A robot developed by GSK CNC Equipment Co Ltd demonstrates its ability to carry out tasks with precision and fl uidity by painting illustrations of dragons at the China International Industry Fair in Shanghai. GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY

This year’s fair, which ran from Nov 3 to 7, had 230,000 square meters of exhibition space and attracted 136,000 visitors — up 12.4 percent from a year ago — and as many as 2,270 exhibitors from 28 nations and regions.

The theme for this latest edition of CIIF focused on three aspects — innovation, intelligence and green tech — that aptly reflect China’s drive toward entrepreneurship and innovation. On show at the fair was a wide range of state-of-the-art technologies such as robots, smart city blueprints, next-generation information technologies, new energy vehicles and 3D printing equipment.

Intelligent manufacturing was the hot topic this time around, with the CIIF showcasing a total of 46 intelligent manufacturing projects from Chinese science institutions, enterprises and colleges. Some of the projects include the Long March 6 from China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, an intelligent robot with bionic eyes from Chinese Academy of Sciences, and an unmanned survey ship developed by Shanghai University.

“During my 17 years of organizing the exhibition, I dare say that domestic participants this year have made great progress in terms of technology and product standards,” said Dai Liu, secretary of the party committee of Shanghai East Best & Lan Sheng International (Group) Co Ltd.

Over at the booth of SAIC Motor Corp Ltd, the largest listed auto company in China’s A-share market, the company unveiled its first self-driving car. Meanwhile, Shanghai MJ Intelligent System Co Ltd launched its intelligent network management system called Newton 1.0. According to the company’s general manager Chen Jun, the system is regarded as a breakthrough as it supports a variety of industrial systems and facilitates intelligent manufacturing.

This year’s CIIF also saw robots taking up a substantial presence at the event, occupying 28,800 square meters of space, as compared to just 7,000 sq m three years ago, according to Dai, who is also the chairman of Shanghai Robot Industry Association.

One of the highlights of CIIF was the debut of a robot named “little i”. Developed by Shanghai Zhizhen Network Technology Co, the robot has already been used in some banks as a receptionist.

One of the most notable foreign innovations on show was the KR CYTEC nano series by German robotics supplier KUKA. This new series of robots fall under the low payload category and measure 47 percent smaller than previous models. Defined by their precision and speed, these robots can be used to assemble small components and do welding work in very small spaces.

“We have significantly reduced the disruptive contours of the robot, while the streamlined design of the wrist ensures better accessibility, even in confined workspaces,” said Markus Hollfelder-Asam, product manager at KUKA.