BOE organically screens out the competition in panels

An assembly line of the 8.5 generation TFT-LCD products of BOE Technology Group Co in the Cloud Valley in southeastern Beijing. Provided to China Daily

"Once the assembly line starts operation, it's like turning on a bank note printing machine."

That was how the vice-president of Beijing-based BOE Technology Group Co, Zhang Yu, described the optimistic outlook of his company. And he has a reason for saying so.

China's largest flat panel manufacturer, BOE is expected to make profits of 2 billion yuan ($328.4 million) this year, a huge jump from last year's 258 million yuan, after it recovered from a decade long recession that killed off or damaged other companies in the panel industry.

To maintain the momentum, Zhang said the company is planning to roll out its most advanced assembly line producing organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) in Ordos, in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

"With this OLED assembly line, we would be able to top other companies in terms of technology in the industry in China," Zhang said. "And if everything goes well, we will be among the world's top three display giants by 2015."

Previously, South Korea's LG Display announced it had become the world's first display manufacturer to begin mass production of OLED panels.

Ordos' assembly line will become China's first plant and the world's second to deliver mass production of flexible OLED products for smartphones.

Zhang explained the new technology puts the OLED panels on plastic substratas, instead of glass ones, which gives them flexibility and makes the displays more durable under impact than traditional glass screens.

In addition, its cost of raw materials is 70 percent lower than the traditional thin film transistor-liquid crystal displays.

"The market for OLED is expected to grow very quickly because it will fulfill the requirements of automotive displays, tablets and wearable devices."

In addition to the upcoming plant in Ordos, BOE also boasts another seven production lines of TFT-LCD products, ranging from generation 4.5 to generation 8.5.

Higher generation of assembly lines is expected to produce larger panels and generate more profits.

"The panel industry is an industry for the wealthy," said Zhang, looking back to the past when the company was enduring a recession in recent years.