“Averagely,22EMUtrainsrolloffourassemblylineeverymonth,”saidZhangFangtao,chiefdesigneroftheFuxingEMUinthecompany.Accordingtohim,theresearchonFuxingEMUsbeganin2012.Afternumeroustestsinafewyearsthatfollowed,itwasfirstputintooperationontheBeijing-ShanghaiRailwayinJune2017.
“AlotofinnovationshavebeenmadetoimprovetheFuxingtrain’sreliabilityandsafety,”Zhangnoted.“Comparedtothepreviousgenerations,thewindshieldoftheoperator’scabinbecomeslargerwiththeincreaseindesignedspeed.Moreover,itisfurtherreinforcedtoresistbirdstrikesorhitsbysmallstones.”
InJune,Qingdao,thehostcityofthe2018summitoftheShanghaiCooperationOrganization(SCO),becameacenterofattentionworldwide.Beforethat,thecoastalcityhadalreadygainedfameasacradleofhigh-speedrail,oneofChina’s“fourgreatnewinventions.”
InSeptember2017,China’sNationalTechnologyInnovationCenterforHigh-speedTrainswassetupinQingdao,injectingmoreimpetusintothecity’shigh-speedrailindustry.Currently,Qingdaoishometomorethan120keyrailtransportationenterprises,includingCRRCQingdaoSifangCo.,Ltd.andBombardierInc.Thecityprovidesabout60percentofthecountry’sEMUtrainsthatareputintooperationeveryyear,aswellas20percentoflight-railtrains.
AhmedZidanfromJordanwasdeeplyimpressedwhenhevisitedtheEMUassemblyworkshopofCRRCQingdaoSifangCo.,Ltd.“I’vestayedinChinafornineyearsandtakenhigh-speedtrainsmanytimes,”hesaid.“Indeed,Chinahasdevelopedveryfastovertheyears.”
Onefactordrivingthecountry’srapiddevelopmentistechnologicalinnovation.Asaleadingmanufacturerofbullettrains,CRRCQingdaoSifangCo.,Ltd.hasestablishedanationalEMUengineeringresearchcenterandanationalkeylaboratoryofhigh-speedrailsystemintegration,andcultivatedmorethan2,000technicians.
TakingtheconstructionoftheBeltandRoadasanopportunity,theQingdao-basedcompanyhasgonefurthertointroduceitshighspeedtrainproductstomorecountries,includingtheUnitedStates,Singapore,Indonesia,andSriLanka.Inaddition,thecompanyhasestablishedoverseasR&DcentersincountrieslikeGermanyandThailand,inabidtobuildaglobalinnovationsystem.
“Innovationisthekeytothe‘goldengate’ofhigh-speedrail,”saidLiangJianying,chiefengineerofCRRCQingdaoSifangCo.,Ltd.Thecompanyhasjoinedhandswith15enterprises,universitiesandresearchinstitutionstolaunchtheresearchofhigh-speedmaglevtrainsthatcanrun600kilometersperhour.
Liangsaidthattheresearchofmaglevtrainswithaspeedof600kilometersperhourisvitaltoimprovingChina’shigh-speedtransportationnetworkandfurthersharpeningthecountry’sedgeinthefieldofrailtransportation.
UpholdingtheShanghaiSpiritofmutualtrust,mutualbenefit,equality,consultation,respectforculturaldiversityandpursuitofcommondevelopment,theSCOsummitheldinthecoastalcityofQingdaoisexpectedtoconsolidateacommunitywithasharedfutureforhumanity.Ridingthistide,Qingdao’shighspeedrailindustrywilldefinitelyseeabrightfuturebycooperatingwithcountriesaroundtheworld.