Ministry to make a push for big data industry

A regulator from the top information industry said on Thursday it will beef up efforts to promote big data driven manufacturing.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said more money and resources will be devoted to encouraging the application of big data in the entire manufacturing industry chain which includes production, distribution, and after-sales services.

"Big data will play a key role in upgrading China's manufacturing structure," said Chen Wei, Director of Software Services Department of MIIT. "We are now working on an industry standard to allow all forces to participate in the boom."

According to Chen, a significant progress has already been made. "In 2014, we conducted a survey of over 30,000 enterprises in more than 35 industries. The results show that over 54 percent of companies have used digital tools in their daily operations, which indicated a well-laid foundation to accumulate massive amounts of data."

Chen said the new push will generate a high demand for sensors as all manufacturing equipments are to be digitalized in the future.

The industry regulator also said it will channel more resources to support the promotion of big-data in key sectors such as telecom, finance, transportation and medical care.

Earlier this month, State Council unveiled a guideline to help boost the development of big data. It said China will cultivate a batch of international competitive brands in big data industry.