Li calls robots vital to productivity

Premier calls for innovative ideas so machines can be built in China Premier Li Keqiang visits the shantytown reconstruction project in Baoji, Shaanxi province, on Tuesday. Equipment manufacturers should boost employees' enthusiasm and encourage them to develop new technologies for the robotics industry and to bring smart manufacturing to a higher level, Li said on Monday during a tour of Qinchuan Machine Tool & Tool Group Co, Ltd, a leading company in Baoji in the northwestern province. Qinchuan, the third-largest company in the sector in terms of revenue, now is one of the few machine tool makers to show a profit, with a net profit of 14.9 million yuan last year. In addition to technological innovation, Qinchuan has developed a new model to serve clients by making clear how long a machine tool can earn enough profits to cover the cost, Long said. For example, one of Qinchuan's machine tools produces wheel gears for new energy vehicles and can earn about 12,000 yuan in net income per day.