Following the '2025 Red Dot Design Award', sweeping top domestic and international design honors aim systems Co., Ltd. (CEO: Yeon-Sun Jung), a smart factory and airport solution specialist, announced on the 19th that its Incheon International Airport Self Bag Drop system has won the Silver Award (Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Award; Universal Design Special Award) at the 2025 Good Design (GD) Awards. Earlier in July, aim systems’ advanced research project, AIM SBD Gen-5 Self Bag Drop, was also recognized with a Concept Winner award at the 2025 Red Dot Design Award, one of the world’s most prestigious design competitions, once again proving the company’s excellence in design.  

Representatives from aim systems and Incheon International Airport Corporation pose for a commemorative photo at the award ceremony held at COEX. / Photo courtesy of aim systems

  The award-winning Incheon International Airport Self Bag Drop is a core smart airport solution jointly developed by aim systems and Incheon International Airport Corporation (IIAC) through a successful localization of the platform. The system allows passengers to check in their baggage independently without assistance from airline staff, significantly reducing departure processing time while enhancing user convenience and overall design quality. This achievement is being recognized not only as a technological innovation, but also as a successful localization case that harmoniously integrates functionality and design. aim systems successfully localized foreign self check-in systems in 2017, and its solutions are now applied to all self check-in systems currently operating in Korea. With strong support from Incheon International Airport Corporation, the company also succeeded in commercializing its localized self bag drop system, fully replacing foreign-made systems and operating them nationwide.  

Red Dot Design Award-winning project, ‘AIM SBD Gen-5’ / Photo courtesy of aim systems

  CEO Yeon-Sun Jung of aim systems stated, “We are delighted that the self bag drop system, which has been successfully implemented at Incheon International Airport—a smart airport where technology and design coexist—has received Korea’s most prestigious Good Design Award. Furthermore, the selection of our next-generation research project for the Red Dot Design Award demonstrates that aim systems’ R&D and design capabilities are globally competitive.” Founded in 1996, aim systems has led the smart factory software market through nearly 30 years of industry expertise, including the first successful localization of automation solutions for the semiconductor and display industries. The company also provides airport solutions such as self check-in and self bag drop systems.   View original article

aim Systems has played a leading role in establishing South Korea as a global manufacturing powerhouse. By localizing automation solutions for large-scale high-tech factories that previously relied on foreign corporations, the company significantly bolstered the competitiveness of the domestic manufacturing sector. Beyond this achievement, aim Systems is shaping the future of manufacturing by proactively providing solutions essential for customer growth, built upon a unique "Innovation DNA" preserved through numerous challenges over the past 30 years. We met with aim Systems, a company approaching autonomous manufacturing systems through "Zero-touch Solutions" powered by Digital Transformation (DT) technology, aligned with the era of Industry 5.0.   A Total Solution Provider Leading the Localization of Korea’s First High-Tech Industrial MES Founded in 1996, aim Systems is a specialized firm that achieved the first localization of Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) for high-tech industries, such as semiconductors and displays. With 28 years of accumulated experience and expertise, it is recognized as a leading first-generation factory automation company. As a pioneer in the Korean factory and equipment automation industry, it has contributed to improving the productivity and quality of manufacturing clients by providing one-stop automation solutions covering everything from equipment control to factory operations. While the Korean semiconductor and display industries initially started as "fast followers," continuous manufacturing innovation was essential to overtake advanced competitors. However, domestic manufacturers had to rely on foreign solutions for highly automated semiconductor and display production. These foreign solutions had clear limitations in reflecting the innovation efforts of Korean manufacturers in a timely manner. aim Systems provided a breakthrough by successfully localizing the first domestic MES. After achieving growth by supplying MES and factory automation products to major Korean high-tech enterprises such as Samsung Electronics, Samsung Display, LG Display, and SK Hynix, aim Systems continued its relentless R&D. The company evolved into a Total Solution provider covering the entire spectrum of factory and equipment automation, implementing systems that materialized customer innovation and applying smart factory solutions in stages. Last March, the company also introduced AI-integrated MES and MCS (Material Control System). The unrivaled path of aim Systems led to the remarkable feat of dominating the automation market for large-scale display factories in China. Winning fierce bidding wars against global giants like IBM and Applied Materials, aim Systems applied its MES products to over 90% of Chinese display factories. Furthermore, the company is expanding into Southeast Asian regions, including Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia. It is seeking new opportunities by supplying products and services to global clients operating in these regions and recently signed an MOU for comprehensive cooperation with a competitive local partner. Additionally, the company is actively responding to demand in the US, European, and Japanese markets. CEO Su-han Bae explained that for manufacturing clients to win in the era of infinite global competition, innovative ideas from the production floor must be continuously generated and translated into improved productivity and quality—and aim Systems is supporting this process. The company not only provides reliable solutions for equipment and entire factory levels but also maintains a flexible response system to closely support system modifications and upgrades, ensuring that creative and innovative ideas are realized on time.   Establishing a Stable Growth Foundation by Providing Optimized Solutions Beyond High-Tech Industries CEO Su-han Bae joined aim Systems as a professional manager, driven by a desire to work where his skills and passion were truly needed. Immediately after joining, he focused on upgrading management systems, including the renewal of the business management system. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, as investment in the display industry—the original foundation of the company's growth—decreased, he shifted the focus toward expanding into general manufacturing sectors such as secondary batteries, high-performance PCBs, and chemical materials. Currently, aim Systems provides software solutions covering factory and equipment automation across various industries, from semiconductors, displays, and secondary batteries to airport automation. The company is building a stable business portfolio by localizing key systems for airports, such as Self Check-in kiosks and Self Bag Drop systems. CEO Bae stated that the company has secured its status as a One-stop Solution Provider, offering consulting, system construction, operation, and maintenance based on its accumulated "Domain Knowledge." The core competitiveness that allowed aim Systems to solidify its current position is its rapid responsiveness to customer innovation needs. By implementing the innovation requirements of various domestic and foreign manufacturers into systems in a timely manner, the company has earned deep trust from its clients. Secondly, the stability and reliability of its solutions have been proven in the field. aim Systems boasts up to 20 years of operational history in advanced high-tech industrial sites. Its systems, verified in dozens of large-scale Fabs, are recognized for their ability to process large volumes of data stably—a competitive edge considered unique even in the global market. Finally, the company possesses superior product development capabilities. The "product development DNA" of a small but strong company that succeeded in localizing the first MES has created new synergies through accumulated know-how. aim Systems operates a dedicated R&D workforce of about 30 people, exceeding 10% of its total staff—an unusual composition for a mid-sized company in this industry. CEO Bae noted that while this may be a financial burden in the short term, the commercialization of developed products is following suit, and visible financial results will soon follow along with enhanced competitiveness.     Presenting Future-Ready Automation Optimized by Industry and Enterprise via 'Zero-Touch' As factory automation systems become increasingly sophisticated by integrating advanced IT technologies such as AI, Big Data, and Cloud, aim Systems has spent the past three years replacing existing products with next-generation versions and focusing on supporting optimized Digital Transformation (DT) processes for each enterprise. The most significant feature of the next-generation products to be introduced by aim Systems is that they are based on the company's own common platform, unlike previous individually developed products. This maximizes consistency and scalability. The products are designed with the integration of advanced IT in mind, and the company plans to enter the full-scale commercialization stage starting early next year. Currently, many products are already being applied to actual projects. CEO Bae predicted that the commercialization of these next-generation products would lead to strengthened competitiveness and a significant increase in orders. "aim Systems is moving toward 'Zero-Touch.' This means building an autonomous manufacturing system similar to an autonomous driving car," Bae stated. "The future-ready automation system, 'Zero-touch Solution,' presented by aim Systems, will complete the fully autonomous operation of manufacturing sites." CEO Bae presented a blueprint for evolving from the current One-Stop Solution to a One-Touch Solution, and ultimately reaching the Zero-touch stage. The Zero-touch stage refers to an autonomous operating environment with minimal human intervention. In this stage, AI-based autonomous decision-making systems detect and resolve field issues in real-time, and virtual and physical environments are perfectly synchronized through Digital Twins. Furthermore, it provides a manufacturing environment capable of autonomous communication and coordination between systems, predictive maintenance, and self-optimization. aim Systems is realizing the Zero-touch Solution by fusing advanced technologies such as Cloud Computing, IoT, AI, Big Data, and Digital Twin. The company's rich experience in building automation solutions in ultra-precision manufacturing environments like semiconductors and displays is expected to be the core driver for implementing Zero-touch. Furthermore, the goal is to create automation software that can be flexibly applied to various manufacturing environments in the form of high-quality "Lego blocks," allowing for the construction of optimal automation systems with minimal effort. The plan is to develop these Lego-block-style products into a SaaS (Software as a Service) business model using cloud services, helping even small-scale manufacturing clients use aim Systems' intelligent automation solutions without a heavy cost burden. Once this business model is successful, it will be expanded to the global market.   Innovation DNA Completed Through Expertise, Transparent Communication, and Consideration Recalling his difficult decision to leave a stable large corporation for a mid-sized company, CEO Su-han Bae smiled, saying that while there was trial and error during the adaptation process, he has never deeply regretted his choice. Above all, it is thanks to the "gem-like" colleagues he met at aim Systems. Their dedication to their work and pride as experts serve as his greatest motivation. He added that he finds joy in working with the organization's members and promised to do his best to protect and foster their pride. The belief that colleagues are what sustain aim Systems has led to transparent communication. The company holds quarterly management performance sharing sessions for all employees, conducts site visits to meet staff dispatched to client locations, and holds small-group lunch meetings. A Labor-Management Council is also held every quarter as a communication channel. CEO Bae emphasized the "Golden Rule"—treating others as you would want to be treated—in communication. He believes that a culture of mutual consideration and leading by example is necessary to achieve excellence. "Successfully completing the task of developing and building automation solutions for productivity and quality improvement in ultra-precision large factories within tight deadlines is not something that can be achieved by the efforts of just one or two outstanding individuals. It is accomplished through the effective collaboration of employees with expertise in each sector. What directly impacts the outcome of this collaboration is consideration and leading by example. The Golden Rule leads to true collaboration, which in turn leads to extraordinary results." Recently, aim Systems has focused on stabilizing its business portfolio through industry diversification and renewing its product lineup through next-generation product development. As these efforts reach completion, the company expects a full-scale increase in orders for key next-generation products starting next year. CEO Bae looks forward to 2025 as the inaugural year for aim Systems to achieve a substantial "second leap forward." Advancements in manufacturing and ICT technology are evolving the manufacturing industry. aim Systems is moving toward the future alongside the Korean manufacturing sector as a "Solution Partner Leading the Sustainable Growth of Manufacturing," contributing to the improvement of productivity and quality by developing and supplying highly intelligent automation solutions for the continuous growth of manufacturers.

aim Systems (CEO Su-han Bae), a specialist in smart factory solutions, announced on the 16th that it has successfully completed the development of a newly designed, advanced intelligent Manufacturing Execution System (MES). This was achieved by thoroughly analyzing the limitations of existing MES programs and focusing on the specific functions and benefits truly needed by customers.     The new MES from aim Systems is designed to precisely reflect the operating environments of clients, realizing three core values: cost reduction, productivity enhancement, and quality stability. According to company sources, this advanced smart factory solution features a robust architecture, extensive functionality, and configuration-based flexibility. It is expected to significantly improve the efficiency and success rate of smart factory implementation through its automated and standardized structure, which minimizes labor requirements while maintaining agility in responding to custom needs. The system enables several key advancements, including: Rapid decision-making support through real-time data collection and visualization for each process. Maximizing equipment utilization and strengthening downtime cause analysis. AI-based quality prediction to reduce defect rates. These capabilities are projected to reduce factory operating costs by an average of 15–20% and increase productivity by up to 30%. An official from aim Systems stated, "This advanced MES goes beyond a simple system upgrade; it will establish itself as a profit-centered digital transformation tool that directly impacts the operating strategies of customer factories." The official added, "The system is receiving a strong response from customers, particularly for its ability to enable flexible process operations in today’s manufacturing environment, where high-mix, low-volume production is increasing." Furthermore, the system is designed and developed to serve all sectors rather than being limited to specific industries. By categorizing features into 'Common Functions' and 'Industry Special Functions' based on an analysis of diverse industrial requirements, the system can flexibly accommodate different environments and needs within a standardized framework. aim Systems is already applying this advanced MES to production sites through collaboration with major domestic manufacturing companies and plans to expand into the global market in the future.   View original article