Xinhua News Agency, Nanchang, June 18 (Reporter Yao Ziyun) - As night falls, entering the thin plate operation area of China Baowu Xinyu Iron and Steel Group in Xinyu City, Jiangxi Province, equipment indicator lights flicker in the darkness. Robots deftly unbundle and label, while three unmanned smart vehicles shuttle back and forth, precisely transporting coils of steel out of the warehouse.

In the intermediate warehouse of the thin plate operation area, unmanned smart vehicles and robots work around the clock, handling 7,000 tons of steel coils daily. "What used to take three people working up a sweat can now be done by one person sitting in an air-conditioned room, monitoring the process," said Hu Hua, a production team leader at the silicon steel thin plate division of Xinyu Group. The hourly output has increased by 120%, the damage rate of steel coils has decreased by over 90%, and the annual cost savings and efficiency improvements exceed 180,000 yuan.

In the intermediate warehouse of the silicon steel thin plate division at Xinyu Group, unmanned smart vehicles are transporting steel coils. (Photo by Xinhua)

Intelligent manufacturing has not only significantly improved production efficiency but also helped Xinyu Group upgrade its products. Following the successful development of "tearable silicon steel" - 0.1 mm wide ultra-thin non-oriented electrical steel in 2023, in April this year, Xinyu Group's wide high-quality special steel strip can replace foreign steel strip products, with its capacity and market share entering the industry's top tier.

Once, old steel enterprises were often associated with the image of being "clumsy, large, black, and rough." Now, through technological innovation and upgrades, these old steel enterprises have established "lights-out factories."

Robotic arms flexibly twist, repeatedly gripping samples and steadily sending them in and out of the testing area. In just 180 seconds, a tensile performance test for a plate or rod is completed. In the intelligent tensile laboratory of Xinyu Group, the room is empty, with fully automatic tensile testing robots operating efficiently, and the sound of metal stretching and breaking occasionally heard.

"Our laboratory can handle a maximum of 1,700 tensile sample tests per day, far exceeding manual testing speeds," said Wang Chengxing, the operation head of the steel rolling testing area at Xinyu Group's technology center. Intelligent tensile testing requires no manual operation and can run normally under lights-out conditions. Since its implementation, testing accuracy has effectively improved, and daily testing volume has increased by 20%.

Photo shows the intelligent ironmaking control center at Xinyu Group. (Photo by Xinhua)

Even traditional ironmaking workshops have undergone significant transformations. With a click of the mouse, key operations such as furnace temperature adjustment and airflow adjustment can be easily completed. Jin Hongbing, who has worked at the blast furnace for nearly 20 years, said that in the past, most of the time was spent operating on the furnace platform, often covered in sweat and dust. Now, with intelligent upgrades, processes such as charging, hot slag handling, and piping are integrated and handled with a single click, effectively improving production efficiency. Annual losses due to reduced failure rates amount to 2.6 million yuan, and labor costs are saved by nearly 2 million yuan.

At the silicon steel control center of Xinyu Group, staff are remotely controlling the production line. (Photo by Xinhua)

These changes stem from Xinyu Group's "smart brain." Entering the silicon steel control center of Xinyu Group, the status and indicator data of the silicon steel production line are displayed in real-time on the command screen. "The energy consumed and carbon emissions generated in producing a coil of steel can all be displayed," said Hu Bin, the operation head of the silicon steel operation area at Xinyu Group's silicon steel thin plate division. The silicon steel control center has achieved intelligent manufacturing across the entire silicon steel production line process, reducing the steel coil production process from one hour to ten minutes.

Intelligent factories are also green ecological factories. In the water supply and drainage operation area of Xinyu Group's energy and environmental protection department, several goldfish swim leisurely in a pool at the central water treatment station. "This is industrial wastewater that has met discharge standards, treated and flowing into the pool," said Huang Youchen, the operation head of the water supply and drainage area at Xinyu Group's energy and environmental protection department. The treated industrial wastewater has reached aquaculture water quality standards.

"As a steel enterprise established in 1958, we are continuously accelerating high-quality transformation and upgrading," said Liu Jianrong, the Party Secretary and Chairman of Xinyu Group. Xinyu Group is speeding up digital transformation and building intelligent factories, achieving refined control and efficient coordination in production, procurement, logistics, and sales, and is moving towards the goal of becoming a benchmark for digital transformation in the steel industry.