Robotics revolution leads Hebei's innovation push

Primary school students take part in a physical education program in Langfang, that highlights scholastic achievements. (Wang Xiao/Xinhua)

Welcome to the restaurant of the future. In an eatery in Tangshan, Hebei province, a staff member taps on a screen to confirm the order — muxurou — and then places the preprepared ingredients of eggs, pork and wood-ear mushrooms into their designated slots. A robot chef gets to work swiftly and silently and within a couple of minutes, a steaming plate of the classic stir-fry is ready.

"This is the future of dining, where technology meets tradition in the most delicious way," said Wang Chengyong, general manager of Gaoshan Hebei Intelligent Technology Co, the seller of the robotic chefs.

The robots are capable of preparing over 1,000 recipes from eight major Chinese cuisines as well as regional specialties, Wang said.

After tasting the muxurou — pork fried with black wood-ear mushrooms, cucumber and scrambled eggs — a diner at the restaurant commented: "It tastes great. I can't even tell it was cooked by a robot. The only thing is, it's a bit too salty for me."

"Next time, we can adjust the seasoning," Wang promised, adding that the amount of seasoning dispensed can be customized to suit individual tastes.

"This is more convenient, faster and reassuring than ordering takeout," said Wang, adding that these robots will not only be used in restaurants in the future, but can also be helpful in public places like vending machines.

The cooking robot is just one of the many kinds of robots being manufactured or used in Tangshan. In the city's Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone, there are 200 robot-related companies in operation, making it the most concentrated area for the robotics industry in the northern province.

"We have established a robot industry cluster, integrating research and development, production and services into one cohesive unit," said Dong Xuezhong, director of the Management Committee of the Tangshan Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone.

Members of the diplomatic corps select products at a Spring Festival event in Langfang, Hebei, on Jan 23. (Photo/Xinhua)

Multiple applications

According to Dong, the robots produced in Tangshan are of various types and are widely used across multiple domains. There are industrial robots, specialized robots and service robots, among others, all playing a significant role in the domestic market.

For example, CITIC HIC Kaicheng Intelligence Equipment Co can produce over 50 varieties of robots that are widely used in more than 30 industries, including intelligent mining, petrochemicals and emergency rescue. The company has been in the top tier of China's special robotics industry for several consecutive years.

"The robots we produce can replace or assist humans in high-risk environments, significantly enhancing safety and efficiency," said Wang Zhijiang, head of the company's publicity department.

Wang added that in emergency situations, their robots can enter dangerous areas to perform tasks like firefighting and search-and-rescue operations, reducing the possibility of casualties. "They can also operate in complex mining environments, conducting underground exploration and inspection tasks to ensure the safety of miners," he said.

"The robot is a generalized concept, referring to mechanical devices or artificial intelligence systems capable of autonomously performing tasks," said Yang Shengwei, general manager of Hebei Glasssix Intelligent Technologies Co, an AI company from Beijing.

It was Hebei's sound industrial chains that attracted Yang's company to set up shop in Tangshan. In March 2023, the Beijing-based Glasssix registered a company in Tangshan, translating and applying the capital's research achievements in the neighboring city, which is about 150 kilometers southeast of downtown Beijing.

"Our business has a high degree of integration with many industries in Tangshan, such as the steel sector. Moreover, the robot industry ecosystem here is relatively complete with sound supporting facilities and policies, which is beneficial for our development," Yang said.

A visitor samples a drink at the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei time-honored brands exhibition in Shijiazhuang, Hebei, on Nov 30. (Photo/Xinhua)

Shared factory

According to Yang, their AI metallurgical visual inspection systems have been applied in multiple production bases of HBIS Group Co in Tangshan, a leading iron and steel manufacturer headquartered in Shijiazhuang, the province's capital city.

"It has successfully helped the company achieve real-time surface quality inspection and contour measurement of steel at high temperatures, greatly improving the efficiency of quality inspections," he said.

"Some of the systems' standardized modules were manufactured in a local shared manufacturing factory in Tangshan, thus truly integrating R&D in Beijing and transformation in Hebei," Yang said.

The shared factory is the Robotic Shared Intelligent Manufacturing Factory, a unique entity in the province, which provides full life-cycle services for enterprises, including technology, equipment, logistics and aftersales support.

"It offers services such as prototype trial production, custom parts machining, and initial product manufacturing for robot companies, universities and research institutes, helping small and medium-sized enterprises improve efficiency and reduce costs," said Wang Mengzhao, who is in charge of the shared factory, which was initiated and is operated by Tangshan Baichuan Intelligent Machine Co.

According to Wang, the shared factory has been a boon for cutting-edge research achievements because it consolidates all the processes required post-R&D, including procurement and processing.

"These are precisely the elements that can assist universities and research institutions in transforming their research results, thereby driving collaborative innovation in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region," Wang said.

He added that the shared factory itself is an innovation, with a key focus on translating innovative research outcomes into practical applications.

"It plays a crucial role in fostering a more vibrant innovation ecosystem for collaborative development in the region, rather than solely aiming for revenue generation," he said.

Since the factory was established last year, 12 universities and research institutes from Beijing and Tianjin, including Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, have collaborated with the shared factory to translate their research achievements.

"Collaborative innovation is a crucial driving force for leading high-quality regional development," Wang said.

Economic integration

Since 2014, Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei have grown under a major regional strategy — the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. The region, along with the Yangtze River Delta and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, is one of the three major driving forces leading the nation's high-quality development.

"Economic integration is the core of regional integrated development, while industrial collaboration constitutes the substantive content," said Luo Jing, a researcher with the Hebei Macroeconomic Research Institute.

She added that the significant development disparities within the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region are primarily due to misalignments and disconnections in industrial development.

"Accelerating industrial synergy in the region is of great significance for promoting the efficient allocation and free flow of regional factors, fostering complementary advantages, enhancing the overall strength of the industrial chain in the region, and jointly building a world-class advanced manufacturing cluster," she said.

According to the Hebei Development and Reform Commission, the industrial connections within the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region are becoming increasingly close.

Currently, six key industrial chains are being jointly developed — hydrogen energy, new energy and intelligent connected vehicles, biopharmaceuticals, cybersecurity and industrial internet, high-end industrial equipment, and robotics.

Among them, robotics, and new energy and intelligent connected vehicles are led by Hebei based on its solid industrial foundation.

Hebei's contract turnover for absorbing technology from Beijing and Tianjin in 2024 increased by 34.8 percent year-on-year, according to the commission.

"One of the achievements of Hebei's vigorous promotion of collaborative innovation in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region is that the province's overall capacity to absorb and transform scientific and technological achievements from Beijing and Tianjin has continued to rise," the shared manufacturing factory's leader Wang Mengzhao said.

This is consistent with the strategic requirements.

A large number of top-tier universities and high-end research talent in the region provide a solid foundation and strong capabilities for innovation. Central authorities underlined that it is essential to strengthen collaborative innovation and industrial cooperation, as well as establish new models of industry-academia-research collaboration, to enhance efficiency and proportion of scientific and technological achievements in the region.

Hebei has collaborated with universities, research institutions and key enterprises in Beijing and Tianjin to jointly establish a number of industrial innovation consortiums and innovation platforms.