The third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee was the prelude to China's economic reconstruction, reform and opening up. With the promulgation of the Sino-foreign Joint Venture Law in 1979, China ushered in the first batch of Sino-foreign joint ventures, including Beijing Air Catering Co., Ltd., Xinjiang Tianshan Wool Tex Stock Co., Ltd., Beijing Jianguo Hotel, and Beijing Great Wall Hotel. Schindler, named after its founder, Robert Schindler, was also one of them. In 1980, Schindler, which is headquartered in Lucerne, Switzerland, established China-Schindler Elevator Co., Ltd.(China Schindler), China’s first industrial joint venture, and also the first joint venture in Shanghai.

A historical story of a pioneer

In the era of China’s planned economy, there were eight elevator factories in China designated by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, including the Shanghai Elevator Factory and Beijing Elevator Factory. The Shanghai Elevator Factory was located in the former Pengpu Industrial Park of the former Zhabei District. With a strong technical foundation and production potential, in the 1970s it could produce more than 60 varieties of automatic elevators, escalators and moving walkways. Although a leading company in the industry, it still fell behind advanced international counterparts.