SNU Professors Sung-Gul Hong, Byung Gee Kim, Heui Jae Pahk Awarded for Excellence as Engineering College Professors


▲The winners of the 2020 Excellent Engineering College Professor Award (From left Professor Sung-Gul Hong, Professor Byung Gee Kim, Dean Kookheon Char, Professor Heui Jae Pahk and his wife)

 
SNU College of Engineering announced on June 2 that the following were selected as the winners of the 2020 Excellence as College of Engineering Professor Award: Professor Sung-Gul Hong of the Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering (Education Award), Professor Byung Gee Kim of the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering (Academic Award) and Professor Heui Jae Pahk (Industry-Academic Cooperation Award) of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The award ceremony was held on May 27 in Building 38 of SNU College of Engineering.
 
The Excellence as College of Engineering Professor Award was established in 1992 as a fund contributed by the 15th alumni of the College of Engineering to promote research activities of SNU Engineering professors and contribute to the advancement of industrial technology. The Education Award is given to the Engineering Professor who devoted himself creatively and enterprisingly to education, the Academic Award to the Engineering Professor who excelled in academic achievement, and the Industry-Academic Cooperation Award to the Engineering Professor who greatly contributed to the development of industrial technology.
 
The awardee of the Education Award, Professor Sung-Gul Hong of the Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering, was selected in recognition of his achievements in conducting research and education in structural engineering in architecture. Professor Hong has been carrying out his research of structural engineering in architecture, and has been striving to enhance students' understanding of the architectural space and the field of structural design as well as the structural analysis for the educational incubation of creativity and talent for students in the field of architecture.
 
Furthermore, Professor Hong also developed a concrete plasticity science course since 2000 to spread Strut and Tie Model techniques for concrete structure design by Korean structural designers. In the field of concrete structure, new construction materials, and structure of traditional architectural cultural property, it has so far produced 18 Ph.D.s and 62 masters for 24 years and has been striving to cultivate students by developing new methods of structural engineering education.
 
Academic award winner Byung Gee Kim was chosen for his world-class achievements for both academic and educational aspects in the field of biocatalyst and enzyme engineering. Professor Kim has contributed immensely through education and academic activities in the field of bio-chemical engineering, and has served as the Head of the next-generation new technology development project at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Head of the World Class University (WCU) Promotion Project at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and Chairman of the Bio-MAX Institute of Biotechnology at Seoul National University.
 
Professor Kim has published 320 academic papers and applied for 70 patents in renowned academic journals both within Korea and abroad, and has achieved awards and technology transfers, including the Sinyang Research Award as well as the Korean Society of Biotechnology and Biocat Award 2010. Uptil March, his published papers were used 5,389 times on the basis of Elsevier Scopus statistics, and the study of "Development of amine transferase for photosynthesis and natural synthesis" has drawn the attention of those both in Korea and abroad.
 
Professor Heui Jae Pahk, awardee of the Industrial-Academic Cooperation Award was highly praised for his contributions to industrial-academic cooperation due to his conducting of research and education in the field of precision measurement and mechatronics in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. In February 1998, Profesor Park with his students founded SNU Precision Co., Ltd., the first startup company of a university laboratory and after successfully listing the company, he donated his shares worth about 8 billion won to the SNU College of Engineering Research Foundation, creating an ideal example through commercialization of engineering technology.
 
In addition, Professor Park, an expert in technology development and commercialization, served as Head of Korea's Trade, Industry and Energy's R&D Strategic Planning Division, making a significant contribution to the establishment of R&D strategies in the industrial technology sector and the development of related industries. He served as outside directors, executives and employees of industries and related associations and conducted a number of consultations on the commercialization of research and technology development by enterprises and public institutions. He has won the Silver Tower Order of Industrial Merit, the Jang Young-sil Prize, the 100 billion-won Business Award, the 70 million-dollar Export Tower, the Best Taxpayer Award, the National Academy of Engineering of Korea's Young Engineer Award, and Korea's 100 Best Technology Awards.