Lead: At the recently concluded CHITEC, Wufang Zhigong exhibited in two zones, “smart equipment + basalt material supply”: on one side, models of the automated cutting line and Smart Unloading System for stone plants; on the other, basalt fiber roving spools, fabric and comparison samples. Both businesses, equipment and materials, explained clearly on one wall.

Equipment zone: moving workers away from heavy slabs

The star of the equipment zone was the Smart Unloading System (Model 1: WF-ST2.2, Model 2: WF-ST3.0). Beside a granite sample slab over two meters long, the presenter ran the numbers: manual slab handling is among the most strenuous and dangerous stations in a plant, while this system works at a constant 1 slab/min around the clock, with one operator supervising 5 machines and daily throughput of about 1,600 m² and 2,600 m² respectively.

Many visitors were most interested in “1 operator for 5 machines”. The logic is the equipment's high degree of automation: slabs are pushed off, picked up by vacuum cups and transfer-stacked automatically, while people only patrol and step in when needed, naturally shifting from “doing the heavy work” to “watching production”.

Materials zone: the possibilities in a single rock

On the materials stand, grey-black roving spools and soft golden fiber fabric were lined up next to composite panel samples used for comparison. The presentation centered on four keywords:

• Mechanics: tensile strength about 3,500–3,800 MPa, specific strength about 20–35× that of steel;
• Heat resistance: long-term service around −260 °C to 700 °C, Class A non-combustible;
• Weather resistance: 24h water absorption <0.5%, salt spray >3,000 hours;
• RF-transparent: dielectric loss <0.01, wave transmittance >98%.

(Typical industry values above; actual figures subject to test reports.)

The question visitors asked most was price: basalt fiber at about RMB 30–80/kg sits in the cost-performance band between glass and carbon fiber, suited to applications needing weight savings, heat or corrosion resistance on a limited budget. Materials are supplied from stock to specification, and visitors could register for samples right at the stand.

Two businesses, one stand

With equipment and materials in the same zone, two kinds of customers came to ask: stone plants about unloading and full-line retrofits, material users about specifications, samples and lead times. Both could register at the stand, and engineers followed up one by one after the show.

If you missed the show, you are welcome to book a visit to our Beijing headquarters and the Tianjin and Chengde R&D and production bases to see the equipment and handle material samples. Booking details at the end of the article.