A grassroots team at a warp knitting machinery company has won a provincial Worker Pioneer Award, backed by an annual R&D investment of 8% of sales revenue and a product pass rate above 99.8%. Behind the honor lies the textile industry's most pressing challenge: how to replace labor with technology while maintaining quality and reducing energy consumption.
Background
The intelligent full-forming warp knitting team of Wuyang Textile Machinery, based in Changzhou, Jiangsu, is the core of the company's smart manufacturing system. Established in 2007, the team has developed over 10,000 products, covering sportswear to high-end custom fabrics. Industry public data shows their product pass rate has remained above 99.8%, a top-tier level in high-precision warp knitting.
The Jiangsu Province Worker Pioneer Award recognizes grassroots technical teams at the provincial level. Previously, the team received the National Textile Industry Advanced Collective and the Gold Medal at Jiangsu International Garment Expo. Its self-built brand “Aishili” is not only a famous trademark in Jiangsu but also registered in 34 international convention countries, giving the team's technology global market access.
Industrial Impact
Full-forming warp knitting technology replaces traditional multi-step processes (weaving, cutting, sewing) with a single knitting step. For fabric buyers and apparel brands, this means shorter lead times and lower material waste. Led by Qian Xuefeng and Wang Tian, the team pioneered this technology, giving Wuyang a first-mover advantage in intelligent transformation.
From an industry perspective, this case sends three key signals:
- R&D investment rigidity: 8% of sales revenue is high for textile machinery, where most firms invest 3%-5%. This indicates Wuyang treats technology as a core competitive edge.
- Deep industry-university collaboration: Partnering with multiple universities means technology iteration leverages academic basic research for faster engineering application.
- Clear brand internationalization path: Registering trademarks in 34 convention countries shows the team's products target global markets, not just domestic supply.
For downstream buyers, the simplified process from full-forming warp knitting directly impacts cost structure. Every 1% improvement in fabric pass rate saves hundreds of thousands of yuan in large orders. The 99.8% pass rate represents an extremely low defect level, critical for quality-sensitive categories like sportswear and premium underwear.