Manufacturing propelled by Xiangtan's efforts

From January to November, Chinese automaker Geely Auto Group produced more than 240,000 vehicles at its factory in Xiangtan, Hunan province. Meanwhile, the factory's output value rose by 10.3 percent year-on-year.

As a leader of the city's auto manufacturing industry, Geely Auto has attracted a batch of upstream and downstream enterprises in the industry chain including the Fortune Global 500 companies Schaeffler and Magna International.

Official data show that Xiangtan Economic and Technological Development Zone is now home to some 80 auto manufacturers and auto parts makers above designated size — those with annual revenue of 20 million yuan ($2.74 million) or above.

The factory is a shining example of how the city has fostered the high-quality development of its manufacturing industry, local officials said.

Xiangtan has made sustained efforts in recent years to develop new quality productive forces and establish a modern industrial system centered around the advanced manufacturing industry, they added.

In the first 11 months, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in Xiangtan increased by 9.4 percent year-on-year, 2.1 percentage points higher than the provincial average, while its industrial investment recorded a year-on-year increase of 10.4 percent.

The added value of the manufacturing industry accounted for 38.2 percent of the region's GDP during the first three quarters, ranking first among cities in the province.

To accelerate industries' high-end, intelligent and green transition, local authorities launched the "empowering 1,000 enterprises with intelligent technology" program in 2023, and this year, they have built 176 intelligent manufacturing production lines as well as 89 intelligent manufacturing factories.

In October, SANY Renewable Energy's wind turbine blade factory in Xiangtan was selected as a new member of the Global Lighthouse Network, an initiative launched by the World Economic Forum and McKinsey & Company to recognize the most innovative manufacturers globally.

A highlight of the factory is that it has adopted technologies such as artificial intelligence, 5G, virtual reality and the internet of things, resulting in a 20 percent decrease in product defects and an increase of 33 percent in production efficiency.

Thanks to the digital technologies, both the factory's operation and management have improved, said staff members of the factory, adding that it is capable of producing 3,000 wind turbine blades every year.

The thriving manufacturing industry also gave a boost to the city's foreign trade sector. On Nov 2, 165 Geely automobiles were shipped to Russia via the Xiangtan Comprehensive Bonded Zone, marking the zone's first export of complete vehicles.

"We will continue to connect with the province's five major international logistics channels and utilize platforms such as the China-Europe Railway Express to better serve manufacturing enterprises with export demands," said an official from the Xiangtan commerce bureau.