Pyongyang, October 7 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il gave field guidance to Phyongsong Synthetic Leather Factory.

Going round a room dedicated to the history of the factory, he looked back with deep emotion on the undying leadership feats of President Kim Il Sung and the shining path covered by the factory under the wise guidance of the party.

Visiting various places of the factory, Kim Jong Il acquainted himself in detail with the production and the technological specifications of equipment.

Looking with keen attention at the processes of producing synthetic leather by way of coating stitched cotton pieces with plastics, he expressed great satisfaction with the production of quality goods.

The President paid deep attention to solving the footwear issue of the people in his lifetime, he said, praising the workers of the factory for having made big achievements by increasing the synthetic leather production capacity and modernizing the equipment true to the intention of the President.

Kim Jong Il was pleased that the factory has big production capacity and all its processes ranging from the feeding of raw materials to forwarding are automated.

He dropped in at an exhibition room where he watched synthetic leather including outer coating and lining materials for shoes, shoes and injection-molded canvas shoes, bags, belts and jumper, etc. made of synthetic leather produced by the factory. He estimated their high quality.

The factory has an important duty and role to play, he said, advancing tasks which would serve as guidelines for the management and operation of the factory.

He called for modernizing the factory on a higher level and introducing advanced technology to boost the production of quality synthetic leather.

Generally, synthetic leather has such shortcomings as lower tension, flexure and sweat absorption than natural leather, he said, calling for building ultra-modern water-proof plastic canvas production process and modern stitched cotton pieces production process to solve these problems.

He personally solved matters arising in putting the factory on a modern basis as required by the new century.

Accompanying him were Kim Ki Nam, member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of the WPK, Kim Kyong Hui, member of the Political Bureau and department director of the WPK Central Committee, Jang Song Thaek, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee and vice-chairman of the NDC, Pak To Chun, alternate member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the WPK Central Committee, Hong In Bom, chief secretary of the South Phyongan Provincial Committee of the WPK, and Pak Pong Ju, first vice department director of the WPK Central Committee.