Welding machine industry: 2012 "winter" remains the same

For the electric industry that is commonly exposed to the "winter", the electric welding machine industry as its component seems to have failed to escape the adverse effects of the cold winter. Yu Qingsheng, secretary general of the Electric Welder of the China Electric Industry Association, believes: "The welding machine industry The situation is not optimistic. It has been difficult since the second half of 2011. In 2012, the situation is still severe."

Electric welding machine Overcapacity Electric welding machine (also known as welding equipment) is an important process equipment for modern industry. With the rapid development of the world's manufacturing industry, it has been widely used in various industries of the national economy, and is also an indispensable processing equipment for the national defense industry.

In the “Eleventh Five-Year Plan” process, in the face of complex and ever-changing domestic and international economic environment and various major challenges, the user market puts forward new requirements for the development of electric welding machines, and it is also full of countless challenges and opportunities. With the recovery of the global economy and the overall development of China's economy and manufacturing industry, the development of the electric welding machine market during the “12th Five-Year Plan” seems to develop rapidly regardless of product composition or technological development.

According to data from the Electric Welder Industry Association, in the past four years, due to the influence of the national macro-control, the development of the electric welding machine industry has been rapid. The production and sales of electric welding machines have been on an upward trend and can meet the rapid development needs of China's economy. China has become the largest in the world. Welder manufacturers and exporters.

Although the annual industrial sales value of the welding machine industry is increasing, the export delivery value is also increasing. However, from the annual data, the growth rate of the annual industrial sales value and export delivery value has slowed down year by year. The reasons for this are the fluctuation of industry demand, the impact of the economic crisis on new projects for users, and the decline in international market demand. This reflects the serious situation in the welding machine industry.

According to data from China Business Intelligence Network, China's welding machine production was 342,700 units in June 2011, a year-on-year growth rate of 1.52%, and China's welding machine output was 1,718,800 units from January to June 2011, a year-on-year decrease of 2.13%. From 2007 to 2010, the severe situation in the industry appeared. In 2012, the welding machine industry was still in a severe situation.

On the other hand, China's electric welding machine industry's production capacity is greater than the demand. Although the upstream resources and raw material prices continue to rise, the average sales price of the entire industry has been in a downward trend, and the average profit of the industry is getting thinner and thinner. The core competitiveness and scale advantages of enterprises have enabled smaller enterprises with no independent research and development capabilities to have smaller and smaller living spaces, and the number of enterprises will gradually decrease.

From 2007 to 2010, the number of personnel and funds invested in scientific and technological activities and research and development by member units reporting statistical data has generally increased. During the four-year period, 99,355 person-times and 136,653 person-times were engaged in scientific and technological activities and research and development personnel. The total funds for scientific and technological activities and research and development expenses were 1,24,263,360 yuan and 275,621,200 yuan respectively.

Among the member organizations that submitted statistical data from 2007 to 2010, there were nearly 500 products that obtained the patent certificate of the National Patent Office; 132 items that received the provincial-level and above new product awards and appraisal; and were awarded provincial or higher-level projects and funding. There are 36 items in the project; 202 new product developments. Among these projects, many projects have taken the lead in the domestic market, and some projects have filled domestic gaps.

There are five major problems in the welding machine industry. 1. The rise in raw material prices and rising labor costs have affected the economic benefits of some companies. Due to the continuous high-speed development of the electrical industry and the international market in recent years, the demand for raw materials continues to increase, resulting in a shortage of some raw materials; As well as the recent adjustments in the country's resource taxation standards for copper and aluminum ore products, pressures such as electric welding machines and other electrical products on the rise in raw material prices and other production costs are increasing.

In recent years, the welding machine industry has experienced major increases in major raw materials such as copper, aluminum and silicon steel sheets, and the prices of these major raw materials have been at high levels. As the price of raw materials continues to rise, the cost of labor rises, and the interest on bank loans rises, the cost of businesses increases, and profit margins are squeezed.

2. The lack of core competitiveness and the development of the restricted welding machine industry are a small industry. However, the products involve multi-disciplinary and marginal disciplines. They intersect with numerous disciplines such as machinery, electronics, mechanics, control, metallurgy, materials, and computers. To a large extent, it also depends on the maturity and progress of other industries, such as insulation materials, electromagnetic materials, power electronic devices, and computer technologies. At present, due to limitations in technology, funds, and many other factors, the electric welding machine industry in China must achieve sustainable and leap-forward development, rely solely on its own capital and strength, or rely solely on imported materials and devices to achieve product renewal and rapid development. It is very difficult. This phenomenon actually reflects that the development of the electric welding machine industry will inevitably be limited by the overall scientific and technological strength of our country. The development of the applied industry cannot be separated from the progress of the national basic industry.

Due to the special nature of the welding machine industry, there are special requirements for companies and talents engaged in this industry. Welding machine manufacturers generally suffer from a shortage of technical personnel and difficulties for qualified personnel. For this purpose, some of the most powerful companies have recruited talents, trained skilled workers, reserved technical forces and invested a lot of funds to develop new products and technical reserves.

3. Serious resource depletion and outstanding environmental issues Due to the rapid development of China's economic construction in the past decade, China has become a major electric welding machine manufacturer in the world, but it is far from a powerful country. Although the output of the welding machine industry is very large, most of them are concentrated in low-end products, with serious resource consumption and outstanding environmental protection issues.

4. Homogeneous development, small scale, imperfect product chain, homogenization of the welding machine industry, over concentration of various companies in terms of product composition and market orientation leads to vicious competition in prices, and damages the overall interests of the welding machine industry. .

The number of electric welding machine manufacturers is large but the scale is small, the product chain is not perfect, and there is a lack of strong competitiveness compared with foreign competitive enterprises.

The lack of core technology in welding machine companies is common. A large number of companies are pursuing expansionary scales one-sidedly, and adopting extensive production methods to increase output in order to obtain a large market share. Most of them are unable to raise large amounts of funds to research and develop high-end products, and copy copying of products. Seriously, with the increasing emphasis on intellectual property rights, the company's development potential is insufficient.

Due to the revocation of the welding profession, the technical level of the welder practitioners was uneven. The rapid development of the industry and the large number of enterprises have led to a shortage of professional welder manufacturing professionals. Welding machine products are a combination of welding, machinery, electronics, and information technology, resulting in a large number of lack of professional and technical personnel in the welding machine industry.

5. The level of corporate management is polarized, but there is still a gap between the overall level and the international level. In recent years, due to the promotion of industry associations and the unreserved demonstration effect of advanced companies, the management level of welding machine companies has been greatly improved. Some large-scale enterprises have already approached some of the world-famous welding companies in terms of hardware facilities and management concepts, but there is still a large gap in the level of management.

The industry standards, quality management system, and environmental requirements for equipment are not well understood. There is not enough understanding of the international standards and requirements for electric welding machines for export and participation in international competition. Some companies have only stayed in the form and surface of standards, certifications, etc., only to cope with inspections, and their implementation in daily production is not enough.

Experts proposed four major measures In view of the existence of the above problems, the reporter learned from the branch of the Electric Welding Machine of the China Electric Industry Association that its solutions and suggestions are as follows:

First of all, during the "12th Five-Year Plan" period, it will resolve the structural contradictions in the industry, change the mode of development, and enhance the capacity for sustainable development. Adapt to global economic integration and implement the strategy of going global. Relieve resources and environmental constraints to meet the requirements of the development of circular economy, low-carbon economy and green economy.

Secondly, grasping core technologies and creating a group of products with independent intellectual property rights and brands, and organizing large-scale complete sets of equipment engineering capabilities, the company has a large number of general-purpose products and automation equipment on the market, taking the international financial crisis as an opportunity. Encourage enterprises to acquire and reorganize small and medium-sized enterprises with foreign technology characteristics and stick to the road of "introduction, digestion, absorption, and innovation."

Once again, to improve the level of corporate management, to respond to the arrival of the era of small profits, relying on investment to promote development will give way to stimulate domestic demand and promote development. The market capacity of the welding machine will end at a rapid development stage and enter a relatively stable development cycle. In this situation, the raw material costs and labor costs of companies will continue to rise. Due to the overcapacity in China's welding machine industry, the competition will further intensify, and the era of low profit in the welding machine industry will soon come. If you do not improve the level of business management, the viability of your business will be greatly affected.

Finally, we must strengthen the development of the team of technical personnel and management personnel for welding equipment. Give full play to the advantages of technology and talents in institutions of higher learning, research institutes, and vocational education institutions across the country, encourage enterprises to carry out vocational and technical training, and focus on cultivating a group of high-quality industrial technology research, application, and management personnel.