The brand is not only a company's calling card and intangible asset but also the cornerstone and confidence for its growth and expansion. State-owned enterprises in Shandong have built a reputation for hardcore quality through dedicated craftsmanship and a focus on manufacturing. They have broken new ground through innovation, overcoming technical barriers to achieve leadership, and have integrated social responsibility into their brand DNA by prioritizing public welfare. From food and beverages to high-speed rail equipment, from domestic cosmetics to intelligent software and breakthrough technologies like track steel, Shandong enterprises are polishing the golden reputation of "Made in Shandong," moving from the land of Qilu to a broader stage.
A coin can stand upright on the windowsill of a speeding high-speed train, remaining stable for hundreds of kilometers. This scene, which has amazed countless netizens as a "signature moment of China's high-speed rail," relies on a low-profile yet highly sophisticated piece of equipment—the CRTS III high-speed rail track slab. As the "invisible foundation" for the smooth operation of high-speed trains, this slab carries the speed and confidence of China's rail network. It is also a benchmark achievement of Shandong High-Speed Group's deep commitment to high-end equipment manufacturing and its effort to burnish the reputation of "Quality Products from Shandong State-Owned Enterprises."
Recently, a visit was made to the Shandong High-Speed Railway Equipment Co., Ltd. (referred to as "Railway Equipment Company") located in the Wujing Industrial Park, Linqu County, Weifang City. This site is the largest and most technologically advanced intelligent production base for high-speed rail track slabs in the country. The decade-long evolution of a single track slab vividly illustrates the development philosophy of Shandong's state-owned enterprises: breaking through with innovation, establishing a brand with quality, and achieving long-term success through meticulous craftsmanship.
Foundation for High-Speed Rail Stability
Within the Railway Equipment Company factory grounds, a commemorative sample track slab engraved with the words "Qilu's First Slab" is particularly eye-catching. This was the first CRTS III high-speed rail track slab produced in Shandong on June 1, 2016, and it stands as a witness to the autonomous development of Shandong's high-speed rail equipment. Many wonder, what is the source of the remarkable stability that allows a coin to remain upright on a train traveling at high speed?
"If we compare a high-speed train to a sprinter running at top speed, then the CRTS III track slab is like an absolutely flat, rigid, and non-deforming 'competition track surface with zero undulation, zero error, and perfect levelness,'" explained Hou Xiang, head of the company's Technology Innovation Center, offering a通俗易懂 interpretation. With trains exceeding speeds of 300 km/h, every minor vibration is precisely absorbed by the track slab. Even a millimeter-level error on the slab's surface can be amplified into cabin jolts, causing the standing coin to fall. This seemingly thick and plain concrete component hides extremely stringent precision standards.
A standard high-speed rail track slab has an area larger than three table tennis tables. Railway Equipment Company strictly controls the surface warping error within ±0.5 millimeters—exceeding national standards. It is this extreme control over minute details that enables the high-speed rail's smooth experience of "coins not falling and water not spilling," and it completely eliminates the safety hazard of ballast being sucked up by negative pressure during high-speed travel.
As a core product fully independently developed in China with complete intellectual property rights, the CRTS III track slab ended foreign technological monopolies. It is a landmark achievement in the localization of China's ballastless track technology for high-speed rail. After a decade of dedicated development and iteration, this core piece of "Made in Shandong" equipment has long been laid across the country, widely used in multiple national key high-speed rail trunk lines such as Jinan-Qingdao, Lunan, Jinan-Zhengzhou, Weifang-Yantai, and Laiwu-Rongcheng, becoming a core support for the construction of "Shandong on the Rails."
"The cumulative laying mileage exceeds 3,400 kilometers, equivalent to the straight-line distance from Beijing to Kashgar in Xinjiang. In terms of area, it could cover 19 Tiananmen Squares or nearly 40 Bird's Nest stadiums," Hou Xiang offered by way of comparison.
From the 'Pit' to the Smart Factory
Entering the intelligent track slab factory, the scene is completely different from the dusty building material workshop one might imagine: automated equipment operates in an orderly manner, with processes like rebar cage binding, molding, tensioning, inspection, destressing, and demolding... Track slabs weighing over seven tons are continuously born on the assembly line. In the vast workshop, there are very few workers, replaced by precisely operating robotic arms, intelligently coordinated equipment, and a large central control screen displaying real-time data.
However, in one corner of the smart factory, a deep pit caught attention. "This was our first-generation production line—the bed method," explained Wang Chunfeng, head of the Production Management Department, leading the way closer. "Over twenty people worked in shifts in this pit. In the high-temperature working environment, cement dust mixed with sweat dripped down." What was most memorable was the demolding process back then: workers wielded large iron hammers weighing about 7-8 kilograms, striking the cone sleeves repeatedly, thousands of times a day. Precision relied entirely on feel, and quality depended on physical strength. "Back then, after a day's work, a person couldn't even lift their arm."
From the bed method to the flow-line group method, and then to the smart factory built in 2022, this enterprise has completed two technological leaps. Today, all 17 processes operate in a closed-loop intelligent system. The workforce has been reduced from over 100 to 40 people, production efficiency has increased by 25%, and energy consumption has decreased by 30%. This leapfrog progress is particularly evident in the intelligent demolding process.
It was observed that a freshly poured track slab is sent into the equipment via a track. Robotic arms precisely grip three cone sleeves, and a vibration device activates—within a mere ten seconds, the cone sleeves are cleanly and neatly "ejected." "Manual operation used to take five minutes; now it takes ten seconds, and it eliminates the hidden danger of residual material from manual cleaning," Wang Chunfeng said, patting the control console, his tone full of pride.
If demolding is an improvement on the "surface," then the tensioning of prestressed steel bars is the "core" engineering that determines the lifespan of the track slab. In the era of manual tensioning, uneven force application and poor stability were common industry problems. To overcome this technical challenge, the R&D team spent nearly three years and went through three complete redesigns of the方案 before finally independently developing an intelligent prestressed steel bar tensioning system. This system enables bidirectional synchronous tensioning of 40 prestressed steel bars, with the tension force of each bar precisely controlled within a range of 80kN ± 2.4kN with automatic compensation, and a deviation of less than three percent.
In the smart factory, several white "small buildings" two stories high are particularly eye-catching—these are the立体养护窑立体 curing kilns. After pouring, the track slab must go through four stages like steaming buns: static curing, temperature rise, constant temperature, and temperature drop, taking 17 hours before it is "ready." In the past,平面养护窑平面 curing occupied a large area and had fast heat loss.立体养护窑立体 curing stacks the "steamers," saving 75% of land use and reducing energy consumption by 30%.
"But a problem arose," Hou Xiang recalled. "Steam rises, so the 'buns' on top were cooked while those below were not. For components cured in the same batch, the top layer met product requirements while the bottom layer was still sticky." During that period, the R&D团队几乎24小时蹲在工厂团队 practically lived at the factory 24/7, trying 12 different ventilation schemes. They最终引入分层独立控温技术 ultimately introduced layered independent temperature control technology, controlling the temperature difference between layers within ±1°C, ensuring consistent quality for every track slab.
From Scratch to Industry Leader
Leaving the smart factory, a visit was made to the普通轨枕车间普速 rail sleeper workshop. The diversity of the product line here is astonishing—from普速铁路轨枕普速 rail sleepers to高铁轨道板 high-speed rail track slabs, from防腐接触网支柱 anti-corrosion catenary poles to超高性能混凝土（UHPC）构件 ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) components, and from专利道口板 patented crossing slabs to隧道管片 tunnel segments. The company has formed a product system encompassing 18 major series and over 300 varieties, making it one of the enterprises with the most complete range of concrete配套产品配套 products in the country.
"Currently, 80% of the company's products are standardized, ensuring large-scale supply for the national railway network; 20% are customized products specifically applied in特殊场景特殊 scenarios," Dong Changtao, Assistant General Manager of Railway Equipment Company, explained. For instance, some sections of the胶济客专 Jiaoji Passenger Dedicated Line required products thinner than普通轨枕普通 sleepers but with unchanged load-bearing capacity. "We were the first domestic company to take on such an order." For the catenary poles of沿海电气化铁路 coastal electrified railways, which have high盐雾腐蚀率 salt spray corrosion rates, they developed an anti-corrosion formula that "doesn't rely on coatings but directly mixes special materials into the concrete." There are also the patented crossing slabs laid at铁路与公路交汇处 railway-road intersections. In the past, vehicles experienced severe颠簸不堪 bumpiness when passing over them; now, the passage is平稳顺畅 smooth.
凭借过硬品质与领先技术 Relying on过硬品质与领先技术过硬 quality and领先技术领先 technology, Railway Equipment Company deeply participates in industry standard formulation, leading and参与起草 participating in drafting 9 national and industry standards, and holds over a hundred independent intellectual property rights. While立足国内深耕主业立足 domestically and深耕主业 deepening its main business, Railway Equipment Company is also accelerating its "走出去"步伐 "going global" pace.凭借极致的产品口碑凭借极致的产品口碑凭借 its极致的产品口碑极致 product reputation, the company has established long-term cooperative relationships with more than 10 countries including Argentina, Nigeria, and Angola,累计出口轨枕超320万根累计 exporting over 3.2 million rail sleepers. At the end of 2021, the company successfully won the bid for the几内亚马西铁路项目 Guinea Mali Railway project, supplying 2.06 million rail sleepers, setting a record for the largest overseas rail sleeper order from China.
支撑这种市场拓展的 Supporting this market expansion is持续高强度的研发投入持续高强度 high-intensity R&D investment and独特的人才培养机制独特 talent cultivation mechanisms. In the past three years,累计科研投入超8900万元 cumulative科研投入超科研 investment exceeded 89 million yuan, with the研发强度保持 R&D intensity maintained above 5%. New employees first undergo six months of workshop training, with skills passed down through a mentorship system. An enterprise that started from scratch has grown into an industry leader in a decade.
A single track slab承载的不仅是高铁的速度与平顺承载的不仅是高铁的速度与平顺 carries not only the speed and smoothness of high-speed rail but also the "精度哲学 philosophy of precision" that a Shandong state-owned enterprise has坚守的 tenaciously adhered to for ten years. From the bed method to the smart factory, from the 7-8 kilogram大锤 hammers to the ten-second cone sleeve ejection, from "Qilu's First Slab" to paving the way across the world—Railway Equipment Company has proven with a single slab: Quality Products from Shandong State-Owned Enterprises can withstand the test of a coin and the test of time.