Tianjin AirCargo Terminal

Cargo 2000 is increasing its presence in China following the decision of Tianjin AirCargo Terminal (TAT) to join its air cargo quality improvement program.

Tianjin Binhai Air Cargo Terminal

TAT’s shareholders are Hwa-Hsia International Holding, Lufthansa Cargo and Tianjin Airport International Logistics Joint Stock Company.

It operates from a brand new 22,000 square meter cargo centre in the Free Zone at Tianjin Binhai International Airport.

TAT says joining Cargo 2000 will improve its already close customer relationships through enhanced monitoring and reporting of each customer’s specific shipments and the ability to increase the reliability of freight movements.
Source: CargoNews Asia

Probably not the one that will be built but a Chinese helicopter nevertheless.

The China Aviation Industry Corporation has signed a cooperation framework agreement with Tianjin Municipal Government on jointly building a China helicopter industry base in Tianjin Airport Industry Park.

The base consists of the research and development base, product assembly base, customer service base and related necessary facilities.

The project is expected to receive investment more than RMB20 billion, and will be completed in 2017. It is another major aviation industry project to be built in Tianjin Binhai New Area following the project of Airbus A320 series aircraft.
Source: China Online

The beauty of Jiangsu

A changing industrial landscape is unfolding in China’s most prosperous coastal region.

After 30 years of rapid development, the Yangtze River Delta, which is China’s most vibrant economic zone, is facing increasing pressure from the shortage of energy supplies and natural resources, as well as the environmental deterioration.

As one of the richest areas in China, the Yangtze River Delta accounts for 20 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product and is responsible for one-third of its imports and exports.

According to Shanghai Industrial Property Market, a report issued by Colliers International in May 2007, the average land-leasing price in Shanghai’s major industrial zones has risen to $112 per sq m, up 10.43 percent from the end of 2006.

Given that the overall business costs in the delta are already 30% higher than the neighboring provinces such as Anhui, the relocation of businesses to inland areas, or cities in less developed northern Jiangsu Province, is expected to provide new chances for growth while contributing to the sustainable development of the region.

Source: China Daily

GKN and some of its products

The Shanghai-based new wholly-owned facility of GKN Driveline Torque Technology has started operation.

Mass production at the plant of 4,400 square meters in the Shanghai Pudong Kangqiao Industrial Zone began with the manufacture of transmission differentials for major domestic and overseas carmakers.

In addition to the supply of transmission differentials, GKN Driveline is developing three all wheel drive (AWD) power transfer unit (PTU) applications which will enter production in 2009 for Chinese and Asian vehicle makers.
Source: Huliq News

Zhoujang Group

China’s Shougang Group has postponed the start-up of a new steel mill on the coast of northern China as steel prices plunge below the cost of production.

It started when Shougang Group announced it would auction off most of its blast furnaces in western Beijing. A source of the group said that the No 5 furnace, the first large facility ever constructed for iron making by Shougang will be the first to be sold. With a capacity of 1,036 cubic meters, this furnace stopped production in July 2005.

That’s when Shougang was ordered to relocate to Caofeidian, an islet in the Bohai Sea in order to reduce pollution before the Olympic Games. Altogether 30 million tonnes of iron had been produced through this furnace.

Shougang had permanently shut some old, polluting plants in Beijing and reduced operations at others as it built a state of the art 10-million tonnes-per-year mill in Caofeidian.

The new plant will be more efficient and cut costs because it is near an iron ore port and has been suppoerted by the Tangshan Caofeidian Industry and Development, which has developed the Caofeidian industrial zone.

Shougang officials could not be immediately reached for comment.

A Shougang official was quoted by financial magazine Caijing as saying, ‘We would report 1,000 yuan losses for every tonne of steel output, so it’s better not to produce any at all.’

Domestic Chinese steel prices have fallen 37% from their summer peak, driving down the spot price for raw material iron ore by 44%.

JP Morgan analyst Feng Zhang siad. ‘At current steel prices . . . almost all the steel makers are losing money. We expect significant production cuts going forward.’
Source: Reuters

Wuxi water avoiders before new installation

Siemens plans to supply a Membrane Bio-Reactor (MBR) system to the sewage treatment plants at Wuxi New Zone, an industrial development area, to expand its waste treatment capacity.

The MBR system is scheduled for a trial run by the end of 2008. By then, 30,000 cubic meters of sewage will be disposed of every day, thus helping Wuxi heighten urban centralized sewage treatment ratio to 90% by 2010.

As an important water source for a population of 30 million, Taihu Lake was once fouled by industrial wastewater. To clean Taihu Lake, Jiangsu Province is now upgrading the sewage treatment plants in pan- aihu cities.

MBR system will better service sewage treatment for 100 hi-tech enterprises in Wuxi New Zone, of which the sewage to be disposed increases 20-25% year on year.

The MBR system combines membrane technology and traditional sewage treatment technology to greatly cut nitrogen and phosphorus in the water. The treated water can be discharged to river or recycled.

Siemens’ MBR system provided reclaimed water for the Olympic Green, the Beijing Olympic Park.  There is no information as to the way the dignitaries present opened the facility.
Source: Trading Markets

Roewe 550 looking very desirable

SAIC Motor Corp has opened a 150,000-unit production facility in Shanghai as part of an effort to lead China’s self-branded vehicle market.

Chen Zhixin, executive vice president of SAIC Motor said the 1.2 million-square-meter factory is located in Lingang Industrial Zone, 75 kilometers south of downtown Shanghai, and cost RMB2.9 billion ($424.2 million). The first phase will cover around 670,000 square meters.

It will be the nation’s largest auto maker’s third passenger car plant, enabling SAIC to have a total capacity of 300,000 self-branded cars a year in full operation.
Source: China Trade Information

Taihu Lake, Wuxi

Siemens will help Wuxi City in East China’s Jiangsu Province recover the water quality of the Taihu Lake.

Siemens plans to supply a Membrane Bio-Reactor (MBR) system to the sewage treatment plants at Wuxi New Zone, an industrial development area, to expand its waste treatment capacity.

The MBR system is scheduled for trial run by the end of 2008. By then, 30,000 cubic meters of sewage will be disposed every day, thus helping Wuxi heighten urban centralized sewage treatment ratio to 90% by 2010.

As an important water source for a population of 30 million, Taihu Lake was once fouled by industrial wastewater. To clean Taihu Lake, Jiangsu Province is now upgrading the sewage treatment plants.
Source: Trading Markets

Xinbei Industrial Park

This month a ground breaking ceremony for Changzhou Xinri Chemicals was held in Xinbei Industrial Park.  It is said to be a new important measure to implement the strategy of ‘chemical industry development with priorities based on environment protection’ by Changzhou National Hi-tech District.

Changzhou Xinri Chemicals was set up by the Macau Xinyang Group, which is a world-famous manufacturer of unsaturated polyester resin.  The new plant covers a land area of 266 thousand square meters, and has a registered capital of $49.98 million and a total investment of $99.98 million.

Zhang Wenjun, chairman of the board of Changzhou Xinri Chemicals said, ”This company will treat environment protection seriously, invest a large sum of money to set up perfect facilities for environment protection and ensure that they operate properly to reach the set standard of emissions.’

After the establishment of the management committee of Xinbei Industrial Park, the management members believe that the park can only be saved through development of green chemicals and substitution of small chemicals with large chemicals. The results are seen in the illustration.
More on this HERE.
Source: The Earth Times

Scene from a TAL promotional video

TAL Apparel’s new $70 million factory in  Dongguan, a manufacturing zone two hours’ drive from Hong Kong, shows how manufacturing is changing in  China.

The factory’s pristine white floors and brightly lit aisles look more like a modern office suite than a clothing factory. In one corner, automated cutting machines slice out fabric for men’s trousers, a process that wastes less material and requires only about half the staff needed to cut patterns by hand. In another section of the plant, a computerized system of ceiling tracks ferries the pants on hangers. At the end of the assembly line, the high-quality garments emerge sporting brand names like L.L. Bean and Dockers.

S.N. Yip, a director at TAL, says that only the most modern, efficient factories can thrive in today’s China. He said, ‘If you want to run a sweatshop, this isn’t the place.’

The average monthly pay of China’s factory workers increased 66% between 2004 and 2007 to $234, an amount that is well above the wages earned in other Asian countries.

However businessmen say that clusters of factories in similar industries in the zones that have formed along the mainland’s coast create a ready supply chain for important raw materials and components, while China’s superior infrastructure makes shipping products overseas extremely efficient. These factors have convinced many industrialists to stay put.

Much more HERE.
Source: Time