At the construction site of Shandong Dongwei Initial Station, Wang Yaofei used left hand argon arc welding to weld flanges.

The welding gun is a "needle", and the welding rod is a "thread". In 14 years, the post-80s Wang Yaofei has woven a crown with his "needle": skilled craftsman in Hebei Province, skilled technician in Hebei Province, and the first place in the welder final of the 6th National Workers' Vocational Skills Competition

In 2014, Wang Yaofei and his co-workers worked together to knit together sections of pipelines to build strategic oil and gas transmission channels for the motherland.

Youth in welding spatter is full of dreams.

Welding is actually very high-end

Wang Yaofei is 32 years old this year. At this age, he is a new recruit in the electric welder industry. But in terms of the length of service of the end welding gun, he is a veteran.

In fact, Wang Yaofei was reluctant to work as a welder at first.

He was born in a peasant family in Shangqiu, Henan Province. His father was a famous carpenter from all over the country. Wang Yaofei did not enter high school. His father, who thought that learning a trade could support his family, insisted that he go to a technical school to learn welding.

Wang Yaofei, 17, came to Kaifeng Senior Technical School to learn electric welding with 3000 yuan that his family had collected for him.

"When he first entered the university, he was the kind of person who could not be found in the crowd," said Cai Xianglong, Wang Yaofei's technical school classmate and current colleague. After more than a month of muddleheaded, he suddenly realized that part of the 3000 yuan tuition fee was paid by his sister who dropped out of school and worked as a part-time worker.

Wang Yaofei's academic performance has improved rapidly. Upon graduation, he stepped into the door of the Third Engineering Branch of China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau Engineering Co., Ltd. with outstanding achievements.

The company's three-month systematic training made Wang Yaofei feel that "the sky is so big" in the welding field.

"On that day, the teachers gave us a demonstration of flat plate welding. The lines on both sides of the weld were straight like a ruler, and the welding place was a regular and delicate fish scale texture." Wang Yaofei told the Worker's Daily, "I was stunned. That was a piece of art."

When he first entered the workplace, Wang Yaofei understood that welding is really high-end.

Focus and love are the cornerstone of a person's career. Wang Yaofei has since opened his own hot youth in welding.

His welding level rose straightly, from apprentice to welding expert. Today, his whole line of welding maintains a qualification rate of more than 99%.

Fighting the Cold and Fighting the Hot

Wang Yaofei first participated in the pipeline construction in Pilian Branch Pipeline. He was very devoted, but failed. The welding speed is as slow as embroidery, and the "root welding" weld seam of the master was poked out before several passes were welded. Wang Yaofei "sweated hard" and timidly invited his master.

Unexpectedly, the master smiled, patted him on the shoulder and said, "To fly, this is because your welding speed is too slow and the temperature of the molten pool is too high." Then the master picked up the argon arc welding handle, melted the weld on the left and right, and soon plugged the leak.

After the Pi Lian branch line project was completed, he came to the fore. "To become a good welder, it is important to have excellent welding skills, but more importantly, the spirit of not being afraid of hardship," Wang Yaofei said.

Long distance pipeline has large transportation capacity, large diameter, large pressure and high material grade. To "sew" the huge, heavy and different steel materials neatly and firmly, welders need to fight in the cold and hot weather all year round.

In the summer of 2007, India East West Gas Transmission Project. The temperature at the project site reaches 40 to 50 degrees Celsius. To prevent being scalded by welding flakes of thousands of degrees Celsius, welders also need to wear thick cowhide aprons. For the whole project, Wang Yaofei and his colleagues will complete the welding of more than 4000 weld junctions on the 50km long pipeline.

Wang Yaofei has experienced extreme heat and cold. In September 2013, before the commissioning of the Northeast Pipeline Project Railway Line, the unit crossed the last national highway in the rainstorm. The water in the pipe trench is cold to the bone. Wang Yaofei and his colleagues knelt in the water in their water underpants for overhead welding.

The overhead welding position is as long as one electrode from the water surface. Keep your face on the water and your hands in the water. All dry welding workers know that welding with wet gloves forms a welding circuit. A stream of current hit, numb hands like needles.

After the two hour underwater electricity test, Wang Yaofei sat down on the ground. However, Wang Yaofei was pleased that the results of pipeline radiography showed that the welded junction was free of defects.

Over the past 14 years, in the severe cold and hot summer, Wang Yaofei has devoted his fiery youth to the construction of many large-scale projects at home and abroad, such as the Shaanxi Beijing Third Line, the Seychelles Nanjing Lanzhou Project, the Indian Pipeline Project, and the Desert Dalian Line.

This is how the champion came into being

In 2014, Wang Yaofei held the "Offshore Oil Cup" National Petroleum and Petrochemical System Welder Competition.

However, Wang Yaofei caught a cold and had a low fever after the first exam. I went to several community clinics and large hospitals, but the cause was not found. In the second exam, the score dropped from fourth to sixth. The results of the basic examination are not stable and will be eliminated. Wang Yaofei sees a doctor during the day and works overtime at night.

Hard work pays off. In the "CNOOC Cup" arena, Wang Yaofei won the fourth place of individual welding in the national petroleum and petrochemical system, helping the Pipeline Bureau to win the group crown.

Wang Yaofei is deeply impressed by the welder competition of the 6th National Workers' Professional Skills Competition. During the preparation for the race, Wang Yaofei had a thorn under his feet. Doctor's suggestion: surgical treatment. This means that you cannot participate in training for at least 20 days. "Be patient until the game is over," Wang Yaofei said to himself in his heart.

During that time, Wang Yaofei was still struggling with another thing: the enrollment of children. Before the match, Wang Yaofei bought a second-hand house in the city in order to let the children go to a good school. Seeing that the children are going to school, the property certificate has not been completed yet. He can only call his wife from his hometown to go through the relevant procedures.

Success belongs to those who work hard and persevere. On August 29, 2018, Wang Yaofei won the championship with 93.28 points in the welder competition that gathered the national experts.

Now, Wang Yaofei has a new goal - to become a craftsman of a great country. "I'm young," he said.