ZHENGZHOU, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- With the global launch of Apple's iPhone 17 series, China's advanced manufacturing ecosystem is once again playing a pivotal role in bringing the company's latest products to markets worldwide.

At the center of this effort is Foxconn's Zhengzhou factory in central China's Henan Province, one of the world's largest iPhone assembly bases and a symbol of the country's electronics production scale.

The plant is running at full throttle, ramping up hiring to meet the global demand for Apple's smart phones. Each morning, long lines of job seekers form outside its recruitment center, reflecting the massive workforce required to roll out new iPhones.

"Since late July, the recruitment center has welcomed thousands of job seekers on a daily basis, and this bustling scene is expected to continue through the end of September," said Fang Siming, assistant vice president of human resources at Foxconn's Zhengzhou comprehensive bonded zone.

As a major production hub for Apple's high-end iPhone models, Foxconn's Zhengzhou factory has been a key driver in meeting international demand. At the peak of iPhone production, the Foxconn factory usually recruits tens of thousands of workers, many taking on short-term roles in assembly, quality inspection and packaging, leveraging China's vast human resources and sophisticated infrastructure.

"The three-month Foxconn job is expected to bring me and my wife over 40,000 yuan (about 5,600 U.S. dollars), which is much higher than the average income in Henan," Zhao Yanhui, a Henan local who just landed his first job at the Foxconn factory, told Xinhua.

Zhao said he also hopes the company's talent training program will help him secure long-term opportunities at the factory.

"With a permanent population of nearly 100 million, Henan Province provides ample human resources for Foxconn," Fang said, adding that the company has benefited from over a decade of strong local government support in factory construction, recruitment and efficient logistics.

This long-standing partnership has helped anchor Apple's global supply chain with both scale and speed. Analysts add that Zhengzhou's strategic location and advanced logistics network further enhance this efficiency.

From Zhengzhou, newly assembled iPhones are shipped worldwide through an integrated "air-rail-land" transport system. As a major transport hub in central China, the city runs eight intercontinental air cargo routes, linking more than 100 cities across 24 countries in Europe, the Americas and Asia.

Inside the Zhengzhou factory, scale and innovation are evident at every turn. Often described as 'a city within a city,' the factory complex includes more than 10 community areas for workers and a canteen capable of serving 12,000 people at once, supported by AI-powered automated kitchens. This blend of efficiency and worker welfare helps sustain a stable, high-output environment to meet demanding production schedules.

"As Foxconn's production lines hum with activity, the focus is clear," said Sun Xuemin, director of the Enterprise Research Center of Zhengzhou University. "This massive, coordinated effort in China is the engine that transforms innovation into a tangible product, ready to be delivered into the hands of consumers across the globe." ■