When a Chinese - made excavator operates continuously for 1,200 hours in the Middle East desert without any fault shutdown, with its core cooling system running steadily all the time; when a Chinese - built crane in an African mine accurately completes lifting tasks at a high temperature of 45℃, with the hydraulic system temperature always kept within the safe threshold - behind these seemingly ordinary engineering scenarios, there lies an important turning point in China's construction machinery industry: from "producing according to standards" to "leading by setting standards".
In August 2025, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) officially released the "General Technical Specifications for Core Components of Construction Machinery", which was revised under the leadership of Chinese enterprises. For the first time, China's original technical indicators such as "adaptability to extreme environments" and "compatibility with new energy power" were included in the global universal standards. This is not an isolated case. From the safety operation specifications of cranes to the energy efficiency standards of concrete machinery, from the remanufacturing rules of earth - moving machinery to the durability requirements of hydraulic systems, in recent years, Chinese enterprises have been promoting the reconstruction of the global construction machinery industry standard system with specific technological breakthroughs as fulcrums. This leap from product output to standard output not only enables the reliability of "Made in China" to be strongly certified on the international stage but also means that "Chinese scales" have begun to be clearly marked in the global technical coordinate system of construction machinery.
In the development process of the global construction machinery industry, the formulation and revision of standards have always been a key link, which is not only related to the technical trend of the industry but also affects the market competition pattern. In recent years, Chinese enterprises have been playing an increasingly important role in the revision of international technical norms for construction machinery, gradually transforming from followers of standards to leaders, and showing strong influence and discourse power on the international stage.
Actively Participating and Leading the Innovation of Crane Safety Standards
Zoomlion, a leading enterprise in China's construction machinery manufacturing industry, has made remarkable achievements in the field of international standard - setting. In August 2024, the international standard ISO12480 - 1 "Safety in the Use of Cranes - Part 1: General Principles", revised under the leadership of Zoomlion, was officially published. Since its release in 1997, this standard has been an important guiding document for the safe development of the crane industry. Zoomlion started the revision work in August 2021, with Yu Lihu, assistant general manager of the Construction Hoisting Machinery Company, as the project leader, and a project team composed of 24 top experts and scholars from the United States, Germany, Japan, Australia and other countries. After three years of efforts, 16 online and offline meetings were held, and more than 500 comments were addressed. Finally, the new version of the standard was officially released on August 6, 2024. The new standard makes more detailed provisions on the principles of safe use of cranes, covering safety work systems, personnel responsibility requirements, crane maintenance and inspection, working condition monitoring, and special operation scenarios such as joint hoisting. It also comprehensively adds requirements for new technologies such as remote control in the safe use of cranes, providing a more solid guarantee for the safe and efficient operation of the global crane industry. Up to now, Zoomlion has led or participated in the formulation and revision of 30 international standards, among which 5 international standards have been released under its leadership. It has become the first Chinese enterprise in the industry to lead the formulation and revision of international standards and has the largest number of published international standards, greatly enhancing the position of China's construction machinery industry in the field of international standards.
Based on Global Needs and Optimizing Concrete Machinery Standards
In the field of concrete machinery, Zoomlion also plays a leading role. On August 26, 2024, the international standard ISO 21573 - 1 "Construction Machinery and Equipment - Concrete Pumps - Part 1: Commercial Specifications", revised under the leadership of Zoomlion, was officially released. As a programmatic document in the field of concrete pumping machinery, this standard has played an important supporting role in the development of the industry since its release in 2014. However, with the advancement of technology and changes in market demand, some contents have lagged behind. In October 2022, with the approval of ISO, Zoomlion, on behalf of China, started the revision work. Wang Jiaxi, deputy manager of the Global R & D Center of the Concrete Machinery Company, served as the project leader, and carried out the revision together with 28 experts from 6 countries including the United States, Germany and Japan. The revised standard is consistent with ISO 21573 - 2 "Construction Machinery and Equipment - Concrete Pumps - Part 2: Test Methods for Technical Parameters" previously released under the leadership of Zoomlion. It adds key terms related to the pumping performance of concrete pumping equipment to promote the unification of technical parameters among different manufacturers, and also innovatively adds new energy product classifications to comply with the green development trend of the global concrete pumping machinery industry. At present, Zoomlion has led the revision of a number of international standards in the field of concrete machinery, representing Chinese enterprises in achieving global standard leadership in this field.
With Profound Accumulation, Promoting the Upgrade of Crane Mechanism Standards
Taiyuan Heavy Industry Group (TZ), a leading enterprise in the global lifting equipment
manufacturing industry and a pacesetter in China's heavy machinery industry, has also made continuous breakthroughs in international standard - setting. In 2025, at the meeting of the ISO/TC96/SC9 (Bridge and Gantry Cranes Subcommittee of the ISO Technical Committee on Cranes), the project of ISO 10972 - 5 "Cranes - Requirements for Mechanisms - Part 5: Bridge and Gantry Cranes" was successfully approved, and TZ was in charge of its revision. This standard is a programmatic document in the international standards for bridge and gantry cranes, covering various aspects such as the overall layout and design of mechanisms, the selection and design requirements of components, manufacturing, erection, installation and testing. Its revision will set a new benchmark for the manufacturing quality, safety performance and application specifications of global bridge and gantry cranes. Previously, ISO 10972 - 1 "Cranes - Requirements for Mechanisms - Part 1: General Principles", revised under the leadership of TZ, was officially released in February 2025. With profound technical accumulation, TZ has led the formulation of a number of international, national and industry standards, transforming its technical advantages into international standard discourse power, and building a high - standard platform for "Made in China" to participate in global competition.
Filling Gaps and Enhancing International Discourse Power in Earth - Moving Machinery
Liugong has written an important chapter for Chinese enterprises in the formulation of international standards for earth - moving machinery. The two international standards, "Sustainability of Earth - Moving Machinery - Part 2: Remanufacturing" and "Sustainability of Earth - Moving Machinery - Part 3: Used Machinery", led by Liugong, have filled the gap in China's undertaking of the formulation of international standards for earth - moving machinery. From the perspective of sustainable development, these two standards clarify the relevant norms for the remanufacturing and used machinery of earth - moving machinery, enhancing China's discourse power in the global earth - moving machinery industry. In addition, Liugong has also participated in the formulation of a number of national, industry and group standards. For example, "Specifications for Layout of Hydraulic Pipelines in Construction Machinery" standardizes the layout of hydraulic pipelines from the perspective of the whole industry, improves the quality and safety performance of pipeline layout, and enhances the international market competitiveness of construction machinery; "Test Method for Cold Start with Load of Construction Machinery under Polar Conditions" fills the gap in the standard for cold start with load test of construction machinery under polar conditions, assisting China's polar scientific research, etc. Through extensive participation in standard - setting, Liugong has become an important participant and leading force in the global construction machinery industry standards.
The leading position of Chinese enterprises in the revision of international technical norms for construction machinery stems from their efforts in technical research and development, market expansion and industry accumulation over the years. On the one hand, continuous high investment in research and development has enabled Chinese enterprises to master a large number of core technologies, providing a solid technical support for standard revision; on the other hand, by actively participating in global market competition and deeply understanding the needs and pain points of different countries and regions, the revised standards are more in line with the actual application of the global industry. As more and more Chinese enterprises play a leading role in international standard - setting, it will not only help improve the recognition and competitiveness of Chinese construction machinery products in the international market, promote the transformation and upgrading of China's construction machinery industry from "Made in China" to "Created in China" and "Chinese Standards" but also inject strong Chinese.
