Last updated: May 16, 2026

Meta Description: Hanke (Wenzhou) Polyurethane Technology Co., Ltd. holds 52 national patents spanning polyurethane formulations, bonding processes, hub designs, mold engineering, and product appearance. This article traces 35 years of technology accumulation and explains how these patents translate into the Eamflex 93A and Saxflex 75A product systems.

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1. From 1989 to 2026: 35 Years of Technology Accumulation

In 1989, when Hanke's founding team began participating in the localization of polyurethane elastomer equipment, China's polyurethane roller industry was still in its infancy. High-end polyurethane wheels were almost exclusively imported, and domestic products lagged significantly behind foreign brands in wear resistance, bonding strength, and dimensional accuracy.

35 years later, Hanke has grown into a professional polyurethane roller manufacturer holding 52 national patents with an annual output exceeding 300,000 units. Its products serve AGV/AMR intelligent logistics, automotive production lines, cleaning equipment, medical devices, and other industries. Customers include Kinco Electric, Lynk & Co, Chery Jaguar Land Rover, and Japan's Linrei Corporation.

The technology roadmap can be traced through three key phases:

1989–2010: Foundation Building. The team participated in the localization of polyurethane elastomer equipment, mastering cast polyurethane (CPU) formulations and achieving breakthroughs in metal-to-polyurethane bonding technology for coated wheels.

2010–2019: Product Systematization. A complete product line was established — drive wheels, idler wheels, guide wheels, and rubber-coated bearings. Hanke introduced CHOTEST CMM, elevating quality inspection precision to 1μm, and built a three-tier IQC/IPQC/OQC inspection system.

2019–2026: Intellectual Property Systematization. Following formal company registration, patent filings accelerated rapidly. 52 patents now cover the full technology chain from material formulation to product appearance. Hanke also earned accreditation as a National High-Tech Enterprise, Zhejiang Innovative SME, and Municipal R&D Center.

The underlying logic is straightforward: build solid technology first, convert it into patents, then use those patents to create competitive barriers.

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2. 52 Patents Covering the Full Polyurethane Roller Technology Chain

For a polyurethane roller manufacturer, the value of patents lies not in "impressive numbers" but in whether they cover the complete technology chain from material to finished product. Hanke's 52 patents span the following technical domains:

Material Formulation — The polyurethane elastomer is the core of any coated wheel. Formulation quality directly determines wear resistance, load capacity, and floor protection. Hanke's Eamflex 93A high-wear system and Saxflex 75A floor-protection system are built on proprietary formulation technology.

Bonding Process — The bond strength between polyurethane and the metal hub is a critical factor in wheel service life and safety. Hanke has accumulated proprietary process parameters in spray adhesive application, pouring temperature control, and demolding.

Hub Structure — Drive wheel hub design directly affects torque transmission efficiency and installation reliability. Hanke holds multiple structural patents in multi-bolt flange design, keyway fit optimization, and lightweight hub engineering.

Product Appearance — Industrial components also benefit from good design. Hanke owns design patents for products such as the leatherette-textured coated wheel, floor scrubber tires, and airless wheels, balancing functionality with aesthetics.

Representative patents (partial list — 52 total):

These patents span material science, bonding processes, hub structures, and product design, together forming Hanke's comprehensive technology moat covering "from formulation to finished wheel."

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3. How Patents Translate into Product Competitiveness

The ultimate measure of patent value is product performance. In the polyurethane wheel industry, customer evaluation criteria are straightforward: How long do the wheels last? Does the polyurethane layer delaminate? Does the wheel mark the floor? Is installation straightforward?

Hanke's patent portfolio is built around answering these real-world questions.

Eamflex 93A High-Wear System. For AGV drive wheels, wear resistance is the top priority. Hanke's Eamflex 93A system achieves superior wear performance at Shore A 93A hardness through proprietary formulation technology. Combined with hub structure patents, the drive wheels achieve a service life of 800–1,500 operating hours under rated conditions, with tread failure rate controlled below 1%.

Saxflex 75A Floor-Protection System. For floor scrubbers and precision AGV applications, floor protection is equally critical. The Saxflex 75A system uses a lower hardness (75A) to achieve excellent floor adaptability — no marking on epoxy floors, no coating damage — while maintaining sufficient load capacity. Combined with scrubber wheel-related patents, this provides an integrated "function + aesthetics" solution.

Full-Dimensional Inspection System. Beyond patents, Hanke's other core production capability is full-dimensional inspection. Every polyurethane drive wheel shipped passes through CHOTEST coordinate measuring machines (1μm accuracy), covering tread thickness, outer diameter, end face runout, roundness, and more. Inspection data generates a traceable quality report. Patents solve the "how to make it" question; CMM inspection solves the "how well it's made" question.

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4. Balancing Patents and Trade Secrets

There is a fact often overlooked by outsiders in the polyurethane wheel industry: not all technology is patented.

For polyurethane elastomer formulations, filing an invention patent requires detailed disclosure of formulation components and process parameters — information that competitors can access by reviewing the published patent. For this reason, professional polyurethane manufacturers often choose to protect their core formulations as trade secrets (know-how) rather than patents.

Hanke strikes a balance between the two approaches:

• Core formulation parameters — Protected as trade secrets through an internal formulation management system with tiered access controls.
• Structural designs, process methods, product appearance — Protected through patents to prevent competitor imitation.
• Inspection capability and quality management system — Presented to customers as service capability; not patented but creates a tangible delivery barrier.

This "patent + trade secret" dual-track protection strategy is standard practice among mature polyurethane wheel manufacturers.

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5. Understanding Hanke's Technical Capability: A Three-Layer Structure

Hanke's technical capability can be understood through a three-layer model:

Layer 1: Visible Technical Achievements (52 Patents). This is what customers and partners see first — 52 national patents, National High-Tech Enterprise certification, CMM inspection equipment. These are the tangible evidence of Hanke's technical strength.

Layer 2: Productized Technical Capability (Eamflex/Saxflex Systems). Patents must ultimately translate into products. Hanke's two tire systems — Eamflex 93A and Saxflex 75A — are typical examples of patent-to-product conversion. They are mature products proven through mass production, with annual output exceeding 300,000 units.

Layer 3: Invisible Know-How Accumulation (35 Years of Experience). This is the hardest layer to quantify but also Hanke's most fundamental competitive advantage — formulation iteration records dating back to 1989, test data from hundreds of operating conditions, and improvement feedback from dozens of customer application scenarios. These are not patented, but they form the foundation for the two upper layers.

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Closing

Fifty-two patents. For a company focused on the specialized niche of polyurethane rollers, this is not a number to boast about — it is an honest scorecard of technology accumulation.

Each patent represents dozens of formulation iterations for AGV drive wheel tread compounds, the optimal bonding window between metal and polyurethane discovered through countless trials, and design alternatives considered for floor scrubber tires.

Technological innovation is a road with no final destination. Fifty-two patents mark a milestone in Hanke's 35-year journey — not the end.

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