Obert Shamulele, who was hoping to get a job as an electrician in one of the companies, said he would love to work with the Chinese because of their dedication to work and a higher level of thinking.

Yin Lang, chief information officer of Rifeng, said behind the small code was a digital system that tracked the entire life cycle of a pipe, including which batch of raw materials was sent to the production line, which worker conducted quality inspections, which logistics provider transported it and which electrician had installed it in an end-user's home.