Engineer a modern craftsman who strives for perfection in his industry

Wang Junrong makes adjustments to a piece of equipment to check it is working correctly and efficiently. — Zhao Yiwei

Zhao Yiwei and Yu Hong 

To be a master of your craft is to endeavor to make your products perfect. One such figure is Lu Ban (507-444 BC) whose inventions of the ruler, saw and stone mill had a huge influence on agricultural society in China.

Nowadays, traditional craftsmanship is disappearing, but the craftsmanship spirit, dedicated to improvement and innovation, still exists and is worthy of respect. 

A professional approach

Wang Junrong, general engineer with Shanghai Nanxiao Fire in Jiading, is a modern craftsman. He has been working on petrochemical and civil construction and installation projects for more than 20 years. He takes a professional approach to his work and tries to improve quality in spite of any difficulties that might arise.

As society develops, both information and technology are changing fast. In order to keep up with the latest knowledge in the field of construction,

Wang still takes and passes almost all the relevant certificate tests in his field, and applies his knowledge and his experience to obstacles he meets.

In 2013, Nanxiao received the “Gate of the Orient” project, the tallest Suzhou-style garden in the world. Wang was appointed project manager. At first, the arch structure reflecting the sunlight triggered constant false fire alarms. No one could figure out a solution, but Wang pointed out that using four infrared rays detectors in a north-south direction could be the answer. The method worked.

“Normally, I’ll arrive at the site before 5am and leave at 3am next morning,” Wang said. He spent three months debugging more than 60,000 pieces of fire terminal equipment inside the 301.8-meter tall complex. Because of his serious attitude to the work, the project broke a record that its fire linkage system passed inspection at first go, something that had never happened in Suzhou before. 

Although national construction standards say minor errors will not cause an inspection to fail, Wang insisted it attain perfection because that would be safer. With his hard work, the link to the fire alarm system was reduced from 60 to 30 seconds.  

His efforts brought him the Luban Construction Projects Prize, the highest award in construction in China. 

Overcoming difficulties

Wang’s persistence has been a feature throughout his career. In the early days, he noticed that welding zirconium on site could increase the efficiency of a project. However, there was no successful experience in China and Western countries blocked their advanced technology, so he couldn’t deal with it. 

With his strong willingness to overcome the difficulty, Wang enrolled in the Shanghai University Mechanic Engineering Department to fill in his gaps in knowledge and seek a breakthrough. After a few years’ hard work, he finally managed to master the welding technique.

This year, Wang won second prize in the national engineering and science progress award for his innovative technique of welding non-ferrous metals such as nickel and zirconium. 

Wang has an apprentice to help him at work. But no matter how busy he is, he will still check the design carefully. He will ask the apprentice to test every fire door of the construction project, including small hardware. 

“I hope more people can understand the reason why the craftsmanship spirit is important in our modern life. What we are pursuing is not money or material benefits but striving for the best,” said Wang. “To be a qualified craftsman, the quality of his products must be 99.99 percent instead of 99 percent. A craftsman always devotes himself to the products.”

Wang (left) checks the design of the fire linkage system.      — Zhao Yiwei

A craftsman always devotes himself to the products. What we are pursuing is not money or material benefits but striving for the best.

Wang Junrong

General Engineer of Nanxiao Fire

Craftsmanship is the word

Craftsmanship is a prominent buzzword in China these days. As a craftsman, it is more important to respect products than make money. This idea is somewhat different to most companies’ pursuit of efficiency and benefits. 

The craftsmanship spirit was first raised by Nie Shengzhe, the educator and businessman. He said “Made in China” needed to change to “Created in China.” 

The idea became popular after a report showing improvement in the supply of goods and services. It said local companies are encouraged to foster the craftsmanship spirit of striving for the best to make more types of products, higher-quality products and more branded products. 

The craftsmanship spirit is taking hold in several cities and areas in China, leading more people to make improvements and innovations at work.