Baoji is a remarkable place. In ancient times, it forged the bronze culture; today, it builds the "Baoji Titanium Valley." "Come to Baoji to see China" – how awe-inspiring! Baoji's China Titanium Valley has long made a name for itself far and wide.
There are many titanium enterprises in Baoji, and if you explore among them, you'll find stories worth savoring. Some founders started out knowing nothing about titanium knowledge, processes, products, or applications, yet today they deeply understand the principle: "To do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools." The protagonist of this story, Li Xiangwei, general manager of Baoji Lihua Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd. (Lihua Titanium), went from being completely unfamiliar with titanium to specializing in titanium flanges that are now exported to over 30 countries, including Germany. He says he never expected that his dream of becoming a "titanium flange specialist" would quietly come true.
Li Xiangwei calls himself a "country boy." In 2006, at the age of 25, he knew nothing about titanium but started his own business, learning to make titanium flanges. Li says he looked up the history of flanges – the name "flange" was first proposed by a British man named Erchart in 1809, who also suggested a casting method. However, flanges were not widely used for quite some time; it was not until the early 20th century that they became widely applied in various mechanical equipment and pipe connections. It's clear that Li, though initially ignorant, quickly grasped the knowledge after studying it. He says that theoretical understanding, combined with hands-on learning, gave Lihua Titanium's flanges a rough start – but the products were crude and had no market acceptance, especially since people were far less familiar with titanium over a decade ago. The initial investment almost all went to tuition fees, which dealt a heavy blow to his entrepreneurial drive.
Li says that in the early years of his business, it was precisely the early stage of the Baoji Titanium Valley's development, and many entrepreneurs were learning, stumbling, and learning again. At that time, Lihua Titanium's positioning was to focus exclusively on titanium flanges, striving to become a "titanium flange specialist." Leave professional work to professional people – by diligently specializing in titanium flanges, Lihua Titanium gradually gained market recognition. The fledgling Lihua flanges, with continuous process improvements, won over more customers. Some clients grew together with Lihua Titanium, mutually achieving success, which further fueled the growth of Lihua flanges.
As the craftsmanship of the "titanium flange specialist" deepened, Lihua flanges traveled beyond Baoji, beyond Shaanxi, and across national borders. Li says that three years after starting his business, in 2009, Lihua Titanium secured its first overseas flange order, sending its products to Germany. He says that from knowing nothing about flanges to exporting, Lihua Titanium's quality philosophy took a qualitative leap. Since 2009, Lihua flanges have been exported to more than 30 countries, including Germany, Chile, Italy, India, and France. The market reputation of Lihua Titanium as the "titanium flange specialist" has grown steadily stronger.
Speaking of the "titanium flange specialist" philosophy, Li traces the journey from the product's early prototype to its mature form that entered the market. He says that the quality control and market reputation of Lihua flanges owe much to the sincere guidance of both domestic and international customers. Clients offered valuable suggestions on many aspects – material purity, metal analysis, quality control, process improvements, and more. Li says that when Lihua Titanium first started handling foreign orders, customers raised issues about standards and quality. To address their feedback, we invited clients to help us learn and adapt to different international standards – German, American, Japanese, and others – to bridge the gap with the global market. Li worked day and night, burning the midnight oil, striving to "digest" international standards and integrate them with domestic ones before starting production. Looking at the thick volumes of standards, Li admits it was tiring, but the joy was indescribable. This was the foundational work for Lihua Titanium's international expansion and the "international" path to elevating quality. Once, a Chilean customer offered very sincere process suggestions, and after adopting them, they greatly contributed to improving Lihua's flange craftsmanship and quality.
Li says, "Lihua flanges – with the right method, it's not difficult." Over 18 years since starting in 2006, Lihua Titanium has stayed committed to deep technical expertise and product development as a "titanium flange specialist," always guided by the "method" . He explains that this "method" encompasses three aspects: first, the process methods that Lihua Titanium continuously improves through trial and error; second, the feedback from customers during use that helps refine the flange processes; and third, the methods developed for new application scenarios to produce flanges with different performance characteristics. This "method" is about exploring approaches to process improvement and perfecting viable methods in the production process. "To do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools." With singular focus on flanges, Lihua Titanium now produces about 40,000 titanium flanges per year, with the largest being ∅1.8 meters and the smallest ∅0.095 meters.
Lihua flanges – with the right method, it's not difficult – the "international" flange journey of country boy Li Xiangwei teaches us: if you work with dedication, focus, and professionalism, and if you find your method and steadfastly apply it with diligence, you will surely succeed.
