Shipbuilding yard of Qidong COSCO Shipping in Nantong. [Photo provided to en.nantong.gov.cn]

Nantong, Jiangsu province, has added six companies to the list of national-level excellent smart factories for 2026, bringing its cumulative total to the highest in Jiangsu, according to a public notice released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on Oct 19.

The six companies are Dangsheng Technology, Tiancheng Technology Group, Tongguang Electronic Wire and Cable, Jianghai Capacitor, Xingchen Synthetic Materials and Qidong COSCO Shipping. Nantong ranked third among China's prefecture-level cities in terms of the number of new additions.

The city has also made progress in building a tiered smart factory system. This year, it added 214 provincial-level advanced smart factories and 1,451 basic-level smart factories, strengthening its efforts to become a national model for industrial intelligence.

Nantong has steadily advanced the digital transformation, intelligent upgrading and network integration of its manufacturing sector. It launched a three-year action plan in 2022, followed by a further action plan in 2025 and an initiative to integrate artificial intelligence into manufacturing in 2026.

To date, the city has implemented more than 20,000 transformation projects and built 351 provincial-level advanced smart factories, ranking third in Jiangsu. It has also been selected for two national pilot programs focused on digital transformation for small and medium-sized enterprises and technological upgrading in manufacturing.

These initiatives have helped improve production and management efficiency, supporting sustained industrial growth. Over the past five years, the value added of industrial enterprises above designated size in Nantong grew at an average annual rate of 8.7 percent. From January to September, it rose 7.8 percent year-on-year, the second-highest growth rate in Jiangsu.