All eight cities on the west bank of the Pearl River are scheduled to participate

The fifth Exposition for Investment and Trade of Advanced Equipment Manufacturing on the West Bank of the Pearl River, also known as the fifth AEME, will take place from Friday to Sunday at the Tanzhou International Convention and Exhibition Center in Foshan, Guangdong province.

This year's event is marking improvements in intelligence, environmental conservation and services compared to last year. Many exhibitions will make their debut at the expo, and the total exhibition area will be around 30,000 square meters, according to organizers.

As of August 30, 143 companies from all eight cities along the west bank of the Pearl River-Zhuhai, Foshan, Shaoguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, Yangjiang, Zhaoqing and Yunfu-had confirmed to take part in the exhibition.

They will showcase 272 items representing their latest major achievements in the advanced equipment manufacturing industry.

Among them, 52 companies from Foshan will demonstrate a total of 97 items, which will be divided into three sectors: machine tools and key technological equipment, intelligent equipment and robots, and new energy (hydrogen) and cars.

One group, Foshan Henglitai Machinery, will bring to the event its latest smart pressing machine for extra-large ceramic boards, which broke the previous monopoly held by foreign companies in China.

Foshan Nanhai Foton Motor will exhibit hydrogen fuel cell bus, and Guangshun New Energy Technology will display its core hydrogen-power components.

Zhang Qingyun, an official with the Foshan bureau of industry and information technology, said:"The 2019 AEME will serve as an important platform to present the project construction, cultivation of leading companies and industrial achievements in boosting advanced equipment manufacturing in cities along the west bank of the Pearl River."

Other activities will include an industrial cooperation forum, an intellectual property forum and investment and financing promotion events.

During the three-day show, about 208 projects are expected to be signed between companies and the eight cities, with investments totaling 129.94 billion yuan ($18.37 billion). Foshan alone has 64 projects with a total investment of 57.33 billion yuan, including 21 individual projects involving an investment of more than 1 billion yuan each, according to event organizers.

By hosting the AEME, Foshan has enhanced its leading role in building advanced equipment manufacturing industrial clusters on the west bank of the Pearl River, local officials said.