Dongfeng plays pivotal role in supporting China's military

Dongfeng Motor Corp, one of the country's major automakers, produced 180 military vehicles that took part in the Victory Day parade in Beijing earlier this month to celebrate the end of World War II.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of victory in what is formally known in China as the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

Dongfeng's vehicles, which paraded through Chang'an Avenue near Tian'anmen Square, accounted for one-third of the total number of military vehicles at the event.

The vehicles included 105 Mengshi, which translates into courageous warriors and is an all-terrain vehicle similar to the Humvee, and 13 EQ2102N, a military truck.

The leading brand in military vehicles in China, Dongfeng, headquarted in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province, has participated in four of China's military parades.

It first took part in the country's 35th anniversary in 1984, rolling out 48 military vehicles before TV cameras.

Among the 48 Dongfeng vehicles were 3.5-metric-ton all-terrain vehicles armed with grenades and 2.5-ton all-terrain vehicles armed with missiles.

The second was China's 50th anniversary in 1999, with more than 600 Dongfeng vehicles on display. Among the 600 were five military vehicles and 31 vehicles decked out in celebratory colors.

Ten years later, 83 of Dongfeng's military vehicles took part in the ceremony to celebrate the 60th anniversary of National Day, including 40 Mengshi, used as guide vehicles for the parade, and 43 EQ2102, used by troops in the communications, unmanned aerial vehicles and logistics divisions.

At this year's Victory Day, Dongfeng nearly stole the show.

Five lieutenant generals, the highest rank present at the parade, and 19 generals rode the automaker's Mengshi, the nation's first multipurpose military vehicle.

Among the military divisions that strode in a Dongfeng vehicle during the parade were: a PLA General Armaments Department's tactical unit, a counterterrorism police force, an information unit and a drone team under the General Staff Headquarters, a medical team and a logistics unit.

During the four parades and rehearsals, Dongfeng's products reportedly made "zero mistakes, accidents, breakdowns or deviations".

Witness to history

As one of the major military vehicle producers in China, Dongfeng has produced almost 400,000 vehicles for the People's Liberation Army over the past 40 years, the company said.

It has also witnessed several of China's major historical events.

The company's EQ140 model carried solders to Hong Kong in 1997 and Macao in 1999 upon the special administrative regions' return to China.

In 2008, shortly after the deadly earthquake happened in Wenchuan, Sichuan province, rescue teams drove the Mengshi model to disaster-struck mountainous areas that were difficult to reach.

A great number of Dongfeng vehicles were used for security purpose in several venues during the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008.

This year, Chinese infantry soldiers used the Mengshi model to carry out a number of tasks, such as guard patrol, construction and medical treatment in South Sudan.

In Ebola-infected West African countries, the PLA commonly drove the Mengshi in city streets.

In 1979, Dongfeng's EQ240 military vehicles played a major role in the Defensive Counterattack against Vietnam, earning the nickname as a "hero" vehicle.

In the 1990s, the EQ2102, Dongfeng's second generation of military vehicles equipped with a high-powered engine, went into service. Since then, the model has been the main mode of transportation for the Chinese armed forces.

Not until 2006, however, did the Mengshi hit the market, after four years of research and development.

That same year, the model was awarded the National Scientific and Technology Progress Award, making Dongfeng the first automaker in the country to win the award. A year later, the Mengshi started its service in the country's armed forces.

Mengshi has 84 technical patents, said the company, which owns 100 percent proprietary intellectual property rights of the model.

Rise to prominence

Dongfeng said it is one of the major military vehicle suppliers in China because of its persistent innovations.

It first began producing military vehicles, a model called the 20Y, during the early days of the country's auto industry. Since then, it has become Dongfeng's goal to produce vehicles that are independently innovated and made in China. The Mengshi model, claimed to be 100-percent locally produced, is a prime example.

From a tiny screw to the engine, all of the parts in the Mengshi are developed by Dongfeng.

Dongfeng's research and development centers are recognized by several government departments, including the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Finance, State Administration of Taxation and General Administration of Customs, the company said.

The centers, located in Wuhan and Xiangyang, are among the first overseas talent innovation bases of the country's automakers.

Dongfeng has more than 20,000 researchers, 14 percent of the company's total employees, a fraction much higher than the country's minimum standard of 2 percent.

Among the researchers, 47 percent have intermediate and advanced technical titles, higher than the country's minimum standard of 20 percent.

Dongfeng believes quality is the key to its success. It said every tiny process involved in the manufacturing of military vehicles follows the most stringent quality standards.

Contact the writers at wangsiyi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 09/25/2015 page7)