This innovation team in China’s Qingdao sets 12 world records in automated port operations

By Li Rui, People’s Daily
At a fully automated container terminal of Qingdao Port operated by Shandong Port Group in Qingdao, east China’s Shandong province, the average operational efficiency of a single quay crane has once again broken the world record, reaching 60.9 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) per hour.
This marks the twelfth time that Qingdao Port’s “Liangang Innovation Team” has set a new world record in automated container terminal operations.
While China accounted for seven of the world’s top ten container ports in 2013, there was a notable shortcoming — not a single automated terminal among them.
To address this, Qingdao Port launched its automated terminal project the same year. Zhang Liangang, who had led multiple scientific and technological projects, took the lead in forming the “Liangang Innovation Team,” shouldering the responsibility of building China’s first automated container terminal.
Zhang recalled their early struggles: foreign terminal operators barred them from even getting off cars to take a single photograph, which makes studying abroad meaningless. As for purchasing the technology, the prices demanded were sky-high.
He was determined that core technologies could neither be bought nor begged for, self-reliance was the only path.
When the project began, Zhang was still recovering from lung cancer surgery. “Even giving it everything we have might not guarantee success. But half-hearted efforts inevitably guarantee failure,” he said. Under his leadership, the team worked around the clock, pushing themselves to the limit.
On May 11, 2017, the Qingdao Port automated container terminal officially commenced operations. As thousands of containers started moving at a command, everyone’s heartbeat quickened.
Data flashed across the screen: “Single crane efficiency: 26.1 TEUs per hour” – setting a new world record for the first commercial operation at an automated container terminal. At that moment, many team members were moved to tears.
During the construction of the second phase, the team set a higher goal: surpassing the achievements of the Phase I and establish global leadership. They implemented bold innovations such as hydrogen-powered equipment and 5G technology.
For the third phase, they launched the fully domestically developed Automated Terminal Operating System (A-TOS), achieving full autonomy in both core hardware and software technologies – from the bottom layer to application-level systems.
The AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) path planning algorithm, known as the “soul” of the automated terminal control system, was one of the team’s most significant breakthroughs.
To simulate real-world working conditions, the team conducted a 48-hour endurance trial in sub-zero temperatures, enduring countless failures and errors before successfully launching a brand-new, high-efficiency AGV path planning algorithm.
“Only by constantly learning new knowledge and mastering new technologies can we keep pace with the times,” said Zhang Changjiang, a team member born in the 1980s. He once dedicated three consecutive days and nights to resolving the AGV charging bottleneck, successfully reducing equipment weight by 12 tons and extending battery lifespan to over 12 years.
Transitioning from a follower to a pioneer, the “Liangang Innovation Team” has maintained unwavering momentum in technological advancement.
Zhang Liangang’s phone is filled with blueprints for future port projects. “We are currently planning multiple technological innovations,” he explained. “First, we aim to accelerate the implementation of new quality productive forces such as artificial intelligence. Second, we are focusing on original, fundamental innovations for the next-generation intelligent, efficient, green, and lightweight port handling equipment. Third, we are committed to building the next generation of smart and green ports.”