 Program of Type 906 first begun in October 1981 when the Commission for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (COSTIND) issued the requirement, and the 708th Institute of China State Shipbuilding Corporation, which is also more commonly known as China Shipbuilding and Oceanic Engineering Design Academy (中国船舶及海洋工程设计研究) nowadays was contracted as the designer.The ship displaces 2,300 tons and took five years and three months to complete.The hull is based on that of Type 625 research vessel, and in addition to conducting sea trials for torpedo, mine and other underwater weaponry trials, the ship is also tasked to perform missions to test and support acoustic systems such as DMT, PATS, and OCEANO.