First In Korea, Second In The World
Success Story Of Coenzyme Q10 Development

Exports of KRW 10 billion in the first year of development and KRW 40 billion this year 

The success story of Dr. Choi Su Jin and her research team who developed Coenzyme Q10 for the first time in Korea was reported in DongA Ilbo as of Jul. 21. The development of Coenzyme Q10 is first in Korea and second in the world after Japan, which is the fruit of team’s effort. The whole article is inserted in this paper with the help of DongA Ilbo to communicate the impressive success story through such complex processes and decades of failure – from an ugly duck to a swan <editor’s note>



Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s Raw Material Development Team(current Drug Synthesis Research Team) was always on the back burner at the bottom of the Company before 4 years. It had always failed in annual 2~3 research projects. The team chief was changed and after all, no one desired to take the charge. The Company ill-treated the team, blaming it for ‘no vision and no outcome.’

Now, however, it is ‘the most prosperous team’ among 4 teams in the research institute – it successfully developed ‘COQ10’, the synthetic vitamin amounting to KRW 1 trillion of world market scale, for the second time in the world after Japan. COQ10 is widely used for drinks, cosmetics and vitamins as synthetic vitamin to promote whitening, fatigue heal and energy generation. 

The Company owes the successful development of COQ10 to the touching efforts of the team staff over 2 years who are called ‘5 Stars’ – general manager Choi Su Jin(female, age 37), Mun Seong Cheol(34), Kim Tae E(33), Lee Han Guk(32) and Im Yeong Muk(28) as senior researchers. 

An ugly duck
The Raw Material Development Team got rejected whenever they applied for purchase of analysis instrumentation or experimental equipment. They frequently got a sharp scolding about application for expensive reagents. Some said that the team would be disorganized and their spirit fell to the end. After all, Choi who was assistant manager at that time suggested that she would take the charge of chief of COQ10 development project team. She persuaded President Yun Jae Seung to develop it, explaining “It is most proper for the corporate policy of developing helpful drug for long and healthy life.” At the right moment, an overseas marketing manager’s report  ‘COQ10 is highly potential product in foreign countries’ became a help for her to obtain permission of development.


Ceaseless research


Choi composed 4 team members and started research from Ap. 2002. They had no holiday. They worked day and night in the research institute(Yongin, Gyeonggi) and the factory(Hwaseong), when they were on night work by 3:00~4:00 a.m. of the next day.
“We should have to repeatedly return to the original state due to failure in the middle stage,” said researcher Kim Tae E. 
“We were attacked by influenza all along while sleeping on the electric carpet in a factory rest room without heating in the winter days.
In the long run, first production was commenced in Dec. 2002. However, just 0.5kg out of 25kg of COQ10 was gained. “I was totally desperate. We even thought we had better fall into the lake near to the factory to die,” said researcher Lee Han Guk. 
Choi who was in the last month of pregnancy at that time could not take care of her body and had to receive Caesarean operation.

A swan - Dream came true
Choi started research again just 45 days after delivery.
“I was as if bearing with a finger at the end of the cliff. But I could not give up because there was no subsequent project.”
They concentrated upon analyzing the cause for failure and finding out a solution by reviewing the research procedure. Finally, on Dec. 31, 2003 1:00 a.m., COQ10 100kg was produced. 

Daewoong Chemical made export agreement of COQ10 equivalent to KRW 10 billion last year and KRW 40 billion this year. Net profit for 2004 increased 63% as KRW 11.8 billion compared to the previous year.      (DongA Ilbo, Jul. 21, 2005)