Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 243 Everything is ready
The 10 tickets Yan Hui mentioned, if it's a yearly volume, would only amount to a business with an annual turnover of over 700 million yuan, or 60 yuan per month.

Only.

"President Yan..." The factory manager offered a Zhonghua cigarette. "You said 100,000 sheets? It's not that I don't believe you, but no construction site can use that many."

The factory manager was an honest man; he knew one thing very well: there's no such thing as a free lunch. It wasn't that he couldn't produce 100,000 sheets of plywood, but rather that no construction site could possibly use that many.

Plywood used on construction sites is an end product, almost impossible to take away for secondary processing. It is something that goes directly to the "end", and there are almost no wholesalers among the buyers.

Moreover, due to the special nature of construction sites, the validity period of such contracts is generally not long; one or two years is considered long, and no construction site would build a factory specifically to buy plywood.

It's a very special product that those who make it don't use, and those who use it don't make it. If Yan Hui were to start a processing plant in the future, he most likely wouldn't build a plywood processing plant.

"Manager Xiang, before coming here, I investigated many plywood factories and inquired with many peers. I won't mention who I asked, but in short, I judged that your factory is fine and worth cooperating with. I know the price is negotiable, but I didn't bring a contract to discuss the price today, which wasn't my intention. I just need to confirm one thing: if my order is large enough, is the price of 74 negotiable?" Yan Hui asked a seemingly pointless question.

"I wonder what price Mr. Yan is looking for?" After pondering for a few seconds, the factory manager had no choice but to give in.

"If we can talk, that's good. Director Xiang, would it be convenient for us to take a tour?" Yan Hui asked.

"That's so convenient! How many people are with you, Mr. Yan? Let's have dinner together tonight before you leave." Director Xiang breathed a sigh of relief.

Although he knew Yan Hui had arrived on a beat-up motorcycle, he felt inexplicably pressured. He had dealt with many bosses before, and he was certainly capable of judging whether someone was trying to scam him.

He didn't want to lose the order, but he also didn't want to occupy all his production capacity for an order with extremely low profit margins.

"Let's not rush to eat, let's tour the factory first."

"follow me."

The factory owned by Director Xiang doesn't just process plywood for construction sites; it can produce all types of plywood. However, its main processing contracts are in the furniture industry.

The materials such as "plywood" that many people mention are produced in this kind of factory.

Almost all household furniture relies on gluing, which is unavoidable, as solid wood is rarely that wide.

Upon entering the plywood production workshop, Yan Hui was immediately struck by a pungent odor, causing him to frown slightly. Fortunately, a high-powered exhaust fan was installed, otherwise the smell would have been even stronger.

The workers in this workshop are all wearing rudimentary gas masks, which already shows that the boss is quite responsible.

"Is the glue we use here made of urea-formaldehyde resin?" Yan Hui asked.

"It's basically all this stuff. It really smells strong; every hot-press adhesive has a odor," Factory Manager Xiang chuckled. He was clearly used to the smell. "Factory Manager Xiang, you should take precautions," Yan Hui said with concern.

"It's alright, I haven't been in the workshop for long. The smell here is relatively mild. It's mainly because these exhaust fans are powerful. These two exhaust fans together have a power of over 2000 watts. I dare say there aren't many factories with a stronger smell than this one," said Director Xiang with a hint of pride.

What is the approximate plywood production capacity of your factory?

“Under normal circumstances, 300 cubic meters a month is no problem,” the factory manager said, giving a conservative figure.

“That’s about 10,000 boards a month,” Yan Hui frowned. “To be honest, that’s less than I expected.”

“If orders continue, we can hire more people and process them even on the night shift. But, Mr. Yan, you know that hiring people requires retraining them, and it's not worthwhile for short-term orders.” The factory manager said this with some shock.

A monthly production capacity of 1 sheets isn't enough for this Mr. Yan? He really wants 10 sheets? What are they for?
“Indeed, I’m not saying your production capacity is insufficient. I just know you have other orders and can’t just produce for me. Mr. Xiang, I can see you’re a straightforward person. I’ve seen your sincerity today. I’ll come over in a few days with the contract, orders, and cash. You can then carefully calculate the costs. What do you think?” Yan Hui said very directly.

"To be honest, I've never done business like this before, but now that you've put it that way, I can't refuse. Mr. Yan, could you give me a rough estimate of how many you need? Is it really 100,000 sheets?" Factory Manager Xiang couldn't help but feel anxious.

Yan Hui had completely raised his expectations; it was truly rare to encounter a client like this!

"Let's talk after we see the contract. We can take it slow at the beginning. In addition, if Mr. Xiang needs a cheap source of poplar, pine and eucalyptus, I can help you. It will definitely be the source."

"No problem, no problem. Mr. Yan, this is my business card. Don't leave yet, let's have dinner together tonight and chat." Factory Manager Xiang said quickly.

"Director Xiang, no rush. I'm not just making empty promises. If I think your company is good enough, I won't look for another one. I hope we can have the opportunity to cooperate. I have something to do today and I have to go back first. I'll come back next Monday or Tuesday when I'm free. I definitely won't come empty-handed then, and I hope Director Xiang will give me a satisfactory price then." In the end, Yan Hui still didn't completely rule out the possibility of a deal.

It's unrealistic to talk about bottom price now. No factory manager will keep pushing down prices for empty orders. It's better to wait until you have the orders in hand before making any decisions.

Mr. Han is a man of his word. You can see from his children how much he values ​​integrity, family education, and many other things. Yan Hui believes that if Mr. Han wants to help him, it will be a piece of cake! And he will definitely be able to help Mr. Han in return!
After saying goodbye to Factory Director Xiang, Yan Hui went back and contacted Lao Guo to inquire about the price and shipping costs of poplar wood, and got a general idea of ​​the situation.

Old Guo wouldn't keep anything from Yan Hui, especially after learning that Yan Hui was in trouble; he really wanted to help.

"Yang Mu, you don't need to look for Wang Hongjun. If you need it, I can guarantee that I won't make a single penny off you at the price I offer. There's absolutely no way anyone can offer a lower price than me!" Old Guo said with great confidence.

"These are two different things. We still need to make money. There's no rush. I'm just starting out now. I'll contact you when I need it." Yan Hui felt reassured.

Today, the factory manager can offer 74 yuan per board. If Yan Hui sells it for 80 yuan, he can make about 5 yuan profit per board. (Shipping costs about 1 yuan per board.)
This profit margin of only 6.75% is far too low. He needs to find ways to maintain the profit margin at 12%-20%.
Holding the notebook, Yan Hui began to make plans little by little.

(End of this chapter)