(Hong Kong's "Revitalization" Momentum) Chen Zuheng: Hong Kong's manufacturing industry needs to develop in parallel with innovative technology "going global" | Hong Kong | Technology
Hong Kong, August 19th (China News Agency) Question: Chen Zuheng: Hong Kong's manufacturing industry needs to "merge with innovative technology and go to sea"
China News Agency reporter Liu Dawei
Once upon a time, Hong Kong, which had enjoyed the soup of industrial development, experienced a peak period where industry accounted for nearly 30% of the local GDP. But with the continuous relocation of the manufacturing industry, the proportion of industry has been decreasing year by year. In the face of the rapid development of global industry and technology, how can Hong Kong achieve high-quality development? The Chairman of the Hong Kong Productivity Council and Legislative Council member of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Chen Zuheng, told China News Agency reporters that "re industrialization" development is a necessary path. Realizing "re industrialization" is by no means a return to the old path of developing labor-intensive industries, and requires innovative technology to promote transformation and upgrading.
Chen Zuheng comes from a family in Hong Kong known for their clothing industry. The family runs Liantai Holdings Limited, which is now a leading global fashion clothing and bag accessories manufacturing enterprise. In 1999, after serving as a financial analyst at Merrill Lynch for three years, Chen Zuheng joined the family business and was in charge of mergers and acquisitions.
"Young people are prone to new thinking. Only by being exposed to new things can they find opportunities in them," said Chen Zuheng. His work experience in multinational corporations gave him different perspectives on business operations. Under his advice and management, the company improved its governance structure, established a platform to attract talent, and continued to grow its business. It became a listed company in 2004. During his tenure, he also traveled to various Southeast Asian countries, expanding his production network from mainland China to overseas regions, while his Hong Kong headquarters engaged in research and development, design and other businesses.
After more than 20 years of deep cultivation in the textile and clothing industry, Chen Zuheng understands that Hong Kong's economic development cannot rely solely on the financial services industry to stand alone. So, shortly after the start of his term as a member of the Legislative Council, Chen Zuheng proposed the first motion to "develop a comprehensive industrial blueprint and promote the development of Hong Kong's industry", promoting the integration of manufacturing and innovative technology into the sea.
"Technological innovation and industrial development are inseparable." Chen Zuheng analyzed the textile and clothing industry as an example, stating that the development path of global textile and clothing manufacturers cannot be separated from two directions: materials and brands, among which material research and development are closely related to innovative technology. Nowadays, consumers have increasingly high requirements for the waterproofing, breathability, and warmth of clothing, and manufacturers need to constantly innovate to meet market demands. "So, we set up a research and development center in Hong Kong to study materials with excellent performance and environmental friendliness to meet consumers' changing needs."
In addition to materials, innovative technology has also driven the transformation of manufacturing methods in the textile industry from manual to automated, and data-driven development is a new trend in the development of the textile industry. Chen Zuheng said that through data, enterprises can real-time understand the latest situation of required orders and materials, as well as upgrade the automation level of the current industrial chain and improve efficiency. Thanks to the advantage of free data flow in Hong Kong, some traditional textile manufacturers in Hong Kong have completed a data-driven transformation. "Only by uncovering the opportunities brought by data can our competitiveness become higher and higher."
Of course, Hong Kong's "re industrialization" cannot be limited to the local area, nor is it a "one-on-one struggle" to build the entire industrial chain. Chen Zuheng believes that Hong Kong's biggest advantage lies in "one country, two systems". Only by comprehensively considering Hong Kong's "re industrialization" development in the national advanced manufacturing industry chain can we supplement our shortcomings in labor costs, scientific research achievements transformation, and product mass production, and leverage the synergistic effect of 1+1>2 to create a new engine for Hong Kong's development.
"Every industry, every city, and every country has its own development model in different times." Chen Zuheng added that although Hong Kong is currently facing challenges from changes in the global political and economic environment, there are also "opportunities" brought about by the positioning of the country's "eight major centers" and the construction of the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area. In the face of changes in the external environment, Hong Kong's manufacturing industry needs to make use of its geographical advantage of "relying on the motherland and connecting with the world", shifting from passive adaptation to active pursuit of change, and developing itself.