In 2023, China’s largest 500 manufacturing companies made over 5 trillion yuan in revenue and assets, reaching a total of 50 trillion yuan. China’s manufacturing industry has transitioned from playing catch-up to leading the industry, with “Made in China” becoming a prominent international label.
However, China’s manufacturing industry faces challenges due to its strength. The industry’s growth, energy consumption, pollutant emissions, and carbon emissions from electricity use during production contribute to over 60% of the nation’s total carbon emissions. This hinders the industry’s sustainable development and harms the environment.
Additionally, the “carbon tariff” policy would make China’s manufacturing industry face a 26% average international tariff, which could lead to a 21% decline in exports and add more pressure on its export business.
One side of the challenge lies in environmental factors while the other in economic pressures.
Given the “dual carbon” situation, what hurdles does China’s manufacturing sector face in transitioning towards zero carbon emissions?
- Old factories have problems in optimizing and transitioning.
Old industrial factory buildings in China have many problems. They use outdated, energy-consuming equipment that is inefficient and rely on expensive energy sources like coal, electricity, gas, and oil. Meanwhile, factory workers also do not have awareness about saving energy and reducing emissions. As a result, it can cause difficulties in start transforming these old buildings.
- Expanding factories face challenges in achieving “Net-Zero”
Creating a zero-carbon factory or park requires a comprehensive approach. First, the project must leverage local zero-carbon practices. Second, it must consider emission reduction measures and sustainable development principles during the building’s lifecycle, including design, construction, and operation. Integrating “zero-carbon” and “intelligence” into the building’s DNA can significantly enhance the facility’s performance, finance, and environmental impact, which has affected the industrial park for several decades.
- Traditional industries have difficulties to consolidate and analyze the data
Manufacturing systems are complex, making it difficult to gather and analyze data on reducing emissions. Multiple manufacturing processes produce significant amounts of data, which may be located across various departments, sites, and even countries. This makes collecting, integrating, and analyzing the data highly challenging.
“New challenges create new opportunities.” – NXpark by Aden born in this era
Aden Group has launched its new brand called NXpark by Aden, to help manufacturing companies create sustainable industrial infrastructure.
The infrastructure is designed to be intelligent, eco-friendly, and flexible. It can also withstand extreme weather conditions. Also, the new infrastructure will be quickly delivered and available for leasing. It is different from traditional industrial infrastructure as it focuses on the use of technology, innovation, and empowerment, which will help companies achieve their environmental, social, and governance goals.
What NXpark can offer to support the manufacturing Industry’s “Net-Zero” Transformation?
Advantage 1: Comprehensive Integration of Akila Digital Twin Platform from Design to Operation
NXpark uses the Akila digital twin platform right from the project’s design phase. By combining Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, it creates an intelligent and real-time digital blueprint for the entire industry park including buildings and utility infrastructure. The design approach prioritizes climate adaptability and net-zero targets, thereby creating a sustainable approach that benefits the environment in the long run. This approach also helps in reducing the long-term costs for facility owners and operators.
During the construction phase, the digital map ensures a more accurate supply of materials, reducing waste, and forming more optimized construction schedules, project management, and collaboration.
In the operational phase, the digital twin can monitor complete site operations, energy, and system data, optimizing the performance, reliability, and efficiency of industrial assets.
Advantage 2: Tailored Comprehensive Energy Management for Energy Efficiency Improvement
NXpark plans and utilizes clean energy for the park, precisely positioning based on the production energy demand, location of the park, and local climate conditions. It provides worry-free, efficient energy optimization management, including distributed wind power generation, flexible energy storage and microgrid scheduling, solar photovoltaics, geothermal/air-source heat pumps, helping enterprises reduce reliance on traditional energy sources. By using renewable energy, carbon emissions are reduced, energy usage costs are lowered, and sustainable development is achieved.
Advantage 3: Digital Decarbonization for Accelerated ESG Progress
NXpark using the digital twin platform, helps businesses overcome information silos, assess key ESG indicators from an operational perspective, track, predict, and alert for overall energy consumption and the performance of key equipment. Ensuring production continuity, it includes the following functions:
– Connecting interactive 3D models with real-time data collected from assets and systems through the Akila digital twin platform, presenting it visually for transparency.
– Real-time monitoring of carbon emissions on the factory site, integrating isolated and multi-line management systems into digital integration for optimizing factory operations.
– Through data aggregation and analysis, helping decision-makers better understand their carbon emissions and take appropriate measures to improve and reduce carbon emissions.
The industrial park invested and built by NXpark has achieved various international green building certifications during the design phase, such as the U.S. LEED, French HQE, and Chinese Green Building. NXpark’s Xi’an Faurecia project is the first industrial park project guaranteed for carbon neutrality by ESG insurance, providing continuous assurance for the net-zero performance of factory sites, supporting the continuous journey to net-zero for businesses.
Advantage 4: Design and Material Innovation, Breaking the “Stereotype” of Traditional Factories
– In response to high temperatures, NXpark’s building design emphasizes natural ventilation, smart use of “shade,” and rainwater collection.
– NXpark focuses on the operation and maintenance of HVAC systems to ensure indoor temperature comfort and rational energy use.
– In material selection, sustainable and durable building materials such as recycled steel and low-carbon concrete are chosen to ensure building safety and stability under extreme weather conditions.
Given “dual carbon” status, NXpark by Aden delivers a comprehensive digitalized industrial infrastructure, enabling your property to have a robust design and financial resilience in a highly competitive market. It can adapt to changing climate conditions, relying on Aden Group’s 25 years of industrial service experience and technical support provided by the Akila digital twin platform, NXpark drives transformation with both intelligence and green initiatives, empowering the upgrade of the manufacturing industry!