Tearoom in Shandong's county resolves conflicts

Wucheng county – in Dezhou city, in East China's Shandong province – is imaginatively used a so-called "Harmony and Clarity" tearoom, an industrial mediation room for local companies to settle their disputes.

This year, the advent of this facility has helped resolve 23 conflicts and disputes, safeguarding the legal interests of businesses.

The tearoom is located on the premises of the Wucheng HVAC Industry Association – which provides mediation in handling conflicts and disputes involving enterprises.

"Handling conflicts and disputes in the tearoom is relatively a relaxed thing, compared with the specialized official departments for problem-solving," said Wang Weiyong, a local official.

Known as one of the three major central air-conditioning production bases in China, the county's Luquantun town is now home to over 1,200 companies engaged in the production and processing of HAVC systems.

HVAC stands for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning. The term HVAC is used to describe a complete home comfort system that can be used to heat and cool your home, as well as provide improved indoor air quality.

One of the local companies, Rongshi Group, discovered in the market that another company was suspected of using its patented products without authorization in March. The two companies failed to reach a consensus through a series of private talks.

Subsequently, the Wucheng HVAC Industry Association brought together the heads of both companies to compare and inspect their products at the tearoom.

It was found that although the appearance, function and refrigeration effect of the two products are very similar, they were not the same in terms of technology and core technology.

"We are also dedicated to working with both parties, hoping that they will not have any disagreements and work together to further achieve good results," said Wang Baoliang, director of the mediation committee of the Wucheng HVAC Industry Association. (Edited by Chen Chuxuan)