Digital tech fuels manufacturing growth in Yangtze River Delta

HANGZHOU/NANJING — At an electronics workshop in the Yangtze River Delta region, automated machines follow computer programs, with one directing a storage system for materials. Soon, a one-meter-tall robot is ready to deliver the necessary components.

"Several major production lines in our factory have achieved automated workflows throughout the production process, and we will continue to expand them," said Ge Yongming, director of digital and intelligent operation at Suzhou Good-Ark Electronics Co Ltd, in East China's Jiangsu province. As he spoke, several small logistics robots bustled along the production line behind him.

Covering a large range of products, Good-Ark Electronics has more than 100,000 kinds of materials needed for production, most of which are components, such as diodes, that measure a few millimeters in length. The challenge of accurately storing and dispatching thousands of materials during production prompted Good-Ark Electronics to initiate a new round of digital upgrades in 2022.

However, there was no existing automated conveyor system for millimeters-long electronic components. Good-Ark Electronics and its partners had to invent a special, customized digital production line.

Stereoscopic warehouse, collaborative robotic arms, automated roller lines … Customizing automated production lines requires many equipment suppliers, but it's convenient for Good-Ark Electronics because all the required manufacturers can be found in the same industrial park.

"Initially, we had no idea what the final production line would look like. When we came up with an idea, we would share it and go to each other's factory to check the feasibility in front of the equipment, and we ended up refining it for almost two years before it took shape," Ge said.