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At the 2023 National Petroleum and Chemical Industry Energy Efficiency and Water Efficiency "Leader" Release Conference and Energy Conservation, Water Conservation and Low-carbon Technology Exchange and Promotion Conference held just at the end of September Qingdao Gulf Chemical Co., LTD. (hereinafter referred to as "Gulf Chemical") was respectively awarded the first place as a benchmark enterprise for the "Energy Efficiency Leader" and "water Efficiency Leader" of key products in the petroleum and chemical industry in 2023.

This is the 13th year that the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation has released the industry energy efficiency "Leader". Gulf Chemical has won the first place in the energy efficiency "Leader" for four consecutive years and has been constantly breaking its own records. Behind this achievement, there is a figure that must be mentioned: 1300.

Since the launch of its relocation and transformation and upgrading in 2010, Gulf Chemical has adhered to the Group's "Four Modernizations" concept of "internationalization of technology, large-scale equipment, ecologicalization of the environment, and modernization of management". It has eliminated backward production capacity and continuously introduced, digested, absorbed and optimized advanced foreign processes. After the facilities were put into operation, it has successively proposed over 1,300 technological transformation measures. It has blazed a trail of domestic independent innovation starting from the world's most advanced chemical production technology.

Solve whatever problem you encounter

At the very beginning of the relocation preparations, we decided to upgrade and replace the entire production process. All the production technologies selected for the new factory area must be the most advanced in the world, and we must "ensure that it will not fall behind for 20 years". Gao Zijian, the general manager of Gulf Chemical, said, "After the facility was put into operation, we did not stop there. Instead, based on our own actual situation, we made a large number of improvements and upgrades to many technical details. There were over 1,300 technical transformation measures with process flow diagrams (PID diagrams) alone, and the number of small adjustments without diagrams was countless."

The vinyl chloride (VCM) plant is the production plant in the entire Gulf Chemical that has proposed the most technological transformation contents. As a key upstream facility for Gulf Chemical's leading product, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), it has introduced the world's most advanced proprietary technology from Ineos, a British company.

The person in charge of the vinyl chloride plant was one of the key members of the team sent to Tianjin Dagu Chemical to learn Ineos technology at that time. According to his recollection, many specific difficulties were encountered when the first phase of the project was completed and put into trial operation. From this, he discovered that even the most advanced technology in the world has its immaturity. "Solve whatever problem is encountered. That's how technological transformation came about."

When interviewed by a journalist, he couldn't remember the duration of his tenure, but he was thoroughly familiar with the position of every instrument and every parameter in the VCM production process. When we do things thoroughly and meticulously, we gain more experience. However, during the trial run of the second phase project, we encountered the COVID-19 pandemic. Foreign experts couldn't be present, so we had to do it ourselves. It would be a lie to say there was no pressure. Relying on the experience accumulated from the first phase of operation, we finally succeeded in the first test run in half the time of the first phase project. At present, the annual output of our two phases of projects has reached 800,000 tons, ranking first in domestic ethylene production capacity.

Gao Zijian introduced that currently, Gulf Chemical has achieved "three tens of millions", namely an average investment of 10 million yuan per mu, an average output value of 10 million yuan per mu, and an average output value of 10 million yuan per capita, far exceeding the industry average. "Nowadays, many of our peers are suffering continuous losses, but we are still making profits because we are constantly innovating in technology." "

An employee once said, "You may not be able to find General Manager Gao in the office on a regular basis, but you can definitely find him on the production line."

Before the preparation of a new project or the implementation of technological transformation for an existing key project, Gao Zijian would gather the company's senior management, technical personnel and front-line workers. They would go through the process flow diagrams on the large screen one by one, review each pipeline and make detailed changes, from the materials of the equipment to the brands of the valves, all of which were reviewed. "We must focus on production from the source, ensuring that every detail is handled thoroughly and firmly. Only when we achieve this can we feel at ease." " Gao Zijian said.

The story behind "First"

How can continuous technological transformation and upgrading bring about an improvement in all aspects of competitive advantages for enterprises? From over 1,300 technological transformation achievements, it can be seen that these achievements can be roughly summarized into three aspects: improvement of product quality, energy conservation and consumption reduction in production, and safe and stable operation.

In the industry, the "Haijing" brand polyvinyl chloride produced by Gulf Chemical is undoubtedly a high-end representative. With the continuous optimization of the product formula system, Gulf Chemical has overcome problems such as product color, light transmittance, and fisheye, and can completely replace high-end products in the world.

For instance, during the process of PVC film drawing and production, some small concave and convex dots are prone to occur, which are called "fish eyes" in the industry. The size and number of fish eyes within the specified area are important indicators for evaluating the quality of PVC products. A relevant person in charge of the polyvinyl chloride factory said, "Like some of the world's top PVC producers, they can achieve about 10 fisheyes within the specified area, while we can currently reach 5 to 6, with better quality."

Gao Zijian still remembers that when the first phase of the polyvinyl chloride project was just put into operation at the end of 2016, the quality was always just passable. The PVC plastic film we produce turns yellow and dark when bundled together and is uneven. However, the high-quality PVC plastic film produced by others not only has a slightly bluish tint in color but is also very uniform. This problem troubled the people of the Gulf for a long time. "At first, we couldn't figure it out and could only keep trying to make improvements in various aspects such as the formula."

In the view of the relevant person in charge of the polyvinyl chloride factory, the rapid increase in the market recognition of "Haijing" brand polyvinyl chloride is inseparable from the pursuit of excellence in every link. This reflects the work in all aspects, including the optimization of formulas and the improvement of additives, especially the continuous increase in the purity of the key upstream raw material VCM, which provides a strong guarantee for our downstream products.

In 2019, Gulf Chemical proposed to build its polyvinyl chloride products into the top brand in China within three years. After three months of continuous technological transformation and research, the vinyl chloride plant successfully increased the purity of VCM from 99.98% to 99.99%. "Although it's just a 0.01% increase, it's a huge leap for us. The higher the purity of the raw materials, the better the quality of our PVC." " The person in charge said.

Apart from polyvinyl chloride, Gulf Chemical has many other "firsts". Among them, the production and sales volume of "Dongyue" brand sodium metasilicate products have consistently ranked first in Asia, with a market share of over 50%.

In 1992, Qingdao Dongyue sodium Silicate Co., Ltd. introduced the first domestic zero-water sodium metasilicate production facility from the American PQ Company, gradually establishing a foothold in the market. However, it was at a disadvantage in market competition." The head of the Gulf Chemical Union said. Taking the opportunity of relocation and transformation, we carried out large-scale technological renovations on the original basis. Now, the output of a single set of equipment has tripled compared to when it was introduced, while energy consumption has dropped significantly. Take the current of the fan as an example, the power has decreased by 50% compared to before.

In 2021, the first line of Zero water partial silicon, with an investment of over 10 million yuan, was successfully renovated and put into operation. It was the first in the world to continuously produce high-content granular primary sodium silicate using the drum method, with a product purity as high as 87%, filling the international gap in this technology.

From "olive shape" to "dumbbell shape"

On August 1st this year, the Gulf Group and Haier Group held a strategic cooperation signing ceremony. As the leading enterprise of two key industrial chains in Qingdao, the cooperation between Gulf Chemical and Haier began in 2023. Gulf Chemical's core product, polystyrene (PS), is used as the raw material for refrigerator drawers in the production of Haier's Casarte refrigerators. Since the polystyrene project was put into operation in September 2022, Gulf Chemical has successfully entered the high-end home appliance fields with high technical barriers and market shortages, such as TV-grade diffusion plates, optically grade light guide plates, and refrigerator drawers, in just half a year.

Polystyrene, as a colorless and transparent thermoplastic, is widely used as electronic and household appliance components due to its strong processing performance, insulation performance and low-temperature resistance. Take the refrigerator drawer as an example. To test the quality of a polystyrene product, it needs to be placed in an environment of minus 30 degrees Celsius, pass the hardness test, and then be put on the market.

As a key project that has already been put into large-scale production, if Gulf Chemical's polystyrene products want to capture more of the high-end market, they must achieve a breakthrough in product hardness. This project was assigned to the Gulf Research Institute under Gulf Chemical. We increased the molecular weight of polystyrene through experiments such as adding polymerization vessels, adjusting the formula and reaction temperature, in order to enhance the hardness of the product. This technological transformation went through small-scale trials and medium-scale trials successively, and was eventually applied to large-scale production, significantly improving the product quality of polystyrene. A relevant person in charge of the Gulf Research Institute said.

The Gulf Research Institute was established in 2019. Relying on the research and development strength of the institute, Gulf Chemical closely follows market demands, focuses on the layout of four industrial chains, comprehensively conducts research and development of high-end grades and new products, and continuously enriches the product range.

What is the key for enterprises to weather economic cycles? Continuous innovation should be the answer.

From the launch of the relocation and transformation in 2010 to embark on a new journey of "second entrepreneurship", to the successful commissioning of the first production line in the new factory area in 2016, and now to the fact that all product categories of the enterprise have achieved the top position in the industry... Looking back on the journey, the story behind the number 1300 cannot be ignored. It is not merely the accumulation of technological breakthroughs and project completions, but also the crystallization of countless attempts and unremitting explorations by the Gulf people. It witnesses the upgrading and transformation of Gulf Chemical from an "olive-shaped" to a "dumbbell-shaped" enterprise, and also foretells that in the future, this traditional chemical enterprise that has successfully transformed from a resource-dependent production model to a research and innovation-driven production model will continue to move forward towards higher value chains.