A Beautiful Encounter at the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory

By Zhang Yangchun

On the afternoon of December 19, 2018, Bernd Gerich placed the China Reform Friendship Medal awarded by the Wuhan Municipal Government around his father’s bronze statue’s neck, at the Wuhan Hanzheng Street Urban Industrial Park.Werner Gerich, Bernd’s father, was the first foreign factory director after China’s reform and opening-up policy was initiated.He was appointed as director of the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory from 1984 to 1986.This was unprecedented in 1980s—no one could imagine that a foreigner would be the head of a state-owned enterprise during that time in China, let alone in Wuhan, a second-tier city in China.What made Werner Gerich come so far away from Germany to work in Wuhan? How did he become the director? It’s quite an extraordinary story.

To Be a Consultant in China

It was in a morning of early September in 1984 when Lyu Zhiqing, the then deputy director of the Wuhan Municipal Foreign Affairs Office, welcomed Werner Gerich at the former Hankou Train Station.It was Gerich’s first visit to China.The now 87-year-old Lyu recalled clearly that “He was tall and strong, wearing a cap and carrying a one-meter tall case of luggage.There was no weariness on his face.”

Before coming to China, the 64-year-old Gerich was a retired mechanical engineer.At that time China was unveiling itself by implementing the reform and opening-up policy, and many Western technicians and professionals were welcomed.Gerich was very excited to read the news that Germany government was planning to form Senior Experts Service (SES), designed to help the underdeveloped countries for free by leveraging the talents of German retired experts and to promote international friendly cooperation.Therefore, he signed up and joined the SES.

伯恩特·格里希（中）在父亲威尔纳·格里希的铜像前拍照留念（苗剑/摄）Bernd Gerich (middle) in front of the bronze statue of his father Werner Gerich (Photo by Miao Jian)

The SES started to dispatch experts to Wuhan one year after Wuhan and Duisburg shook hand into sister cities in 1982.A staffer found Gerich on the experts’ list and invited him to work as consultant at the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory for four months.

After graduating from college, Gerich started his career in a tractor factory in Germany.He switched to the airplane engine manufacturing industry in the 1950s, and then joined an Egyptian airplane engine factory in the 1960s and worked as a mechanical engineer at the Karlsruhe Research Center before retirement.He had rich experience in engine manufacturing and company management.

Gerich was very delighted to be a consultant in China.His son, Bernd Gerich wrote in an article, “My Father Werner Gerich,” that Werner Gerich had been interested in the time-honored and glamorous Chinese culture and had made a lot of preparation before coming to China.

Becoming a Director Overnight

The Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory had been a successful factory that produced the first handmade mini hand tractor after the founding of the People’s Republic of China.However, it lagged behind the rivals after the Reform and Opening-up policy was implemented.

Once in the factory, Gerich quickly became a good consultant.He fully showed his meticulousness and commitment by walking to every corner of the factory and studying the details in production, equipment, workmanship, management, and quality.He gave over 100 suggestions and measures after 10 days.However, most of his suggestions had been ignored, put aside, or rejected, for many different reasons.He was troubled by the messy management and poor quality control and often complained “How could it be like this? If I were the director, everything would be changed…” He said that if he were the director, he would help to increase production and prolong the life of diesel engines they made.

What Gerich said reached Ding Hua, the then director of the Wuhan Municipal Foreign Affairs Office.He immediately reported to the Municipal Government to appoint Gerich as the factory director.

On October 24, 1984, a meeting was held by the Wuhan Municipal Government to discuss the proposal of appointing Werner Gerich as the factory director.The proposal was approved by an overwhelming majority.It was decided at the meeting that Gerich would be appointed as the director of Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory.It was highly valued as a way of introducing talentand learning from advanced Western managerial expertise.Seven days later, Wu Guanzheng, the then mayor of Wuhan Municipality, awarded the Letter of Appointment to Gerich at the great hall of the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory.

Reinvigorating the Factory with Perfect Performance

As outlined in the approval document, the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory implemented Director Responsibility System, and Gerich was entitled to all rights—same as a Chinese director.Gerich said in his inauguration speech that “The aim of my stay in Wuhan is nothing but to help the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory to produce high-quality diesel engines.” “All the workers have the right to talk to me directly.Any worker who raises good suggestions for the improvement of product quality and working efficiency will be warmly welcomed and rewarded.”

The workers were excited to hear the words and the room stormed with thunderous applause.

Almost ten days later, State Councilor Zhang Jingfu heard about this during his visit to Hubei and praised the move: “Wuhan has made the first bold step.” Hu Yaobang, the then General Secretary of CPC Central Committee, also made positive comments in a magazine issued by Xinhua News Agency.

Mayor Wu Guanzheng wrote that, “China is still lagging behind developed countries in many aspects and we need teachers and experts to help us.Werner Gerich is the teacher we want.Only by emancipating our thoughts and introducing talents can these enterprises in Wuhan have better management and development.”

Werner Gerich worked hard on the improvement of quality and management of the factory after taking office.He frequently checked the quality of the products randomly with a f lashlight and a vernier caliper in different workshops and worked over 10 hours a day.

Gerich believed that the chief engineer and the director of quality control should take major responsibility for defects or inferior goods and intended to fire them.However, it was not feasible to fire any worker during that time.He f inally compromised and relieved them of their original posts.Under his leadership, those who neglected their duties would be punished and those who contributed to the factory would be rewarded.He ended the culture of egalitarianism and implemented a structural wage system.The workers’ salary would f luctuate according to their skills and workload.

老格里希回武汉后与当年的朋友们在一起 Werner Gerich with his old friends in Wuhan

Gerich’s two-year tenure ended on November 1, 1986, when he was appointed as honorary director.Fundamental changes had taken place in the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory in those two years.The annual production of diesel engines had increased from 18,300 to 60,000, and the service life of the engines had been extended from around 1000 hours to 6000-8000 hours.Moreover, the engines were exported to 7 countries in Southeast Asia and helped to turn a 5 million yuan loss making factory into one which made 6 million yuan profits a year.One year later, the bookWerner Gerich in the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factorywas published in Wuhan.Zhu Rongji, the then Deputy Director-General of the State Economic and Trade Commission, wrote in the preface that “The foreign factory director’s practice of strict management has been widely recognized among entrepreneurs and attracted overseas attention.His case is a successful model of introducing international strategies into China.”

Gerich still cared about the economic development of China even after leaving the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory and had come back to Wuhan many times.He passed away in 2003 in Milhausen, Germany.In 2005, two bronze statues of him were erected by the Wuhan Municpal Government in commemoration—one in Wuhan and another in Duisburg, Germany.

格里希与武柴的传奇故事

文/张阳春

2018年12月19日下午，伯恩特·格里希在中国武汉市汉正街都市工业园，把武汉市颁发的“中国改革友谊奖章”戴在父亲威尔纳·格里希的铜像上，铜像的原身正是参与中国改革开放大业的第一位“洋厂长”。他于1984年至1986年担任武汉柴油机厂厂长。20世纪80年代初，请外国人当国有企业“一把手”是件石破惊天的大事，更何况这件事发生在中国二线城市武汉。格里希为何远渡重洋从德国来到武汉，又如何当上厂长？这是一个意义非凡的历史传奇故事。

原定来华当顾问

1984年9月初的一个早晨，时任武汉市外事办公室副主任吕志清从老汉口火车站把格里希接下了火车。这是格里希第一次来中国。“身材魁梧，个子很高，戴一顶鸭舌帽，拖着个一米多高的大皮箱，脸上看不出一点旅途的疲惫。” 87岁高龄的吕志清回忆当年场景，仍记忆犹新。

1984年，“洋厂长”格里希在武汉柴油机厂加工车间检查零部件质量。（新华社资料片）In 1984, Werner Gerich inspected the quality of spare parts in the processing workshop of the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory.(Source： Xinhua News Agency)

来中国的前一年，64岁的格里希从机械工程师的岗位上退休。此时，万里之外的中国，改革开放大幕正徐徐开启，大门向有技术专长的西方人士敞开。格里希在报纸上看到德国组建西德退休专家服务局的消息，很兴奋。这个组织旨在发挥德国退休专家的力量，无偿帮助欠发达国家，促进国际友好合作。格里希很快了报名。

1982年，中国武汉与德国杜伊斯堡结成中德两国第一对友好城市。第二年，服务局开始向武汉派专家。武汉在德方提供的专家名单中，看中了格里希，邀请他到武汉柴油机厂当顾问，为期四个月。

1985年，“洋厂长”老格里希和武汉柴油机厂干部一起拟定全厂劳动工资的改革方案。（新华社资料片） Werner Gerich discussing with the cadres a reform plan for the salary system of the Wuhan Diesel Engine Factory in 1985 (Source： Xinhua News Agency)

格里希机械专业毕业后，投身德国一家拖拉机厂。20世纪50年代他转而从事飞机发动机制造，60年代曾前往埃及一家飞机发动机厂工作，退休前是卡尔斯鲁厄核研究中心的机械工程师，有着丰富的发动机制造和企业管理经验。

威尔纳·格里希（中）与技术人员和工人一起分析柴油机的质量问题（新华社资料片）Werner Gerich (middle) analyzing with technicians and workers the quality issues of the diesel engines (Source： Xinhua News Agency)

能去中国当顾问，格里希非常高兴。其子伯恩特·格里希在《我的父亲威尔纳·格里希》一文中回忆说，格里希对中国悠久迷人的文化无比好奇，临行前做了大量准备工作。

一夜之间当厂长

武汉柴油机厂是一座历史辉煌的工厂，曾手工打造出新中国第一台小型手扶拖拉机。改革开放后，武柴渐渐掉队，在全国同行业中排末位。

一到武汉，格里希就认真“顾问”起来。德国人一丝不苟的敬业精神在他身上体现得淋漓尽致。他深入车间，走遍工厂的每个角落，了解生产、设备、工艺、管理、质量各方面问题。10多天后，他就拿出了100多条建议和意见。然而，他的建议大多被忽视、搁置、搪塞。看到管理混乱、质量马虎的局面，他忧心忡忡，经常抱怨说：“怎么能这样，如果我是厂长，这一切都要改变……”他还说，如果他担任厂长，将利用现有的设备，在短期内使柴油机的产量增加、使用寿命提高。

这话传到了当时的武汉市外办主任丁华的耳朵里，随即，外办向市政府递交请格里希当厂长的报告。

1984年10月24日，武汉市政府开专题会，研究聘请格里希当厂长的问题。最终，赞成意见压倒反对意见，会议决定聘请格里希担任厂长，并认为这是引进人才的一种方式，是吸收和借鉴西方先进经营管理经验的一个重要途径。七天后，武柴礼堂召开全体会议，市长吴官正向格里希颁发了厂长聘书。

激活武柴创佳绩

根据批准文件，武柴实行厂长负责制，格里希享有中国厂长的各种权力。就职演说中，格里希说：“我到武汉的目的，除了帮助武柴生产出高质量的柴油机之外，别无它求。”“每个工人都有权直接与我交谈，如果哪位工人能为改进产品质量、提高生产效率提出合理建议，随时都会受到欢迎和奖赏。”

会场上，掌声雷动，群情激昂。

10多天后，国务委员张劲夫来湖北考察时获悉此事，肯定“武汉大胆走出了第一步”。接着，时任中共中央总书记胡耀邦又在新华社一份“内参”上批示肯定。

1985年，时任武汉市市长吴官正（左）向格里希（右）授予荣誉市民证书。（新华社资料片）Wu Guanzheng (left), the then mayor of Wuhan, conferring the honorary citizen certif icate to Werner Gerich (right) in 1985.(Source： Xinhua News Agency)

吴官正发文表示：中国在许多方面还很落后，落后就要请先生，格里希就是我们要请的。只有解放思想，大胆引进人才，才能把武汉的企业整顿好、管理好、建设好。

走马上任后，格里希狠抓质量、从严治厂。他每天工作10多个小时，随身带着手电筒、游标卡尺穿行于各车间，随时检验各种产品的质量。

对于出现的种种质量问题，格里希认为总工程师和质检科长应负主要责任，他宣布要开除他们。开除人，这在当时是不得了的事情。最终，格里希做了让步，将开除改为免职。他处罚玩忽职守的工人，奖励有贡献的职工。他打破“大锅饭”，推行结构工资制，根据职工的技术水平和工作情况进行工资浮动。

1986年11月1日，格里希两年任期结束，被聘为武柴荣誉厂长。两年时间，他让武柴有了根本性改观，年产柴油机从1.83万台增加到6万台；柴油机使用寿命从1000小时左右，增加到6000至8000小时；出口到东南亚7个国家，从年亏损500万元到年盈利600万元。一年后，武汉编辑出版了《格里希在武柴》一书。时任国家经委副主任朱镕基为其作序，他写道：“洋厂长从严治厂的经验，受到我国企业界的普遍赞赏，引起了国外人士的关注。他成为我国引进国外智力政策取得成效的一个典型。”

格里希从武柴离职后，依然心系中国经济发展，多次来到中国，来到武汉。2003年，他在家乡辞世，两年后武汉与德国杜伊斯堡分别为他竖立铜像，以示纪念。