Why Does Baoji City Rank Among The Center in The Global Titanium Industry Without Any Titanium Sources?
Titanium, a rare metal with a strong technological style, from the domestically produced C919 aircraft to the Shenzhou series manned spacecraft, there is a presence of "Baoji Titanium". In Baoji, there are more than 600 related enterprises, with about 50000 people "embedded" in the titanium and titanium alloy industry chain. Leading enterprises and specialized and new enterprises are flourishing.
In 2023, the production and processing volume of titanium materials in Baoji will account for about 65% of the national and 33% of the global total, and the scale of the titanium industry will lead the world. From January to July this year, the output value of large-scale titanium enterprises in Baoji increased by 9.7%, and the development of the titanium industry has been on the rise.
However, Baoji does not produce titanium, and the nearest source of raw material supply is Panzhihua City, Sichuan, thousands of miles away. Why does Baoji Yuan rank among the center in the global titanium industry without producing titanium?
Recently, our reporter visited the growing "China Titanium Valley" to explore the industrial development logic here.
If you choose one from many titanium products to showcase the strength of Baoji's titanium industry, which one would you choose?
On June 27th, at the Baotai Group Exhibition Hall, Vice General Manager He Shulin pointed to a spherical behemoth and said, "This is the core component of our titanium alloy manned capsule - the 10000 meters manned submersible 'Striver', which fills multiple gaps in domestic titanium alloy research
Baotai Group is the main enterprise in the titanium and titanium alloy industry chain in Shaanxi Province, and also a leading enterprise in China's titanium industry. Its titanium material production ranks first in the world, and its comprehensive strength ranks among the top three in the global titanium industry.
The titanium material we developed has been applied to national key projects such as the Shenzhou series manned spacecraft, making important contributions to the development of China's major national heavy equipment, "said He Shulin.
Aiming for world-class status, Baotai Group is climbing new heights. Although the company has a large scale, the proportion of high profit and high-tech products still needs to be improved compared to world-class enterprises, "said He Shulin.
Developing first-class technology requires top-notch talent. How can Baoji attract talent to the titanium industry?
Not long ago, Baotai Group took a big step forward in building its R&D team. The Shaanxi Titanium Nickel Materials Innovation Center, initiated by Baotai Group, has started construction and will provide a more flexible platform for talent aggregation after completion.
The center will form a titanium nickel material innovation platform led by technology and coordinated by industry, academia, research, and application through strong cooperation between enterprises and universities, effectively promoting the high-end, intelligent, and green development of the titanium nickel material industry, and creating a strategic emerging titanium nickel industry cluster with more international competitiveness, "said Wang Jian, General Manager of Baotai Group.
Nowadays, Baoji has three provincial-level chain leading enterprises: Baotai Group, Guohe Zirconium Industry, and Topda Titanium Industry. Among them, China's National Nuclear Zirconium Industry has developed the first domestically approved nuclear-grade zirconium and zirconium alloy standard samples, breaking the long-standing dependence on imported products for the traceability of nuclear-grade zirconium material testing in China.
Specialized and innovative dance
In Baoji, the development of the titanium industry is not solely driven by chain owners, but by the flourishing of numerous specialized, refined, and innovative enterprises. These specialized and innovative enterprises have achieved innovative development in different aspects of the titanium industry with their unique skills.
At the end of last year, Baoji Xintiancheng Metal Composite Materials Co., Ltd. developed and produced the world's longest and largest single blast-formed titanium steel composite plate, with a width of 3.5 meters and a length of 16.2 meters.
This record is hard won.
For larger titanium steel composite plates, every breakthrough in length requires repeated process tests. With advanced mechanical and microscopic detection methods, we continuously adjust the explosive formula and process parameters, ultimately forming a mature and stable explosive welding process, "said Yang Xueshan, the technical director of the company.
Hard-core technology is the key to the market. We are developing titanium metal composite plates for ships. Compared with traditional special steel, this new material is lightweight and corrosion-resistant. The amount used on a large ship is over 100000 tons, and the market potential is very large, "said Yang Xueshan.
In addition, titanium is often used in the medical field. Due to its good biocompatibility and high strength, medical titanium materials have seen a significant increase in market size.
Baoji Xinnuo Special Materials Co., Ltd. is a high-end medical titanium material production enterprise. The person in charge of the company, Zheng Yongli, introduced that in China, one out of every four titanium materials implanted in medical human bodies comes from Xinnuo.
Baoji Xinnuo Special Materials Co., Ltd. is continuously making efforts in research and development to address the cytotoxicity of vanadium in conventional medical implanted titanium alloys and the potential harm of aluminum accumulation to the nervous system in the human body. After two years of independent research and development, the company has successfully developed a biomedical titanium alloy material with excellent comprehensive performance, non-toxic elements, elastic modulus closer to human bone tissue, low raw material cost, and feasibility for mass production, "said Ma Hongfang, Deputy Director of the Enterprise Technology Center of the company.
Li Jingxue, Deputy Director of the Titanium Industry Development Promotion Center of Baoji Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, introduced that through leading and chain group development, there are currently 13 national-level specialized, refined, special, and new "little giant" enterprises, 51 provincial-level specialized, refined, special and new small and medium-sized enterprises, 5 provincial-level manufacturing industry single champion demonstration enterprises, and 182 large-scale enterprises in Baoji's titanium industry chain.
The 'territory' continues to expand
When dealing with titanium-related enterprises in Baoji, you may hear accents from all over the country and often hear foreign languages. With a complete titanium industry chain, Baoji has attracted businessmen from Fujian, Zhejiang, and other places, as well as European and American customers to negotiate cooperation.
14 years ago, Fujian businessman Wang Yongjin invested and established a factory in Baoji, entering the titanium industry. Nowadays, Baoji Topda Titanium Industry Co., Ltd., which he is in charge of, has become the main enterprise in the titanium industry chain of the province.
Baoji has a solid foundation in the titanium industry, gathering many relevant talents and having good industrial policies. We focus on integrating the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain, actively following market trends, continuously optimizing product processes, and adapting to new market changes. We are actively laying out the application of titanium in the fields of new energy and consumer electronics, "said Chairman Wang Yongjin.
As an important base for the research and production of titanium and other rare metal materials in the national key layout, Baoji regards the titanium and new materials industry as its primary industry for development. The titanium and new materials industry has also been included in the country's first batch of strategic emerging industry cluster development projects and has been selected as a national characteristic industry cluster for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Last year, Baoji issued the "Three Year Action Plan for Upgrading the Titanium and New Materials Industry Chain in Baoji City (2023-2025)" and the "1+5+N" series of policies to support the high-quality development of the manufacturing industry, comprehensively improving the level of advanced titanium industry foundation and modernization of the industry chain.
At the same time, Baoji has established a work team that covers the government, leading enterprises, industry institutions, and experts, and established mechanisms such as leadership responsibility and specialist services. It has also organized special meetings and salon activities for the titanium industry chain, coordinated and linked with relevant departments, and effectively solved the practical difficulties of enterprises.
To accelerate the transformation of industrial-technological achievements, Baoji has established the Northwest Nonferrous Metals Baoji Innovation Research Institute, held the 2022 Titanium Zirconium Hafnium Branch Annual Meeting and Titanium Zirconium Hafnium Industry Development Summit Forum, and the 2023 China Titanium Valley International Titanium Industry Expo, further improving the titanium industry ecosystem and enhancing China's international discourse power in titanium.
Driven by Baotai Group, more than 600 titanium and titanium alloy processing and trading enterprises have settled in Baoji, producing over 300 varieties and 5000 specifications of titanium products that are widely used in aerospace, navigation, new energy, chemical, medical, and health fields, and exported to more than 70 countries and regions. (reported by Shaanxi Daily)
