Scientific Management Gives Weilai Aluminum Group Good Development      

Since the second half of 2008, the fluorides sales volume has rapidly shrunk by two-thirds in China. Many fluorides producers have suspended their production or even closed the production units down. Henan Weilai Aluminum Group Co. Ltd. (Weilai Aluminum Group) has also been affected by the international economic crisis. But it quickly recognized that only backward enterprises but no industries can be eliminated. Although fluorides market has slumped at present because of the economic crisis, the demand has not really disappeared. And, crisis is also a good opportunity to re-shuffle the fluorides industry.


Actively adjust the product portfolio   

Aluminum fluoride made by dry method is the flagship product of Weilai Aluminum Group. Due to the global financial crisis, some plants of the company had to cut output. But the company found, after a survey, that the dry-state aluminum hydroxide has a relatively high profit margin in the domestic market. So it adjusted its product portfolio quickly and increased the output of dry-state aluminum hydroxide while maintaining the production of a certain amount of aluminum fluoride. It transformed its existing aluminum hydroxide drying system to produce dry-state aluminum hydroxide. In the first nine months of 2009, its total output of dry-state aluminum hydroxide reached 293 000 tons, bringing a revenue of RMB39.1842 million to the company.

Adjust the investment planning   

Over the past year, Weilai Aluminum Group re-adjusted its investment planning and cut the fixed-asset investment projects that have a long payback cycle but a slow rewarding rate in order to ensure the production of the existing products. These measures have harvested a lot. In the most difficult time, the company used the "low-cost and low-price" strategy to hold market share. In the first nine months of 2009, the company's fluorides output reached 457 000 tons, up 6.98% year on year.
   In the aspect of financing, the company firmly grasped the opportunity that financial institutions increased support for small and medium enterprises and private firms, strengthened its ties with banks and actively sought for credit support. The company has finally obtained more loans this year than in the previous years. This has ensured its capital chain not to be interrupted and the normal operation of its businesses.

Technology is the key   

The company's engineers have invented a method of catalytically decomposing aluminum ore, increased the utilization rate of raw materials from less than 50% in the past to 80% at present, and successfully solved the problem that aluminum ore is hard to decompose. This has also enhanced the company's alumina capacity and improved product quality. This invention saves water and energy quite markedly.
   The company also tries to improve the product quality of aluminum hydroxide. Since 2008, oriented by the market demand, the company has transformed its traditional aluminum hydroxide products into large-particle aluminum hydroxide, ultrafine and super-white aluminum hydroxide and high-quality aluminum sulfate. The exports thus increased greatly.
   Increasing control on environmental pollution is one of the company's important measures to combat the market risks. The company's fluorides branch has subsequently completed the environmental transformation of its three fluorides production lines, which can save more than 150 tons of water and reduce sewage emissions by 150 tons each day. The fluorides branch has also changed its raw material usage pattern and reasonably mixed the low-grade and high-grade fluorites. This strategy helps to increase the utilization rate of raw materials and reduces the reject rate of its products by 43.21%.
   The Group has carried out more than 100 small inventions, innovations and transformations in 2009. Its consumption of electricity, coal, water, raw materials and auxiliary materials has dropped by 5% -10% year on year. This enhances the company's ability to resist risks.

Strengthen management   

While its capital chain is extremely tensed, the company still increases incentives to the sales of its products. At the same time, the company works out a new sales management policy to fully mobilize the enthusiasm of its sales staff. This makes sales situation gradually bottom out. Especially since the second half of 2009, the sales situation of its main businesses has been improving. In August, the sales of aluminum fluoride reached 8 200 tons, over 1 700 tons more than its sales target. The company also adheres to the people-oriented management philosophy, reducing all the unnecessary expenses and ensuring employees' wages and welfares in order to unite the people through the crisis.
   Reducing costs is also the core of the company's management. The purchase costs of major raw materials, such as soft coal, fluorite, sulfuric acid and aluminum, have declined markedly. In the first nine months of 2009, the company reduced the purchase cost of auxiliary materials by over RMB500 000 in total through repairing and re-utilizing old and discarded materials.


   Henan Weilai Aluminum Group Co., Ltd. is located in Jiaozuo, Henan province, and mainly engages in the production and sales of aluminum fluoride, aluminum hydroxide, cryolite and calcium fluoride. It has a production capacity of 130 000 t/a dry aluminum fluoride, 150 000 t/a aluminum hydroxide, 25 000 t/a cryolite and 60 000 t/a calcium fluoride. The company says that it owns the world's largest single-line aluminum fluoride production technology which can produce 45 000 tons of aluminum fluoride a year.