The "Made in China 2025" plan lists CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment as "strategic areas for accelerated breakthroughs." It emphasizes the need to strengthen forward-looking deployment and key technological breakthroughs, actively planning to seize future technological and industrial competitive manufacturing points, and enhancing the level of international division of labor and discourse power. The proposal of this strategic goal is determined by the strategic characteristics and developmental stage characteristics of the CNC machine tool and basic manufacturing equipment industry, which we should study carefully, understand deeply, and implement thoroughly.

1. CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment have strategic industrial characteristics that are essential to compete.

1. Anchor China's global competitive position in the equipment manufacturing industry.

CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment are the "mother machines" of the equipment manufacturing industry. The technical level and product quality of a country's machine tool industry are important indicators of its equipment manufacturing development level. The "Made in China 2025" plan lists the CNC machine tool and basic manufacturing equipment industry as one of the strategic areas for China's manufacturing industry primarily because of its anchoring role in the international division of labor for a country's manufacturing industry, especially in equipment manufacturing: CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment are the foundation for value generation in manufacturing and the fulcrum for industrial upgrading. Only with solid basic manufacturing capabilities can advanced equipment products be produced, thus achieving high-value product production.

2. Strategic demand supporting national defense and industrial security.

In terms of national defense security, CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment have a strategic significance that transcends economic value for producing advanced national defense equipment. Many key components in modern defense equipment have certain special materials, structures, and processing difficulties that cannot be met with ordinary processing equipment and traditional processing techniques; multi-axis linkage, high-speed, high-precision CNC machine tools must be used to meet processing requirements. Even today, in a globalized world, developed countries still impose technology blockades and restrictions on China. In terms of industrial security, as domestic manufacturing upgrades accelerate, competition intensifies between high-tech industries represented by equipment manufacturing and developed countries. Engineering machinery, electrical machinery, and transportation equipment are currently at a critical stage of entering international high-end markets, while domestic machine tool products still lag behind in processing precision, reliability, efficiency, automation, intelligence, and environmental protection, leading to overall weak industrial competitiveness.

3. Important support for user field transformation and upgrading.

Currently, the demand structure from downstream users in the machine tool industry is showing a trend towards high-end development. Multiple industries will undergo extensive and deep structural adjustments and upgrades, leading to an urgent demand for high-quality, high-tech level machine tool products. Overall, the market demand for mid-to-high-end CNC machine tools is rising rapidly; users require more high-speed, high-precision, composite, flexible, multi-axis linkage, intelligent, high-rigidity, and high-power CNC machine tools. For example, the automotive industry shows a trend towards producing large quantities of diverse models with rapid updates; the development of new energy vehicles is accelerating, requiring processing equipment to continuously evolve towards precision, efficiency, and intelligence. In the aerospace industry, with a surge in demand for civil aircraft and cross-generational development of military aircraft, new-generation aircraft are evolving towards lightweight design, high reliability, long lifespan, stealth capabilities, multiple configurations, rapid response times, and low-cost manufacturing. New-generation technologies urgently require more advanced processing equipment to support them; aerospace manufacturing equipment is evolving towards automation, flexibility, digitalization, and intelligence. For instance, in the aircraft engine manufacturing sector focused on breakthroughs under the "Two Aircraft Special Project," typical parts such as engine blades, complete engine casings, and disks are gradually developing towards larger dimensions, complex shapes, lightweight structures, and precision manufacturing—especially with the extensive application of new lightweight materials like high-strength heat-resistant alloys—these complex geometries pose new higher demands on CNC machines for large torque and high precision. The portability or mobility required for large structural components of gas turbines or large-scale maintenance necessitates multi-axis linkage CNC equipment that can process large workpieces using small machines without fixed bases that can be reconfigured; this presents greater challenges for structural design, process specifications, and energy-efficient processing technologies of new CNC equipment.

4. A strategic high ground for new technological revolutions.

The new round of technological revolution includes elements such as intelligent manufacturing, energy internet technology innovations, and next-generation information technology innovations that provide driving forces for technological breakthroughs in China's equipment manufacturing industry while also offering vast markets for it—especially for high-end equipment manufacturing. The machine tool industry is an important intersection between information technology and industrial technology; it is highly sensitive to new technologies and serves as a major source for the diffusion of emerging technologies. Driven by the wave of new technological revolutions, there is a clear trend toward integrated innovation in the machine tool industry; world-leading companies are accelerating the integration of new technologies into the machine tool sector while networked technologies and intelligent technologies are rapidly being applied to machine tool products. More international renowned machine tool component manufacturers and complete machine manufacturers are speeding up their integration applications of new technologies into CNC machines.

5. A strategic pivot in global manufacturing pattern adjustments.

Entering a post-crisis era where developed economies increasingly emphasize their own real economy development: either continuously promoting the integrated development of emerging technologies to enhance industrial technology's sophistication or restructuring supply chains to bring more high-value-added production processes back home along with matching jobs. The United States has successively proposed implementing initiatives like the "Advanced Manufacturing Partnership" plan and "National Strategic Plan for Advanced Manufacturing" to develop advanced manufacturing industries and technologies; Germany has proposed a development blueprint for Industry 4.0 aimed at developing German Industry 4.0 centered around CPS (Cyber-Physical Systems) with smart factories as carriers; Japan has announced an industrial structure blueprint identifying ten cutting-edge technology fields to strengthen its domestic manufacturing sector; regions like the UK, South Korea, India, Taiwan China have also proposed proactive strategies and policies to accelerate the integration of emerging technologies into sectors like CNC machines. The machine tool industry has always been an important strategic layout point for major countries and leading enterprises; future changes in the manufacturing landscape—especially concerning globally strategic industries like automotive production or aerospace—will see the machine tool sector play a crucial role as a strategic pivot influencing future competitive leverage. China should enhance its focus on the machine tool industry by strategically positioning itself early in key areas to secure advantageous positions in global competition.

II. Clear trends in industrial upgrading.

1. Breakthroughs in key core technologies leading to a batch of landmark products.

In aviation fields, domestically developed heavy forging equipment such as an 800MN large die forging press and a 120MN aluminum alloy plate tension stretching machine have filled gaps in large critical component forming technology within China's aviation sector providing strong support for cross-generational military aircraft development as well as large aircraft research efforts. Among these developments is an 800MN large die forging press that has achieved overall forming capabilities for over thirty types of titanium alloy key components used in aviation; additionally, high-quality thick aluminum alloy plates produced by the 120MN aluminum alloy wide thick plate tension stretching machine have been applied to main load-bearing structural components like aircraft wings—thus breaking free from China's complete reliance on imports for thick aluminum alloy plates used in large aircraft.

In automotive manufacturing fields, large-scale fast efficient fully automated stamping production lines have won bulk orders from American automotive plants during international bidding against world-class enterprises gaining recognition from international peers. Currently domestic market share for automotive body stamping lines exceeds 70%, while global market share has surpassed 30%, significantly promoting domestic automotive equipment autonomy.

In the field of power generation equipment, a 36,000-ton black vertical metal extruder has achieved the independent production of domestically produced high-end heat-resistant steel large-diameter thick-walled seamless steel pipes used in 1000MW ultra-supercritical thermal power units; large open-close type heat treatment equipment has produced Asia's largest nuclear power forged rotor forgings, forming a mass production capacity for large rotors; ultra-heavy CNC vertical lathe-milling composite processing machines, CNC heavy bridge-type gantry five-axis linkage milling machines, ultra-heavy CNC floor milling and boring machines, ultra-heavy CNC horizontal boring lathes, and special CNC axial wheel groove milling machines developed for the third generation nuclear power nuclear island and conventional island equipment have solved processing difficulties for nuclear power pressure vessels, lifting baskets, heat exchangers, turbine cylinder bodies, generator rotors, etc., and have been installed and applied on multiple nuclear power equipment.

2. Product structure optimization and adjustment, technical level steadily improved.

First, the level of mid-to-high-end equipment has rapidly improved. Currently, more than 10 types of equipment such as large automotive body automatic stamping lines have reached international leading levels and can completely replace imports. High-speed gantry five-axis machining centers and more than 20 other products have basically reached international advanced levels and are capable of replacing imported products. The precision horizontal machining center has formed core technologies with independent intellectual property rights and flexible manufacturing systems. High-speed, composite and other high-end CNC machining centers have completed phased R&D, but there is still a certain gap in functional performance and reliability compared to international advanced levels. Secondly, the CNC system has been gradually advanced. China has made significant progress in the research and development of mid-to-high-end CNC systems. Since 2010, over 35,000 domestic mid-to-high-end CNC systems have been applied in key areas such as aerospace, energy, shipping, and automobiles, achieving import substitution. High-performance CNC system series products such as multi-channel and multi-axis linkage have broken foreign technology monopolies, with major technical indicators basically reaching the level of international mainstream high-end CNC systems, providing support for various high-speed and precision CNC machine tools. High-end CNC systems have achieved small batch applications in key military enterprises. The developed standard CNC system has achieved mass production, with domestic market share increasing from 10% to 25%. Several industrial production bases have been formed, among which Guangzhou CNC Equipment Co., Ltd. has established an annual production capacity of 100,000 various CNC systems, ranking second in the world in output. China's CNC systems have initially possessed competitive capabilities with similar foreign products and achieved batch exports of CNC systems. From 2010 to 2014, over 9,600 sets of various CNC systems were exported cumulatively, including nearly 700 five-axis linkage CNC systems. Finally, the product quality level of functional components has steadily improved, and the variety series continues to be perfected. Domestic functional components have achieved batch matching with machine tool mainframes; tool products have basically possessed the capability to provide modern cutting tools for the automotive industry. The application demonstration and batch matching of CNC systems, functional components, and tools with CNC machine tool mainframes help form a complete industrial chain and promote structural adjustment in the machine tool industry.

3. Independent innovation significantly improved; sustainable development guaranteed.

In recent years, research on the foundation and common technologies of machine tool manufacturing has been continuously strengthened, with product development and technology research advancing simultaneously. The maturity of several key technologies such as reliability design and performance testing technology for machine tool products and multi-axis linkage processing technology has greatly improved. The results of digital design technology research have been practically applied in the design of high-precision CNC coordinate boring machines and vertical machining centers; software and hardware systems such as multi-error real-time dynamic comprehensive compensation and embedded CNC system error compensation have been demonstrated in multiple enterprises and products, significantly improving the precision of CNC machine tools.

3. The high-end development of the industry faces a long way ahead.

China's machine tool industry occupies an important position in the global machine tool industrial system and market but still cannot be considered a strong machine tool country at present. Compared with strong machine tool countries worldwide, China's machine tool industry still has certain gaps, especially reflected in the weak competitiveness of mid-to-high-end machine tools. In addition, affected by complex domestic and international economic situations, China's machine tool industry development has returned to a new normal; there is an urgent need for transformation and upgrading towards mid-to-high-end.

1. International competitiveness needs to be improved.

According to consulting agency Gardner's statistics, in the global machine tool consumption market in 2014, China's machine tool export value was $3.3 billion, accounting for less than 5% of the total global machine tool consumption; while Japan and Germany both accounted for over 10%. Meanwhile, a considerable portion of mid-to-high-end CNC machine tools urgently needed domestically relies on imports; for example, imports account for over 40% in the automotive sector.

2. Development of key components in the machine tool industry urgently needs strengthening.

Domestic functional components cannot meet the requirements for matching with mainframes in terms of variety, quantity, or grade; market share for domestic mid-range supporting functional components still needs improvement; high-end products largely rely on imports. The competitiveness of supporting functional component industries needs to be rapidly enhanced.

3. Process verification and demonstration applications need strengthening.

CNC machine tools require extensive experimental verification in manufacturing processes, reliability maintenance, precision retention, engineering aspects from prototype development to actual production application while continuously improving; user-provided process verification is also necessary. However, process verification and application demonstration remain a shortcoming in China's CNC machine tool industry development.

4. Industry development pressure remains high.

Global machine tool production and consumption continue to show signs of contraction. According to data released by Gardner Company in the United States, global machine tool consumption amounted to $75.3 billion in 2014, only growing by 0.3% compared to 2013; global machine tool production has declined for three consecutive years with a value of $81.2 billion in 2014 down by 3.1% from previous year; China's CNC machine tool industry also continues to operate under pressure overall within a downward range. In 2014 domestic metal processing machine tool output decreased by 2% year-on-year; among them cutting machine tools decreased by 1.7%, while metal forming machine tools decreased by 3.3%. Meanwhile demand for imported machine tools in the domestic market is increasing rather than decreasing; in 2014 total imports of machine tools reached $17.78 billion with a year-on-year increase of 10.8%, among which metal processing machine tools accounted for $10.83 billion with a year-on-year increase of 7.6%. This indicates that the domestic machine tool industry struggles to meet enterprises' high-end demands while facing dual pressures from cyclical fluctuations and structural challenges that urgently need new breakthroughs.

4. Accelerate promoting strategies for transforming industries into stronger ones.

1. Promote focused development of advantageous resources.

Based on enhancing independent innovation capabilities and market competitiveness of domestic CNC machines and basic manufacturing equipment, focus advantageous resources on two major fields: aerospace and automotive industries; concentrate on core equipment and key technologies to address bottlenecks related to performance reliability stability completeness during equipment development.

2. Promote demonstration applications of advanced products.

Increase investment into representative user demands that can concentrate on verifying key technologies related to machines tools and basic manufacturing equipment as well as building application verification bases; selectively support market-oriented products that emphasize completeness flexibility intelligence projects focusing on enhancing efficiency intelligence of equipment.

3. Meet new national strategic demands.

Accelerate the development of national strategic demand for CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment, further focus on the core equipment of national key projects, develop major products, and break through key technologies. Strive to improve the technical level of CNC equipment and break the constraints of dependence on imports for national strategic equipment.

4. Build a complete machine tool supporting industrial chain

Encourage and support the main units of CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment, CNC systems, and functional components to establish long-term stable strategic partnerships, create long-term supporting relationships between CNC systems, functional components, and machine tool enterprises, and build a complete supporting industrial chain for CNC machine tools and basic manufacturing equipment.