In the heart of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area lies Dongguan City's Chang'an Town, a town built on manufacturing that has transformed itself into a leading player in the global smart device industry. With a GDP surpassing 105 billion yuan in 2024, Chang'an has firmly established itself as a "billion-yuan town." The electronic information industry in Chang'an has grown to a scale exceeding 220 billion yuan, accounting for nearly a quarter of Dongguan's total in this sector.
Led by major companies like OPPO, Chang'an has developed a comprehensive industrial ecosystem that encompasses everything from chip design to device manufacturing and smart wearable technology.
Industrial transformation strengthens the manufacturing base
The rise of Chang'an is a microcosm of China's reform and opening-up. The town's industrial journey began with the establishment of the first Hong Kong-invested enterprise, the Chang'an Handbag Factory, marking the start of an era of industrialization.
In 1995, Duan Yongping, the legendary figure behind the "Xiao Ba Wang" brand, founded Guangdong BBK Electronics Industrial Co., Ltd. (BBK Electronics/BBK), with Chen Mingyong (Tony Chen), Shen Wei, and other core members. BBK Electronics' headquarters and production base were located in Chang'an, Dongguan, making it the biggest taxpayer in the town. Following its establishment, the company rapidly launched several highly successful products in cordless phones, VCDs, and educational electronics, significantly boosting the economic growth of Chang'an.
Under the leadership of Duan Yongping, BBK Electronics later restructured by spinning off its three core divisions—education, mobile, and audiovisual—into fully independent, equity-separated companies, forming BBK Education Electronics, BBK Mobile Communication Technology, and BBK Audio-Visual Electronics.
As the DVD player industry gradually declined, Tony Chen decided to seek breakthroughs and start a new venture. In 2004, OPPO (China) was officially established at No. 18 Haibin Road, Chang'an, Dongguan.
OPPO continuously exceeds consumer expectations through differentiated technology, design, and service, achieving breakthroughs and driving industry innovation in the global market. This is evident in its intense competition with major smartphone manufacturers, including Samsung, Xiaomi, vivo, and realme.
Today, Chang'an is home to over 1,000 upstream and downstream enterprises in the smartphone industry, with more than 350 high-tech companies and 160 electronic information firms, employing over 200,000 people in production, sales, and maintenance roles.
Showcasing the strength of "Chang'an Manufacturing"
OPPO has established a new R&D center in Chang'an, attracting further smartphone R&D talent to the area and enhancing the region's overall competitiveness.
The efficiency of the local supply chain is remarkable, with over 300 core supporting enterprises located within a 30-kilometer radius, achieving a local supply rate of over 85%. This synergy allows for rapid response times, with components able to be delivered in as little as two hours.
After nearly three decades of development, Chang'an has grown its population to over 1 million, nurtured a talent pool of nearly 270,000 professionals, and formed robust industrial clusters. These include an electronic information industry valued at over 100 billion yuan, a mechanical hardware and mold industry worth around 50 billion yuan, and several emerging industrial clusters each valued at approximately 10 billion yuan, such as smart vision and new energy vehicle supporting industries.
In 2024, the output value of the electronic information industry in Chang'an further climbed to 232.61 billion yuan, and the total output value of industries above designated size also reached an impressive 321.16 billion yuan, demonstrating the strength of "Chang'an Manufacturing."
In the future, Chang'an plans a "second entrepreneurship," with a new 2-square-kilometer robotics industrial park under development along the Maozhou River. This initiative aims to leverage the technological advancements of companies like Yutong Optical and OPTEK in machine vision, creating a robust ecosystem of "hardware manufacturing plus software algorithms."
Reporter: Xie Maishi, He Mingqiang
Photo: Nanfang Plus
Editor: Wei Shen, James Campion, Shen He
