More than 100 sets of mechanical equipment for aerial work were recently exported to Europe, North America, South America and other countries and regions from Changsha, capital city of Hunan province.

Manufactured by a leading engineering machinery company, Sunward Intelligent Equipment, the equipment is developed by the company using its self-innovated core technologies.

Highlighting the development of major and key technologies has become a consensus of many Hunan companies.

For example, by utilizing advanced technologies such as 5G plus industrial internet, smart production lines and industrial robots, Sany Heavy Truck has introduced a series of original products and led the industry in technical innovation.

Inside Changsha city, Changsha county, which serves as a "main battlefield" for advanced manufacturing, has long been listed among the top 100 industrial counties in China. It is home to four top 50 global engineering machinery companies and two lighthouse factories included in the Global Lighthouse Network.

The county also boasts national laboratories for disaster prevention and mitigation, key provincial labs and other major facilities. It has formed industry clusters of world-class engineering machinery and automobiles.

To better serve the supply and demand of industry chains, the Changsha Economic and Technological Development Zone in the county has developed an online platform to provide services in relation to five sectors including market, technology, publicity and policy.

The zone has also organized offline events to promote business matchmaking for companies in the industrial chains.

As an inland area, the implementation of comprehensive opening-up to the outside world is of great significance to Changsha county.

In 2022, the county's total import and export volume reached nearly 130 billion yuan ($17.86 billion), accounting for 18.4 percent of the provincial total.

Also, the county occupies nearly 61 percent of the operating area of the China (Hunan) Pilot Free Trade Zone, of which 12 institutional innovation achievements have been made, including five first developed in China.

Moreover, the county has led Hunan in the development of the blockchain industry and has reached economic and trade cooperation with more than 200 countries and regions.

Supported by economic progress and sci-tech breakthroughs, Changsha county ranked first in the nation with the highest development potential, according to China's County Development Potential Report 2023, which was released on Oct 28. A total of 1,866 counties took part in the evaluation.

The report underscored the importance of assessing county development potential through various factors, such as natural resources, geographic advantages, technological advancements, structural shifts in the economy, population mobility, investment prospects and individual growth opportunities.