Innovative projects investing in future at Xiamen Torch Development Zone

A total of five manufacturing projects from the Xiamen Torch Development Zone for High Technology Industries signed agreements with local authorities recently to further cooperate in business investment and industrial development.

The move came after the launch ceremony of the Economic Alliance of Alumni in Xiamen. It was initiated by the Xiamen city government with the aim of mobilizing alumni resources to gather talents and promote industrial innovation.

The projects, operated by alumni enterprises, range from lithium batteries, chips and micro LEDs to an intelligent industrial park.

Qingdao Zhongkehualian Advanced Materials Corp, one of the five projects, sited its lithium battery diaphragm production base and research and development headquarters in the development zone in 2021. A lithium battery diaphragm is a thin film with microporous structure, which is a key internal component.

Pan Zhimin, a board member of Zhongkehualian, said: "I love Xiamen University a lot. I often travel around the university although I'm 50 years old."

Pan is an alumnus of Xiamen University, where he completed his undergraduate degree in chemistry and his postgraduate degree in business administration.

"Xiamen is accelerating the development of the lithium battery industry. And diaphragms are a required supply material in the industry," Pan said.

Last year, Pan spoke with the development zone to set up the base and headquarters.

"The project went efficiently from communication to implementation," Pan said, adding that the local government and the administrative committee of the development zone had given all their support.

The project is expected to complete four production lines within one year. Its annual output value is expected to reach 3 billion yuan ($447 million), according to Pan.

Another project is Via, a manufacturer of intelligent visual products, which has planned to invest in an intelligent manufacturing park at TongXiang Hi-Tech Industrial Bases, an arm of the development zone.

Zhang Xinyue, founder of Via, started the business in the development zone in 2011. Zhang is an alumna of the School of Management at Xiamen University.

"The local government has cared about the development of high-tech businesses like us and has been with us over the years," Zhang said.

It is the top business environment in Xiamen and the attentive services of the development zone that encouraged Via to expand its investment, Zhang added.

With an investment of 250 million yuan, the company's intelligent manufacturing park will focus on the R&D of new energy and automatic optic inspection equipment for the semiconductor industry.

As one of the three national-level high-tech zones named Torch, the development zone comprises Torch (Huli) Park; Xiamen Hi-Tech Innovation Center; Xiamen Software Park; Xiamen Technology Innovation Park; TongXiang High-Tech Industrial Bases; Beijing University Biological Park; and Torch (Xiang'an) Industrial Area.

The zone has been granted 18 national honors and is home to more than 15,000 businesses. The more than 1,200 high-tech enterprises there account for nearly 50 percent of Xiamen's total. It has built more than 100 innovation platforms, with five national-level incubators and 24 nationally registered maker spaces.

Using the establishment of the alumni alliance, the development zone is dedicated to developing the alumni economy and attracting businesses. It has planned Xiamen Software Park, Xiamen Hi-Tech Innovation Center and TongXiang Hi-Tech Industrial Bases as major areas for boosting the alumni economy, and promoting innovation and entrepreneurship.

The zone's officials have planned a group of alumni projects and conducted inspection tours to such enterprises to learn about their difficulties and requirements.

"The administrative committee of the zone is always helpful and effective whatever the difficulties we ask about," Pan said.

To attract more alumni projects, the zone has gone the extra mile to ensure project implementation such as planning land use for industries and constructing rooms for business investment.

EpiWorld International, a major manufacturer of silicon wafers, is a business run by alumni from Xiamen University and has been in the zone for 12 years.

According to the company, it completed the second phase of its building project in June and plans to start the third phase this year.

The second phase is a factory and supporting facilities for the production of 6-inch silicon carbide epitaxial wafers. It has an annual production capacity of up to 200,000 wafers and is expected to reach an output value of 1.1 billion yuan this year.

"Thanks to the support of the zone and relevant departments, the project was completed as scheduled despite the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is essential to the company's development," said a manager of EpiWorld.

Other alumni enterprises including delivery robot manufacturer StarSpeed Store and spectroscopy solution provider Optosky, which have both seen burgeoning development in the zone, are playing significant roles in the zone's industry ecosystem.

After 30 years of development, the zone has formed an incubation system covering business startups, industrial incubation and acceleration and industrial parks. It is part of its efforts to provide businesses with tailor-made services for innovation or entrepreneurship.

The zone will continue to take advantage of the alumni economy to promote a shared development between such enterprises and the zone through a series of practical measures, said an official of the administrative committee.

Guan Xuan, Liu Qing and Li Shun contributed to this story.