A delegation from Baoshan Iron & Steel Company Limited (Baosteel), a subsidiary of China Baowu Steel Group Corporation (Baowu Group), visited City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) again on 18 November, following a visit in May this year. They discussed further details of cooperation in the areas of education and scientific research.
The delegation was led by Mr Zou Jixin, Chairman of Baosteel, and its members included Mr Wu Jun, Deputy General Manager of Baosteel and President of the Baosteel’s Central Research Institute (Technology); Mr Zhu Yan, Planning and Technology Director of Baosteel; Mr Lu Chao, Director of Baosteel's Central Research Institute (Technology Center) and Applied Innovation Center; and Mr You Yi, Deputy General Manager of Baosteel's Bao-Trans Enterprise Limited. The delegation was warmly welcomed by Professor Freddy Boey, President of CityUHK, and members of senior management, including Professor Lee Chun-sing, Provost and Deputy President; Professor Michael Yang, Senior Vice-President (Innovation and Enterprise) and Professor Anderson Shum, Vice-President (Research).
President Boey thanked delegation for their second visit to CityUHK. Professor Lee introduced CityUHK's academic and innovative achievements through a video, including the establishment this year of the CityUHK Academy of Innovation, the CityUHK Institute of Digital Medicine, and the Hong Kong Institute of AI for Science.
Professor Lee highlighted CityUHK's latest developments and outstanding achievements, including nearly 210 scholars being named among the "World’s Top 2% Most-cited Scientists", compiled by a research team from Stanford University. CityUHK was ranked first in Hong Kong in proportion to the overall number of teaching and research staff at the University. Additionally, CityUHK was honoured as the “Most International University in the World" by Times Higher Education (THE) in 2024 and was ranked tenth in Asia and third in Hong Kong in the recently released Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Asian University Rankings 2025. CityUHK was ranked among Asia’s top 1% of universities, demonstrating the University's steady progress in academic research and pursuit of innovative excellence.
CityUHK has a strong academic team in metallurgical studies. Led by Professor Lu Jian, Dean of the College of Engineering, a research project received funding from the National Basic Research Program (also known as the 973 Program). The project involves collaboration with Baosteel to promote the application of Surface Mechanical Attrition Treatment (SMAT) in the standard production units of Baosteel. Professor Zhu Yuntian, Chair Professor of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, also leads an academic team at Nanjing University of Science and Technology. Their outstanding performance in a project involving heterogeneous low-carbon steel, known as " X-GPa", has garnered significant attention in the automotive steel market, with strong demand.
Professor Lee pointed out that CityUHK is ranked in the top tier in terms of approved patents in Hong Kong each year, with metallurgical patents leading the way. Currently, CityUHK has over 80 approved metallurgical patents. One of them, a patent related to Nano-Precipitate Strengthened Ultra-High Strength Steels has successfully undergone knowledge transfer and entered the production phase.
The delegation also visited three laboratories at CityUHK, namely the Hong Kong Branch of the National Precious Metals Material Engineering Research Center, the Water and Membrane Technologies Laboratory, and the 3D Atom Probe Tomography Lab, to explore CityUHK's research and development capabilities in advancing precious metal materials.
