The recent years witnessed dramatic progress in Chinese mould industry. The current status of this industry can be summarized with several points:
First of all, in terms of scale, China is already one of the largest mould-manufacturing countries, but it is still not among the best.
Entering the new century, the sale of mould products in our country registers an annual growth rate of around 20% on the average. In 2006, the total sale of mould products in China reached 72 billion RMB, ranking the third in the world, only after Japan and US; meanwhile, the export of our mould products exceeded 1 billion US$. Mould manufacturers in China totaled about 30 thousand, employing approximately 1 million staff.
All of this indicates that the mould industry in our country has already assumed a considerably large scale.
However, we still have to import more than 2 billion US$ worth of mould products per year, most of which are the medium- or high-grade mould products that cannot be produced at home. Only about 50% of the medium- or high-grade mould products in our country are manufactured domestically. Technically sophisticated mould products, such as those of large size, fine quality, long life of usage and complex ones, account for only about 30%. The manufacturing efficiency of the labor force of mould industry in our country is still relatively low, on the average only RMB 150,000 per capita annually; the commercialized and standardization of mould products account for only above 50%, while the figures in the developed countries are over 70%; besides, the level of specialization remains low in the mould manufacturing of our country.
All of this suggests that China is not yet strong enough to be grouped among the top mould manufacturing countries.
Secondly, we have made great headway in improving the quality of our mould products, yet there is yet a long way to go.
In recent years, thanks to the widespread application of computer-assistant technologies, such as CAD/CAE/CAM, High-speed machining technology, hot runner technology, Gas-Assisted Injection Molding technology, reverse engineering, and other new technologies, China has been making substantial progress in improving the designing and manufacturing of its mould products.
At present, China is capable of producing some kinds of multi-stations progressive die with precision of 2 micron. Few mould makers can produce the multi-stations progressive die with precision of 1 micron, which is used in the high-speed punch machine with 2 thousands per minute.
In the respect of large-sized plastic moulds, China is capable of producing the plastic moulds for 43-inch large-screen televisions, 65-inch rear projection televisions, 10-kg washing machines, automobile bumpers, full-size dashboard, etc.
As for sophisticated plastic moulds, China is capable of producing plastic moulds for camera and cell phone parts, multi-cavity & small-module gear mould and plastic package mould with precision of 5 microns.
With regard to large-size sophisticated die-casting moulds, China is capable of producing die-casting moulds for full-size footrests of escalators, automobile gear boxes, automobile engine cases, etc.
Concerning automobile covering moulds, China is capable of producing medium-grade covering moulds for new style automobiles.
Meridian-tire mould, profiled bar extrusion die for aluminum alloy and Plastic Window & Door, precise foundry or high-speed shaped colophony drawing die have also reached a rather high level compared to imported moulds.
The weight of the largest moulds manufactured in our country has exceeded 100 tons per set of moulds.
But generally, mould-manufacturing in our country mainly focuses on medium- and low-grade products, while high-grade moulds still rely heavily on imports. Although enterprises attach importance to the promotion of new technologies, the application of the new technologies remains at a relatively low level. On the whole, there is a gap of approximately 10-15 years between the level of the mould production in our country and that in developed countries.
Thirdly, the pillar enterprises of our mould industry have already come into being, but the number of them is still not strong enough.
After more than a decade of rapid development, the pillar enterprises of our mould industry have already come into being. These enterprises are well-equipped with advanced facilities, and their manufacturing have already reached a considerable scale. They are characterized with relatively high level of technology and production, as well as distinctive style of products. From the pillar enterprises of various mould industries raise the leading enterprises of each industry. In 2006, the China Die & Mould Industry Association awarded the top 50 enterprises of each mould industry the title of Key Enterprises of Mould Industry.
These enterprises are still in the growing, looking forward to and fresh progress in various aspects, such as more advanced technology, enhanced management and products that can better satisfy the demands of the market.
This is a brief description of the current status of the mould industry in our country.
Currently, the manufacturing industry in our country is growing rapidly. Particularly, driven by the development of automobile manufacturing industry, the domestic market for mould products is constantly expanding. Transnational enterprises increase their trade in our country, and internationally, there is a growing trend of transferring mould industry into our country. Looking into the future from this perspective, we believe Chinese mould industry will come into a period marked by opportunities and continuing rapid development. We should take advantage of this period of time in order to advance our mould industry substantially.
Faced with this situation, the current task of China mould industry is advancing reform, adjusting structure, expanding market, enhancing specialization, and attaining a higher level. Enterprises should not only expand their scale of business, but also strengthen themselves by producing more specialized, technically sophisticated products, and by improving the efficiency of their management.
Digitalization and informatization is not only the right path towards the modernization of machinery manufacturing, but also an important approach to upgrading the modern mould manufacturing. Enterprises in the mould industry have gradually realized the essentiality and urgency of digitalization and informatization. Now a fresh wave of digital and information reform is taking shape in the mould industry. |
