China's high-quality machinery manufacturers have been able to produce plastic machines that can handle 80% of plastic injection molding machine applications. However, a considerable number of manufacturers in the middle and low end fields may gradually withdraw from the market in the next five years, according to George Stieler from Stieler Technology&Marketing in Germany.

In the past five years, with the improvement of technology and highly competitive prices, Chinese manufacturers have successfully challenged the old German and Japanese enterprises and accelerated their entry into developed markets such as Europe and the United States, said Stieler, the general manager of the company's Shanghai branch in an e-mail to Plastic News China.

At present, there are 546 local plastic machinery manufacturers in China, most of which produce injection molding machines. The dispersion of the whole industry is very high, and the top ten manufacturers in the industry only account for 39% of the total sales of the industry.

Chinese enterprises face some challenges in upgrading equipment technology and standards. Stieler told the author: "Due to the thin profits and the lack of strong protection of intellectual property rights, the management only looks at the present. In addition, the lack of competent R&D personnel, the high turnover rate of employees has formed a vicious circle in many enterprises."

The price of machinery exported from Western European countries to China is quite different from that of domestic equipment exported from China to other countries. The price of imported injection molding machines is three times higher than that of Chinese machines, and the price of imported extruders and granulators is 30 times higher.

Stieler told the author: "Chinese local enterprises and foreign enterprises in China still rely on imported machines. This shows that Chinese manufacturers are still relatively backward in technology, and important criteria include speed, replicability and energy efficiency."

The report predicts that the number of machinery made in China will continue to rise, and the quality will be improved compared with the past few years. The report commended the Chinese government for vigorously supporting the development of the industry, and quoted the forecast figures of China Plastics Machinery Industry Association, saying that the growth rate would continue to be 12% from now to 2016.

Larger enterprises are expected to develop more sophisticated machinery and further expand their global business, Stieler said. "We expect that many manufacturers in the middle and low end market will withdraw from the market in the next five years."