The Tianfu Life Science Park is Chengdu's top investment destination for biomedicine businesses. Photos Provided to China Daily

Relying on its competitive strength in research and innovation, the biomedicine industry in Chengdu, capital city of Southwest China's Sichuan province, is pushing forward local economic development.

Chengdu is one of the State-level hubs for the development and manufacture of biomedicines.

Local statistics show that the industry's enterprises generated combined sales of 31.1 billion yuan, ranking first among all cities in China's western regions.

Last year, more than 90 medical enterprises each reported sales revenue in excess of 100 million yuan.

Medical equipment and materials manufacturing is the fastest-growing segment of this industry, with an average annual growth rate of more than 20 percent in recent years.

This is an emerging sector in Chengdu, and it contributed 4 billion yuan in total revenue in 2010. Local authorities predict the figure is expected to surpass 10 billion yuan in 2015.

And some enterprises in this field have already achieved leading positions in the nation over the past few years.

For example, Chengdu-made infusion equipment and blood products now hold one-third of the market share in China. And locally produced artificial bone made of nano materials and absorbable bone fixtures are also well-received in domestic and overseas markets.

Because of such star enterprises as Xinjin Shifeng, Shuanglu Medical, Nigale Biotechnology and Rich Science, Chengdu is now the nation's major manufacturing hub for polymer materials, which are used in the production of infusion equipment and anti-bacterial products.

Leading the medical reagent and analyzing instrument sector are companies such as Maker Biotechnology, BioSinew, Origissay Diagnostics and Genegle.

In the field of medical electronics, Jinjiang Electronic is leading the nation in cardiac diagnostics and treatment equipment, accounting for more than half the market.

Another heavyweight player in the sector is Chengdu AllTech Medical Systems. It is China's first manufacturer of world-class magnetic resonance imaging equipment.

In addition, renowned US company GE Healthcare also joined local enterprises in developing a number of medical technologies.

Chengdu's booming biotech industry owes its success mainly to the city's ample research infrastructure, which includes the National Natural Medicine Research Center, the National Medical Bio-Materials Research Center, the Sichuan University School of High Molecules and the Sichuan Medical Materials Testing Center.

These research teams are backed by more than 3,000 professionals, including some of the nation's top medical scientists, and scholars returning from the overseas.

The local government is introducing a number of preferential policies and taking steps to spur the development of the biomedicine industry.

One such measure is the development of industrial parks, including the Tianhe Innovation Zone and the Tianfu Life Science Park.

The local government's support and assistance can also be seen in industrial planning, financial services, intellectual property protection, human resources training and investment promotion.

To attract investment and promote international cooperation, the city has hosted several high-level international medical conferences and forums.

The ninth World Biomaterials Congress will be held in Chengdu this June. This will be the most important event for the medical industry in the city.

Contact the writer at zhuanti@chinadaily.com.cn