CCTV’s “Strong Nation Smart Manufacturing” program focuses on Jinan Haozhong Automation Co., Ltd.

The automotive industry is a crucial benchmark for measuring a country’s overall industrial strength in peacetime—it serves as a concentrated reflection of a nation’s manufacturing capabilities and technological innovation. In recent years, as China’s industrial prowess has continuously reached new heights, the automotive industry has also ushered in a brand-new chapter. With the entry of new-energy vehicles, overtaking competitors by taking a shortcut has become our latest understanding of China’s auto industry. Yet, many people are unaware that although Chinese-made new-energy vehicles have already gained a foothold in international markets, the manufacturing of automated equipment for China’s automotive industry actually started relatively late, and its overall development lags behind the advanced level of automotive manufacturing processes themselves. Automated production lines are the backbone supporting the automotive industry. Among the four major manufacturing processes for automobiles, stamping ranks first. Automation has always been the ultimate embodiment of integrated technological prowess, with world-leading facilities achieving a production rhythm of more than 15 cycles per minute. This is no longer just a competition among manufacturers—it has become an ultimate showdown between nations, pitting their industrial systems, innovation ecosystems, and standards-setting power against one another. Faced with this challenging situation, countless Chinese enterprises have stepped forward, each resolutely striving to reach the pinnacle of this endeavor.

Hao Yuxin is the Chairman of Jinan Haozhong Automation Co., Ltd. With nearly three decades of deep experience in the field of automotive production-line automation, Mr. Hao is keenly aware of the urgent needs of domestic automakers. Guided by this very philosophy, Haozhong has been driven by innovation and anchored in service, steadily moving toward its goal of developing high-end, domestically produced production lines. From the very beginning, the company set its sights on a specific development direction: high-speed stamping automation equipment systems. Through the team’s sustained efforts—and in collaboration with a team of Tsinghua University doctoral researchers who jointly developed the underlying control logic for high-speed robotic arms—Haozhong has overcome one technical hurdle after another and repeatedly subjected its products to extreme testing. As early as 2014, Haozhong developed its first-generation high-speed single-arm robotic arm. Since then, Haozhong has continued to forge ahead and successfully developed its second-generation high-speed single-arm robotic arm in 2018. Some of the robotic arm’s performance indicators even surpass current international standards. Rather than resting on their laurels, Haozhong has kept expanding and refining its products, providing domestic enterprises with the most suitable automation solutions—this is precisely the greatest benefit of localization.

After obtaining the relevant requirements and materials for the Kunshan project, Haozhong promptly returned to the company to begin intensive discussions. They conducted a comprehensive design, taking into account various factors such as the customer’s plant layout, production rhythm, and product characteristics, striving to come up with the solution that best suits the customer’s needs. Throughout this process, Haozhong’s R&D team worked day and night, continuously collaborating with the doctoral team from Tsinghua University to optimize the kinematic model and motion trajectory of the robotic manipulator, pursuing perfection and ensuring the successful fulfillment of the customer’s requirements. On the other hand, Haozhong’s core technology team gained a deep understanding of the fundamental mechanics behind press machine movements, which greatly facilitated the seamless integration of presses with automation systems and enabled more sophisticated line-wide integration. Ultimately, the customer was deeply moved by Haozhong’s sincerity and... The order was signed in 2020, and Haozhong lived up to expectations by completing the installation and commissioning of the entire production line in May 2021. All operational indicators met the customer’s requirements. This project is one of the earliest domestically developed high-speed stamping lines with independent intellectual property rights.

A certain factory in Nanjing has a project that needs to be updated and upgraded. The original production line is long... At 70 meters, the equipment needs to be relocated to the new plant. However, the new site has insufficient space, so we’ll need to make significant modifications to the structure of the existing automated equipment to ensure smooth installation and production start-up. After resolving the press machine issue, the Haozhong team turned their attention to the project’s toughest challenge: the limited site space. The original production line was about 70 meters long, but the new factory space can only accommodate a production line roughly 58 meters long. How can we free up those extra ten-odd meters without compromising the production line’s performance?

The only solution to overcoming these challenges lies in innovation. Ultimately, through the joint efforts of the entire team, Haozhong integrated the production line—which originally required several robotic arms working together—into just three units. The upstream unit now incorporates functions such as material loading and alignment, while the vision-based alignment system enables automatic alignment. Additionally, the equipment at the upstream end has been upgraded and replaced with state-of-the-art models. The midline unit employs a single-arm robotic manipulator paired with a new type of robotic arm for both the upstream and downstream ends, ensuring high-speed handling throughout the entire line. As for the downstream unit, it features a newly developed unloading robotic arm capable of lateral movement and rotation, significantly reducing the overall footprint of this section. At the China Forging & Stamping Association’s Symposium on Automotive Stamping Automation Technology, Haozhong’s Nanjing project was designated as a benchmark for site visits and study tours, leaving all industry peers utterly amazed!

On the path toward domesticization, Haozhong is measuring every inch of the journey—from catching up to running side by side—with sincere dedication. They wield innovation as their blade to break through technological blockades and rely on service as their shield to safeguard the trust of local automakers. From breakthroughs in single-arm production-line automation to... In the face of the “impossible” challenge, Haozhong is not only refining its precision robotic arms but also forging a solid backbone for China’s automotive industry—one that is independently controllable and self-reliant. This unwavering dedication imbues cold steel with warmth and ensures that the blueprint for domestic production comes to life in every precise stamping and every highly efficient operation.

Friendly Reminder

Affiliated with the China Media Group
Broadcast on the Central New Film Old Stories Channel
CCTV mobile TV broadcast simultaneously