● The competitiveness of industrial complexes is currently evolving beyond the provision of physical infrastructure such as land and transport networks and is increasingly defined by software-oriented capabilities that enable firm survival and growth, including financial and tax support, administrative services, and ecosystem development. 

● Having achieved significant growth through its designation as a secondary battery cluster and major investment inflows, the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex now stands at a turning point as it transitions from early-stage expansion to cluster-based maturity. In this context, a shift away from a land supply–focused approach toward an innovation ecosystem where knowledge and technology are actively generated and exchanged is essential.

● Leading industrial clusters, such as Pangyo Techno Valley, research and development special zones, the National Food Cluster, and other national industrial complexes, have established legally mandated support agencies for tenant firms and are proactively implementing customized, software-driven enterprise development frameworks to promote firm growth.

● This issue brief highlights the need to shift from hardware-driven development to software-based enterprise support, presenting five key policy priorities to transform the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex into a sustainable, business-friendly, future-ready industrial hub.

■ First, a systematic legal framework (Legal) should be established to support Saemangeum’s enterprises. This requires revising the Saemangeum Special Act so that it shifts away from a development- and construction-oriented model and explicitly incorporates legal grounds for software-based enterprise support, thereby facilitating comprehensive and specialized assistance for prospective and existing tenant firms.

■ Second, a dedicated support system (Partner) should be established to serve as a professional partner for Saemangeum’s tenant firms. Given the growing number of firms and the expansion of software-based support programs, a centralized control tower is required to integrate and coordinate both firm-level assistance and fragmented national programs across ministries.

■ Third, a mature, network-based enterprise ecosystem (Ecosystem) should be developed to stimulate the circulation of innovation across industry, academia, and research institutions. By strengthening on-site collaboration and fostering organic communication across sectors in the industrial complex and across industry–academia–research networks, this approach is expected to generate synergies and reposition the complex as a convergent ecosystem characterized by the continuous creation of new business opportunities.

■ Fourth, tailored, software-based enterprise support (SW Support) that delivers concrete outcomes for tenant firms should be developed. To move away from piecemeal support and drive tangible firm growth, periodic surveys of tenant firms in Saemangeum should be institutionalized. Building on the survey results, a customized five-pillar enterprise growth package encompassing regulation, talent, fiscal policy, finance, and innovation should be designed and delivered in a timely manner.

■ Fifth, Saemangeum’s physical infrastructure should be upgraded into a “living mega laboratory” (HW Advancement). The expanding infrastructure should function as a large-scale testbed that goes beyond basic utility provision, enabling the real-world demonstration of advanced corporate technologies and application systems, including AX and carbon neutrality solutions, as well as RE100-based industrial complexes.

■ By synthesizing the five key policy tasks, this brief proposes the “LEAPS for Saemangeum” initiative—integrating the Legal, Ecosystem, HW Advancement, Partner, and SW Support policy pillars—to accelerate the transition of the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex into a sustainable, future-ready industrial cluster.

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