In September 2025, the spectacular parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War not only ignited the patriotic passion of the Chinese people but also stirred deep emotions in Yang Yuanjia, a veteran-turned-entrepreneur and Chairman of SEPPES (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. Recently, Suzhou Daily interviewed Yang Yuanjia, sharing his reflections on the parade and the development journey of SEPPES. His words embodied the firm commitment of veteran-founded entrepreneurs to "serve the country through industry and thrive through intelligent manufacturing," injecting "veteran-founded strength" into the high-quality development of Suzhou’s manufacturing sector.
On the morning of September 3, 2025, in the "SEPPES Home" conference room of SEPPES, Yang Yuanjia led all employees to watch the live broadcast of the anniversary parade. When the parade formations marched past Tiananmen Square in neat, sonorous steps and advanced equipment lined up in formation, the eyes of this entrepreneur with a military background glistened with tears. "Those uniformly aligned formations are not only a display of national strength but also a vivid testament to the peace guarded by countless martyrs with their lives," Yang emotionally told the interviewer.
What his military career endowed Yang Yuanjia with was not just a upright posture, but more importantly, an unyielding will and decisive execution—these became the most precious "spiritual code" on his entrepreneurial journey. In 2011, after retiring from the military, Yang keenly spotted development opportunities in the industrial door sector and founded SEPPES in Suzhou. He integrated the discipline and sense of responsibility honed in the military into every detail of corporate management: from the "pursuit of excellence" in product R&D, to the "precision control" in production processes, and the "commitment to delivery" in customer service. This military-derived trait became the core driving force behind SEPPES’ rapid growth.
From 2011 to 2025, 14 years of dedicated efforts saw SEPPES evolve from a "local Suzhou brand" to a "global provider of industrial door solutions." Leveraging Suzhou’s favorable business environment and cross-border e-commerce policy support, Yang Yuanjia led his team to build a global sales network centered on platforms like Alibaba International Station, exporting intelligent industrial door products to more than 70 countries and regions across Europe, America, Asia, and Africa.
Today, SEPPES’ customer list includes numerous Fortune 500 companies—1 out of every 7 Fortune 500 enterprises has chosen SEPPES products. The company has served over 5,600 well-known enterprises worldwide, covering sectors such as automotive manufacturing, cold chain logistics, precision electronics, and pharmaceutical cleanrooms. "This is not only a qualified achievement from a veteran-founded enterprise but also a vivid practice of ‘Chinese brands’ gaining a firm foothold in the global market," Yang said with obvious pride when talking about this accomplishment.
Behind this success lies the "military-style" precision execution and innovative breakthroughs: Years ago, SEPPES took the lead in introducing AI technology to optimize production and operational efficiency, and used big data analytics to grasp changes in global market demand, enabling the company to take the lead in the digital transformation of the industrial door industry. Its independently developed intelligent industrial protective door system has successfully addressed the special protection needs of precision manufacturing enterprises, setting a benchmark for technological innovation in the industry.
"Every industrial door we produce must be a ‘solid door’ that safeguards users’ safety, and more importantly, a ‘progressive door’ that drives industry upgrading," Yang emphasized during the interview, specifically mentioning Suzhou’s military-civilian co-construction smart platform. This platform integrates resources from high-tech enterprises across the city, building a bridge between "new-quality productive forces" and "new-quality combat capabilities." It made Yang deeply aware of the close connection between veteran-founded enterprises, national defense construction, and industrial upgrading.
Currently, SEPPES products are widely used in various key industrial scenarios: In automotive factories, its high-speed explosion-proof rolling doors ensure production safety; in cold chain warehouses, its insulated sectional doors help reduce energy consumption; in pharmaceutical cleanrooms, its sterile rapid doors meet the strict standards of GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice). The R&D and production of each product adhere to "military-grade" quality requirements, embodying Yang Yuanjia’s philosophy of "serving the country through industry."
"The military trained me, and Suzhou made me what I am today," Yang admitted that SEPPES’ development could not have been achieved without the support of the local government. The innovation and entrepreneurship training programs organized by the Suzhou Veterans Affairs Bureau provided him with policy guidance and resource connections, helping SEPPES avoid many detours during its critical development stages. This gratitude has been transformed into SEPPES’ determination to root itself in Suzhou and give back to the local community. Today, SEPPES has become one of the representative veteran-founded enterprises in Suzhou, contributing to the transformation and upgrading of the local manufacturing industry.
"After watching the parade, I deeply realized that the environment for peaceful development is hard-won, and the responsibility of serving the country through industry is of great importance," Yang said with a firm gaze when talking about SEPPES’ future plans. Currently, SEPPES has formulated a new round of development strategies: On one hand, it will increase R&D investment to focus on breaking through technologies for energy-saving and environmentally friendly intelligent industrial doors, supporting the realization of the "dual carbon" goals; on the other hand, it will further expand its global market layout, deepening its service network in core markets such as Europe, America, and Southeast Asia, to make the label of "Chinese Intelligent Manufacturing" shine brighter worldwide.
From the military camp to the business world, from defending the country to invigorating the nation through industry, the growth path of Yang Yuanjia and SEPPES is a microcosm of the high-quality development of veteran-founded enterprises in the new era. "We will transform our remembrance of martyrs into a steady driving force for corporate development, and use practical achievements to fulfill the responsibility of veteran-founded enterprises," Yang said. In the future, SEPPES will continue to uphold the loyalty and perseverance of a veteran, deepen innovation in the intelligent industrial door sector, and inject more "veteran-founded strength" into the construction of Suzhou as a strong manufacturing city and the high-quality development of China’s national economy.
