How Industrial Internet Is Reshaping China's Light Manufacturing: Trends, Challenges, and Opportunities

Global Economic Shift and Digital Imperative

Recent changes in the global economic landscape have weakened the traditional advantages of "Made in China". Under resource and environmental constraints, manufacturers face intense competition and urgent pressure to upgrade.

Leading light‑manufacturing firms are leveraging next‑generation information technologies to capture digital‑transformation benefits, connecting upstream and downstream supply chains via the internet and innovating production methods, industrial forms, and business models.

Industrial Internet Policy and Practice

Li Zheng, Director of the Digital Transformation and Smart Manufacturing Department at the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, outlined the policy evolution of the industrial internet and shared practical applications, especially in light industry. She emphasized the impact of cloud computing, 5G, IoT, automation, AR/VR, robotics and AI, noting that 41% of enterprises could face existential risk without transformation.

The three‑function system of the industrial internet—network, platform, and security—has been reinforced since the first guidance in 2017 and its 2.0 version.

Case Study Insights from 700+ Projects

Analysis of more than 700 industrial‑internet cases shows that equipment manufacturing accounts for nearly 50% of vertical coverage, while light‑consumer goods make up about 20%. AI and big‑data applications appear in roughly 20% of projects, driving asset management and production optimization.

Emerging technologies such as digital twins, edge computing, blockchain and VR are beginning to deliver value, with 5G and AI identified as the two most critical enablers. Current 5G deployments address high‑bandwidth, low‑latency needs for remote monitoring, while AI supports visual inspection and predictive maintenance.

Smart Manufacturing in the Liquor Industry

Round‑table discussions highlighted the complexity of Chinese white‑spirit production, which involves unique solid‑state fermentation and distillation processes. Mechanization and automation have progressed in raw‑material handling, fermentation, distillation, blending and packaging, yet challenges remain in integrating hardware, core algorithms, data collection, and multidisciplinary expertise.

Key difficulties include high hardware costs, accurate mapping of sensory data to physicochemical indicators, diverse and personalized process variations, and the need to convert expert knowledge into data‑driven models.

Safety and Efficiency in Hazardous Chemical Production

Experts emphasized that safety in chemical manufacturing requires real‑time, end‑to‑end data acquisition from sensors, video, PLC/DCS, and explosion‑protection systems. 5G’s low latency and high bandwidth can overcome the limitations of Wi‑Fi for massive device connectivity.

AI can transform raw sensor streams into intelligent alerts, correlate multi‑source data, and support predictive safety analytics. However, cost control, multidisciplinary talent, and integrated resource platforms are essential for sustainable deployment.

Tencent Cloud’s Strategic Position

Tencent Cloud operates a workforce of roughly 10,000 personnel dedicated to industrial‑internet solutions, offering cloud, AI, big‑data, IoT, and security services. The company promotes a three‑layer approach: connectivity (network), interaction (platform), and ecosystem (supply‑chain integration).

Strategic initiatives include building industrial‑cloud bases in multiple regions, partnering with leading manufacturers (e.g., Foxconn, Sany, TCL) to create industry clusters, and co‑developing COEE model‑management platforms for AI‑driven asset optimization.

Future Outlook

Industrial internet adoption is expected to scale from pilot projects to industry‑wide platforms, fostering new business models, open ecosystems, and multi‑dimensional value creation. Success hinges on integrating safety, environmental concerns, and digital twins with 5G and AI to achieve cost‑effective, high‑quality manufacturing across light‑industry sectors.