The hegemony of 20th-century manufacturing began not with finished products, but with standards. Standards were the power that created industrial order beyond mere blueprint specifications. Some countries sold technology; others sold standards. The results were clear. Nations that held the standards designed market structures.
In the 19th century, Britain secured mechanical parts compatibility through the Whitworth screw standard proposed by Joseph Whitworth. As uniform specifications were applied across railways, shipbuilding, and military industries, parts replacement and mass production became possible. Standardization lowered production costs and stabilized quality. Britain accelerated the Industrial Revolution through standards. Standards were national competitiveness itself.
In the 1930s, the United States ushered in the era of automated assembly by introducing the cross-head (Phillips) fastening standard, commercialized by Henry F. Phillips, into the automobile industry. The self-aligning structure between driver and fastener head dramatically increased production speed. American automobile factories maximized production efficiency in short periods, and the entire screw industry was reorganized around this standard. Standards were not merely one company's invention but a catalyst that transformed national industrial structures.
The Torx standard, which emerged in the 1960s, became the standard in aerospace and electronics industries, optimized for high-torque and high-precision automation. As fastening errors decreased, product reliability improved, and adoption spread throughout global supply chains. Companies and nations that preempted standards secured continuous licensing revenue and market dominance.
After the war, Japan reorganized its Japanese Industrial Standards system, unifying the language of manufacturing at the national level. Once parts specifications and quality standards were standardized, compatibility among suppliers increased and supply chains stabilized. Even small and medium enterprises could secure quality competitiveness under the same standards. Standards were a public good that enhanced productivity across the entire industrial ecosystem.
The common advantages of nations with standards are clear. First, they can design market entry barriers. Second, they secure continuous revenue from technology usage. Third, they build supply chain order centered on their own country. Fourth, they recover quickly from industrial crises based on compatibility and reliability. Standards are invisible but the most powerful industrial asset.
In contrast, Korea's fastener industry started with a structure dependent on foreign standards after the war. Production volume increased, but strategies for designing independent standards were lacking. Incorporated into the subcontracting structure of finished goods companies, price competition intensified and R&D investment contracted over the long term. It was also pushed down policy priority lists under the pretext of being a basic industry.
However, future industries demand different conditions. Physical AI, robots, future mobility, and space industries all presuppose high-precision repetitive fastening and structural reliability. Ultra-lightweight design and disassemblable structures are core requirements of the carbon-neutral era. Sustainable manufacturing systems cannot be completed with adhesives and welding alone. The precision and standardization of fastening technology are once again becoming the starting point of industrial competitiveness.
Now the government must also shift its policy direction. First, it must pursue a national-level next-generation fastening technology standard development project. Second, it must expand participation in international standards organizations to connect domestic technology to global standards. Third, it must cultivate specialized talent for root industries and establish long-term R&D funds. Fourth, it must institutionalize cooperative models where large finished goods companies and basic parts companies jointly design standards.
We have been a country that makes products well. Now we must become a country that creates industrial standards. Fasteners are small parts, but they are core elements that support industrial structures. If you preempt standards, you can design market order; if you lose standards, you become incorporated into others' order.
Only nations with invisible standards will dominate future manufacturing. The K-Fastener strategy is not simply about fostering a parts industry. It is the starting line for Korea to become a designer of industry rather than merely a participant. Now is the right time for that transition.
·Graduated from Hongik University College of Fine Arts, Department of Sculpture, and its Graduate School
·Active in game, CG, and modeling fields; served as Graphics Director for "Quake Wars Online" at Dragonfly Co., Ltd.
·Founded Dream2Studio to plan and produce theatrical original animations and augmented reality content
·Served as Director of Art One Ani Center, a webtoon and 3D graphics education academy
·(Current) CEO of Bolts One Co., Ltd.
*Introduction: Focusing on developing innovative K-Fastener technology that combines formative sensibility with engineering design, he is challenging to establish new fastening technology standards that transcend the structural limitations of the existing fastener industry.