Jiaozhou has solidified its position as a manufacturing powerhouse by nurturing a robust ecosystem of specialized industry clusters. In July, the Shandong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology unveiled the 2026 list of provincial-level specialized SME industry clusters, with Jiaozhou's new materials cluster earning a spot. This achievement brings the city's total to four provincial-level clusters, representing 21% of Qingdao's overall count, alongside three national-level clusters, placing it in the top tier nationwide for such designations.
The city's industrial matrix spans a diverse range of sectors. From power steel structures that form the backbone of the industry to smart home appliances and intelligent home systems that create a synergistic ecosystem, and from smart control components that serve as the nerve endings of the supply chain to new materials that solidify the industrial base, Jiaozhou is steadfast in strengthening its advanced manufacturing capabilities. The strategy involves extending and reinforcing supply chains, adapting to local conditions to foster new quality productive forces, and using cluster development as a key lever to tackle key projects, optimize the industrial environment, and drive innovation. These efforts are dedicated to polishing Jiaozhou's reputation in advanced manufacturing and contributing significantly to Qingdao's "10+1" innovative industrial system.
Specialized SME industry clusters are vital for cultivating new quality productive forces and enhancing the resilience of the industrial chain. Jiaozhou's national-level clusters focus on power steel structures, smart home manufacturing, and smart control components, while its provincial-level clusters include smart home appliances electronics, power steel structures, new materials, and smart home appliance circuit boards. Each cluster plays to its unique strengths in a complementary and coordinated manner, creating a clear and mutually reinforcing advanced manufacturing matrix. The smart home appliance industry, for instance, is a key track that Jiaozhou is vigorously developing. Leveraging the powerful platform of the Haier COSMOPlat Industrial Internet Ecological Park, the output value of Jiaozhou's smart home appliance industry surpassed 30 billion yuan in 2025, with the chain-leading platform's magnetic attraction effect continuously releasing its potential. The power steel structure industry, a pillar sector with over three decades of development, has grown into the largest steel structure cluster in northern China, nurturing listed companies like Qingdao East Steel Tower Stock Co Ltd, Titan Wind Energy (Suzhou) Co Ltd, and Qingdao Huijintong Power Equipment Co Ltd, and maintaining a competitive edge that ranks first in the domestic industry.
The smart control components cluster focuses on key areas such as circuit boards, wire harnesses and cables, and motors and electronic controls. It brings together key enterprises like Qingdao Leader Electronics Co Ltd, Wolxin Intelligent, and Nidec, aiming to become a vital supporting base in northern China for smart home appliances, new energy, automotive electronics, and industrial automation. The new materials cluster is strategically positioned in areas like polymer materials, inorganic non-metallic materials, and high-end chemical products. With an average annual output value growth rate of 12% over the past three years, it has fostered chain-leading enterprises and "single champion" companies in niche fields, including CIMC Chuangying, Haina New Materials, and Zunlong Refractory Materials. Meanwhile, the smart home industry is accelerating its rise, guided by leading enterprises such as SHAOHOME and Yuan Shi Mu Yu. The industry is evolving from a simple agglomeration of enterprises to a full-chain, high-value-added model. The SHAOHOME platform, for example, has incubated one global unicorn, two Chinese hidden unicorns, and two gazelle companies, showcasing its growing capacity for industrial incubation and empowerment.
As of May this year, among the 397 national-level and over 1,400 provincial-level specialized SME clusters cultivated nationwide, Jiaozhou has secured three national-level and four provincial-level designations. This impressive achievement, ranking among the top in the country, underscores the vibrant vitality of the city's real economy. However, a cluster's lasting competitiveness isn't just about the number of companies; it's rooted in a deep division of labor, collaborative value creation, and a shared industrial ecosystem. Adopting a problem-solving mindset, Jiaozhou proactively serves market entities and promotes connectivity and coordination across the industrial chain, helping clusters empower each other and build an unbreakable, locally-rooted industrial community.
The interaction between clusters is a testament to this synergy. The powerful "chain-driving" effect of the smart home appliance industry effectively guides the development of related clusters like smart control components and new materials. Yan Shuaiwei, an official from Jiaozhou's Science, Industry, and Information Technology Bureau, notes that in the 1990s, Jiaozhou introduced Haier to build an industrial park, which attracted a wave of industries including smart control components and new materials. The construction of the Haier COSMOPlat Industrial Internet Ecological Park began in 2022, and with the subsequent landing of head projects like the Nidec Qingdao Industrial Park and the Dawn Group Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) headquarters, key supporting capabilities for the three major clusters have been further strengthened. By 2025, the local supporting rate for Jiaozhou's smart home appliance industry has exceeded 50%, fully demonstrating the benefits of a localized industrial chain. "By establishing a new materials research institute, a new materials project phase II, and injection molding projects, Dawn Group aims to build a full-chain collaborative innovation network with Haier Smart Home, covering R&D, pilot testing, production, and market," says Yu Xiaoning, Chairman and President of Dawn Group. Within the clusters, Jiaozhou continuously builds a service system for collaborative innovation, capacity sharing, and supply chain connectivity, precisely addressing the pain points and difficulties of SME development.
The power steel structure industry, with over 130 enterprises above a designated size, faces challenges like weak bargaining power, financing difficulties, and idle resources. To address these, the local government has created the "Gangganghao" industrial internet platform, offering five major services: bulk procurement to reduce costs, recycling and trading of idle materials, shared processing, supply chain finance, and one-stop industrial procurement. "By procuring collectively, we enhance our bargaining power with upstream steel mills. Idle materials are revitalized online, shared processing lowers design costs for SMEs, and supply chain finance eases financing pressure," explains a representative from Shandong Gangganghao Intelligent Manufacturing Co Ltd. The platform leverages digital tools to empower industry clusters, tangibly helping enterprises reduce costs and increase efficiency. Through a combination of government guidance, platform empowerment, and corporate participation, collaboration within clusters has evolved from a spontaneous to a more organized and conscious effort.
Innovation serves as the core engine driving the continuous advancement of these clusters. Jiaozhou guides enterprises to identify research topics from the front lines of the market, encouraging them to increase R&D investment, delve into niche tracks, and strengthen their core competitiveness. Qingdao Yisen New Materials Co Ltd, a specialized and innovative "little giant" enterprise with 20 years of experience in functional hydrocarbon resin materials, is a prime example. Some of its product development cycles have lasted over a decade, reflecting its persistent efforts to tackle market evolution. "Product innovation can't be confined to the lab; you have to find the innovation anchor from the intense market competition," says Sun Changdong, the company's Chairman and General Manager. Their high-stability, high-compatibility resin products are now widely used in heavy anti-corrosion scenarios like marine coatings and specialty paints, filling several technical gaps in niche fields. In the power steel structure sector, Qingdao East Steel Tower Stock Co Ltd has deeply participated in major national projects like the FAST radio telescope and ultra-high-voltage power transmission. Wuxiao Group holds over 200 authorized patents and has led or participated in the formulation of numerous national and industry standards. Qingdao Huijintong Power Equipment Co Ltd is seizing opportunities from the energy transition by venturing into new tracks like nuclear power steel structures and photovoltaic/wind power supporting equipment, charting a dual-drive transformation path of "traditional towers + high-end energy support."
In the smart control components track, Fengguang Precision is focusing on developing harmonic reducers for robot joints, helping the company leap from precision parts processing to core product development. Qingdao Leader Electronics Co Ltd has developed an AIoT-based smart controller for variable-frequency washing machines, transforming them from simple washing tools into smart home terminals. Their product holds a 14% market share in the major home appliance industry, ranking first in the sector.
The real economy is the foundation of high-quality development, and industry clusters are the core vehicle for manufacturing upgrades. Moving forward, Jiaozhou will continue to leverage the open platform advantages of the SCO demonstration zone and the hub momentum of the Shandong-Hong Kong Science and Technology Cooperation Innovation Center. The city will deeply aggregate high-end innovation resources to empower SMEs in technological breakthroughs and result commercialization, implement precise targeted investment along the industrial chain, address industrial shortcomings, and deepen the integration of internal and external resources. The goal is to drive the city's specialized industry clusters toward a higher level of development.