In Beiwangzhuang Village, Gaozhuang Street, Laiwu, Jinan, the quiet is broken not by calls from the fields, but by the near-constant, gentle hum of almost 200 3D printers operating day and night. In this aging village with a resident population of just over three hundred, a unique form of "spring ploughing" is underway inside an unassuming workshop. This "3D printing farm," which consumes not water and soil but data, generated an output value exceeding one million yuan last year, allowing this old village with little arable land to reap a harvest in an entirely new way.
Why is a high-tech industrial production line called a "farm"? Beiwangzhuang Village Party Secretary Gu Guoming, pointing to the operating machines, explained with a smile that the feeling is identical to traditional farming. Whereas planting crops involved uncertainty about when seeds would sprout or the final yield, here the process is swift and reliable: "You 'sow the seeds' in the morning, and by the afternoon, you come back to find this sword or that dragon egg has 'grown'."
In Gu Guoming's view, tending these machines is akin to working the land. Each machine is like a small plot, and "harvesting the finished products is like pulling up radishes, one by one, giving you that same sense of joyful harvest."
However, this joy of harvest is a relative luxury for Beiwangzhuang. Built against a mountain, the village never had much flat, fertile land. Coupled with the exodus of young labor and a progressively aging population, the traditional model of "depending on heaven for food" had reached a dead end.
Unable to extract gold from the soil, Gu Guoming essentially "created" a new type of farmland for the village. In 2018, witnessing his hometown's gradual decline, he felt compelled to act. Driven by the conviction that "everyone should have a chance to prosper," he set aside his business owner status, invested 600,000 yuan of his own money, and brought the first batch of 3D printers into the village.
"Working here doesn't mean toiling under the sun, but it still requires time and patience to nurture the process. That's why the industry calls it a farm," Gu Guoming reflected. This new field, however, doesn't consume soil or rain; just an internet cable, some electricity, and sufficient time can "cultivate" a new prospect for the village.
"For a village to have vitality, young people must return," asserts Gu Guoming, who sees the young farm at a critical juncture. Li Shengqing, a former milk tea shop worker in the city, is among the first wave of "new farmers" drawn back by this fresh opportunity.
Faced with the unfamiliar technology, she immersed herself in the workshop alongside stationed technicians. After over half a year of "learning by doing," she can now manage operations independently. "Time to harvest the produce," Li Shengqing says, deftly navigating the rows of machines, swiftly detaching colorful "dragon eggs" from their trays and neatly packing them into boxes.
While traditional crops follow seasons, a "dragon egg" materializes from nothing in just one hour in the 3D printing farm. "An order for 4,000 dragon eggs and 5,000 dragons takes about five days to complete," Li Shengqing calculates, managing her workload.
The whirring of machinery is not unfamiliar to Beiwangzhuang. Decades ago, the village was a base for national "Third Front" construction, with the Shandong Chaoyang Repair Factory leaving behind memories of fervent industrial activity in these hills. Now, a different, more precise operational sound echoes within the old factory buildings. This trendy "farm," centered on 3D printing, is currently experiencing a bumper harvest.
"We can't keep up with the orders; we were working around the clock before the May Day holiday to finish and pack everything," Gu Guoming said, tallying the recent yield. The farm is deeply rooted in local culture, producing meticulously crafted replicas like the Jinan Chaoran Tower model, the "Langya Sword" from Linyi's ancient Langya City, and custom cultural creative products shipped to places like Luoyang. These popular cultural items, imbued with local character, continuously flow from this small mountain workshop to all corners of the country.
Looking ahead, Gu Guoming has even bigger ambitions. "The next step is to consider producing industrial-grade 3D printed components to increase the value-added of our products." He has set a firm target: by 2026, the farm aims to aggressively pursue an output value of 5 million yuan. "Ultimately, growing and strengthening this distinctive industry is about allowing more fellow villagers to share in the benefits of development."
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