As of now, Qingdao has cultivated a total of 45 national champion enterprises in manufacturing. The expanding lineup of Qingdao's "champion enterprises" clearly reflects the city's accelerating transition toward advanced manufacturing.
Although these champion enterprises account for less than 1% of the city's large-scale industrial firms, they contribute 19.7% to the growth of value-added industrial output, represent 15.7% of total industrial revenue, and account for 32.5% of industrial profits. These figures, based on data from the first ten months of 2025, were highlighted by the Qingdao Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology during a recent thematic research activity focused on champion enterprises.
National champion enterprises in manufacturing are those that have long specialized in specific niche sectors, possess internationally leading production technologies or processes, and hold a top global or domestic market share for a single product. They represent the highest level of development and strongest market competitiveness in their respective segments. The criteria for recognition are stringent, requiring enterprises to rank among the top three globally in market share for their main products.
By the end of 2025, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology had announced the ninth batch of national champion enterprises in manufacturing, with seven Qingdao-based companies making the list. To date, Qingdao has nurtured 45 such enterprises, ranking first in Shandong Province, fifth among sub-provincial cities, and second among northern cities in China.
The growing roster of Qingdao's champion enterprises clearly traces the city's rapid upgrade path toward advanced manufacturing.
**Traditional Industries, Innovative Approaches**
At Sailun Tire's Qingdao factory, a giant tire captures attention—with a diameter exceeding four meters and a single tire weighing six tons, it is the largest mass-produced tire in the world, designed for engineering vehicles.
While many perceive the tire industry as emblematic of heavy, low-tech manufacturing, producing such a giant tire involves extremely high technical barriers. Only eight companies globally possess the capability to manufacture them, with international giants like Michelin selling similar tires for as much as 600,000 to 700,000 yuan.
Sailun Group established a dedicated project team in 2008 and, after more than a decade of effort, achieved independent R&D and production of specialty tires. The group has now mastered the technology for a full range of giant radial tires, breaking the foreign monopoly on high-end giant tire technology and market, and securing the top market share in China and the third globally.
As a newly recognized national champion enterprise, Sailun Group exemplifies how "traditional" industries are far from conventional, reflecting the most distinctive characteristic of Qingdao's champion enterprises.
Qingdao boasts a strong manufacturing foundation with numerous traditional strengths, having nurtured many industry leaders. Data shows that among Qingdao's 45 national champion enterprises, 16 are in smart equipment, eight in smart home appliances, and five in modern light industry. Further breakdown reveals that electrical machinery and equipment, specialized equipment manufacturing, and computer, communication, and other electronic equipment manufacturing account for 22.2%, 17.8%, and 15.6%, respectively.
Through continuous innovation, champion enterprises in these traditional sectors have moved beyond competing solely on price and scale. They now possess the capability to compete directly with global giants in high-end markets and have become significant sources of global industrial innovation, leading industry progress with an increasing number of world-first breakthroughs.
**Emerging Industries Gaining Momentum**
Measuring instruments are essential tools for understanding the world and often precede industrial R&D and production, making them typical representatives of new quality productive forces. China Electronics Technology Group Instruments Co., Ltd. (Ceyear), the only national champion enterprise in China's electronic measurement instrument industry, is based in Qingdao.
As one of the first domestic manufacturers to enter the global first tier of electronic measurement instruments, Ceyear excels particularly in vector network analyzers, often regarded as the king of microwave and millimeter-wave test instruments. The company holds the leading market share in China and ranks among the top three globally.
Ceyear has established the most comprehensive product portfolio of electronic measurement instruments in China, covering microwave, photoelectric, communication, and fundamental measurement fields. It has the capability to fully substitute imported products and plays a critical role in supporting the development of the new-generation information technology industry. For instance, in 5G/6G communication testing, Ceyear's pioneering mastery of 110GHz signal generation and simulation technology has strongly bolstered China's communication industry development.
If champion enterprises in traditional sectors form the solid foundation of Qingdao's manufacturing, those in emerging industries are rapidly expanding new industrial spaces and growth poles.
In the new energy vehicle sector, newly recognized company Telidian specializes in EV charging infrastructure. It pioneered the concept of charging networks, leveraging technological, product, and platform advantages to build China's largest charging network and become the country's biggest aggregated energy storage center. In smart wearables, previously recognized Goertek focuses on a powerful smart sensing and interaction platform, collaborating with global partners to drive the next generation of smart sensing innovation.
Data indicates that strategic emerging industries account for 34.2% of the value-added output of Qingdao's large-scale industries. In 2025, industries such as new-generation information technology, artificial intelligence, intelligent connected new energy vehicles, and smart equipment all saw revenue growth exceeding 10%, while production of optoelectronic devices, virtual reality equipment, and integrated circuit wafers increased by 36.1%, 29%, and 51.9%, respectively.
**Synergistic Value Through Industrial Clustering**
The engine is the "heart" of a ship. Marine engines are categorized by speed into low-speed, medium-speed, and high-speed types. Low-speed engines, known for high power, efficiency, and longevity, power 90% of global maritime shipping.
In this vast blue market, Qingdao-based China Shipbuilding Engine Co., Ltd. recently earned national champion status. Evolving from traditional diesel engines to dual-fuel engines using LNG, methanol, and ammonia in recent years, the company has built a product portfolio covering three patented series, suitable for all commercial vessel types from bulk carriers and ore ships to large tankers and container ships.
By the end of December 2025, China Shipbuilding Engine successfully achieved stable full-load operation of its first ammonia-fueled low-speed engine in ammonia mode, filling a gap in China's capability for full-scenario operation of marine ammonia-fueled engines.
Looking back, it is evident that the company's growth in Qingdao is closely linked to the high-quality industrial ecosystem of Haixi Bay, a hub for Qingdao's shipbuilding and offshore engineering industries. Compared to typical manufacturing bases along rivers or coasts, Haixi Bay offers significantly lower transportation costs and strong local supporting capabilities in ship repair and offshore engineering. Currently, China Shipbuilding Engine is the only domestic company capable of hoisting low-speed marine engines directly from its assembly workshop to the dock.
The case of China Shipbuilding Engine exemplifies how industrial clustering in Qingdao fosters synergistic wins across the supply chain. The rich industrial ecosystem created by clusters provides ample nourishment for every enterprise, while the growth of any single company, in turn, strengthens the cluster. In 2024, the Qingdao-Yantai-Weihai Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering Equipment Cluster, which includes China Shipbuilding Engine, was selected as a national advanced manufacturing cluster.
This dynamic is not limited to shipbuilding and offshore engineering. In multiple sectors, Qingdao has established a virtuous cycle of mutual empowerment between champion enterprises and industrial clusters. For example, in home appliances and electronics, Qingdao's champion enterprises produce a complete range from black goods to white goods, and are also involved in cutting-edge technologies like AI glasses and humanoid robots.
Leveraging its industrial base and innovation capacity, Qingdao has secured approval for two national manufacturing innovation centers: the National High-End Intelligent Home Appliance Innovation Center and the National Virtual Reality Innovation Center (Qingdao). The smart home appliance cluster has also been recognized as a national advanced manufacturing cluster. These national platforms provide strong support for the further development of related industries in Qingdao.
To date, Qingdao has developed several "champion corps," including Haier, Hisense, and CRRC, and nurtured four national advanced manufacturing clusters in smart home appliances, rail transit equipment, shipbuilding and offshore engineering equipment, and instrumentation.
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