In 1978, I was admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology

Chapter 308 The Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense was established ahead of schedule, Project No. 10!

"Wait and see, dragging out production? Ha!"

Xie Wei sneered, "As long as their leaders aren't worried about their positions being secure and don't care about national interests, they'll cause as much trouble as they can. We don't even need to step in! When we get back, we should pay a visit to Minister Zheng."

"What about the Fifth Ministry of Machinery Industry?"

"No need. They'll be more concerned about this than the ministry. There are more than just these three factories in the country that can produce rocket launchers and rockets! If it weren't for their large production capacity, which allows them to easily scale up production with slight adjustments to the production lines, we wouldn't have chosen them, would we?"

Xie Wei knew this better than anyone else.

As military spending was continuously reduced after the reform and opening up, the production plans of major military industrial units were also continuously reduced. Some military supporting units that did not have their own products and had outdated technology even had their production plans reduced to zero.

With such a massive production capacity, which company would want to give it up?

"It's a good thing that 102 tried to take all the orders back then... If they had produced everything, it would have been disastrous if problems had been discovered later."

Liu Debao sighed, and the look in his eyes made Xie Wei feel uneasy.

What's the old man thinking about now?

"Now I understand why you insisted on having multiple production units. Although it caused considerable management trouble and made quality problems more likely, it allowed the production plants under different units to compete with each other..."

So this is it.

When Xie Wei proposed that different units under the Ministry of Machinery Industry produce long-range rocket launchers, Liu Debao, Li Rui, and others opposed it, and even the higher-ups of the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry did not quite understand it.

Xie Wei persuaded Li Rui to go and convince the leaders of the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry by citing the short delivery period, heavy production tasks, and tight schedule.

"Only through competition can we achieve faster development."

Xie Wei uttered this remark, then ignored the meetings and discussions among the logistics system leaders to find solutions, and went straight back to his room to sleep.

The group of bigwigs held a meeting and discussion in the conference room of the guesthouse.

They even directly demanded that the heads of 102, Northern Industry, and Jiangshan Machinery Factory come up with a solution.

With the intervention of military leaders, Fan Zhiqiang and Cao Bing, the two heads of the large factory, could only nod and agree repeatedly.

"Xie Wei, can we really control the quality this way? If the accuracy of the rocket launchers we sell is too different from the parameters we provided before, our reputation will be ruined. In that case, it won't just be our rocket launchers that will be affected, but also the entire country's military export business."

The next day, on the way back, Fang Pengju looked worried.

He told Xie Wei that the heads of many departments had been meeting all night without rest, and this morning they had set off on their way back, eager to go back and study the matter of launching the "National Military Standards" nationwide.

The rollout of military standards is definitely not something that can be accomplished in a short period of time.

However, the problem of the exported 150mm long-range rocket artillery urgently needs to be solved.

"What proposals did 102 and Norinco come up with?"

Xie Wei did not answer Fang Pengju's question directly, but instead asked about another topic.

"Narrow the tolerance range, uniformly select the same tolerance, and ensure consistent production quality..."

"Isn't that perfect? ​​That's exactly what we wanted."

Xie Wei grinned.

Fang Pengju was taken aback at first, but then realized that as long as the three production units chose the same tolerance during the production process and strictly followed the requirements of the drawings, the quality problem could be controlled.

"Should we just scrap it because it's only slightly worse? We can modify the other parts and it can still be used. Isn't that too wasteful?"

As soon as Xie Wei and Liu Debao arrived at Minister Zheng's office, Minister Zheng spoke.

Is Fan Zhiyong the one who started the complaint?

He made a promise in front of the military leaders, but then went to the ministry leaders to complain, saying it was a waste.
Fan Zhiyong isn't a very good person.

"It wasn't Comrade Fan Zhiyong who came to me. Many of the parts produced in the first batch have problems. If they're all scrapped, it might affect delivery..."

Seeing Xie Wei's expression, Minister Zheng sighed, "We can find solutions from other angles..."

"Minister, are you aware of the test results?"

Xie Wei also did not give a direct answer.

"I know. This must be caused by something else, right? According to the loading procedures started with 102 and Norinco, there shouldn't be such a large error. When the troops are using it, they can completely measure and classify it from the very beginning..."

Xie Wei stared wide-eyed at Minister Zheng.

He never expected that Minister Zheng would view the matter in this way.

Perhaps it's not just Minister Zheng, but many senior leaders who share this view.

Is it really that difficult to implement standardization?

The ministry just issued the 7904 Seven-Specialty Technical Agreement last year!

"Sir, once war breaks out, after the frontline soldiers finish firing the rockets in the launchers, do they measure, sort, and then reload them? Don't even mention completing all that before the war. Once war breaks out and the artillery is mobilized, nobody knows how the combat troops will be deployed, and it's impossible to provide ammunition logistics support to every company or even every platoon, right?"

Minister Zheng is not from a military background, but he is someone who came through the war years.

It's impossible that they don't even know this much.

Why is the combat effectiveness of the troops in the neighboring country so poor? Their weapons and equipment come from all over the world, their logistics and supply system is extremely complex, and they still lack an effective management plan.

"Reforming the military and reducing logistical support is one of the directions of reform. Currently, the military is under great logistical pressure due to the quality issues in equipment production... The ministry has issued a seven-specialized technical agreement, which only controls the quality of components. If the quality of mechanical parts cannot be stabilized, it will also have serious consequences... And if a part has a problem, it needs to be modified, which not only wastes more time, but also has a certain impact on the overall performance of the product... Let's not talk about military products for now, but the inspections before satellite and rocket launches have also found many problems with mechanical parts, right?"

Even when facing the highest leaders of the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry, Xie Wei did not back down in the slightest on matters of principle.

Minister Zheng's gaze was fixed on Xie Wei.

Xie Wei met Minister Zheng's gaze without flinching.

For a moment, the atmosphere in the office became frozen and oppressive.

"Minister, the leaders of the General Staff, General Logistics Department, and General Armaments Department have decided to introduce the 'National Military Standard' applicable to equipment production nationwide..."

Liu Debao, who hadn't had a chance to speak, was afraid that Xie Wei would leave a bad impression on Minister Zheng and affect Xie Wei's advancement.

Now, I finally have a chance to speak.

The Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry was just an industrial ministry. All departments related to equipment in the military paid attention to it and unified the national equipment standards. The Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry was just one of the equipment supply departments of the military. It couldn't help but support it, could it?

Minister Zheng glanced at Liu Debao and said, "Are you all abandoning your principles now that you're protecting him?"

"Sir, this isn't about disregarding principles. Military reform is imperative, and standardized procedures can reduce logistical pressure..."

Liu Debao hurriedly explained.

Minister Zheng glanced at Liu Debao, then turned to Xie Wei: "The ministry has always wanted to solve the production quality problem. You not only proposed exploring complex system management before, but now you've proposed standardization. Standardization is also part of complex system engineering management, right?"

This surprised Xie Wei.

Not understanding what Minister Zheng wanted to say, and not knowing how to respond, they just looked at Minister Zheng.

"You've thought a lot about these things and are familiar with them. Would you be interested in getting involved?"

Minister Zheng's words made Xie Wei hurriedly shake his head, "Sir, I'm extremely busy with my own work right now. The university-enterprise cooperation office is still a mess and hasn't been sorted out yet. I'm also involved in several research projects..."

"The Air Force's next-generation fighter jet project?" Minister Zheng asked with amusement.

"..."

Xie Wei didn't know how to answer.

In any case, aircraft fall under the business scope of the Third Ministry of Machinery Industry, while schools are subordinate units of the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry.

"Minister, the fighter jet project is handled by the 611 Institute of the Third Ministry of Machinery Industry. Our school is only partially involved... mainly for exploring the management of complex systems..."

Liu Debao hurriedly explained.

"If you don't speak, no one will think you are mute."

Seeing that he couldn't avoid it, Xie Wei sighed helplessly and said, "Sir, whether it's the Third Ministry of Machine Building or the Seventh Ministry of Machine Building, they are both state-owned units. With technological development, weaponry and equipment can no longer be simply classified under a certain industrial ministry... To give a simple example, if a pulse engine is to be installed on a fighter jet, does that fall under the jurisdiction of the Seventh Ministry of Machine Building or the Third Ministry of Machine Building?"

What the hell?

Are fighter jets equipped with pulse engines?
Liu Debao's eyes widened suddenly.

"Also, the space shuttle, shouldn't that be under the jurisdiction of the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry? But aircraft are under the business scope of the Third Ministry of Machinery Industry... Although we don't have many space launches each year at present, sooner or later we will have to send people into space and go to the moon to take a look, right?"

"..."

At this moment, even Minister Zheng was stunned.

This kid really dares to dream big.

However, it is precisely this kind of drive that enables a country to develop, right?
"Both the United States and the Soviet Union had space shuttles, while we currently lag behind even in satellite technology. We may not be able to build a space station for decades, but we need to prepare in advance... As the only university under the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry, Harbin Institute of Technology has an unshirkable responsibility to undertake some of the exploration work in blank technology fields for the ministry... The reason for undertaking the fighter jet project is also to accumulate design experience related to aircraft and prepare for the future design and manufacture of space shuttles..."

Xie Wei became more and more excited as he spoke.

That's quite a boast!
Liu Debao was dumbfounded. He never expected that Xie Wei would dare to boast so much in front of the minister.

But at this moment, he dared not expose it.

Not to mention Liu Debao, Minister Zheng was also excited by Xie Wei's vision of future space missions, and even wished he could start sending astronauts into space right now and prepare to build a lunar base.

In another office.

"Can Xie Wei really solve this?"

Yu Lihua looked at Li Rui with concern, "You have to understand how difficult it is to promote a unified standard nationwide. And this time, taking advantage of the opportunity to develop a fighter jet project requires a large amount of funding, so there will definitely be a lot of objections within the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry."

China currently has no technological reserves for third-generation fighter jets.

Everything had to start from scratch, and the General Armaments Department, the General Logistics Department, and the Air Force couldn't provide much funding to support the project.

For formal research and development to proceed, in addition to the annual support from the military, Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) must provide the remaining funding.

"Xie Wei will persuade the leaders of the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry."

Li Rui was uncertain, but he had confidence in Xie Wei.

"This is not a small amount of money; it could even affect Harbin Institute of Technology's investments in other projects... and promoting international cooperation on fighter jet projects also requires a significant sum of money..."

Yulihua looked worried.

"Is there any progress in the cooperation with the United States?"

Li Rui asked in surprise, "It hasn't been that long!"

"Previously, when the US promoted the F-16/79 fighter jet, apart from the Air Force, which urgently needed advanced fighter jets, the General Armaments Department and the General Logistics Department did not support the introduction of this fighter jet. Our technology is lagging behind, and we need to import a lot of equipment. Once we have initial cooperation, larger-scale cooperation will naturally be easier..."

Yuli Hua said helplessly, "They're not interested in the immediate project... The American military-industrial complex is even willing to push for war for profit..."

"Aren't they afraid that we'll learn their technology and surpass them?"

Li Rui snorted coldly.

"The higher-ups have designated this project as Project No. 10. It's not a formal research and development project; it's being carried out secretly by Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT). Relevant departments will allocate 80 million yuan annually to HIT as part of related research projects and technology projects..."

“That much?”

Li Rui frowned.

The reason for not formally approving the project is to avoid trouble, especially given the current situation where many advanced military projects across the country have been canceled or are facing cancellation. Developing a third-generation fighter jet project would definitely face a lot of opposition.

In particular, the J-9 project was officially cancelled this year.

"The military spent a lot of money on the PL-4 upgrade, including medium-range air-to-air missiles and surface-to-air missiles... You need to talk to the school about this."

That was Yulihua's goal.

Li Rui's organizational affiliation has been transferred to the National Defense Science and Technology Commission under the General Staff Department, but he still serves as the president of Harbin Institute of Technology.

"In addition, in order to promote the 'National Military Standards,' the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense will be established ahead of schedule after the New Year..."

"Are you sure? There's still a lot of preparation work that hasn't been done yet!"

Li Rui never expected that Xie Wei's invitation to leaders from numerous military units to watch live-fire target practice would have such a significant impact.

The idea had barely crossed my mind when I rejected it.

The military doesn't make decisions on short notice; they've only just returned.

"The PL-4 modification by Harbin Institute of Technology has been a huge stimulus to the military. The detection range of a fighter jet's radar is not as good as that of a missile..."

Yuli Hua sighed.

Li Rui understood.

After finishing his conversation with You Lihua, he disregarded his other work and went to the guesthouse to find Xie Wei and Liu Debao.

Just then, the two returned to the guesthouse from Minister Zheng's place.

"Project No. 10? It's not officially approved, yet it's given a project name. Isn't that just burying your head in the sand? The key question is, how much funding will it receive?"

Xie Wei was very surprised.

The J-10 project has finally been officially approved 5 years ahead of schedule.

"Initially 8000 million per year..."

"That's all? Those advanced technologies, even if you throw in tens of millions, you might not even see a glimmer of hope..."

Liu Debao frowned.

The school has hundreds of millions in funding, but it hasn't had many good days, and now it has to tighten its belt again?
"There's some news, but it hasn't been officially released yet..."

"The Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense? It not only manages equipment but also oversees project planning and other things? That's a lot of power!"

Liu Debao looked at Li Rui in disbelief.

Principal Li's progress is truly enviable, isn't it?
"Project No. 10 has already started ahead of schedule, so it's normal for the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense to be established ahead of schedule. Standardization is under the jurisdiction of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, right? It's a good thing to have a unit to coordinate it."

(End of this chapter)