Molds in various countries and molds in various regions of China​

1. Overview of the development of overseas mold industry

1) Japanese mold industry

Currently, Japan's mold manufacturing technology is still in the leading position. According to industrial statistics from the Ministry of International Trade and Industry of Japan, there are about 10,000 mold manufacturers in Japan, of which more than 91% have less than 20 employees, that is, the Japanese mold industry is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises, which mainly rely on specialized division of labor to complete high-quality mold design and processing. Due to the good specialized division of labor in Japan, the overall manufacturing level of small and medium-sized mold enterprises is high, making "Made in Japan" molds a symbol of brand and quality. In recent years, Japan's plastic molds, powder metallurgy molds, and die-casting molds have grown significantly, while stamping molds and forging molds have shown a relatively decreasing trend.

It is understood that Japanese molds are currently facing five major issues - shortening delivery time, reducing manufacturing costs, improving mold quality and precision, labor shortages, and meeting challenges from Asian countries. In response to this situation, many Japanese mold manufacturers are actively expanding equipment investment. In terms of processing, a large number of unattended processing units are used, or online control is carried out through computers. Almost all design and manufacturing departments use CAD/CAE/CAM technology for motion simulation analysis and DNC (direct digital control) processing. The technical development of molds mainly develops in the aspects of high precision, high speed, long life, complexity, large size, integration and high performance.

2) American mold industry
More than 90% are small enterprises with less than 50 people. Due to the high development of industrialization, the American mold industry has long become a mature high-tech industry and is at the forefront of the world. American mold steel has achieved standardized production and supply, and mold design and manufacturing generally use CAD/CAE/CAM technology. Advanced equipment is used in processing technology and inspection and testing. The development of large, complex, precise, long-life and high-performance molds has reached a leading level.
However, since the 1990s, the US economy has faced major adjustments and changes in the post-industrial era, and has also faced strong international competition - from cost pressure, time pressure and competitive pressure.
3) German mold industry
Germany has always been famous for its exquisite processing skills and the production of precision machinery and tools, and its mold industry also fully reflects this feature. For the complex industrial field of molds, after years of practical exploration, German mold manufacturers have reached a consensus: the whole industry must work together, pool resources, tap development potential, jointly promote innovation, make technological progress, learn from each other's strengths and make full use of overall advantages to achieve success in the industry. In addition, in order to meet the needs of the rapid development of new products today, not only large companies in Germany have established new development centers, but many small and medium-sized enterprises have also done so, taking the initiative to do research and development work for customers. Germany has always been very active in research, which has become an important basis for its unbeaten performance in the international market. In the fierce competition, the German mold industry has maintained a strong position in the international market for many years, and the export rate has remained stable at around 33%. Metal processing WeChat, the content is good and worth paying attention to. According to statistics from the German Industry and Mold Industry Organization - the German Machinery Manufacturers Association (VDMA) Industry and Mold Association, there are about 5,000 mold companies in Germany, and the output value of German molds reached 4.8 billion euros in 2003. Among them, there are 90 member mold companies (VDMA), and the output value of these 90 backbone mold companies accounts for 90% of the output value of German molds.

4) Singapore mold industry

Singapore is a small country with a population of only 3 million. In the 1980s and 1990s, the government attached importance to and supported the development of precision molds, and introduced many policies to enable the mold industry to grow rapidly, promoting the rapid development of Singapore's economy. Singapore has more than 1,000 molds and precision processing-related companies of various types, with an annual mold output value of more than 4.5 billion yuan, and has a very important influence and role in the Asian mold industry. There are more than 10 listed mold companies. More than 65% of the molds produced by companies in Singapore are for electronic-related industries. The molds produced are not large, but they are all high-precision and high-level molds. Singapore mold companies are mainly concentrated in the fields of semiconductor frame/packaging molds, hardware stamping molds, plastic molds, silicone rubber molds, etc.

2. Overall situation of my country's mold industry

Since 1997, molds and their processing technologies and equipment have been included in the "Catalogue of Industries, Products and Technologies Currently Encouraged for Development" and the "Catalogue of Industries Encouraged for Foreign Investment", and preferential policies for VAT refunds have been implemented for some key professional mold factories; in 1999, relevant mold technologies and products were included in the "Guidelines (Catalogue) for Key Areas of High-tech Industrialization Currently Prioritized for Development" issued by the State Planning Commission and the Ministry of Science and Technology. The above measures have effectively promoted the rapid development of my country's mold industry.

1) The total amount of mold industry has grown rapidly

In 2005, the total output value of my country's mold industry has jumped to the third place in the world, reaching 61 billion yuan, and the total output value of the mold industry in 2006 reached 72 billion. The total output value of my country's mold industry (annual average growth rate of more than 16%), the number of enterprises, the number of employees, and the total labor productivity have all shown an increasing trend year by year.
2) The import-export ratio is becoming more reasonable, but China still has the largest annual net import volume of molds in the world. The growth rate of my country's mold product imports is declining year by year, while the export volume is increasing year by year. The import-export ratio has dropped from 6.6:1 in 1999 to 2:1 in 2006. Export molds are still mainly low-end and medium-end, while imported molds are mainly medium-end. The main gap is concentrated in high-tech molds such as precision, large, complex, and long-life.

3) The technical level is constantly improving, but there is still a big gap compared with foreign countries. During the "Eleventh Five-Year Plan" period, China's mold technology has developed rapidly. At present, China can produce precision multi-station progressive molds with an accuracy of 2 microns and a lifespan of 100 to 200 million times. In terms of large plastic molds, China can now produce plastic shell molds for 48-inch TVs, plastic molds for large-capacity washing machines, as well as molds for car bumpers and integral dashboards. In terms of precision plastic molds, China can produce camera plastic molds, multi-cavity small-module gear molds, and plastic sealing molds. In terms of large-scale precision and complex die-casting molds, China has been able to produce escalator integral pedal die-casting molds and automobile rear axle gearbox die-casting molds. However, there is still a large gap compared with foreign countries. The precision and complex stamping molds and plastic molds, car cover molds, electronic connectors and other electronic product molds urgently needed by my country's manufacturing industry still rely heavily on imports.

3. Brief introduction of major domestic mold production sites
The main domestic mold production bases are in Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shanghai and Anhui.
1) Major provinces and cities and characteristics
Guangdong - the leader of the domestic mold market, with foreign-invested enterprises as the main body. Guangdong Province has more than 10,000 mold manufacturing companies, with 300,000 employees. The number of enterprises, employees, completed industrial output value and total export value are all ranked first in the country. Guangdong is the most important mold market in China today, and it is also China's largest mold export and import province. More than 40% of the national mold output value comes from Guangdong, and the CNC rate of mold processing equipment, equipment performance, mold processing technology, production specialization level and standardization are ahead of other provinces and cities in China.

Zhejiang - Plastic molds account for a large proportion, and private enterprises are the main body. The mold industry in Zhejiang Province is mainly concentrated in Ningbo and Taizhou. Ninghai, Yuyao, Cixi and Yinzhou in Ningbo mainly produce plastic molds, Beilun mainly produces die-casting molds, and Xiangshan and Zhoushan mainly produce casting and stamping molds. Taizhou's main mold production companies are concentrated in Huangyan and Luqiao, and plastic molds account for the majority.

Shanghai - Information industry and automobile industry molds are dominant. Shanghai currently has more than 2,000 mold companies, more than 100,000 employees, an annual output value of nearly 6 billion yuan, and an average annual growth rate of more than 20%. Shanghai's mold industry will focus on six major industries and key industries, especially the information (IT) industry and the automotive industry, and vigorously develop precision magnesium alloy die-casting molds, precision injection molds, automotive cover molds, large parts die-casting molds, and precision stamping multi-station progressive molds for the IT industry.

Jiangsu - Foreign-funded and private enterprises are the main force. Jiangsu molds are mainly concentrated in Suzhou and Kunshan. Suzhou currently has more than 1,000 mold factories of various types and more than 1,000 mold processing points. The annual sales of molds are about 5 billion to 6 billion yuan. The mold industry has become one of the city's emerging industries. There are many wholly-owned and joint ventures in Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Germany, the Netherlands, the United States, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, and there are also many private mold companies.

Anhui - a rising new force. At present, Anhui Province has a number of mold products with high domestic reputation, such as large injection molds for washing machines, air conditioners, refrigerator blister foaming molds, motor stator and rotor lamination high-speed progressive dies, etc., some of which have a market share of more than 30%. Mold standard parts and mold material bases have also been formed. In addition, Shandong, Fujian, Tianjin, Liaoning, Chongqing and Hebei have also developed well in recent years.

2) Regional distribution of enterprises with annual mold output value exceeding 100 million yuan.
During the "10th Five-Year Plan", the Pearl River Delta region, the Yangtze River Delta region, and the Bohai Rim region were the first, and currently about 80% of the country's molds are concentrated in these three regions. According to metal processing reporters, the mold enterprises with mold output value exceeding 100 million yuan in the country are mainly concentrated in the field of automobile cover molds. During the "11th Five-Year Plan", "leading" enterprises of various types of molds were gradually formed. For example: FAW Mold Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in automobile cover molds, Wuxi Guosheng Precision Mold Co., Ltd. in precision stamping molds, Haier Mold Company in large plastic molds, Tongling Sanjia Technology Co., Ltd. (Mold Stock) in plastic profile molds, Guangdong Julun Mold Co., Ltd. and Jieyang Tianyang Mold Co., Ltd. in rubber tire molds, Hong Kong Longji Group and Panqi Industry (Dalian) Co., Ltd. in mold standard parts, etc. Among the mold enterprises with an output value of over 100 million yuan, foreign capital accounts for a considerable proportion.

4. Existing problems in China's mold industry

In recent years, the structure of my country's mold industry, whether it is the enterprise organizational structure, product structure, technical structure and import and export structure, has been developing in the direction of rationalization. In order to update and improve the equipment level, mold companies need to import equipment worth tens of billions of yuan every year. Industry insiders believe that the investment in innovation and development is still insufficient, and the improvement of comprehensive R&D capabilities in the mold industry has seriously lagged behind the improvement of production capacity. The main problems are reflected in the following aspects.

1) Weak innovation ability;

2) Low overall efficiency;

3) Low degree of specialization, standardization and commercialization, and poor collaboration;

4) Backward mold materials and mold-related technologies;

5) The enterprise organizational structure, product structure, technical structure and import and export structure are not reasonable enough;

6) Compared with the international advanced level, the management of mold companies is more backward than the technology.
5. Development trend of China's mold industry

In the next ten years, the development trend of China's mold industry is: mold products will develop in the direction of large-scale, precise, complex, economical and fast; the technical content of molds will continue to increase, and the mold manufacturing cycle will continue to shorten; mold production will develop in the direction of informatization, non-graphics, refinement and automation; mold enterprises will develop in the direction of technology integration, sophisticated equipment, product branding, management informatization and international operation. The development of mold technology is concentrated in the following aspects.

1) Mold structures are becoming larger, more precise, more complex and their lifespan is increasing;

2) CAD/CAE/CAM technology is widely used in mold design and manufacturing;

3) The promotion and application of new technologies in mold design and manufacturing;

4) Improving the standardization level of molds and the utilization rate of mold standard parts;

5) Developing high-quality mold materials and advanced surface treatment technologies;

6) Developing new forming processes and new molds, and cultivating new concepts and new models.