Reborn in 2011, I am the chief designer of aerospace.

"Tch, we stopped doing that a long time ago. That's an old almanac from last year. Don't embarrass me."

Cheng Long waved his hand with a smile, "To be honest, I've been wanting to invite you to dinner to thank you on behalf of the workers. If it weren't for your suggestion, that 50 million yuan for the shantytown renovation project would still be lying dormant in the district's finances, and we workers would still be doing military training."

"I was just mentioning it casually," Song Xingye said indifferently. "Getting this money back is entirely due to Director Cheng's abilities. He must have had his share of wrangling with the district finance department and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, right?"

"Hehe, let's not talk about the unpleasant things. Anyway, I got the money back, but they told me to return it within two years."

Cheng Long, looking like a bachelor, said, "Whether we pay it back or not is another matter. Anyway, the money has already been turned into workers' wages. Whether the factory will still be there in two years is another story! In short, the immediate crisis has been resolved, and now everyone is actively trying to save themselves."

As he spoke, he pointed to the roaring, shaking factory buildings not far away.

"The international crude oil market has been quite good these past two years. We've completely converted our old precision machine tools, which used to manufacture wheel axles, to produce oil drill bits. I can't say for sure, but at least everyone's basic needs have been met."

As he spoke, Director Cheng touched his bald head, not at all ashamed, "At least, Dean Lu won't have to pay for the factory's electricity anymore, hehe."

Song Xingye suddenly asked, "Director Cheng, how much do you earn per month?"

"I?"

Cheng Long paused for a moment, then frankly said, "According to the standard, the monthly salary is 8,000 and the year-end bonus is 80,000. However, since I took office, I have only received 1,000 yuan a month for living expenses. When the factory recovers, the previous salary and bonus will be paid out in full."

"Didn't Director Cheng pay out his own bonus for that 50 million yuan shantytown renovation project?"

Cheng Long shook his head vigorously, "You underestimate me. I didn't keep a single penny; it all went to the workers' wages. The management team still gets a thousand yuan for living expenses, not a penny more. Even so, that money is still a tight squeeze."

Song Xingye looked at the man in front of him, his eyes flickering slightly.

He looks like a rough, carefree guy, but I didn't expect him to be so honest and upright.

After the chat, Song Xingye said goodbye to Director Cheng and drove back to the institute.

The next day, he took the "Thor" design drawings that he had worked on overnight and led his three companions back to Red Star Company.

In Workshop 5, which is exclusively under the control of the Thor rockets, nine workers, their work clothes stained with oil, are waiting for them.

Song Xingye counted the heads; there was still one person short of the agreed-upon ten.

Actually, before we came, Director Cheng had called to explain that the workers were all enthusiastically involved in the production of oil drill bits, and no one wanted to come to the fifth workshop to keep the prince company and tinker with some kind of lightning protection rocket.

These nine people in front of us were only transferred here after Cheng Long had to persuade them quite a bit.

Song Xingye understood Factory Director Cheng's difficulties and could sympathize with the workers. After all, producing oil drill bits could at least guarantee them basic food and clothing every month.

As for lightning-attracting rockets, which are considered "science fiction," who knows if they can be monetized?

It's perfectly normal for the workers to have resistance.

He briefly introduced himself, explaining that although he held the position of deputy director, he was actually the only person in charge of the fifth workshop.

Then, three technicians, Chang Jian, Jiang Mian, and Zhao Yuehe, were introduced to the workers.

"Engineer Chang is in charge of the integrated electronics of the Raytheon rocket, Engineer Jiang is in charge of the aerodynamic control system, and Engineer Zhao is in charge of the structural heat protection system."

"I'm mainly responsible for the overall design and propulsion of the Raytheon rocket... From now on, we're all on the same team. If you have any questions during the development process, feel free to ask us..."

Although the workers had their doubts, they were polite on the surface, calling him Director Song, Engineer Chang, Engineer Jiang, and Engineer Zhao.

Chang Jian, hands behind his back, grinned from ear to ear, and whispered in Song Xingye's ear, "Holy crap... this is the first time in my life someone has called me Engineer Chang, this is so awesome!"

Song Xingye, without changing his expression, whispered, "What if I called you Director Chang? Wouldn't you take off on the spot?"

"Sure, why don't you shout it out and let me hear it?"

Song Xingye rolled his eyes at him, too lazy to pay attention to him, and turned to get to know the workers one by one.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, he pulled a design drawing from his bag and slammed it onto the worktable.

This is a draft he came up with in his spare time during his last semester of his doctoral studies.

"This is the overall design plan for the Thor rocket. Next, based on this shape, each of you will handcraft a prototype on-site. I'd like to see how your skills are. Nine people... three people per group, two hours. Any questions?"

The workers gathered around, glanced at the blueprints, and their tense nerves immediately relaxed.

"Hey, that's it?"

Someone patted his chest and laughed, "Director Song, you underestimate our skills. This simple little gadget, in my opinion, can be finished in more than an hour!"

The blueprints provided by Song Xingye were indeed not complicated.

The arrow body is 50 cm long and 5 cm in diameter, and the total steel weight is limited to 3 kg.

Its design is unremarkable, even somewhat rudimentary.

The workers got right to work, and the roar of the lathes starting up instantly filled the air. Sparks flew everywhere in the workshop, creating a bustling and energetic atmosphere.

Chang Jian stared at the blueprint, finding it increasingly familiar. He couldn't help but exclaim, "Hey, it looks a bit like the little rocket you designed during the summer camp!"

Jiang Mian and Zhao Yuehe also came over, both nodding their heads in unison, "It really does look like it."

Jiang Mian concluded definitively, "It's not just similar, it's exactly like that, isn't it?"

"You guys have sharp eyes," Song Xingye readily admitted. "This is a smaller version of 'Wild Donkey No. 1,' which Cao Que, Jiang Mian, and I designed for the ninth round of the Starry Sky Summer Camp. Since there's a ready-made solution, might as well use it."

Chang Jian hesitated for a moment: "Is it really going to work with this rocket modified to be so small?"

His face was full of doubt.

Song Xingye said confidently, "Although the Wild Donkey No. 1 rocket is very powerful, it is still too much for a lightning-attracting rocket. You have to understand that in most cases, thunderstorm clouds are only a few hundred to a thousand meters above the ground, while the Wild Donkey No. 1 can fly 10,000 meters, which is completely unnecessary."

The system he planned on the blueprints was very simple:

A miniature rocket consisting of a parachute recovery system, engine, tail fins, and winding reel; and a launch pad consisting of rails, chassis, and tripod.

The current for remote ignition is controlled at 3 amps, and the delay time cannot exceed 25 milliseconds.

These are all relatively basic overall designs, so Song Xingye finalized them on his own initiative before Chang Jian, Jiang Mian, and Zhao Yuehe arrived at their posts.

None of them had any objections, after all, it was just a carrier, and following the mainstream traditional design was the safest bet.

The real challenges are rocket fuel, lightning-attracting wire materials, and the core AI weather warning model.

Time passed second by second.

Amidst the skilled hammering of the workers, three prototype "Thor" figures, gleaming with a metallic gleam, were neatly arranged in front of Song Xingye.

Song Xingye began to check them one by one.

……

Although he wasn't a mechanical engineering expert by training, he had often dealt with top mechanics in his previous life, and through this exposure, he had developed some discernment.

With a quick glance, he could tell that the workers that Director Cheng had transferred over were all only half-baked in terms of technical skills.

It's passable, but it's a far cry from being "excellent".

After dismissing the workers, Song Xingye whispered among himself and his three companions.

"As for rocket fuel, Zhao Yuehe and I can handle it. As long as we find a suitable fuel combination, we can control the rocket's takeoff speed within 200m/s. I'm confident in that."

"Chang Jian and Jiang Mian can handle the AI ​​lightning warning model. The only tricky part now is the metal wire material, which is a crucial element and cannot be taken lightly."

"The metal wire must be lightweight enough, otherwise the rocket won't be able to lift it; at the same time, it must be strong enough, because the longer the metal wire, especially when it is hundreds of meters long, the easier it is to break."

Song Xingye sighed: "In short, this is a job that really tests your skills. The four of us are all theoretical designers, and none of us are proficient in machining. We'll have to find another helper."

Chang Jian was taken aback: "Were those workers all useless?"

Song Xingye shook his head.

Afterwards, he told Chang Jian, Jiang Mian, Zhao Yuehe, and others to go about their own business. As for the workers, Song Xingye handed over the blueprints of the rocket launcher and related equipment for them to study first.

Song Xingye went out to look for someone.

After all, he had served as the acting factory manager of the 307 Red Star Factory for a period of time in his previous life, so he still had some impression of the personnel relationships in the factory.

Although the factory was poorly managed, resulting in a large loss of talent, it was getting worse year by year.

But even a wrecked ship has some nails, and there are indeed a few pieces of real gold buried in the corner.

A name popped into his mind—Zong Ping.

This person is a worker in the first business division. He has been engaged in the machining of aerospace equipment drawings for ten years and is proficient in the properties of a series of materials such as aluminum alloys, titanium alloys and stainless steel, as well as sheet metal forming.

In addition, there's no job he can't handle, such as turning, milling, planing, grinding, CNC machine tools, electron beam welding, riveting machines, pneumatic drills, and tooling fixtures.

If we could recruit him as the chief mechanic, those headache-inducing machining problems would definitely be solved!

Soon, Song Xingye arrived at a workshop in the First Business Division.

After asking an experienced craftsman, he went straight to a workbench in a corner.

A man in his thirties, dressed in oil-stained overalls, was looking down, holding a drill, manually drilling a hole in a steel plate, and then inserting a screw.

The drill bit hummed, and iron filings flew everywhere.

The man seemed to notice the footsteps beside him, but he didn't even lift his eyelids. He seemed to be one with the drill in his hands, completely focused and single-minded.

Song Xingye didn't disturb them, but picked up a piece of steel plate that had been made next to him and examined it, inwardly praising it.

The holes drilled in the steel plate are even more beautiful than those of a precision machine, with almost perfectly vertical edges and a smooth, mirror-like inner wall without any burrs.

The holes drilled in the steel plate are even more beautiful than those of a precision machine, with almost perfectly vertical edges and a smooth, mirror-like inner wall without any burrs.

In his previous life, he had witnessed the work of many workers, but it was truly rare to see someone like Zongping who could create such precise holes in a steel plate by hand.

If you search the entire Dongyu Group, you might be able to find a very few people who can do this. Nowadays, most workers have long since left this kind of process to computer-controlled CNC machine tools. This kind of craftsmanship has almost been lost.

After a long while, the hum of the drilling rig stopped.

Zong Ping blew away the iron filings from the steel plate, let out a long breath, and then raised his head, his eyes calm as he said:

"Is there something you need?"

Song Xingye asked curiously, "Logically speaking, even though Hongxing Factory is poorly managed and can't afford the latest equipment, surely they should at least have a decent cylinder cutting machine? Why do they have to rely on hand-grinding?"

Zong Ping replied naturally, "The factory does have cylinder cutting machines, but I think manual work is sometimes more hands-on than machine work. And in my opinion, manual work is more likely to stimulate workers' thinking."

He pointed to the hole he had just drilled, "For example, just now, I was halfway through drilling when I suddenly had an idea: maybe a different angle would be better. If you leave it to a computer, it will just rigidly execute the instructions. In my experience, these prototypes made by hand actually have a lower failure rate."

"Really? Maybe your skills are better. Most people still can't match the precision of computer control."

Song Xingye knew that the process of manufacturing aerospace equipment was one in which no mistakes could be tolerated, otherwise it would trigger a series of chain accidents that would affect the performance and safety of the rocket.

Cutting out a high-performance rocket engine cylinder by hand without any errors is no easy task.

While skillfully operating the cylinder cutter, Zongping said, "For processes like drilling, cutting, and grinding, I believe that no matter how advanced CNC machining becomes, we must not forget that these are the foundation of the manufacturing industry."

This statement is very convincing; at least Song Xingye strongly agrees with it.

"Furthermore, if it's just for making prototypes, I still recommend manual work rather than starting with computer-aided production."

After finishing working on one part, Zongping continued his explanation.

He seemed to have a very strong urge to confide in others, explaining his views to Song Xingye, a patient listener.

"When making prototypes, sometimes the product made according to the drawings will have slight differences from what the designer wanted."

"This gap is imperceptible to computers, which are silicon-based organisms; it requires human touch and visual observation to gain insight..."

Song Xingye stood to the side, listening attentively without interrupting Zong Ping from beginning to end.

Zongping's mouth was dry from talking, so the other man picked up a large Fuguang water glass covered in tea stains and gulped down several large mouthfuls.

He put down his cup, wiped his mouth, and went straight to the point:

"Alright kid, you don't come here without a reason. You're here to ask me for work, aren't you?"

Song Xingye wasn't surprised that his thoughts had been guessed, and he nodded frankly, "We have a project on lightning-inducing rockets, and we're in need of a machinist like you who is proficient in turning, milling, planing, and grinding..."

"Lightning-attracting rocket..."

Zongping paused, holding his cup, then suddenly realized, "Oh... you mean the fifth workshop that the fourth business division just set up? I don't go to that place. It's where the most unpopular people in the factory are sent."

The refusal was swift and decisive.

Song Xingye earnestly invited, "Master Zong, with your skills, it's a waste for you to stay here. What's the point of making oil drill bits?"