POSCO E&C has successfully verified a remotely controlled excavator for the first time in Korea, further advancing unmanned construction sites and smart construction transformation.
The verification was conducted on the first section of the planned Yeosu Hatae-Baekya Road in September.
Construction had been suspended at that site for more than five days per month due to lots of rock excavation and severe weather conditions.
The area is infamous for poor construction access due to island and mountainous terrain.
The new technology was borne out of follow-up steps from the signing of an MOU on unmanned construction technology by POSCO and HD Hyundai groups.
Both companies have been building a next-generation smart construction ecosystem by applying remotely controlled technologies to the construction industry, struggling with severe manpower shortage.
HD Hyundai XiteSolution has a proprietary remotely controlled excavator and a control system, while POSCO E&C is in charge of the technology’s operational process design; the building of communications infrastructure; and analyzing feasibility.
The remotely controlled excavator has employed accident prevention control systems, such as an automatic stop in communications malfunctioning, and an immediate stop when it detects operational issues to secure safety and efficiency.
The verification has led to fewer construction delays from weather and lower worker fatigue and exposure to vibrations and noise.
POSCO E&C plans to establish an operation manual based on the outcomes of the verification, and it seeks to accelerate the unmanned construction transition by incorporating smart construction specifications set to be implemented by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
A POSCO E&C official said, “The nation’s first verification of a remotely controlled excavator has confirmed technological solutions can overcome limitations of island and mountainous terrain for construction, and we will advance unmanned construction by ramping up cooperation with H/d Hyundai XiteSolution and set up new standards of digital innovation on a continuous basis.”
POSCO E&C has successfully verified a remotely controlled excavator for the first time in Korea.
Meanwhile, POSCO E&C has been strengthening capabilities related to AI, robotics and data-based smart controls on top of remotely controlled technologies.
“Rumble Making Robot,” developed by the contractor, won an innovation prize at 2025 CES and POSCO E&C obtained the top grade “AA” among 10 construction companies in the 2025 Smart /construction Company Index.
The measure is calculated by KICT in cooperation with Seoul University.
The contractor has been spearheading the digital transformation in the whole of the industry as a smart construction leader.
POSCO E&C Obtains World-Class Compliance Management Regime ‘ISO 37301’
POSCO E&C received the globally recognized a certificate of the ethics compliance management certification “ISO 37301” from the Ethics & Compliance Center on Dec. 17.
ISO 37301 is an international standard of verifying if any entity systematically manages a variety of obligations, such as laws and ethics, and internal regulations and it is equipped with risk prevention and control management systems.
Of late, an increasing number of companies have been expanding certifications in areas such as ethics management, corruption prevention in the wake of the spreading of ESG along with new regulations.
ISO 37301 is evaluated to rank high in overall compliance management capabilities by integrating these kinds of certifications.
POSCO E&C became the construction industry’s first company to have introduced a fair trade compliance program in 2003.
The contractor has been spreading fair trade practices with its cooperative companies and internal control POSCO E&C became the industry’s first company to have obtained the top grade “AAA” in a CP evaluation, administrated by the Korea Fair Trade Commission, in 2024 for the second straight year.
The contractor has been officially recognized for its compliance management system and execution in the fair trade sector.
The latest acquired ISO 37301 certification is one level up from the CP operation foundation.
It is a company compliance system designed to integrate and manage risk in all areas of the company, such as integrity, human rights, the environment and supply chains - beyond compliance management limited to fair trade.
The contractor has developed a system encompassing management decision-making, performance management and risk control on top of the CP operation experiences and outcomes it has accumulated for the past 20 years — evolving POSCO E&C’s compliance management into a companywide management system.
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