South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Industrial Technology Association (KOITA) selected Aldeba CEO Jin-oh Kim (김진오) and Samsung Heavy Industries professional Tae-goo Lee (이태구) as winners of the October 2026 Korea Engineer Award, the ministry said on Oct. 19.

The Korea Engineer Award honours engineers who contribute to technological innovation in industry, awarding a deputy prime minister and science minister's prize and 5 million won in prize money.

Kim was recognised for developing artificial organs and surgery simulators for medical training that replicate the physical properties of human tissue and surgical responses using natural biomaterials and 3D printing technology.

Existing surgical training for medical staff relied on animal experiments or cadaver practice, which took significant time and cost and limited repeated training. Kim used materials obtained from seaweed and crustaceans to reproduce the elasticity of human organs and responses such as incision and coagulation, enabling repeated practice in an environment similar to actual surgery.

Kim, a former researcher in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), founded Aldeba in 2022 through the science ministry's laboratory startup support programme. The company has registered about 20 domestic and overseas patents related to medical simulators to date and, in cooperation with global companies including Johnson & Johnson, supplies products to about 40 countries. Its revenue last year exceeded 500 million won.

Kim said, "When medical staff can receive effective education, it becomes possible to improve patient safety and the quality of medical services." He added, "I will work for innovation in medical education based on laboratory materials technology."

Lee was selected for raising propulsion efficiency and reducing vibration and noise by introducing a winglet structure, applied to aircraft wingtips, to ship propellers.

The 'STAR (Samsung Tip Advanced Rake)' propeller developed by Lee reduced energy loss caused by vortices generated at the blade tips, achieving 85 percent ship propulsion efficiency. It also cut by 20 percent the force that causes vibration in the hull.

The design also addressed cavitation, in which bubbles created during propeller rotation damage the blade surface, by improving the shape. Based on 5 icebreaking liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers of the 175,000 cubic metre class, it produced an effect of saving about 3.1 billion won in after-the-fact damage treatment costs.

Lee also participated in developing related technologies such as low-noise propellers and flow control fins, contributing to cutting ships' underwater radiated noise by up to 20 decibels.

Lee said, "I am happy to have been recognised for the hard work we made together to differentiate technology in the shipbuilding and marine industry field." He added, "I will continue to contribute to maintaining the world's best technological competitiveness."