Ouhai district of Wenzhou unveils plans to develop glasses industry

Officials from Ouhai district of Wenzhou, Zhejiang province attend a promotion conference in Beijing on July 27. [Photo/66wz.com]

Ouhai district in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province laid out its recent achievements and determination in building China's "capital of glasses" at a promotion conference in Beijing on July 27.

The glasses sector is a well-established pillar industry in the district. Over the past four decades, a complete industrial chain involving research and development, design, manufacturing and marketing has been formed in Ouhai, which is now home to more than 500 related companies and over 60,000 employees.

Last year, the glasses products made in Ouhai were exported to nearly 100 countries and regions and generated an export value of 2.334 billion yuan ($342.1 million), a year-on-year increase of 15.58 percent.

In recent years, Ouhai has been focusing on the transformation and upgrading of its manufacturing sector, especially the glasses industry, and has experienced steady growth.

Zhou Jinping, deputy director of Ouhai district, explained the achievements that have been made and their plans for further development at the conference in Beijing.

He said the government conceived a series of measures to construct Ouhai Glasses Town for the industrial cluster and set some goals for the following five to 10 years, such as cultivating a group of leading companies and building up some influential brands.

Zhou also explained that to make the business environment more attractive to companies from home and abroad, the district government promised to offer supporting policies, provide one-stop services for them and track their development.

Xu Jianyu, director of the management committee of Ouhai Economic Development Zone, said the district is working on the building of a talent pool as well to ensure the intellectual support for the development of the local glasses industry.

A total of 19 companies from across China were confirmed to be stationed at the glasses town in Ouhai at the conference.