The calla lily-shaped landmark of Optics Valley of China is seen as night falls. [Photo/WeChat account of Optics Valley of China]

Campaign in domestic laser industry

The East Lake High-tech Development Zone in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province, is the birth place of China's first optical fiber for practical purposes and first optical transmission system, as well as China's largest fiber laser, and is therefore known as Optics Valley of China, or OVC.

To date, OVC has been home to more than 200 laser enterprises, nearly 4,300 national high-tech companies, and 502 gazelle firms.

Among them, HGTECH – the first laser-based high-tech company to go public in China – has amplified China's voice in the international laser industry. "We tried to buy technologies from overseas, but we failed," said Ma Xinqiang, president of HGTECH. The company then developed an independent R&D mechanism and recruited high-end talent to overcome a series of technological bottlenecks. Now its advanced laser equipment is applied in many strategic emerging sectors as well as State-level industrial projects.

"Enterprises cannot fight alone, but must join their corresponding industrial cluster," said Wang Jiangang, vice general manager of Wuhan HGLaser Engineering Co, who believes that the rivalries among cities are not only in industrial scales, output and population, but also in industrial chain layout. The ability to provide relevant policies to support the rapid development of industrial clusters is therefore pivotal.

In this regard, OVC released its 10 golden policies for its laser industry in March, establishing a 10-billion-yuan ($1.38 billion) development fund for the industry, and encouraging enterprises to make technological innovations, accelerate technology commercialization, launch acquisition activities, and increase investments.

Now many OVC enterprises shine across China's optoelectronic information landscape, including CICT, HGTECH, YOFC, Guide Infrared, TCL, and Xiaomi. The valley currently occupies 60 percent of the domestic optoelectronic device market, and 50 percent of the domestic laser equipment market. Its sales of optical fibers and optical cables rank first in the world.

Stepping on one of OVC's pedestrian streets is like entering a fairy tale. [Photo/WeChat account of Optics Valley of China]

Talents flock to OVC for innovative mechanisms

OVC took the initiative in China to promote a talent registration system and a dynamic talent assessment and integrating system by establishing a comprehensive quantified talent model to identify and evaluate high-end personnel at all levels in a brand-new manner. So far, a total of 11,000 talents have been registered in the valley.

In 2021, OVC's permanent population reached 1.18 million, tripling that of 2010. Meanwhile, it managed to retain over 110,000 college graduates in Wuhan last year.