On July 8, Shiyan, Hubei Province. In this city known as the “Truck Capital of China” and the birthplace of Dongfeng, an in-depth dialogue on industrial fluids officially began. As the first stop of the “KERUN Technology Open Day” series, Mr. Wu Xiaogang and Mr. Ding Min, Regional Managers of Nanjing KERUN Industrial Media Co., Ltd. (“KERUN”), led the core technical team to visit Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle Technical Center. Mr. Zhao Junping, Chief Engineer of the Process Research Institute of Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle Technical Center, and Mr. Zhou Quan attended the event, with Mr. Ding Min serving as the host. Together with industry partners, both sides explored new solutions for improving quality, reducing costs, and enhancing efficiency in commercial vehicle manufacturing.
High-Level Dialogue: Aligning Technology and Pursuing Upgrades Together
At the beginning of the event, Mr. Wu Xiaogang explained the purpose of the visit in his opening remarks: “This is not only a technical exchange, but also a learning journey for KERUN to pay tribute to frontline R&D teams.” He pointed out that although industrial fluids account for only a small proportion of manufacturing costs, they are a key variable determining the “inner strength” of components. By bringing the Open Day directly to the technical center, KERUN aims to break communication barriers and precisely address frontline process challenges with targeted technical solutions.
Mr. Zhao Junping, representing Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle Technical Center, warmly welcomed KERUN’s visit. He noted that the commercial vehicle industry is currently undergoing a critical transformation driven by the “Five Transformations”, with competition shifting toward total lifecycle cost (TCO). This has placed extremely high demands on manufacturing processes. Zhao highly recognized KERUN’s initiative of “bringing technology directly to customers,” stating: “This is not only a precise alignment of technical needs, but also strong support for our green factory development.”
Practical Solutions: Industrial Fluids Empower Intelligent Manufacturing
Addressing common challenges such as machining tool wear, difficulties in controlling heat treatment distortion, short rust-prevention cycles, and increasing environmental pressures, KERUN presented a comprehensive industrial fluid management solution covering the entire manufacturing process. Practical cases shared during the event demonstrated the effectiveness of these solutions: through innovative product applications, KERUN successfully controlled heat treatment distortion of key commercial vehicle components. Combined with low-foam cleaning technologies and vapor-phase corrosion protection solutions, the company extended rust-prevention periods while significantly reducing hazardous waste treatment pressure. These achievements, accumulated through more than 20 years of technological development, received strong recognition from participants.
Facing Challenges Together: Discussing Green Coating Technologies
During the technical discussion session, Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle openly shared its current process challenges. Regarding the phosphating process still widely used today, Dongfeng experts expressed concerns about coating corrosion resistance and other performance requirements during the transition toward phosphorus-free thin-film pretreatment technologies.
In response, KERUN R&D Engineer Xu Xu provided an in-depth analysis based on industry trends. He explained: “China’s automotive materials are undergoing a transition from cold-rolled steel sheets to galvanized steel sheets. Early phosphorus-free thin-film technologies were mainly developed for cold-rolled steel, while the transition to galvanized steel has gradually taken place over the past 5–8 years. Currently, galvanized steel sheets are widely adopted in mainstream passenger vehicles.”
Xu further pointed out: “Previously, when thin-film processes were applied to cold-rolled steel, corrosion resistance was difficult to meet requirements. The key limitations were mainly two aspects: first, the technical level of salt spray-resistant components, especially organic functional components, in thin-film formulations; second, the compatibility between upstream degreasing and water-rinsing processes and the thin-film coating process. Differences in these core technologies among companies have become one of the key areas where KERUN continues to focus and develop.”
Upgrading Partnerships, Building a Green Future Together
Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle Technical Center warmly welcomed KERUN’s initiative of “bringing technology directly to customers.” As the commercial vehicle industry shifts toward total lifecycle cost (TCO) competition, KERUN’s digital monitoring solutions and waste liquid reduction technologies align closely with Dongfeng’s strategy of building green factories.
Both sides reached a consensus that future cooperation will move beyond traditional “product procurement” toward deeper “joint R&D.” As KERUN has always believed: “Technology only creates value when it is implemented.” The two parties will strengthen collaboration between laboratories and production lines, work together on new materials and new processes, and jointly overcome key manufacturing challenges.
When laboratory data flows into the rhythm of production lines, even small variables in industrial fluids can unleash tremendous power to drive advanced manufacturing. The Shiyan visit was not only a technical alignment, but also a seed for future cooperation. Starting from this new milestone, KERUN will work together with Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle to extract value from “flowing” technology, build resilience through the “quenching” of challenges, and jointly write a new chapter in the high-quality development of intelligent commercial vehicle manufacturing in China. The Technology Open Day series will continue visiting more benchmark enterprises, extending the reach of technological exchange to broader manufacturing fields.
