Workers move into high gear on the production line at FAW Group's Hongqi plant. [Photo provided to gojilin.gov.cn]

The Hongqi luxury car marque of giant auto manufacturer FAW Group achieved annual sales of 300,600 vehicles in 2021, a year-on-year increase of more than 50 percent and a growth rate that was 10 times the industry average, according to the Jilin Daily. 

Reversing the sector's overall trend, FAW Group's Hongqi Fanrong (literally, prosperity) New Energy Factory was completed on Oct 30, in Changchun, capital of Northeast China's Jilin province.

The final assembly workshop of the factory has applied digital twin technology and the coverage rate of intelligent network connections has reportedly reached 90 percent. For the first time, a workshop-level central control system was adopted, which is said to have realized the whole data collection of the assembly process and the inspection process, to prevent errors in key stages.

The 10 intelligent processes cover the fully automatic assemblies of the front and rear windshields, seats, tires and chassis of the entire vehicle.

AI vision technology is used to achieve automatic detections for cabin piping and tire pressures, while the automation rate for the entire assembly line has reached 30 percent.

An FAW Hongqi manufacturing workshop swings into gear. [Photo provided to gojilin.gov.cn]

In terms of complete vehicles, Hongqi has reportedly made every effort to promote the mass production of eight models – including the Hongqi E-QM5, H5-21 and HS5-21 models – and smart minibuses.

In terms of assembly, Hongqi independently completed the first hydrogen engine with a thermal efficiency of 42.2 percent, developing a new strategic route for hydrogen energy.

What's more, the Hongqi brand won the top spot in terms of the worth of China's State-owned passenger vehicle sector, with a brand value of 92.5 billion yuan ($14.58 billion), a year-on-year increase of 15 percent.

In April, first-day sales of the new Hongqi brand models in Saudi Arabia reached 46 vehicles. In June, Hongqi exported 234 of its H9 and HS5 models to Saudi Arabia.

In the same year, FAW's Hongqi brand opened sales branches in the region in Jeddah, Dammam and Riyadh.

In September, Hongqi's E-HS9 pure electric smart SUV model was exported to Europe, receiving orders for more than 500 units during the pre-sales period in Norway alone. This was seen as an important breakthrough in its high-end overseas new energy vehicle market.

A workshop gets fully underway at Hongqi. [Photo provided to gojilin.gov.cn]