Three rounds of intelligent-manufacturing pilots have been completed. In 2017 the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology published 98 projects. Together with the industrial-internet pilots, including manufacturing-cloud platforms, that were split out in 2016, the number has passed the 2015 goal, stated by Huai Jinpeng, of cultivating 100 demonstration enterprises by 2018.
In 2016 OFweek Research noted that the idea of intelligent manufacturing would widen and deepen in 2017. The three-year trend is worth a look.
Geographically, the 2017 projects reached most of the country. Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, Hunan and Guangdong each added more than four projects. Gansu, Jilin and Qinghai recorded their first projects. Activity clustered in the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta. Around the Bohai Rim, except in Shandong, growth lagged those two deltas.
By industry, the list shows both depth and breadth. Beyond automobiles, food and beverage, chemicals, machinery, apparel, home furnishings and cable, 2017 added batteries, remote operations, new materials, instruments, robotics and deeper processing in agriculture.
Regions are expected to build on that experience in 2018. Along the Belt and Road, and around infrastructure and high-end equipment, central and western China may grow faster than the east. Guizhou is likely to break through in big data, displays and beverages. Sichuan and Chongqing will push complete intelligent equipment, automobiles, robots and consumer-electronics terminals. Demand should be strongest where products must be personal and flexible: consumer categories, and business supply chains. OFweek Research expects intelligent manufacturing to spread into those industries in 2018.
