The "digital dividend" has come - Sany Group Jiang Qingbin interview transcripts

In 2018, as a deputy to the National People's Congress, Sany Group Chairman Liang Stengen told the media during the National People's Congress that Sany Group's competitiveness will mainly rely on digital transformation, and that if it succeeds, it will "turn over", and if it doesn't succeed, it will "capsize". Successful, it will "turn around", and unsuccessful, it will "capsize". Three years past, in order to understand the progress of Sany's digital transformation, "Enterprise Management" magazine and Sany Group digital transformation "lighthouse factory" construction responsible for - Sany Group Assistant President, Sany Heavy Industry Pumping Division Pumping Company (referred to as Sany Pumping) Jiang Qingbin, deputy general manager of Sany Pumping, conducted an interview. The following is the full text of the interview:

01, heavy manufacturing industry to the "watershed"

Q: In order to promote the digital transformation, Sany invested nearly tens of billions of yuan to carry out intelligent manufacturing upgrades in 2019, which can be said to be spared no expense. Where does the impetus for this transformation come from?

Jiang Qingbin: In 2018, as a deputy to the National People's Congress, Chairman Liang Stingen said during the two sessions of the National People's Congress that the competitiveness of Sany Group will mainly depend on the digital transformation, and that if it succeeds, it will turn over, and if it doesn't succeed, it will turn over the boat. Based on our understanding and experience, the background of this statement is the traditional heavy manufacturing industry has reached a "watershed", can be seen from these points.

First, the cost of intelligent transformation in the decline, labor costs are rising. In recent years, the engineering machinery industry, the rise in labor costs is very obvious, for example, a few years ago, the monthly income of employees 3000 4000 yuan is not low, and now a welding worker monthly income of more than 10,000 yuan, the low is also about 9000 yuan. But automation, intelligent equipment procurement costs have also fallen very quickly.

Before 2011, the purchase of a welding robot requires a minimum of more than 800,000 yuan, now buy a welding robot only two or three hundred thousand dollars. We buy a robot more than a year to recover the investment. The demographic dividend is gradually disappearing, but the machine dividend is slowly coming.

Second, the skills of machines are improving. A few years ago, the robot skills are not high, people can do, the robot may not be able to do, but with the development of science and technology, now some work, people can do robot can do, people can not do robot can do.

For example, 6-axis welding robots are now very common, artificial welding place it can weld, artificial welding place it can not weld. Besides, the skill of the operator, always due to emotional, physical condition and other factors lead to unstable play, but the robot's skills are very stable.

Third, through the industry cycle is imperative. The engineering machinery industry is highly cyclical, about five years a cycle, the industry managers are thinking how to resist the cycle. If the market demand for products in a cycle of big ups and downs, is the most unfavorable product cost control and quality control.

For example, in the peak of a cycle, the company recruited a lot of people, once the market demand declined to the trough, the enterprise to reduce the number of people can not, because the next cycle of the peak again, the company has to recruit, and new employees to adapt to the position there is a process, to be adapted to them when the cycle of the peak may be passed.

In addition, the lack of skills of the new employees will also bring the risk of product quality. But if the company does not reduce the number of people in the trough, and can not withstand the pressure of cost. If the use of machines for people, you can enhance the ability of the enterprise anti-cyclical, regardless of the industry in the peak or trough, the robot's skills are unchanged, and do not have to worry about it "leave". When the order is not enough, ten machines only open two, the other eight only need to do a good job of maintenance can be.

Fourth, rapid response to the market, reducing business risks. Our industry, in addition to some of the products are customized, most of them are produced for sale. Everyone in order to increase market share, will produce a large number of products in advance inventory there, so the capital occupation is very large, once the market decline, the risk is also very large.

And we carry out intelligent transformation and upgrading, the production cycle is significantly shortened. For example, after we take the MOM management system as a means of supervision, the connection between each production-related link is very smooth, and the production speed of each process is accelerated, and the entire production cycle is shortened by half. So when the customer places an order, we are able to produce output quickly.

In the past, we used to cover the market with inventory, but now we cover the market with "quick response + appropriate inventory", which reduces the inventory of WIP and finished goods significantly, and reduces the business risk when the market demand shrinks.

02, machine collaboration is the most difficult

Q: It is said that Sany's digital transformation began in 2007, and from 2019 onwards, the digital transformation into the "deep water". You joined Sany at this time. At that time, what was the main content of the Sany pumping "lighthouse factory" project upgrade? And what were the biggest difficulties you encountered?

Jiang Qingbin: The main content of the upgrade is the upgrade of manufacturing digitalization, which is to further upgrade the ability to collect, process and analyze the data generated in production; the second is the manufacturing intelligence, that is, on the basis of automation, digitalization, the use of AI capabilities, data analysis, training and reasoning, intelligent decision-making on all kinds of problems encountered in production.

Our "lighthouse factory" is not only a safe and comfortable environment, but most importantly, there are many applications of cutting-edge technologies in the "lighthouse factory". To make it easier to understand, I'll talk about a few relevant application scenarios.

One is intelligent detection and product design optimization. The camera now functions not only as a monitor, but also has an intelligent judgment function, which can judge the surface quality and simple size of the product.

Its software to achieve intelligent upgrade, it implanted the QMS quality management system, the entire production process can be visualized, including quality inspection in this system to achieve visualization. Such as the number of units inspected, what is the judgment data, the comparison of these data with the standard value.

For example, now the assembly line will be smart wrenches connected to the network, torque and other actual parameters can be uploaded, if the super poor, the machine will automatically alarm; In addition, the requirement to screw six screws if only screwed five, but also will automatically alarm.

Most of all, this process will precipitate this data, i.e., turn the physical model into a digital model, and thus implement trace management on it. This brings several benefits:

One is the convenience of traceability, i.e., once a product has a problem with a customer, it can be traced back, for example, to find out what the actual parameters of the bolt torque were at that time.

Secondly, it can provide an optimization basis for the R&D department to develop the next generation of models, for example, do these bolts need to be torqued up to the previous regulations so much? Now on 6 screws, if down to 4 can meet the design requirements, and thus reduce costs?

Another application scenario is internal equipment interconnection. Now we have moved all of the group's 8,000 production equipment to the Industrial Internet for comprehensive, full monitoring, so that we can know which of them are bottlenecks, which are redundant and unsaturated equipment.

When bottleneck equipment is found, it is either purchased again or its workload is transferred to equipment with less workload. As a result, equipment efficiency and utilization have increased.

In 2011, Sany realized sales revenue of 75 billion yuan, when Sany has 11,000 sets of critical equipment in the country; in 2020, Sany's sales revenue reached 136.8 billion yuan, but the critical equipment used is only more than 8,000 sets.

Of course there are many more application scenarios. This intelligent manufacturing upgrade process solves more than 1,000 technical problems, including more than 20 original technical problems, the most difficult of which is the synergy of the machine group, the interconnection between the processes.

The key to solving this problem lies in the basic management to follow up, and at the same time to ensure that the two major software MOM and WMS are perfectly applied. At present, we have completed the intelligent manufacturing 1.0 version, is expected to be completed by the end of this year 2.0 version of the upgrading and transformation.

Q: What tasks did you undertake at that time in terms of smart manufacturing upgrading?

Jiang Qingbin: When I first joined Sany, I was the person in charge of the design of the intelligent manufacturing program; after I became the deputy general manager of Sany Pumping, I was the person in charge of the landing of the design program.

The program design is theoretical, and after the intelligent equipment is installed, there is a process of debugging to reach production, i.e., whether the products can be produced according to the planned technical program and reach the designed capacity. In order to promote intelligent transformation and upgrading, Sany has previously reserved a large number of excellent talents.

03, the key moment leadership bow into the game

Q: It is said that the "lighthouse factory" construction has encountered the biggest challenge is that there is no reference in front of you, that is, you have no learning, imitation of the object, you are also in the "lighthouse factory" construction. "

You took over the design work during the most difficult phase of the construction of the Lighthouse Factory.

Jiang Qingbin: In our industry, Sany is the first to push forward the intelligent manufacturing upgrade in depth, and many technical difficulties have no precedent. Many projects encountered unexpected challenges when landing and failed to achieve the expected results. So some of the cooperative suppliers took the initiative to give up and withdraw.

Because in their view, Sany's intelligent manufacturing upgrade requirements are too high and impossible to realize. In this way, we had to take these projects next, to continue to promote my main. This stage is the real moment of attack.

Q: How did you pull through at that time?

Jiang Qingbin:

First, the leadership's bowing into the game. At that time, Mr. Liang Stengen, the chairman of the board, and the president of the company were in the "luncheon meeting" every day to schedule and follow up on the progress of the "lighthouse factory"; Mr. Yi Xiaogang, the general director of the "lighthouse factory", personally provided technical guidance; the pumping division personally provided technical guidance to the "lighthouse factory". Mr. Yi Xiaogang, the general director of "Lighthouse Factory", personally provides technical guidance; Mr. Xiang Ruan, the chairman of Pumping Division, personally visits the site to direct.

Secondly, the performance of technical personnel and field personnel is bundled. The program design stage is based on technical planners, but the landing, production should be based on the scene. So in this stage of each project are clear technical and production responsibility, success is *** award, failure is *** penalty.

Third is to establish the confidence to win. The most difficult time we held a mobilization meeting, and all sign, swear. At the same time to point to lead, to encourage morale. That is, choose a team with the strongest strength to break through the most easy to reach the production of the project, to the whole staff to establish confidence. With high morale, everything will be solved. At the most critical moment of attack, many members of the attack team at all levels live in the company, 24 hours a day to solve problems. This "war of attrition" for Trinity Group has trained a number of intelligent manufacturing upgrade technology backbone. Now other units within the group's intelligent manufacturing upgrade are Sany themselves.

Q: What is the overall effect of Sany's smart manufacturing upgrade?

Jiang Qingbin: From the group level, Sany realized sales revenue of 75 billion yuan in 2011, when there were more than 70,000 employees and 11,000 sets of critical equipment; while in 2020, Sany realized sales revenue of 136.8 billion yuan, but the total number of employees was only 30,000, and the critical equipment used was only 8,000 sets.

From the Trinity Pumping Division to see, after the transformation and upgrade, we have realized the less personalized production, capacity doubled, while the plant area and production cycle are compressed by half, the first half of this year, the product early failure rate diminished by 54%. This is the real effect of intelligent manufacturing upgrade.

04, the digitalization of key core technologies to help "change the road"

Q: "four base" (core basic parts and components, advanced basic technology, key base The "four bases" (core basic parts and components, advanced basic technology, key basic materials, industrial technology base) is the short board of China's manufacturing industry, but Sany has made a lot of breakthroughs in the core basic parts, and even key basic materials. What do you think about the relationship between the four foundations and digital transformation?

Jiang Qingbin: As far as construction machinery technology is concerned, we should be quite confident, and that's what we all know***. Because there is not much difference between us and our foreign counterparts in terms of technology, and most of the technological barriers that they have formed before have been broken through by us.

Of course, purely on one point, there are really not as good as others, but from the overall technical point of view, we have been comparable with foreign countries, and even some places are still in the leading level. From the results can also be seen, "2021 Global Construction Machinery Manufacturers Top 50" top 5 3 Chinese enterprises (including Sany).

From the point of view of key components, intelligent manufacturing upgrades for us to further breakthroughs in key core technologies to bring the opportunity to "change the road to overtake".

For example, in the past, we had to verify the reliability of the parts design through physical verification, and then change the design if there are problems, which is a long period of time and high cost, and now it is through simulation instead of physical verification.

In addition, foreign companies have a much longer time to accumulate technology than we do, for example, the processing of a product may be deformed, the deformation is about how much, is it 2 millimeters or 1.5 millimeters?

If in the past, their judgment on this issue is much more accurate than ours. But now it is different, now the processing parameters and test results can be automatically collected through artificial intelligence, automatic trace, and even the data that could not be collected before can be collected, and more accurate than the data collected by the person, the relevant data has therefore been rapidly and accurately accumulated, to make up for the shortcomings of our previous lack of experience.

In the past, when I was in a Japanese company, I most admired the technicians who wore the "gold star" and "silver star", which were equivalent to our old Chinese doctors.

Some people ask them the size of the product has 20 silk deviation, how to solve? They go to the side of the equipment to ask this, look at that, they can make a diagnosis, and even hear the noise of the equipment, we know that the 20 silk is how to produce, which is to rely on experience to do the judgment. But this experience is not easy to replicate, just like Chinese medicine.

Now we put the "Chinese medicine" experience are digitized, is the collection of all the data visualization, templating, so that it is easy to carry out the technical heritage. It's like the old days of measuring blood pressure and taking a pulse based on feelings and experience, but now we use blood pressure monitors to measure what is what, and the latter is both accurate and easy to pass on compared to taking a pulse.

05: Execution comes from "slow"

Q: What are the characteristics of Sany compared to the Japanese companies you have worked for?

Jiang Qingbin:

First, Trinity works harder. In the past, I only knew that Japanese people work very hard; after I came to Trinity, I realized that Trinity works much harder than Japanese companies. In fact, this kind of spirit of hard work is common in China nowadays. This spirit of catching up comes from our intrinsic motivation to aspire to surpass others.

Secondly, Trinity's execution. "Slow as the enemy" is Trinity's corporate philosophy. We have to hold a breakfast meeting every day before 7:30, by the head of the department above the person in charge to participate in the meeting, the meeting has a lot of content, which is unchanging content is the quality of the failure to inform and analyze, if any quality problems occur today, the relevant departments must come up with the cause of the next day's breakfast analysis and countermeasures before the meeting information.

Another example is that we want to break through a key technology for intelligent manufacturing upgrade - replacing the positioning of jigs and fixtures with magnet positioning. It took us only two days from deciding to adopt this solution to looking for electromagnets in the market to testing successfully. All these reflect Trinity's execution and efficiency.

06. It's easy to succeed with good people

Q: You worked in a Japanese company for many years before, and were still an executive. Why did you choose to join Sany?

Jiang Qingbin: There are two reasons for choosing Sany.

First, the rapid rise of Chinese companies. 20 years ago, foreign companies were envied for their treatment and other aspects. But now the situation has changed, especially in the construction machinery industry, Chinese companies are rising very quickly, as can be seen from the previously mentioned ranking of global construction machinery companies, which is the general trend.

Second, Sany's career platform is very good. In Japanese enterprises, I did ministerial level, is a corporate executive, but Chinese people in Japanese enterprises to ministerial level basically to the "ceiling". In addition, the Japanese enterprise seniority, Sany advocate ability first, pay attention to the team's rejuvenation and vitality, as long as who has the ability to give who the platform.

Q: Can you talk about your personal experience of growing up at Trinity?

Jiang Qingbin: Mr. Liang put forward "three special" requirements for talents, namely special integrity, special efforts, and special ability. This reflects Sany's hiring culture.

I have a professional background in technology and production management, but also want to work hard, want to work, to join Sany, just met Sany intelligent manufacturing upgrade opportunities, personal experience is also just put to use, and foreign companies can not give such a platform to the Chinese.

In Sany, I have a lot of excellent talents from famous enterprises around me. Being with people who are better than you, you can grow every day. And excellent people **** things, easier to do things.

Their own short board in the team can be made up, their own advantages in the team can maximize play. Seeing things arranged down, the team can perform well. It can be said that Sany such a good platform and excellent team achievements of our personal. This is also the attraction of Sany. Recently, some foreign enterprises will fall, the main reason is that they can not retain talent.

Of course, joining Sany is also related to our inner national plot. Mr. Liang said, we are at the intersection of the two great opportunities of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the fourth industrial revolution. This is also the best opportunity for us to work hard to promote industrial upgrading and digital transformation.