Entrepreneur | Jiang Kaining: The leader of prefabricated buildings

Hebei Jingtong Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Jingtong), located in Weixian Economic Development Zone, is a technology-based enterprise focusing on the R&D and production of prefabricated building systems and key supporting products. At present, the company has applied for nearly 160 patented technologies, and was recognized as a strategic emerging industry in Hebei Province in 2015 and a national specialized and new "little giant" enterprise by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in 2019. During this period, the company participated in the compilation of precast concrete exterior wall cladding and industry standards, and took the lead in compiling the group standard for precast reinforced concrete independent foundations. Today, Jingtong, as an industry leader and a reserve enterprise for listing in our city, is actively preparing to be listed on the Beijing Stock Exchange. Behind many honors, there is the wisdom and tenacity of a post-80s "helmsman", who is the first entrepreneur to promote prefabricated buildings in our city - Jiang Kaining, chairman of Jingtong Company.

Jiang Kaining (second from left) is in the production workshop scheduling guidance. (Photo courtesy of Jingtong)

From the first test to the establishment of the direction

After graduating from university in 2009, Jiang Kaining was "dragged" back to his hometown by his mother and began to work in his father's factory for half a year.

Because of his enthusiasm for technology, at first, Jiang Kaining chose to start as a workshop technician. Soon after, he found that many of the equipment in the factory could be upgraded to achieve significant cost reductions and efficiency improvements. But his proposal was met with objections. In order to convince his father and management, he used what he had learned to write a detailed renovation plan and budget, which was eventually approved. After a drastic equipment upgrade, the expected results were seen - labor costs were significantly reduced, production efficiency was significantly improved, and the company's profitability was greatly increased.

With the success of the equipment transformation and the in-depth understanding of the industry, Jiang Kaining gradually got a glimpse of the business opportunities and the future, so he canceled the "half-year appointment" with his mother and began to carry out the modern management reform of the factory. In the past few years, from technician to warehouseman, from responsible for procurement to marketing, Jiang Kaining has almost done key positions. In the meantime, he gradually locked his eyes on the field of green building materials of prefabricated buildings. "After much market research, I decided to start my own business." Jiang Kaining said.

In 2013, Jiang Kaining started a new stove and founded Hebei Jingtong Technology Co., Ltd., which started the journey of production and promotion of prefabricated buildings.

Leading the way on the track of technological innovation

"The farmhouse under construction applies our company's fifth-generation prefabricated technology, which is a fully assembled steel structure. Except for the floor slabs, all parts are made in the factory. For example, prefabricated foundations, steel structures, exterior wall panels, door stands, etc., are all produced through standardized molds in the factory. In Luotun Village, Bianma Town, Wei County, Jiang Kaining stroked the steel beam of a prefabricated house.

At the construction site, from the advantages of steel structure technology to the livable design of the wall, Jiang Kaining elaborated on the advantages of fully assembled technology: compared with ordinary concrete houses, it not only has extremely high solidity and high seismic and fire resistance, but also has the characteristics of energy saving, warm in winter and cool in summer. The owner surnamed Tian, who is over 60 years old, is satisfied with the house: "I am the first person in the town to build this kind of fully assembled heavy steel villa. The sturdy and livable building materials and the installed elevators have created comfort and happiness for our old age. ”

From the introduction and imitation at the beginning of the establishment of the factory, to the mass production of independent research and development of standardized molds, and then to the continuous enrichment and upgrading of steel structure building materials products in the whole system, Jiang Kaining led Jingtong to resolutely embark on a path of scientific and technological innovation.

In production practice, Jiang Kaining found that if the concrete foundation of the steel structure can be produced in a factory, it will not only reduce the cost but also improve the quality. Although he feels that this idea is reliable, no one in the industry has done it yet, is it technically feasible? At the end of 2015, with this question, Jiang Kaining went to Beijing to consult a well-known expert in the industry, who did not support or completely deny his idea, but only said that he would face many technical difficulties.

"Since no one is doing it, I'll give it a try!" The expert's attitude aroused Jiang Kaining's desire to explore. After returning from Beijing, he decided to invest in the research and development of the project.

The first mold was unsuccessful, and subsequent improvements were not as expected. Unknowingly, more than one million yuan of R&D funds have been spent, do you want to stop? If research and development fails, don't give up!

"I designed another version of the drawings, and this time I wanted to do the mold the other way around." Mechanical engineer Cheng Jianying's proposal is like a light of wisdom to dispel the haze of disappointment. After many twists and turns, the ideal prefabricated foundation was finally formed. "Compared with cast-in-place foundation piles, the vibration of prefabricated foundations is denser, the concrete quality is higher, the construction is more accurate, and the cost is lower." Jiang Kaining said, "With this mold technology, Jingtong is the first to obtain a national patent for prefabricated basic products, and has won innovation awards such as national specialized and special new 'little giant' enterprises." ”

Today, Jingtong's prefabricated foundation is not only sold all over the country, has obtained a number of national patents, but also takes the lead in compiling group standards. At present, after several technical upgrades, the optimized and streamlined ten sets of molds can produce at least 100 types of foundation piles, which are not only better than the traditional cast-in-place foundation, but also reduce the cost by at least 20%.

"Embrace" copycats with technological advantages

As long as your product is good, there must be no shortage of copycats in the market. How to face the swarming market "stealers"? "Turn enemies into friends, tell our development stories well, and embrace them." Jiang Kaining said confidently, "Most of the imitation products have no appearance, not only the technology is not up to standard, but also bear the risk of being held accountable by the law." "While doing patent declaration, search, enterprise standards, group standards and even leading the formulation of industry standards, Jingtong has begun to change its thinking in the face of the still emerging imitators, and take the initiative to carry out technology output to the outside world, not to treat imitation as an enemy, but to provide technical assistance, and strive to let more like-minded people use Jingtong's latest molds and technologies.

In recent years, Jiang Kaining has frequently preached at building materials technology conferences across the country, gathering more and more like-minded entrepreneurs to jointly promote the improvement and development of the prefabricated building system. Nowadays, due to the great advantages of Jingtong's technology and fast iterative upgrading, there have been followers who have taken the initiative to pay the technology franchise fee and upgraded to Jingtong's "true love fans".

Facing the future, Jiang Kaining is full of ambition: "In addition to the prefabricated foundation, Jingtong wall actually has more technical patents. In the future, the company will uphold the fine tradition of technological innovation, continue to improve the level of research and development, maintain the leading advantage of technology, continuously enrich the prefabricated product system, strengthen market competitiveness, and make unremitting efforts to let more people live in Jingtong's 'high-quality housing'. ”

Handan News Media Center reporter Xing Jianwei