Tech innovation brings growth, investment to Mianyang

Mianyang, an inland city in Southwest China's Sichuan province, is becoming an engine for local growth and a favored destination for investment due to its flair for technological innovation.

The city was known to many in China as a famous research and manufacturing hub for military industries in the decades following the founding of the People's Republic of China. It has witnessed a number of leading technological achievements, including the development of China's first nuclear bomb.

The city has been reinvigorated since China introduced its reform and opening-up initiatives in the late 1970s, thanks to the successful integration of civil and military industries.

A successful example of this is Sichuan Changhong Electronic Ltd Co, which transformed itself from a military installation into a civil enterprise in the 1970s. It is now one of China's leading home appliance companies, with a brand value of 120.9 billion yuan ($17.52 billion), according to a report by World Brand Lab, an independent brand valuation consultancy based in New York City.

Mianyang is currently one of China's major centers for the electronics industry. It has many well-known research institutions and universities, such as the China Academy of Engineering Physics, China Aerodynamics Research and Development Center and Southwest University of Science and Technology.

More importantly, Mianyang is the first and only city to have developed a national-level science and technology city.

In July 2001, the State Council approved the city's plan to build the China (Mianyang) Science and Technology City, which aims to translate the city's research resources into productivity and profit.

In the State Council's approval document, the central government proposed making the city into "a role model for civil-military integration, a hub for technological innovation, a center for technologies exchange, a base for innovative professionals and a destination for high-tech businesses".

The document also said the science and technology city could benefit from the preferential policies already enjoyed by Beijing's Zhongguancun Science Park, the country's leading technological innovation hub.

The Mianyang Science and Technology City includes the high-tech zone, the economic and technological development zone, the science and technology business park and other zones and parks.

Established in August 2001, the Mianyang Science and Technology Business Park is both the central innovation district and the core part of the science and technology city. Since its conception, the park has prioritized the introduction of high-level professionals, fostering of innovative projects and nurturing of high-tech industries, all of which have helped to make it a prime destination for startup businesses.

According to Zhou Yu, Party chief of the park's administrative committee, the park offers a number of incentives for high-tech startups.

For instance, large projects involving internationally advanced technologies are eligible for development funds of up to 20 million yuan from the park's administrative committee. Small and medium-sized projects can access financial support ranging from 400,000 yuan to 1 million yuan.

Sichuan Feitian United System Technologies Co Ltd is a leading company that has achieved rapid development with the support of the park.

Feitian is a provider of wireless entertainment and connectivity solutions for the aerospace, railway and automobile industries, among others.

"The park and its neighboring areas have a strong industrial foundation in sectors such as aerospace and electronic information," said Duan Shiping, general manager of the company, adding that his firm has also enjoyed a series of preferential policies in land use, personnel training and financing.

"Thanks to the park's support, we have expanded rapidly in international markets, with orders from North America and Southeast Asia," Duan said.

Business incubator

The park has built an advanced international business incubator by forging links with renowned foreign partners.

The Mianyang International Technology Business Incubator, which was established in May 2015, currently includes the Cambridge University-backed science and technology incubation center and a European Union-backed innovation center.

The Cambridge incubation center in Mianyang is a comprehensive platform for introducing high-level professionals and high-tech projects from overseas. It offers a range of services including business match-up, technological transfer, exhibitions and investment and trade facilitation.

In less than two years, the Mianyang International Technology Business Incubator has attracted more than 10 renowned high-tech companies from China and overseas - including e-commerce giant Alibaba - and more than 60 overseas professionals to set up businesses there. Their operations range from electronic information and intelligent manufacturing to cross-border e-commerce.

The incubator offers a range of incentives to attract innovative individuals and teams to start businesses, said Li Wei, deputy chief of the administrative committee of the Mianyang Science and Technology Business Park.

"Our incentives include both financial and policy support. In addition, there are also preferential policies for land use, international exchanges, development planning and personnel training," Li said.

Langchao Information Technology Co is one of the successful startups that has grown rapidly with the help of the incubator.

It started three years ago as a three-person firm, with an annual sales revenue of 10 million yuan. Last year, its sales revenue leapt to 90 million yuan.

Li anticipates more than 20 new companies, each with annual gross profit of more than 10 million yuan, joining the incubator in the next three years, and he predicts that more than 10 companies will be listed on the growth enterprise market or other mainboard markets during the same period.

For more information about the Mianyang International Technology Business Incubator, please contact at 86-816-6336381

zhaoshijun@chinadaily.com.cn