Laboratory to aid GSM terminal products
By Zhang Yong (China Daily)
Updated: 2004-03-12 10:32

The Switzerland-based SGS Group, a world leading verification, testing and certification service provider, yesterday opened a GSM laboratory in Shanghai.

This move is meant to enable China's fast-growing mobile phone manufacturing industries to receive internationally recognized certification at home and further enter the global market.

With a total investment of 50 million yuan (US$6 million), the Shanghai GSM laboratory will provide relevant testing and verification services for domestically made GSM wireless terminal products, including radio frequency, audio, electrical safety, GSM & GPRS protocol and environment reliability.

The new lab will help mobile phones made in China to be recognized in international markets and help improve their competitive edge as export products, said Yuan Zhiyang, manager of the lab.

To receive international recognition, domestic mobile phone manufacturers originally had to send their sample products abroad for testing and verification, which cost large sums of money as well as time, according to Yuan.

"Now Chinese manufacturers can have their latest products tested at home and receive international certification," said Yuan.

"Our aim is to provide domestic manufacturers with efficient access to the global market," said the lab manager.

Yin Jixin, deputy director of the State Radio Monitoring Centre under the Ministry of Information Industry, however, pointed out that SGS certification can only be partly recognized on the international market and mobile phone products that are sold on the Chinese market still have to pass State certification.

After years of rapid growth, China's mobile phone manufacturing capability exceeded 160 million sets in 2003, but the domestic market represented only an annual demand of around 60 million, according to SGS statistics.

"A key way out for domestic mobile phone makers is to explore the global market," said Lu Dawei, a senior engineer with TCL, a domestic electronics giant which expects to sell more than 11 million mobile phones this year.

"The establishment of the SGS GSM lab is big good news for us," said Lu.

According to Lu, the new lab may help the latest mobile phone products enter the world market efficiently with recognized certification.

Statistics from the Ministry of Commerce show that China's mobile phone exports reached 95.23 million sets in 2003, with a total revenue of US$7.37 billion.

But domestic-brand mobile phones accounted for less than 2 per cent of total exports last year, though they had occupied more than half of the home market, said the statistics.

Founded in 1878, SGS now operates a network of some 840 offices, subsidiaries and over 320 laboratories around the world.

SGS has no manufacturing, trading or financial interests and guarantees its reputation for professionalism, integrity and impartiality, according to the company's releases.