On April 28, 2021, Shandong Lingong’s (often shortened to SDLG) large-scale activity for the public, known as the “Top Russian Driver” was held at the old revolutionary base in Volgograd, Russia, to provide free training for local loader operators to help improve their skills.

Volgograd, Russia, where SDLG “Top Russian Driver” rolled out

SDLG’s “Top Russian Driver” activity has been held every year since 2016, and this year, after having made good preparations concerning the global pandemic, the “Top Russian Driver” activity will be held in six cities throughout Russia; Volgograd, Ufa, Krasnoyarsk, Chelyabinsk, Nizhny Novgorod and Saratov. The set-up site in each city brings together excellent resources for individuals and companies to learn from, as well as highlighting SDLG’s core products to further enhance their brand influence in the local market.

Despite the ongoing global pandemic and the cold weather, the enthusiasm and vigor of the Volgograd Drivers could not be dampened. Nearly 100 corporate customers from industries of agriculture, construction, warehousing, and infrastructure attended the event that day, not including the 19 trail drivers!

Delegation of SDLG key accounts and experienced drivers from a variety of industries

After a series of vigorous trials in the 2021 event, including theory training and written test, working flexibility test, and working accuracy test, the Champion, runner up and third-place finisher were finally chosen. After the COVID-19 pandemic is over, the Champion will travel to China with other “Top Drivers” and representatives of key accounts from other regions to visit the modern manufacturing base of SDLG and experience the unique culture of China.

SDLG “Top Russian Driver” award ceremony, trophy and medals are awarded to the winners

At the event site, it was clear that the strong and growing Volgograd economy was reflected in the enthusiasm of customer demand and the hot competition.

While on-site, Vladimir, a major customer from the construction aggregate yard ordered an E6250F excavator and two L956FH wheel loaders to help meet a recent surge in orders due to growing demand.

The E6250F Vladimir ordered, one of SDLG top seller large excavators

In his view, in addition to the excellent product performance and quality, the holistic after-sales service and support provided by RBA ensures product reliability under high-load operations and provides strong support in the peak season of operations for the building materials industry.

In addition to providing an ample supply of machines, SDLG also guarantees complete service and a first-class experience of worry-free use of the machine to customers, along with a complete supply of spare parts and service network coverage in Russia. In the Volgograd region, SDLG is the only construction machinery supplier with a complete reserve stock of spare parts.

Through a tumultuous five years, SDLG’s “Top Russian Driver” activities have spread throughout southern Russia’s major cities. In these very prosperous parts of Russia, more and more focus is being given to the health and well-being of the drivers of construction machinery as well as enhancing the image of Chinese manufacturing in the international market, meaning the brand image of ‘Made in China’ is greatly improved as well.

Due to its significant history and local connections with many millions of workers, Volgograd was chosen to be the launch site of SDLG’s “Top Russian Driver” event this year. After initial setup in Volgograd, "Top Russian Driver” will continue to spread to more Russian regions, implementing its high quality and reliable products to help reinvigorate the Russian economy after the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This particular part of Russia is well known for its sacrifice during the war years, the cost of which has been paid in blood and lives. In wartime, the people of Volgograd use their lives to defend and uphold peace and land, and in peacetime, SDLG aims to support and further enhance the prosperity of this wonderful city through its “Reliability in Action” mission.