The first Weifang marine equipment expo, which took place on Aug 10 and 11, created a platform for marine equipment suppliers from both Weifang and overseas to strengthen communication and cooperation.

Shandong Tianrui Heavy Industry brought its newly developed maglev blowers to the expo.

Maglev blowers use synchronized magnet motors to compress air for industrial production.

According to Tianrui, the blowers can be used in fields such as industrial wastewater treatment, aquaculture and gas transmission. The product has a lesser impact on the natural environment, a lower maintenance requirement and longer life cycle.

"Our maglev blowers can reduce power consumption by 30 percent compared to traditional blowers," said Fu Peilin, deputy general manager of Tianrui.

Fu said power consumption of an industrial wastewater treatment plant can be reduced by 800,000 kilowatts annually after the installation of new magnetic suspension blowers. The blowers can help the plant save nearly 500,000 yuan ($70,542) per year.

According to Fu, a maglev blower's rotation speed is 30,000 revolutions per minute, much faster than traditional models. The company has overcome many technological barriers in developing the blowers, he added.

In 2018, the overall production volume of the aquaculture industry in China was 49.91 million metric tons. If the whole industry used the magnetic suspension blowers, some 498,000 sets would be potentially in demand if the entire aquaculture industry uses them.

Tianrui has partnered with research and development teams from South Korea to construct a new magnetic suspension blower production center in the Weifang high-tech zone. The first phase, with an annual production capacity of 1,500 units, will be put into use in September. Tianrui estimates the annual industrial throughput value will be 1 billion yuan per year.

Weifang Litro Electrical Technology Company, an engine systems developer and manufacturer in the zone, also attended the expo. The company focuses on developing dual-fuel engines for vessels. It has introduced a dual-fuel multipoint injection system to break foreign monopoly.

"All components in our products are made in China," said Li Bin, the director of marketing department at Litro.

Li said Litro's system can help a vessel reduce 4,000 yuan to 5,000 yuan of fuel costs per day.

In the first half of 2019, Litro reported 70 percent year-on-year sales revenue growth. The company has registered 53 patents, including 14 invention patents.

In July, the provincial government of Shandong approved the company to establish an innovation center to develop multipoint fuel injection systems.