In 2018, Shougang realized the supply of FAW-Volkswagen’s outer panels and opened the door to the supply of FAW-Volkswagen’s outer panels. This marks Shougang’s high-end position, services and achievements, and it has taken a new step in the cooperation with FAW.

China FAW is the cradle of the Chinese auto industry, and the Chinese auto industry started here. It is still the largest automaker in China.

Since 2008, Shougang and FAW have gradually established cooperative relationships, signed cooperation agreements, implemented joint research and development, and conducted seamless docking of management. The overall order volume has grown steadily. Shougang has completed the certifications of more than 100 parts for more than 30 new models in FAW-Volkswagen, FAW Jiefang, FAW Car and other OEMs. The supply of auto panels achieves a qualitative and quantitative leap, and Shougang becomes the primary supplier of FAW.

Joint research and development to meet the high-end needs of the customer --- Shougang high-strength steel steps into FAW “light weight” camp

Shougang uses the global perspective to find the working coordinates and works with the top companies to make high-end achievements and perfect itself. FAW is a first-class auto manufacturer. To work with FAW, Shougang must be one of the suppliers of high-end auto panels in the world. Light weight is the main direction for the future development of the auto industry. In recent years, in line with the light weight of autos, improvement of the safety performance of auto collisions, reduction of manufacturing costs and the future development of autos, FAW is technologically innovative in light of energy safety and environmental pollution, and uses new products to develop new models. At present, the new technologies, processes and products widely used by FAW include high-strength steel and zinc-magnesium-aluminum-silicon products, hot-formed products, laser tailor-welded plates etc.

In order to promote deep cooperation, Shougang and FAW have set up a joint laboratory to carry out all-round technical cooperation for five projects including high-strength steel, silicon steel and hot rolling. “Although Shougang’s production of auto panels started late, it is the fastest-growing in terms of R&D, production and service, and is currently in the leading position in the industry. In particular, Shougang Cold Rolling Co., Ltd. and Jingtang Co., Ltd. have first-class equipment, advanced management concepts and unique cost advantages. They are the companies we are most concerned about. The development of FAW has also benefited from the strong support of Shougang,” said Xie Qi, Director of Centralized Procurement and Resource Management of FAW Group’s Purchasing Department.

“If the user has any requirements, we will produce according to the user’s standards.” At the beginning of technical innovation, conception, development and experiment of new models such as FAW Light Weight, Shougang’s special FAW production-sales-research customer service team participated in product design, mold development, on-site process research and other links. They made full use of EVI early intervention, product application technology research and other means to deeply understand the user’s processing technology, identify the various requirements of the user for using the same product to process different parts, and achieve the common design in the stages of “material selection” and “material use”, so as to match the user’s demand. Li Chunguang, senior engineer of Shougang FAW Technical Service, said, “We carried out the research on the confidence of the forming simulation data, provided FAW-Volkswagen with the files of several high-precision forming simulation materials and successfully applied to the simulation analysis of the new model CAE.” At the same time, the Shougang Material Performance Database cooperated with FAW New Energy Development Institute to provide FAW with the data of quasi-static mechanical properties and high-speed tensile mechanical properties for multiple grades. In order to reduce the weight of the vehicle, the light weight scheme of a certain model was developed, and the application technology research and steel-aluminum connection technology research of the form-enhanced duplex steel based on light weight was carried out.

Zhao Junyi, the Procurement Resource Manager of FAW Group’s Purchasing Department, said, “FAW’s research on auto light weight is mainly for all-aluminum body and high-strength steel application. Especially the application of advanced high-strength steel and ultra-high-strength steel is at the leading level in the industry. Shougang with strong technical strength in high-strength steel production and stable product quality is our important supplier. Shougang’s sales service is warm and EVI activities are highly practical, which has contributed greatly to FAW’s cost reduction and development of new models. Hope we can continue to further strengthen cooperation in the future.”

Synchronous management to seamlessly serve the user --- pursuing “no defects, no stocks”

“No defects in quality management” is a goal of FAW to implement lean production methods, and its tolerance for suppliers’ product defects is extremely low. Liu Huasai, senior engineer of Shougang FAW Technical Service, said, “FAW-Volkswagen’s control requirements for outer plate waviness and surface zinc ash and slag are extremely strict. Shougang optimizes the grinding process and finishing process to make the surface waviness of the product far below the upper limit of the waviness required by Volkswagen’s standard; the production process is further optimized from the whole process, and the adhesion of zinc ash and slag on the surface of the strip is effectively reduced. By optimizing the identification and determination of the defect map in the automated inspection system, the automatic identification of the fine zinc ash and slag is realized.” At present, Shougang galvanized and bake hardened steel products have passed the certification of FAW-Volkswagen, and the bulk supply of outer panels of a certain model has been realized. “In order to meet FAW’s standards and requirements for auto panel quality, we must integrate into the quality management system at every stage of quality control.” Yin Yu said, “The outer panel of the hood is one of the outer panel parts with the highest surface quality requirements. In the process of certification, in order to improve the efficiency of material certification, we conducted technical exchanges and production site tracking with FAW-Volkswagen’s quality assurance and planning departments in advance and mastered their quality requirements. Moreover, we worked with Shougang’s production base and Research Institute of Technology to formulate the process to avoid the occurrence of quality problems. In the end, we successfully met Volkswagen’s requirements in the process of handoff certification, and passed the certification and achieved bulk supply.”

Since 2017, Shougang has obtained certification opportunities for more than 100 parts from FAW-Volkswagen, FAW Car and FAW Jiefang, and all of them have passed the certification. Lu Jianchun, Director of Warehousing and Logistics Management Department of FAW-Volkswagen, said, “From the supply of plates to the production and use, the quality of Shougang’s products is very good and has been well received by our vehicle users.”

“OOS in production management” is another goal of FAW to implement lean production methods. Suppliers are required to reserve stocks and deliver the goods to the auto factory at any time within 24 hours according to demand. At the same time, it is necessary to unpack the steel coil before delivery and check whether the appearance is abnormal. In special circumstances, it is required to arrive within 2 hours; otherwise the supplier will bear all losses for the shutdown.

In response to FAW’s “OOS” management requirement, North China Branch of Shougang Sales Co., Ltd. and FAW-Volkswagen’s five production bases established a pre-inspection mechanism for materials in stock, and cooperated with three local warehouse distribution centers in Changchun and FAW-Volkswagen’s distribution centers in Qingdao, Tianjin, Foshan and Chengdu to establish a 24-hour distribution and service system. Stationed representatives can not turn off their phones at any time. They have to handle the delivery instructions and on-site service requirements of the auto factory anytime and anywhere. At the same time, they need to do the work of document handover and stock management to ensure stable supply. FAW-Volkswagen’s stamping parts are only used for one week of production, achieving no materials or parts in stock. To meet the customer’s personalized and special requirements, North China Branch of Sales Co., Ltd. has established a JIT distribution service platform for a lot of places, and formed a JIT rapid distribution supply mode for FAW-Volkswagen. That is, Shougang builds warehouses outside the FAW-Volkswagen plants, and material distribution is on call. At the same time, the on-site staff will be on hand to provide 24-hour personal service to ensure the material quality is stable, and the production will not stop due to material reasons. “Shougang Group has cooperated with FAW for many years. It is excellent in product quality and supply capacity. Especially it can supply Hongqi H7 and H5 products timely, contributing to the development of our Hongqi sedan.” Song Lei, a buyer of FAW Car Co., Ltd., commented on Shougang.

Personal service to polish the gold signboard of Shougang --- marketing service 24 hours on call

Services never come to an end after they start. Shougang provides non-stop services. The FAW customer service team, led by Shougang Sales Co., Ltd., with high-quality professional and technical personnel from various departments of production, research and sales, provides a full range of timely and efficient services for FAW before, during and after the sale, and wins the trust of FAW. “Shougang managed to supply the 2018 new model of BESTUNE D077 one month ahead of schedule, which enabled us to assemble vehicles smoothly. I’d like to thank Shougang on behalf of FAW Car again.” Shougang’s service impresses Song Lei, a buyer of FAW Car Co., Ltd.

--- 24 hours on standby. As sales and service staff of Shougang, Yin Yu, Qiao Yunlong, Sun Cunyou, Li Xiaohui and Guo Lihui are representatives of FAW’s stationed representatives in Changchun. Providing high-quality services to FAW is their top priority. “The user requires 24 hours uninterrupted delivery on time, so we are on standby for 24 hours,” Yin Yu said.

--- Do everything possible to solve the urgent needs of the user. In June 2018, the output of FAW-Volkswagen’s new CC model surged after SOP. With 2,000 units more than expected, the stocks were not enough. The normal supply and delivery cycle might bring the risk of short of supply. What to do? The user’s needs were orders! Stationed representatives actively coordinated and contacted production, technical quality, inspection, shipping and other departments to shorten the cycle as much as possible to meet the urgent needs of the user. In the stock of spare parts of discontinued models, one roll of materials with the same grade and thickness was found, and the performance, components and indicators were also the same after inspection. So they quickly contacted the machining center to trim that roll to meet the specifications. With these efforts, they met the needs of the customer and ran down the stock. When the user received the steel, they were full of praise, “Only Shougang staff can work with such high efficiency.” Song Lei, a buyer of FAW Car Co., Ltd., said, “I am most impressed by a Mazda model in 2018. Due to the supply crisis caused by other steel mills, we turned to Shougang. Shougang promptly helped us solve the problem and delivered the goods one month ahead of schedule, so we solved the supply crisis and ensured our normal production.”

Shougang and FAW have been working together for ten years. At present, the output of Shougang auto panels has exceeded 3 million tons per year. With the varieties for all models, its market share has ranked among the top in the country. FAW has an annual production and sales of 3.6 million vehicles, ranking first in the industry. The word “cooperation” has been given extraordinary significance here. Shougang and FAW have the same development pursuit and common desire for cooperation. It’s believed that the two sides, with mutual support and driving, will work together to achieve development of higher quality.