Standing on the main battlefield of industry, daring to take responsibility through fellowship practice! In August 2026, the Institute of Engineering Technology focused on the theme of "Renewing and Practicing with Original Aspiration, Building New Merits with Iron Backbone," formed 6 technology-service practice teams, and went to Wuxi Dongyang New Materials Co., Ltd., Ansteel Group Benxi Iron and Steel Plates Co., Ltd., Nanjing Iron and Steel Group (NISCO), Daye Special Steel Co., Ltd., Shandong Iron and Steel Group YongfengLingang Co., Ltd., and ShougangJingtang United Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. to carry out technology services and fellowship training.

"Material Innovation" to Help Enterprises Reduce Costs and Increase Efficiency

The Materials technology-service team went to Wuxi Dongyang New Materials Co., Ltd. for technology services and fellowship training. Centering on the enterprise's demand for Cu-Ni composite material development, the team went deep into the production front line, and through enterprise research, production-line visits, technical symposiums, and scheme discussions, learned about the complete production process of nickel strips from raw material smelting, hot rolling, annealing, cold rolling, to finishing inspection, and focused on sorting out key issues such as material composition, interface bonding, processing stability, and cost control; focusing on the enterprise's actual needs of "reducing Ni, increasing Cu, controlling cost, and stabilizing performance," the team highlighted exchanges on technical achievements such as Cu-Ni multilayer strip hot compositing, warm compositing, ultra-thin strip compositing, and composite ultra-thin strip annealing, and conducted in-depth discussions on difficulties such as interface oxidation, bonding strength, thickness control, and continuous processing, laying the foundation for process optimization and university-enterprise cooperation.

During the practice, the team also went to the ancient town of Dongkou for red study tours. By visiting the former residences of Wang Xin and Hua Hengfang, they deeply appreciated the pragmatic, truth-seeking, and patriotic scholarly spirit of modern scientists, further cultivating patriotic feelings and firming up their mission and responsibility.

"Mechanical Pragmatism" to Empower Industry Quality Improvement

The Mechanical technology-service team went to Ansteel Group Benxi Iron and Steel Plates Co., Ltd. for technology services and fellowship training. Following the inspection footsteps of General Secretary Xi Jinping, the team went deep into the intelligent plant of the Third Cold Rolling Plant of Benxi Plate's Cold Rolling General Plant and the centralized control center, focusing on researching production processes such as acid rolling, annealing, and galvanizing, and conducting thematic exchanges on digital and intelligent transformation needs, including shape control, continuous annealing performance prediction, industrial large models, galvanizing intelligent control, air-knife mechanism modeling, and intelligent manufacturing systems, conducting in-depth discussions on issues such as model accuracy, condition adaptability, system stability, and achievement implementation, providing practical support for the integration of intelligent algorithms into the steel manufacturing process.

During the practice, the team went to Benxi Iron and Steel (Group) Information Automation Co., Ltd. for exchange and learning, systematically understanding the operation of production data collection, process control, MES systems, and intelligent plant platform construction, and conducted joint party branch building with the Benxin (Benxi Information) party branch, promoting the integration of grassroots party building and business, and helping the high-quality and intelligent development of the steel industry with young scientific research strength. The team also went to the Dabinggou Anti-Japanese Allied Forces Education Base for red study tours, inheriting the red gene and forging firm ideals and beliefs through ideological tempering.

"Intelligent Control" to Drive Steel Enterprises' Transformation and Upgrading

The Control technology-service team (Team 1) went to Nanjing Iron and Steel Group (NISCO) for technology services and fellowship training. The team went deep into NISCO's smart center and production lines, learned about processes such as slab heating, rolling, conveying, and quality inspection, understood the collaborative mechanism of automation equipment, control systems, and MES platforms, and analyzed the supporting role of data collection, process tracking, anomaly monitoring, and quality traceability for production; taking control technology as the main thread, the team carried out thematic study and discussion around production processes, equipment operation, quality control, energy management, and intelligent manufacturing, mastering the technical system of steel production from on-site perception and system decision-making to specific execution.

During the practice, enterprise mentors systematically explained practical courses on production management, equipment and energy, quality control and defect analysis, cost control, high-end product and new product R&D, and industry frontier trends, helping team members consolidate professional application capabilities and broaden industry horizons. The team also visited the Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders for patriotic education, commemorating the victims, recalling the years of resistance, deepening their family-country sentiments, and strengthening their responsibility.

"Digital-Intelligence Empowerment" to Promote the Leap of the Special Steel Industry

The Control technology-service team (Team 2) went to Daye Special Steel Co., Ltd. in Huangshi, Hubei for technology services and fellowship training. During the activity, the team visited the enterprise exhibition hall, large-bar plant, small-bar plant, and steel tube plant, observed production links such as raw material preparation, smelting and processing, rolling and forming, heat treatment, and quality inspection, systematically understood the special steel industry layout, production processes, and technological innovation achievements, and tempered engineering awareness and responsibility; combining the professional characteristics of control engineering, the team conducted research around equipment operation, process parameters, quality control, and production data analysis, and held symposium exchanges with enterprise technical backbones on topics such as intelligent control, industrial data application, and AI large-model empowerment of production, thinking about the path of control technology serving industry upgrading in real scenarios.

"Metallurgical Science and Innovation" to Promote Industrial Iterative Development

The Metallurgical Materials technology-service team went to Shandong for technology services and fellowship training. Centering on three major industrial directions — equipment manufacturing, high-end stainless steel, and long-process steel — the team visited nine key enterprises and one industrial park within four days, going deep into production workshops, intelligent control centers, and R&D front lines, and through on-site research, thematic symposiums, and demand matching, systematically understood enterprises' practical needs in material performance improvement, production process optimization, equipment upgrading, energy conservation and consumption reduction, and low-carbon smelting. The team successively exchanged with technicians from enterprises such as TISCO Xinhai and Yongfeng Steel on issues such as smelting process optimization, impurity and inclusion control, product quality stability, energy efficiency improvement, and intelligent control, and proposed targeted technical ideas combining the professional advantages of metallurgy, materials, and equipment manufacturing.

During the practice, the team deeply linked with enterprise party branches, carried out university-enterprise red co-construction, organized red-themed study tours, and held thematic seminars on "Metallurgical Technology Empowering Steel Industry Upgrading," guiding members to cultivate red sentiments, inherit the red gene, and explore the development path of green transformation and intelligent upgrading of the steel industry.

"Smart Manufacturing Tackling" to Help the Steel Industry Strive for Strength

The Instrument technology-service team went to ShougangJingtang United Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. for technology services and fellowship training. Closely meeting the high-end, intelligent, and green development needs of the steel industry, the team learned about the application of technologies such as industrial data governance, intelligent inspection, process control, and equipment monitoring through thematic reports, symposium exchanges, and production-line observations.

During the practice, the team visited the 2250 hot rolling and MCCR multi-mode fully continuous casting-rolling production lines, and combined with professional directions such as automatic control, machine vision, intelligent sensing, and data modeling, conducted technical exchanges with the enterprise on issues such as data collection under complex working conditions, model application, equipment status identification, and quality control, deepening their understanding of the collaboration of intelligent manufacturing systems and process optimization, and accumulating experience for serving the transformation and upgrading of the steel industry.

The team also specially studied the advanced deeds of "Great Country Craftsman" Rong Yanming, who rooted himself in the production front line, tackled difficulties, and pursued excellence with dedication, perceiving the spiritual power of the role model's love for work, dedication, and service to the country, and firming up the responsibility to carry out scientific research tackling close to the real needs of the industry, empower industry development with technological innovation, and serve the real economy.

The graduate student technology-service and fellowship training activity is an important platform and brand activity for postgraduate practical education at the University of Science and Technology Beijing, and an important component of the school's "Iron Backbone" characteristic education model. It aims to guide graduate students to temper their character, increase their talents, and contribute their strength in practice.

In the future, IET, USTB will continue to leverage its multidisciplinary cross-advantage, implement the fundamental task of cultivating virtue and nurturing people, and strive to cultivate more high-quality talents who listen to and follow the Party, have ideals and abilities, and possess the iron backbone of devoting themselves to the country.