Gezhouba Hydropower Plant (HPP) houses three extraordinary hand-drawn pipeline maps. When unfurled, they reveal lines drawn with ruler-like precision and distinct red-and-blue markings, laying out every valve position, pipe route, and maintenance record in meticulous details. Those who see them for the first time can't help but marvel: these are more than just technical drawings—they are veritable works of fine-line art.

The artist behind these masterpieces is ZHOU Xiaoping, a specialist from the Production Management Department of Gezhouba HPP. This May, he is set to bid farewell to Gezhouba HPP and retired with honor after nearly four decades of dedicated service.

Yet, his legacy extends far beyond these three scrolls of drawings.

Stroke by stroke, turning "invisible" underground pipeline into "visible" drawings

As the first dam on the Yangtze River, Gezhouba HPP shoulders the critical missions of flood control, power generation, and navigation. Buried deep underground lies the station's water supply and drainage system—the little-known "vascular network" of this strategic national infrastructure. Within the crisscrossing corridors and caverns plunging tens of meters deep, a complex web of pipelines winds and stretches, circulating vital water for the generating units. Should this system malfunction, the consequences would be catastrophic.

Yet, because these pipelines are buried deep underground and engineering blueprints and records from the plant's early days are scarce, operation and maintenance have long relied entirely on the mental maps of veteran technicians.

"Anything that passes through my hands, I make sure to record." ZHOU Xiaoping made what might seem like the most "clumsy" decision: to draw every single pipeline, stroke by stroke.

He maintained this dedication for nearly forty years.

He trekked through every corridor and crawled into every manhole of the hydropower plant. When a pipe was laid, how many times a valve had been repaired, and how a specific malfunction was resolved—he captured it all. With just a pen, a ruler, and a ledger, he wove scattered fragments of information across time into a complete "living map".

This is an "invisible project". No one assigned him the task, there were no performance metrics to meet, and no tangible results to report. His mindset was simple: "the power plant needs it, so I just do it."

This perfectly embodies the spirit of "achieving success without seeking personal credit"—indifferent to personal gain, uninterested in short-term visible achievements , and dedicating his efforts to the unseen corners that others overlook.

A hand-drawn blueprint saved the day

The true value of this "tedious groundwork" shone through in a moment of extreme crisis.

ZHOU Xiaoping still vividly remembers the early morning of November 29, 2008.

As the main water supply plant at the Erjiang Hydropower Plant was undergoing renovation, the system had to be switched over to the backup plant. Unexpectedly, during the switchover, the backup pipeline malfunctioned and failed to supply water. The generating units were on the brink of a total shutdown—the situation turned critical.

Confronted with the maze of deeply buried pipelines, ZHOU remained calm and unfurled his hand-drawn map. The diagram laid out the pipeline routes, valve positions, and upstream-downstream connections at a glance. Even more detailed was the map in his mind. Guided by the drawings, the response team rapidly pinpointed the fault and its cause. They executed precise repairs, quickly restoring the backup water supply and ensuring the safe, stable operation of the units.

The value of that single drawing was magnified a thousandfold in the dead of night. It was far more than just a personal working habit picked up by a veteran employee; it represented the absolute sincerity a master craftsman pours into the very concept of "safety".

This is the true weight of the vow—"I am the one who must rise to the occasion." It means being the one who can step up and be relied upon when it matters most, using years of hands-on dedication to prepare for the unforeseen.

From "hand-drawn drawings" to "cloud platform": Passing on the legacy of craftsmanship

"Back in the day, whenever we went on-site, Master ZHOU could pinpoint valve faults and recall their entire maintenance history without even lifting a manhole cover. He knew the equipment inside out," said ZHANG Hailong, a deputy senior specialist of the Production Management Department at Gezhouba HPP, emphasizing the immense value of these masters. But as these masters retire, how can their invaluable experience be preserved? 

While hand-drawn blueprints are detailed enough, pipeline networks and operating conditions are constantly evolving. Static paper records simply can't keep pace with dynamic operational needs. Relying on a master's "mental archives" and manual sketches is, ultimately, not a sustainable solution.

It was precisely at this juncture that the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee made systematic arrangements for further deepening reform. The session emphasized leading the optimization and upgrading of traditional industries through higher national standards, and supporting enterprises in leveraging digital, intelligent, and green technical upgrading. This provided a clear direction for solving the puzzle.

Responding swiftly to the call, Gezhouba HPP's young research team took up the baton of legacy. Their first move was to input ZHOU Xiaoping's three hand-drawn scrolls into the modern system—meticulously converting every pipeline, valve, and annotation into a precise digital model.

But this was just the beginning. The team integrated technologies like graph databases, multi-source monitoring, hydraulic simulation, and BIM modeling. They transformed forty years of the master's expertise—knowing when to trigger alerts, which spots to watch closely, and how to respond rapidly to emergencies—into systematic warning rules and response strategies.

The hand-drawn scrolls have evolved into the "smart brain" of a digital twin.

Today, maintenance staff can easily view a 3D visualization of the underground pipeline network on their phones with just a tap, monitoring key real-time data like pressure, flow rate, and liquid levels. When an anomaly occurs, the system automatically pinpoints the location, issues a rapid alert, and pushes actionable recommendations.

Instead of being "lost" with the master's retirement, his experience has been preserved, iterated, and upgraded on the digital platform.

President XI Jinping pointed out that: "We must not only do practical things that people can see, touch, and directly benefit from, but also lay the groundwork that paves the way and brings long-term benefits for future generations."

ZHOU Xiaoping's hand-drawn masterpiece was the very definition of "long-term thinking". Unassuming and low-profile, it nevertheless held the bottom line of safety at the most critical moment. Seeking neither credit nor spotlight, it simply allowed future generations to see further by standing on the shoulders of their predecessors.

As CTG deepens its commitment to a sound performance philosophy, these three scrolls serve as a perfect case study. They remind us that true achievement isn't found in spreadsheet numbers or presentation slides, but in every detail that stands the test of time.