Wuxi's Binhu district sent a delegation of local business leaders and government officials to Chongqing and Chengdu last week to investigate possible deals to cooperate with businesses, universities and research institutes in the Southwest China cities on key research and development projects.

The delegation toured the National Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials at Sichuan University and the National Engineering Technology Research Center of Mechanical Transmission during their visit, which helped deepen their understanding of the two institutions’ research strengths.

The Binhu party also sat down with their counterparts from the two institutes for an in-depth discussion of possible options for further collaboration, during which the delegation learned other specific information about the institutes, such as their research specializations and faculties.

During the meeting, an official from Binhu district's bureau of science and technology introduced the overall situation of the district and specified the companies' development requirements.

Shen Wenhua, manager of Taihu Anticorrosion Materials, then shared their unsolved technological problems, and Bao Jianjun of Sichuan University's National Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials offered his advice. The two parties are expected to conduct further communication and cooperation.

Binhu has agreed many similar research cooperation deals in recent years, which have played an important role in boosting scientific and technological innovation in the area, and the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries in the district.

To date, Binhu's universities and enterprises have inked 147 different research cooperation deals with other cities and regions in China, with a total investment of 700 million yuan ($105 million). This has enabled many enterprises to solve their technological problems and improve their long-term core competiveness.