It can be said that refrigeration and air-conditioning technology in Korea dates back to the ancient dynasty, all the way up to the Sokkuram(700s) and Seokbinggo(1700s). But modern refrigeration and air-conditioning technology was first developed in and introduced to Korea in the 1960s with the modernization of Korea. Today it is at a level which meets that of advanced countries in both the industrial and domestic fields. As of 2003, there were about 700 companies that owned cold storage/freezing/refrigeration facilities, with cold storage capacity of about 2,000,000 tons and capacity per company of about 3,000 tons. These facilities most are continuously expanding and automating their facilities. 62 million units of refrigeration and air-conditioning machinery and equipment were produced in 2003, worth a total of 7.7 trillion won(about 7.7 thousand million US$). On the academic side there are 9 universities and 12 junior colleges with courses in either refrigeration and air-conditioning or architectural equipment. Academic societies such as the Society of Air-conditioning and Refrigerating Engineers of Korea(SAREK), and industrial societies like the Korean Association of Refrigeration(KAR) are active members of the refrigera tion and air-conditioning industry. There are also national/government-established research institutions such as the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM), the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH).

Key words: Refrigeration in Korea, Korean refrigeration and air-conditioning industry, Refrigeration history