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CES 2025 is a global tech event where all the latest technologies are unveiled. At this major tech expo, three of the Korean water companies that participated in the event together with K-water were recognized for their technological excellence with top awards. Here are the three Korean corporations that won the CES Innovation Awards in recognition of their innovative approach and the spirit of challenge.
📝Text by. Editorial Team / 📷Photos by. company sources
- Innovation: the Key to the Sustainability of the Human Race
- INOSEP
Q Tell us briefly about INOSEP.
INOSEP specializes in the manufacture of membranes. We make water purification equipment and medical devices, and membrane technology is a key component in all these products. We have launched PUREMIRR, a water purification and blood filter brand that includes an emergency & wartime water purification kit as well as agricultural water purification equipment, water purification devices for medical uses, virus filters, blood filters, and artificial kidney.
Q INOSEP has won in the CES Innovation Awards. Please share with us how you feel.
We are so glad in the sense that the award is recognition of the excellence and vision of INOSEP’s technology. I would like to express sincere thanks to members of the INOSEP teams involved in the long process of developing the technology and investors who provided crucial support for the operation of the development project. The award helps us remain confident in INOSEP’s potential and business direction as we move forward.
Q Can you tell us about the products that won in the CES Innovation Awards?
PUREMIRR-IAAK is an implantable-attachable artificial kidney. It is a new medical device for end-stage renal failure patients. The current dialysis treatment widely used for end-stage renal failure patients was developed in the 1960s. The current filtering technology is not so efficient, so essential substances or minerals can also be filtered out. Given this drawback, we focused on making hemodialysis more sophisticated. For example, we recreated a nano structure of a glomus body using membranes and developed a dialysate-reusing system that functions like the glomus body. We also developed a material that is ideal for implanting and attaching to the human body.
Securing a new technology that no one else can match or copy was no easy task. We went through numerous trials and errors as we conducted simulations over and over under various different scenarios, which yielded no solution. At the CES 2025, however, we finally got a clue. We found a possible solution while touring the pavilions run by other countries, examining the mechanisms used by advanced countries. Based on the new idea that we got at the expo, we are planning to move on to the next stage for the sophistication of our filtering technology.
QWhat was it like working with K-water?
Since it was our first participation in CES, we knew little about what to do and K-water offered so much help in all aspects. In addition to “hardware” support, K-water provided a wide range of “software” support including advice on how to raise our corporate profile, ways to showcase our technological strengths, and overseas expansion strategies such as how to build IR with global investors effectively, how to prepare for meetings with potential buyers at CES, and how to hold business meetings with overseas buyers. I would like to take this opportunity to thank K-water for all the support and advice it has given us.
QWhat is INOSEP’s vision?
We at INOSEP hope our technology helps ensure the sustainability of the human race. It would be even better if it leads to high value-added businesses. We are guided by the philosophy as we develop and manufacture membrane-based medical devices and water purification equipment. Our goal is to benefit more people by developing new and innovative technology.
- A New Challenge for the Environment
- FUST Lab
Q Tell us about FUST Lab.
FUST Lab is a research institute founded on the technology transferred by the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS). Our key areas of research and development are nano emulsion/dispersion of surfactant-free materials, protein extraction utilizing ultrasonic technology, and degradation of naturally non-breakable pollutants. Some of our technologies that are drawing much attention at home and abroad are solutions to major global issues including environmental pollution, efficient use of resources, and sustainability.
Q What does winning in the CES Innovation Awards mean to you?
FUST Lab is the world’s first developer of the nano emulsion and dispersion equipment for surfactant-free materials and the winner of the Innovation Award in the category of industrial equipment and machinery, and we are currently working on commercially launching the equipment on the market. The award was especially meaningful because it was hard for us to predict the ripple effects that this technology would create. The award certainly provides a fresh impetus for us to concentrate on R&D efforts further so that this new technology can become widely available in various workplaces where it is needed.
QHow was nano emulsion and dispersion technology developed?
Currently, a surfactant is commonly used to blend different substances in the process of manufacturing cosmetics, food, and medicine. However, it may not only have a negative impact on humans and environment but also compromise the quality of products. So, we started looking for a new way of separating particles effectively without using a surfactant.
The Focused Ultrasonic Technology currently being developed by FUST Lab is the world’s first original technology of its kind. In other words, we started from a zero base to develop this innovative technology. Blazing a new trail, testing the new technology over and over, and finally developing a viable technology were not an easy process. We faced one challenge after another in the process, but the end result was worth all the hard work we put in. We finally unlocked the possibility of blending multiple substances without using a surfactant. This new technology is expected to play a critical role in technological innovation and resolution of environmental problems as it can be used not only in the treatment of non-breakable materials but also in other various applications.
QWhat kind of support did FUST Lab receive from K-water as a partner company?
Activated carbon or filter is most commonly used for the adsorption of non-breakable pollutants in the water treatment sector, but this adsorption method can cause secondary pollution; hence the urgent need to develop technology to break down these pollutants physically. In this context, we had to speed up the development process, but it was not easy for us to get the kind of polluted water discharged from actual industrial processes that we needed in order to run tests and see if our technology could actually break down non-breakable pollutants. At this crucial juncture, K-water supplied polluted water from various industrial workplaces, and we were able to test our technology. Eventually, we succeeded in developing a technology optimized for different industrial processes based on K-water’s advice on actual circumstances and environment of industrial sites.
QWhat are the goals of FUST Lab?
Sustainability is one of the hottest global topics these days. Ensuring sustainability requires technological innovation and commitment to action. In this context, FUST Lab set two goals—“economic prosperity” and “social stability”—which are to be achieved based on its own original technology. FUST Lab works with a sense of responsibility on building a better, more sustainable society for future generations instead of merely coping with issues facing us today.
- Nano Bubble Technology that Changes the World
- Fawoo Nanotech
QTell us about Fawoo Nanotech.
Water is essential for life. Fawoo Nanotech focuses on the application of nano technology in various fields to benefit people and industries and keep nature and environment healthy and clean. In particular, we possess the world's one and only technology that can mass-produce nano bubbles for industrial uses in real time. This unique, original technology is used for environmental solutions and various other applications.
QFawoo Nanotech won in the CES Innovation Awards. How do you feel?
Fawoo Nanotech is the first company that has won the award for nano bubble. None of the world’s major corporations in the industry have been able to develop such innovative technology. We at Fawoo Nanotech worked tirelessly to develop nano technology and applications, and we have been recognized for all the hard work with the award. Refusing to rest on our laurels, however, we will instead redouble our efforts and play a leading role in the nation’s industrial development and innovation through the commercialization of nano bubble.
QCould you please elaborate a little on the nano bubble generator?
The nano bubble generator dissolves large amounts of carbon dioxide in a liquid and stores it for use in applications. Carbon dioxide that passes through this device remains dissolved in water for longer periods, making it easier to store and use CO2. In addition, it is the world’s first device capable of producing industrial nano bubbles in large quantities in real time, making the production of carbon-eating concrete (CEC) easier. As such, this technology can not only reduce carbon emissions but also be used in various applications including storage; thus contributing to creating a sustainable future.
It is quite an exceptional feat that we won the CES Innovation Award for nano bubble technology given that Japan—the leader of the global nano bubble market—cannot produce nano bubbles for industrial uses yet.
QYou owed so much to someone from K-water while working on this project in collaboration with K-water. Who is the person you want to thank?
Since it was our first time participating in an international expo, everything was new to us and we turned a lot to K-water for help. In fact, K-water helped us in every step of the way from application for the Innovation Award to PR. Thanks to K-water’s support and advice, we were able to get so much done, including arranging meetings with potential investors, finding new buyers, and raising our profile through media coverage.
My special thanks go to Dr. Byeong-woo Kim. He became our mentor when Fawoo Nanotech was listed as one of K-water’s partner startups in 2023. Since then, Dr. Kim has given us both material and emotional support. Dr. Kim suggested tasks associated with the UN Climate Change Conference (COP) for us, which led us to start the development of a non-powered device that can remove large quantities of scale buildup in conduits and complete the development successfully at the end of 2024. The product was submitted as an entry to the CES 2025.
QWhat are the goals of Fawoo Nanotech?
Guided by the philosophy of “changing the world with nano bubble technology”, Fawoo Nanotech is stepping up its efforts to develop nano bubble technology that can be used in all industries using water, other liquids, and gases. By doing so, we aim to help cope with greenhouse gas emissions as one of the most challenging problems facing Earth and revolutionize industrial processes in an environment-friendly way.
