Over the past 20 years since settling in Dongxihu District, Lidi Hydraulics has been deeply engaged in the manufacturing of hydraulic hoists. It has successively provided supporting equipment for nearly a hundred extra-large water conservancy and hydropower projects such as the Three Gorges, Xiluodu and Xiangjiaba projects, safeguarding these "national pillars". Its core products have been deployed in 20 countries worldwide.
In the CNC workshop, 61-year-old Zhu Mingli frequently converses with technical personnel to keep abreast of the progress in the rushed processing of contracted equipment. After 20 years of entrepreneurship, "staying rooted in the frontline" has become an ingrained professional habit of his. After graduating from Wuhan University of Water Resources and Electric Power with a major in Water Conservancy Engineering in his early years, Zhu was assigned to work at a state-owned construction enterprise in Yichang, Hubei Province.
Zhu Mingli (on the left) checking the delivery progress at the company's International Business Department
When enterprise restructuring took place in 1998, Zhu Mingli decided to start his own business. After years of gaining rich experience in the construction engineering field, he found that the core hydraulic equipment used in water conservancy projects was entirely dependent on imports. It was in 2004 that this professional insight evolved into a strong entrepreneurial drive. At that time, while studying for an EMBA at Wuhan University, Zhu constantly reflected on the predicament of relying on imported hydraulic equipment. "If foreign countries can manufacture it, why can't we in China?"
With the booming domestic construction industry, the idea of starting a business lingered in his mind. Upon returning to Yichang, Zhu sincerely invited Zhou Yisong, a technical backbone at a state-owned enterprise who was quite familiar with hydraulic equipment, to co-found the business. What touched Zhu deeply was that "the original team of 10 people has stayed together for 20 years."
"In comparison, Wuhan boasts geographical and transportation advantages, as well as strong strengths in science, technology and talent resources in Central China." The following year, Lidi Hydraulics settled in Dongxihu District. At the foot of the Hanjiang River Embankment, Zhu Mingli and his entrepreneurial partners embarked on their innovation journey in a rented workshop.
The team's first order was for custom-made hydraulic hoists for the Gula Hydropower Station in Yunnan, which helped Lidi Hydraulics break into the market. With independent R&D as its core competitiveness, the company secured its first overseas order in 2006 — producing hydraulic equipment for the Tekeze Hydropower Station in Ethiopia. "The client required delivery within six months, and the timeline was barely sufficient," Zhu recalled. To meet the tight schedule, the engineering and technical team worked almost all night long.
A group photo of the R&D team upon completing the first overseas order
On New Year's Day 2007, the first light of the new year shone through the workshop as the Ethiopian project was successfully completed. To commemorate this moment, Zhu Mingli specially arranged for a group photo. During the delivery and installation phase, General Manager Zhou Yisong stayed in Ethiopia to oversee the entire process. A German engineer who had previously come to China for product inspection was full of praise for the Chinese team after witnessing the high-quality services provided by Lidi Hydraulics in production, installation and commissioning.
The hydraulic hoists supplied to Ethiopia by Lidi Hydraulics back then had a single cylinder thrust of up to 5,000 kilonewtons, equivalent to 500 tons. Today, the thrust of the company's hydraulic cylinders has reached 10,000 kilonewtons, with a cylinder stroke exceeding 17 meters.
A prototype is on display in its original form at Lidi Hydraulics' final assembly workshop. It is a valve hoist designed for the fast water-saving ship locks of the Pinglu Canal, and its opening and closing speed is 2 to 3 times that of similar ship lock equipment worldwide.
As a key project of China's New Western Land-Sea Corridor, the Pinglu Canal has adopted a fast water-saving ship lock design for its three hubs. By increasing the opening and closing speed of the ship lock valves, it realizes the rational storage and reuse of water in the water-saving pools at all levels. Among them, the largest Madao Hub can save approximately 1 billion cubic meters of water annually.
"After optimization, the valve can open at a speed of 8 meters per minute and close at 16 meters per minute," Zhu Mingli explained. When the valve closes completely, the mechanical buffer at its end must overcome enormous inertia. It was an extremely difficult challenge to quickly stop the valve amid strong water flow resistance.
Lidi Hydraulics joined hands with a team of experts from Wuhan University of Technology to tackle this technical problem through joint research. The team utilized 3D printing technology to produce a honeycomb-shaped buffer sleeve at a 1:1 scale, which effectively reduced the impact force of water flow when the valve closed. After more than 4,000 tests, the experimental model was finally transformed into a practical product.
In the field of super high-rise building construction, Lidi Hydraulics' intelligent hydraulic climbing formwork jacking system can lift the 4,000-ton-plus "sky building machine" floor by floor. It has been successfully applied in the construction of landmark buildings such as the Guangzhou West Tower, Wuhan Greenland Center and Chengdu Sino-Ocean 489 Project.
The company also participated in the development of the world's first typhoon-resistant riser suspension system for deep-sea drilling, which is capable of operating at a water depth of 3,000 meters. This system ensures the safe evacuation of deep-sea drilling platforms when typhoons strike.
"There is no shortcut to making breakthroughs in core technologies. Our efforts to tackle these bottleneck areas are aimed at showcasing the strength of China's hydraulics industry to the world." On July 4th, when giving an exclusive interview to CCTV's China Credit, Zhu Mingli delivered these powerful remarks in his opening statement.
In recent days, Lidi Hydraulics has organized its employees to repeatedly study the communiqué of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. "The keyword 'science and technology' is mentioned 10 times in the communiqué," Zhu noted. "Lidi Hydraulics has thrived through science and technology and achieved success through innovation. We will continue to focus on overcoming key core technical challenges and contribute the strength of Dongxihu to achieving technological self-reliance and self-improvement."
Wuhan Lidi Hydraulic Equipment Co., Ltd. is a professional enterprise engaged in the design, manufacturing and service of various complete sets of hydraulic equipment and core components for high-end equipment.
The company holds nearly 60 patents and software copyrights, including those for 3D hydraulic systems, hydraulic cylinders with automatic displacement control, and hoists. It is a professional manufacturer of extra-large hydraulic hoists for water conservancy and hydropower projects, as well as a manufacturer of hydraulic equipment for top formwork of super high-rise buildings, hydraulic cylinders with large-diameter ceramic piston rods, full-ship hydraulic systems for ultra-high pile driving vessels, and ceramic rod luffing cylinders.
As a national-level "Little Giant" enterprise specializing in specialized, refined, characteristic and innovative fields and a national high-tech enterprise, the company has established an ultra-long-stroke piston rod ceramic coating spraying center. It holds the "Design Approval Certificate for Extra-Large Hydraulic Hoists", as well as classification society-certified "Quality Management System Certificate", "Occupational Health and Safety Management System Certificate", "Environmental Management System Certificate", "HSE Management System Certificate", and "Five-Star After-Sales Service Certification Certificate".
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