New energy vessels dock at a shipyard in Jining. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A new energy inland vessel that once took about a year to build can now be completed in three months at a shipyard in Jining, Shandong province, reflecting Xinneng Shipbuilding Co's use of automated manufacturing and standardized vessel designs.

The company, a Jining-based manufacturer specializing in new energy vessels for inland waterways, has introduced an intelligent manufacturing platform that links vessel design, component processing, assembly, testing, and vessel trials. Its workshops are equipped with 95 automated machines and use a production model inspired by automotive assembly lines, with a design capacity of up to eight vessels a month.

The company has worked with partners to develop three standardized vessel types for the Beijing–Hangzhou Grand Canal, with carrying capacities of 5,000, 3,000, and 2,000 metric tons. They are designed for high-capacity transport along major routes, navigation across the canal's full length, and short-haul cargo transshipment, respectively.

Xinneng Shipbuilding has received orders for more than 400 vessels from domestic and overseas customers, with the export value exceeding 200 million yuan (about $30 million), and has already supplied liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered and fully electric vessels to markets including Tanzania, Vietnam, France, and Canada.

The company also led the development of China's first group standard, specifically addressing work safety standardization at new-energy inland vessel construction enterprises.