Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 75 The Steam Engine Finally Arrives
Xius paced excitedly in the study, looking at the desk from time to time. There was an ugly metal bucket on the desk.

It was crooked, not even symmetrical, and covered in messy handprints.

This is the final product that Nini made using that piece of iron plate.

Nini spent several days trying before she successfully used fossils to melt the steel into mud. After anxiously waiting for a day, the banshees were delighted to find that this did not cause cognitive interference.

This means that Hughes's guess is correct, and turning fossils into mud does allow matter to become fluid at room temperature.

This spell has great development value, but this is not what Xius is most concerned about right now.

"Success, success! We've finally made it this far!"

Being able to process metal at room temperature means that he can use simple molds for casting, that is,
There is no longer any obstacle to rubbing the steam engine by hand.

The steel that was once difficult to melt is now just plasticine that can be kneaded at will and can be manipulated at will.

"After so many days of hard work, we finally developed the core of industrial manufacturing!"

The steam engine is definitely one of the most important milestones in human industrial history. It was from then on that industry demonstrated its amazing power and completely distanced itself from small workshops.

Since arriving this time, Zeus has been thinking about how to build a steam engine. He once tried to find a blacksmith shop to see if he could make it by hand one part at a time.

Theoretically, it is feasible. In fact, this is what the Rhine factory does, but it requires the cooperation of a large number of skilled craftsmen, and also requires a lot of luck - in a world without an industrial base, the yield rate of hand-kneading is shockingly low. These conditions are somewhat feasible in the imperial capital, but almost impossible in Castel.

He had originally planned to give up, and even considered finding some channels to order some key parts from Rhine, and then slowly accumulate the rest on his own.

So Hughes had to open some factories that were less dependent on mechanical equipment, which consumed a lot of manpower.

Now, if the steam engine can be successfully developed, the olive oil factory will be able to free up more than 80% of the labor force and can operate day and night.

"Quick, go find the island's blacksmith, potter, and carpenter!" Hughes called Connor over and instructed him, "I'll give you some blueprints. Have them make some molds. Don't worry too much about the mold's strength, but make sure it's as precise as possible!"

With the Banshee's spell, you can simply make a mold with wood or clay to complete the casting of steam engine parts. Even if you fail, you can do it again very quickly and easily.

Moreover, the energy consumption is low, as only two fried fish are needed to produce 100 kilograms, which is quite environmentally friendly.

Well, I have to give Nini a raise.

Hughes did not take a break and drew many copies of the blueprint so that the craftsmen could start working at the same time.

He was not worried that these drawings would cause cognitive interference. He had customized a lot of miscellaneous parts from the blacksmith shop before, most of which were used in blast furnaces. As long as these parts were not combined into specific machines and equipment, cognitive interference would not occur.

He gave the drawings to Connor and repeatedly reminded him of the importance of this matter. Connor took the drawings to find the craftsmen.

Although the steam engine has many parts, it is not difficult to make the mold. It can be handed over to Nini soon so that she can use the fossils as mud to proceed to the next step.

Hughes opened his notebook. He needed to seriously consider his next step.

With the advent of the steam engine, something that had previously been of little importance suddenly became a problem: Castres had no coal mines.

The island is indeed rich in mineral resources, but that is mainly brought by volcanoes. Volcanic eruptions can easily bring about mineral deposits, and over the years, Castell has become a rich mining island.

But coal mines are different.

Coal deposits require extensive forests, which islands generally lack. Most coal mines are located inland. Due to crustal movement, coal and oil might be found on the seafloor, but mining them is so difficult that even the Banshees, fearless of water pressure, can't. What Hughes needs is a mine capable of mass production; relying on manual labor to carry materials on shoulders and hands is the limit.

Fortunately, coal is not a rare resource and can be bought as long as you have money. There is also some in the forests on Castell Island. The steam engine is not so picky and can be used to boil water. Wood can also be used.

But in the future, when industry develops, we will have to consider the fuel issue.

If physical pollution can really be burned, that would be a great help, but we can't pin our hopes on it. We still have to consider where to import coal from.

In addition, there is the issue of training engineers.

If it were on Blue Planet, if the engineers were not trained well, the most that would happen would be a higher probability of accidents and lower reliability. However, a certain big country in South Asia could still develop its industry by making do.

But here, his engineers must have a very accurate understanding of the work in their hands, and there must not be any deviation in the various principles. Once the cognition does not match the reality, it will lead to cognitive interference and pollution will fall from the sky.

This is the case when he has the ability to purify the pollution. If he opens the factory across the sea in the future, the requirements for engineers and workers will be even more stringent.

Now he has to train a group of engineers. Speaking of which, the school’s literacy classes have been running for a while, and it’s time to add a few more courses.

He currently plans to offer courses in basic physics, chemistry, and mechanical principles in order to train engineers who will be used in the future.

The steam engine will probably be built soon, and if we want to use and maintain it, we just have to wait for this group of engineers.

But if you want to open a course, there is a problem, that is -

“There’s no one else who can teach.”

Hughes sighed.

He had to take these courses in person, and the teachers were nowhere to be found.

Rhine also has factories, but since cognitive interference exists in this world, the technical information of the factories must be extremely valuable, and finding someone to give lectures would be extremely difficult.

Besides, Xius was not at ease if he looked for other people.

The knowledge in his mind has been verified countless times by people in later generations. He is born standing on the shoulders of giants. If he asks others to teach him, and if they teach some knowledge points incorrectly, the consequences will be unbearable for him.

"Come to think of it, Chloe once told me that the Candlelight Society was going to send a group of workers. I didn't think much of it at first, but now it seems they might be exactly the talent I need most right now."

There should be many ways to avoid cognitive pollution in the factory. In his previous life, Zeus was killed not long after staying in the factory. Moreover, he was a lowly apprentice and had little contact with the factory.

These people have worked in factories before and know much more about factories than he does. They should know many taboos and requirements in factories. Although the types of work may not be the same, many things are in common.

What's more, they are skilled workers themselves and can get started right away. This is extremely important for Castel, which is in urgent need of qualified workers.

The arrival of this group of people should be able to help him set up a factory.

Hughes thought expectantly.

"Maybe I can see those old faces again."

(End of this chapter)