(Percentage*)
* Due to rounding, the percentage may not add up to 100%.
# The above figures only include factories and industrial sites that have already been granted or rented.
As for their names, please refer to the HKSTPC's website as follows: www.hkstp.org/en/directory/industrial-estates/companies-directory/.
(2) After revising the IE policy in 2015, only in exceptional cases would the HKSTPC grant sites on long-term lease to meritorious applicants for building standalone factories. The HKSTPC has so far received three relevant applications which are currently under vetting.
As for development of multi-storey specialised industrial buildings, the HKSTPC completed refurbishing a four-storey factory (with a total gross floor area (GFA) of 84 000 square feet (sq ft)) in the Tai Po IE into the Precision Manufacturing Centre (PMC) in March 2017 with a view to fostering smart production. As at end March 2018, the HKSTPC had received nine formal admission applications from applicants engaging in industries such as precision engineering and assembling, new material manufacturing, and advanced indoor hydroponic, etc., and approved seven of them after vetting. Among the seven approved applications, four enterprises have already moved in, occupying 75 per cent of the GFA, and the other three eventually did not set up operation due to various commercial considerations. The remaining two admission applications were not approved as they could not pass the vetting requirements (for instance, the company's business did not belong to the HKSTPC's target industries).
(3) Under the revised IE policy, rental charges at IEs is set at competitive level, having regard to the prevailing market conditions and other relevant factors (such as facilities and restrictions on use etc.), and after valuation on the concerned buildings by independent surveyor. Currently, the HKSTPC receives a rental income of about $460,000 per month from the PMC. The rent of upstairs units is around $7 to $8.5 per sq ft, more or less similar to, or even slightly lower than, privately-run multi-storey factory buildings in the same district. The rental charges will be reviewed by the HKSTPC once every three years. Since the first lease of the PMC was concluded in the third quarter of 2017, review or adjustment of rent is not yet due. Separately, the term of the first lease is generally six years, and each renewal contract thereafter, if granted, will last for three years.
(4) Taking the PMC as an example, the HKSTPC has engaged an external facility management company for professional management. Apart from rent, tenants are obliged to pay monthly management fee and chilled water charge of $2.77 and $1 per sq ft respectively. Management fee is charged by the HKSTPC on a cost-recovery basis, and is set at a similar level with that of industrial buildings of the same type in neighbouring districts. Besides, tenants, as users, need to bear rates and government rent, and other charges such as water, electricity, gas, sewage, etc.
(5) The HKSTPC has been providing one-stop infrastructure and support services to technology-based companies, in order to encourage manufacturers to set up their production bases in Hong Kong. The IE policy was revised in 2015 to support re-industrialisation by developing and managing specialised multi-storey industrial buildings for high value-added technology industries (e.g. pharmaceutical, healthcare, biomedical and advanced machinery etc.), so that the manufacturers can operate efficiently therein. With regard to the PMC, the HKSTPC has specifically set up a large-scale rigid frame at the rooftop to facilitate the installation of extra air-conditioners, specialised water tank for industrial use, refrigeration unit and large-sized mechanical lifting exit etc. by tenants. Under special circumstances, the HKSTPC would offer flexible lease arrangements, including rent concession or deferral of move-in time etc. having regard to the needs of tenants to install additional facilities and alter the factory units.
(6) To encourage enterprises to relocate their production lines back to Hong Kong and re-build the "Made in Hong Kong" brand, the Government has been working closely with the HKSTPC to provide related infrastructure and facilities. To tie in with the revised IE policy, the HKSTPC is constructing a Data Technology Hub and an Advanced Manufacturing Centre in the Tseung Kwan O IE, which are expected to be completed in 2020 and 2022 respectively.
On technological support, the Government provides funding support through the Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) for projects that contribute to technology upgrading in manufacturing and services industries and promotion of innovation. As at January 2018, over 7 000 projects were funded by the ITF, with a funding of about $13.6 billion. The Government has also set aside $500 million under the ITF to launch a Technology Talent Scheme in the third quarter of 2018, which includes a Re-industrialisation and Technology Training Programme to subsidise local enterprises on a matching basis for training staff in advanced technologies, especially those related to Industry 4.0, with a view to driving re-industrialisation.
Meanwhile, the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) has been dedicating efforts to promoting re-industrialisation to facilitate enterprises in moving towards high value-added production and gradually upgrading towards Industry 4.0, including setting up the Smart Industry One Consortium as a platform to facilitate the industry to exchange information on smart industry; establishing an Invention Centre jointly with the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology of Germany to assist the industry in accelerating adoption of Industry 4.0-related technologies; and setting up the HKPC Institute of Innovation & Technology (Shenzhen) to provide Hong Kong entrepreneurs in the Bay Area with solutions based on intelligent manufacturing, artificial intelligence, big data, environmental technology, etc.
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