In 1978, I was admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology

Chapter 212 As expected, he's an old hand! Using the excuse of sending sanitary napkins to his sister to expand into the Northwest market?
"Uh, Professor Qiao, 2 tons refers to the maximum load capacity. As long as the cargo weight is 800 kilograms, it's fine..."

Xie Wei was somewhat embarrassed.

Although he doesn't understand vehicle design, he wouldn't make such an ignorant request.

There's nothing we can do about it.

After the reform and opening up, the domestic economy developed rapidly, and commercial exchanges between various regions increased rapidly. In particular, the demand for the transportation of goods became more urgent. Before the domestic automobile industry developed rapidly, this type of vehicle was in the greatest demand.

It can carry people and goods.

The key is that the price is also low.

Whether you drive or ride in an imported car, it's a matter of great prestige.

Domestically produced sedans?
Nowadays, only a few brands like Hongqi are available, and those can only be purchased by government agencies; private purchases are not permitted. As for imported cars?

Putting aside import quotas, even if one obtained them, the price tag of hundreds of thousands of yuan would be unaffordable for even the newly emerging "ten-thousand-yuan households".

Minivans, with their comprehensive functions and wide range of uses, are the best fit for the domestic market demand of this era.

Of course, the domestic road network is not well developed at present. Although there are many roads with paved surfaces, reaching 66.1 kilometers, most of them are in cities.

Many national highways are not paved, let alone provincial highways or even roads of lower grade.

Given this situation, Xie Wei's requirement for such a large load capacity implies an imaginable demand on the power system.

"While I understand your point, your demands are too high... The power system used in trucks definitely won't fit in a van. Given the current state of engine technology in our country..."

After hearing Xie Wei's explanation, Professor Jogori sighed.

He could understand Xie Wei's thoughts.

But that's not how it is in reality.

"Redesigning and developing the engine, not to mention the funding and supporting infrastructure, just the time involved is unknown and could take an unimaginable amount of time..."

China's industrial base is weak, its technology is backward, and its power sector is even worse.

Fighter jets, warships, tanks, and other aircraft are all constrained by this "heart disease."

“Professor Joe, we can use the engine of the 212 Jeep.”

Xie Wei had already planned it out before he came.

The 212 Jeep, equipped with a 75-horsepower engine, is actually quite fuel-inefficient for a minivan.

Thanks to his past collaborations with car manufacturers, Xie Wei had a good understanding of the development history of automobiles in China. He knew very well that the earliest company in China to produce minivans was not the "Huang Dafeng" from Daihatsu, which was imported from abroad, but rather the light passenger vehicle developed by Changhe Automobile in 82.

Actually, that thing is a copy of Suzuki.

When talking about Changhe Automobile, one must mention its connection with Factory 122: Changhe Machinery Factory actually manufactured helicopters! It was a backup factory for Factory 122!

Xie Wei clearly remembers the earliest light passenger vehicle model produced by Changhe Automobile, which he had long forgotten. This was the first minivan in China, a new model that had never appeared in China before. The relevant authorities, who racked their brains, classified the minivan as a passenger car.

It's just a minivan with a 35-horsepower engine!
Although it was much weaker than the 40 horsepower of the "Huang Dafa" introduced to China in 84, its actual power was really not that great.

Huang Dafa's domestic production is not high.

Changhe's minivans, from their inception in 82 to their discontinuation in 2000, had a total production of only 15 units.

Take a look at the Wuling Hongguang, which is a best-selling car in China. Its 1.2L engine has more than 70 horsepower, and its 1.5L engine has a maximum power of more than 100 horsepower.

Strong power is needed to create a better market, even in environments with imperfect roads.

"Isn't it a bit too fuel-consuming?"

"I'm worried," Jorgori asked Sheve.

"No. We need to consider that the vehicle will not only travel on city roads... Aside from the driver, the standard can also carry 6 people... Professor Qiao, you just need to demonstrate the feasibility of this draft. If it is feasible, then come up with a design plan. You don't need to worry about the funding..."

She Wei knew that Jogor had many questions.

The reason he communicated with the other party first was that he knew that these days, skilled professionals in China don't design products based on the market. The solution he proposed actually combined some advantages of Changan and Wuling Hongguang.

Of course, knowing that Japanese car companies would soon enter the mainland market, and that the sanitary napkin industry had already been stabbed in the back by the Japanese, Xie Wei was able to directly use the Japanese to save a lot of advertising costs.

But nobody wants to be upset.

"Okay, is this urgent?"

"The sooner the better. The leaders from Factory 122 will be here this afternoon."

"..."

Professor Jogori was speechless upon seeing Xie Wei.

He thought to himself: "Since you've already come up with a plan, why don't you just tell us to design according to your plan? Why bother with all this talk about demonstration and argumentation?"
What if the argument fails?

Xie Wei knew what Jogor was thinking, but he didn't want to spend too much energy explaining it.

Too tired.

The key issue is that it's inexplicable.

Anyway, all he provided was a sketch, the interior layout of the vehicle, and nothing else.

Despite his complaints, Khogori still hoped to translate the school's vehicle technology into tangible results and secure more funding, as only in this way could vehicle engineering achieve greater development at the school.

Building laboratories requires money, conducting research projects requires money, and retaining and cultivating talent requires even more money.

Look at the chemistry and computer science departments that were among the first to collaborate with Xie Wei. Now they don't ask the school for funding at all, and they never lack research funding. The subsidies for faculty and students who participate in research projects have increased several times.

After Xie Wei left, I carefully studied his design sketches. Xie Wei hadn't messed around with the chassis and such. Apart from the vehicle's interior layout and exterior design, there was nothing that truly involved the core technology.

He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Those who work in technology are most afraid of laymen who know nothing guiding professional technicians.

Immediately, they sought out teachers from the Department of Vehicle Engineering and several outstanding students.

"...This project is crucial to the development of our vehicle engineering program. With the funding, restoring the vehicle engineering department will no longer be a problem, and the university will no longer be able to delay. In fact, it's possible that we'll even increase the number of majors and enrollment quotas this year..."

Everyone knows what the situation is like in schools these days.

The university will focus on developing programs that can quickly transform technological achievements into products and secure funding for research projects and technological development from the market.
"Professor Qiao, just give the instructions..."

"Yes, we were thinking of proactively contacting the school-enterprise cooperation office to help us find some projects!"

"With vehicle design projects, students can not only practice and accumulate experience, but also verify some theoretical concepts..."

"It would be best if we were involved in the manufacturing process as well, instead of just doing the design."

Not a single person in the entire vehicle engineering system objected.

Even Xie Wei's draft proposal received no response.

Everyone had only one goal: no matter how difficult, the design project had to be taken on!

A school's vehicle engineering program wants to become a vehicle engineering department to fill in all the vehicle-related majors, but it has never even designed a car. How can it have the nerve to call itself a vehicle engineering department?

Looking at the agitated crowd, Djogori sighed.

Vehicle engineering is currently being treated very poorly at the university...

The tank project has been stalled due to a lack of funding, and many theoretical designs have not been validated without the necessary funds.

Does the school rely on funding from higher authorities?
It's better to earn it yourself. Fortunately, the project Xie Wei proposed wasn't too difficult.

After leaving Professor Kyogori's office, Xie Wei made a special trip to Yuan Zhenyue's office in the logistics department. Fortunately, Yuan Zhenyue, who was mobilizing supplies, had not yet left.

Yuan Zhenyue works in logistics, sharing an office with several other people, making it difficult to discuss business.

When Xie Wei came to find him, he took the initiative to ask Xie Wei to talk outside.

"You went to see Professor Qiao?"

Yuan Zhenyue handed Xie Wei a cigarette, lit it, and then asked Xie Wei a question.

Xie Wei nodded, a cigarette dangling from his lips, and scrutinized Yuan Zhenyue with a critical look, without saying a word.

His gaze made Yuan Zhenyue's heart tremble: Had he inadvertently offended this old silver coin somewhere?
After a quick and careful consideration, he realized that he had not offended Xie Wei in the slightest.

I felt a little more at ease.

"What? Do you need me to bring Xie Rou back?"

Xie Wei's silence probably refers to this matter.

After all, the entire project team was working hard, and Xie Wei's use of his privileges to bring his sister back would easily draw criticism.

"No."

Xie Wei shook his head.

He actually had this idea. Knowing Xie Rou's personality, he knew that Xie Wei wouldn't be able to come back without seeing the telemetry missile and the live-fire verification of her calculation results.

"Old Yuan, have you considered the school-enterprise cooperation office?"

"what?"

Yuan Zhenyue's lips twitched slightly.

Should we go to the school-enterprise cooperation office?

Damn it, I've always wanted to keep my distance from that old bastard Xie Wei. I usually try to please him and don't dare to offend him at all.

After Principal Li left, Yuan Zhenyue was still upset that the principal hadn't taken him with him or arranged for him to be transferred to another unit.

Should we go to the school-enterprise cooperation office?

Working for Xie Wei?
Are we even going to live like this anymore?
Wu Tao, the former assistant to the principal, was dismissed from his position as director of the school-enterprise office after making a mistake. He is now working as an ordinary clerk in the school's logistics system. The people in the logistics system are shrewd and not only do they not treat Wu Tao well, but they also target him intentionally or unintentionally.

Those days were truly unbearable.

Seeing Yuan Zhenyue's complicated expression, Xie Wei sighed silently.

From the very first moment I met this guy, it seemed like he was always on guard against me, but he was also very good at handling things, far superior to Wang Zheng.

With some training, he should be able to work independently in the school-enterprise cooperation office, right?
Otherwise, Xie Wei wouldn't have taken the initiative to talk to Yuan Zhenyue about this matter in the area where Yuan Zhenyue was heading to the Northwest Gobi Desert.

“Don’t want to? That’s fine. Just say what you’re thinking… I think you’re wasting your time in the logistics system. The school-enterprise cooperation office is more suitable for your development… Of course, I won’t force you.”

"No, it's not..."

Upon hearing Xie Wei's words, Yuan Zhenyue hurriedly denied them.

What the hell!
The School-Enterprise Cooperation Office is arguably the place with the fastest promotion and the most potential in the entire school. Many non-teaching staff members want to work in the School-Enterprise Cooperation Office, but Xie Wei won't budge and won't give face to anyone.

Some people at the school who wanted to plead with Xie Wei on their behalf were all silenced by the principal's suppression.

The problem is that Xie Wei, that old bastard, is a master of deception, swindling people without them even realizing it.

"That is?"

"There's still no news about Principal Li's specific personnel changes, and I'm still the principal's assistant... currently just helping with the logistics system..."

At this moment, Yuan Zhenyue felt that his brain had never worked so well.

"alright."

Xie Wei could tell that Yuan Zhenyue didn't want to go to the school-enterprise cooperation office, so he didn't force him. "By the way, when you go there, go to the big cities nearby and find department stores or supply and marketing bureaus to help promote our sanitary napkins... Nobody in the Northwest knows about our sanitary napkins yet..."

"what?"

Yuan Zhenyue opened his mouth in surprise, and the cigarette he was holding silently slipped out of his mouth.

He really wanted to ask Xie Wei if he could refuse.

I'm not a member of the school-enterprise cooperation office!

Moreover, Xie Wei, a grown man, went to the Northwest to sell women's menstrual products. Wasn't he afraid of being beaten to death?

"You'll be flying there. We'll go to Urumqi, a major cotton-producing area. If it's suitable, we'll set up a sanitary napkin factory there..."

Xie Wei didn't care what Yuan Zhenyue was thinking.

Northwest China is a major cotton-producing region and a source of raw materials. Although the national cotton supply is still tight, with the gradual improvement of petrochemical technology, the expansion of cotton planting in Northwest China, and the cotton-producing countries in Central Asia, it is much easier to solve the raw material supply problem than in Northeast China.

Although Northeast China is also a cotton-producing region, its cotton cultivation scale is far smaller than that of Northwest China because it is a grain-producing region.

"Hey Xie Wei, how about you arrange for a female colleague from the school-enterprise cooperation office to come with me?"

It is impossible to refuse.

Don't dare at all.

But Yuan Zhenyue really didn't want to go by himself.

"The Y-11's carrying capacity is limited. Carrying one more person means carrying tens of kilograms less supplies. Professor Fang and his team aren't sure how long it will take for them to return... We can't keep using airplanes to transport supplies there, can we? A single flight costs several hundred yuan, not to mention the hassle of refueling and transfers in various locations..."

"..."

Yuan Zhenyue wanted to refute Xie Wei: How were sanitary napkins transported before a sanitary napkin factory was built in the Northwest?

How long would it take to transport goods from the Northeast to the Northwest, a distance of over 4000 kilometers?

Seeing Xie Wei's serious expression, Yuan Zhenyue nodded helplessly: "Alright then."

Xie Wei didn't care whether he was willing or not, and gave some more instructions, telling Yuan Zhen to take more sanitary napkins with him. They could be provided free of charge to the female staff of the cooperative distribution units in the Northwest for trial use before he left.

Nima!

This old silver coin!
In order to send sanitary napkins to his sister, he actually used the excuse of going there to develop the market?
It really is an old silver coin.

In this way, no one could find any excuse to blame Xie Wei.

Despite the helplessness, the matter still had to be handled.

Yuan Zhenyue even considered whether he should stop by Li Rui's place and ask him to transfer him out of the school, so that he wouldn't unknowingly be tricked by that old bastard Xie Wei.

After discussing with his colleagues, Qiaogeli took the initiative to report to Zhang Mingqiu about Xie Wei's request for them to do car design.

"This is a collaboration between the Vehicle Engineering Department and the University-Enterprise Cooperation Office. The main purpose of the University-Enterprise Cooperation Office is to help various majors and departments within the university solve problems related to research funding and成果转化 (technology transfer). It doesn't need to be reported to the university..."

Zhang Mingqiu did not interfere in this matter at all.

"..."

Qiao Geli really wanted to ask Zhang Mingqiu if the school leaders would abandon all principles whenever Xie Wei was involved.

Did you report this to hear this?
(End of this chapter)