By Zhong Nan

China's centrally-administered State-owned enterprises must accelerate the growth pace of developing competitive industrial clusters and intelligent manufacturing through creating a source of original technology to further support the real economy, a senior government official said.

An advanced manufacturing cluster refers to an industrial grouping formed by many companies and institutions in proximity that carry out cooperation and exchanges. It is an advanced form of industrial division of labor and agglomeration development, and is part of China's push to pursue high-quality development of manufacturing.

Central SOEs must seize the opportunities from the development of advanced manufacturing industries, and demonstrate their scale advantages in service and integration of the new growth pattern, said Weng Jieming, vice-chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council. He made his comments during the China Smart Manufacturing Brand Forum on Monday.

The event, jointly held by the News Center of the SASAC and China Railway Group Ltd, known as CREC in Beijing, has attracted 22 central SOEs, including China National Nuclear Corp, China State Shipbuilding Corp and the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, to participate in a large-scale exhibition set next to the forum.

State firms must focus on the demand of China's strategically important and most acclaimed industries, and tackle industrial development bottlenecks. They are expected to make breakthroughs in core technologies, such as core electronic components and industrial software, and other high-end machinery, Weng said.

Chen Yun, CREC's chairman, said the group will deploy more resources and manpower to make breakthroughs in cutting-edge technologies, including the development of smart high-speed railroads, smart highways and smart cities, as well as equipment manufacturing in the coming years. They also will promote the practical application of new technologies in the development of key national projects.

In addition to exporting tunnel-boring machines, shaft boring machines, cutting tools and spare parts to 25 countries, such as Peru, Israel, Poland, Italy and Georgia, Chen said China Railway Engineering Equipment Group Co Ltd, a CREC subsidiary, has started to supply tunnel-boring machines in April to its French client for a subway project in Paris, marking the entry of Chinese tunnel-boring machine products into the world's high-end market after fierce competition.

Central SOEs' goals of strengthening industrial and supply chains during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) will help drive high-quality development of the manufacturing sector and nurture strategic, emerging industries, said Zhou Lisha, a researcher with the research institute of SASAC.