Intelligent manufacturing is a practical need for the transformation and upgrading of the steel industry, and it also serves as a powerful guarantee for the high-quality development of the industry. Li Xinchuang, the Director of the Metallurgical Industry Planning and Research Institute, said that currently, intelligent manufacturing in the steel industry is at the initial stage, with technologies like cloud computing and big data set to achieve large-scale application, and industrial internet platforms becoming a crucial focus.

According to information, the steel industry has made significant progress in basic automation, process automation, and enterprise management systems, laying a solid foundation for intelligent manufacturing in the industry. The steel industry has now established 9 pilot demonstration projects for intelligent manufacturing, with certain achievements in smart workshops, intelligent mines, and mass customization pilot demonstration projects.

The "China's Industrial and Information Fusion Development Data Map (2018)" reveals that in 2018, the level of industrial and information fusion in Chinese industrial enterprises reached 52.8. That year, the index of industrial and information fusion in the steel industry reached 51.2, with the rate of numerical control in key processes at 68.7%, and over 50% of companies utilizing e-commerce. Despite facing immense pressures such as overcapacity, structural imbalance, and energy and environmental concerns, large-scale steel enterprises have made significant progress in synchronizing logistics, information flow, and capital flow. They are actively exploring the application of big data in research and development, production energy management, quality control, and effectively supporting the enhancement of the overall industry's manufacturing level and capabilities. A new intelligent production system with intensive and real-time optimization is being gradually established.