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"Chasing Dreamers: Success is Achieving Perfection in What You Do Best - An Interview with Li D
Author：Editor：adminHits：22 Date：2025-07-22
Harbin Institute of Technology News (By Pei Xiang) Entering Xi'an Ultrafiltration (Group) Company is like stepping into the Shaanxi Alumni Association of Harbin Institute of Technology. This is because the company's general manager, Li Daming, an alumnus, specially set aside an office in the company as the association's secretariat, and he himself serves as the vice president of the Shaanxi Alumni Association of Harbin Institute of Technology. On the day of the interview, he was constantly busy. But when we sat down with several alumni of the Shaanxi Alumni Association and talked about the past, the fatigue on Li Daming's face immediately vanished, and his eyes shone brightly again.
Over the years, Li Daming has gone through many experiences, including working in the countryside, being a farmhand, a factory worker, a university student, and devoting himself to the aerospace industry. Currently, he serves as the chairman and general manager of Xi'an Ultrafiltration Group, as well as the vice chairman of the industry and the director of the industry standard technical committee... When it comes to Li Daming's life journey, it is quite tortuous and legendary. But no matter where he is, he has always been persistently exploring in the same field. "I'm a rather stubborn person. For 40 years, I have only done one thing, which is to study gases..." Li Daming said with a smile.
After graduating from Xi'an Jiaotong University with a major in power machinery in 1978, Li Daming joined the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. Over the next eight years, he held positions as a technician, engineer, and head of the ground equipment technology group. During this period, he participated in the construction, trial operation, and satellite launch tasks of the gas supply system at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. "Back then, the Xichang Satellite Launch Center was still under construction, so we were both technicians and operators," Li Daming recalled. During this time, he was mainly responsible for the installation, commissioning of related equipment, the writing of operation manuals, and the training of operators. Through continuous exploration and experimentation of the relevant systems and equipment and his personal experience in launch tasks, he laid a solid professional foundation and made good technical preparations for his future entrepreneurial development.
After participating in the launch of China's first communication satellite at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in 1984, Li Daming was sent to the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology for further study. "I got up at 7 a.m. every day to study and didn't return to the dormitory until 10 p.m., covering all the courses in the mechanical engineering major," Li Daming recalled his study life at Harbin Institute of Technology. "Life was very hard at that time. We could only have stewed or stir-fried dishes for lunch, and pickles for breakfast and dinner. We lived in the second dormitory. After class, there were many vendors selling tea eggs between the second and third dormitories. They smelled so good. I felt extremely happy to be able to eat tea eggs once or twice a week." Li Daming said with a smile. Although life was tough, his study at Harbin Institute of Technology enabled him to experience a school spirit and academic atmosphere, as well as a certain spirit. He said that in his later entrepreneurial process, he always adhered to the concept of "high, precise and advanced", which not only originated from the special way of thinking he gained from his work experience at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, but was also deeply influenced by the "high, precise and advanced" idea of professional construction at Harbin Institute of Technology. At the same time, the school spirit and spirit of "strict standards and thorough work" of Harbin Institute of Technology left a deep impression on him. Therefore, he has always been proud of being an alumnus of Harbin Institute of Technology and has provided strong support for the development of the Harbin Institute of Technology Alumni Association in Shaanxi.
In 1986, Li Daming transferred from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center to work at Xi'an Compressor Factory. Initially, he was responsible for the design and manufacture of compressors, and later moved into the field of gas purification, eventually rising to the position of deputy chief engineer and technical director of the purification branch factory. Facing his new job, he set himself a quantifiable "three-step" goal: to become familiar with the business within one year; to become a key employee of the factory within two to three years; and to gain some reputation in the industry within three to five years. The first two goals were not too difficult to achieve, but for the third one, he was up against thousands of experts and scholars in the field. To gain a certain reputation and status among them, it would be very difficult without a hard struggle. It was precisely because of this persistence that he kept learning and exploring, not only mastering a solid theoretical foundation in technology, but also constantly innovating and making the best use of his strengths to overcome his weaknesses. Through his unremitting efforts, he found the direction for his future development: Our country's technical system emphasizes the main machine over the auxiliary machine and design over process, while in foreign countries, it is all-round development without distinction between main and auxiliary. Moreover, many breakthroughs in product technology are attributed to advancements in auxiliary machines or processes. This has long been a drawback in our country's technical system. Against this backdrop, he came up with his initial entrepreneurial idea: to conduct "auxiliary machine" research based on the industry's foundation, and to expand the gas purification technology from the aerospace field to the civilian application of compressed air/gas purification, relying on his previous understanding of this specialized technology when working at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center.
Striving for the realization of the Four Modernizations became the aspiration of a generation. "What was the Chinese Dream back then? It was to make a difference!" Li Daming said with a smile. Against this backdrop, in June 1994, he left his state-owned factory and, armed with eight years of professional experience and technical expertise, plunged into the tide of reform and opening up, founding Xi'an United Ultrafiltration Purification Equipment Co., Ltd. (referred to as "Xi'an Ultrafiltration Company"). Adhering to the Harbin Institute of Technology's motto of "Strict Specifications, Proficiency in Skills", he went against the prevailing "Wenzhou Model" in the industry and pursued "high-end, sophisticated, and advanced" products. The company quickly gained attention in the industry for its high starting point, rapid development, and strong focus on technological innovation and market orientation. In January 1998, Xi'an Ultrafiltration Company, along with Xi'an High-tech Zone Venture Capital Company and a Hong Kong investor, established a joint venture, Xi'an Ultrafiltration Purification Engineering Co., Ltd., which was the first of its kind in the northwest region and attracted much attention for its venture capital operation model. In 2004 and 2005, Xi'an Ultrafiltration Company established Zhuhai Ultrafiltration and Wuxi Ultrafiltration companies, respectively, to enter the most dynamic economic zones in China. "Ten years to sharpen a sword", the company completed three crucial stages of entrepreneurship, brand building, and transformation within ten years. Relying on its high-tech content, strong brand awareness, and powerful technological innovation capabilities, it became a benchmark in the industry, leading the development of China's air purification industry. Its products cover almost all sectors of the national economy, especially excelling in the "high, large, and difficult" fields, namely high-pressure, large-scale, and flammable/explosive applications. Its core competitiveness can be summarized in four sentences: "Serving mid-to-high-end customers, possessing medium and high-pressure technology, excelling in medium and large-scale products, and focusing on non-standard, flammable and explosive process gases." Technologically, it leads the industry by 10 to 20 years.
After nearly 20 years of development, Xi'an Ultrafiltration Company has become a well-known brand and leading enterprise in the domestic purification industry. The company adheres to the concept of "closely following national policies, with unlimited business opportunities", closely focusing on national needs. The high-tech and high-value-added products it has developed are widely used in machinery, chemical energy, environmental protection and other fields, leading the trend of high efficiency, energy conservation and environmental protection in the industry. In recent years, the company has seized the opportunity of the rapid development of the natural gas industry, quickly entered the field of natural gas exploration and utilization, not only quickly occupied the domestic market, but also promoted the international market with the advantages of "Made in China" in terms of quality and low price. The company's future strategic goal is internationalization, that is, through strategic steps such as westward expansion and group operation, to align with international standards in terms of technology, products and management, and will continue to adhere to the business philosophy of "innovation-driven and market-oriented" and the business policy of "maximizing customer satisfaction" to continuously challenge the future.
Throughout the entire interview, Li Daming spoke freely and with great humor. In the relaxed conversation, we were constantly inspired and moved by his bold and pioneering spirit as a successful entrepreneur and his forward-thinking strategic mindset. When talking about his insights and experiences along the way, he said: First, innovation requires a solid foundation and should be practical. In this era of knowledge explosion, all subjects from basic courses, specialized courses to foreign languages are important. Both specialization and broad knowledge are crucial, especially broad knowledge. The more you learn in school, the better. Second, the first two years after entering society are the most important. Don't measure the value of a job by salary. Instead, consider whether the platform you are on is conducive to your growth. Learn from different people, study diligently, and accumulate knowledge bit by bit to grow rapidly. Third, after accumulating a certain amount of experience, you should broaden your mind and vision. You should be able to transfer the advantages of one industry to another and use your comparative advantages to achieve success. Fourth, you must keep innovating and keep moving forward. If you stop, you will soon fall behind and be eliminated. Therefore, you must do your best and reach the peak in what you are most proficient at. "I didn't learn how to do it, and schools can't teach you everything. But as long as you persist in a correct direction and a clear goal, don't be impatient for quick success, and keep doing one thing well for decades, you will definitely become an expert and achieve the best." Li Daming said.
