Gree smart factory produces air conditioner every 15 seconds

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) recently designated 235 facilities as the country's first batch of excellence-level smart factories, spanning over 80 percent of the nation's manufacturing sectors.

These advanced factories have shown marked improvements in efficiency and sustainability, according to the ministry. On average, they report 28.4 percent faster product development, 22.3 percent higher production efficiency, 50.2 percent fewer defects and 20.4 percent lower carbon emissions compared to traditional facilities.

Robotic arms assemble air conditioners on a production line at Gree Electric Appliances' smart factory in Zhuhai, south China's Guangdong Province. (People's Daily/Cheng Yuanzhou)

Among the recognized facilities is a smart factory operated by Gree Electric Appliances (Zhuhai Jinwan) Co., Ltd. in Zhuhai, south China's Guangdong Province. At this facility, team leader Tang Jie recently received a production task on his tablet for 508 air conditioners ordered by a European client.

The factory's assembly workshop is centrally located, surrounded by production areas and warehouses. Lin Hua, head of production planning at Gree's Zhuhai plant, explained the process: "Components move via an overhead transport system to the assembly line, where robotic arms complete assembly before transferring finished products to the warehouse."

Operating at full capacity, the factory's two production lines simultaneously manufacture over 2,000 different models across three product series. On average, a new air conditioner is completed every 15 seconds.

"We've achieved digital management throughout the entire process, from sales order placement to product design, procurement, production scheduling, and customer service," said Chen Zhenghua, general manager of Jinwan Gree.

The factory's management efficiency has increased by 50 percent, while production efficiency has doubled. Smart manufacturing not only makes the factory more efficient but also ensures better quality control.

At his computer, Tang confirmed the order and verified the parameters. On the production line, air conditioner base plates were produced one after another, with robotic arms attaching a barcode to each.

"The barcode serves as the 'ID card' for each air conditioner. Robotic arms recognize it and perform precise assembly accordingly. Consumers can trace every production step by scanning the QR code on the finished product," Tang said.

"The key is connecting innovation chains with industrial chains," said Yang Yong, head of Jinwan Gree's R&D department.

Yang said the factory has partnered with various companies and research institutes to create a central hub for smart manufacturing. This collaboration has helped solve over 300 technical problems and seamlessly connect production lines, equipment and software systems.

"Each air conditioner goes through more than 800 quality checks, from raw materials to final delivery," said Lai Zefeng, who heads quality control at Gree's Zhuhai plant. "We use a 5G and AI-powered testing system to complete these inspections."

"By using AI to simulate different humidity and temperature environments, we've reduced the maximum operating noise of our air conditioners to below 10 decibels," Lai added.

Jiang Feng, executive director of the China Household Electrical Appliances Association, said the home appliance industry has embraced new digital models for production, quality, supply chain and equipment management, as well as remote operations. These advancements stem from integrating 5G, AI, big data and cloud computing with manufacturing processes, according to Jiang.

Several leading Chinese home appliance makers have built industrial internet platforms and smart factories, reaching world-class manufacturing standards.

China's home appliance industry revenue approached 2 trillion yuan ($276 billion) in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 5.6 percent, while total profits reached 173.7 billion yuan, up 11.4 percent from the previous year. More than 90 percent of consumers opted for trade-ins favoring energy-efficient models.

Industry experts say personalized, multi-functional appliances are gaining popularity, along with smart, eco-friendly products. This trend is driving companies to accelerate factory digitalization to respond quickly to market changes.

Over the past year, many home appliance companies have actively deployed smart production facilities. Xiaomi began construction of a smart home appliance factory in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province. Meanwhile, Huawei has expanded its HarmonyOS to offer broader smart home solutions.