To foster industrial upgrading and shared growth across the sector, the National Industry-Education Integration Community of the Professional Tooling Industry was established this month in the Weihai's high-tech zone, Shandong province.

As a vital component of China's manufacturing industry, the professional tooling sector has experienced robust growth in recent years, marked by expanding industrial scale and an accelerating pace of innovation. The establishment of this community aims to eliminate institutional barriers hindering the deep integration of industry and education. It seeks to provide a dynamic platform for cooperation, exchange, innovation and development, while driving technological advancement, workforce training and industrial transformation within the professional tooling sector, the community said.

Currently, the community includes over 100 inaugural member units, comprising upstream and downstream enterprises, universities, vocational colleges, research institutions and other entities across 16 provinces. This initiative unites key players across production, education, research, application and innovation.

Looking ahead, the community plans to focus on measures such as personnel training, addressing common technological challenges and fostering collaboration between schools and enterprises in the development of teaching resources. The ultimate goal is to achieve a deeper integration of industry, education and scientific research, promoting the alignment of the industrial, educational, innovation and talent ecosystems, it continued.