New sports center turns wheels of industry

Jianggan District has joined forces with the Alibaba Group to establish a public sports center equipped with the latest high-tech machines, VR technology and multifarious sports facilities. 

The new sports venue provides further evidence that Jianggan District takes the initiative where innovation and government services are concerned. 

The core area of Hangzhou’s riverside business and industrial belt is often recognized as the epitome of the city’s development since China launched its reform and opening-up policy in 1978.

Latest statistics reveal Jianggan District’s gross domestic product has jumped from 7.9 billion yuan (US$ 1.4 billion) to 61.4 billion yuan, while revenue has skyrocketed from 900 million yuan to 16 billion yuan over the past 15 years.

Jianggan also boasts a thriving private business. More than 56,000 private companies, including 938 large-scale enterprises, are situated in the area, and five of them are listed in China’s top 500 companies.

The area also contains Wensli, Evergreen, Xizi UHC and Great Star, and during the last four decades, they have adapted to changes, reform and upgrading themselves to cash in on the industrial trends.

Wensli was established 43 years ago as a small silk production workshop. It originally made low profits from processing silk products. Now it has built its own brand and cooperates with world magnates such as LVMH to produce luxury items.

Wensli epitomizes the transforming process of traditional factories, while Great Star and Xizi UHC typify how technological companies upgraded them to compete with rivals worldwide.

Xizi has adopted automated production lines to produce elevators. The once time-consuming manufacturing process has been cut down to several hours, and only a few workers are needed to ensure the factory functions well thanks to intelligent technology.

Great Star has turned from a main stream industrial tool manufacturer into a producer of technological “smart” products. The company has turned traditional automated robots used on assembly lines into intelligent versions that can operate without manual controls.

Since China and developed countries are at the same starting point where smart manufacturing is concerned, the labor force is shrinking and wages are rising, machines are forecast to replace most of human labor in the future. Great Star made a decision to cash in on the irreversible trend and takes robots production as core business.

“Private companies are the economic pillars and wealth of the district. Without them, Jianggan cannot develop so rapidly,” said Teng Yong, Party secretary of Jianggan District.

Jianggan District has built top-class industrial parks, provided subsidies and offered effective service to attract more investment, talent and enterprises. The local government also offers services to optimize the official working process to resolve company problems.

The “one-visit service” was launched to cut through red tape. It literally means that companies only need one visit to government departments to resolve company affairs.

In the past, the lack of departmental information sharing meant companies were required to get a permit from every department to get anything done. Now, the government streamlines all types of services helping companies save time and cost.

“The one-visit service is expected to help create an ideal environment for companies and let the economy develop more effectively, rapidly and healthily,” Teng said. “The service removes obstacles on the way of development and enhances activity of the market.”

Jianggan District has also built industrial parks to create cluster effects for high-tech companies. Great Star and Xizi UHC are located in the 3-square-kilometer Qiantang Smart Town, which was established as a hub for intelligent manufacturing. There are plans to expand the zone into a major innovation center in eastern China.

The local government has built six pillar industries in finance, information, cultural and creative, trade, agency and health, while modern agriculture, landscape design and intelligent manufacturing are also the future industries for Jianggan.

Several innovative and technological companies have headquarters at Jianggan, including Canaan (chip producer), ExaCloud (multimedia cloud computing), Zhuojian Technology (smart medical service) and Kongtrolink (Internet of Things). They have provided a boost to the digital industry and made Jianggan a top area in Zhejiang Province in this field.

In order to attract professionals, local authorities unveiled measures. Last year, it announced “Golden 16 Items,” which provides companies with subsidy benefits that vary according to different levels from 300,000 yuan to 5 million yuan.

These policies, such as providing permanent residency and housing subsidies, have attracted a number of high-caliber professionals. They have injected new energy into the district’s economy and innovation.

At the same time, local government continues cooperation with prestigious universities, including Tsinghua, Peking and Zhejiang universities, launching entrepreneurship competitions and professional summits to recruit talent from home and abroad.

In a bid to relieve the burden on startup companies, the local government has took the initiative in establishing an official financial guarantee institution.

“The government should help reduce the burden and give priority to companies on the aspects of policies, land and talent,” Teng added. 

“Any service and facility that benefit companies should be taken precedence over others things.”