go to About LG Chem Company Data Review of Operation Annual Report Financial Summary     | *overview | network | Selective, Intensive Development of Advanced Technology Efforts that Bear Fruit The year 2002 was a very fruitful one for LG Chem R&D as well as for business activities as we continue to reap results from our efforts to become a global leader. In Information & Electronic Materials, we had initiated lithium-ion battery development in 1997 and sales in 2002 were triple those of the previous year. In addition, TFT-LCD polarizers took the stage as a core business area with sales for the year exceeding 140 billion KRW. During the year we also stabilized these production lines and developed a new low light leakage TFT-LCD for LCD manufacturers, our major clients. In Petrochemicals, we newly developed and introduced such specialty products as self-dispersive ABS, eco-friendly plasticizer, and high performance transparent ABS. In a newly-named "e-process" effort, we scored promising results at our VCM Plant, and we plan to apply this new e-process in tandem with CFD, which is applied to the solution of engineering problems, to all LG Chem business areas as new technology platforms. In Industrial Materials, we developed a host of new high-performance products including compounded window profiles and sports floors. Paving Roads to the Future On the basis of these highly promising R&D results, we plan to increase R&D investments 14% to 150 billion KRW for 2003. Such investments will reinforce our technology platforms and contribute to a further increase in our technology leadership value. In early 2003, we restructured our R&D organization in order to reinforce technology platforms and foster greater involvement in advanced, futuristic industrial activities. To these ends we established a new organization, Corporate R&D, or CRD. This clearly defines the roles at our Research Park between CRD and Business Units (BU) R&D: CRD is responsible for readying LG Chem¡¯s future activities while BU R&D is now responsible for strengthening the competitiveness of existing products and operations. LG Chem is now conducting extensive research into nanotechnology, biotechnology and other advanced technology areas, and through leading technology in such areas as next-generation display components, semiconductor materials, optical materials, and functional materials, the company will step into the global forefront in product development as we pave roads to the future with experience, expertise, and excellence.