The Ningbo government signs a cooperation agreement with a team from University of Colorado Boulder on a metamaterial film project in Ningbo, Zhejiang province on Jan 7, 2018. [Photo/cnnb.com.cn]

A world-class metamaterial film project, led by Yang Ronggui, a professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder, will be stationed in Fenghua district, Ningbo, Zhejiang province.

As explained on the university's official website, this engineered material has extraordinary properties not found in nature, and can act as a kind of cooling system. It has the ability to cool objects even under direct sunlight with zero energy and water consumption.

This eco-friendly material can be applied in a variety of fields, including cold chains and the photovoltaic industry.

It is a significant breakthrough in the field of new materials, and when Yang's team announced the new finding in 2017, nearly 30 Chinese cities offered to support the project. However, at that time, Ningbo was not one of them.

The change occurred at the beginning of 2018 when Yang's team took a trip to Jiangsu province on Jan 3. At the invitation of a Fenghua entrepreneur, the team decided to investigate conditions in Ningbo.

The meeting with officials in Fenghua struck a chord among attendees. Two days later, when the team returned to Shenzhen, Guangdong province, Chen Zhongchao, vice mayor of Ningbo, visited Yang. They talked at length about technology, the market, the social environment, and development prospects.

The next morning, Mayor Zheng Shanjie met with members of Yang's team in Shenzhen and encouraged them to start businesses in Ningbo.

That afternoon, five core members of the team flew to Ningbo and started an official inspection of the city. The trip strengthened their confidence in cooperating with the city and they decided to station the project in Fenghua district.

On Jan 7, the two parties signed an agreement and the case was finally settled.

"Four flights in five days, I can see the efficiency with which the Ningbo government works," said Yang.

The efficient process is a reflection of the city's strong determination to attract top talent and develop advanced industries. Zheng said at the signing ceremony that "Ningbo is willing to provide top-notch policies and services for people from home and abroad wishing to do innovative work and start companies here."

It is estimated that the first round of metamaterial films will be produced in the second half of 2018.

In the future, Yang's team will help build an industrial park in Fenghua for radiative cooling technology and introduce 10 initial companies along the industrial chain. An energy conservation and environmental protection research institute will be set up as well.