An Evaluation of the Yangtze River Economic Belt Manufacturing Industry Level of Intelligentization and Influencing Factors: Evidence from China

Luxia Wang,Decai Tang,Brandon J Bethel

doi:10.3390/su13168913

Abstract

Over recent decades, the application of artificial intelligence methods in manufacturing has led to new spheres of research such as the Internet of Things, Cyber–Physical Systems, and Cloud Computing and Big Data, leading to the so-called Industry 4.0. However, to date, little research has been geared towards assessing the factors that influence intelligent manufacturing on a regional scale. Addressing this problem, this paper constructs an evaluation index system for the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) intelligent manufacturing sector using eleven years (2008–2018) of provincial panel data. The entropy method is applied to three evaluation criteria, namely intelligent innovation, equipment, and profit, to construct an evaluation index system. An analysis of the results revealed that the level intelligentization of the manufacturing industry of the YREB increases yearly, and that intelligent innovations are notably occurring at a faster rate than profits. Disproportional enterprise returns on investment have occurred, which decreases enterprise motivation to be innovative in the first place. Additionally, it was also observed that FDI, financial development, government intervention, and the level of opening-up were the primary factors modulating regional intelligent manufacturing levels.

Highlights

The Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) comprises nine provinces (Anhui, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Zhejiang) and two municipalities (Chongqing and Shanghai), sits on a total land area of over two million square kilometers, and accounts for approximately 40% of China’s GDP
This paper evaluated the level of intelligentization about the manufacturing industry in the YREB from the aspects of intelligent innovations, intelligent equipment, and intelligent profits
Empirical research shows that foreign direct investment (FDI), financial development, government intervention, and the level of opening-up have significant impacts on the level of intelligentization about the manufacturing industry in the YREB, while labor input and industrial scale have no significant impact on the level of intelligentization about the manufacturing industry, which further confirms the research conclusion of Li et al [5,20].The conclusions are as follows: (1)

Summary

Introduction

The Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) comprises nine provinces (Anhui, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Zhejiang) and two municipalities (Chongqing and Shanghai), sits on a total land area of over two million square kilometers, and accounts for approximately 40% of China’s GDP. In terms of China’s overall economic development, the health of the YREB regional economy is crucial to maintain national stability and growth. The earliest explanation of the concept of intelligent manufacturing can be traced back to Joseph Harington’s introduction of the term “computer integrated manufacturing” in 1973, but it did not attract much attention at the time. It was not until 1984 that Harington published his book Understanding the Manufacturing Process: Successful Ways to Implement CAD/CAM that the American Society of Engineers paid attention to [2,3]

Methods

Results

Conclusion