Dongwoo Fine-Chem started out in 1991 as a joint venture between Korea's DC Chemical and two Japanese companies, Sumitomo Chemical and ITOCHU Corp. DC Chemical had the largest share of the company with 50 percent while Sumitomo and ITOCHU took about 40 percent and 10 percent of shares, respectively. During the Asian financial crisis in 1998, Sumitomo was able to take over DC Chemical and set the goal of becoming an all-around player in the field of fine materials by expanding its business fields from semiconductor chemicals to fine chemicals and electronics materials in general. Since Dongwoo Fine-Chem became the nation's first company to have successfully localized the production of highgrade chemicals for the semiconductor industry, the company has demonstrated its R&D capabilities and ability to produce high-quality products. Moreover, the company has been making contributions in raising Korea's exports by continuously expanding its business to include materials for not only semiconductors but also TFT-LCDs. During the three-year period from 2000 to 2002, the company showed a continued growth in exports, from $70 million in 2000 to $82 million in 2001, and $112 million in 2002. In 2003, the company's exports grew by 200 percent to $350 million from 2002. The amount of exports in 2004 also increased two-fold to $730 million from the previous year. As of the end of 2004, the company's total assets stood at 301 billion won with revenues of 885 billion won. Presently, the company is capitalized at 36 billion won and has 533 employees, with Dongwoo STI and Dongwoo Optical Materials as its subsidiaries. Success in Localizing Materials Production for Key Exports Since its establishment, Dongwoo Fine- Chem has continuously pursued the goal of localizing the production of key materials for the manufacturing of semiconductors and TFT-LCDs. As a result, the company succeeded in localizing the production of high-grade semiconductor chemicals, etchants, photo and color resists, the products that had previously relied on imports. With Dongwoo STI, a manufacturer of color filters for LCDs, and Dongwoo Optical Materials, a polarized films maker, as its subsidiaries, Dongwoo Fine-Chem has grown to become an all-around manufacturer of fine chemicals true to its name. In the field of memory semiconductors, Dongwoo Fine-Chem has begun to produce homemade hydrogen peroxides, sulphuric acids, IPAs, ammonia solutions, IECs of high-grade quality. At present, it produces such processing chemicals as semiconductor strippers and EBRs as well as G-line, I-line, KrF photo resists on its own. In the field of TFT-LCDs, too, the company produces etchants, resists for LCDs and color filters, A-1Targets, and polarized films. For the past 14 years, the company's efforts to localize materials production have had the effect of replacing imports worth more than 2 trillion won. Moreover, the company has contributed in maintaining price and technological advantage for semiconductors and LCDs, the growth engines of the nation's economy, by securing competitiveness through strict cost management, stable supply, and swift responses to consumers' needs. Technological Development through Active R&D Investments Under the belief that only technological development can secure the company's survival and progress, Dongwoo Fine- Chem has been investing aggressively in the field of R&D. The company has built its main R&D center in Poseung Industrial Park in Pyeongtaek with an investment of 10 billon won for improving the quality of such LCD materials as color resists and polarized films in addition to electronics materials such as CMP slurries and color resists of next generation. In addition, the company constructed a new R&D center next to its already existent one in Iksan. The company has invested 7 billion won for the construction of Iksan research center furnished with ultramodern equipment. Having succeeded in the local production of such high-grade materials as hydrogen peroxides, sulphuric acids, IPAs, ammonia solutions, etchants, photo resists and strippers, the Iksan research center has become a leader in developing latest technologies along with its recent success in developing Mo-A1 etchant, enabling the company to take more than 40 percent share of the world market. Today the company has 160 researchers, accounting for more than 30 percent of its total employees, and invests over 6 percent of its revenue for R&D related operations. In the meantime, the company said that, as it had played a leading role in the semiconductor business, it plans to further strengthen its operations in the LCD market in which the company's product has taken the world's largest share.