and aerospace industries as strategic industries of national importance.

“The areas of smart mobility the KICT is researching include space industry, urban vertiports, and autonomous driving,” said KICT President Kim Byung-suk. “As the creation of the Goyang Free Economic Zone will spur the development of Goyang and of Korea as a whole, the KICT will be working closely with Goyang and Korea Aerospace University to achieve the technological advances necessary.”