After 30 days and nearly a hundred tests, the challenge of fabric fragility in denim storage was overcome. This issue had troubled Lilanz (China) Co., Ltd. for nearly two years, but with the support of the Fujian Fiber Inspection Center, the solution is now being freely promoted throughout the province.

The textile, footwear, and apparel industries have long been the traditional strengths of Fujian. Over the past three years, the Fujian Fiber Inspection Center has actively engaged in new material development and technical assistance, providing "diagnostic" services to 1,500 enterprises and resolving approximately 1,600 technical challenges.

In October this year, during his visit to Fujian, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the need to "pioneer new paths in deeply integrating technological and industrial innovation." His heartfelt guidance, as always, lights the way for us. In March 2021, during a visit to Fujian, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, "When it comes to innovation, we don't concern ourselves with 'origins'. As long as one can contribute to the nation, the country will fully support them."

Deeply implementing the important directives of General Secretary Xi Jinping, Fujian is focusing on building a comprehensive support system for innovation. This effort aims to deeply integrate the innovation, industry, and talent chains, using technological innovation to shape new advantages in industrial development.

The province is enhancing support to strengthen the role of enterprises as the main drivers of technological innovation.

Using domestically developed major technical equipment and supported by a domestic CNC system and key components, the double-sided milling and boring machining center developed by Fujian Weino CNC Co., Ltd. has won the "Chunyan Award" from the China Machine Tool & Tool Builders' Association this year. "We have collaborated with the China Academy of Machinery Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and other institutions to undertake major national science and technology projects and several key provincial and regional science and technology initiatives," introduced Weng Qiang, Chairman of the Board.

In the past five years, Fujian has supported private technology enterprises in undertaking and implementing over 100 national and provincial major scientific projects and more than 600 regional projects. In June of this year, Fujian introduced special measures to further strengthen the role of private enterprises as the main drivers of technological innovation. Currently, private enterprises in Fujian contribute over 70% of the province's research and development investment and scientific achievements, and more than 95% of the national high-tech enterprises are private companies.

Fujian is aggregating resources and building a high-level science and technology innovation platform.

In Fuzhou High-Tech Zone, the Mindu Innovation Laboratory has reported a series of successes, with six technologies, including ultra-high-power LED phosphor ceramics engineering, successfully passing results evaluation.

Established in 2019, the Mindu Innovation Laboratory is one of the first four provincial innovation laboratories in Fujian. ''The laboratory focuses on promoting a 'two-way journey' between 'production' and 'research', involving industry and investors from the very start of research projects to achieve seamless integration of technological and industrial innovation," stated Hong Maochun, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the director of the Mindu Innovation Laboratory. The laboratory has currently made breakthroughs in over 80 key core technologies and achieved more than 30 major innovative results. Additionally, they have converted over 170 scientific research achievements, contributing to an increase of more than 20 billion yuan in new output value for enterprises.

Fujian is continuously strengthening its support for technology platforms and has established a comprehensive incubation system, with 277 provincial and higher-level key laboratories, 220 new research and development institutions, 69 technology business incubators, and 369 maker spaces.

The province is also deepening reforms to create a more conducive environment for innovation and a more attractive setting for talent.

"Replace the component materials and try optical focusing again," suggests the team led by Academician Zhuang Songlin from the Chinese Academy of Engineering, as they remotely guide researchers at Fujian Shunchang Hongrun Precision Instrument Co., Ltd. in testing the accuracy of sensors.

"Despite being in different locations, we collaborate closely both online and offline. Over 20 research achievements have already been widely applied in fields such as aerospace and nuclear power," stated Deputy Technical Director Chen Zhiyang. The company produces over 700,000 high-performance instruments annually, capturing one-third of the domestic market share for display control instruments.

Fujian emphasizes the value of utility over ownership. The province has improved its flexible talent acquisition system, successfully attracting 944 top-tier talents and teams over the past decade and establishing 29 national talent and intelligence platforms. By moving away from a sole focus on publications as a measure of success and granting greater autonomy in the transformation and rewarding of scientific achievements, researchers are inspired to innovate with renewed vigor.

Data highlights the achievements of technological innovation in Fujian: Over the past decade, the number of high-tech enterprises has increased from 1,783 to 14,561. The total value of registered technology contracts has reached 163.381 billion yuan, with an average annual growth rate of 21.4%.

Technological innovation is driving industrial innovation, leading to continuous improvements in Fujian's industrial structure. The equipment manufacturing industry has surpassed one trillion yuan in scale, and the textile, footwear, and apparel industries have developed a highly competitive and complete industrial chain. There are 3,899 strategic emerging enterprises in the industrial sector above the designated size.

"Maintain the central role of innovation in the overall modernization process, focus on developing new quality productivity tailored to local conditions, promote the deep integration of technological and industrial innovation, and continuously shape new drivers and advantages for Fujian's development," stated Zhou Zuyi, Secretary of the Fujian Provincial Committee.

Translated by Fujian Investment Promotion Center