(Yicai Global) June 19 – Tianjin-based computer equipment maker Sugon Information Industry Co. [SHA:603019] will put aside CNY1 billion (USD147 million) to set up a subsidiary in Nanjing, in China's eastern province of Jiangsu, and open up a local industrial base.

Nanjing Jiangning Economic and Technological Development Zone's management committee signed an agreement with the company to start up Sugon Nanjing Research Institute and East Industrial base, the firm said. It will run the new project for at least 10 years.

Sugon developers high-end computer software and systems and has recently moved into developing smart cities. "Sugon has worked on urban cloud platforms since 2009," vice president Wang Hairong said on June 1, at a technical innovation conference Sugon held at Nanjing International Expo Center. "We have constructed and operated more than 40 city cloud platforms since then."

City cloud refers to the information-based management of city resources and facilities using cloud computing technology. It incorporates a number of fields, such as transport, education, medicine and environmental protection, among others.