The Birth Story of AWAH-Z2

"AWAH-Z2" is a multifunctional pulley under the brand AWAH, named Drill Powered Pulley, which is driven by an electric drill. Many people are curious why it is called Z2? Why has it become synonymous with small Power Ascender? Let me tell you it's birth story...

AWAH is an abbreviation for Artisans Working At Heights. AWAH brand is well-known in China. Since 2016, AWAH has been focusing on spreading international mainstream rope technique and uniting batches of workers working at heights.

Invention inspiration comes from work

1. Air conditioning installation work requires tools. As air conditioning workers, we often need to manually move the outdoor unit of the air conditioner. A small unit weighs around 30kg, and big units weigh around 100kg. During the peak season for air conditioning installation, we have to install about 10 units a day. The vast majority of installation workers often lift air conditioning outdoor unit by hands or carry it on their shoulders, this way can save time, but there is a significant risk of falling.

2. Traditional methods are time-consuming and labor-intensive. I have been learning rope technique since 2014, which allows me to lift air conditioning outdoor units more safely and efficiently. However, even if using a pulley system, it still consumes a lot of energy and time.

3. The first cooperation was not ideal. There are many cranes on the market that are compatible with steel wire ropes or chains, ranging from a few hundred to several thousand CNY, but they are all too bulky. Is there an electric lifting device that can adapt to EN 1891 ropes? In 2018, I had this question in my mind. Since it's not available on the market, I wanted to make it by myself! By the end of 2019, I had collaborated with a factory to develop an electric drill driven crane, and over 40 brothers in the AWAH WeChat group had purchased this product. Later on, this product sold quite well in the market, but it did not meet my strict requirements. Eventually, we ended our cooperation with the factory, which laid the foundation for our own production of AWAH-Z2.

4. A descender device for rescue. In 2021, a batch of 3M R550 appeared on online flea market at a very cheap price, all of which were outdated in the wind power industry. R550 comes with a hand drill connection port, which can lift heavy objects over short distances. There are already ready-made rope lifting tools in Europe, and I feel like I've found a treasure! I even customized a hand drill connection port specifically for it, making it more convenient to use, and have sold over forty units. Later, after experiencing more lifting and learning, I learned that this type of product is an automatic descender device (EN 341:2011 type 1). Although some products have rescue lifting function (EN 1496:2017), their design purpose does not include long-distance lifting of heavy objects. It wears out quickly, and the small gear is also easily damaged. It may collapse when overloaded or at the end of its life, posing a great falling risk for lifting people and objects. I quickly and timely recalled all the products I sold to eliminate safety hazards.

5. The demand for a lifting tool has been finalized. Slowly, a lifting tool took shape in my mind:

• A one-way pulley that can be easily released
• Use an electric drill to provide power
• Compatible with 10-11mm EN 1891 ropes
• Can be installed in the middle of the rope
• The lifting capacity is about 150-200kg
• Reverse rotate the electric drill won't hit your face
• Overloading will not damage the rope...

This time, I will manufacture it under the name of AWAH! My idea at that time was simple: I wanted to make this product for those 40 plus brothers who had spent money but didn't get the ideal products. This was a debt I owed them.

6. The second collaboration was successful. I am an air conditioning installer with no experience in mechanical design and production. Fortunately, in 2022, I met Zhou Zhiping who lived in Yangzhou city, Jiangsu Province. He is a worker working at heights too, mainly engaged in external wall maintenance. Coincidentally, he was also making modified accessories for the automatic descender to facilitate the lifting of goods. So we worked together and named the product Z2- because my surname is Zhang and his surname is Zhou, and our surnames start with Z, so we called it Z2, which sounds similar to the English word "The Two".

Zhang Feng (2nd from left), Zhou Zhiping (2nd from right)

We found a CAD draftsman and a CNC machining factory willing to produce products in small batches. After multiple rounds of proofing, testing, and modification, and the arduous process of starting over after failure, the prototype finally met the design requirements.

7. Brothers in WeChat group crowdfund for production. Producing products needs a lot of money, but we don't have enough. Fortunately, we have many groups of brothers who install air conditioning. We found 130 brothers in some of AWAH WeChat group, each of whom paid 1000.00 CNY, and raised a total of 130,000.00 CNY through crowdfunding, giving us start-up capital. Due to being the first time producing the product, our estimates often do not match the actual situation. The original plan was to deliver by the end of 2022, but due to multiple instances of non-conforming parts, the delivery was delayed by 4 months - until April 1, 2023, yes, that day was April Fool's Day! Time and time again delays , everyone didn't believe that we would deliver on April Fool's Day! Nevertheless, none of these 130 brothers have ever requested a refund! We have always been grateful to these 130 brothers, AWAH comes from air conditioning workers and will always be the brand of Workers working at heights.

On February 6-7, 2023, The 2nd AWAH Air Conditioning Installation Rope Technique Exchange Conference showcased the AWAH-Z2 prototype

Globalization of AWAH-Z2

Ryan Jenks is the founder of HowNOT2 brand in the United States. He is a senior rope devices testing master, and many ropers have watched his videos.

Ryan Jenks' charity book The bolting Bible has been widely circulated in China, and we contacted him through the translator of this book. Ryan spent six months conducting a comprehensive testing and evaluation of the AWAH-Z2 and believes that it has changed the way working at height, which is a milestone. He really likes this product and even specially designed the English version, naming it Drill Powered Pulley. Ryan Jenks from the United States and Andreas Riedrich (Andy) from Germany once collaborated to develop a portable tension gauge called Line Scale 3, which is widely used in the field of ropes. Now, they continue to collaborate and promote the AWAH-Z2 to the world, making Z2 synonymous with small power ascender and spreading the AWAH brand stories widely...

Behind-the-scenes look

www.awah.cn