The craftsman’s ingenuity: knowledge and spirit are inherited

Today, Wei Jianping, the “Beijing master craftsman” who is a CNC machine operator, shoulders more important tasks on his shoulders. How to cultivate more skilled personnel? How to make more skilled personnel shoulder the heavy responsibility in the key core processing process? These are the key issues that he ponders over.

From a technical school student who knew nothing when he first entered the factory to a senior technician now, Wei Jianping said: “I have feelings for the Company because it has given me a platform for growth.”

Wei Jianping Innovation Studio was set up in 2009. It was jointly set up by Shougang Group’s trade union and the Beijing Federation of Trade Unions. Based on the training of CNC technology and skilled personnel, it’s named after Wei Jianping. After being reviewed and identified by the Beijing Federation of Trade Unions and the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission as a city-level studio, it hung out its shingle.

The innovation studio always regards the training of talents for enterprises as an important aim and mission, and insists on talent training by mentoring relationships, school-enterprise cooperation model with production-learning integration, and promoting learning by competitions as the main line for personnel training. Like “wheat cultivation”, it has trained a group of outstanding talents with outstanding skills for enterprises and schools.

Wei Jianping has a “unique skill”. He always first understands the complex process, and then refines, simplifies the formation of the module or process card diagram. Apprentices follow the intuitive and clear card diagram for processing. This operation can save a lot time to digest design instructions and greatly improve efficiency. Wei Jianping teaches contestants and those who come to study by personal example as well as verbal instructions.

Time flies. It has been nine years since Kong Fanwei came to the innovation studio. “I am much honored to be the apprentice of Master Wei Jianping.” After attending the factory safety training, Kong Fanwei thought that he could learn the advanced CNC technology from Master Wei Jianping, but the next day, Master Wei Jianping sent him to the factory and asked him to work with machine operators. At that time he thought, “I come to learn CNC programming from Master Wei Jianping. Why did he ask me to work in the factory as an operator?” He was puzzled. Later, Wei Jianping went to the factory and saw that Kong Weiwei didn’t know how to process a part. He smiled and went over to ask, “Kong, what happened? What’s the problem?” Kong Fanwei told Master Wei Jianping the problem. He patiently explained the processing method, which enabled Kong Fanwei to process similar work pieces in the future. When Wei Jianping left, he said to Kong Fanwei, “You are smart. Work hard.” After one year of machine operation, Kong Weiwei was able to operate the machine independently and became a skilled machine operator. Soon, he was informed and officially returned to the innovation studio. At that time, he was excited and understood the good intentions of Master Wei Jianping. Wei Jianping wanted him to learn the basic processing knowledge in actual operation and exercised his independent thinking and ability to solve problems.

Apprentice Liu Qi clearly remembers that one year he took part in national competition training, and his master Wei Jianping stayed with him in the training every day. Wei Jianping helped him solve and analyze problems one by one. After a month of training, he eventually achieved ideal results, which allowed him to grow from an ordinary technician to a senior technician in CNC machining.

Wei Jianping’s serious, meticulous and studious attitude deeply influences his apprentices. Apprentice Song Junxian is grateful to Wei Jianping. When he first joined the work, Song Junxian made a very nice work piece, but the appearance was very rough, and he wanted to show it off to Wei Jianping. Wei Jianping looked at the product and told him that the CNC machining was different from the traditional process of the past. While ensuring the size, the appearance couldn’t be lost, so that it looked like a work of art. Then he knew why Wei Jianping is so skilled. Meticulousness is his most basic requirement. Only with carefulness and meticulousness can one perfectly process each product. After learning from Wei Jianping for nearly a year, Song Junxian boldly participated in the competition. In October 2012, he won the first place in the Beijing CNC Lathe Workers Group. It can be said that without Wei Jianping’s previous strict guidelines, Song Junxian wouldn’t have his current honor.

What Wei Jianping brings to his apprentices is not only the knowledge and experience in work, but also much help in life. Kong Fanwei said that on one occasion, his child became ill and they rushed to Beijing for treatment overnight. After Wei Jianping received the news, he immediately went to the hospital and gave his child a lot of toys. He comforted Kong Fanwei, “He will be fine. Take care of him without worry. Tell me if you have any difficulty.” Song Junxian said, “Master Wei Jianping is very strict with us at work, but in life, he is like a father. When I first joined the work, I was far away from home and I spent almost all the holidays alone in the dormitory, but I received the greetings from Master Wei Jianping every holiday. I clearly remember that on the Mid-Autumn Festival in 2012, he treated me to dinner.”

As a position with innovative hatching and leading technology, the innovation studio is a place where talents gather. As the leader of the studio, Wei Jianping personally practices the “craftsman’s ingenuity” of the Shougang staff. Technical masters and job experts that he trained have taken on important positions in the Company and won prizes at various levels of technical contests, becoming an indispensable and vital force in the technical field of the Company. Among them, Liu Qi, a member of the innovation studio, was awarded the title of Advanced Technical Expert of Industry and Information Technology in Beijing, the title of National Technical Expert, and the national May 1st labor medal. Song Junxian, a member of the innovation studio, was awarded the title of Beijing technical expert.

According to statistics, since the establishment of Wei Jianping Studio, it has trained 109 intermediate workers, 68 senior workers, 42 technicians, and 27 senior technicians for the Company. It has won 11 individual championships and 2 team championships for the Beijing team throughout the country and cultivated more than 1,200 CNC talents for Beijing.

The innovation studio always upholds the spirit of excellence in craftsmanship and is deeply rooted in the production line, directly participating in and serving corporate engineering projects. In the introduction and absorption of cutting-edge technology, promotion of the use of new processes, new methods, the creation of projects and the transformation of achievements, it gives full play to its technological advantages and takes the lead, becoming a frontier and starting engine for the Company to promote the “three changes” and bringing real benefits and improvements for the Company.

At present, there are more than 30 members in the innovation studio. They have made breakthroughs in research and trials on tool repair technology and robotic welding instead of manual welding. The effect of tool laser repair technology has been remarkable. In 2017, the Company saved more than 2 million yuan in procurement costs. This year, they are working on the difficult issues such as bearing seats and roller surface repair in metallurgical equipment.

A large number of advanced disk milling cutters are needed in the processing of the shield machine segment die project. In the past, due to the impact of the disk cutter, the cutter body was damaged and it was difficult to recover. In particular, imported advanced milling cutters were directly scrapped and re-purchased. This led to a long procurement cycle, increased costs and seriously affected production tasks. In view of the above problems, Wei Jianping uses laser repair technology and uses laser, laser plasma, and other technologies to restore the damaged parts. After the repair, the combined strength of the materials is good, which can meet the strength requirements of the tool in the processing process, and can reduce the purchase cost by more than 600,000 yuan annually. In the design of non-standard angle cutters, if supplied by the tool manufacturers, the taxable price for each tool is between 10,000 yuan and 12,000 yuan, and the order period is 8 to 10 weeks. Now they are designed and completed by the studio. In 2017, more than 130 non-standard angle milling cutters were processed and produced, and the production cycle was only 5 to 10 days, saving nearly 1.3 million purchase costs, which solves the problems of the long order period and high price of tool manufacturers.

Over the years, the innovation studio relies on Shougang’s large platform and is rooted in the grassroots to continuously dedicate to the manufacturing of enterprises and other key work. It has completed one research project, created 13 best practices, implemented 27 rationalization proposals, and created 11.5 million yuan of economic benefits for the Company. The high-end products that it developed and produced enter the metallurgy, aerospace, military, motor vehicles and other fields. Processing accuracy can reach 0.01 mm, equivalent to 1/6 of hair. The innovation studio has won the Beijing Outstanding Technology Achievement Award, the National Technology Innovation Achievement Award, the Innovation Studio of the National Metallurgical Industry and the Advanced Group of the National Steel Industry, and applied for four national utility model patents.

Faced with the rapid advancement of new technologies such as smart manufacturing and robotics applications, Wei Jianping, the “Beijing master craftsman”, dares not relax and study, re-innovate and improve from time to time. With regard to how to further give play to the demonstration role of the innovation studio, Wei Jianping is full of confidence. He will make full use of the advantages of the innovation studio platform and strictly grasp the direction of smart manufacturing to focus on promoting the “three changes.” Moreover, he will persist in the cultivation of innovative talents and improvement of work methods, and focusing on cultivating practical and technical talents, and follow the goals of the Company during the “13th Five-Year Plan” to do a good job in the promotion of innovative experience in the innovation studio and the application of innovation achievements. Last but not least, he will apply at least one or two effective innovations or patented technologies each year, continue to work hard at the Company’s service guarantees, strive to achieve greater results and breakthroughs, and make greater contributions at a new starting point.

From him, we can see that it is perseverance and dedication that make him a master craftsman.