In his keynote report titled “The Future of Made in China,” he pointed out that we must grasp the characteristics and trends of manufacturing technology and industrial development, fully implement the innovation-driven development strategy, and achieve leapfrog and sustainable development toward Chinese innovation.

Leading industrial upgrading with technological innovation

China's economy has grown rapidly for over 30 consecutive years, and the development of China's manufacturing industry has attracted worldwide attention. Especially in the past 10 years, China's innovation investment has increased significantly, and its scientific and technological capabilities have improved markedly. However, compared with developed industrial countries, there are still obvious gaps in innovative design, manufacturing quality, per capita productivity, value-added manufacturing services, material and energy consumption and emission levels, and global brands.

Lu Yongxiang pointed out that overall, China's manufacturing industry is large but not strong, and is in a critical period of leapfrogging from a “major manufacturing country” to a “strong innovative country.” He analyzed that the international financial crisis and economic recession have caused developed countries to re-examine their industrial development paths and launch “re-industrialization” strategies centered on revitalizing manufacturing, striving to lead with technological breakthroughs and innovative design, promote innovation in manufacturing services and business models, maintain leadership in technological innovation and manufacturing, and establish competitive advantages in the new industrial revolution.

For example, the United States formulated the “Framework for Revitalizing American Manufacturing,” passed the “Manufacturing Enhancement Act,” and launched the “Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP).” The White House also established a special Office of Manufacturing Policy. In his 2013 State of the Union address, Obama proposed to “ensure that the next manufacturing revolution happens in America.”

Global technological and industrial innovation is changing rapidly. Through innovative design and intelligent technology, manufacturing in developed countries is integrating global information and physical resources, accelerating the transformation of manufacturing services toward personalization, customization, and networking.

The U.S. government plans to equip 1,000 schools with digital manufacturing equipment such as 3D printers and laser cutters within three years. Some industry giants have also released free design software, 3D printing, laser cutting, and other cloud services for amateurs and even children. Users can independently complete product design and manufacturing through powerful desktop digital design and manufacturing systems such as CAD/CAE software and 3D printing.

“Networked collaborative innovation, design and R&D, and personalized, customized manufacturing and marketing services will become new ways of manufacturing in the future,” Lu Yongxiang introduced. Green, intelligent, ultra-normal, integrated, and service-oriented will become keywords for global manufacturing technology and industrial development. Manufacturing technology and industrial innovation are also core elements of China's economic upgrade and the global “new industrial revolution.”

Leapfrogging to “Chinese Innovation”

When discussing the future development of Made in China, Lu Yongxiang emphasized that efforts must be made to improve the level of informatization, break through key core technologies of green, intelligent, precision, and ultra-normal manufacturing, prioritize quality and efficiency, eliminate outdated production capacity, develop manufacturing services, optimize product and industrial structures, build a manufacturing technology innovation system, and enhance innovation capabilities and global competitiveness and cooperation.

First, a manufacturing technology and industrial innovation strategy should be implemented. Lu Yongxiang believes that the state should always place manufacturing technology and industry at the core of science and technology and industrial innovation strategies, seize the opportunities and challenges of global scientific and technological innovation and industrial structural adjustment after the financial crisis and the creation of an upgraded Chinese economy, and formulate and implement a development strategy for leapfrogging from “Made in China” to “Chinese Innovation.” Through regulations, planning, policies, and information guidance, strengthen intellectual property protection, improve industrial standards, strengthen technical supervision, set negative lists for material and energy consumption and emissions, introduce differentiated tax rates, and create a market environment that incentivizes innovation, guides industrial structural upgrading, and is open and fair.

The state should also increase investment in basic frontier and generic technology R&D for manufacturing, build a number of generic technology research and testing centers serving small and medium-sized enterprises, cloud data and cloud computing centers, skilled talent training and continuing education centers, and international exhibition and exchange cooperation platforms. Efforts should focus on building a market-oriented, enterprise-centered, industry-academia-research-application collaborative innovation system for manufacturing technology and industry.

Second, accelerate the informatization, digitization, and intelligentization of manufacturing. The industrial era created production methods characterized by scale, standardization, and automation, while technological advances in the 21st century such as cloud computing, intelligent manufacturing, robotics, 3D printing, and the Internet of Things foreshadow future intelligent design, manufacturing, and service methods that combine personalization and customization with scale and globalization. Intelligentization, aimed at achieving safe, reliable, economical, efficient, user-satisfactory, and eco-friendly design, manufacturing, application, and services, is the key and core of upgrading “Made in China.”

“Concrete measures must be taken to master and innovate key core technologies of high-end numerical control and intelligent manufacturing, and change the situation where key components and core technologies such as high-speed precision spindles, precision sensors, numerical control and precision transmission, and intelligent software rely on imports. Develop and create software platforms for intelligent design and manufacturing, operation management, and application services.”

Lu Yongxiang pointed out. Third, enhance innovative design capabilities and lead the leap from OEM to ODM. Competition in manufacturing today and in the future is not only about capital scale, equipment management, and price; it has expanded to competition in quality, efficiency, and user experience led by innovative design and R&D and business model innovation. Design is the forerunner and preparation of manufacturing services, determining the structural functions of products and the economic, social, cultural value, and ecological and environmental characteristics of products and their manufacturing, operation, and even remains recycling throughout the entire life cycle. “Enhancing innovative design and R&D capabilities must be regarded as a key link in promoting leapfrog development of the manufacturing industry,” he emphasized.

He pointed out that an innovative design strategy should be formulated and implemented to create a social environment in which innovative design leads “Chinese Innovation”; create a cultural atmosphere in which the whole society values, loves, cultivates, and respects innovative design; strengthen the training of interdisciplinary design and R&D talents and team building, focus on cultivating and supporting young design and R&D talents, promote close integration of design and R&D talents with manufacturing enterprises and application services, and cultivate world-renowned design and R&D masters and teams; improve the level of resource co-construction and sharing with related industries, promote coordinated and collaborative development of design and R&D and manufacturing services, and lead enterprises to transform from OEM to ODM and create global brands.

At the same time, quality should be prioritized, structure optimized, and green and low-carbon development upheld. The quality of products and services is the foundation of the life, value, and competitiveness of the manufacturing industry. We must firmly establish a development concept that prioritizes quality, eliminate outdated production capacity, and improve the informatization, intelligentization, and green and low-carbon levels of the manufacturing industry; develop emerging high-end manufacturing industries such as high-end CNC machine tools, robots, new energy, aerospace, and new energy vehicles, and develop modern manufacturing services; while supporting the development of large multinational enterprises, focus on cultivating small and medium-sized enterprises that master proprietary technologies and distinctive products and services and have global competitiveness, forming advantages in Chinese manufacturing clusters and industrial chains; pay more attention to source control of the ecological environment and global climate change, and pursue minimizing resource and energy consumption, harmful emissions, and waste throughout the entire life cycle of products and manufacturing equipment, from design and R&D, manufacturing integration, packaging and transportation, operation and use, to waste and remains treatment and reuse.

In addition, basic generic technologies should be strengthened to consolidate and enhance the cornerstone of the manufacturing industry. Key materials, components, and manufacturing processes often determine product quality. Advanced materials are the foundation for innovative development of the manufacturing industry. The quality of basic components such as precision bearings, electronic components, and motor, hydraulic, and pneumatic transmission controls determines the quality and performance of final products. The reliance on imports for high-end basic components has become a bottleneck in the development of China's manufacturing industry. Process innovation is the key to upgrading and transforming the manufacturing industry.

Process innovations such as lithography, laser processing, multiphase reactions, green processes, and additive manufacturing provide new approaches and directions for equipment manufacturing innovation. More and more user enterprises not only require manufacturers to provide advanced complete sets of equipment but also require advanced processes and comprehensive solutions. Basic generic technology is the cornerstone of the comprehensive competitiveness of a manufacturing powerhouse and must not be ignored; it must be supported with priority, open cooperation, independent innovation, and prioritized development.

Finally, reform and innovate manufacturing engineering education to establish the advantage of innovative talents. Lu Yongxiang stated that the manufacturing industry in the future will show characteristics of interdisciplinary integration and rapid transformation. Achieving the historical leap from “Made in China” to “Chinese Innovation” requires not only design and R&D talents who master multidisciplinary knowledge and skills and have innovative spirit and creative ability, but also a large number of highly skilled talents with exquisite craftsmanship and dedication to innovation, as well as business management innovation talents with a global perspective.

He believes that the educational reform of manufacturing and related disciplines must be deepened, interdisciplinary integration promoted, and the cultivation of innovative, applied, and compound entrepreneurial and innovative talents advanced.