On the opening ceremony of the 4th China (Guangdong) International Internet Plus Exposition, the agreement of SIC (Foshan) Digital Simulation Research Institute was signed to support Foshan’s fusion of local industry and digital economy.

 

“The institute focuses on e-government and digital industry, the two key areas of digital economy, and sets to make Foshan ‘Global Digital Economy’s New Metropolitan’ by widely consolidating resources in digital economy fields.” Ma Zhongyu, Vice President of SIC said in the interview of Nanfang Daily, pointing out this institution is a plus for Foshan to develop digital economy and espouse reform and innovation of traditional industry.

 

So with the explorations of converging resources and creating new carriers for innovation, how will Nanhai, and Foshan as a whole, step to make new changes of industrial internet infiltrate the traditional industries and introduce more effectiveness from digital economy?

 

Ma Zhongyu said, Nanhai shall follow the plan of ‘Growth acceleration for industrialized digital and digitalized industry’, optimize the supply side structure with digital economy thought. Strengthen industrial internet system and platform construction, to form a multiple-layer and systematic industrial internet system. Introduce cloud platform to the business, and promote cooperation between production, learning, research and application. Build industrial internet innovation center and exemplary industry bases.

 

The newspaper page of Nanfang Daily Foshan Observations on November 19.  

 

Manufacturing is the main battlefield of digital economy growth

 

Nanfang Daily: Industrial internet is a kind of digital economy to some aspects, with the core on data. What do you believe is the main features of digital economy? What is the main battlefield of digital economy growth?

 

Ma Zhongyu: Digital economy is the new economy form after agriculture economy and industrial economy, with the data resource as key production factors and modern information network as main carrier, information technology’s integration and application and the digital transformation of all factors as key impetus, and promote the new economy form of more balanced equality and effectiveness. The key to digital economy is data resources. As a result of modern information technology, especially internet technology, the convenience, accuracy and comprehensiveness to acquire data have greatly improved, so the reading, using of data resource can have great impact to social and economic activities.

 

Manufacturing is the main field of China’s economy, and the main battle field of promoting internet plus action and developing digital economy. This is decided by the strategic position of manufacturing in the whole economy, the new round of manufacturing competition for the peak, and the features and trends of fusing internet, information technology and manufacturing.

 

Nanfang daily: What opportunities has digital economy brought to manufacturing?

 

Ma Zhongyu: In the context of digital economy, manufacturing will have three opportunities. Firstly, the drive to transform manufacturing by digital economy. With the wide application of mobile internet, industrial internet, open source software and hardware technologies, the trend of innovative organizations becoming small, scattered and reversed rises. The route of transmission from supply to demand, dominated by big enterprises, has been changed by the mass innovation of crowdsourcing from the bottom. The speed of innovation update will be higher than ever.

 

Secondly, digital economy provides new space to manufacturing’s growth. The fusion of digital economy and traditional industry will greatly elevate the allocation efficiency of labor, capital, land and management. On the one hand, some new highlights of economic growth and new investment direction like smart manufacturing, biomedicine and other strategic emerging industries emerge from the production side. On the other hand, from the consumption side, new consumption habits, modes and processes are nurtured, such as smart wearing and smart home. With this, apparently, manufacturing’s space to develop will increase greatly.

 

Thirdly, digital economy will reshape the international competition pattern. In the digital economy era and AI manufacturing eco-system, internet and other new technology makes the people, the machine and the product become a ubiquitously effective community, whose operation decides the international competition pattern of manufacturing of the age of digital economy. In other words, making the international standard of industrial internet will be the basis of new international competition power, like making AC standard in the start of 20th century.

 

Make Foshan forge the ‘Global Digital Economy’s New Metropolitan’

 

Nanfang daily: Recently, State information Center, Foshan People’s Government and Nanhai District People’s Government launched State Information Center (Foshan) Digital Simulation Research Institute. What will the institute bring to Foshan?

 

Ma Zhongyu: The institute focuses on e-government and digital industry, the two key areas of digital economy, with the final target to make Foshan the ‘Global Digital Economy’s New Metropolitan’.

 

The institute has these features. Firstly, emphasis on decision making support. State information Center will let Foshan use policy stimulation tools and input-output analysis methodology, and build the digital economic database and policy stimulation platform, to effectively improve the ability of decision making, administration and service of Foshan government at all levels.

Secondly, highlight the orientation of commercialization. The institute will make efforts to build scientific and effective policy system in Foshan, makes it the world pioneering digital economy innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, direct various digital economy innovation and entrepreneurship activities to be held in Foshan, nurture some leading players of digital economy, deploy entrepreneur parks and new research institutions, attract more capital, so as to ensure commercialization of results more effectively.

 

Thirdly, highlight the resource consolidation. The institute will pay attention to resource consolidation and initiate Foshan digital economy development expert consultation committee by inviting experts, business delegates from leading companies of this field to support Foshan’s digital economy with brain and resources.

 

Nanfang Daily: What kind of work shall be paid special attention to when Nanhai and Foshan government develop digital economy?

 

Ma Zhongyu: Nanhai shall highlight innovation in promoting digital economy. Build the system basis, culture and social environment with innovation as the core in digital economy. Developing digital economy is the key to realize innovation-driven growth. At the same time of developing new technology, industry, economic form and mode, promote present pillar industries, especially manufacturing, fusing with digital economy. Optimizing the supply side structure will streamline with the means of digital economy.

 

Besides, Nanhai shall promote the idea of sharing digital economy development results, participated, worked on and enjoyed by everyone. The social justice, inclusiveness and fair market order in digital economy era shall be ensured. Nanhai shall also heed safety and prevent risks.

 

Accelerate the systematic industrial internet platform system

Nanfang daily: Nanhai has a strong basis and capability in manufacturing. To fuse manufacturing and digital technology, what route can Nanhai follow?

 

Ma Zhongyu: Nanhai’s digital economy growth shall follow the plan of ‘‘Growth acceleration for industrialized digital and digitalized industry’. On the one hand, Nanhai shall promote the industrialized digital, by market application of modern technology, promote the formation and development of digital industry by information technology innovation, management innovation, business innovation and infusion. It shall breed new industry, economic form and mode, and form a group of industry chains and industry aggregates.

 

On the other hand, Nanhai shall further boost the transformation of traditional industry, especially manufacturing, by modern technology in a full scale and for the full chain. Make the new vitalize the transformation of the old. Make the increase drive the present. With the internet, big data, AI, and the real economy integration, effectively raise the productivity level of all factors.

Nanfang daily: Which areas will Nanhai focus on when developing digital economy?

 

Ma Zhongyu: Nanhai will make a series of targeting policies, focusing on four aspects, I believe. First, enhance coordination. Let all departments submit tasks and policies based on their functions. Enhance the surveillance analysis of digital economy growth and change, seek and make clear the problems with potential and possibility.

 

Meanwhile, Nanhai shall enhance the construction of industrial internet system and platform, forming the platform system of all levels systematically. Drive the business use cloud platform. Make production, learning, research and application entities cooperate to build industrial internet innovation center and industrial internet industry demonstration bases.

 

At the same time, Nanhai need improve talent team, focus on frontlines of digitalization and key areas, explore the talent cultivation mode, jointly from home and abroad, from production, research and learning, and from regional synergy, be creative in recruiting overseas talents policy and administration, and make a team of high-level R&D and innovation.

 

(Source: Nanfang Daily, November 19, 2018)