How long does it take for the seeds of craftsmanship to grow into a flourishing forest? Not long ago, the sixth Forum on Innovation Studios of Model Workers and Skilled Artisans was held in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province.
More than one hundred representatives from trade union systems, research institutes, and leading enterprises across the country gathered in Xuzhou to discuss how to improve the quality and efficiency of innovation studios led by model workers and skilled artisans, and to explore pathways for empowering the development of new quality productive forces.
Innovation studios led by model workers and skilled artisans serve as frontline positions for innovation and technical breakthroughs in industry, important platforms for cultivating highly skilled talent, and key vehicles for driving industrial upgrading and developing new quality productive forces.
At the forum, the "Xuzhou Construction Machinery Industry Cluster Craftsmanship Academy Matrix" was officially launched, forging a skill talent pipeline with a complete echelon for a world-class industrial cluster and building a broad stage for industrial workers to achieve success through skills and contribute to the nation.
In August 2004, the country's first model worker innovation studio named after a model worker, the "Yin Chunyin Model Worker Studio," was established in Xuzhou. The relevant experience and practices were summarized and promoted by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, and model worker innovation studios subsequently blossomed across the country. From that point on, the "seeds" of Xuzhou's model workers and skilled artisans achieving success through skills and pursuing innovation were planted.
Breaking Ground: From the Nation's First to 205
In Xuzhou, the Municipal Federation of Trade Unions has always treated the construction of innovation studios as an important platform for deepening the reform of the industrial worker workforce, cultivating highly skilled talent, and empowering industrial innovation. Now, more than two decades later, the city has established 205 innovation studios of various levels and types led by model workers and skilled artisans, including 53 studios at various levels along the construction machinery industrial chain, with 5 receiving key support from the All-China Federation of Trade Unions.
Cultivating a single seedling is easy, but spreading like a prairie fire is hard. The reach of one person or one studio is ultimately limited. How can the power of skilled artisans shift from "individual excellence" to "cluster-wide talent development"? As the birthplace of the nation's innovation studios, Xuzhou tackled the challenge through alliances. Following the principle of "similar occupations, connected positions, and shared business," the city established five industry alliances of model worker innovation studios: modern agriculture, energy and chemical engineering and new materials, construction machinery and intelligent manufacturing, biomedicine and big health, and modern services. These alliances break down barriers between enterprises and integrate industry resources, enabling artisans scattered across different sectors to join forces and collaborate.
Growing Into a Forest: From Individual Excellence to Cluster-Wide Talent Development
Along the construction machinery industrial chain, leading enterprise XCMG Group is both a practitioner and a beneficiary of the industry alliance of model worker and skilled artisan innovation studios. Under the coordination of the Municipal Federation of Trade Unions, XCMG Group took the lead in establishing the Construction Machinery and Intelligent Manufacturing Industry Model Worker Innovation Studio Alliance, bringing together 28 key enterprises along the chain and 33 model worker and skilled artisan innovation studios, gathering more than 260 master artisans, provincial and municipal artisans, and technical backbone personnel.
Since the alliance began operating, results have been remarkable. A model worker and skilled artisan service team was formed to carry out special "Model Workers and Skilled Artisans Assisting Enterprises" services, covering more than 30 upstream and downstream enterprises and institutions. Eighteen alliance exchange events were held, creating an integrated online and offline shared training system with 54 master artisan open courses and "cloud classroom" courses launched. Focusing on common technical bottlenecks in the industry, 25 on-site technical breakthrough sessions were conducted, resolving more than 200 technical problems in 10 areas including welding and coating. Skills training was carried out for in-demand and emerging occupations, with cumulative training reaching 3,500 person-times and benefiting more than 30,000 workers.
Artisans who once worked alone in their respective fields are now joining forces to tackle common industry challenges. The alliance has torn down the "walls" between enterprises, allowing each "seed" to grow tall through exchange and interaction, converging into a "forest." However, in the face of the demand from a world-class industrial cluster for standardized and systematic cultivation of skilled talent, the alliance alone is not enough. A more systematic and intensive platform is needed, and thus the craftsmanship academy matrix emerged.
Matrix Takes Shape: From Industry Alliance to Full-Chain Talent Cultivation
For a long time, challenges such as imbalanced talent supply along the industrial chain, fragmented cultivation resources, and weak talent cultivation capacity among small and medium-sized enterprises have constrained the large-scale development of highly skilled talent. The Municipal Federation of Trade Unions took as its starting point and breakthrough the goal of helping build a world-class construction machinery industrial cluster. In April of this year, with the XCMG Craftsmanship Academy as the anchor and linking resources from 24 craftsmanship academies across the city, it innovatively established the Construction Machinery Industry Cluster Craftsmanship Academy Matrix, amplifying the value of individual talent cultivation into a full-industry-chain talent supply capability.
According to the construction plan, the craftsmanship academy matrix has built a structure of "three vertical tiers and seven horizontal specialized tracks." The first-tier chain-leader academy takes the lead in formulating unified skill standards and certification systems, and undertakes high-end talent cultivation and instructor training. Second-tier backbone academies deepen their focus on segmented fields along their respective tracks. Third-tier inclusive branch academies solidify basic training, achieving full coverage across the city. In terms of specialized fields, the matrix covers in-demand areas including intelligent manufacturing, new energy, intelligent operations and maintenance, team management, innovation and technical breakthroughs, safe manufacturing, and high-end welding. It is composed of enterprise technical directors, chief technicians, and institutional experts who participate throughout the entire process of curriculum development and assessment updates.
"One person may walk fast, but a group can go further." Zhang Lina, Party Secretary and Director of XCMG Group's Global Learning and Education Center, introduced that the craftsmanship academy matrix has drawn a clear "growth map" for skilled talent across the entire industry, achieving standardized cultivation, systematic growth, and large-scale empowerment.
When talent thrives, industry thrives; when skills are strong, manufacturing is strong. By the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan period, Xuzhou's total number of highly skilled talent exceeded 380,000. This impressive figure confirms the solid pace of Xuzhou's skilled talent development resonating with industrial transformation. From the nation's first model worker innovation studio to five industry alliances, and now to a matrix ecosystem composed of 24 craftsmanship academies, Xuzhou has forged a progressive path of artisan cultivation — "single-point seeding, alliance forestation, academy empowerment, and matrix ecosystem" — providing a replicable and promotable "Xuzhou solution" for the reform of the industrial worker workforce.
Craftsmanship forges the soul, skills build careers. From the breaking of ground by a single seed of craftsmanship to the flourishing forest of countless skilled artisans, Xuzhou uses the craftsmanship academy matrix as a link to make the path to success through skills clearer, the artisan cultivation system more complete, and the talent support for industry more solid. Standing at a new starting point, the Municipal Federation of Trade Unions will continue to deeply cultivate the craftsmanship cultivation ecosystem, enrich the soil for the spirit of craftsmanship, transform talent "flow" into urban "energy," and better convert talent advantages into advantages for high-quality development.