Tống Văn Tuyên receives the certificate for the title 'Outstanding Citizen of Bắc Giang' for 2024.

BẮC GIANG — Passionate about research and creativity, Tống Văn Tuyên, the leader of the mechanical team at Hà Phong Export Garment Joint Stock Company in Hiệp Hòa District, Bắc Giang Province, has developed many innovations that contribute to increasing labour productivity and product quality, helping the company save billions of đồng.

For his creativity and contributions, in 2023, he was honoured with the Nguyễn Đức Cảnh Award, presented by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour. In October, he was one of nine individuals awarded the title 'Outstanding Citizen of Bắc Giang' for 2024.

Tuyên is a graduate of Hanoi Industrial Vocational College, specialising in Industrial Electricity. In 2010, he joined the mechanical team at Hà Phong Export Garment Joint Stock Company, which specialises in manufacturing and processing clothes for export.

With a solid technical background, he quickly adapted to the job. Tuyên has always been passionate about researching and improving equipment to enhance efficiency and reduce labour hours. From 2018 to 2023, many of his innovations were implemented in production, such as the wide fabric rewinding machine (2020), the product label folding machine (2022), the product transport cart (2022) and the warehouse automatic unloading door (2023).

“All of them were inspired by real-life work situations,” Tuyên said.

“My colleagues and I continually explore and find ways to enhance work efficiency. We faced numerous challenges during the process, but with support and encouragement for each other, we were able to overcome them.”

The innovation Tuyên remembers most is the wide fabric tenter machine he created in 2020. At that time, the company received many orders to produce medical protective clothing for export to the United States and Europe.

However, the fabric rolls for these orders were over two metres wide, while the company's fabric machines could only handle rolls approximately 1.6 to 1.8 metres wide, which prevented the timely completion of orders.

Thus, Tuyên researched and developed a machine capable of handling fabric rolls up to 2.9 metres wide. The innovation was immediately applied in production, helping the company save on the cost of purchasing new machines. The medical protective clothing orders, worth tens of billions of đồng, were completed on time and generated considerable profits.

Tống Văn Tuyên (right) guides a colleague in production. — VNS Photo

Another notable innovation was the product label folding machine in 2022, which helped the company reduce labour costs and increase productivity.

Previously, the folding process required from four to six workers to fold labels manually, which was physically demanding. Recognising this, Tuyên worked with them to improve the machine, shortening the process and reducing the number of workers needed to just one or two, with the folds also being more precise.

To apply his innovations to production, Tuyên often creates detailed drawings, uses available materials and keeps costs low to reduce expenses. His creativity ensures that the customer’s needs are met while the product quality is maintained.

However, he did encounter challenges in the process, as many of the tools at the company's workshop were not specialised enough to be used in intricate tasks. So he had to make his own tools.

"Each innovation deals with a specific work requirement, which gives me motivation to research and think creatively when designing them," he said.

President of the trade union at Hà Phong Export Garment Joint Stock Company, Vũ Thị Thanh Hà, said that Tuyên's tireless efforts, working methods, dedication and creativity have earned him high praise from the company’s leaders for his capabilities and high sense of responsibility in work.

"Tuyên is an exemplary figure in the 'skilled and creative workers' movement, with many innovations and solutions that support the company’s production and business operations," she said. "His innovations have mostly been applied to our production line, which has helped us improve productivity and product quality, streamlined the workforce and saved the company hundreds of millions of đồng each year." — VNS