78: Bringing his wife and children to Harbin Institute of Technology

"Comrade Ye Bingwen?"

The middle-aged officer spoke first.

"I am."

"I'm from the Equipment Department of the Provincial Military Region, my surname is Fang."

He showed his identification.

"Director Zhou had something come up and asked me to check on the progress. They're pressing us for this shipment, so I need to find out what's going on."

Ye Bingwen's heart skipped a beat.

The pressure to come and inspect ahead of schedule is not a good sign.

"Director Fang, please come in."

He led Director Fang into the factory.

Master Li is working, and the machine tool is spinning vigorously.

Director Fang took a walk around the workshop.

"We've done quite a bit."

Director Fang's tone was relatively calm.

"The first batch of twenty pieces has been completed, and we are now working on the second batch."

Ye Bingwen said.

"The progress is fine, and the first batch can be delivered before the end of the month."

"Um."

Director Fang nodded.

Ye Bingwen breathed a sigh of relief.

But it was loosened a bit too early.

Three days after Director Fang left, rumors started circulating.

First, Master Li came back from outside, looking unwell.

"Director Ye, have you heard?"

"What did you hear?"

"There are rumors circulating at the Harbin No. 2 Factory that our technology is inadequate, we can't even operate the new machine tools properly, and this batch of military products is going to have a big problem."

Ye Bingwen frowned.

"Who said that?"

"An old friend of mine works at the No. 2 factory, and he said that everyone in his factory is talking about it."

"They said that when Director Fang came to inspect, our machine tools broke down, and all the work produced was scrap."

"The machine tool had already been repaired when Director Fang arrived."

"My old friend said that the person who spread this message also said—"

"What else is there to say?"

"You said you don't understand technology and are just someone who flips through blueprints. Giving us this batch of military supplies is a waste of the country's money."

Ye Bingwen remained silent.

Seeing that his expression was off, Master Li added another sentence.

"It must be someone from Factory No. 2 who's jealous and deliberately leaked this information. Don't take it to heart."

"I didn't take it to heart."

Ye Bingwen said.

"But if these words reach the ears of the provincial military command, it won't be a matter of whether they take them to heart or not."

He turned and went to the reception room, where he dialed Director Zhou's number.

The phone rang for a long time before someone answered.

"Director Zhou is not here; he's in a meeting."

It was a young voice.

"When are you coming back?"

"It's hard to say."

Ye Bingwen hung up the phone.

The rumors have already been released.

He knew who did it without even checking.

Harbin No. 2 Factory was an old state-owned factory that had always wanted to secure orders from the provincial military region, but it was snatched away by its own school-run factory.

They were unwilling to give up and made a fuss about Director Fang's visit.

The problem is that the machine tool did indeed malfunction when Director Fang came.

Although it has been repaired, the story has lost its original meaning once it gets out.

The more you explain something like this, the worse it gets.

Ye Bingwen sat in the reception room for a while and lit a cigarette.

Old Liu said from the side.

"Director Ye, don't get upset. People can say whatever they want, let them talk."

"I'm not experiencing any internal heat."

Ye Bingwen said.

"I'm thinking about how to solve this."

"How do we break this?"

"Use it to break things."

Ye Bingwen put out his cigarette and went back to the workshop.

He walked over to the new machine tool.

Mr. Li is working.

"Master Li, every single item in this batch must be made to the best of its ability. If the tolerance can be reduced to within one millimeter, then reduce it to within one millimeter."

Master Li looked up and glanced at him.

"What's wrong?"

"Some people are gossiping about us. I need to show the people in the provincial military region that the work we do is just as good as anyone else's.

Master Li readjusted the tool holder, picked up a blank, clamped it, set the tool, and turned on the machine.

The movements were slower and more steady than usual.

Mr. Li only did three jobs that morning.

Each piece is meticulously crafted, and after completion, it is measured three times to ensure there are no problems before being placed into the finished product box.

Ye Bingwen stood by and watched all morning.

He didn't stay in the workshop in the afternoon.

He walked around the factory several times.

Mr. Li found it strange when he went out for a smoke.

"What are you wandering around for?"

"Master Li, I've been thinking about it, and the problem with that batch of work the day before yesterday might not just be a problem with the motor."

"What else could it be?"

"foundation."

Mr. Li was stunned for a moment.

"foundation?"

"The new machine tool is more than twice as heavy as the old one, and it also has a higher rotation speed."

"Our factory building was built in the 1960s, and the foundation wasn't very deep."

"When the machine tool starts running, the vibration is transmitted to the foundation, and the vibration from the foundation is reflected back."

"You mean the machine tool is struggling against itself?"

"Pretty much. The motor eccentricity is the trigger, but the fundamental problem is probably that the resonant frequency of the foundation matches the spindle speed of the machine tool."

Master Li put a cigarette in his mouth.

"What you're talking about sounds familiar, like I've heard it somewhere before."

"When the machine tool was installed, the foundation was not stable, or it resonated with the surrounding equipment."

"This will result in the phenomenon that the engine is unstable at low speeds but stable at high speeds."

Why didn't you say so sooner?

"I just figured it out myself."

Ye Bingwen said.

"If the same problem occurs again after the motor is replaced, then it's no longer the motor's fault."

Mr. Li squatted down and patted the ground with his hand.

The cement floor feels very hard, but who knows what's underneath?

"What should we do then?"

"Let me think about it some more."

Ye Bingwen returned to the factory and looked at the location of all the equipment.

Three machine tools, a punch press, and a drilling machine, are all crammed into this factory of less than 100 square meters.

Each piece of equipment was vibrating, though very slightly, but when combined, it was not a small matter.

He called over Master Zhao and Xiao Zhang.

"From now on, when you're working, operate this new machine tool independently. If you need to operate other equipment, wait until this one stops before starting it."

Xiao Zhang didn't understand.

Why?

"To avoid mutual interference."

Ye Bingwen didn't explain further.

He then took another walk around the outside of the factory.

The factory building is a brick-concrete structure, and the foundation can be seen at the base of the walls, which is only about half a meter deep.

The new machine tool, including its base, weighs over two tons. With such a heavy weight pressing on such a shallow foundation, it's no wonder there are problems.

He stood at the factory gate, and he knew what was going on.

With the motor replaced and the equipment operating times staggered, this batch of goods should be able to be delivered on time.

However, in the long run, this factory is not suitable for storing heavy equipment.

Once this batch of goods is delivered and we have the money, the first thing we'll do is move to a new factory.

Two days later, Liu Xiaojun arrived.

Ye Bingwen picked him up at the train station.

Liu Xiaojun, carrying a snakeskin bag, stood at the exit of the station, looking around.

"Xiaojun, over here."

"Uncle Ye."

Liu Xiaojun grinned.

"I told you to call me brother."

Liu Xiaojun scratched his head.

"Calling him Uncle is easier to say."

Ye Bingwen took him to the factory, where Master Li was working.

"Master Li, this is Liu Xiaojun, whom I told you about. He's from Daxing Village."

Master Li looked him up and down.

"How long did you work there?"

"More than half a year."

"Can you sharpen knives?"

"meeting."

"Let me see you grind one."

Liu Xiaojun walked to the grinding machine, picked out a dull tool, and started grinding.