From a backward agricultural county to a renowned “world factory”, Dongguan, used to grow on the trade mode of “Three plus one” (processing with imported raw material, spare parts and components as well as compensation trade), now impresses the globe again. At present, Dongguan has become an “innovation base”. Last year, over 5 high-tech enterprises were established in Dongguan every day. There are 4,077 high-tech enterprises in Dongguan, and 2,400 new high-tech enterprises are under incubation. Both the number of high-tech enterprises and the number of high-tech enterprises to be incubated ranked the first among the prefecture-level cities of the Guangdong province. The value-added ratio of advanced manufacturing already exceeded 50%.
Promoting the Upgraded Innovation-driven Development
On February 27, the Guangdong Laboratory for Material Science and Technology was unveiled and officially started its preparation in Dongguan. The “main leader” in the laboratory is academician Wang Enge, the former Vice-president of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and former President of Peking University. As the President of the laboratory, he will promote the laboratory in person, and have successfully invited 6 famous universities from places such as the US and Hong Kong.
The CAS academician Chen Hesheng, who also became attached to Dongguan, has settled in this city for 10 years with his team and established the largest-ever scientific facility in our country by now - China Spallation Neutron Source. With this project as the core, Dongguan will establish a neutron science city covering an area of approximately 53.3 square kilometers in accordance with high requirements, in order to build a domestic leading national comprehensive scientific & technological innovation center which also enjoys worldwide reputation.
Carrying the best innovation resources ever during the past 40 years after the implementation of reform and opening-up policy, Guangzhou-Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Corridor serves as a gate for connecting Guangdong Province and the world’s innovation system. As the hinterland of Guangzhou-Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Corridor, Dongguan plays an undoubtedly vital part in the construction of Guangzhou-Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Corridor concerning both the characteristics of “channel city” and the improvement of innovation ability in recent years, which is also an important strategic opportunity for Dongguan.
Dongguan accelerates the construction of two “innovation cores” -- Songshan Lake and Binhaiwan Bay Area. Recently, Dongguan takes the lead in initiating the construction of demonstration belt of Guangzhou-Shenzhen High Speed Innovation Belt “1+1+11”, and formulating the three-level innovation joint system of “2+9+32” at the same time. All these accelerate the gathering of high-end innovation factors including talent, industry and capital, shaping the new pattern of innovation development through stimulation of certain aspect.
The High-tech Enterprises Rank among the Best in Guangdong
The implementation of innovation-driven development policy is closely related to the innovation body -- enterprises. Therefore, Dongguan focuses on cultivating high-tech enterprises, giving special support in areas like research and development, patent, talents, financing and land use. The “seedling and afforestation” action has yielded great results by now.
In the newly-established dust-free plant of Dongguan SinoPatt Tech Co.,Ltd, a large amount of etching equipment are carving the same patterns on the substrates of 4-inch graphic sapphires. The company is a beneficiary of the “seedling and afforestation” action. The GM assistant Liu Fengyi stated that SinoPatt completed the production line expansion plan last year. From plant facility construction to equipment commissioning, it normally takes six to twelve months. However, with the support of related departments of Dongguan, SinoPatt only spent three months in achieving the goal, completing the production expansion quickly.
While cultivating high-tech enterprises, Dongguan also encourages the high-tech enterprises to set examples and improve the quality, turning the advantage of quantity into the advantage of quality and development, so as to inject new momentum into the economic transformation of Dongguan.
Through the “multiplication program” of enterprises in both scale and efficiency, Dongguan removes invalid supplies, cultivates new momentum and reduces the cost of physical economy. It has established a strong city of intelligent manufacturing, promotes the reform of quality, efficiency and momentum in the manufacturing industry. It seizes the opportunity of new international scientific and technological revolution, as well as greatly promotes industries like new energy, human intelligence and biological medicine to become the “next intelligent mobile phone industry” of Dongguan.
Cultivating the Ecological System of Innovative Development
“With platform, capital, policy support and beautiful ecological environment, Dongguan will become a place of talents of science and technology. After I came here, my love for this place grows day by day.” In 2016, the youngest chief scientist of the UK Spallation Neutron Source Zhang Shuyan backed to China with his family, and then became the President of Centre of Excellence for Advanced Materials in Songshan Lake, Dongguan.
Along with the rapid development of innovation economy and increased number of high-tech enterprises, the structure of permanent population in Dongguan has also changed profoundly, which greatly improves the requirements to the environment quality and level of social public service.
The No.1 document Opinions on Further Accelerating the Economic Restructuring and Promoting the Quality Development released by Dongguan Municipal Party this year conducts the specific deployment from production, city, population and system, in order to realize the four goals -- an industrial system of coordinated development, a city pattern of green integration, people’s harmonious and happy life as well as a vigorous system and mechanism. Through the 25 policies in 7 areas, Dongguan strives to explore new roads in accelerating the transformation and upgrading, as well as to play an active role in promoting the quality development.
Dongguan is dedicated to promoting water pollution control. 1,300 kilometer new sewage intersection pipes have been built to improve the ecological quality on all fronts. Dongguan deeply promotes the implementation of the three-year plan of improving the urban quality, and it is planned that 400 project constructions with a total investments of more than 170 billion RMB will be promoted this year; Dongguan will further enhance the urban renewal, explore and make good use of about 4,942 acre land in the next three years.
On February 27, Dongguan issued the “policy portfolio” with the best-ever value again, releasing several policies from accelerating scientific and technological innovation, supporting physical economy and reinforcing the element support.