Permettetemi di iniziare con una chiara spiegazione del motivo per cui ho scritto questa serie "Industry Viewing".

??Strengthening the city through industry has been the development concept of Wuxi since the “Thirteenth Five-Year Plan”. How fast has the industry, especially the high-tech industry, developed in these critical five years? What "two brushes" does Wuxi have that are good at home and even internationally?

??I believe everyone will understand it from different perspectives, but it may not be clear and accurate.

Alla fine dello scorso anno, il segretario del Comitato municipale del Partito, Huang Qin, ha proposto durante la sessione plenaria del Comitato municipale del Partito di "rafforzare la fiducia per vincere come 'avanguardia'", elencando una serie di cluster di industrie manifatturiere avanzate del valore di centinaia di miliardi, come circuiti integrati, Internet delle cose, motori aeronautici e turbine a gas, ecc., che sono davvero "incredibili" per il paese!

L'autore desidera semplicemente presentare ai lettori le informazioni più recenti e di prima mano attraverso interviste, e individuare alcuni settori rappresentativi.

??▲The picture shows the schematic diagram of the Taihu Bay Science and Technology Innovation Zone, which embodies the hope of Wuxi becoming an industrially strong city and leaping to a new energy level.

Un'analisi approfondita è assolutamente da non perdere! Se non riesci a finire di leggere subito, puoi toccare i tre puntini nell'angolo in alto a destra e poi i due puntini nella seconda riga delle "finestre fluttuanti". Anche se torni all'interfaccia principale di WeChat, puoi cliccare sui due puntini nell'angolo in alto a sinistra per continuare a leggere in qualsiasi momento.

La forza determina lo status nel mondo

Andiamo dritti al punto. Parliamo innanzitutto dell'industria dei circuiti integrati di Wuxi.

??I wonder if you readers have noticed such a set of data——

Il segretario del Comitato del Partito Municipale, Huang Qin, ha menzionato la questione durante la sessione plenaria del Comitato del Partito Municipale tenutasi alla fine del 2020."L'industria dei circuiti integrati è la seconda per dimensioni nel paese.", Mayor Du Xiaogang mentioned in the 2021 Wuxi Two Sessions Government Work Report"The output value of the integrated circuit industry has increased to 135 billion yuan, ranking among the top in the country."

La diffusione dei dati è sempre avvenuta in sordina, ma gli esperti sanno che queste due dichiarazioni hanno un peso notevole!

??What is the concept of 135 billion yuan? What is its position in the country?

Secondo le stime preliminari dell'Associazione cinese dell'industria dei semiconduttori, nonostante l'impatto dell'epidemia nella prima metà di quest'anno, l'industria cinese dei circuiti integrati ha mantenuto una rapida crescita. Si prevede che il valore della produzione annua raggiungerà gli 876.6 miliardi di yuan, con un aumento del 15.92% rispetto all'anno precedente.

??In 2018, Wuxi became the second city in the country after Shanghai with an integrated circuit output value of 100 billion. In 2020, it increased by 26% compared with 2019.

??If numbers are still too abstract, let’s look at specific “shapes”. First, we need to popularize the three components of the integrated circuit industry chain. Don't talk nonsense, just look at the pictures.

▲Schematic diagram of the integrated circuit industry chain

Nelle parole di Huang Anjun, segretario generale dell'Associazione dell'industria dei semiconduttori di Wuxi e vicepresidente di Huahong Semiconductor (Wuxi) Co., Ltd.:At present, there are only two cities in China that have a relatively complete integrated circuit industry chain, one is Shanghai and the other is our Wuxi.

??Wuxi’s industrial scale rankings in the three major links of the industrial chain are as follows——

Design - quarto posto nel paese (preceduto da Shenzhen, Shanghai e Pechino);

??Manufacturing - third in the country (first in Xi'an, second in Shanghai);

??Packaging and testing—No. 1 in the country (including Changdian Technology ranking third in the world).

▲The picture shows the statistics of Wuxi Semiconductor Industry Association

??Being sought after by the capital market is also a good indication of industrial strength. Zhuosheng Micro (the king of technology stocks), China Resources Micro (the first red chip stock), Xinpeng Micro (power management), Xinjieneng (power devices), etc. have been listed one after another. There are also a number of powerful companies such as Lixin Micro, Hongguang Microelectronics, Zhonggan Micro and Silicon Power, which are planning to go public, forming the "Wuxi phenomenon" of listed semiconductor companies.

??Zhuosheng Micro, which is well-known among investors, is a chip design company that went public in June 2019. After its listing, it ushered in the bottom rebound of the semiconductor industry cycle and ushered in the first year of 5G infrastructure in 2020. After its listing, its stock price increased by nearly 1,600% in 6 months, creating a miracle in the Chinese stock market.

▲L'immagine mostra i dati sulla competitività elaborati dal “Core Thinking Research Institute”

??Wuxi Semiconductor Industry Association compared five data of Wuxi integrated circuit industry in 2017 and 2020 and it can be seen that——

(1) Il numero di grandi progetti che superano i 10 miliardi è aumentato da 1 a 4;

??(2) The number of regulated enterprises increased from 107 to 139;

??(3) Il numero delle società quotate è aumentato da 3 a 8;

??(4) The number of employees increases from 50,000 to 85,000;

??(5) Il valore della produzione è aumentato da 89 miliardi a 135 miliardi (classificandosi al secondo posto nel paese).

??There must be profound reasons behind the rapid development of Wuxi's integrated circuit industry in the "Thirteenth Five-Year Plan".

??Dal "Tredicesimo Piano Quinquennale", il Comitato del Partito Comunista e il Governo della città di Wuxi hanno attuato con vigore la strategia centrale orientata all'innovazione e la strategia cittadina di rafforzamento dell'industria, hanno proposto di rivitalizzare l'industria dei semiconduttori e introdotto una serie di politiche di incoraggiamento e sostegno pertinenti.

??◎ 2018, "Pareri politici sul continuo sostegno allo sviluppo dell'industria dei circuiti integrati";

??◎ 2019, "Opinions on Further Deepening Modern Industrial Development Policies";

??◎ 2020, "Piano di sviluppo dell'industria 5G di Wuxi (2020-2025)".

??The current implementation results are outstanding. During this period, major projects exceeding 10 billion including Huahong Wuxi, Hynix Phase II, Yixing Central and Haichen Semiconductor started construction one after another.

??In September 2019, the 12-inch production line of Huahong Wuxi Project (Phase I) was completed and put into production ahead of schedule. This project is one of the major industrial projects in Wuxi City’s “13th Five-Year Plan” and is also the largest single investment industrial project in Wuxi’s history.

??In April 2019, Hynix Phase II was completed and put into production ahead of schedule, becoming the world's most technologically advanced 10-nanometer DRAM product production base.

??In September 2019, Yixing Zhonghuan’s leading 8-inch silicon wafer production workshop realized trial production ahead of schedule, filling my country’s gap in the field of silicon wafers for large-size integrated circuits.

Haichen Semiconductor è stata ufficialmente completata e messa in produzione il 12 dicembre 2020. La capacità produttiva totale raggiungerà le 115,000 unità al mese, un valore nettamente superiore alla produzione media mensile delle altre linee di produzione di semiconduttori da 8 pollici, sia in Cina che all'estero (50,000 unità al mese).

▲The picture shows a view of Huahong Wuxi exhibition space

??In addition to having policies in place, Wuxi’s profound foundation in the integrated circuit industry is also a major advantage.

??Wuxi is the region where my country's integrated circuit industry started earliest, and the country's first very large-scale integrated circuit was born here.

??Wuxi's integrated circuit industry foundation, talent reserve and awareness concept mainly benefit from the national microelectronics "908" project implemented in Wuxi during the "Eighth Five-Year Plan" period. Huajing Company has trained a group of the earliest integrated circuit industry talents in China.

??It is understood that there are still a large number of "Huajing people" who continue to struggle in important positions in the integrated circuit industry at home and abroad, and are hailed by the industry as the "Whampoa Military Academy" for Chinese integrated circuit talents.

Un altro fattore importante non può non essere menzionato:L'industria dei circuiti integrati è nota come "industria di punta", il che illustra chiaramente il ruolo chiave della visione, del coraggio e della responsabilità dei leader di vertice nello sviluppo del settore.

??In different historical stages of development, Wuxi’s changes in leadership level and title (from the leader of the Wuxi IC Industry Leading Group to the Wuxi IC Industry Chain Leader), which focuses on the integrated circuit industry, reflect the different meanings and also reveal the internal reasons for the rapid development of Wuxi’s integrated circuit industry.

Nel 2020, Huang Qin, Segretario del Comitato del Partito Comunista Cinese di Wuxi, ha ricoperto personalmente il ruolo di leader della filiera dei circuiti integrati, a dimostrazione dell'importanza che Wuxi attribuisce allo sviluppo di alta qualità del settore. Ciò indica che la filiera dei circuiti integrati di Wuxi si svilupperà in una direzione più concentrata, completa, estesa e radicata.

Le opportunità arrivano sempre a chi è preparato

Lo sviluppo e la maturità di un settore non possono nascere dal nulla. Ciò è particolarmente vero per l'industria dei circuiti integrati. Il patrimonio industriale, le riserve di talenti e i concetti di consapevolezza,Wuxi is gifted, smart and diligent, and has seized a series of opportunities., diamo un'occhiata ad alcuni importanti nodi di sviluppo——

??In 1977, the linear integrated circuit production line for color TV sets was established in Wuxi

??In 1986, it was designated by the country as the Southern Microelectronics Base (Wuxi, Shanghai); China's first semiconductor research and production complex; China's first ultra-large-scale 64K DRAM integrated circuit was successfully trial-produced

??In 1989, China Huajing Electronics Group Corporation was established

??In 1990, the National Microelectronics 908 Project was implemented

??In 2000, one of the first seven integrated circuit design industrialization bases in the country

??In 2006, Wuxi Hynix Semiconductor officially put into production

??In 2015, Changdian Technology acquired Singapore’s STATS ChipPAC

Nel giugno 2017, Hynix ha avviato la costruzione del secondo stabilimento, che è entrato ufficialmente in produzione nell'aprile 2019.

Nel dicembre 2017, Yixing Zhonghuan ha avviato la costruzione del suo principale progetto per la produzione di wafer di silicio di grandi dimensioni, che è entrato ufficialmente in produzione nel settembre 2019.

??In April 2018, Huahong Wuxi started construction and was completed and put into production in September 2019.

??In 2018, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology approved Wuxi’s construction of a national “Xinhuo” mass entrepreneurship and innovation base.

Nel 2020, il Ministero dell'Industria e dell'Informatica ha approvato la creazione, da parte di Huajin Semiconductor Packaging Leading Technology R&D Center Co., Ltd., del Centro Nazionale per l'Innovazione nei Processi Caratteristici, nell'Imballaggio e nel Collaudo dei Circuiti Integrati.

??……

??Here, the author sorts out several "milestones" based on research -

La fabbrica "742" introduce la linea di produzione giapponese

In early 1977, the country was preparing to introduce linear integrated circuit production lines for color TVs from Japan. Wuxi's "742" factory finally won the competition among many parties and built a professional factory specializing in the production of TV integrated circuits and a trial factory for MOS and bipolar integrated circuits. It has an annual output of 26 million pieces of 11 types of linear integrated circuits for color TVs.

??In 1987, Wuxi's annual output of integrated circuits reached 30 million units, accounting for nearly 40% of the national output.

Later, due to the implementation of the "908" project, integrated circuit-related industries developed rapidly in Wuxi. Wuxi's integrated circuit design industry, manufacturing, packaging and testing industry, supporting equipment and materials industry and other fields have always maintained domestic leading advantages. Dozens of design, packaging, testing, equipment, materials and service companies related to integrated circuit production have gradually been established in Wuxi and surrounding areas, as well as along the river and Shanghai-Nanjing line in the province. Wuxi is known as the "cradle" of my country's integrated circuit industry.

▲L'immagine mostra la Huajing Company, che ha lasciato un segno indelebile nella memoria degli abitanti di Wuxi.

??Changdian Technology merges with STATS ChipPAC

??After this battle, Wuxi's integrated circuit industry chain has become the largest in China and the third in the world, a truly multinational company.

La Changdian Technology Company, con sede a Jiangyin, era originariamente una piccola fabbrica produttrice di transistor sull'orlo del fallimento. Grazie all'innovazione tecnologica, è diventata leader nazionale in singoli settori e, in meno di 30 anni, si è posizionata tra le migliori al mondo.

In October 2015, when the international financial crisis broke out, Changdian Technology seized the opportunity, invested 260 million yuan and raised 780 million yuan through leverage, and in one fell swoop acquired half of the equity of Singapore's STATS ChipPAC, which was in trouble with a broken capital chain.

Dopo una lotta tra capitali e management, Changdian ha raggiunto l'obiettivo di raddoppiare il proprio patrimonio totale in un quinto del tempo previsto inizialmente. Le sue capacità di ricerca e sviluppo e di innovazione sono state qualitativamente migliorate e ha acquisito un ampio numero di clienti di prim'ordine, tra cui le 20 principali aziende di semiconduttori al mondo.

??After the merger, Changdian Technology has 7 production bases and 6 R&D centers in China, Singapore, South Korea, and the United States. Each of them has a clear positioning: the Singapore base is responsible for wafer-level high-end packaging and testing, the Korean base focuses on SIP system integration, Suqian and Chuzhou are positioned as low-cost production bases for discrete devices, and the headquarters is a production base for mid-to-high-end products.

??This process of small and large expansion has been described by the media as a "snake swallows the elephant" type merger. However, according to the 2014 global packaging foundry rankings, STATS ChipPAC's sales were US$1.58 billion, ranking fourth in the world, while JCET's sales were US$1.05 billion, ranking sixth in the world. It was already very powerful at the time.

▲The picture shows the production scene of Changdian Technology

??Huahong Wuxi project was completed and put into operation

??This project is one of the major industrial projects in Wuxi City’s “Thirteenth Five-Year Plan” and is also the largest single investment industrial project in Wuxi’s history.

??On August 2, 2017, Huahong Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the Wuxi Municipal Government. The Huahong Group's integrated circuit R&D and manufacturing base project with a total investment of approximately US$10 billion was officially settled in Wuxi High-tech Zone.

Il progetto si estende su una superficie di circa 700 acri, con un investimento di 2.5 miliardi di dollari nella prima fase. Prevede la costruzione di una nuova linea di produzione di circuiti integrati da 12 pollici con un processo produttivo di 90-65 nanometri e una capacità produttiva mensile di circa 40,000 pezzi, a supporto di applicazioni in settori emergenti come il 5G e l'Internet delle cose.

??On September 17, 2019, the project was completed and put into production, becoming the country's most advanced specialty process production line, the country's first 12-inch power device OEM production line, and the first independently controllable 12-inch production line in Jiangsu Province.

??This project is of particularly great significance, not only because of its large scale, but more importantly, its driving role and agglomeration role, which is mainly reflected in three aspects -

??First, the terminal applications targeted by this unique process platform are 5G communications, Internet of Things, including power management IC and other fields, which is very consistent with Wuxi’s own industrial development positioning and direction;

In secondo luogo, dopo la creazione delle aziende produttrici di chip, le aziende di progettazione, di confezionamento e collaudo, di apparecchiature, di materiali e altre ancora formeranno un effetto di agglomerazione sempre più forte;

??Third, the industrial chains of Shanghai and Tin are perfectly connected. The layout of the chip industry in the Yangtze River Delta region is not only connected, but also scattered.

▲The picture shows the interior of Huahong Wuxi

??Zhonghuan’s leading large silicon wafer project starts construction

??This is another major breakthrough for Wuxi in the integrated circuit industry after the Huahong Wuxi production line was completed and put into production. The development pattern of the entire industry chain with "raw materials in Yixing, chip manufacturing in urban areas, and packaging and testing in Jiangyin" has gradually become clear.

L'industria dei circuiti integrati rappresenta un vertice della competizione strategica globale. I materiali semiconduttori, in quanto pietra angolare dell'intero settore, svolgono un ruolo di supporto fondamentale per il suo sviluppo.

??Large-diameter silicon wafers are the main raw material for manufacturing integrated circuits. For a long time, my country has relied almost entirely on imports of large-size silicon wafers above 8 inches. Domestic manufacturers are limited to small-scale trial production, which is far from meeting domestic market demand.

??To this end, Zhonghuan Co., Ltd. has integrated the superior resources of Tianjin, Inner Mongolia and Wuxi to carry out a national industrial layout. This project "relentlessly" made up for a major shortcoming in Wuxi's integrated circuit industry, and also led to the gathering of supporting companies.

▲The picture shows the exterior view of Yixing Central

Il Centro nazionale per l'innovazione nella caratterizzazione dei processi, nell'imballaggio e nel collaudo dei circuiti integrati è stato istituito

È stata fondata sulla base della Jiangsu Huajin Semiconductor Packaging Research Center Co., Ltd., con sede a Wuxi, e tra i suoi azionisti figurano colossi del settore come Changdian Technology.

??This is the first national-level manufacturing innovation center in Wuxi and the first national innovation center in the new generation of information technology industry in Jiangsu Province.

Il Paese vuole accorciare l'ultimo passaggio, dal laboratorio al prodotto, nelle due fasi principali di produzione, confezionamento e collaudo. Questo, senza dubbio, darà un forte impulso a Wuxi a livello nazionale.

▲The picture shows the screenshot of the approval message from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology website

I've always been very good at temperament.

??The "Thirteenth Five-Year Plan" is the best period in the history of Wuxi's integrated circuit industry project construction. It has attracted a number of major projects with high technological content, great development potential, and strong driving effects, with a total investment of more than 25 billion US dollars.

??Among them, 3 major projects exceed 10 billion yuan. The projects are currently progressing smoothly, all are ahead of the original construction plan, and the construction results exceed expectations. They have set a model for the construction of major integrated circuit projects in Jiangsu and even the country.

Huang Anjun ha riassunto il concetto in una sola frase: Fai una cosa e portala a termine senza intoppi!

Quando parlo di "temperamento", intendo qualcosa di concreto, ovvero il contrasto con il "grande balzo in avanti" delle patatine fritte che si è verificato in alcune città negli ultimi anni.

??During the "Thirteenth Five-Year Plan" period, the average annual compound growth rate of sales of China's integrated circuit design industry reached 23.6%, which was nearly 6 times the average annual compound growth rate of the global semiconductor industry during the same period. The growth rate is quite impressive. The development momentum is improving, the technical level has been greatly improved, and the enterprise has accelerated its growth and expansion.

??But there are also some “weeds” in the overall “harvest.” "China Economic Weekly" reported that behind the national great leap forward in chip manufacturing, star chip projects in many places ended in failure, and the chips became "chip fraud", leaving a lot of chicken feathers.

La cosa ancora più strana è che esiste un sito web ufficiale della "Advanced Integrated Circuit Industry Research Institute Co., Ltd.". Gli utenti di internet lo hanno aperto e hanno scoperto che il fondatore è Andy Lau e che Aaron Kwok, Liming e Jacky Cheung sono i vicepresidenti. "I Quattro Re Celesti sono usciti allo scoperto, non per tenere un concerto, ma per produrre chip. È una cosa seria?", ha chiesto un utente.

Al momento della stesura di questo rapporto, nel 2020, sei grandi progetti nel settore dei semiconduttori, del valore di decine di miliardi di dollari, in tutto il paese risultavano sospesi o in difficoltà. Fatta eccezione per Wuhan Hongxin, che è troppo "famosa", l'autore non li nominerà uno per uno perché sono più subdoli...

??This triggered public opinion across the country and also attracted the attention of senior central officials. On October 20, 2020, the National Development and Reform Commission responded that "the chip project is unfinished."

Meng Wei, spokesperson of the National Development and Reform Commission, said that the enthusiasm for domestic investment in the integrated circuit industry continues to rise. Some "three-no" companies with no experience, no technology, and no talents have joined the integrated circuit industry. In some places, they do not have enough understanding of the laws of integrated circuit development and blindly embark on projects. The risk of low-level duplication of construction has emerged. There have even been cases where the construction of individual projects has stalled and factories have been vacant, resulting in a waste of resources.

??In view of the current chaos in the industry, the next step will be to focus on four aspects of work——Strengthen planning and layout, improve policy systems, establish prevention mechanisms, and consolidate the responsibilities of all parties. "Whoever supports, whoever is responsible".

??It’s not too late to make amends! I am especially grateful and proud of the actions of the successive Wuxi Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Governments that have been calm and pragmatic, made scientific decisions, and sought speed while maintaining stability.

??Aiming for “world-class”

??Entering a new round of development in the "14th Five-Year Plan", Wuxi has proposed: the short-term goal is to reach an industrial scale of 200 billion yuan in 2025, and the long-term goal is to become a domestic first-class and internationally renowned integrated circuit industry highland.

All'inizio di quest'anno, la spiegazione delle "Raccomandazioni del Comitato municipale di Wuxi del Partito Comunista Cinese sulla formulazione del Quattordicesimo Piano quinquennale per lo sviluppo economico e sociale nazionale di Wuxi e gli obiettivi a lungo termine per il 2035" ha proposto di migliorare il livello di modernizzazione della catena industriale, di aderire al controllo indipendente, alla sicurezza e all'efficienza e di approfondire il progetto "Creazione e integrazione della catena, Catena Forte, Catena Estesa" per accelerare la creazione di 10 catene industriali di riferimento come l'Internet delle Cose, i circuiti integrati, la biomedicina e le apparecchiature di fascia alta. La scala dei circuiti integrati, della biomedicina e di altri settori sarà raddoppiata e saranno formati numerosi cluster di produzione avanzata di livello mondiale per creare una base globale di produzione avanzata.

??▲The picture shows that on October 20, 2020, Xishan Economic and Technological Development Zone held the "'Core' Valley Sets Sail, 'Core' Moves Xishan" development zone integrated circuit industry project cooperation and exchange event. A total of 12 chip projects were signed and settled, including Huawei, Xiaomi ecological chain enterprise Hanxin Micro, ZTE and Huawei strategic partner Celtic, BOE and Xiaomi supplier Sea Whale Semiconductor, as well as MEMS sensor chip projects, surge protection chip projects, fully integrated transceiver chip projects for optical communications, etc.

??The ambition is clearly revealed. The author noticed a key word during the interview——"Industrial chain".

??Strengthening the industrial chain has been a goal that Wuxi has been striving for in recent years.

??Among the three links of the integrated circuit industry chain, the pressure on chip design and development is relatively high, and the competition it faces is also the strongest. How to break through?

??Huang Anjun believes that,The first is to win a bigger piece of the pie from existing stocks, and the second is to develop incremental growth in emerging fields..

La prima dovrebbe essere abile nello sfruttare il capitale finanziario per espandere rapidamente le proprie dimensioni attraverso acquisizioni e fusioni post-quotazione, cambiando l'attuale situazione di piccole dimensioni e frammentazione e formando diversi "grandi attori"; la seconda dovrebbe entrare attivamente in settori emergenti come il 5G, l'intelligenza artificiale, l'Internet delle cose, la guida autonoma e le nuove energie.

??Talent issues are also a key factor that may restrict the potential of industrial development. Wuxi, especially, has insufficient reserves of high-end talents.

??Wuxi has introduced a series of policies and measures to attract talents, but related supporting policies need to be further strengthened and reformed to truly attract and retain talents. It is reported that governments at the municipal and district levels are about to introduce a new version of the integrated circuit talent policy. Wuxi's integrated circuit industry thrives because of talents, and the city will surely become a world-class "Silicon Valley" because of talents.