The Qingdao Area of the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone, which is in Qingdao West Coast New Area, Shandong province, covers an area of 52 square kilometers. [Photo by Miao Hongtian/for chinadaily.com.cn]

The Qingdao area of the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone, also known as Qingdao FTZ, has emerged as a global investment hub in its now five years of operation.

One of the key international investments in the area is from Germany's Diehl Controls, which specializes in components for household appliances. One year ago, the company established a new plant in the Qingdao FTZ with a total investment of $40 million.

Crucial gaps in the region's high-tech manufacturing landscape are being filled through the plant's production of high-end electronic systems, including HMI solutions with advanced technologies like touchscreen and gesture control. Once operating at full capacity, the plant is expected to manufacture around five million electronic systems annually.

A fully automated container terminal of Qingdao Port in operation in Shandong province. [Photo by Zhang Jingang/for chinadaily.com.cn]

Executives from Diehl Controls credited their decision to locate in the Qingdao FTZ to the support they received across the entire industrial value-chain, which has enabled the company to expand its business throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

Diehl Controls' Qingdao facility is just one of the major projects introduced in the past five years, as the Qingdao FTZ has worked to deepen international cooperation.

Official data reveals that the area has attracted 72 international projects involving Fortune 500 companies, bringing the total number of such partnerships to 171.

Over the past five years, the area's foreign trade has seen an average annual growth of 22 percent, while the actual utilization of foreign capital has grown by an average of 6.98 percent annually.

Due to its strategic location near Japan and South Korea to the east and the Yellow River area to the west, the Qingdao FTZ has also strengthened its role as a shipping hub for Northeast Asia.

Workers assemble parts in a workshop at the Diehl Controls Qingdao plant. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

In collaboration with local customs authorities, the area has pioneered new supervision models that have improved the overall efficiency of goods clearance by an average of 30 percent.

The Qingdao FTZ has further bolstered the region's logistics capacity by helping Qingdao Port, part of Shandong Port Group, add 64 new shipping routes. Additionally, the port boasts China's highest volume of goods transported via sea-rail intermodal transport.

As it continues on its path of high-quality development, the Qingdao FTZ has successfully implemented 106 pilot tasks.

The area has also achieved an average annual growth of 13.6 percent in added value and 37.3 percent in fixed asset investment, underscoring its rising economic impact.