Hangzhou High-Tech Industrial Development Zone

Located in Binjiang District in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, the Hangzhou High-tech Industrial Development Zone is a state level development zone that was established in 1991. It is spread over area of 12.12 km2. It is also known as Hangzhou HTIDZ and falls at about distance of 180 km from two busiest ports in the country, namely Ningbo-Zhoushan Port and Shanghai Port. It is at about 15 km from Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport and can also be reached by the railway network in the city.

About HTIDZ

The HTIDZ is an educational base in Hangzhou. It is home to over 30 universities in the country, 19 research institutions and nine state-level labs. The Zhejiang University and China Academy of Art are located in this zone.



Inside HTIDZ

There are three major areas in Hangzhou HTIDZ. Major of these are Xiasha Sci-tech Industrial Park and Zhijiang Sci-tech Industrial Park. The Xiasha Sci-tech Industrial Park is located close to the state-level Hangzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone. The zone invites investments mainly in biochemicals, optical-mechanical-electronic integration, information technology and pharmaceuticals. Major investors in the HTIDZ include Alibaba, SISTEMA, ZTE, IBM, NTT, Microsoft, AISIN, Nokia, Alcatel, BOS, Panasonic, Mitsubishi, Daewoo, TCS, CA, INTECH, UTStarcom, etc.

Development over the years has brought the zone among China’s 11 national industry bases for software, IC design, BPO and animation. Research centers of Nokia, Motorola and Siemens are located in this area. There are a total of 1,100 software developers and BPO enterprises located in this area. Also, the zone is home to about eight percent of IC firms in the country. The zone is famous as Paradise Silicon Valley of China.



Investment and growth opportunities

The total import and export value of the zone is quite high. The GDP of the zone increases every year and cumulative FDI of the zone also rises. The zone is home to about 61% high-tech companies of Hangzhou. Alibaba.com is also established here, which is world’s largest online B2B portal. It is the largest Chinese website when it comes to market value. The company earned huge profits even during the global financial crisis.

Bright Side of the zone

The Hangzhou HTIDZ is strong in manufacturing of telecom equipment, IC design, software, animation, BPO and almost all high-tech industries. The government of the zone is very efficient and it is growing at a rapid rate as a result of that. ‘One-Stop’ services are being offered by the local commission. The zone has a large talent pool with outstanding R&D capabilities.



Limitations

Like every coin has two sides, the zone has a few limitations too. The zone has weak manufacturing and labor costs are very high. Not only labor costs but land costs are very high too. It is facing tough competition from Ningbo.

Overall, the Hangzhou High-tech Industrial Development Zone is fastest growing development zone in the country. If its development continues on the current rate, soon it will be one of the major high-tech zones across the globe. It is expected that in the coming years it will be home to even greater number of countries and manufacturing is expected to get stronger and stable.