In front of the control screen of Weihua Group's intelligent workshop, the crane workers touched the button, and a "new Chinese-style" crane with a load of 100 tons hovered in mid-air, with the swing amplitude accurately controlled within 2 millimeters. Behind the accuracy of "within a millimeter", it highlights the leap from "following" to "leading" in China's crane industry.
On February 26, in Changyuan, Xinxiang, the birthplace of China's lifting industry, in an office not far from Weihua's intelligent workshop, Han Hong'an, the "post-80s" helmsman of Weihua Group, chatted with reporters about the topics of "heavy bearers" and innovative development.
The chat started from childhood memories. In Han Hongan's own words, he "grew up among electric hoists." The images of his fathers' hard work are etched in his mind, giving his generation the simplest understanding of load-bearing and responsibility.
Industry serves the country and defends China. This is the origin of the name of Weihua Group. "Our fathers laid the foundation and taught us how to serve the country through industry. What we have to do is to change from 'chasers' to 'definers.'" Han Hongan is intertwined with the marks of two generations of entrepreneurs: the industrial sentiments of his fathers and the innovative edge of the new generation who are not conservative in their business.
After graduating from college and entering Weihua, Han Hongan chose to work as an assembler, the hardest and most tiring job. The oil from the electric hoist in the workshop covered his work clothes, and the sharp metal burrs left hundreds of scratches on his hands. However, he secretly competed: to do better than others. A few years later, he became the most efficient worker in the workshop and was promoted to production director.
As a new generation of entrepreneurs, you can also say that you are an "entrepreneurial successor". In fact, it is not easy. On the contrary, there will be greater pressure: if you do well, outsiders think it is what you should do. If you want to be recognized, you need to put in more effort.
The identity of the "heavy bearer" has always been with Han Hongan. He realized very early that from the "small workshop with three acres of land" in Changyuan County to the world's second largest industrial crane manufacturer, the older generation used hammers to knock out the skeleton of China's cranes. What their generation has to bear is to use digital technology to build this cold crane.Bing's machine is equipped with a smart "brain".
After taking charge of Weihua Group, intelligent transformation is a tough battle for Han Hongan: In 2019, he led the company to implant 5G technology into the "brain" of the crane, becoming the first company in the global lifting industry to adopt 5G technology; in 2020, he promoted the company to use the Internet of Things, cloud computing and big data technology. The "Changyuan Crane Index" was compiled and became a barometer of the manufacturing operating rate by analyzing equipment data in 29 provinces across the country; recently, news came from the company that it has fully integrated into the DeepSeek large model, becoming the first manufacturing company in the industry to deeply integrate DeepSeek...
In recent years, Weihua Group has "expanded" to the world stage, and Han Hongan has been deeply involved in it, once again shouldering the "heavy duty".
At that time, the news that Weihua Group invested 3 billion yuan to build an intelligent equipment industrial park attracted attention. Now it seems that it is indeed a key move: the industrial park highlights the digital advantages of the entire process of R&D, manufacturing, management, and services. With the industrial park as a solid business support, the company has bravely explored the international market and successfully won a 100-million-yuan order from Saudi Aramco.
Always standing at the forefront, Han Hongan is more like the group's chief "salesman": in Africa, he resolutely contracted the company's most difficult overseas business sectors; in Southeast Asia, where the market is the most active, he often goes to construction sites there. In recent years, he has led the company to provide more than 20,000 sets of products to the international market, and the products are exported to more than 170 countries.
On the Malaysian East Coast Railway project, although the humidity and heat in the tropical rainforest were unbearable, when local workers commented that Chinese cranes were "just like building Lego, fun and efficient," Han Hong'an felt that all the efforts were worth it. He recalled the words of his fathers: "Let Made in China be respected by the world." This kind of respect has a new interpretation for him in the era of intelligence and globalization.
The real "heavy bearers" carry not only the steel, but also the responsibilities of the times and future thinking. "In the context of vigorously developing new productivity, future cranes should be called intelligent handling robots." Han Hongan predicted. Focusing on the company's future development, he has unique insights, "If a company needs to continue to grow stronger and bigger, the order is very important. Strengthening is the first priority. With the improvement of scientific research and technology, growing bigger will come naturally."
At the end of the interview, Han Hongan used two words to describe his current feelings: "Confidence and warmth." At this time, the midday sun shone on his face, and the spring outside the window was just right.
