China is heightening its efforts to integrate the military and civilian industries. (Photo : Reuters)
China opened on Thursday in Beijing its first exhibit featuring products and collaborations made jointly by its military and civilian companies, such as a Haiyangshiyou 981 drilling rig model, which earned anti-China protests in Vietnam last year when it was used in the South China Sea.
An upgrade of the model, a Haiyangshiyou 982 was also displayed by the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation. According to an anonymous firm employee, the drilling rig will be used in the South China Sea next year.
During the exhibit, the Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics also debuted a physical model of inertial confinement fusion (ICF), a fusion energy research that uses fuel target heating and compression, called Shenguang III. The academy touted the model as its latest achievement in the peaceful use of fusion energy.
Shenguang III can have a total output reaching 180,000 joules a power peaking at 60 trillion watts. It is 48 times the power of China's generators in 2013.
"Rapid progress has been made in converting technology for national defense to civilian use," State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (SASTIND) director Xu Dazhe remarked at the opening ceremony of the exhibit with around 1,000 displayed projects.
"China is gradually optimizing its policies to support military and civilian integration," Xu added.
Meanwhile, China has released a roster of science and technology patents for national defense--tallying up to over 600--to the civilian market on Wednesday. The move is part of the government's efforts to integrate the military industry with the civilian.
The recently published list was jointly issued by SASTIND and the State Intellectual Property Office. It is expected to benefit a number of businesses, including those in advanced manufacturing and electronic information technology.
