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28 Security Dealer & Integrator / www.SecurityInfoWatch.com January 2018 Recently tapped as the company's new president, Kim discusses his top priorities and various industry trends in this exclusive Q&A; By Joel Griffin and Paul Rothman Hanwha Techwin America's Kichul Kim Executive Perspectives Kim, who began working in the U.S. in January to ensure a smooth tran- sition into the president's role, takes over the position at a time of transition within the company and the industry as a whole. Aer all, it was just three years ago that Samsung Electron- ics, the company's former owner and namesake, sold its controlling interest in the firm to Hanwha Group. In the time since, the company has rebranded as Hanwha Techwin America – as it seeks to create its own identity in the vast security industry, separate from its Samsung roots. e video surveillance industry has also experienced its own upheaval, as product commoditization has fueled a "race to the bottom" in pricing that has started to eat away at the profit mar- gins of integrators and manufacturers alike. As part of our ongoing Exec- utive Perspectives series, SD&I; and SecurityInfoWatch caught up with Kim to discuss how this and other trends will impact Hanwha Techwin America now and moving forward. Q: What's your top priority as president of Hanwha Techwin America? Kim: I am fortunate to build on the successes Hanwha Techwin America (HTA) enjoyed under my predecessor, Mr. Soon Hong Ahn's, leadership. We have experienced tremendous growth due to our speed to market and com- mitment to developing leading-edge technology. My mission is to drive HTA's business through continued technology development, investments, partnerships and expansion through- out the Americas. We will continue to offer thought leadership and education to our reseller partners through certification training, technology webinars and technical whitepapers, while support- ing them with a strong program that includes a five-year warranty, advance exchange and dedicated support lines with expanded hours. We are also continuing to invest in our people. We have already grown our U.S. staff and are actively seeking to hire more qualified sales, engineer- ing and marketing staff in 2018. Most importantly, we continue to focus on our core technologies, includ- ing optical design, soware devel- opment and SoC (system on a chip) design, while keeping an eye toward future technologies such as advanced analytics and deep learning. I n late 2017, Hanwha Tech- win America announced that Kichul (K.C.) Kim, who has worked in various sales and corporate management roles at Hanwha Corporation since 1995, would become the company's new president for the Americas – suc- ceeding Soon Hong Ahn, who was promoted to head of global sales and strategic marketing at Hanwha's head- quarters in South Korea.