Our country's measurement and instrumentation industry lags behind, facing numerous issues and a challenging situation. The primary factors are concentrated in the following four aspects:

One, the slow progress in technological innovation and its industrialization. Modern metrology is a highly integrated product of optics, machinery, electronics, computers, and many fundamental disciplines, highly sensitive to new technologies. It is one of the categories in modern industrial products where new technology applications and development are extremely rapid, with a batch of new products launched every year. Especially in today's information age, competition is increasingly fierce, and any slowdown in development speed can result in being left far behind. Today, as we have entered the 21st century, the general level of China's metrological instruments and equipment still lags behind the international level of the early 1980s. Instrumentation and equipment are almost entirely dependent on imports, and many urgently needed specialized instruments are still in a blank state. There are still many challenges to overcome in ensuring the quality of mid-to-low-end products. The slow progress in technological innovation and its industrialization is a "bottleneck" that hinders the development of China's metrological instruments and equipment industry. The main factors for the slow pace of technological innovation and development in this industry are: first, severe lack of research and development funding; second, a shortage of talent; and third, the lack of effective integration between government, industry, academia, research, and application.

The stability and reliability of the product have long been unable to be fundamentally resolved.

Our metrological products, including industrial automation instrument systems and communication instruments, although their technical specifications are not significantly different from those of similar foreign products, they lack stability and reliability. This significantly limits the scope of use and credibility of our metrological products. The main reasons for this are threefold:

(1) Long-term neglect of research and development in basic technology.

(2) Domestic general and basic components fail to meet quality standards.

(3) The company has inadequate quality control and management over its products, resulting in substandard product quality.

The old system has constrained the development of enterprises.

The outdated system is a common issue that hinders China's economy, particularly the development of state-owned enterprises, and the instrument industry is no exception. A significant number of state-owned enterprises, due to long-term constraints under the outdated system, have been unable to shed the historical burden of students, losing vitality in market competition and experiencing severe declines in production and operations. Many backbone enterprises are struggling on the brink of survival. Therefore, accelerating the reform of the system is one of the important pathways for development.

The development of the metrological instrument and meter industry is constrained by objective environmental factors, primarily manifested as:

(1) Overburdened taxation. Enterprises using measuring products generally have small scales, limited production volumes, and low overall output and economic benefits. However, modern metrological instruments and equipment have a tremendous driving effect on the national economy, generating incalculable multiplying benefits. For such a special industry, imposing a 17% value-added tax, a 33% income tax, and corresponding customs duties as other industries is overly burdensome.

(2) There is a lack of understanding and support from the relevant industry departments, as well as from banks, tax, and commerce authorities, regarding the importance of developing the metrology product industry.

(3) Lack of procurement policies supporting the development of domestic industries.

(4) Our country's basic industry capabilities are lacking. This includes poor product quality, service, and credibility, which directly impact the development of the industry.

Strategies and Recommendations for Revitalizing China's Measurement and Instrument Industry. To revitalize the industry's development, it is necessary for the State Council, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and other relevant departments to jointly formulate necessary support policies. Modern metrology integrates various high-tech achievements. The development of modern metrological instruments and equipment requires the concentration of talents and substantial investment, thus necessitating a group of large companies with considerable economic strength and brand influence to drive the entire industry's progress. It is also essential to quickly reform state-owned enterprises and inject new vitality into their development. Since the instrument industry typically has a small scale and a short history, the "burden" is relatively light, and the product structure is easy to adjust. Therefore, the reform process is relatively less challenging. It is recommended that the state accelerate the reform of state-owned enterprises, set clear requirements, and this will have a positive and proactive impact on the development of the metrological instrument industry.