Rebirth Tokyo 1986

Chapter 255 The beginning of takeoff

Masato Takeshita and his team then looked at projects under development such as graphics cards, mobile hard drives, flash drives, and flash memory cards.

Only then did he leave feeling satisfied.

"How about it, is there anything the president would like to adjust regarding the chip lab?"

The young man tilted his head, wanting to know what Lou Gerstner thought of the laboratory.

"No. I think the current model of joint research and development with other companies is good."

“It can not only ensure the company’s technological progress, but also save a lot of research and development funds.”

Lou Gerstner’s biggest headache right now is that the company is still not making money.

To be precise, it is making money on a large scale.

After all, last year's profits from the disaster emergency radio project barely exceeded expenses.

However, this year is definitely another year in which expenses far exceed profits.

On the one hand, expenditures on scientific research, acquisitions, etc. have increased.

On the other hand, the subsidiary foundry settled most of the payments.

Speaking of which, Xinghai Group should be considered one of the most popular companies in the world.

Because Xinghai Group is the company that is most willing to settle payments.

Whether it is purchasing materials or completing a project, the payment cycle is basically 45 days.

Even if the time exceeds, it will not exceed 60 days at the latest.

Yes, companies that can settle material payments, project fees and other expenses within 2 months are already considered to be the best companies.

Many large companies will hold back money for half a year or even a year.

The more despicable ones may even hold back the other party for several years and even drag them to death.

Masato Takeshita noticed the change in his president's expression and asked tentatively.

"Are you worried that this will be the only company in the group that loses money this year?"

Gerstner shook his body and admitted distressedly: "Yes, I do have this concern."

If a company cannot make money, no matter how bright its prospects are, it will be looked down upon by others.

For example, BOE, a Chinese panel giant in later generations.

At the beginning, it was disliked by all parties and even called a scam company.

The company boss could only cry poor everywhere and rely on begging for alms to develop his business.

Later, the research and development finally got on the right track and the company became profitable.

This is becoming increasingly popular with governments, businesses and individuals.

It is always difficult to raise your head when you lose money, especially huge losses.

"Isn't it already better? Don't worry about it."

"Ok, I know."

After entering Tokyo, the two people no longer took the same car.

The direction of the young man is Setagaya, while Gerstner now lives in Minato Ward.

There are many foreign consulates here, which is closer to his daily life.

"I am back!"

"Wife, where are the children?"

The first thing Masato Takeshita did when he got home, after putting away his coat, he couldn't wait to ask where his daughter was.

After more than half a year of getting along, his daughter's position in his heart has gradually become more important.

I haven't seen you for a day. I really miss you.

With a hint of dissatisfaction on her lips, Izumi Sakai put her index finger to her lips and whispered, "Shh, she just fell asleep, don't disturb her."

"Yeah, okay, I get it."

The young man also consciously lowered his voice, not wanting to wake up the little devil.

"It's so cute."

The young man tiptoed up to his daughter and couldn't help but give her a secret kiss.

It is tender with a milky flavor and smooth with a delicate texture.

It's really satisfying.

"She's only cute when she's asleep."

Izumi Sakai loves children, but at the same time it gives her a lot of headaches.

I have to keep a close eye on him all the time and he would cry at the slightest provocation, which is really difficult to deal with.

This is even though she has a nanny and others to take care of her. I don’t know how difficult it would be if she was alone.

"Well, thank you for your hard work."

Masato Takeshita hugged the girl tenderly and stroked her cheek lightly.

"Yeah, it's okay. It's not that hard."

Izumi Sakai was very satisfied and smiled happily.

After dinner, while my daughter was still sleeping.

The young man asked solemnly: "The entertainment industry is developing rapidly. Do you have any thoughts about entering the music industry now?"

The 90s was the most glorious era for the Japanese music scene.

Many famous singers and bands were born in this period.

And even if it was not born in the 90s, most of its sales were during this period.

For example, the best-selling band B'Z in Japan, the best-selling female solo singer Ayumi Hamasaki in Japan, and the best-selling male solo singer Fukuyama Masaharu in Japan...

It can be said that the 90s was the heyday of the Japanese music scene.

And now, Xinghai Entertainment has already grasped the ticket to the 90s.

Not only did it own the strongest company being in the first half of the 90s, it also controlled the strongest Avex in the second half of the 90s, namely Xinghai Music Company.

As long as a girl is still interested, she can easily be made into a big star.

"But, Xiaohui?"

Izumi Sakai looked at her daughter and felt very embarrassed.

"Does it matter?"

The young man raised an eyebrow and continued, "We have a babysitter, and the baby room is next to the recording studio."

"You can end the recording at any time if your daughter needs it."

It is easy for rich people to make arrangements for children.

Even if there is no breast milk, you can find a suitable wet nurse to help.

The poor are equally easy to deal with.

Just feed them, there’s no need for so many high-end requirements.

Only the middle position is the most troublesome and requires the most work.

"Let's wait a little longer. At least my daughter has to be one year old."

The girl was very tempted, but thinking of her still very young daughter, she finally reluctantly refused again.

"Okay, you decide."

Just as the two were talking about other things, their daughter Takeshita Hui woke up.

"Wow wow wow..."

There was a loud cry.

The two quickly ended their conversation.

"Hurry and check if you peed."

"Yeah, I peed. This is a diaper. Change it quickly."

The young man was clumsy and didn't dare to help his daughter complete the task.

Babies' bodies are fragile and are very prone to problems.

"Mommy mommy."

"Yeah, yeah, mom's here."

After changing her diaper and clothes, my daughter stopped crying.

Open your arms, wanting your mother to hug you.

"You only want mommy and not daddy?"

After hearing this, Takeshita Hui tilted his head slightly, and after a long while he finally uttered the two words that the young man wanted to hear most.

"Dad, Daddy."

"Well, you're so good."

Masato Takeshita's face was all smiles, and he looked a little silly.

Ten or so minutes later, the young man looked at his tired wife and said with concern.

"Let me hold you for a while, you take a rest."

"okay."

Then, Izumi Sakai carefully placed her daughter into the young man's arms.

"When you were at home, did you miss your dad?" "Dad, Dad."

"Yeah, so you did. You are such a good daughter to your father."

Masato Takeshita was immersed in his own world, happy like a flower.

Happiness arises from these little things.

Life is important, and work is important too.

The next day, the young man got up early and went to work.

Today, he and Lou Gerstner will inspect the Xinghai foundry in Hitachi City.

After a few polite greetings, Masato Takeshita smiled and teased.

"You look so happy, is there a big order?"

Koike Junyi responded cheerfully, "Yes, the company has received six large orders this month."

“Not only are the two existing production lines running at full capacity, but the third line, which is about to be put into production, is also booked.”

Atsushi Koike was very happy that the Xinghai OEM he was in charge of was finally no longer a money-losing company.

In the past, every time we held a general meeting, we felt embarrassed because of the losses, but this will no longer happen in the future.

"Oh, good, keep it up."

Masato Takeshita was very calm because he had already anticipated the result.

In fact, now is not the best day for wafer foundry.

Because Microsoft's new operating system has just started to take off.

It is expected that the sales volume will exceed one million by the end of this year.

Next year will be different. Everyone will fully realize the convenience of the new operating system and at least 500 million copies can be sold.

And 500 million new operating systems mean at least 500 million computers are sold.

As the demand for computers skyrocketed, the chip industry naturally followed suit.

By then, Atsushi Koike can completely take charge of OEM production.

“But be careful.”

"Although the demand for chips has skyrocketed and chip companies are asking us to do things for them, sooner or later, we will fall into a situation of overcapacity."

“So, we should also be nicer to small companies.”

“Sometimes a little good attitude can win you a long-term customer.”

Everyone needs to ask others for help sometimes, but one should not be arrogant just because they succeed.

If a company is too rampant, it will eventually go bankrupt.

"President, rest assured, I will personally receive all customers, whether they are big or small."

"Ah That's good."

The young man was very satisfied and nodded affirmatively again.

"By the way, we can try to increase the OEM price next year. Xinghai OEM can't always take the low-end route of small profits but quick turnover."

"We also need to capture more of the more profitable mid- to high-end chip market."

The chip industry has a serious Matthew effect, and only by occupying the high-end market can enough profits be earned.

The wafer foundry industry is no exception to this.

TSMC in later generations made huge profits by relying on the high-end market.

Competitors Samsung and Intel cannot catch up with the technology, so they can only eat the leftovers.

Without the support of our company's business, the situation would be even worse.

“Understand, we are already doing this.”

"The company's OEM orders are gradually moving towards the high end."

Xinghai's OEM is located in Japan and will be suppressed by the US government.

But at the same time, there are also many benefits.

The most intuitive aspect is talent.

Japan has abundant semiconductor talent, and Xinghai Foundry can directly move to the high-end.

TSMC is not good in this regard because it does not have that many talents.

Therefore, TSMC can now only receive orders for mid- and low-end chips.

Even low- and mid-end orders are given to American companies such as Intel in order to suppress Japan.

In this regard, Zhang Rujing, the founder of SMIC and one of China's top chip foundry construction talents in the future, should have the same feeling.

He initially wanted to choose the mainland, but due to the lack of sufficient talent, he could only go to Taiwan to save the country.

The result was that he was backstabbed by the company's board of directors and was taught a severe lesson by TSMC's Morris Chang.

Taiwan company is not reliable at all.

However, Zhang Rujing also gained something. Hundreds of OEM talents followed him back to the mainland.

Although there were many twists and turns in the days that followed, mainland China's chip foundry finally managed to keep up.

Unlike Japan in the previous life, this aspect has basically been completely lost.

"That's fine, that's fine."

Masato Takeshita was very happy that the wafer foundry industry was finally rising.

Even if it cannot suppress TSMC, which is supported by the Bald Eagle, in the future, it can still live a happy life relying on orders from itself and the mainland.

After a careful inspection, the three came to Junyoshi Koike's office.

"Xiaochi-san, what do you think about us investing in an 8-inch wafer fab next year?"

Currently, the 6-inch wafer factory is still the world's most advanced chip production line, but it will soon be no longer the case.

The 8-inch wafer factory invested by Intel will soon be put into operation.

If Xinghai OEM doesn’t want to fall behind, it has no choice but to keep up.

Gerstner responded, "I think it is necessary."

"Companies like Intel, Texas Instruments, and Motorola are all building 8-inch wafer fabs, and we are lagging far behind."

The current computer microprocessor, or CPU, is still in the stage of a hundred schools of thought contending.

Large technology companies such as Motorola and Texas Instruments also have businesses in this area.

However, in terms of popularity, they are far inferior to Intel.

So when Intel built an 8-inch wafer factory, these chip companies chose to follow suit.

It is expected that at least 10 8-inch wafer fabs will be put into operation next year.

It is just the right time for Xinghai OEM to enter the market.

On the one hand, there are mature technologies from companies like Intel that can be used, and on the other hand, there will be a large number of orders once it is completed.

"Understood. I will listen to the president and the director."

Although Atsushi Koike does not like the debt-based management model, he values the scale of the company more and naturally will not voice any opposition.

Soon, the three reached an agreement.

Next year, Xinghai Foundry will build another 8-inch wafer factory.

“What do you think about the location of the wafer fab?”

For a long time, 8-inch wafer fabs will not be eliminated.

Masato Takeshita wanted to move to a new, more stable place instead of staying in Hitachi City.

This is the headquarters of Hitachi and is not suitable for a long stay.

“I think the Kumamoto area is great, with many technology companies and institutions, and we can make full use of the geographical advantages.”

Junyoshi Koike had wanted to move away for a long time and was the first to raise the idea.

He is the one who can most feel the influence of Hitachi.

“Kumamoto is indeed good, but I would recommend Shizuoka more.”

"This place has a convenient location and sufficient water resources, making it very suitable for building a wafer factory."

Lou Gerstner also had his own ideas and did not want the subsidiary Xinghai Manufacturing to be too far away from the headquarters.

"Shizuoka is really good, but we need to wait a little longer."

"My opinion is to invest in a wafer fab in my hometown first."

The moment he heard the word Shizuoka, his heart was indeed moved.

But he soon thought of the Great Hanshin Earthquake that would occur soon.

Shizuoka is relatively close to Osaka and Kobe, so the factories may be affected.

My current hometown, Kanagawa Prefecture, is completely different.

There will be no major earthquakes until 2024.

Then there are the political considerations.

A state-of-the-art wafer fab, similar to China's later panel fab, can boost employment and consumption in a region.

Masato Takeshita's influence in his hometown will also be further enhanced.

"Kanagawa Prefecture is indeed a very good choice."

"It just so happens that the local government wants to develop the southwest region, and we can also strive for more preferential policies."

(End of this chapter)