Employees work at a smart medicine production line in Shanxi No 1 Traditional Chinese Medicines Group. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Party's emphasis on innovation reinforces province's efforts to upgrade industries with new tech

The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which was held in Beijing in October, had highlighted innovation, saying that it will remain at the heart of China's modernization drive.

In Shanxi province, innovation is also a keyword among officials, corporate executives and residents when they are talking about what they've learned from the spirit of the congress and what achievements they've made over the past years as a result of innovation.

Li Wuyang, an executive at Shanxi Intelligent Electronic Technology based in Jincheng city, said Shanxi is now implementing an innovation-driven development strategy. His company is among the many businesses in the province that have reaped the fruits of innovation.

Shanxi Intelligent is a producer of printed integrated circuit boards and other IC components for a wide range of industries including telecommunications, computers, automobiles and healthcare.

Li said his company has been constantly upgrading its operations toward smart manufacturing, which has helped to improve its competitiveness.

"In our plants, we have 24 advanced production lines using smart surface-mounted technology, eight dip-coating lines and 15 smart packaging lines, which can ensure production meets the diversified demands of clients," Li said.

He added that the company's management is encouraged by the congress' highlight on innovation. It is aiming to make Shanxi Intelligent a provincial role model for smart manufacturing.

Shanxi Intelligent is located in the Jincheng Photoelectronics and Machinery Industry Park. The park has attracted 105 enterprises in the fields of photoelectronics and machinery, becoming a high-tech engine for the city's high-quality development, according to an official at the park.

The officials predicted that the park's total output value is expected to reach 50 billion yuan ($6.98 billion) in three years and 100 billion yuan in five years.

Far from the big cities and manufacturing boomtowns, innovation is also the keyword in rural Shanxi, which is in a process of agricultural modernization.

Chen Yongxin, a corn breeding researcher at Shanxi Agricultural University, is one of the contributors to agricultural modernization.

Her unique contribution is the varieties of sweet and sticky corn breeds that are high in quality, taste good and have a big market potential.

Zhang Guohua, a farmer in You'ao village in Xinzhou city, is one of the beneficiaries of Chen's research.

"Ms Chen told me planting sticky corns together with muskmelon can ensure better yields," Zhang said. "I did so and this year's yields of both earned me 200,000 yuan in net income."

Chen said she was encouraged by the congress for its highlight on innovation, especially in the field of agricultural modernization.

"The work report of the congress highlighted the role of breeding research in agricultural modernization," she said. "I think this is a confirmation of my efforts in decades."

Chen's research has led to the breeding of a wide range of sticky corn varieties under the brand name of Jinnuo.

The latest variety, Jinnuo No 20, has been planted in 26 provinces, autonomous regions and cities across China.

In Shanxi, the traditional Chinese medicine industry is another sector that wants to capitalize on innovation for sustained development.

Zhendong Group, based in the city of Changzhi, is a TCM manufacturer that has been vitalized through innovations.

According to Lei Zhenhong, a senior executive of the group, Zhendong's innovative moves include the standardization of medical herb farms and production plants; sustaining investment in research and development; and integration with Western medicine sciences.

The group's branch company, Zhendong Pharmaceuticals, is the first company in Shanxi to be listed on China's Growth Enterprise Market.

Zheng Lu and Zheng Na contributed to this story.