RIST Extends R&D Support to Local Firms, Startups and Students

POHANG — The Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology (RIST) is expanding community outreach programs that draw on its own research and development capabilities to support local residents and manufacturers. The institute describes the effort as a donation of technical talent, spanning science education for younger generations, troubleshooting for small and mid-sized companies, and testing and mass-production support for manufacturing startups.

RIST said on the 22nd that it recently invited about 70 children from local community child centers to its Pohang headquarters for the RIST Future Generations Energy Science Camp. The program included special lectures on the environment and energy and hands-on activities such as building model solar-powered electric cars, designed to let children experience and understand the energy transition and environmental issues firsthand.

RIST is a nonprofit private research institute established in 1987 with funding from POSCO. Together with POSCO and POSTECH, it forms one pillar of applied research linking industry, academia and research institutes, and has worked to carry R&D results into industrial settings.

The institute's outreach extends beyond science education to local industry. One example is its work diagnosing and resolving technical problems that small and mid-sized companies in the region face on the shop floor, through public-private-industry cooperation and a technology partnership program run with the city of Pohang and the Pohang Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

RIST assembles customized technical support teams of Ph.D.-level researchers for individual companies, offering solutions grounded in research and field testing rather than one-off consulting. The teams help improve manufacturing processes, upgrade aging equipment and raise product quality, strengthening the technological competitiveness of local businesses. Rather than reserving its researchers, equipment and technical know-how for in-house R&D, the institute channels them into the production lines of regional firms.

"The competitiveness of regional industry and the growth of future generations are the core pillars supporting the sustainability of the local community," said Jeon Jong-yeon, head of RIST's management planning office. "We will continue our industrial contribution of resolving technical bottlenecks for small and mid-sized companies, while also strengthening our educational contribution by helping younger generations properly understand the value of energy and the environment."

RIST is also expanding its role in helping local manufacturing startups commercialize their technology. In July, the institute opened an Advanced Manufacturing Incubating Center to provide full-cycle scale-up support, from process development through testing to mass production.

The center focuses on helping startups cross the so-called valley of death, where companies hold the technology but struggle to commercialize it for lack of demonstration facilities and manufacturing infrastructure. The two-story building has a total floor area of 4,074 square meters and can house up to 10 companies.

Inside, it is equipped with the infrastructure needed for process testing and pilot production, including cooling water, compressed air, seven industrial gases such as hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen, and high-voltage power lines at 380 volts and 440 volts. The setup allows tenant companies to concentrate on stabilizing processes and verifying mass-production viability without making large equipment investments of their own. The support extends to applying lab-developed technology to actual production lines and testing whether it can be scaled up.

RIST says its aim is not merely to provide space but to use the institute's testing capabilities to help startups turn technology into actual products. Two companies are currently running demonstrations there: Enforus, the first venture created under POSCO Holdings' startup planning program, which is testing high-temperature water electrolysis for hydrogen production, and Solarise, a company founded by a POSTECH faculty member, which is testing next-generation smart inverters.

"Just as RIST technology has always stood behind commercialized innovative products, another success story in future manufacturing will begin at the incubating center," said Ko Dong-jun, president of RIST. "Building on our testing capabilities, we will provide all-around support so that local manufacturing startups deliver results in the market."