Brand Enterprises Look at Nanjing Economic Development Zone

Recently, China Science and Technology Network conducted a survey on enterprises in the park

Nanjing Tops Automation Equipment Co., Ltd

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How to control the processing and assembly quality of the transmission system of new energy vehicles? How to improve the efficiency of automotive power and transmission systems? How to perform precise measurements at the micrometer level in car transmission systems that cannot be observed by the naked eye?

Recently, a reporter from Science and Technology Daily saw at Tops Automation Equipment Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Tops Company") located in Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone, this automotive precision measuring equipment that fills the domestic gap and is on par with the world's highest level. Its measurement resolution reaches 0.1 microns and repeatability reaches 0.3 microns.

The company's general manager Xiong Chuanhui told reporters that they have independently developed measuring equipment with an accuracy that has reached the international leading level, breaking the monopoly of foreign brands and becoming the "behind the scenes hero" of leading the new energy vehicle market in domestic electric drive systems and DHT (hybrid dedicated) transmissions. In 2022, Tops Company received nearly 300 million yuan in orders, and it is expected that the company's compound annual growth rate will exceed 30% in the next three years.

"At the beginning of every month before starting a business, I was happy to get my salary. Now at the beginning of every month, I have to worry about whether the salary of more than 300 brothers and sisters is in place." Xiong Chuanhui said with a smile, although it was hard to start a business, he never regretted it.

After graduating from university, Xiong Chuanhui worked as a salesperson in a foreign-funded precision testing equipment enterprise, earning a decent salary and personal growth rate that was envied by his peers. However, Xiong Chuanhui, who pursued a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a master's degree in materials science, has always maintained a keen analytical judgment on the mechanical processing and assembly industry.

He found that the domestic automotive industry has made great strides in development, but the manufacturing equipment is still weak, and many key technologies and equipment are still "stuck". For example, in the field of precision measurement of automotive power and transmission systems, a multinational European company has almost monopolized the global market, with a continuous stream of orders.

In the process of working in sales, Xiong Chuanhui gradually learned that the products of foreign-funded multinational companies have high technological content and advanced performance, but the selling price can be called "sky high", and the delivery time and after-sales service also make domestic customers suffer unbearable.

In 2016, he and several colleagues had a bold idea: "Why don't we come out and do it ourselves!" After three days and nights of discussion with four like-minded colleagues, Xiong Chuanhui, 37, made up his mind to resign and start a business, and independently develop precision measuring equipment for automotive power and transmission systems.

In 2017, with the support of talent introduction policies and a favorable business environment in the Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone, Xiong Chuanhui's team established Tops Company. The core technical personnel in the team rely on more than 10 years of experience in precision measurement equipment technology to focus on research and development.

The beginning of everything is difficult, especially when transitioning from sales to the position of company general manager. The pressure on Xiong Chuanhui's shoulders suddenly increases, and various sectors such as sales, research and development, supply chain, and manufacturing require attention and even hands-on efforts.

Fortunately, with years of accumulated reputation, customers trust the Xiong Chuanhui team very much. Therefore, in their first year of entrepreneurship, they received many orders. Starting from renovation and small, simple projects, Xiong Chuanhui still remembers clearly that the first order amount for Tops was 341500 yuan.

With the belief of building a national brand, the Xiong Chuanhui team adheres to the combination of innovation and quality, listens carefully to customer opinions, and absorbs them into product improvement and innovation. Finally, they have developed measurement and testing hardware and software with independent intellectual property rights.

The first wave of entrepreneurship was successfully launched, spreading their reputation like a snowball in the industry. In the first year, the order volume reached over 70 million, which greatly exceeded Xiong Chuanhui's expectations and inspired the entrepreneurial team.

Following in the footsteps of Xiong Chuanhui, the reporter walked into the constant temperature and humidity laboratory of Tops Company. A staff member was sitting in front of a computer manipulating a probe to measure the relevant dimensions of standard parts. Xiong Chuanhui told the reporter that only in such an environment can the most accurate data be obtained to make high-precision "weights" for measuring equipment.

The manufacturing of automotive equipment mainly focuses on non-standard parts. Different brands and models of automotive power and transmission system components and their assemblies require different measuring, testing, and assembly equipment. This means that each equipment needs customized research and development production, which requires high overall management and technical capabilities of the company.

The team always takes every customization requirement of the customer seriously and tirelessly. "Our pursuit is to make good products, provide good services, be good people, and do good things," said Xiong Chuanhui.

Guided by independent innovation and based on the spirit of craftsmanship, in the competition with multinational corporations, the market balance is gradually tilting towards Tops Company, and the situation of foreign companies monopolizing the automotive measurement market is gradually reversing. By the end of 2022, in the field of automotive transmission systems, especially new energy electric drives and DHT transmissions, Tops precision measurement and pad selection equipment products have accounted for 70% of the domestic segmented market share.

In the assembly process of automotive electric drive systems and transmissions, in order to control the assembly quality, it is necessary to simulate the motion state of the workpiece, measure the height of the shaft system and other dimensions, and select suitable gaskets. Usually, there are three shaft systems inside the gearbox, each with 20 sets of gaskets. The differences between them are very subtle and cannot be graded or selected by naked eye alone. They must be measured and calculated using high-precision equipment. Once installed incorrectly, it can cause abnormal noise, and in severe cases, it can lead to faults or even scrap of the electric drive system and gearbox.

After leading the team to start a business, Xiong Chuanhui first targeted electric drive systems and transmission measurement and selection equipment. They independently developed measurement systems and sensor measurement units. Nowadays, the resolution of measuring equipment has reached 0.1 microns, the repeatability has reached 0.3 microns, and the system measurement accuracy can reach 2 microns.

After the successful development of the precision measurement pad selection equipment, Xiong Chuanhui led the team to continue to delve into the field of automotive inspection equipment. Currently, they have developed a series of precision measurement equipment suitable for disc, shaft, and box parts, including sealing testing, steering system performance testing, comprehensive size and defect detection of brake discs, and transmission component testing for box parts.

Xiong Chuanhui told reporters that each of these devices has its own unique skills, such as various measuring devices suitable for disk, shaft, and box parts. They are mainly used for measuring the size and positional tolerances of mass-produced parts in the workshop environment, with an accuracy of micrometers. They are key quality control equipment for these precision parts in the processing and assembly process. For example, sealing testing equipment uses air or helium as a medium to test the sealing performance of box type components, with an accuracy of up to 10-6-10-8 millibars Rising per second. For example, performance testing of the steering system is used to automatically detect parameters such as force, steering angle, torque, etc. of the steering system under simulated working conditions, completely replacing imported brands from Japan and South Korea. For example, the brake disc comprehensive inspection equipment is used to check whether the dimensions of the brake disc are qualified during the processing, whether there are burns, cracks, and defects. A "perspective scan" can be done to determine.

In 2019, Tops Company acquired Nanjing Yuzhong as a wholly-owned subsidiary through mergers and acquisitions, and entered the field of automotive automation assembly production lines. Through continuous independent research and development, it fully mastered the full range of assembly and testing technologies for traditional powertrain and new energy fields, including motors, electric drives, and battery systems, and helped domestic automotive equipment manufacturing achieve independent controllability.

These breakthroughs from 0 to 1 were still blank at the beginning. Fortunately, our team members have almost covered all aspects, from sales, solutions, technology to production and after-sales service, "said Xiong Chuanhui. In terms of measurement and testing, they have already obtained 63 core authorized invention patents.

Since 2019, the domestic new energy vehicle industry has shown explosive growth, with a significant increase in demand for intelligent equipment such as measurement, testing, and automated assembly lines. Thanks to policy support from the Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone, Tops Company has also entered a period of high-speed growth. Nowadays, domestic and foreign leading car companies have adopted the measurement, testing, and intelligent assembly equipment of Tops Company, and related products have also been exported to Russia, Malaysia, and Vietnam, establishing a reputation as a Chinese automotive assembly brand in overseas markets.

The entrepreneurial story of Xiong Chuanhui and the growth experience of Tops Company are just examples of the continuous optimization of the talent development environment in Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone.

The relevant person in charge of the Science and Technology Talent Bureau of Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone introduced that as the main battlefield of industrial development in Nanjing, Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone is striving to develop the real economy, strengthen industrial upgrading, and innovate talent development. In recent years, Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone has taken the construction of a high-level talent aggregation platform as the overall driving force, vigorously promoted the construction of science and technology innovation carriers, comprehensively created a first-class innovation and entrepreneurship ecology, continuously optimized the layout of innovation resources, accelerated the improvement of scientific and technological innovation capabilities, led high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-improvement with a high-quality talent team, and driven high-quality development to be at the forefront.

As of now, Nanjing Economic Development Zone has introduced and cultivated 1055 national, provincial, municipal, and district level talents, as well as more than 600 foreign permanent residents, forming a good situation of "talent leading projects and project attracting talents". Around the development of the leading industries in the park, high standard technology innovation platform carriers represented by Xingang High tech Park, China (Nanjing) Smart Valley, and Biomedical Industry Park have been constructed to provide talent support for the construction of influential industrial technology innovation centers.