Shandong province now home to more than 1,000 innovative small and medium-sized companies

The Weifang Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone in Shandong province is accelerating the transfer of scientific and technological achievements and creating world-renowned Chinese brands, said local officials.

The zone's technological innovation has shifted from being led by the government to enterprises, from building a community of industry-university-research to an ecosystem of mass entrepreneurship and innovation.

It is home to 56 innovation platforms above the provincial level, one key laboratory for the engineering company Weichai's diesel engines, and two national technology research centers.

To date, the zone has four provincial-level incubators, with a total area of 880,000 square meters containing 1,230 enterprises.

"We always keep in mind the responsibilities of promoting high-tech industries and realizing industrialization," said Song Chifeng, director of the management committee of the zone.

In 2012, Song Guanghui, an entrepreneur from Shijiazhuang, Hebei province, led his team to establish Shandong HOACO Automation Technology in Weifang high-tech zone.

It specializes in the production of high-precision multi-station round knife die-cutting machines. Their products cover industries in medicine and health, new energy electronics, LEDs, printing and packaging.

Since opening, the company has doubled its output value every year and maintained rapid growth.

The output value reached 240 million yuan ($37.7 million) in 2020, and is expected to reach 1 billion yuan in 2025.

The company has obtained 172 national patents, including 18 invention patents and 24 software copyrights.

It has won the honorary titles of National High-tech Enterprise, Shandong Province Invisible Champion Enterprise and Shandong Province High-end Brand Cultivation Enterprise.

The key to their successful growth lies in the firm support from the Weifang high-tech zone, said the company. The zone has cultivated two 100-billion-yuan industrial clusters of information technology; made breakthroughs in the four emerging industries of aerospace, hydrogen energy, energy storage, and magnetic technology; and striven to build a world-class industrial cluster with international competitiveness.

At the same time, the zone regards scientific and technological innovation as the "first driving force" and continues to optimize its innovation and entrepreneurial ecology.

"The specialized, new enterprise is a leader among small and medium-sized enterprises, and it is a vanguard enterprise focusing on market segmentation, strong innovation ability, high market share, and excellent quality and efficiency," said Nie Shaojun, director of the science and technology bureau of the zone.

A total of 115 enterprises in the zone have been selected as specialized and new enterprises.

The provincial-level small and medium-sized enterprises in the zone accounted for one-sixth of Weifang. High-tech enterprises accounted for one-fourth of the city, achieving a metamorphosis in innovative development.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the Weifang zone will cultivate small and medium-sized enterprises, and enhance the innovation ability and core competitiveness of enterprises to promote the high-quality development of the district.

The Weifang Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone in Shandong province continues to optimize its innovation and entrepreneurial environment. CHINA DAILY

From top: Workers check facilities at Weichai Group's production plant in the zone. A technician examines a machine at a production line in the zone. CHINA DAILY