Xiangtan Daily Entrepreneurship and Innovation Walk

  Reprinted from Xiangtan Online on November 18th(Xiangtan Daily reporter Zhou Xueliang)On November 15th,2015,on Sunday,in the assembly workshop of Hengxin No.2 Factory of Xiangtan Hengxin Industrial Co.,Ltd.located in the High tech Zone of Shaoshan City,technicians were still busy and working overtime to meet the delivery requirements of customers before the end of the month.
  On that day,the 57 year old chairman of the company,Xiao gongping,was not idle either.As the head of a domestic enterprise that designs,manufactures,and sells overhead passenger devices for coal mines(commonly known as"monkey cars"),he was planning how the enterprise could innovate and transform.He plans to lead the company's technical backbone to a large mining group in Shanxi in December to conduct an on-site inspection of the usage of the company's endless rope continuous tractor(commonly known as"shuttle")for coal mines,which was launched in the second half of last year.After listening to customer feedback,he will make further innovative improvements."The use of'shuttle cars'is quite common in foreign mining enterprises,and its major advantage is that it can not only carry people,but also transport materials,and reduce transit transportation.Xiao gongping is full of confidence in this new product.".
  Resignation and Haicheng's"Maker"
  Xiao gongping was born in 1958 into an ordinary peasant family in Liantangao Township,You County.After graduating from high school in 1974,at the age of 16,he and his parents worked in the production team,serving as the main laborer who recorded 10 work points per day.In 1977,the national college entrance examination was resumed,and Xiao Gongping felt that an opportunity had come.He wanted to step out of the mountains and get rid of poverty.In 1978,Xiao Gongping was admitted to the Mechanical Manufacturing major of Jiangnan Machinery Factory Vocational School.
  In December 1980,Xiao Gongping was assigned to the Jiangnan Machinery Factory Construction and Installation Company after graduating.Due to his outstanding work and hard work,he became the captain of the installation team the following year.In 1984,he was appointed as the head of the planning department,and in 1993,he was appointed as the deputy general manager of the company.In 1996,Xiao gongping was transferred to Xiangtan Sanhuan Industrial Co.,Ltd.as the General Manager.At this time,at the age of 38,Xiao Gongping had already reached the rank of official department.In the eyes of the general public,he could go with the flow and even have a better career path.But at this moment,he was deeply pondering:he was still in his prime and should have made a difference,taking on a career that belonged to him.In addition,the industry was at a low point at the end of the last century.By 1999,Sanhuan Industrial was facing financial difficulties,and even employee salaries could not be guaranteed during difficult times.After careful consideration,Xiao gongping felt that only he could save himself.He resolutely decided to resign and go to the sea to start his own business and establish Xiangtan Hengxin Industrial Co.,Ltd.At this time,he was over 41 years old.
  Xiangtan Hengxin Industrial Co.,Ltd.,registered and established in May 1999,had only about 10 employees at the time.With the help of Xiao gongping's patchwork of over 100000 yuan,they rented a 500 square meter small warehouse at Jiangnan Machinery Factory,mainly engaged in the design and installation of boilers and cold storage projects.At the beginning of its establishment,the company focused on brand building and technological content.They hired experts from research institutes such as China Nonferrous Design Institute and Central South University as technical consultants.In just three years,the company has become a well-known brand in the field of cold storage engineering design and installation,with an annual output value of over ten million yuan.
  In the first five years of resigning and going to sea,Xiao gongping was both a manager and an ordinary worker.Due to his leading role,the company has steadily developed.However,at this moment,Xiao gongping was brewing a new plan in his heart:the establishment of the company should not only be limited to just eating,but should constantly innovate and strengthen the entity,aiming for greater development.
  Fill the domestic gap in one fell swoop
  In 2003,while constantly seeking transformation and upgrading,Xiangtan Hengxin decided to enter the coal mining machinery industry and determined that the company's leading product was the underground personnel transport cable car(commonly known as"monkey car").Like many early-stage startups,Xiao gongping,as the chairman and general manager of the company,must overcome these difficulties one by one,such as weak technological capabilities,lack of brand recognition in the market,and limited funding for venue and equipment.
  After years of struggling in the market,Xiao gongping deeply realizes that without technological innovation,enterprises will not have core competitiveness and will eventually be eliminated by the market!At that time,the company's leading product was mechanical driven monkey cars,which had similar performance compared to more than 20 other manufacturers in the country.Although from 2003 to 2007,under the leadership of Xiao gongping,the company focused on both market promotion and technological innovation,and Xiangtan Hengxin held a place in the field of monkey car machinery.Monkey car technology also caught up with peers and established a good reputation and credibility in the market,Xiao gongping was not satisfied.
  One day in 2007,Xiao gongping visited a client in Henan.The customer said to him,"We have installed a hydraulic monkey car imported from abroad in our mine.The equipment runs smoothly and the ride is very comfortable,but the driving part has a large volume and high price.It would be great if domestic monkey car manufacturers could also produce hydraulic monkey cars."The speaker had no intention,but the listener had a heart,and the customer's words were kept in mind.After returning to the company,he immediately organized technical personnel to discuss and established a dedicated hydraulic truck project team,which must develop and produce hydraulic monkey trucks for operation in coal mines in China.
  As the saying goes,every row is like a mountain.Hydraulic technology is a completely new field for Xiao gongping and his research and development team engaged in mechanical technology research and development.At that time,there was no domestic monkey car manufacturer capable of producing hydraulic driven monkey cars,and only products imported from Germany were available in the domestic market.Its technology had always been monopolized by German manufacturers due to its high price and difficult supply of accessories,which had always constrained the development of domestic monkey cars.Xiao gongping led his technical team to promote the spirit of daring to take the lead,and adopted a collaborative approach between industry,academia,and research.He collaborated with Central South University to develop hydraulic powered monkey cars and hired professors to provide on-site training,laying a talent foundation for hydraulic monkey cars.In 2008,the company invested over 2 million yuan to establish a hydraulic monkey car test line operating under simulated working conditions in China,which provided basic data for the research and development of hydraulic monkey cars.
  After more than a year of research and development,the hydraulic driven monkey car was finally developed and put into use in 2008,receiving high praise from users.After years of promotion and use,good economic benefits have been achieved.In 2008,the hydraulic driven monkey car was appraised by the Provincial Department of Science and Technology,and the conclusion was that it filled the domestic gap and its technology ranked at the international advanced level.This product has also obtained safety certification for 23 models of mining products in two major series,and has been listed as a key science and technology plan project at the provincial and municipal levels.In 2011,it won a silver award at the National Invention Exhibition and was included in the National Torch Project.In 2012,it was approved as a"Key Science and Technology Achievement Transformation Project"by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.Its product performance completely replaces imported products,but its price is less than half of imported products.
  Innovation achievement leader
  The road to innovation is endless.Nowadays,Xiao gongping not only insists on independent innovation,but also constantly seeks opportunities to cooperate with universities and research institutions,striving to build the enterprise into a base for the transformation of scientific and technological achievements in universities.The company has jointly developed a series of products with Hunan University of Science and Technology,including mining Chinese character scrolling screens and one of the six safety avoidance systems in coal mines-mining broadcasting equipment.The company currently has two provincial-level technology centers,one is an engineering technology center and the other is an enterprise technology center,becoming a leader in private enterprises in the province.
  At present,Xiangtan Hengxin is a domestic manufacturer that designs,manufactures,and sells hydraulic monkey cars.More than 100 sets of hydraulic monkey cars have been operated in coal mines across the country and exported to countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia.Xiangtan Hengxin has become the top brand in the industry,with"Monkey Car"having a large market share and becoming a major global supplier of"Monkey Car"design,production,sales,and services.Since 2011,the company has been utilizing its market and research advantages to develop endless rope continuous tractors(commonly known as shuttle cars)for coal mines.This product obtained national security certification and was launched on the market at the end of 2014.
  At the end of 2007,Xiangtan Hengxin settled in the High tech Zone of Shaoshan City.The company covers an area of 62 acres,with a factory area of over 20000 square meters.In 2009,the company's orders exceeded the 100 million yuan mark for the first time,reaching 270 million yuan in 2013,and paying taxes of over 20 million yuan.With the joint efforts of internal expansion and external attraction,Xiangtan Hengxin smoothly overcame the industry's"cold winter"in 2014,achieving a sales revenue of 150 million yuan and a tax payment of over 12 million yuan,becoming a benchmark enterprise for steady progress in the real economy of Shaoshan and even Xiangtan.This year,the company's tax revenue is expected to remain above ten million.
  After 16 years of exploration,Xiao Gongping led Xiangtan Hengxin to embark on a successful path of continuous innovation and development for private enterprises.