Yonghao: Precision at the Core, Securing High-End Manufacturing
Setting an industry benchmark and presenting the strength of Chinese manufacturing, the “Rising Chinese Brands” program recently interviewed Mr. Zhu Hanhua, founder and chairman of Jiangsu Yonghao High Strength Bolt Co., Ltd., to discuss innovation and growth in the fastener industry.
Within the vast system of modern industry, fasteners are easy to overlook, yet they are the “industrial teeth” that support the safe operation of high-end equipment. From precision aerospace structures to hundred-meter offshore wind towers, and from long-distance natural-gas pipelines to the core structures of nuclear reactors, the safety of every critical connection depends on a small bolt. For many years, China’s fastener industry faced the challenge of being large but not strong: there was serious overcapacity in low- and mid-range products, more than 20% of high-end products relied on imports, and special fasteners for extreme operating conditions remained constrained by overseas technology. This became a hidden bottleneck in the transition of Chinese manufacturing toward higher-value production.
Since 1993, Mr. Zhu Hanhua, founder and chairman of Jiangsu Yonghao High Strength Bolt Co., Ltd., and his team have spent more than three decades developing manufacturing expertise in Jingjiang. Guided by a commitment to technological advancement and industrial service to the nation, they have steadily broken through overseas technical barriers and achieved stable mass production of property class 17.9 ultra-high-strength bolts. Yonghao’s domestically produced high-end fasteners now serve eight major advanced sectors, including nuclear power, wind power, offshore engineering and defense, marking a transition from following international technology to taking a leading role in domestic substitution and strengthening connection safety for China’s high-end equipment.
From Selling by the Tonne to Selling by the Piece: An Entrepreneurial Commitment to the High-End Market
In the 1990s, China’s fastener industry generally focused on mass production for the low-end market, and most manufacturers depended on volume. One tonne of ordinary fasteners sold for only about RMB 10,000, while European and German high-end special bolts of the same specifications could cost 50 to 100 times as much. At the time, Zhu Hanhua was managing a township machinery enterprise and had already identified the industry’s fundamental weakness: domestic manufacturers could mainly produce low-strength general-purpose products, while high-strength fasteners capable of withstanding extreme conditions in advanced equipment were almost entirely imported.
In 1993, Zhu Hanhua founded Jiangsu Yonghao High Strength Bolt Co., Ltd. From the outset, he chose a path different from the industry’s low-price competition: the company would not compete on low-end capacity, but would instead turn bolts from products sold by weight into precision components valued individually and tackle the difficult technologies behind high-end fasteners. The journey was challenging. With no established high-end process references and no mature R&D team, Zhu led teams to Europe to study advanced manufacturing practices while also working with Southeast University, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Lanzhou University and other institutions to establish joint laboratories. By combining academic research with real production needs, the company gradually built a professional fastener R&D team of 32 people.
Starting with ordinary property class 4.8 and 6.8 products, Yonghao spent two decades overcoming the technical challenges of property class 10.9 and 12.9 high-strength bolts. The company secured 76 invention patents that filled domestic technology gaps and more than 250 utility-model patents. It was among the first domestic manufacturers to break through key technologies for low-temperature resistance, high-temperature resistance and corrosion resistance. Its special bolts can operate reliably at temperatures as low as −220°C and as high as 550°C. Once introduced, these products filled important gaps in the domestic market and broke long-standing overseas technology monopolies.
Breaking Through: The Path to Domestic Substitution in State-Owned Enterprise Supply Chains
Before 2015, the supply of critical fasteners for China’s high-end equipment was largely controlled by overseas brands, and entering the core supply chains of major state-owned enterprises was exceptionally difficult for private manufacturers. Drawing on years of experience in specialized, innovative and distinctive products, as well as independently developed patented technology, Yonghao qualified to supply these enterprises and became one of the first private Chinese fastener companies to enter core high-end equipment supply chains.
Today, Yonghao manufactures a full range of high-strength bolts, nuts and special-shaped fasteners from M4 to M120, covering more than 37,000 product types. High-end special products account for 80% of the portfolio, while 20% have replaced imported products, giving the company one of the broadest product ranges and highest shares of high-end products in China’s fastener industry. In the West-to-East Gas Pipeline project, Yonghao’s property class 12.9 bolts resolved a persistent gas-leakage issue and increased the pipeline’s steam-heating efficiency by nearly six times. In Dalian Huarui’s offshore wind-power project, the products delivered high strength, corrosion resistance and fatigue resistance comparable to advanced international products. Yonghao’s independently developed property class 17.9 fasteners made from 300M material were also used in JinKaiwei’s first domestically produced 250 MPa hydrogen compressor, filling a domestic gap in high-pressure load-bearing components. In nuclear power and defense shipbuilding, Yonghao products have supported key organizations including shipyards in Shanghai, Huludao and Dalian, providing independently controlled connection-safety solutions for major national projects.
Yonghao is now a core supplier to more than 80 industry leaders, including CRRC, China’s three major nuclear power groups, CNOOC, POWERCHINA, State Grid, ZTT, CRCC, Xizi Group, Mingyang Group and Zoomlion. Its R&D and operating scale rank among the top ten in China’s bolt industry. The company has been recognized as a national-level Specialized and Innovative “Little Giant” enterprise, a National Intellectual Property Advantage Enterprise and a High and New Technology Enterprise, enabling it to move decisively beyond low-end price competition.
Smart Manufacturing Upgrades: A Long-Term Strategy for the Future
At Yonghao’s production facilities, 400 sets of advanced equipment operate in an orderly manner, while AI-enabled industrial robots perform critical processes such as cutting and hot forging. A provincially recognized intelligent workshop with end-to-end automation maintains bolt-manufacturing precision at the micrometer level and minimizes quality variation caused by manual operations. The company has also established the region’s first national-level testing center with both CNAS and CMA accreditation. In addition to conducting precise full-life-cycle testing for Yonghao products, the center provides public testing services to the fastener industry across Jingjiang, supporting an overall improvement in regional product quality.
As president of the Jingjiang Fastener Industry Chamber of Commerce, Zhu Hanhua has extended his vision beyond the company itself. He has led the development of an industry technology-exchange platform, integrated regional industrial resources, and guided dozens of local small and medium-sized fastener manufacturers toward higher-value production, helping Jingjiang—the “Home of Fasteners in China”—achieve a broader industrial upgrade. Internationally, Yonghao products are now exported to more than ten countries and regions, including Brazil, Spain and India. Exports have steadily grown to 20% of sales, bringing China-made high-end bolts into global supply chains for advanced equipment.
Looking ahead, Zhu Hanhua has established three long-term priorities: continuing to extend the boundaries of core technologies, developing proprietary raw materials for special fasteners, and deepening collaborative innovation among industry, universities and research institutions. These efforts will continue to expand fastener performance under extreme operating conditions and enable more high-end products that once depended on imports to be produced with independently controlled technology.
From an ordinary bolt to a critical connection component supporting major national equipment, Yonghao’s three decades of focused work demonstrate that the foundation of Chinese manufacturing depends on long-term commitment in every specialized field. There are no overnight miracles—only continuous improvement measured in fractions of a millimeter. It is the dedication of industrial practitioners such as Zhu Hanhua, who elevate the smallest components to world-class standards, that makes these “industrial teeth” truly strong and provides a secure connection foundation for Chinese manufacturing as it advances toward the middle and high end of the global value chain.
