Discussing New Opportunities in China's Economy | Exclusive Interview: R&D Achievements by Companies in China Are Benefiting Global Markets — Interview with Smith, CEO of KION Group Germany

Xinhua News Agency, Frankfurt, March 27—Exclusive Interview: R&D Achievements of Companies in China Are Benefiting Global Markets—Interview with Rob Smith, CEO of the German KION Group

Xinhua News Agency reporter Danwei Gong, Xiang Liu

Rob Smith, CEO of KION Group, a globally well-known supplier of supply chain solutions, said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua reporters in Frankfurt recently that China’s efforts to advance high-level opening-up have strengthened multinational companies’ confidence in developing in China. As China accelerates efforts to develop new quality productive forces and pursue a green transformation, cooperation and innovation between companies and Chinese partners, as well as R&D achievements in China, are benefiting global markets.

KION Group is one of the first multinational companies to invest in China’s material handling industry. It has focused on the Chinese market for more than 30 years, with 6 production bases in China and about 5,000 employees.

Smith said that in recent years, demand in China for efficient supply chain and advanced logistics solutions has been growing. China’s huge consumer market and rich application scenarios enable new technologies to be quickly implemented and promoted, and also provide companies with broad opportunities for development.

Smith believes that China is not only an important market, but also an important force leading the development of relevant cutting-edge technologies. He said KION Group expects to strengthen cooperation with Chinese partners in areas such as transformative changes in automation technologies, digital twins, energy-saving solutions, and an intelligent manufacturing ecosystem.

Smith said that China continues to advance green development, which will create a favorable environment for innovation by multinational companies and for high-quality, sustainable development. China has unique advantages and a complete ecosystem in battery, renewable energy, and digital innovation. Recently, KION Group has been promoting electrified forklifts and intelligent warehousing solutions in the Chinese market to help related technologies and models be rolled out faster.

“China has become an important driving force for global artificial intelligence innovation, especially in industrial and applied artificial intelligence, where it is particularly strong.” In Smith’s view, China’s thriving development in applied AI and the rapid rise of AI technology companies provide valuable opportunities for multinational companies such as KION to deepen cooperation with China.

Smith also said that KION Group will continue to go deeper into the Chinese market, increase investment in China, and “China’s business is not only an important part of the group’s overall development, but also provides strong support for coordination and growth in its global business.” With its deep foundation in China, sustained investment, and innovation capabilities, KION Group is confident about its development in China. (End)