Anecdotes of Teacher Chen Zhijiu and Sanhua’s Early Entrepreneurship

Editor’s Note

The development of the refrigeration accessories factory (the predecessor of Sanhua), has always been the primary problem that Zhang Daocai (in the early 1980s), then deputy director of the factory, was thinking about every moment. He thought that in er to stand out in the fiercely competitive refrigeration accessories industry, one should produce more scientific and technological products, and continue to develop new products that no one else can replace and advanced products that no one else can copy. Apparently, this is difficult for small-town factories without strong funds, excellent talents and advanced equipment.

Started seeking technical assistance from tertiary institutions

Professor Chen Zhijiu recalled that in June 1984, Shanghai Jiao Tong University organized a delegation of 13 people to Xinchang. He had known Zhang Daocai and Zhang visited him two or three times. Professor Chen had just returned from Germany and Zhang wanted him to build a laboratory. The former think Zhang didn\'t have equipment at the time, so Professor Chen didn\'t agree to do it. The delegation stayed at the Diesel Engine Factory’s hotel, the facilities were a little better and they could take a er. At that time, everyone but Zhang and Professor Chen was touched by this act. Then Professor Chen promised that, he would help the refrigeration accessories factory. Later, in the summer of that year, he started to do one thing for Zhang’s factory. Back then, there was no technicians, no employees who have received education from secondary schools in Sanhua, and there was no secondary school student. What should they do? Professor Chen discussed with Sanhua’s workers, and gave them a training, for which they stayed in a hotel at the Great Buddha Temple for about ten days or two weeks. Zhang had accompanied Professor Chen for two weeks at the Great Buddha Temple, and the latter was touched by this kind of spirit at that time. In the next few decades, Professor Chen became a good friend of Sanhua.

Illustrations: In June 1984, Wang Xianfang, then secretary of the Xinchang County Party Committee (front row, fourth from ), invited a team of professors from Shanghai Jiao Tong University to investigate and inspect Xinchang’s enterprises. Among them, there were Zhang Daocai, director of the factory (fifth from the right in the second row), and Professor Chen Zhijiu (third from the in the front row).

On June 10, 1984, Xinchang Refrigeration Accessories Factory and the Technical Service Department of Shanghai Jiao Tong University signed the \"Agreement on Hiring Technical Consultants\". And the former hired two teachers, Chen Zhijiu and Huang Zide, from the Refrigeration Engineering Teaching and Research Department of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, as technical consultants. The content of the technical consultancy was: to provide directional guidance in improving the quality of refrigeration accessories, to provide consultancy on enterprise’s technological management, and to provide information about development and application of new technology.

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Illustrations: In the late 1980s, Professor Chen Zhijiu ()

and Director Zhang Daocai (center) discussed new product development.

In need of talent, hiring external experts

The refrigeration accessories factory began to hire experienced worker like Chen Zupei in 1980, and hired Chen Zhijiu and Huang Zide of Shanghai Jiao Tong University as technical consultants in 1984. In 1985, the factory hired Zhuang Hongtao, a retired engineer at Shanghai Electric Machinery Factory. In 1986, with the support of the y party committee, Wang Qinyao, an engineer of the County Planning and Economic Commission, was hired as the chief engineer of the main factory. In 1987, technician Chen Yuqian and Professors Huang Zide and Huang Cong of Shanghai Jiao Tong University were hired to take ge of new product development in the main plant. In December 1988, Xu Danzhi, an acant of the County Planning and Economic Commission, was hired as the chief acant of the main plant, responsible for enterprise management.

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Illustrations: In the 1990s, Zhang Daocai, director of the factory (center), was with Professor Chen Zhijiu ()

and chief engineer Wang Qinyao (right).

Chen Zhijiu

At that time, the factory leaders began to contact Shanghai Jiao Tong University to seek cooperation opportunities. The refrigeration laboratory of Shanghai Jiao Tong University recommended to the factory department a professor called Chen Zhijiu who had just returned from studying in Germany, and what he learned abroad was exactly the knowledge of refrigeration control systems, which was highly applicable concerning the product positioning of Xinchang Refrigeration Accessories Factory. The factory leaders paid a visit to him with confidence, but they were refused at the first meeting. Professor Chen said in an unfriendly way, “Your small-town enterprise has no talents, no funds and equipment, and it is impossible to engage in refrigeration control components such as expansion valves, controllers and other products.” He listed the most powerful large companies in the world, such as Danfoss in Denmark and ALCO in the United States, and talked about how powerful they are, indicating that it was impossible to support the factory to produce these products. Later, at the invitation of the People’s Government of Xinchang County, Shanghai Jiao Tong University organized a delegation to visit relevant enterprises in Xinchang. Professor Chen, who worked in the Refrigeration Department of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, also came. Because the plant and equipment of Xinchang Refrigeration Accessories Factory were very shabby, and there was no talent, the delegation had no intentions of cooperation. Instead, at that time, they were attracted by a company called Nanming Machinery Factory in Xinchang. That enterprise was a state-owned enterprise, listed as an exclusive supplier for expansion valve and shut-off valve parts by 8 major refrigeration machine factories which were ed by the Ministry of Machinery. Xinchang Refrigeration Accessories Factory was just starting up its business, and it was a small-town enterprise, so the proposal of university-enterprise cooperation was repeatedly rejected. However, the factory leaders were not discouraged by those failures, they still made three home visits with passion to express their sincerity for cooperation. It was particularly worth mentioning that tough this delegation of Shanghai Jiao Tong University was optimistic about another factory, Nanming Machinery Factory, leaders of Nanming were indifferent to cooperation. Though refused many times, leaders of Xinchang Refrigeration Accessories Factory gave professors umbrellas on rainy days, sent them tea in the hot weather. Such acts seemed particularly enthusiastic and sincere to the professors, and finally moved them, so they decided to cooperate with Xinchang Refrigeration Accessories Factory. They began to establish technical cooperation, and then formed the \"Spark Consortium\" with the factory. In his break, Professor Chen came to Xinchang to teach all the technical personnel of Xinchang Refrigeration Accessories Factory, including enterprise leaders. Director Zhang accompanied Professor Chen every day and night at the Xinchang Great Buddha Temple. They had been eating and living together in a closed temple, and Chen said to Zhang, the two of us were monks together in the Great Buddha Temple for two weeks. Everyone\'s enthusiasm for learning was very high. The highest educational level of all technicians was only high school, but they were willing to endure hardships, willing to study, and listened to classes and studied very seriously every day, which deeply moved Professor Chen. He said that enterprises with such a spirit will have a great success! Through learning, communication, and simultaneously devoting to the application and development of products, Sanhua developed more and more products, such as thermostatic expansion valves, solenoid valves. And hence, Sanhua gradually won the market.

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