HEFEI, June 27 (Xinhua) -- As China emerges as a global hub for smart manufacturing and technological innovation, German companies are ramping up their presence and partnerships in the country, moving beyond traditional technology transfer to embrace joint R&D and ecosystem-level collaboration.

At the Sino-German Smart Manufacturing Matchmaking Conference held from Tuesday to Thursday in Hefei, east China's Anhui Province, nearly 100 German enterprises -- including industry leaders like BMW and Siemens -- gathered to explore new opportunities, signaling a renewed momentum in bilateral industrial cooperation.

The three-day conference included field visits, matchmaking sessions and in-depth exchanges, resulting in 28 trade and investment deals worth over 6.8 billion yuan (about 949.46 million U.S. dollars). These covered a wide range of sectors, from new energy and intelligent connected vehicles to high-end equipment, life sciences, environmental protection, and artificial intelligence.

For Helmut Heuser, managing director of Wurth Electronic ICS (Shenyang) Co., Ltd., it was already his third trip to Anhui this year -- a province now widely recognized for its high-tech orientation and smart manufacturing strengths.

"This region's automotive industry and innovation capabilities are booming," said Heuser. "We hope to gain new customers, discover new market possibilities, and seize fresh opportunities here."

His company has already provided battery management systems and smart controllers for several Chinese companies, including Anhui-based auto giant JAC Motors, and is collaborating in fields like industrial robotics to co-develop new intelligent solutions.

As China's innovation engine gathers strength, Sino-German cooperation is evolving from one-way technology import into a model of joint innovation and mutual empowerment, offering a collaborative blueprint for global smart manufacturing.

"We are cooperating for decades and decades in the past 40 years. It was very successful, mainly because German companies brought a lot of technology here and support the Chinese companies to upgrade," said Maximilian Butek, executive director and board member of the German Chamber of Commerce in China, the east China region.

However, he noted that the two sides are now engaged in a different game, as Chinese enterprises and talent are demonstrating strong innovation potential, attracting many German companies to carry out R&D in China and export technologies to the global market.

According to the 2024/2025 Business Confidence Survey by the German Chamber of Commerce in China, 92 percent of member companies plan to stay in China, and about half intend to increase their investment over the next two years.

This long-term commitment reflects not only confidence in the Chinese market, but also recognition of the country's growing innovation capacity.

In fact, 55 percent of German companies operating in China expect their Chinese counterparts to become innovation leaders in their industries within the next five years, and nearly half of the surveyed firms plan to enhance competitiveness through partnerships with Chinese players.

German high-tech firm Trumpf Group, a century-old leader in machine tools and laser technology, has seen rapid growth in China since entering the market in 2000. It has also deepened cooperation with local partners in advancing manufacturing digitization.

"In the new energy vehicle sector alone, over 2,000 processes require lasers. For example, copper and aluminum alloys -- key materials in power batteries -- are highly reflective and can create welding splashes that pose safety risks," said Yang Gang, president of Trumpf Group (China). "By working with Chinese partners, we've developed processes to suppress splatter and overcome these technical bottlenecks."

Sino-German cooperation is now scaling from individual projects to ecosystem-level coordination, encompassing shared technologies, harmonized standards, and integrated production capacity.

Reflecting this growing momentum, earlier this year BMW deepened its local AI ecosystem by integrating DeepSeek, following its strategic partnership with Alibaba in large language models. In June, the Sino-German Standardization Innovation Center was officially launched, aiming to produce more joint standardization outcomes in smart manufacturing and beyond.

Meanwhile, Feiwo Technology signed a strategic cooperation agreement with German aerospace parts manufacturer Heggemann, combining China's cost-efficiency and Germany's lean production expertise to jointly develop core aircraft components.

Smart manufacturing has been identified as a national priority in China. And international cooperation -- particularly with Germany, a long-time industrial partner -- plays a crucial role in driving technological advancement and industrial upgrading.

In the face of growing global uncertainties, many German companies noted that Sino-German cooperation in smart manufacturing is expected to generate mutual benefits and contribute to greater stability in global supply chains.

"Sino-German cooperation offers mutual benefits," said Heuser. "For China, it is access to German industrial know-how and EU market pathways. For Germany, it is faster innovation cycles and access to China's vast data resources. Together, we believe we can set global benchmarks for Industry 4.0, combining Germany's quality-first approach with China's speed-to-market advantage."