Reaching for the stars with one hand

Chapter 134 The Trip to France
Skydon finally won the contract of more than 2000 sets of geodetic GNSS receivers and became the biggest winner of the second phase of the engineering center project. Unlike the promotional significance of Mount Everest surveying and mapping, this is a real and huge victory.This contract is big enough to attract the attention of global manufacturers.

Steve personally rewarded John and Mihe Company, but with the reward came, there was also a transfer order from John.This is SKydon's consistent approach. The business in China is too successful, and John needs to change to another place. A successful local governor can easily do some outrageous things, such as Tiger before.Compared with European companies, American companies also make mistakes, but the speed and determination of Americans to correct mistakes are far better than conservative Europeans.

Kangmu won the contract for a thousand GNSS receivers. This victory is even more significant to Kangmu than the success of Skydon.Because Japan is an island country with the most frequent volcanoes and earthquakes, it has extremely high requirements on the earthquake monitoring network.The density of GNSS monitoring stations in Japan has reached almost one station in more than ten kilometers, but the entire monitoring network in Japan belongs to Skydon.Now such a great success in the Chinese market is bound to affect the business in Japan.Mr. Chen of Kangmu China can no longer describe his mood in terms of excitement or happiness.The indomitable and never giving up efforts of Kangmu people finally got the greatest reward.

The biggest loser is of course Eka, which is a project that almost has Eka's name written on it, and it was just thrown away.The anger of President Wood and Joel was completely predictable.Even if Eka China puts all the responsibilities on Zhang Yong as much as possible, it cannot justify itself.But Zhang Yong has indeed become a name that Eka people no longer want to mention.Not only in China, but also in factories.Joel, who had tried his best to get back a consulting contract for Zhang Yong, was very sad.From then on until his retirement, he almost never contacted Zhang Yong again.

As for a few domestic brands, no one cared too much. They knew before bidding that they were just running with them.The bosses who actually came to the scene were only Mr. Zhao and Gao Ping.

The only one who is worried about this is probably the serious Mr. Zhao.He was very dissatisfied with the contempt and discrimination shown by the expert group towards domestic equipment throughout the bidding process.He wanted to take the opportunity to see the gap between domestic equipment and imported equipment, but he didn't get any conclusions.He personally went in to participate in the Q&A of the product, but found that the experts had few questions to ask him.

"Last time." Zhang Yong said this sentence when he bid farewell to Master Zhao.

"what?"

"This kind of large-scale government procurement should be the last time that imported equipment wins the bid."

"Are you comforting me, or are you really so confident?"

Zhang Yong shook his head firmly, "Mr. Zhao, you don't need to be comforted. The domestic GNSS does need to be improved, but it has become a climate. In the next few years, it will definitely be able to compete with imported brands. If there is such a large-scale procurement, the national policy may There will be some inclination. At the same time, the era of the West relying on technological monopoly to obtain high profits will gradually pass. Xiaowei represents an era of huge profits, which is over. The era of normal profits that Western manufacturers think is actually still unfair to us. This era will gradually pass. In the future GNSS receiver market, it will be difficult for Skydon to get such an opportunity. Brother Nufa and I have never won a bet, but Mr. Zhao, if you want to bet with me on this, I dare to bet with you. "

Master Zhao shook his head, "I don't want to gamble anymore. A gamble where I hope I lose is too boring. I believe you, keep going."

……

……

Zhang Yong's trip to France was not smooth from the very beginning, which seemed to indicate a bad result.

First, he almost missed the boarding time because he was dealing with some matters.Worried that the taxi was too slow, Madam drove him to the airport herself.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered the airport lobby, there was news that the plane was delayed. He waited at the airport for three boring hours before boarding the Air France flight.

The plane flew halfway, Zhang Yong finished watching two movies and was about to sleep for a while, when the captain’s voice suddenly came from the radio, saying that the flight will land at St. Petersburg Airport in an hour due to engine failure.

"Engine failure?" At an altitude of [-] meters, these words are too scary.Unlike the scenes of panicked passengers described in air crash movies, the cabin was very quiet, so quiet that there was almost no sound.No one spoke, and everyone's face was very solemn.

Zhang Yong's heart also raised, God, I just became a father, don't leave me at an altitude of [-] meters.

Everything on the plane was as usual, and I didn't feel any difference. I couldn't figure out what kind of failure this engine failure was, but no one asked, and no one moved around. The flight attendants sat quietly in their seats.

The lights of the airport soon appeared outside the window, the plane began to circle and then descend, all went well.When the tires of the landing gear "bang" and landed steadily accompanied by slight bumps, I don't know which passenger initiated it, but suddenly there was applause in the cabin, and it quickly became a piece of sound in the cabin. Everyone applauded and greeted each other with a smile.From this, you can imagine how nervous everyone was before landing.

Zhang Yong also let out a long sigh of relief, followed by the vigorous applause of the crowd.

But the next arrangement was not good. When the group got off the plane, they were not allowed to move freely in the airport. Instead, they were squeezed into a not-so-spacious waiting room, which was overcrowded and far from enough seats. Most people sat on the floor. .

Zhang Yong didn't want to sit and had nowhere to sit, so he squeezed into a corner and stood against the wall.He had heard that St. Petersburg was beautiful, but he saw nothing but the heavy snow when he got off the plane.

No one announced the upcoming itinerary, and no one distributed food. Everyone just huddled in the room and waited.

Zhang Yong first called Xiao Sewa and told him about his current situation, saying that he might not be able to attend the meeting the next day, and everything would be delayed.Xiao Sewa asked concerned if there were any safety issues, and he replied that everything was fine, but he didn't know when he would be able to fly.

Then, he called the hotel in Nantes again, saying that his reservation would be postponed by one day, because he had to make an emergency landing in Russia due to a plane failure, and he would not be able to reach the hotel tonight.The hotel operator apologized and revised his reservation.

After three or four hours of being crowded in this small space, the ground crew finally began to greet everyone to board the plane, and the new flight was ready.

When Zhang Yong arrived in Paris, it was already three o'clock in the morning French time.Of course, the follow-up flight to Nantes has already taken off and arrived at the destination for a long time.

The airport rescheduled him for a flight at 7 o'clock in the morning, and he still had four hours to spare.The counter staff gave him the address of a hotel and arranged for him to stay.Zhang Yong thought about it for a while, and it took four subway stops to get to the hotel, and it took four to 10 minutes to go back and forth.I must not have slept well in the hotel for these few hours, and it is very likely that I missed my flight.It is also an option to stay overnight at the airport.The service staff shrugged, "You can do whatever you want."

So Zhang Yong spent four hours on a chair at the airport until the daylight came and the flight started to board.

It was already noon the next day when we arrived at the Nantes Hotel.

He was so exhausted that he didn't care about lunch and wanted to go to sleep directly.At this moment, he received a call from Xiao Sewa.

"Hey, Brother Yong, I'm glad you finally arrived in Nantes. I hope you're not too tired. I'm sorry to inform you that François will be on a business trip to the United States tomorrow morning. The meeting this morning has been postponed, and he only has It can be arranged this afternoon. So I will pick you up at 1:30, and you can only really rest after talking with him. Again, I am sorry, but there is no way." Fortunately, Xiao Sewa didn't put "this It's life" This classic line came out.

Zhang Yong replied, "Okay, I'm fine, see you at 01:30."

When Xiao Sewa arrived at the hotel, Zhang Yong, who had washed and changed, was dozing off on the sofa in the hotel lobby.Xiao Sewa couldn't bear it but still woke him up.

"Francois, hello, thank you for picking me up."

"I'm fine, Brother Yong, I don't think you're fine."

"I'm fine, I'm just too sleepy, let's go."

Along the way, Zhang Yong chatted with Xiao Sewa for a few words before continuing to doze off, Xiao Sewa shook his head, he was very worried, it might not be the best time to communicate with the boss in such a state, but there was no other way.Brother Yong, I wish you good luck.

Zhang Yong walked into the conference room, and Da Sewa stood up with a smile to welcome him, but Zhang Yong first gave the boss a big yawn, which was so big that it could replace a gastroscope.

The two girls laughed loudly, and after Zhang Yong was embarrassed, he also laughed.

"Sorry, boss."

"No no, it should be me who is sorry, I know you just had a terrible trip, by the way, is it Air China?"

"No, it's Air France." Xiao Sewa shrugged and smiled narrowly.

"Oh, then I will apologize to you again on behalf of France." Da Sewa bowed gracefully, and Zhang Yong hurriedly returned the bow.

"Okay, Brother Yong, I know you are sleepy. Let's end this meeting quickly. First of all, congratulations, Jie Chuang's work is very good, thank you."

"I should do it. The first payment should have been received, right?"

"Yes, the finance has received the payment. Oliver and the factory are coordinating with the factory to speed up production and guarantee the delivery time."

"Now, back to what we talked about earlier. You have always wanted to start the production of high-precision measurement boards. I also have a specific question, how will we compete against Jieke in the future? I see huge profits on your report Space, but this space is based on the monopoly of Jieke. Once we step in, the price of Jieke will come down soon. If it comes to the stage of price competition with you, Jieke, we will definitely not be able to compete with them. You want We know that their base is still much larger than ours, so investing in measurement boards seems to have great potential, but the actual risk is also very large.”

The sleepy Zhang Yong immediately sobered up a lot when he heard Da Sewa's words.

"Francois, this question is not difficult to answer. I just want to ask, didn't you say that I won a thousand pieces of DM-100, and this project can be started. Then these questions should not have been answered at the beginning Why? Why start discussing now? Could it be..."

Little Sewa looked at the boss silently, watching how Da Sewa explained to Zhang Yong.

"Brother Yong, I mean. If DM-100 has a good performance, I will apply to the board of directors, and we will start the dual-frequency board project. But even if we start now, we must have a formal application to allow the board of directors to allocate funds. , so I still need to convince them. You just need to answer my questions, believe me, the answer to every question is helpful to this matter.”

Zhang Yong's mind was a little messed up, he felt that this was different from many things he talked about at the beginning.But he was extremely sleepy, his brain couldn't keep up, and he couldn't think of how to answer, so he had to answer the boss's question first.

"Chinese brands are currently competing with Chinese brands. So what they want is not absolute low prices, but their own prices are lower than their competitors. This is our opportunity. We will not alarm all manufacturers in the early stage, but Communicate quietly with a manufacturer, enter the Chinese market without the knowledge of Jieke and their competitors, and take a certain share.  …”

"When Jieke and all manufacturers know about the existence of Mag boards, we will already have a certain share in the Chinese market and have a firm foothold. At that time, Jieke will not beat us to death, so we will not use all our strength to attack with low prices. Chinese manufacturers have one more choice, and they will lower prices on both sides. As latecomers, we only need to have a certain share, so we will not lose anyway. In the end, I think a share and price will be formed after several rounds of running-in. stable and reasonable situation."

Big Sewa nodded and asked Little Sewa, "What do you think? Do you agree with Brother Yong?"

"Yes, I very much agree. And I believe that Brother Yong has already reached a private agreement with a certain company. The other party will definitely order our boards just waiting for our board to go offline. Brother Yong, is that right?"

Zhang Yong was a little surprised, he didn't report Master Zhao's affairs to Xiao Sewa, it seems that this boss is much better than those idiots like Eric Peter.

"Yes, I've made some progress."

"Very good." Da Sewa nodded, "With you here, it seems that Francois and I don't have to worry about the Chinese market in the future."

"It's just that I still have a question." After Da Sewa praised Zhang Yong, he threw out another sentence.

"Brother Yong, I believe you understand the efficiency of Europeans. It may be difficult for us to compare with the speed of China. If, I mean if, the board of directors approves our high-precision measurement board development project, but the investment has not been in place for a long time , or the investment is pitiful, far from supporting our OEM board development, so what can you do? Or, what do you think."

Zhang Yong's eyes were confused, and his mind was even more confused. He wasn't sure if he was asleep and dreaming, or he was in a trance and didn't understand the boss's question.

"Francois, this should be a matter for you to discuss with Oliver. I'm just an employee in the China office, and I'm not in charge of R&D or production."

"But this matter was raised by you, a Chinese employee, and it is mainly aimed at the Chinese market. If you don't care enough about this matter, Oliver and the others are actually not enthusiastic."

"Boss, what I can do is to sell this board in the Chinese market, and sell a lot, and complete or even exceed our performance. I am unable to solve the problem you asked."

"Brother Yong. Before you came to France, I asked François a question, how did you solve the Sinicization of the Mag handheld. I asked you this question before, and you should know your answer. My question now is, Since you can complete the Sinicization of the handheld without any tool software from the manufacturer. So, can you do the same thing on the OEM board?"

"No way," the little Sewa next to her screamed first, "Francois, this is impossible. After all, the Sinicization of the handset is just a set of software, while OEM is a much more complicated piece of hardware. Equipment. This also involves a lot of restrictions, including the supply restrictions of component suppliers, and the confidentiality regulations of TS Group, etc. No matter how capable the Chinese are, no matter how capable Brother Yong is, he is only in charge of a region You can’t ask him to do such a thing. What’s more, your starting point is not localization, but lack of investment. Do you let the Beijing office use office funds to do this?”

"Don't get excited, François. Let's hear Yong's answer, shall we?"

Zhang Yong's mind was in a mess, the sudden news, and his body eager for sleep made him unable to concentrate on thinking.

"Boss, your message is too abrupt. I can't think for a while, and I don't know how to answer you. Can you give me a break, and I will give you the answer later."

"Brother Yong, you know. I'm flying to the United States tomorrow morning. We don't have much time for an interview. I really want to give you time, but I want to hear your answer before I leave."

"No, Francois," Xiao Sewa interjected nervously, "You're not fair to Brother Yong like this."

"The board is unfair to Mag, to the OEM department, to me, to you. Calm down, friend. If Brother Yong thinks there is a problem, I will stop."

Zhang Yong tried his best to concentrate and keep his mind as clear as possible, "Boss, what support can I get? What resources?"

"First, we don't have any money for you. Second, the OEM's IP is our confidential information, and it needs to be taken back to the factory for final processing of the main chip. This is something we can't give you. For other requirements, you can just ask, I will Think, and we'll do our best to satisfy you."

Zhang Yong took a deep breath, and the familiar expression returned to his face again.

"Boss, I know I'm in a bad state right now, and it's not a good time to make a decision. I can't even think about what conditions I should mention. But if it's now, I have to make a decision. Then my decision is Yes, as for specific issues, I need to discuss carefully with Oliver."

Da Sewa showed a gratified smile, "Thank you, Brother Yong, I knew that you would definitely agree. I will arrange for Oliver as soon as possible, and of course, François, to communicate with you in detail. You still have Question? Francois?" He smiled and turned to Xiao Sewa.

Xiao Sewa's expression was ugly, and he pondered for a while, "Brother Yong, can you go to my office and wait for me? I have a few words to discuss with Francois."

After Zhang Yong left, Xiao Sewa said seriously to Da Sewa: "As he admitted just now, he is in a very bad state, he doesn't understand what happened at all, and he doesn't understand what this decision means. You can't handle this matter like this. It's unreasonable to throw something that our group of R&D personnel can't handle to a sales office. If he can't do it, will you let him take the responsibility?"

Da Sewa smiled indifferently: "No one will be responsible, and it's his own business if he can't do it. We didn't spend a penny from the shareholders, so of course we don't have to be responsible."

"But maybe Brother Yong has to invest a lot."

"No one forced him, it was his own choice."

"I said, he is not in the right state now."

Da Sewa said seriously: "I am not an unreasonable boss, I know he is not in the right state. So you can try to persuade him to give up later, and I will give him a chance to repent. But..." Da Sewa paused For a moment, then looked into Xiao Sewa's eyes.

"Do you think he'll give up?"

(End of this chapter)