In the midst of a fast-evolving global supply chain landscape, China's manufacturing sector is undergoing a profound efficiency revolutionThis transformation is not merely a response to external pressures but also an opportunity to leverage technology for growth and innovationOne key date to remember is November 22, 2024, which marks a commitment to strengthening the industrial internet platform ecosystem and enabling consumer internet platform companies to capitalize on market potential.

As the world witnesses a surge in demand for highly customized non-standard component manufacturing—characterized by complex processes and a diverse range of international orders—the traditional supply chain model is proving inadequateHow can China’s numerous small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) overcome the challenges posed by technological, linguistic, and managerial barriers to integrate effectively into the global industrial chain? Shanghai Haizhi Online Network Technology Co., Ltd., commonly referred to as Haizhi Online, offers a digital tool-based "Chinese solution" to these pressing issues.

Haizhi Online emerged in 2015, specifically targeting the pain points of non-standard component tradeIt developed a digital platform that connects global buyers with Chinese manufacturersBy converting the factory's equipment, processes, and production capacities into over 200 standardized data tags, the company has established an expansive database encompassing 700,000 factories.

The crux of non-standard manufacturing lies in the drawings used for production, yet the industry has historically faced challenges including chaotic formats, software incompatibility, and difficulties in cross-regional collaborationWu Huawei, the technical director of Haizhi Online, emphasizes that in the past, factories could take weeks just to confirm drawing details when receiving overseas ordersMisunderstandings could lead to significant financial lossesTo address this issue, Haizhi Online launched a “drawing online collaboration tool” that has become the key to unlocking these barriers

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This tool supports over 30 mainstream CAD formats, including SolidWorks, UG, and CATIA, and allows both 3D and 2D drawings to be viewed in the cloud.

Looking ahead, Wu plans to develop a mobile version of the drawing collaboration tool that will enable users to view and interact with 3D drawings directly from their phonesThis development aims to resolve a critical issue faced by SMEs in China, where many are unable to view 3D or CAD formats when receiving drawings through WeChat.

For 3D models, the system can automatically calculate key parameters such as volume and weightIn the case of 2D drawings, it supports multi-angle zooming and measurement annotationsThese features enable factories to quickly generate precise quotes, thus reducing the need for repetitive communication caused by information errorsFurthermore, the drawing tool includes real-time translation capabilities in 27 languages, allowing factories and overseas buyers to annotate and raise questions directly on the drawing page, with communication records automatically synchronized to the website's messaging and mini-programs.

In the journey of collaborative development within the manufacturing supply chain, a project undertaken by Shenzhen Maxson Electronics Co., Ltd. serves as a quintessential case for assessing the effectiveness of digital supply chain platformsMaxson was contracted to produce a project involving 400 drawings and over 30 precision parts, all within an incredibly tight deadline of just five daysCompleting such a complex task under traditional supply chain conditions would seem like an insurmountable challenge.

Haizhi Online responded swiftly by analyzing and defining the specific needs uploaded onto the platform, utilizing its vast data reservoirIt matched inquiries with the appropriate factories and provided real-time follow-up from customer service, ensuring that the inquiry details reached the manufacturers adept at handling the corresponding production data

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As a result, over 400 drawings were quoted and distributed to four to five suppliers within a short time frame, ultimately achieving a 100% qualification rate upon delivery.

Shifting from reliance on experience to data-driven decision-making is another hallmark of this transformationMany procurement professionals have expressed that their previous sources for suppliers were heavily reliant on referrals, often leading to costly "relationship tuition." Haizhi Online's intelligent matching system dynamically filters the best factories for buyers based on historical order data, production scheduling, and process analysis capabilitiesThrough digitization, the data surrounding the factories' production equipment, processes, capacities, depreciation, costs, and management has been standardized into over 200 digital tags, facilitating "one-click factory search" and digital sourcing.

Ensuring the precision of the AI tools, such as the intelligent order matching system, has been a priority for Haizhi OnlineFor this purpose, Zhu Jing, the general manager of Haizhi Online's trading center, has visited numerous parks in Guangdong province to examine various machines and verify core capacity element information with each factory individuallyThis effort has resulted in a wealth of data, with the platform now housing resources and capacity data from over 700,000 different factoriesUtilizing this foundation, Haizhi has devised customer-side databases, various AI supply chain management tools, and two service systems to effectively confront long-standing issues in non-standard component procurement, such as high cost pressures, lack of pricing standards, uncertain deliveries, sourcing difficulties, and supply instability.

For urgent orders, buyers can quickly contact customer managers through Haizhi's procurement service system to receive prompt responsesNotably, the Haizhi Online platform operates continuously even during the Spring Festival, 24 hours a day, providing support for inquiries and quotes, while also offering five AI tools to prioritize factories that can maintain production capacities or be ready to operate during the holidays, ensuring uninterrupted communication and production.

To enhance supply chain transparency and controllability, Haizhi Online has developed a “digital order tracking system.” Wu Huawei explains that this system updates order statuses and logistics information in real-time, enabling factories to adjust their production plans accordingly to meet delivery deadlines

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If any part of the process encounters potential delays, the system promptly issues warnings, allowing factories to take action with urgencyDuring logistics, the system continually updates shipping information, allowing buyers to accurately monitor their goods' transport statusThis digitized order tracking approach effectively resolves information asymmetry issues prevalent in traditional supply chains, improving the service quality and competitiveness of factories while simultaneously enhancing buyers' confidence in the supply chain by enabling them to check order progress at any time.

Additionally, in response to the need for going international, Haizhi Online has introduced a “multi-language document generator,” enabling factories to automatically generate English documents in 25 different languagesIn 2023, the platform expanded its language support to include Turkish, Czech, and 15 other languages, facilitating access for Chinese factories to emerging markets.

With millions of small and medium-sized factories, China’s industrial backbone operates like the capillaries of the manufacturing sector, keeping the “world’s factory” functionalHistorically, these factories have struggled to gain recognition from international buyers due to challenges such as inadequate technical showcases, inefficient order management, and linguistic barriersHaizhi Online's founder and chairman, She Ying, is acutely aware of this issue: “Our mission is to ensure every factory's capabilities are recognized, trusted, and chosen.”

In an unstable international environment marked by rapid advancements in AI and increased pace of Chinese enterprises going global, the reconstruction of the global supply chain poses both challenges and opportunities for Chinese manufacturingLeveraging a dual-driven model of “technology + ecosystem,” Haizhi Online is accelerating SMEs' integration into the global industrial chain, facilitating a replicable pathway for the transformation from “Made in China” to “Intelligent Manufacturing in China.”

Looking toward the future, Haizhi Online's vision is becoming increasingly clearer

She Ying believes that small sparks can lead to larger flames, asserting that the greatest foundation of China's overall supply chain advantage lies in the aggregation of numerous SMEs that exhibit characteristics of “low cost, high efficiency, rapid response, and strong adaptability.” Haizhi Online aims to continuously delve into user needs, providing more tools for precise and efficient sourcing and collaborative engagementBy innovating through technology, Haizhi seeks to lower transaction costs within the non-standard manufacturing sector, further accelerating manufacturing transformation and upgrading to contribute positively to the advancement of high-quality development in the manufacturing industry.

About Haizhi:

Shanghai Haizhi Online Network Technology Co., Ltd. (abbreviated as Haizhi Online) was founded in 2015 and focuses on a digital platform for industrial componentsThrough digital and intelligent methods, it aims to enhance sourcing efficiency in the component industry, improving supply chain management capabilities across diverse types of manufacturing enterprisesHaizhi Online leverages the platform's engineering design capabilities and digital capacity allocation abilities to provide comprehensive solutions from structural design and process planning to material selection, production processing, quality inspection, product packaging, and logistics for the development and implementation of emerging industrial chain products.

Since its inception, Haizhi Online has solely concentrated on one objective: collapsing time and folding space within the manufacturing sector, with the aim of enhancing China’s supply chain efficiency and capabilities while smoothing the "last mile" of innovation development.

In the future, Haizhi Online will continue to harness digital technologies as an engine, enabling China's productive capacity to serve global manufacturing, thereby striving to realize a beautiful vision of "using process maps to instantly recreate everything in the world, and easily meeting global demand through coordinated production."