On September 19, the 1st “Kyushu Interstellar Cup” Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECC) Technical Competition was held successfully in Hall 19 of the Canton Fair Complex in Guangzhou. The competition was hosted by the China Concrete & Cement-based Products Association (CCPA) and organized by CCPA’s High-Ductility Fiber-Reinforced Cementitious Composites and Engineering Technology Branch (ECC Branch), with title sponsorship from Kyushu Interstellar Technology Co., Ltd. and professional support from the Beijing Municipal Engineering Research Institute.

Themed “High Ductility, Ultra Toughness, Materials Innovation for Engineering,” the competition drew 28 ECC technical teams from enterprises, universities, and research institutions across China. Through ultimate tensile and flexural performance tests, it assessed each team’s overall capability in ECC material design, preparation, and molding quality, showcasing the latest achievements in performance improvement and technological innovation. By promoting learning, research, and innovation through competition, the event created a platform for technical exchange and achievement display, injecting new momentum into ECC research, engineering application, and industrialization.

The opening ceremony was moderated by Xia Chunlei, Professor-level Senior Engineer at the Beijing Municipal Engineering Research Institute. Zhang Lijun, Professor-level Senior Engineer at China Testing & Certification International Group Co., Ltd. (CTC), and Zhou Xinji, Chairman of Kyushu Interstellar  Technology Co., Ltd., delivered remarks, reflecting the active participation of industry technical bodies and enterprises in ECC innovation and professional competition.

Zhang Lijun, Professor-level Senior Engineer, China Testing & Certification International Group Co., Ltd.

Zhou Xinji, Chairman, Kyushu Interstellar Technology Co., Ltd.

To ensure fairness, impartiality, and standardization, the competition formed a professional panel of judges: Professor-level Senior Engineer Zhang Lijun (CTC), Professor Li Hedong of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, and Professor Ouyang Lijun of the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology. At the opening ceremony, Professor Li Hedong, on behalf of the judges, read out the competition rules and explained the testing procedures and requirements.

Professor Li Hedong, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University

This is the first national technical competition held since the ECC Branch was founded. The Branch was formally established in September 2025, marking the entry of China’s ECC field into a new stage of standardized and intensive development. Over the past year, it has continued to advance the ECC standards system, engineering demonstrations, and technology promotion. The competition integrates materials R&D, performance testing, technical exchange, and industry promotion, and is a concrete practice of the Branch’s approach of “promoting exchange through competition and industry through standards.”

The atmosphere on site was tense yet orderly. As the test equipment continued loading, specimens showed different load-bearing and deformation characteristics; the cracking patterns, load capacity, and elongation in the tensile tests, and the load capacity and deflection in the flexural tests, drew particular attention. Testing different material systems directly under identical conditions gave teams a clearer view of the relationship between material design and actual performance. Extending beyond earlier exchanges centered on reports, papers, and showcases, the competition introduced measurable, quantifiable, and comparable testing, giving technical staff a platform to exchange design ideas and process capability through performance data.

Professor Victor C. Li, inventor of ECC, visiting the competition

With the successful conclusion of the competition, China’s ECC field has taken a new step in promoting learning, research, and application through competition. The event gave technical teams a platform to demonstrate their design and preparation capabilities and strengthened exchange among universities, research institutes, enterprises, and testing bodies. Looking ahead, as material performance improves, the standards system matures, and application scenarios expand, ECC is expected to play a greater role in urban renewal, infrastructure repair, resilient city construction, and the green, low-carbon transformation of the construction industry.

Congratulations on the successful competition, and congratulations to the following award-winning teams!