Building an innovation-powered economy

A1 China has become the second-largest economy in the world and a key influencer of global economic development. Over the past 40 years of reform and opening-up and economic development, the Chinese government has successfully lifted more than 700 million Chinese people out of poverty. This is a remarkable achievement in human history and has been highly recognized and applauded.

Johnson Controls first came to China in 1916, introducing a temperature control product in Beijing, and returned to the Chinese mainland in the 1990s. Since then, we have built a strong footprint here with 7,000 employees, 11 manufacturing plants, three R&D centers, more than 60 branches, and 100 remote commercial offices.

A2 China will pursue both high-quality development and environmental protection as the government places more emphasis on a more open and green economy.

China is Johnson Controls' key strategic market. We are helping to make high-rise buildings, airports, railways, hospitals, hotels and industrial zones safer and smarter. We also support the urban renewal initiative to green the huge number of existing buildings.

A3 It proves that China's business environment is improving at an accelerated speed. It will undoubtedly create a fairer, more transparent and favorable market environment for foreign companies. We will be entitled to equal rules, rights and opportunities. In addition, it will deliver better protection, reassuring us about doing business within and on behalf of China.

A4 Innovative manufacturing is among the key elements of the Chinese economy's high-quality development. It not only means "Made in China" but also "Innovated in China". Smart and highly efficient manufacturing through emerging information technologies, continuous investment in R&D, talent development and industry collaboration will be vital to moving up the value chain.

In China, Johnson Controls and our joint venture partners are continuously investing in R&D capabilities. This includes establishing the Asia Engineering Center in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, which represents our global best-in-class manufacturing standard. Together with another two manufacturing plants, our Wuxi base has grown from a small factory into a modern large-scale R&D and production center since its founding in 1996.

A5 The Chinese government's efforts to cut red tape are an encouraging reflection of a desire to provide a favorable business environment for all market players to do business in a more efficient way. It helps us lower barriers, simplify and optimize the processes, and improve productivity.

We actively reduce internal complexity to improve organizational efficiency and make it easy for our customers to do business with us externally. We are committed to creating efficiency and value.