| A smart revolution driven by the integration of 5G and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is sweeping through global factory workshops. From chili processing to chemical fiber production, from mining machinery to medical equipment, the era of intelligent manufacturing with interconnected devices has fully commenced.The world’s first international standard for industrial 5G has officially been released, a standard proposed jointly by China and Germany that fills a gap in the industry and provides technical guidance for the entire lifecycle application of industrial 5G. This marks the transition of 5G and the industrial internet from the exploration phase to a new era of large-scale promotion.
01 Technological Integration: 5G and IIoT Reshape the Manufacturing Ecosystem
The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) significantly enhances manufacturing efficiency and improves product quality by integrating various sensing, monitoring, and control sensors or controllers with perceptive capabilities into every aspect of the industrial production process. Meanwhile,5G technology, with its high speed, low latency, and massive connectivity features, provides unprecedented network support for the IIoT.
“5G is not just a simple network upgrade; it is the core infrastructure for industrial digital transformation,” industry experts point out. The millisecond-level latency and the ability to connect millions of devices per square kilometer solve the challenges of poor mobility and inflexible networking in traditional wired networks in special environments.
In Quanzhou, Fudi (Shishi) New Materials Technology Co., Ltd. has achieved a comprehensive upgrade from “dark workshops” with unmanned production to AI-driven quality control throughout the lifecycle by building a dedicated 5G network and an IIoT platform that deeply integrates core systems such as ERP and MES.
02 Application Scenarios: Breakthroughs in Ten Major Fields
Smart Factories: Production Efficiency Increased by 30%
In smart factories, 5G technology enables high-speed communication and real-time data transmission between devices. Automotive manufacturing plants utilize 5G for real-time communication between robots, making tasks such as welding and assembly more precise. According to statistics, smart factories using 5G technology have seen production efficiency increase by over 30% and a reduction in product defect rates by over 20%.
Remote Operation and Maintenance: Costs Reduced by 50%
For large equipment such as wind turbines and oil drilling platforms, 5G technology has transformed traditional maintenance methods. Staff can monitor equipment operating status in real-time through remote monitoring systems, quickly identifying faults and performing remote repairs. Remote maintenance solutions utilizing 5G technology have reduced operational costs by over 50% and decreased downtime by over 70%.
Quality Inspection: Efficiency Increased by 80%
In electronic manufacturing plants, 5G technology enables the inspection of the appearance and functionality of electronic products. Using high-definition cameras and 5G communication modules, product images are transmitted in real-time to inspection systems, utilizing image recognition technology for detection. Inspection efficiency has improved by over 80% with false rejection and missed detection rates reduced by over 90%.
Other breakthrough applications include:
Smart Logistics: Logistics efficiency increased by 40%, costs reduced by 30%Energy Management: Factory energy consumption reduced by over 15%Safety Monitoring: Accident rates reduced by over 80%Collaborative Design: Product design cycles shortened by 30%, costs reduced by 20%Smart Healthcare: Utilization of medical resources increased by 80%, medical visit times reduced by 50%Smart Transportation: Traffic congestion times reduced by 30%, accident rates reduced by 20%
03 Practical Cases: Traditional Factories Revitalize
The “Digital Twin” Revolution in Chili Processing Factories
At Liupanshui Meiwaiyuan Food Co., Ltd., a high-definition visualization screen displays real-time production chain data. This is the 5G Smart Chili Factory Project, which is based on the deep integration of new-generation information technologies such as “5G + IIoT, cloud computing” with manufacturing technologies.
The company’s financial manager, Wang Fan, pointed to the screen and explained: “Previously, the air compressor was running at maximum but was underutilized. Now, it automatically matches the gas consumption based on sensor data, saving about 10% on electricity each month.” The system achieves an average annual reduction of 12.1% in water usage and a 7.3% decrease in oil consumption through unified scheduling and optimization of resources such as water, oil, and gas.
Since the system went live in January 2024, the factory’s production capacity has increased by 31.3%, direct costs have decreased by 22%, and overall manufacturing costs have been reduced by 5%-8%, successfully being included in the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s “2025 5G Factory Directory.”
AI Quality Control in Chemical Fiber Enterprises
Fudi (Shishi) New Materials Technology Co., Ltd. systematically addresses core pain points such as data silos in production line equipment, reliance on manual processes, and difficulties in quality traceability by building a 5G smart factory project.
By utilizing a 5G + AI machine vision system to collect images of the spinning process in real-time, it accurately identifies filament defects and automatically alerts; the IoT platform collects process parameters in real-time, and through AI algorithms, it achieves automatic adjustments, reducing the defect rate from 7% to below 1%.
After project implementation, the company’s annual production capacity has increased to 100,000 tons, production efficiency has improved by 12%, and energy consumption has decreased by 15%, effectively promoting the transformation of production towards “high-end, digital, and green”.
04 Economic Benefits: Significant Return on Investment
Data from the Quanzhou Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology shows that from January to September 2025, the city achieved an industrial investment growth rate of 19.9%, with a technical transformation investment growth rate of 28.5%, both ranking second in the province. Since 2021, the city has added 47 national-level green factories, 8 green supply chain management demonstration enterprises, and 1 green industrial park.
Quanzhou has innovatively established a four-level policy support system involving central, provincial, municipal, and county levels, setting up a municipal enterprise technology innovation fund of up to 15 billion yuan, providing enterprises with long-term funding at an interest rate as low as 2%. The “technical transformation loan” special policy is implemented, with an additional 1% interest subsidy from the municipal finance on top of the 2% provincial subsidy.
Chen Weiqing, chairman of Guangqi Chemical Co., Ltd., stated: “The Guangqi Chemical project has been included in the national pilot project for new-type technological transformation cities, receiving strong support from various levels of policies, which gives us more confidence to increase investment in green digital technological transformation.”
05 Industrial Chain Layout: Ecological System Becoming More Complete
The 5G + industrial chain encompasses key links in the upstream mobile communication infrastructure construction, midstream mobile operators, and downstream terminal devices and application scenario development.
The upstream mainly includes key components and technical support such as antennas, RF devices, PCBs/CCLs, optical fibers, optical devices, connectors, and 5G base station services, with representative companies including Huawei, ZTE, and Ericsson.
The midstream consists of four major operators: China Telecom, China Unicom, China Mobile, and China Broadcasting Network, responsible for the deployment, maintenance, and operation of 5G networks.
The downstream involves the roles of internet giants such as Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu in 5G application development, as well as various terminal devices including smartphones, smart homes, IoT devices, vehicles, and industrial equipment.
In the field of smart industry, companies providing core components such as 5G industrial gateways, 5G industrial modules, 5G industrial cameras, and 5G AGVs are rapidly emerging. For example, the 5G industrial smart gateway released by Shenzhen Hongdian meets the needs for network coverage, protocol parsing, and edge computing.
06 International Standards: China Leads Global Development
The global first industrial 5G international standard released this time was jointly proposed by China and Germany, gathering wisdom from multiple countries to provide technical guidance for the entire lifecycle application of industrial 5G, highlighting China’s international influence in this field.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology plans to promote the construction of fully connected 5G factories for tens of thousands of enterprises during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, creating 1,000 characteristic factories and 100 benchmark factories to further promote the deep integration of IT/OT and the full utilization of data elements.
As of July 2025, Liupanshui City has built a total of 182 5G-A stations, achieving results in pilot applications in hotspot areas and scenarios. The city has systematically constructed a promotion system for green digital technological transformation, providing strong support for industrial transformation and upgrading.
07 Future Outlook: Three Major Trends Shaping Tomorrow
From a development trend perspective, 5G + industry is accelerating towards intelligent upgrades, focusing on three dimensions:Deep coupling of edge computing and 5G. As MEC technology matures, more industrial applications will shift computing capabilities from central clouds to edge nodes closer to production lines, supporting high-bandwidth, low-latency services such as HD video backhaul, machine vision inspection, and AR remote assistance.Widespread application of digital twin technology. Based on the massive connectivity characteristics of 5G, real-time collection and synchronization of vast sensor data on industrial sites can be achieved, combined with 3D modeling and simulation algorithms to construct virtual mapping systems covering the entire product lifecycle.Comprehensive strengthening of security assurance systems. The application of IIoT + 5G technology involves a large amount of sensitive data and critical infrastructure, making security assurance an important issue for the development of IIoT + 5G technology. In the future, research and application of security for IIoT + 5G technology will be strengthened to ensure the safety and stability of industrial production.
08 Companies Involved
|
Field |
Listed Company |
Stock Code |
Typical Business Areas and Advantages |
|
Communication Equipment (Base Stations/Antennae/Filters) |
ZTE Corporation |
000063.SZ |
5G-A commercial scenarios, government/enterprise/industrial private networks, full-scenario computing solutions |
|
|
Shenzhen Soyeah Technology |
300322.SZ |
Supplier of Huawei millimeter-wave antennas |
|
|
Jin Xin Nuo |
300252.SZ |
High-frequency cable supplier, deeply involved in Huawei base station networking |
|
|
Wuhan Fangu |
002194.SZ |
Core supplier of RF filters |
|
|
Guangxun Technology |
002281.SZ |
Leading company in optical modules |
|
|
Unisplendour Corporation |
000938.SZ |
Small base station + optical module technology |
|
|
Hua Gong Technology |
000988.SZ |
Small/indoor base station solutions |
|
|
Xinke Mobile |
688387.SH |
Full range of base station systems, operator cooperation |
|
|
Pingzhi Information |
300571.SZ |
Access + bearer network products |
|
|
Ruijie Networks |
301165.SZ |
Small base stations and enterprise-level network devices |
|
|
Chuangyi Information |
300366.SZ |
Small base station solution provider |
|
Industrial 5G Terminals and Modules |
Xiamen Sixin |
— |
TSN + 5G gateway specialized enterprise |
|
|
Hongdian Technology |
— |
Customized gateway devices |
|
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Xinxun Communication |
— |
RedCap DTU module, cost reduction and stability |
|
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Qiming Star |
002439.SZ |
Security certification solutions |
|
Industrial Internet Platform Providers |
Inspur Cloud (under Inspur) |
— |
Yunzhou supports the platform construction of Jiangxi Heimao Group
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