The following is reported in Chosun Ilbo on July 31, 2000. ------------------------------------------------ [Three-men SK Venture Team] Develops Endocrine Disruptor-free Baby Feeding Bottle SKYUB is a three-men internal venture team launched by SK chemicals this May. Within three months of its creation, the team developed for the first time in the country and recently introduced into the market a new baby feeding bottle made of polyethylene naphthalate (PEN). The SKYUB team consists of only three members, including its leader Lee Keu-hyong, a man who has long been worked on the PET bottle project team, and his two co-workers, Kim So-young and Lee Hyong-kyu. The three entered into the 30 billion-won baby feeding bottle market arming themselves only with a creative idea. Nonetheless, within merely a week of the introduction of the new product, their sales reached 150 million won. It was a remarkable achievement made solely by three people who have displayed the true spirit of a venture company by single-handedly covering every field ranging from product planning to designing, to advertising, production and sales. SKYUB was created last May. It was the team leader Lee who suggested first using PEN, which had been developed by SK chemicals Central Research Institute in 1996, as a material for baby feeding bottles to relieve concern over endocrine disruptors. Until now, baby feeding bottles were generally made of polycarbonates (PC). However, tests conducted by the Institute of Environmental and Chemical Research last year showed that bisphenol-A was detected when the PC bottles were sterilized by boiling it or using a microwave. Having received 200 million won of initial capital from its mother company, SKYUB started out by renting a corner of the company seminar room as its office space. Having no experience in starting up a venture company, the three men worked almost 24 hours everyday wrestling with creative ideas. "We had practically lived in the plant for about two months before we were able to put the machines in the SK chemicals plant and produce the products," said Lee. There were times they considered quitting because they could not produce the product they expected. However, when they saw the first successful product coming out last month, they could finally breathe a little easier. Immediately after Korea Chemical Test Institute and Korea Household Product Testing Center issued the certification that no endocrine disruptors were detected, the team introduced the new product into the market. In the early days, the wholesalers expressed a doubt about the product made by the three people. After they had tested its quality, however, they purchased 150 million won worth in just a week＇s time. "Our annual sales goal is 7.5 billion won this year. To achieve this, we have to hire extra staff. Then, after consulting with the mother company, we plan to go on our own as a venture company," explained Lee.