Chongqing- Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality is building five lighthouse factories, including Chongqing Jinkang New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. and Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd., well-known auto companies in Chongqing.
The production line of Chang'an Automobile. (iChongqing file photo)
By the end of 2021, there were 90 lighthouse factories worldwide. China has reached the highest number in that regard with 31 lighthouse factories.
Other lighthouse factories in Chongqing include Sany Heavy Machinery (Chongqing) Co., Ltd., Chongqing Pingwei Enterprise Co. Ltd., and Chongqing Huike Jinyu Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.
What is the "lighthouse factory"?
According to McKinsey's report, Early-adopting "lighthouse" factories are implementing advanced manufacturing and AI-driven technology at scale and showing the way for the majority of the world's manufacturing companies (70%) who are lagging behind, stuck in "pilot purgatory"."The lighthouses are the factories that have taken Fourth Industrial Revolution technology from pilots to integration at scale, thus realizing significant financial and operational benefits.
The manufacturing layout in Chongqing
The five enterprises mentioned above cover leading industries, including automobile, engineering machinery, and electronic information. All of which are pillar industries of Chongqing, highly compatible with the layout of Chongqing's manufacturing industry, leading and driving the industry as a whole.
According to the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Economic and Information Technology, these enterprises construct factories according to the various indicators and requirements of the lighthouse factory to improve the level of intelligence in the industry.
For example, the JinKang SERES Liangjiang Intelligent Factory was built to German Industry 4.0 standards, with over 1,000 intelligent robots in five major process workshops and 100% automation of key processes, making it a leading digital factory at home and abroad.
Changan Automobile's Liangjiang factory serves as the first national intelligent manufacturing demonstration enterprise in China's automobile industry. Its intelligent degree of stamping, welding, painting, and other links has reached more than 90%, where flexible manufacturing and order products can be easily achieved.
Sany Heavy Machinery (Chongqing) Co., Ltd., the world's second-largest construction machinery manufacturer, has set up its first smart lighthouse factory in southwest China. The factory was completed at Liangjiang New Area in 2021, with digital, intelligent, and automated production of nearly 80%.
Automatic robots are assembling seats at Jinkang Liangjiang Smart Factory. (iChongqing file photo)
Features of the lighthouse factory
Qualification as a lighthouse requires meeting high standards across four categories: significant impact achieved, successful integration of several use cases, a scalable technology platform, and strong performance on critical enablers such as change management, capability building, and collaboration with a Fourth Industrial Revolution community.
In terms of building a scalable technology platform, the lighthouse factory is at the cutting edge of the large-scale application of new technologies. This technology platform deeply integrates digitalization and manufacturing and has specific applications and substantial innovations in business processes and management systems.
Furthermore, it can also quickly respond to market demand, innovate operating models, and achieve green and sustainable development.
In terms of significant impact achieved, through digital transformation, the improvement effect of lighthouse factory is far more obvious than that of traditional manufacturing enterprises, with an average increase of 50%-60% in operational indicators.
In addition, the factory radiates and affects small and medium-sized enterprises and manufacturing factories in the industry. Serving as the core, the lighthouse factory connects users, research and development, manufacturing, suppliers, and sales terminals to provide overall solutions for the industry.
Chongqing's manufacturing industry is highly related to this year's theme of Industrial Internet. (iChongqing/ Vivian Yan)
(Shi Jiaqi, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)