The "15th Five-Year Plan" period has commenced, a time for determined effort and progress. Counties are charting their path to strength, and peaks are competing in splendor. In Ningyang, the acceleration of emerging industries is evident as they advance with innovation and establish new paradigms.
The focus is on accelerating the construction of the Xinghui Copper-Based Industrial Park, continuously boosting production capacity at Xinheyuan and Zhenting Jinggong, expanding the market scale for Yufeng drones, and building a 100-billion-yuan high-end equipment manufacturing industrial cluster... In the opening year of the "15th Five-Year Plan," Ningyang County is targeting advantageous sectors, riding the momentum to continuously enhance the solid strength of new-type industrialization and explore new pathways for innovation-driven development, making emerging industries a new driving force for regional growth.
Integration of Manufacturing and Services Expands Development Space
In early summer, at the back of Mount Tai, a humming sound pierced the sky above the forest as a drone carrying 100 kilograms of sand and gravel lifted off, speeding towards a firefighting water replenishment pool halfway up the mountain. What was once a bumpy mountain road crossing multiple ridges has been compressed to a 15-minute flight. "The workload of a drone in one day can match that of over ten laborers," said the pilot, patting the controller in hand with pride.
At the Phoenix Mountain Drone Nest in Geyi Town, Ningyang County, drones automatically deploy every morning and evening. A single flight accomplishes multiple tasks—forest fire prevention, logistics transport, emergency rescue, land patrol, and cultural relic exploration—truly earning the title of "aerial multi-tasker." These drone services come from Ningyang's Shandong Yufeng Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd.
Entering the company's exhibition area, drones with even more capabilities come into view—the Yuhuo · Pili 01 series for high-rise building firefighting, specialized for extinguishing fires in buildings over 60 meters, capable of quickly breaking windows and deploying suppressants to control flames, with a six-round magazine change completed within 30 seconds; the Yuhuo · Pili 02 series tethered firefighting drone, specialized for ultra-high-rise buildings over 80 meters, with a tether simultaneously delivering water hoses and electrical power, enabling sustained high-altitude water discharge with a maximum lift of 200 meters... When drones, nests, and command platforms are connected via the Internet of Things, another industry-leading smart firefighting system is born—the Yufeng Intelligent Smart Fire and Rescue System.
This system integrates functions such as automatic deployment, fire suppression, return to nest, and standby duty, truly achieving a complete closed loop of "detection-decision-response." The Yufeng Intelligent Smart Fire and Rescue System has been included in the equipment lists of fire and emergency departments in multiple regions. Transitioning from a hardware manufacturer to a builder of an intelligent "drone-nest-platform" ecosystem, Yufeng Intelligent is broadening its transformation path.
Ning Bowen, head of Shandong Yufeng Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., stated that the company builds differentiated competitive advantages, providing overall drone application solutions for various industries including emergency firefighting, surveying and inspection, air monitoring, logistics transport, agricultural plant protection, and rescue command. It also deeply integrates low-altitude smart platforms into urban governance. The company has been selected for the Provincial Development and Reform Commission's Major Projects Reserve for New and Old Kinetic Energy Conversion, forming a "Ningyang Model" that can be promoted and replicated in counties and districts within and outside the province.
A staff member from the Ningyang County Development and Reform Bureau explained that as the only enterprise in Tai'an engaged in the research, development, and manufacturing of complete drones, Shandong Yufeng Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. is anchored in the industrial-grade drone sector, filling a regional industrial gap. Relying on its doctoral team, the company achieves full-chain independent research and development of core software and hardware, participates in the formulation of three national standards, effectively bridges barriers between the research system, industrial system, and local resources, and promotes the overall strengthening and upgrading of the local industrial chain.
Innovation and Deep Cultivation of Key Technologies Strengthen the Industrial Backbone
The low-altitude economy is burgeoning, and market demands for equipment performance across all segments of the industrial chain are increasing. Moving from "0" to "1" represents the forefront of technological innovation. Shandong Zhenting Jinggong Piston Co., Ltd. was the first to break through foreign technological blockades on key forging technologies for high-strength aluminum-based pistons, bringing piston performance indicators to internationally advanced levels, filling a domestic gap, and achieving the localization of high-strength aluminum-based piston forging technology. This technology has been applied to domestically developed drones.
"In the past, Zhenting Jinggong mainly produced pistons for various engines including automobiles, motorcycles, and general-purpose gasoline engines. When a foreign client first requested aviation-grade pistons, we rose to the challenge," said Ning Hu, Deputy Head of the Technology Department at Shandong Zhenting Jinggong Piston Co., Ltd.. The higher the altitude, the thinner the air, the harsher the combustion conditions, and the worse the piston's operating environment, thus requiring higher tensile strength. To effectively enhance product tensile strength, the company formed a technical攻关 team by抽调 personnel from its technology, production, and quality departments to collaborate with Shandong University.
"After five years and over 3,000 tests, the company ultimately broke through the technical barrier. By upgrading from the original casting process to a forging process, product tensile strength increased by 30% while weight decreased by 15%. The high-strength aluminum-based piston forging technology was finally localized," Ning Hu said.
Today, Shandong Zhenting Jinggong Piston Co., Ltd. is a private enterprise whose main products include pistons, piston pins, and retaining rings for automobile, motorcycle, general-purpose gasoline engine, diesel engine, compressor, and air conditioning engines. The company's leading product, general-purpose gasoline engine pistons, has been recognized as a Shandong Famous Brand, Shandong High-Quality Brand, and a Shandong Provincial Manufacturing Single Champion Product. The company has participated in formulating three national standards, holds over 70 invention and utility model patents, commands over 60% of the domestic market share, and has ranked first for many consecutive years.
Not long ago, at the World Superbike Championship (WSBK) Portugal round, Zhangxue Motorcycle won with an absolute advantage of 3.68 seconds, achieving a historic breakthrough. Behind Zhangxue Motorcycle's victory, industrial support is the solid foundation. Shandong Zhenting Jinggong Piston Co., Ltd. is also a supplier for Zhangxue Motorcycle. "Zhangxue Motorcycle's championship demonstrates that our domestic industrial design capability is very strong," said Zhou Chunyan, Head of the Technology Department at Shandong Zhenting Jinggong Piston Co., Ltd.. Within the circle, it is known that Zhangxue has an almost obsessive pursuit of极限 performance. The dimensional accuracy for piston compression height he required when placing the order far exceeded常规 industry standards, which makes the engine's power input and output more uniform.
After winning on the track, Zhangxue Motorcycle capitalized on the momentum to launch new models and placed new orders with Zhenting Jinggong again. To date, Zhenting Pistons has累计 supplied over 20,000 high-performance forged pistons to Zhangxue Motorcycle, providing core support for the reliable output of its engines at high RPMs.
Chain and Regional Circular Economy Achieves Three "Firsts"
New products are constantly emerging, and new vitality is continuously迸发. Entering Shandong Yarong Chemical Co., Ltd. located in the Ningyang Chemical Industry Park, a set of跳动 numbers on the central control screen宣告 the victory of a key battle: the company's newly commissioned 150,000-ton potassium hydroxide and 120,000-ton phosphorus oxychloride projects have slashed the proportion of externally purchased liquid chlorine from 100% directly to 30%.
The domestic market share for phosphorus oxychloride has surged to 36%, securing the national number one position; the market share for potassium hydroxide accounts for 10%, firmly holding the number one spot in Shandong; and what makes peers most envious is the 21% profit margin for potassium hydroxide, also ranking first in the industry. After project completion, it is expected to drive 3.2 billion yuan in revenue, 200 million yuan in taxes, and create 120 jobs.
Behind these three "firsts" lies a精密 economic循环 chain. Yarong Chemical's flagship product is phosphorus-based flame retardants, with an annual capacity of 210,000 tons, including products like 120,000 tons of TCPP and 60,000 tons of TCEP, providing flame retardant solutions for the domestic polyurethane and polymer materials industries. However, flame retardant production离不开 chlorine-based raw materials, and the long-distance transport of liquid chlorine is not only costly but also risky. To address chlorine demand, Yarong commissioned the 150,000-ton potassium hydroxide and 120,000-ton phosphorus oxychloride projects to meet its production needs.
Since then, the chlorine gas produced by the new project's electrolysis装置 is directly "fed" to the downstream phosphorus oxychloride and phosphorus trichloride units; the by-product hydrogen is sent via pipeline to the neighboring Mingshengda company, saving it 30,000 tons of coal consumption annually; the potassium hydroxide product is supplied locally to Dier Chemical's 200,000-ton energy storage molten salt project—an industrial chain from "gas" to "salt" to "energy storage" has completed its闭环 within the park.
"In the past, companies in the park各自 purchased their own raw materials and各自 discharged their own waste. Now, with the梯级 utilization of chlorine, hydrogen, and steam, costs are reduced, risks are lowered, and added value has increased," said a relevant负责人 from the Ningyang Chemical Industry Park, using an analogy: production is like building with blocks; they were once散着, but now they fit together seamlessly. This simple statement outlines the picture of county-level chemical parks transforming, upgrading, innovating, and developing greenly.
From "manufacturing" to "services," from "following" to "leading," from "going it alone" to "collaborating for增值"... In the opening year of the "15th Five-Year Plan," Ningyang, with一个个 vivid vignettes of innovation, is consolidating new advantages for the high-quality development of the county economy. Standing at a new starting point, Ningyang's goals are clear and firm—to have more "national firsts" originate here and to have the "Ningyang Model" reach broader horizons.
Journalist's Note: The "Hardcore" Confidence of a Small County
Some may ask: What gives Ningyang the底气 to proclaim a "100-billion-yuan industrial cluster"? A visit provides the answer. At Shandong Yufeng Intelligent Technology, the humming sound of drones taking off feels particularly powerful. The low-altitude economy风口 is strong, but Ningyang's advantage lies not in resources but in mindset—packaging and integrating "manufacturing + services" to form a replicable "Ningyang Model." Entrepreneurs跨 universities to form expert teams, "rubbing together" an industrial chain covering R&D, manufacturing, services, and competitions, precisely meeting industry刚性需求.
Capable, willing, and skillful—this is the common portrait of Ningyang entrepreneurs. Zhenting Jinggong has been thriving for nearly 30 years, partnering with almost all知名 motorcycle brands. Yarong Chemical takes "making the most of everything" to the极致, even turning waste into revenue. These enterprises启发 us: For county economies to achieve high-quality development, as long as they dare to钻 deep into细分 sectors, dare to攻坚克难 in technology, and dare to打通 the "last mile" in the industrial chain, even small counties can "grow" big industries.