(Sep. 10, 2020, Beijing) The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers(CAAM) announced today that 2020 China Auto Supply Chain Conference(former China Auto Parts Annual Conference cum Summit Forum, hereinafter referred to as "Supply Chain Conference"), jointly organized by CAAM and Xi'an Municipal People’s Government, will be held in Xi'an, Shaanxi province from Oct 21 to 22, 2020. The theme of the event is "Fostering New Opportunities, Seeking New Chapter, Making New Advances—Helping Build A Safe and Controllable Auto Industrial Chain". The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the China Machinery Industry Federation will give strong support to the opening of this conference.
Keeping pace of the times, the Auto Parts Annual Conference upgraded to Supply Chain Conference
Under the big trend of industrial chain and supply chain in change, starting from 2020, the 17-year-old "China Auto Parts Annual Conference cum Summit Forum" will be upgraded to "China Auto Supply Chain Conference". Luo Junmin, Deputy Secretary-general of CAAM, said at the press conference: "After changing its name, the Supply Chain Conference will inherit its new mission, and play a bigger role in promoting communication across the sector for the sustainable development of Chinese auto industry".
Luo Junmin, Deputy Secretary-general of CAAM
The supply chain of the automobile industry has grown into a dynamic associated body, led by OEM, whole machine and assembly manufacturers, and supported by upstream and downstream enterprises, related service providers and competent authorities. These entities will jointly complete various tasks covering the full life cycle from purchase, production, salesto service of automotive products. Supply chain security is the foundationfor a safe auto industry. Without reliable supply chain, it would not be possible to build a strong auto industry. In response to new development challenges in post-pandemic period, we need to adopt proactive measures to ensure that the auto industrial chain and supply chain are sustainable, safe and reliable. Against the backdrop of global industrial transformation, Chinese auto industry should seize the opportunities to build a safe and controllable supply chain, achieve high quality development, as part of the effort to turning China into an auto power.
For this conference, upgraded from "Auto Parts Annual Conference" to "Supply Chain Conference", is a microcosm of the development of global auto supply chain. For example, one of the obvious changes is that “Software Defined Vehicles(SDV)” will be mentioned frequently. Software will be widely used in definition, development, validation, sales, maintenance of vehicles, and will thus optimize experience and process and continuously create values in each of these processes. Indeed, in a mobility era, the car is gradually transitioning from a hardware-driven machine to a software-driven electronics device, the SDV trend is becoming ever more apparent. Under such a trend, traditional automotive value chainis about to be overhauled, major auto enterprises have elevatedthis topic to a strategic level, indicating that SDV trend is inevitable.
In fact, with the complete overhaul of global auto industry driven by a new round of technological revolution, the boundaries of the auto industry is being expanded, and many external forces have penetrated this sector, thus all-round service providers appeared, for example new hardware, new software and vehicle operation, communication and content providers. In this sense, hardware-led traditional parts concept is no longer applicable, software-led new supply chain is coming into being, the auto supply chain landscape will be totally reshaped.
In this context, it seems natural to rename the "China Auto Parts Annual Conference cum Summit Forum"to keep up with the times, reflecting the theme of the conference and today's development trends.
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In this special year, this conference seems all the more important and special
The year of 2020, without a doubt, will be recorded in history. The outbreak of coronavirus in the beginning of the year has dealt a heavy blow to the automotive industry, the spread of the virus across the globe has added uncertainties to the world politics and economy, making it difficult for the interdependent global industrial chain to overhaul. As the world economy faces profound changes unseen in a century and the "ACES"(autonomous, connected, electric, and shared vehicles) become trendy, the automotive industry is undergoing profound changes. How to face growth uncertainties? How to ensure the security of industrial chain? How to ensure industry and enterprises’ healthy growth? How to make a sound mid-to-long-term development plan? All these questions are commonly faced by Chinese automotive industry and upstream and downstream supply chain in a times of change.
Moreover, 2020 is also the year where the timeframes of the Two Centenary Goals converge, the decisive year for building China into a comprehensive moderately prosperous society, the final year for completing the 13th Five-Year Plan, the year for formulating the 14th Five-Year Plan; and the year of transition for China's auto industry to embark on high-quality development. In response to challenges posed by epidemic control, the Party Central Committee has pointed out that we must ensure stability on the six fronts to keep the fundamentals of the economy stable, proposed "double cycle" theory(with the domestic cycle as the mainstay and with domestic and international development reinforcing each other). Faced with weak foreign demand, we must steadfastly pursue the strategy of expanding domestic demand, deepen supply-side structural reform to promote the recovery of consumption and to encourage and enable consumer spending. Furthermore, to promote higher-standard opening up and stabilize the overall performance of foreign trade and foreign investment, we must stay committed to opening our door wider to the world, keep our industrial and supply chains stable, and use opening up to promote reform and development.
In this overall environment, the opening of the Supply Chain Conference will have special meaning to the automotive industry and supply chain.“OEM-parts manufacturer” relationship, change is already in the making, will be quickly adjusted and even reshaped due to the outbreak of the Covid-19. In the process of the industrial chain's deep and coordinated development, both OEMs and parts manufacturers are undoubtedly the main players.
At present, the "OEM-parts manufacturer" relationship in the automotive industry is presented with the best window of opportunity for deep reshaping. The drop in new vehicle sales will speed up the process of eliminating weak players through market competition, improving the allocation of resources. Those parts manufacturers who survived will be more competitive and be relied upon by OEMs.
As an authoritative industry platform for promoting communication between OEMs and parts manufacturers, this event will not only focus on future-oriented discussion of industry policies, analysis and study of industry trends, but also on exchange and sharing of practical issues such as reshaping of "OEM-parts manufacturer" relationship and frontier technologies.
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"1+4" five sessions, fully explore how to build an innovative auto supply chain
Around the theme of "Fostering New Opportunities, Seeking New Chapter, Making New Advances—Helping Build A Safe and Controllable Auto Industrial Chain", this Conference comprises 1 Conference Forum and 4 Theme Forums.
"Conference Forum" will explore how to build an innovative auto industry chain against the backdrop of global industry reshaping, and discuss hot topics such as development opportunities and challenges faced by auto parts industry in the "post-pandemic" period. In this aspect, our current main tasks are: guided by Auto Power Strategy, strengthen industry's top design, ensure auto industry safe and controllable, remain competitive, master core technologies in key areas, build auto parts and supply chain with Chinese characteristics, and ensure we have the initiative and the say in the intelligent and connected era.
Theme Forum 1 will focus on "development strategies and prospect of Chinese auto parts groups in the 14th Five-Year Plan period." By then, domestic mainstream parts enterprises and groups will gather together to compare notes on their development strategies and plans during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. Topics such as how to respond to the complex industry environment, seek the direction of transformation and upgrade, explore the "14th Five-Year Plan" thinking, seize industry trends and opportunities, precisely interpret industry development pulses, build enterprises' competitive edge, which are conducive to advancing the reshaping of industrial chain, and the implementation of the strategy of expanding domestic demand in the post-pandemic period.
Theme Forum 2 will focus on "the future path of traditional auto parts enterprises", which involves topics such as brand building of parts enterprises, technological upgrading, merger and acquisition, coordination of OEMs-parts enterprises, internationalized strategy, digitalisation. Since the second half of 2018, in a complex and fast-changing market environment, auto parts supplier who are at the bottom of the pyramid were the first to feel the negative impacts and experienced falling profit margins. In face of decline in operating performance, traditional auto suppliers adopted measures to reverse the situation and adopted differentiated strategic measures to prepare for future transformation. One of the common concerns for them is how to make an appropriate strategic plan.
Theme Forum 3 will focus on "promoting bridging up and strengthening the links in the auto industry." President Xi recently stressed that we should follow the direction of promoting the development of the industry, vigorously advancing projects that building, strengthening, bridging up, expanding the links, to make industries and economy more resilient and competitive. This conference will also explore topics like testing certification of upstream and downstream players in the automotive industry, basic research, financial support, building of industrial clusters. Meanwhile, government officials or industry experts will give constructive suggestions on the development of Chinese automotive parts industry.
Theme Forum 4 will focus on "fostering new strength in emerging areas of the industrial chain". Where do the new driversof economic growth come from? We should start with fostering industrial chain and industrial clusters. As core technologies of new-energy vehicles on the emerging advantageous industrial chain—the “EIC” system(battery, motor, electric control), and intelligent vehicle technologies such as intelligent connected(5G), smart cockpit, intelligence chassis, millimeter-wave radar, the development trends and application prospect of these technologies will be discussed and shared at the forum. The above industrial chain, with core technologies and key products at the center, can extend to the upstream and downstream of industrial chain, and the high end of value chain.
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Helping the auto industry to grow, location of Supply Chain Conference at Xi'an is a win-win for local auto industry
It is worth noting that the location of the conference—Xi'an, where has witnessed rapid development in the auto industry in recent years, increased output and improved technological level, formation of a modern auto industry system highlighted by new energy sedan and heavy-duty truck, with steady development both in quality and in efficiency. In 2017, the annual output value of the auto manufacturing industry, for the first time, exceeded the benchmark of 100 billion yuan. In 2019, 403,100 units were made, 407,700 units were sold, total output value reached 115.448 billion yuan. At present, the city has two industrial clusters in the south and the north respectively: in the south, the industrial cluster is based in High-tech Zone and Huyi District, supported by BYD and Nanjing Golden DragonSkywell, forming a high-tech auto industrial cluster integrated with functions of R&D, application and testing of new auto technologies; in the north, the industrial cluster is based in Economic and Technological Development Zone, Qinhan New Town, Xixian New District and Gaoling District, supported by Shaanxi Automobile Group, Geely and Baoneng, forming an auto industrial cluster integrated with commercial vehicles, passenger vehicles and auto parts in the north of Weihe river. In future, led by complete vehicle, Xi’an will continue to improve its auto industrial chain, strengthen the role of auto parts in underpinning the auto industry, introduce supporting enterprises, take targeted policies to meet the production needs of Shaanxi Automobile, BYD, Geely, Skywell, and Baoneng, striving to make the auto industry bigger.
Following the principles in President Xi’s speeches made during his visit to Shaanxi and the position of national central city and international metropolis, by leveraging opportunities arising from the Belt and Road Initiative, the large-scale development in the western region in the new era, ecological conservation in the basin of the Yellow river, and high quality development, Xi’anis focusing on building the city into an advanced manufacturing city, the capital of global hardcore technology and international financial center on the silk road, preparing for the 14th National Games of China and other important tasks, striving to foster an new environment for high quality development. In the first half of this year, Xi’an government advanced epidemic control while promoting economic and social development. Its GDP increased 2.8% year-on-year, value added of industry enterprises above designated size increased 6.2% year-on-year, investment in fixed assets increased by 12.8% year-on-year, putting the city at the forefront among 15 sub-provincial cities in terms of growth rates of the three indicators.
Hence, Xi'an Municipal People's Government, co-organizer of the Supply Chain Conference, has attached great importance and offered strong support to the conference.“The reason that this conference will be held in Xi’an is because both sides share the same development aspirations in the auto industry supply chain areas, and both are working towards the same goal of helping the auto industry to grow bigger.” Wang Yong, Deputy Mayor of Xi'an Municipal People's Government, said at the press conference, "I believe that this conference will promote cooperation and win-win among auto enterprises, and become an important communication platform in the automotive industry. At the same time, we will take this conference as an opportunity to tap development potential of Xi’an automotive industry, making it an important handle grip for building the city into an advanced manufacturing city and a powerful engine driving the city on the path to high quality development.
Wang Yong, Deputy Mayor of Xi'an Municipal People's Government
Industry professionals are welcome to attend this newly upgraded 17-year old Supply Chain Conference
As one of the two annual events organized by CAAM, China Auto Supply Chain Conference has been successfully held for 17 years and has extensive influence in the auto industry. It has become an important communication platform for OEM and auto parts industry elites from home and abroad, government officials, and mainstream Chinese auto industrial chain and supply chain.
Since 2003 when it was established, China Auto Parts Annual Conference cum Summit Forum, predecessor of China Auto Supply Chain Conference, has received wide attention in the auto industry. The conference will invite the following guests: officials and experts from government and related institutions, leaders from Chinese major OEMs and parts groups, organizational members of CAAM, leaders, experts and representatives from auto parts manufacturing base and related provincial, municipal auto industry associations. People from auto parts-related enterprises and relevant personnel who pay attention to auto parts industry are welcome to attend this conference. It is estimated that a total of 600 people will attend this conference, and this conference will be a top event in Chinese auto supply chain field in 2020.
During the conference, we will hold parts products and technology exhibition, in a bid to offer more opportunities for enterprises to show their new products and new technologies, to deepen technological exchanges and business cooperation, and to enrich conference content and broaden conference influence. Interested enterprises are welcome to register.
At present, conference-related cooperation work is in progress, interested enterprises and organizations are welcome to contact us. We also welcome friends from the media to attend and cover this conference, contributing to the development of Chinese auto parts industry.
The online registration channel for the "2020 China Auto Supply Chain Conference" is available, please visit our official website(http://www.caam.org.cn/) and public account, Auto Review's official website(http://autoreview.com.cn/) and public account. Xi'an, an ancient city,will welcome guests from all over the world to attend this event with open arms, jointly writing a new chapter for the development of Chinese auto supply chain!
