Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 22 Success
Fully automatic production line.

When it was confirmed that the entire production line could finally be successfully operated after thirty-two test runs, Zheng Yi couldn't help but feel weak.

While smoking a cigar, he didn't know whether he was reporting to his boss Li Xiaoshi or talking to himself.
He said, "Let's test how much rubber can be washed per hour. If we run the machine ten hours a day, we can see how much rubber it can wash every day. I estimate that this production line should be enough for the entire plantation."

"Rubber washing is simple after all. The entire production line consists of only two steps: cutting and washing. The core is actually the motor and the blade. Oh, and there is also an air compressor. I use a lot of compressed air.

The blades are easy to make, we can produce them ourselves by importing some stainless steel, but the motors, the entire production line uses a total of 26 motors, all of which are from Japan.
Ten years, damn it, within ten years we must be able to produce our own motors, otherwise after ten years... ah~
Oh, and the power supply equipment is fucking British, and the generator, should I make this stuff myself? It's so fucking annoying, I think I need to train a group of electricians, but I don't know much about electricity. "

Li Xiaoshi: "How much does the full set cost?"

"Including the generator, the whole set is about 70,000 to 80,000. It will be cheaper in the future, but it will never be lower than 50,000. In fact, all the core components are imported, so it will be difficult to continue to reduce the price above 50,000 in the short term.
If the plantation itself has electricity and the power is sufficient, it can reduce the cost a little, but I think it's uncertain. How much do you think it should cost per set?"

"Haha, I'm already very happy to be able to produce our own equipment. For me, as long as I don't lose money, I'm already satisfied. Thank God."

"No, we invested over a million yuan in the early stages. With so many workers in the factory, we have to pay them some bonuses. Besides, we still have to earn money for subsequent research and development. Business is business, as long as there is money to be made, we should make it."

"I'm not very familiar with rubber. You should ask Xiaowu. Hey, Xiaowu, if I sell you this production line and the machines, how much do you think you can pay?"

Li Xiaowu is the younger brother of Li Xiaoshi. Among the three children in the Li family, Li Xiaoshi took over the mineral business, Li Xiaowu took over the rubber business, and the third child, Li Xiaowei, returned to China to join the army, so this rubber plantation actually belongs to Li Xiaowu. Strictly speaking, Zheng Yi and Li Xiaoshi were just borrowing it.

"Brother, Mr. Zheng, you guys are simply goddamn amazing! This one machine does all the work for over three hundred of my workers. No, it's equivalent to four or five hundred. Workers can't keep working all the time; it needs a break. Brother, if you don't sell this machine, supply it exclusively to me. I'm sure I'll be the biggest rubber king in Southeast Asia within three years."

Li Xiaoshi: "What are you thinking? Brother Zheng and I have put so much effort into this and even endured so much criticism. I spent so much money on a talent like Mr. Zheng. Is it just for you to become the rubber king?
We are here to build our own industrial system. Tell me quickly, how much do you think this machine can sell for?

"Will this...break?"

Zheng Yi: "We can promise a one-year warranty and provide repair services after that year. Every year... let's charge a thousand yuan a year. We should still make a small profit."

Li Xiaowu: "As for this machine... between 200,000 and 300,000 yuan, I would buy it without hesitation. If it's 300,000 yuan or more, I might need to think about it and consider it carefully."

"How many?"

Li Xiaoshi and Zheng Yi couldn't help but sit up.

"Are you sure you'll buy it for 200,000?"

Li Xiaowu nodded.

Li Xiaoshi asked Zheng Yi again, "How much did you say your cost was?"

"About 70,000 or 80,000, still a bit of a bargain."

"Holy crap, making machines... is so profitable! It's even more profitable than mining."

Although he said he didn't care about profits, he couldn't help but get excited when he thought about making at least a hundred thousand net profit from each unit. After all, in Southeast Asia, miners like him were a minority. Rubber plantations were the largest primary industry, with a total planting area of ​​at least tens of millions of mu, and there were probably thousands of plantations of similar size.

This thing is likely to make more money than mining!
As for the engineers who participated in the debugging and installation, when they heard Zheng Yi say the word "行", they could no longer contain their excitement and hugged each other to celebrate.

They built China's own fully automatic production line!

Even ordinary people, how could they not feel proud and excited about this?
Even the Japanese engineers involved were infected by this and became excited. You know, this production line is indeed an independently designed one and is considered a novelty in Japan.

They were all colleagues, and these Japanese were ordinary people, not right-wing military personnel. After more than half a year of contact, they had become familiar with each other. At this moment, they temporarily forgot the deep hatred between the two countries and hugged each other excitedly.

Some even bowed and thanked them in their broken Japanese: "Ari Aduo, the dog hopes your mother dies."

Li Xiaoshi was so happy that he lost all his noble demeanor, his back teeth were visible, and he waved his hand and gave a big red envelope to each of the workers and engineers involved in the debugging.

"Brother Zheng, it's time for us to have a detailed discussion about your salary and options."

"Ah."

Zheng Yi was not being pretentious. He was going to get the options anyway, and getting even less wouldn't do. There was no need for him to be polite to Li Xiaoshi at this time.

"Come to my house for a quick meal tonight. My mother is back and wants to see you. And my father, you know, he's been very depressed since the last incident. This thing should make him feel better."

"Okay."

Zheng Yi knew that they really had to discuss his salary. It seemed that the Li family also valued him very much, otherwise they would not have called the old lady back specially. The business in Hong Kong Island was handled by the old lady herself, and she had always been Li Jiqian's deputy during the company's development.

It can even be said that the real general affairs of the company are all managed by this old lady. On the contrary, the master Li Jiqian does not really look like a businessman.

As for the fifty yuan Zheng Yi received every month before, it was pocket money.

Just as he was thinking about it, Wu Wenhao came over and whispered, "Master, someone is looking for you outside the garden."

"Looking for me? Outside? Who is it?"

"Say it's your friend."

"I don't have any friends outside."

Having said that, Zheng Yi stood up, took the cigar, and went out to take a look.

(End of this chapter)