City in Jiangsu province proves irresistible to enterprises from Germany since 1993

An elevated view of the Taicang High-tech Zone in Taicang, Jiangsu province. CHINA DAILY

Following the inauguration ceremony of the Schaeffler Greater China Central Logistics Center and Beumer Group's launch of a new workshop in Taicang at the end of 2025, another Germany-headquartered enterprise — TUV Rheinland Group — launched the Yangtze River Delta Operation Center Phase III project in the county-level city in East China's Suzhou, Jiangsu province on Jan 30.

TUV Rheinland Group is a globally authoritative testing agency. The newly launched Phase III project involves testing businesses related to biodegradation and electric bicycles with an added area of about 6,000 square meters. It is scheduled to be put into use in the first half of 2026.

The TUV Rheinland (Suzhou), which is said to be the largest investment made by the Germany-headquartered enterprise since it entered China in 1989, is located in the Plainvim (Taicang) Modern Industrial Park in Taicang's Shaxi town.

The main business of Phase I is about inspection and testing services for the automotive industry, covering testing centers for photovoltaic modules, electromagnetic compatibility and auto parts. The Phase II project was expanded to textile, chemical, light industry and electrical safety testing laboratories.

Xia Bo, president of TUV Rheinland Greater China, said that benefiting from the support of governments at all levels and abundant talent resources, the company has achieved rapid development since settling in Taicang.

"Taicang's business environment is impressive. We are confident in achieving long-term development in Taicang, and we plan to launch our Phase IV project in the future, which may focus more on the new energy sector," Xia said.

As a producer service industry, inspection and testing is a key factor in supporting industrial development. The city government will refine its service to support the development of TUV Rheinland in Taicang, and enable it to play a greater role in product export and industry upgrading, said Chen Gao, Party secretary of Taicang.

Suzhou's research and development investment has grown rapidly in recent years, showcasing strong momentum for development of all sectors, including Taicang, in the fields of technological and industrial innovation, Chen added.

Since the first German enterprise settled in 1993, Taicang has attracted a large number of German enterprises with its distinctive model and sound Sino-German cooperation system.

It realized the transformation from one-way German investment to mutual investment of the two countries, thus being known as the "hometown of German enterprises".

The German enterprises in the city at present are generating an annual industrial output value of more than 67 billion yuan ($9.6 billion).

In 2008, the Ministry of Commerce and Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action jointly awarded Taicang the title of first "Sino-German enterprise cooperation base" in China. Subsequently, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Science and Technology awarded Taicang the titles of Sino-German SME cooperation demonstration zone and Sino-German intelligent manufacturing cooperation and innovation park. In 2024, Taicang's achievement in Sino-German cooperation was promoted nationwide.

At present, German enterprises in Taicang have formed industrial clusters of auto parts, machine tools and aerospace. More than 600 enterprises in the city have achieved in-depth cooperation with German enterprises in industrial support, technological R&D, intelligent manufacturing, talent training and capital alliance, which has driven the transformation and upgrading of local industries.

In addition to economic development, Taicang has been deepening the exchanges of the two nations, realizing a multi-field achievement from industrial cooperation to science, education, culture, environmental protection, public welfare, urban construction and social management.

In 2001, it took the lead in introducing the Duale Ausbildung education model from Germany, which integrates on-the-job training in enterprises and school-based theoretical teaching. Taicang also established a professional worker training model synchronized with German vocational education, and opened up the channel for recognition of vocational qualifications and professional titles.

With the continuous innovation of service mechanisms, various governmental departments in Taicang have tapped their potential in serving German enterprises by launching characteristic services such as green channels for real estate registration, German-speaking tax windows, and one-stop acceptance of work and residence permits for foreigners.

Logistics conveying equipment manufacturer Beumer Group launched a new workshop in 2025 in Taicang High-tech Zone. Christoph Beumer, chairman of the advisory board of Beumer Group, said when launching the new workshop, the city government offered plenty of support. Thanks to that, the project was able to begin operations in less than four months after they signed the initial investment agreement.

"We believe there is still immense potential in the Chinese market," Beumer said. "We look forward to further growth and to contributing even more to the development of China, especially Taicang, as a partner of choice."