Jiangsu Dasheng Group Co's intelligent spinnery. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the opening up of coastal port cities in China, including Nantong in Jiangsu province.

From an industrial star city in China at the dawn of the reform and opening up process to a renowned modern industrial city today, Nantong, Jiangsu province has leveraged its solid industrial foundation to build advanced industrial clusters.

In 2023, the city ranked 12th in China in terms of the high-quality development of the manufacturing industry, with the output of industries above designated size reaching 1.37 trillion yuan ($189.11 billion).

By the end of 2023, the number of industrial enterprises above designated size in the city totaled 6,878, accounting for 10.9 percent of the province's total.

An official from the Nantong municipal bureau of industry and information technology noted that the city will continue upgrading its traditional industries such as chemical engineering, textiles and mechanical engineering, focus on emerging industries such as new-generation information technology and new materials, and formulate the layout for future industries.

Nantong has successfully transitioned from light industry-driven development to a city with six industrial clusters valued at 100 billion yuan, namely, shipbuilding and marine engineering, high-end textiles, new materials, new-generation information technology, high-end equipment, and new energy.

In 2023, the output value of the six industrial clusters exceeded 100 billion yuan and in the first quarter of this year, their output jumped 9.5 percent from the previous year.

The textile industry is a typical labor-intensive industry, while Jiangsu Dasheng Group Co in Nantong has established the first intelligent spinnery in China, realizing online monitoring of production, automatic delivery and packaging, and intelligent warehouse management.

Dasheng's path to high-end, intelligent, and eco-friendly development is an embodiment of Nantong's efforts to upgrade traditional industries, strengthen emerging industries, and set foot in future industries.

The city has been fostering new quality productive forces with intelligent manufacturing and innovation.