Mr. Kim Donghyuk explaining about surface vehicle.

At last, spring’s almost over and summer’s getting closer, and there are marine boys who say, “We are in charge of Korean shipbuilding.” They’re the team Hexa, and they even received the Presidential Prize of Republic of Korea Naval Academy at the unmanned Surface Vehicle Competition sponsored by Navy-Changwon. Shall we meet the heroes?
Q : Hi, nice to see you. Could you introduce yourself to the readers, please?
Kim: I’m Kim DongHyuk, majoring in the Department of Shipbuilding Engineering since 2013. I’m a leader of Hexa for some time past.
Q : It seems that there are few students who know much about Surface Vehicles. I want to ask you for a simple explanation about Surface Vehicle.
Kim : I expect that many people know about RC cars well. You might have seen it in television. Surface Vehicles can be seen as an RC car in the ocean. Besides the difference that it’s not a car but a ship, its mechanism of headway and switch is all the same with the RC car’s. Oh, and it cannot move backwards, either.
Q : Because it’s a floating vessel, its design element seems to be very important. How do you work on the project?
Kim : First, we need to get the sponsor’s approval, at that time, we start from imitating RC boats on the market. It could be said, a motif. After choosing everyone’s best model, we redesign the product’s design as our own so that it can stream ahead and turn well. We should use appointed components only when producing it. Because the motor is an important part for speed, if we use another one, we get disqualified no matter what the reason.
Q : You achieved a prize in the Surface Vehicle Battleship event, which part do you think you got a good grade?
Kim : The competition’s evaluation element is divided into three parts. First is design, second is speed (fast thrust), and third is smooth turning, and we placed stress on minimizing the size compared to other ships from the beginning in the design. We made the front sharp, the extent narrow. This designation makes the ship’s speed faster because it minimizes weight and resistance to water. I think these parts differentiated our ship from the others and gave us a better grade.
Q : What are you planning for Hexa’s future activity?
Kim : We’re trying to gather club members regardless of their grade because we’re now recognized as a formal club. Also there is another big competition held in CECO once every two years. It’s held next year, so we’re trying to prepare for it in a calm and orderly way.
Q : There is a saying that the shipbuilding industry is slack now, so what do you think about the prospect of shipbuilding as a student majoring in Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering?
Kim : The press puts stress on Korean industry’s state only, but actually shipbuilding industry’s slump is an international problem now. Even in China, the country considered as Korea’s rival, 3 of 6 shipbuilding companies are closing this year, so I guess that you can imagine how hard the state is. What’s more amazing is the fact that the shipbuilding economy moves separately from the international economy. Statistically, shipbuilding moves up and down between a boom and depression on a cycle of 8 to 10 years. There is criticism about companies’ restructuring, but I think in a long term period, they have to do it to protect their ‘body’. Most of you might not know well, but the truth is that the Top 4 among global shipbuilding companies are all Korean companies. Even the ‘BIG 4’ are on hard times, and then what do you think about others? Many people say, “Shipbuilding doesn’t have a bright future.” But I think the survivor will sweep everything when a boom comes. I believe in Korea’s potential.
Q : Do you have any words to students?
Kim : I strongly recommend engineering college students to join a club. While you’re in one, you can learn the way to make ‘reality’ from your major’s knowledge in your head and build a relationship with other people. You will find that there are two kinds of people in working: those who do work, and who don’t. Then you can learn how to overcome it by yourself.

Hun Lee, cub-reporter  pjh327s@naver.com

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