Meticulous Craftsmanship in a Tiny Space: A New Flame of Wisdom Illuminates Ancient Kilns—A Profile of Liao Jundong, Founder of Chaozhou Dongyue Equipment Co., Ltd.

—In Memory of Liao Jundong, Founder of Chaozhou Dongyue Equipment Co., Ltd. In the ancient ceramic industry—a field that has long borne the weight of Chinese civilization—kilns have for decades been trapped in an outdated paradigm of “relying on experience, high energy consumption, and low efficiency,” serving as a heavy shackle that has constrained industrial upgrading. Liao Jundong, founder of Chaozhou Dongyue Equipment Co., Ltd., a hands-on entrepreneur who has worked alongside kilns for several decades, keenly recognized this critical pain point in the industry. In 2011, driven by an unwavering commitment to technological innovation, he established Dongyue Equipment, determined to reinvent traditional kiln operations through “intelligent manufacturing.” Liao Jundong has made “customer needs as the design compass, accumulated expertise, and innovative technology” the guiding principle of his company, setting a premium goal of “high quality at low cost, low consumption and durability, and environmental friendliness and recyclability.” He firmly believes that “a product reflects the character of its maker; quality is life itself.” From structural optimization to intelligent control, from personalized customization to lifelong service, he strives to ensure that every kiln becomes a powerful tool for customers to reduce costs and boost efficiency, thereby actively contributing to green and low-carbon production in the ceramic industry. Breaking Barriers: Forging Core Competitiveness Through Data-Driven Innovation Technological bottlenecks are formidable obstacles standing in the way of industrial upgrading. Led by Liao Jundong, a dedicated team of nearly 50 professionals—many of whom are technical experts, commissioning specialists, and after-sales service personnel—has continuously assimilated advanced domestic and international practices, forging ahead on the path of kiln innovation. Automatic reduction firing technology was once a major hurdle to improving ceramic quality. After round-the-clock efforts, the team successfully overcame this challenge, developing shuttle kilns, tunnel kilns, and roller hearth kilns for reduction firing that significantly enhance firing stability, effectively reduce defects, and increase the yield of high-quality products. At the same time, by optimizing combustion techniques and kiln structure, the team has made crucial progress in fuel conservation, substantially lowering production costs. More importantly, the team has transformed traditional firing expertise into data-driven control: integrating master craftsmen’s extensive experience into the system to digitize firing schedules, and leveraging industrial computer control systems to achieve precise temperature management and visualized operation. Operators now need only input parameters, and the kiln will automatically fire according to the preset curve, greatly reducing human error and raising the qualified rate of fired products to over 99.5%. In addition, breakthroughs in key challenges such as versatile firing mode switching, increased equipment reuse rates, and comprehensive low-energy optimization have broken the long-standing reliance on imports or conventional practices for high-end ceramic kilns in China, earning domestic equipment widespread market recognition. Building the Foundation: Empowering Industrial Upgrading with Integrated Solutions After more than a decade of deep cultivation, Dongyue Equipment has established a complete industrial chain spanning R&D, design, and after-sales service, becoming a one-stop provider of integrated kiln solutions. On the product front, Dongyue kilns employ lightweight insulation materials that effectively minimize heat loss; their industrial computer control systems enable digital storage and retrieval of firing curves, ensuring ease of operation and high stability. In its pursuit of innovation, the company focuses on optimizing kiln structures and advancing combustion technologies, driving equipment toward greater flexibility, ease of operation, and maintenance, thereby significantly boosting users’ production efficiency. Liao Jundong champions the philosophy that “the kiln is the cornerstone,” steadfastly upholding the corporate credo that “a product is a promise.” By providing intelligent, flexible, and user-friendly equipment, Dongyue helps downstream ceramic enterprises achieve cost reduction, efficiency gains, and green production, laying a solid equipment foundation for the sustainable development of the traditional ceramic industry. Looking Globally: Showcasing International Competitiveness Through Chinese Intelligent Manufacturing Thanks to its outstanding performance and quality, Dongyue Equipment has successfully entered the international market, breaking down barriers in high-end kiln technology. Compared with international counterparts such as German manufacturers, Dongyue kilns outperform in energy efficiency and durability. The team remains customer-centric, tailoring solutions to meet the specific needs of different regions, and has earned widespread trust through reliable quality and attentive service. Its products are now exported to numerous countries and regions, serving as a shining example of Chinese intelligent manufacturing. Looking ahead, Liao Jundong and his team will continue to refine firing regimes, pursue even more precise control, increase R&D investment, and deepen collaboration with research institutions both at home and abroad. He understands that upgrading the traditional industry is no overnight task, and is committed to leveraging solid technological strength to provide robust support for the high-quality development of the ceramic sector and the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises, ensuring that the age-old kiln fires can be revitalized under the guidance of “intelligent manufacturing.”

Apr 23,2026

What conveniences does the development of AI bring to kilns?

The widespread adoption of AI technologies has enabled traditional kilns to transition from manual, experience-based operation to intelligent, automated control, delivering significant improvements in control accuracy, production efficiency, energy consumption management, and equipment maintenance.

Apr 16,2026

How many types of firing kilns are there?

Firing kilns come in a wide variety and are typically classified according to their operating mode, structural design, heat source, and intended application. In engineering practice, more than ten types are commonly used, which can be grouped into the following major categories. Based on production operation mode, kilns are divided into batch kilns and continuous kilns. Batch kilns include shuttle kilns, down-draft kilns, and laboratory electric kilns, offering flexible control over the firing curve and making them suitable for small-batch, multi-variety production. Continuous kilns mainly comprise roller kilns, tunnel kilns, pusher plate kilns, and mesh belt kilns; products enter and exit the kiln continuously, resulting in high efficiency and making them ideal for large-scale, standardized production. According to structure and transmission method, common types include roller kilns, tunnel kilns, shuttle kilns, pusher plate kilns, mesh belt kilns, and step-beam kilns. Roller kilns rely on ceramic rollers for conveyance and are the mainstream equipment for architectural ceramics and daily-use porcelain; shuttle kilns use carriages for loading and unloading, making them well-suited for large-sized and irregularly shaped products; pusher plate kilns and mesh belt kilns are often used for sintering small electronic ceramics and powder materials. Based on heat source, kilns can be categorized as gas-fired kilns, oil-fired kilns, electric-heated kilns, and new clean-energy kilns. Gas-fired kilns primarily use natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas and are the most widely applied; electric kilns offer precise temperature control, are clean and environmentally friendly, and are frequently used for high-end ceramics and new materials; low-carbon kilns powered by hydrogen or ammonia represent emerging development directions in recent years. According to industrial application, kilns can also be classified as ceramic kilns, refractory material kilns, glass melting kilns, lithium-ion battery material kilns, metallurgical sintering kilns, and chemical calcination kilns, among others. Overall, there are roughly a dozen typical kiln types that are widely used in industrial-scale applications, with roller kilns, tunnel kilns, shuttle kilns, pusher plate kilns, and electric kilns being the most prevalent.

Apr 16,2026

Recent Development of Kilns

In recent years, driven by the dual carbon goals and smart manufacturing, the kiln industry has accelerated its transformation toward green and low-carbon operations, intelligent efficiency, structural innovation, and clean energy substitution. The sector is characterized by rapid technological iteration, substantial improvements in energy conservation and emissions reduction, and an ongoing upgrade of the industrial structure (approximately 400 words). Green and energy-efficient solutions have become the core focus. Full-oxygen and oxygen-enriched combustion, regenerative combustion, and low-NOx burners are now widely adopted, boosting thermal efficiency to over 75%; advanced flue-gas waste-heat recovery, multi-layer composite insulation, and nano-coating technologies have reduced unit-product energy consumption by 18%–22% compared with 2020 levels. Double-deck roller kilns are being rapidly deployed, delivering energy savings of 15%–25%, halving land footprint, and enabling flexible production. Intelligentization is deeply permeating the industry. AI, digital twins, and PLC-based closed-loop temperature control achieve precision within ±0.5°C; remote monitoring, predictive maintenance, and automated atmosphere regulation are becoming standard, raising first-pass yield to over 99.7%. The integration of 5G and the Industrial Internet of Things is enabling end-to-end digital and intelligent transformation across the entire value chain, reducing downtime due to fault prediction by 50%. Low-carbon fuels and electric kilns are achieving breakthroughs. Liquid ammonia, hydrogen fuel, and electric heating are replacing natural gas; Mona Lisa’s all-ammonia-fired kiln has achieved zero carbon emissions, reducing annual CO₂ output by 5,200 tons, while all-electric kilns produce zero pollutant emissions and are being rapidly implemented in the glass and ceramics sectors. Structural and application upgrades are underway. Narrow-body, high-speed, modular kilns have become mainstream; batch kilns (shuttle kilns) are evolving toward greater efficiency, lighter weight, and precise atmosphere control. The industry is shifting from equipment sales to integrated models that combine energy-saving services, carbon management, and remote operation and maintenance. Overall, kilns are transitioning from high-energy-consuming equipment to green, intelligent, high-end solutions, thereby supporting the low-carbon, high-quality development of industries such as ceramics, metallurgy, and building materials.

Apr 16,2026