The Overseas Expansion Path of Jilin's "Small Town Manufacturing"

China News Service Jilin Jiaohe April 1, 题: The Overseas Expansion Path of “Small Town Manufacturing” in Jilin

China News Service reporter Cang Yan, Shi Hongyu

In a factory workshop in Tiangang Town, Jiaohe City, Jilin Province, a three-story gantry machining center is in operation. Operator Zhang Xiaohua keeps a close eye on the data on the control panel. In front of him, a white plastic pipe elbow with a diameter of more than 2.5 meters is slowly taking shape inside the mold.

The company where Zhang Xiaohua works is Jilin Songjiang Plastic Pipe Equipment Co., Ltd., located in a small town with a resident population of less than 30,000. But this “small-town enterprise,” today, has already captured more than 30% of the global high-end market share, and its products appear in engineering projects in more than 20 countries and regions.

Workers are checking the operating status of the automated production line. Shi Hongyu photo

The deputy general manager of the company, Zhan Yinlin, recalls that when the enterprise was first established in 1998, it mainly produced plastic fusion welding equipment and small-diameter pipe fittings, and its customers were basically all local. “Back then, it was just supporting—if others needed something, we made it,” he said.

The real shift happened about ten years ago. At that time, domestic infrastructure and the energy industry were developing rapidly, and demand for large-diameter, high-pressure pipelines began to emerge. Zhan Yinlin and his colleagues realized that if they kept making ordinary products, they could only compete in low-end markets. “Rather than running after others, it’s better to find a direction where we can be leading.”

The direction they chose was “large-diameter, customized.” This choice meant putting a large amount of capital into technological R&D. According to Zhan Yinlin, since then, the company has invested more than 4% of its output value each year into R&D, trying to break through the forming process for large-diameter pipe fittings. After several years of accumulation, they ultimately mastered an integrated forming technology that maintains pressure without reduction. The product diameter has gradually increased from the initial 1.6 meters to more than 3 meters.

Technological breakthroughs brought market opportunities, and overseas clients also began paying attention to this enterprise from a small town in Northeast China. Currently, the company’s products have been sold to North America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Africa, and other regions. Overseas customers account for more than half, and the export growth rate has remained at around 20% for consecutive years.

Automated production equipment is running. Shi Hongyu photo

More than 100 kilometers away from Jiaohe, in Mingcheng Town, Panshi City, another manufacturing enterprise has also started its own overseas attempt.

Wang Kun, the founder of Jilin Shunkun Harvesters Co., Ltd., is an “80s” farmer. Unlike big companies with modern R&D centers, his core technical team is mainly made up of local farmers, and the R&D site is the cornfields around them.

“Here we have mountainous areas, hills, and low-lying spots—large harvesters can’t get in at all,” Wang Kun said. Seeing this pain point, he decided to develop a tracked corn harvester that can handle complex terrain.

The R&D process did not go smoothly. The team repeatedly tested prototypes in different plots, and after several years, the tracked harvester they developed formed its own advantages in climbing slopes, crossing ditches, and preventing getting stuck.

These efforts won market recognition. According to Wang Kun, the company’s current annual sales have reached several hundred million yuan, and its products are sold in major corn-growing areas across the country. Recently, he received the company’s first foreign trade order since it was founded—the customer is from Africa.

“People in Africa contacted us and said that the local agricultural conditions are somewhat similar to Northeast China, and they want to try our machines,” Wang Kun said. At present, the team is studying the specific needs of African customers to prepare for later batch supply.

From industrial pipe fittings in Jiaohe to agricultural machinery in Panshi, these two Chinese manufacturing enterprises located in small towns are taking part in market competition in their own ways. Relying on locally accumulated industrial workers and technical strength, they are gradually taking root in their respective niche fields.

Relevant departments in Jilin City said they will continue to support enterprises of this type in advancing digital transformation and technological upgrading, helping them expand into overseas markets. Local officials said that China’s manufacturing transformation and upgrading not only happens in central cities; the attempts of township enterprises are also worth attention.

For Zhan Yinlin and Wang Kun, the expansion of overseas markets has only just begun. They are not sure what difficulties they will encounter in the future, but one thing is clear: within the global industrial chain, manufacturing enterprises from small towns in Northeast China are working hard to find their own place.(完)