Life support zone for innovation

Internationalization strategy seen as way to develop Shandong's high-tech sector

Established in 1991, Weifang High-Tech Industrial Development Zone has achieved outstanding results in promoting innovation and high-tech industrial upgrading in the past two decades.

However, it took the Shandong-based national development zone a while to get going, according to Chu Baojie, director of communications at Weifang and secretary of the zone's Party Working Committee.

"The zone did not have leading universities and research institutions, and it had some deficiencies in the early days," Chu said. "But we created something from nothing for high-tech industries, and we are now striving to be better connected with global high-tech resources to support innovation in the region."

The zone has established five pillar industries, namely vehicle and equipment manufacturing, acoustics and optoelectronics, bio-technology, software information and new materials, and there are industrial clusters for smart equipment manufacturing, bio-health and semiconductor luminescence products, all of which have played significant roles in supporting the zone's development. There are also 10 industrial parks such as a software park and bioscience park and 26 provincial-level industrial bases in the region. 

There are more than 1,000 technology-driven companies in the zone. Among these, more than 50 companies have an annual output value exceeding 100 million yuan ($14.97 million).

The value of the development zone's high-tech industrial output in the first half of 2016 was 23.9 billion yuan, up 24.1 percent year-on-year, and fixed asset investment in the zone has increased 13.4 percent year-on-year.

In April 2016, the development zone obtained approval from the central government to upgrade to a national independent innovation demonstration zone.

Innovation platform

Blue Wisdom Valley is the technological hub in the zone. Decision-makers developed a "3+1+N" model to encourage research institutions to work with businesses to develop products based on real market needs.

The three refers to the three incubators in the valley, which are Yanyuan High-Tech Park, supported by Peking University; the CAS (Weifang) Innovation Park and Tuspark Innovation Park supported by Tsinghua University Science Park.

"Weifang is the only city in China apart from Beijing to have three innovation incubators," said Zhang Longjiang, deputy director of the zone's administrative committee.

The one refers to an international innovation support platform jointly developed by the zone and some of the world's leading business incubators.

The N refers to the valley's many development institutions, including the China Academy of Machinery Science and Technology.

Industrial pioneers

Aiming to enhance the vitality of businesses, the zone encourages companies to seek opportunities in overseas markets and attract foreign talents. A fund was established to support companies' global expansion strategies.

Shengrui Transmission Co's front-engine and front-drive 8AT transmission was granted a First Class National Science and Technology Progress Award issued by the Chinese Academy of Sciences on June 30.

The transmission, developed by the company in 2015, is the first of its kind in the world, according to Shengrui. The concept is from Germany, the engineering technology from the United Kingdom and the management skills of Japan. Shengrui is capable of producing 100,000 8AT transmissions annually. The development of the 8AT broke the monopoly of foreign transmission manufacturers in the Chinese market.

GoerTek, a leading electro-acoustic components and electrical accessories solution provider in the zone, acquired a 12.5 percent interest in the smart wearables company Mobvoi Inc in July, 2015.

The company is strengthening its innovation capabilities by establishing research and development centers in countries including Denmark, Finland, South Korea and the United States. Samsung and Apple both use products from GoerTek.

International outlook

"The foundation for innovative technology is people, so the zone strives to attract and retain talent," said Song Chifeng, director of the zone's administrative committee. "We also accelerate commercialization of their research results."

There are 800 apartments provided free to leading talents and startup groups, and there are international schools and high-end healthcare centers to serve international talent.

The zone has a 30-million-yuan compensation fund to encourage financial innovations. The local authority hopes small companies will be able to get more financial support.

Companies in the development zone have established over 100 representative offices, marketing centers, and research and development centers in overseas markets. The number of international trademarks registered by businesses in the zone had reached 721 by the end of August.

The development zone will continue to support innovation and the development of high-tech industries by promoting further internationalization.

tangzhihao@chinadaily.com.cn