SHANGHAI, July 5 (Xinhua) -- As Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed enhancing the synergy between "Made in China 2025" and Germany's "Industry 4.0", a project showcasing the alignment is under construction in Chengdu, southwest China.
Scheduled to be inaugurated in October this year, the i4.0 innovative technology center will feature several Industry 4.0 production lines built by the German-based drive and control company Bosch Rexroth, which will help achieve intelligent manufacturing for the major auto manufacturing base in western China.
Lau Fowai, Bosch Rexroth China managing director, said the cooperation with Chengdu is a "steady step" by the company in promoting Made in China 2025.
Lau also expressed optimism toward the connecting of Industry 4.0 with China's manufacturing improvement campaign in the Chinese market.
In early June, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in his speech at the China-Germany Forum in Berlin that the two countries should speed up efforts to synergize their development strategies and roll out more pilot projects.
He hailed a jointly built Industry 4.0 demonstration production line in northeast China's Shenyang as a concrete result of cooperation between Made in China 2025 and Industry 4.0.
Another successful example of cooperation is China's home appliance manufacturer Midea Group's takeover of German robot maker Kuka earlier this year.
The two countries are also making progress in jointly exploring third-party markets.
Metro trains jointly developed by CRRC and Siemens have been sold in the United States, Brazil and other countries.
The synergy of Made in China 2025 and Industry 4.0 is benefiting industries and research institutes in both countries, according to Chinese Ambassador to Germany Shi Mingde.
China and Germany share a common stance on major issues, and their cooperation is playing an increasingly positive role in the world, Shi said.
Observers are also curious about how the two countries will forge ahead such alignment and unleash the greater potential of the mutually beneficial cooperation during President Xi's state visit to Germany and the 12th G20 summit in Hamburg this week.
Xi said in a signed article published Tuesday in mainstream German media that China and Germany need to enhance strategic synergy between Made in China 2025 and Industry 4.0 with a pioneering, innovative, open and inclusive approach, foster an investment environment of two-way openness and fair competition, deepen practical cooperation in such fields as innovation, the Internet, smart manufacturing, finance, energy, environmental protection and green development, and expand cooperation in third markets.
He also proposed stepping up cooperation within the Belt and Road Initiative and jointly contributing to the security, stability and prosperity of countries along the routes.
Zhang Haibing, a researcher with the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, said that he expects deepening China-Germany economic and trade cooperation will contribute to better global economic governance.
China's calls for the building of an open world economy and pursuing innovative development also coincide with the popular opinions among Germans, Zhang said.
Amid the current international situation, with the Brexit and the rise of far-right politics and populism, the two countries share a common stance on major global issues, such as the embracing of economic globalization and multilateralism, opposition of trade protectionism and commitment to Paris climate agreement, according to Shi.
