In 1993, Jingwang Electronics quietly emerged in Shenzhen. Over the past 32 years, this company has consistently focused on the PCB (Printed Circuit Board) industry, starting from a modest factory in Nanshan, Shenzhen. Through a commitment to technological innovation and product quality, it has gradually become one of the top ten PCB companies globally, with a market value exceeding 56 billion yuan.
“The innovative gene of Shenzhen has long been embedded in the DNA of Jingwang Electronics,” said Liu Shaobai, Chairman of Jingwang Electronics, in an interview with China Securities Journal. Rooted in this daring and experimental city, Jingwang Electronics has bravely stood at the forefront—from its beginnings in the telecommunications and home appliance sectors to its precise positioning in the automotive electronics arena, and now to its high-end capacity layout in the era of artificial intelligence, each step has resonated with the rhythm of the times. The company’s growth history is not only a tale of hard work and entrepreneurship but also a story of leveraging the capital market for soaring development.
▲ Automated production line of Jingwang Electronics’ metal-based circuit board factory
From Shenzhen to a “Global Leading Enterprise”
PCBs are known as the “mother of electronic products,” hidden in the critical components of every mobile phone, car, and data center. In the early 1990s, a wave of global electronic industry transfer to the Asia-Pacific region surged, with the rise of products like computers and mobile phones leading to a surge in PCB market demand. At that time, this market was firmly controlled by companies from Europe, America, and Japan, with only a few players in Shenzhen, such as Shennan Circuits, Huafa Electronics, and Zhizhuo Feigao. It was against this backdrop that Jingwang Electronics was born in 1993.
In its early days, Jingwang Electronics’ factory was located in Nanshan, Shenzhen, with two to three hundred employees busy around manual equipment, with almost zero automation. At that time, Jingwang Electronics faced operational difficulties, and Liu Shaobai focused on three aspects: funding, product quality, and employee cohesion. There were no shortcuts; it was all about treating each circuit board as a reflection of oneself, driving order recovery, and helping the company out of its predicament.
With this resilience, Jingwang Electronics gradually established a foothold in the telecommunications and home appliance sectors. In 2008, Jingwang Electronics set its sights on the higher-threshold automotive electronics sector. “Automakers have almost harsh requirements for reliability; a problem with a circuit board could lead to a recall of an entire batch of cars. But we saw the future—automobiles have a greater demand for PCBs, and their value is higher,” Liu Shaobai admitted.
As the wave of new energy vehicles swept in, the number of electronic devices in vehicles increased dramatically, leading to a surge in PCB usage. By 2024, the company’s automotive electronics business achieved revenue of 5.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 33%, making it the world’s largest automotive PCB supplier.
“Now, in every ten mainstream vehicles globally, six use our high-end circuit boards,” Liu Shaobai proudly stated, his eyes firm. “Quality is life, and it is also dignity. Even if there are many orders, as long as it may affect quality, we would rather not take them.”
In Liu Shaobai’s view, Jingwang Electronics has gradually moved from a small factory in Shenzhen to the global stage, thanks to the nurturing of this fertile land: “This is an important center for the global electronic manufacturing industry, with a responsive industrial chain; talent flows in like fresh water, and innovative ideas can be quickly implemented; the government provides efficient and pragmatic services to help enterprises solve problems.”
Strategically Positioned for the AI Era
In January 2017, Jingwang Electronics was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, accelerating the company’s development. Liu Shaobai stated that going public gave the company the confidence to make long-term plans. Leveraging the power of the capital market, Jingwang Electronics completed a transformation from “small steps and quick runs” to “leapfrog development.” After going public, Jingwang Electronics conducted three public offerings of convertible bonds, raising a total of 3.912 billion yuan, providing solid financial support for expanding advanced production capacity.
In 2019, as the trumpet of 5G commercialization sounded and the blueprint for artificial intelligence and industrial internet gradually became clear, Liu Shaobai sensed another business opportunity. Jingwang Electronics initiated a 5 billion yuan investment in Zhuhai to build a high-layer and substrate-like circuit board factory. This was seen as a significant risk by industry insiders at the time.
As expected, after the project was put into production in 2021, there was significant pressure on performance. “Those days were indeed torturous, but our team was very clear that the more complex the situation and the more pressure we faced, the more we needed to maintain confidence and strategic determination. We advanced step by step, overcoming numerous challenges, continuously refining our technology and products, and gaining recognition from global high-end customers,” Liu Shaobai admitted. Competing in the low-end market by cutting prices has no future. Although making high-end circuit boards is challenging, once you get through it, the prospects are promising.
With the explosion of artificial intelligence, the demand for computing power has grown exponentially, leading to a surge in demand for high-end PCBs in fields such as AI servers, data centers, and optical modules. Jingwang Electronics’ high-end HDI (High-Density Interconnect) and high-layer PCB products have precisely hit this market trend, becoming highly sought after. Currently, Jingwang Electronics has made breakthroughs in fields such as optical modules and AI servers, becoming a partner to leading global customers and supplying in bulk.
Liu Shaobai stated that now, at the peak of artificial intelligence, Jingwang Electronics is witnessing the emergence of numerous “ice-breaking” achievements from its customers. The company is tirelessly upgrading its production capacity, fully committed to upgrading the production lines and equipment of its existing HDI factories, and building new factories for high-end HDI capacity in fields such as AI servers and data centers.
Winning Industry Reputation Through Long-Termism
After 32 years, Jingwang Electronics is no longer the small workshop in the Nanshan Malong Industrial Park. Today, it has established seven major production bases in Guangdong Shenzhen, Heyuan Longchuan, Zhuhai Jinwan, and Ji’an and Ganzhou in Jiangxi, with 19,000 employees busy creating value. By 2024, the company’s revenue is expected to exceed 12.6 billion yuan, ranking tenth in the global PCB industry—this achievement has been earned through the hard work of countless circuit boards.
“The way out for enterprises lies in high technology and high value-added products.” When discussing the secret to success, Liu Shaobai’s answer is simple yet profound. More than a decade ago, Jingwang Electronics began to layout the high-end market, investing in high-precision equipment, attracting talent, and conducting front-end research with customers. Over the past decade, the company has invested over 3.5 billion yuan in R&D, ensuring sufficient talent and financial input each year, which has led to its current leading position in automotive electronics and AI servers. This is also the key to the company’s ability to stand firm in the industry and achieve its current status.
“Sticking to manufacturing for 32 years is not easy. Every time I see a well-made circuit board product and receive recognition from customers, I feel it is worth it,” Liu Shaobai said with emotion, but more importantly, with determination.
“Entrepreneurs must have a sense of national responsibility, adhere to long-termism, and bear social responsibility,” Liu Shaobai said. For 32 years, they have remained focused, resisting temptations, and deeply cultivating the PCB industry. The company will continue to root itself in Shenzhen, effectively utilize the empowerment of the capital market, focus on its main business without deviation, and adhere to the philosophy of “people-oriented, manufacturing quality products, expanding enterprises, and giving back to society,” to produce more high-end circuit boards of “Chinese intelligence.”
(Source: China Securities Journal)