Do you know the Korean company that installed gates at subway stations in the U.S. capital? [Washington Briefing]

Entered 2023.12.31. 7:01 AM Modified 2024.01.01. 8:17 AM

STraffic wins contract for construction of AFC in San Francisco following Washington DC

A turnstile equipped with a swing door style barrier at Fort Totten Station in Washington DC, the capital of the United States. This ticket gate was installed by the Korean company 'STraffic'. Photo provided by Washington DC Transportation Department.

(Washington = News 1) Correspondent Kim Hyun = Fort Totten Station in Washington, DC, the capital of the United States. When you enter the ticket gate to board the subway, you will notice a transparent door that is about chest height. This is a barrier to prevent illegal riding, and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), which is responsible for operating subways connecting Washington DC and neighboring states, has been implementing them starting from the middle of this year. This is a ‘swing door style barrier’ that is being installed at the ticket gates in the station.

The installation of such barriers is one of the projects being promoted by the Washington DC Transportation Department, which is suffering from chronic deficits, as a measure to reduce losses. Since 2019, the Transportation Department has installed new automatic dog kennel markings at all 98 stations in and out of Washington, D.C., which are equipped with clam-shaped barriers 28.3 inches (approximately 72 cm) high.

However, due to the low height of the barrier, the rate of illegal riding did not decrease, but rather increased during the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) pandemic. The Transportation Bureau states that it is losing approximately $40 million (approximately 52 billion won) annually due to illegal use of subways and buses operated under its agency, and that the rate of people who board the subway without paying is approximately 13%.

Accordingly, the Transportation Bureau decided to install barriers with improved performance on the new dog kennel signs installed within the station to prevent illegal riding. The Transportation Department first selected Port Totten Station as a pilot station last March and conducted a test by installing a 48-inch (approximately 122 cm) high swing door-style barrier at the existing gate as a prototype. , a 55-inch (approximately 140 cm) barrier with improved durability was confirmed as the final model. Since then, the Transportation Department has additionally installed and completed the finalized barriers at nine stations located in Washington DC and the nearby states of Virginia and Maryland, starting with Pentagon City Station in July.

According to the WMATA website, the Transportation Authority will complete the installation of additional barriers at seven stations, including Union Station and Tysons Corner, by January next year, and will then proceed with installation work at the remaining 81 stations over the next year. The plan is to finish it.

The Transportation Department's decision to completely replace the barrier was based on data showing that the fraudulent riding rate decreased by more than 70% after installing the new barrier. According to an article published by the Washington Post (WP), a leading American daily newspaper, citing data from the Transportation Bureau last August, the illegal riding rate at all six stations where barriers were replaced was found to have decreased by more than 70%. At Port Totten Station, the fraudulent ridership rate decreased by 71% (13% → 4%), and at Bethesda Station, it decreased by 78% (7% → 2%). In particular, the fraudulent ridership rate at Mount Vernon Square station decreased by 84% (15% → 2%), and Addison Road station, which initially had an fraudulent ridership rate of 39%, decreased to 11% (72 %)did.

The Washington DC Transportation Department's key project is not an American company, but a Korean company called 'STraffic'. STraffic won an automated fare collection (AFC) and maintenance project worth approximately $40 million (approximately 52 billion won) from the Washington DC Transportation Department in 2019, and continued to receive additional orders, reaching $52 million (approx. The Washington DC AFC gate project, which was expanded to KRW 67.5 billion, was successfully completed at the end of last year. The barrier replacement currently in progress is also a project for which additional orders have been received.

STraffic is a global transportation solutions company that was established independently from Samsung SDS in 2013. It is a small but strong company that has already established itself as a leader in various transportation solution system markets, including highway toll collection, in Korea and has also won many projects overseas, including in Bangladesh.

Based on its reputation for successfully completing the Washington DC subway project, it won a $47 million (approximately KRW 61 billion) subway AFC gate construction project in San Francisco last April. In addition to this performance, STraffic was recently recognized for exceeding $30 million (approximately 39 billion won) in exports from July of last year to June of this year at the 'Trade Day' awards ceremony, and was awarded the $30 Million Tower, Service Tower, and Silver Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit. and achieved three awards.

Kim Beom-soo, director in charge of STraffic's Americas corporation, is recently being interviewed by News 1 at his office located in Virginia.

Director Kim Beom-soo, who is in charge of STraffic's American branch, said in a recent interview with News 1, "We have had a relationship with WMATA since the Samsung days," and added, "American companies with a high market share do not easily respond when problems arise. “As customers (WMATA) had been experiencing accumulated inconveniences, they decided to boldly verify their technological capabilities and proceed with (business) with us,” he explained.

It is said that in the early days of the Washington DC subway AFC project, there were many challenges, including manpower deployment. An experienced American consultant was hired, and key engineers were dispatched from the Korean headquarters. As we promoted the project, we hired the necessary personnel locally. However, we are faced with an unexpected new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) pandemic.

Director Kim said, "Even in the COVID-19 pandemic situation, we carried out and completed the project on schedule. As a result, a lot of trust was built from the customer's perspective," and "We received a reference through Washington that a small company we did not know in Korea had done so. “(Reputation) has been secured, it has been introduced (to other regions) as a good reference, and it seems to be going well so far,” he said.

After breaking through Washington DC and San Francisco, STraffic's American subsidiary's next target is New York. Currently, New York is an area with a high demand for replacement of its outdated subway system. Positive movements have also been detected recently. This is because a mid-level manager at the New York Transit Corporation, who heard about the Washington DC subway AFC gate replacement project, expressed interest in visiting STraffic's Americas office.

Director Kim said, “Just as Seoul represents the largest market in Korea, it represents New York in the United States,” adding, “We are thinking that we should somehow try to get orders to reach New York.”

STraffic is also experiencing difficulties in conducting business in the United States due to the U.S. government's 'Buy America' guidelines. ‘Buy America’ is a regulation that mandates the use of only American products in federal government-funded infrastructure projects. In addition to the manufacturing requirements in the United States, manufactured products must be made in the United States at least 55% of the total cost of parts.

Director Kim said, "Because we do not have much know-how in the U.S. market to respond appropriately, we are requesting consulting from professional organizations or companies, but that is the difficult part." He added, "We manufacture in the U.S. at our store in Denver, Colorado. “We are trying to meet the standards as much as possible by assembling it through an American company,” he explained. He said, “It’s difficult because we can’t say ‘I think this is enough’ when we anticipate it.”

Nevertheless, Director Kim advised Korean small and medium-sized businesses dreaming of entering the U.S. to challenge the U.S. market. He said, "The Korean market continues to grow, but the center of the world is still the United States and the market itself is large, so I hope that many small and medium-sized companies in Korea will take on the challenge without hesitation." He added, "If many small and medium-sized companies in Korea tap the American market, they can create a good situation and avoid failure. “Even so, if Korean companies keep coming and trying something, Korea’s national prestige and quality will be raised,” he said.

Correspondent Kim Hyeon (gayunlove@news1.kr)

 

Original Source : 美 수도 지하철역 게이트 설치한 한국기업 아시나요?[워싱턴브리핑] (naver.com)