Ningbo: Building China's Leading Industrial Products Export Base

天启

Ningbo not only has the reputation of "Books of the past and present, ports connecting the world", but also is the shining pearl of China's manufacturing industry. Ningbo has made remarkable achievements in manufacturing single champions, with a total of 83 manufacturing single champion enterprises (products), and has occupied the leading position in the country for seven consecutive years. In the past ten years, Ningbo's economy has developed rapidly, with its total economic volume ranking 12th in the country, and its industrial added value ranking 7th among cities in the country. The total industrial output value of above-scale industries has exceeded 2 trillion yuan, making it the sixth "trillion-yuan foreign trade city" in the country.

Ningbo's foreign trade achievements are inseparable from the "hard core" power of the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" - Zhoushan Port, which has provided strong support for Ningbo's foreign trade development with its outstanding influence. The annual cargo throughput exceeds 1.324 billion tons, and the annual container throughput exceeds 35.301 million standard containers. The total number of its routes exceeds 300, covering more than 600 ports in more than 200 countries and regions around the world. This powerful logistics hub provides strong support for Ningbo's industrial products to go global.

Why is Ningbo's manufacturing industry so strong? What changes have enterprises undergone? How has Ningbo grown into a "single champion city" in the manufacturing industry in recent years and consolidated this title? In order to find answers to these questions, the reporter went to Ningbo to learn in depth how the "world-class industrial product export base" was built.

1. Segment the market and keep a low profile

Many companies specialize in a certain industrial intermediate product and have a place in the segmented market, but because the field is vertical and unknown to the public, they are also called "hidden champions." Similar to the companies they run, many entrepreneurs in Ningbo also have a pragmatic and low-key style, and have been immersed in their own tracks for many years.

Pneumatics, as a characteristic industry in Fenghua District, has reached a scale of one-third of the country, with rich product types and complete specifications (1 national intellectual property advantage enterprise, 3 Zhejiang "quality" brand enterprises, 5 national specialized and new small giant enterprises, and 8 enterprises are members of the National Hydraulic and Pneumatic Standardization Technical Committee) and have won many honors such as "China Pneumatic Components Hometown" and "Export Pneumatic Components Quality and Safety Demonstration Zone". In the field of pneumatics, it has 1 "Well-known Chinese Trademark", 3 provincial famous trademarks, and 6 Zhejiang famous brands.

In Fenghua, we visited a local old brand enterprise - Ningbo Anlite Machinery Co., Ltd. Since its establishment in 2004, Anlite has always focused on the research and development, production and sales of electromagnetic pilot heads, and is committed to creating high-end special customized products. With the growth of market demand, the company began to expand its business in 2019, adding electromagnetic coils and explosion-proof coil production lines. Anlite electromagnetic coils, like pilot heads, follow the brand's high-end and high-quality route. Now, Anlite can take charge of the production of electromagnetic pilot heads and electromagnetic coils, optimize the design efficiency and adaptability of the two, and provide customers with a comprehensive grasp of the product portfolio of solenoid valve assemblies with excellent performance.

In the hometown of pneumatic components, in such a competitive environment, how does Amlite highlight its own advantages? Chairman Chen Zhifa answered, "Amlite's brand positioning has always been committed to the high-quality customization route, and has always strictly followed this business philosophy. In terms of forming technical teams, production teams, purchasing equipment, selecting material suppliers, and process design, Amlite has implemented world-class manufacturing standards. Because it has long served many customization industries and its customers are mostly leaders in their respective fields, Amlite has accumulated rich experience in design and development. Faced with diversified product models and refined management requirements, the company continues to deepen internal production management to ensure the stability of product quality. By integrating the production of electromagnetic pilot heads and electromagnetic coils, Amlite not only provides customers with a convenient selection experience, but also ensures the adaptability between the two."

In Ningbo, these entrepreneurs interpret the craftsman spirit of "working hard and striving for excellence" with practical actions. They pay attention to details, pursue excellent quality, and continuously improve their core competitiveness. They are not satisfied with the status quo, constantly challenge themselves, and climb to the top, laying a solid foundation for the long-term development of Ningbo's industry.

2. Challenges are boundless, limits are limitless

The difficulty of manufacturing high-precision machine tools lies mainly in the precision of parts and the precision control during the assembly process. A high-precision machine tool usually consists of thousands of parts, and each part needs to meet extremely high precision requirements, such as tolerance control at the millimeter level. This requires high skills, high-precision processing technology and strict quality control. In this process, any error in any part may cause the accuracy of the entire machine tool to decrease, so each process must be very careful to ensure the accuracy of the final product.

This time, we came to Haller Seiko and had an in-depth exchange with its head Zhao Zhen. Regarding the positioning of Haller machine tools in the industry, Zhao Zhen said, "Halle's philosophy is guided by precision, speed, and stability. Haller's ZK series machine tools can stably achieve a fast moving speed of 64 meters with a high-speed machining center. The machining accuracy is not inferior to high-end imported machine tools. Even after many years of use, the accuracy is still very good. Moreover, the same model products are 20% more accurate, 30% faster, and 50% more rigid than German, Japanese, European and American products. Our machine tools have been challenging the limits!"

So how does Haller machine tools improve and maintain machine tool accuracy under the high machining accuracy requirements of 3C electronics, medical device parts and other industries, and how can they withstand the test of huge machining needs and time? In fact, machine tool accuracy cannot be achieved overnight. It is an organic component of a system. In order to provide machine tool accuracy, attention should be paid to everything from machine tool design to software system. Machine tool design, machine tool castings, machining and assembly processes, systems, temperature control, screws, linear rails, bearings, spindles and other industrial components will affect the accuracy, speed and stability of machine tools.

Haller machine tools, with their high precision, high speed and high stability, have been widely used not only in 3C electronics, medical equipment parts and other industries, but also on the road of challenging boundless and limitless, demonstrating its outstanding technical strength and rigorous craftsmanship. Facing the future, Haller will continue to challenge the limit, guided by precision, speed and stability, and constantly innovate to improve the performance and quality of machine tools. This is the spirit of Ningbo manufacturing. Only by constantly challenging ourselves can we be invincible in the fierce market competition.

3. Port advantages help industrial products go global

"Ports are basic and hub facilities and an important support for economic development. Ningbo Zhoushan Port plays an important role in national strategies such as the joint construction of the 'Belt and Road', the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, and the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta. It is a 'hard core' force. We must adhere to first-class standards, build and manage the port well, strive to build a world-class strong port, and make greater contributions to national development." It is under such strategic positioning and the requirements of the times that Ningbo Zhoushan Port continues to improve its own strength and provides a strong guarantee for the smooth progress of global trade.

Ningbo's foreign trade has been able to develop rapidly, on the one hand, because of its port advantages that it has vigorously built. On the other hand, it has benefited from the relevant departments' updated concepts, tolerance and prudence, and the formulation of down-to-earth, development-friendly and powerful policies, and continued to stimulate effective market forces with effective measures. Empower foreign trade innovation and transformation with digital reform, vigorously develop new formats such as digital trade and cross-border e-commerce, fully connect the production end, trade end, consumer end and technology side, build a sound trade infrastructure and public service system, and accelerate the improvement of Ningbo's international trade core competitiveness. "This is the expectation and wish of the relevant departments of Ningbo, which demonstrates Ningbo's determination and confidence to strengthen export e-commerce and improve its openness.

2024 is both an opportunity and a challenge for industrial products going overseas. "Starting from 2021, China has accelerated the modernization of industry, focused on innovation, created new competitiveness and productivity, and strived to transform from a major producer of intermediate goods. In just one year, our robot density ranking has jumped from 9th to 5th in the world. In the past two years, the year-on-year growth of fixed asset investment in high-tech manufacturing has exceeded 22%. This means that China's manufacturing industry is rising in the global value chain, gradually shifting from mass production-driven to R&D-driven. Just like in the global chip value chain, Chinese companies are no longer just involved in some links, but have expanded to the entire industry chain from design, production to packaging. "This is the view of Li Wei, CEO of Gongxingren Platform, on the overseas expansion of the manufacturing industry.

Speaking of the question of "how can small and medium-sized industrial enterprises quickly enter overseas markets", Gongxingren Platform has successfully built its own cross-border e-commerce platform with its deep accumulation in the field of cross-border e-commerce. This platform not only provides an international stage for Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises to showcase their products, but also helps enterprises accurately reach target customer groups and achieve sales growth through intelligent marketing and promotion methods.

In addition to the cross-border e-commerce platform, Gongxingren Platform also has a complete overseas expansion system. This system covers market research, product positioning, brand promotion, channel expansion and other links, providing enterprises with full-process services from planning to execution. Through this system, enterprises can enter overseas markets more efficiently, reduce operating costs and enhance market competitiveness.

Gongxingren Platform not only provides strategic guidance for Chinese industrial enterprises to go overseas, but also provides practical support for enterprises through its advanced technology and abundant resources. With the help of Gongxingren Platform, Chinese industrial enterprises can better cope with The challenges of overseas markets have realized a new stage of brand and product export, and further enhanced the competitiveness in the global market.

From the hot land of Ningbo, we have seen the rise and prosperity of Made in China, and we have also seen the firm steps of Made in China moving towards the world. Ningbo, as a model for building a leading industrial product export base, has demonstrated to the world the strong strength and unlimited potential of Made in China with its focus on deep cultivation of market segments, courage to challenge boundless challenges, and spirit of pursuing limits.

These entrepreneurs have interpreted the spirit of craftsmanship with practical actions, constantly pursued excellent quality, and contributed wisdom and strength to the rise of Chinese industry.

In the future, with the deep integration of the global economy and the rapid development of science and technology, China's manufacturing industry will face more opportunities and challenges. But as Ningbo has shown, as long as we insist on market segmentation, deep cultivation, courage to challenge limits and pursuit of excellence, we will surely shine on the stage of global manufacturing and make greater contributions to the prosperity and development of the world's industry. Let us look forward to a brighter tomorrow for Made in China, from Ningbo to the world, leading a new chapter in global industry!