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The glory and dream of the fastener industry in Ningbo
In the manufacturing landscape, fasteners, though tiny, are as crucial as industrial "joints". Ningbo has been deeply engaged in this field for many years, starting from workshops to industrial clusters, and has written a unique industrial legend.
1. Germination and Initiation: From Workshop to Industrial Prototype
In the middle of the last century, small workshops like agricultural machinery repair shops emerged in rural areas of Zhenhai, producing simple screws and washers to serve local agricultural machinery maintenance. This marked the beginning of the fastener industry in Ningbo.
After the reform and opening up, Ningbo attracted foreign investment and technology by virtue of its port advantages. In the 1990s, a large number of family-run fastener factories emerged in Zhenhai. They used second-hand equipment to produce low-end standard parts, seizing the domestic market with price advantages, and the industrial scale initially expanded.
After joining the WTO in the 21st century, Ningbo fastener enterprises have relied on the logistics advantages of Ningbo Port to expand the international market. Their export volume has accounted for 18% of the national total, and the cluster effect of the industry has emerged.
2. Growth and expansion: The scale effect of industrial clusters
The fastener industry in Ningbo has formed a complete industrial chain, with enterprises gathering in Beilun, Cixi, Zhenhai and other places. Jiulonghu Town in Zhenhai District is an important base. Currently, there are 103 fastener enterprises, among which 32 are large-scale enterprises. In 2024, the total industrial output value of the fastener industry in this town reached 3.59 billion yuan, accounting for 39% of that in Ningbo and 6.7% of the national total. It has one national manufacturing single champion, three specialized, refined, distinctive and innovative "little giants", and ten high-tech enterprises. The proportion of R&D investment has reached 3.2%, which is 1.5 percentage points higher than the national average of the same industry.
At the municipal level, the total output of fasteners in Ningbo will reach 850,000 tons in 2024, accounting for 12.3% of the national total. The total output value was 42 billion yuan, and the export volume was 2.16 billion US dollars, covering more than 180 countries and regions around the world. Industrial clusters have reduced raw material procurement costs by 12% and increased logistics efficiency by 20%.
3. Standard parts and non-standard parts: Coordinated development
Standard parts：Among the high-end standard parts in Ningbo, high-strength bolts of grade 10.9 and above account for 65%, and the export volume of stainless steel 316L products makes up 22% of the national total. A certain enterprise has achieved zero customer complaints for 36 consecutive months by controlling the dimensional accuracy of its products within ±0.01mm through a fully automatic optical screening system. In 2024, the export value of standard parts from Ningbo reached 1.38 billion US dollars, representing a year-on-year growth of 9.2%.
Non-standard parts：In the first half of 2025, the export value of fasteners from Ningbo increased by 18.6% year-on-year, among which orders for non-standard parts accounted for 32.3%. After a certain enterprise in Beilun added new equipment, the delivery time of non-standard parts was shortened from 25 days to 17 days, the annual production capacity increased by 40%, and the output value rose by 28 million yuan. However, the R&D cost of non-standard parts is 35% higher than that of standard parts. The special bolts customized by a certain enterprise for a nuclear power project went through 12 rounds of tests before meeting the standards, and the R&D cost of a single set exceeded 800,000 yuan.
4. Challenges and Opportunities: Moving towards the High End
Challenge: Among the fastener enterprises in Ningbo, only 18% have R&D platforms at the provincial level or above. 80% of high-end cold heading equipment relies on imports, and the equipment procurement cost is 3 to 5 times higher than that of domestic products. The shortage of skilled talents has reached 23,000, resulting in the capacity utilization rate of some enterprises being only 78%.
Opportunities: In terms of policies, among the 52 district-level and above R&D centers in Jiulonghu Town, 90% are fastener enterprises. The municipal research institute of Jinding has an annual R&D investment of over 15 million yuan and has obtained 46 patents. Emerging industries bring about demand. It is estimated that the market size of new energy vehicle fasteners in Ningbo will reach 4.5 billion yuan in 2025, and the demand for special fasteners for 5G base stations will increase by 30% annually. The intelligent transformation is accelerating. Currently, 35% of the enterprises in the town have introduced MES systems, increasing production efficiency by 25% and reducing energy consumption by 18%.
In the future, the fastener industry in Ningbo needs to seize opportunities, break through bottlenecks and move towards becoming a global high-end fastener base.