Back to the 80s Machinery Factory

Chapter 566 This damn pride!
"Our factory has given a strict order: we must deliver the steel by the end of the month. If we don't get the steel, we won't even be able to roll out the furnace lining, and all the workers will have to quit! Who will take responsibility then?!"

"Our factory is currently working on orders for TV casings! All thirty-plus stamping presses in the stamping workshop are stuck. If not a single steel plate arrives, the workers can only watch helplessly!"

"What will happen to our factory's mission if the materials are taken by someone else?!"

"We demand an explanation today!"

"Yes! If you don't give it to us, dozens of us will just stay here and refuse to leave!"

"No one is leaving until the problem is solved!"

The room was a chaotic mess, so noisy that the ceiling was about to be blown off. The sounds of banging on the table and overturning chairs blended together.

Suddenly, a sharp "snap!" startled everyone in the room.

Liang Zhongwei slammed his hand on the table, stood up with a dark face, and spoke in a very heavy voice:

"Everyone, please be quiet!"

The crowd was stunned for a moment, and their imposing manner gradually subsided.

Liang Zhongwei said coldly, "You all come here shouting, what do you take the Municipal Economic Commission for? Is it your factory's gatehouse?!"

He glanced around, his eyes sharp, and continued, his tone laced with anger:
"There's only so much steel. These are key projects that the higher-ups specifically want to protect—it's a fixed task, not something to be discussed!"

"Who among you can guarantee that you would dare to suppress a key national project?"

"If something goes wrong, can you take responsibility?!"

The room fell silent for a few seconds. The factory managers who had been shouting earlier froze, their momentum noticeably weakening.

"I know you're all anxious, but arguing won't help!"

Liang Zhongwei said solemnly.

"I've memorized every single approval document, and I'll make sure everyone gets what they're owed! But right now there's a shortfall, so we have to tighten the reins first and then loosen them later!"

"Anyone who is dissatisfied can go and complain to the higher-ups!"

The room had been in an uproar, but Liang Zhongwei's words, which were slammed on the table, instantly calmed things down considerably.

The Municipal Economic Commission is the "central nervous system" of the city's industrial system.

Steel, equipment, quotas, permits... whatever a factory wants to do, it can't get around these.

Especially these days, planned steel shipments are processed in batches, one truckload at a time.

Even missing just one stamp can bring the entire production line to a standstill.

If Liang Zhongwei really slams his fist on the table...

Their factory's material specifications and next month's plan
Let alone additional funding, it's hard to say whether we can even keep it.

Seeing that the crowd's momentum had subsided, Liang Zhongwei's expression relaxed slightly, and his voice became a bit more composed:
“I understand the anger in everyone’s hearts. But there’s only so much steel. No matter how much you argue, you can’t conjure it up.”

He paused, then softened his tone and glanced around:
"The city is already in contact with the metallurgical and railway departments to try to urgently transfer a batch of replacement materials."

"Once that batch of materials arrives, I will distribute them to you immediately, making sure you get exactly what you're entitled to. I know your factory's tasks perfectly well."

The boiler factory manager sighed, his expression still showing frustration, but he couldn't afford to argue any further.

"Director Liang, it's not that we're being unreasonable, it's just that the end-of-month delivery deadline is pressing, and the workers are very resentful..."

“I understand.” Liang Zhongwei nodded, his tone full of understanding.

"Hold on for a few more days and do what you can. As soon as the supplies arrive, I will give priority to your civilian production lines."

"I will write a statement to the higher-ups regarding your factory's situation, and I won't let you take the blame for nothing."

Seeing that everyone's emotions had been calmed down, Liang Zhongwei said, "Alright, I've said what I needed to say, and I've written down what I needed to remember."

"If you still have any objections, then raise them with your superiors."

"But shouting here won't get you a single pound of steel!"

"You all go back and try to hold on for now. I'll give you an explanation as soon as the supplies arrive!"

Having said all that, even if the factory managers were seething inside, they couldn't say anything more. They could only shut up with grim faces and turn to leave.

The corridor gradually quieted down, leaving only Liang Zhongwei sitting in his office, holding a teacup, his brows furrowed, but he didn't touch the tea.

Dong dong dong

There was a knock on the door.

Liang Zhongwei frowned, suppressed his anger, and said, "Come in."

The door was pushed open, and Chen Luyang cautiously peeked in before closing the door and cheerfully greeting everyone.

"Senior brother, what are you busy with?"

Liang Zhongwei glanced up and saw that he wasn't very friendly.

"What? You're here for steel too?"

Chen Luyang quickly waved his hand and said with a smile, "How could I dare? Our repair shop is just a small shop, how could we compete with a key national project?"

"Besides, we're already honored that our steel can support key projects!"

"I just wanted to come and see when the next batch of steel would arrive, so I'd have a better idea of ​​what to expect."

Liang Zhongwei glanced at him.

"You're quite sensible; you know to say a few agreeing words first."

"You didn't see those factories just now, making a huge fuss, as if they wouldn't be done until they overturned the table."

Seeing this, Chen Luyang took a step forward and lowered her voice:

"Senior brother, we don't talk much in our small factory. We'll do whatever you're paid for."

"But if we don't even get a fraction of it, we'll have a hard time explaining it to our brothers."

He paused, then added tactfully, "Besides, our factory also has a research project with Peking University, and the professors and the university are keeping an eye on it."

"If we have to stop because of a lack of materials, I won't be able to explain it to those vocational schools."

Liang Zhongwei, who was still holding a teacup, put it down upon hearing this and said helplessly:

"I understand your difficulties."

“Right now, everyone in the city is short of materials, and people are eyeing my house one after another.”

"If I were to take care of one family, the others would immediately erupt in chaos."

"Senior brother, I understand. How could I dare to cause you any trouble?" Chen Luyang said with a smile.

"As long as you can leave me an opening when the next replacement parts arrive, so that the repair shop doesn't become a lone operation, that's fine."

Chen Luyang said earnestly, "The brothers are working overtime every day at the factory, and the students at the technical school are also focused on their practical training tasks. If they keep going empty-handed, their morale will drop and their enthusiasm will be gone."

Liang Zhongwei rubbed his brow.

"How about this, once the replenishment arrives, I'll distribute some to you first."

"The quantity won't be large, but it will at least get your factory started, so it doesn't just stop altogether."

"But for the bulk orders later on, you'll have to follow the city's unified allocation."

Chen Luyang's face immediately lit up with joy: "Thank you, Senior Brother! I'll go back and wait for news then!"

As Chen Luyang stepped out of the office, the smile on her face quickly vanished, and her expression turned serious.

Liang Zhongwei readily agreed, saying that once the supplementary materials arrived, he would first allocate a batch to them.

But now the tasks from above are being increased one after another, and no one can say for sure whether the allocations from the metallurgical and railway sectors will arrive on time.

Even if we really get there,
With approvals from the city piling up and priority orders stacked up layer by layer, it's hard to say how far a small repair shop like theirs will end up.

Besides, it's already March, and the number of parts that the repair shop made in the early stages was already limited.

In addition, car repairs have been going on high demand lately, and our inventory is almost depleted.

If we don't speed up production soon, we'll really run out of parts when the new batch of cars arrives. Back at the repair shop,
Li He, Sun Hongjun, and Jiao Long had already parked their car in the corner.

Several people were squatting beside the pile of goods, smoking silently, and their expressions were not good.

Upon seeing Chen Luyang return, he immediately stood up.

"Brother Chen."

Li He stepped forward and lowered his voice, "That's all, just scraps."

Chen Luyang walked over and reached out to lift the oilcloth.

Underneath the tarpaulin, bundles of steel lay haphazardly, their ends uneven, many with rust spots along the edges, and some were even visibly bent.

Reaching out, I pulled out a piece; the cut was crooked and twisted, it didn't look like a raw material ready for processing.

Sun Hongjun couldn't help but mutter, "This thing is all scrap material, the cuts are terribly crooked, it will slip as soon as it's clamped on the lathe, no wonder it's unusable!"

Jiaolong is extremely fiery, and his voice is choked with spiciness.

"Those guys in the warehouse are just fooling us. They watch as bundles of good materials are hoarded away by others, and all they give us is this junk!"

Listening to everyone's complaints and looking at that pile of crooked, rusty materials, Chen Luyang felt more frustrated than anyone else.

The approval was something I went through a lot of trouble to get, and all I got in return were a few scraps. Anyone would feel frustrated.

But now he is the backbone of the factory.

If even Chen Luyang joins in complaining, then everyone's emotions will become even more chaotic.

Take a deep breath,

Chen Luyang threw the crooked piece of material back with a "bang," and raised her voice with a laugh:

"So what if it's broken!"

"Our repair shop started from scratch, wasn't it?"

"Speaking of which, we're living a good life now. We never had so much junk to use before!"

"Now it's great, we've brought back three large truckloads at once!"

"If Brother Sheng saw this, his eyes would be green with envy!"

After a few words were spoken, the anger on the faces of the people who had been holding back dissipated considerably.

Chen Luyang withdrew his gaze, covered the steel with the tarpaulin again, and said loudly:
"Let's pick out the ones that are usable first. I'll figure out how to make up for the rest."

"it is good!"

Out of an almost natural, instinctive trust in Chen Luyang, everyone nodded in unison without hesitation.

As long as Chen Luyang tells us how, we'll definitely find a way!
Seeing everyone busily working away, Chen Luyang's eyes showed a hint of worry.

Although he said he had a way...

But he was just the director of a small repair shop, not a god, and couldn't conjure up tons of good steel out of thin air.

The wind blew in from outside the courtyard, whipping up the edges of the oilcloth and making a slapping sound.

Chen Luyang looked up at the gray sky, her chest heaving.

"Oh shit……"

……

The pile of scraps that Li He retrieved was crooked and rusty,
But if you look carefully, you can always find a few that are "suitable for lathe operation".

Director Lu, Zhang Guoqiang, Tan Songren, and Liu Kangwen worked together to inspect and classify each piece of material that had been brought back.

Parts like brake push rods and couplings don't require high material precision; scraps can be shredded and machined to make them usable.

In this way, the new production line can at least be started, instead of just waiting idly.

But that's the problem.

With this amount of material, it can barely sustain these two types of parts.

The remaining nozzles, gaskets, spark plugs, and ignition coil modules were all out of the question.

These parts rely either on the strength of the steel or on precise dimensions; with just this pile of substandard and rusty materials, we can't even assemble a complete blank.
If we want to accelerate production, we need to find other ways.

But where can we find a solution...?

night,

Chen Luyang lay on the bed, tossing and turning, frantically trying to come up with a solution.

There are definitely some scrap metal recycling stations nearby.

But if you really go and look at it, the material is a mess of different sizes and thicknesses.

Even if you manage to buy it back cheaply, it won't solve the problem of other parts.

The railway lathe depot can always scrap out some leftover materials.

Those axle cut ends, coupler scraps, and rail blanks are all made of genuine, high-quality steel.

The hardness and size are both sufficient; it's ready to be loaded onto the lathe.

Unfortunately, these things have always been "keeping the good stuff within the family," and the department has long had its own set of internal rules for distribution.

What they could get was mostly their own employees going back to weld a furnace frame or build an iron gate; outsiders couldn't even get a finger out of it.

Several small workshops in the southern part of the city can also produce them.

These workshops are the most nimble; they dare to release both black and white material.

Today's steel plates might be smuggled from somewhere, but tomorrow they could be scrap material salvaged from dismantled vehicles.

If you're really not afraid of trouble, you can always get a few bucks by spending some money.

However, the origins of these materials are unclear, and their quality is not guaranteed to be uniform.

If it were used to make general-purpose parts, it might be able to make do for a while, but once it breaks down, it won't just damage the workshop's reputation, but the repair shop's image.

I considered several places, but they were either too difficult or too risky, making them impossible to access.

Chen Luyang had considered asking Lu Yongqiang and He Dahua for help, to see if he could borrow some information from them.

But... damn it!

This damn pride!!!
Just as Chen Luyang was digging a tunnel to figure out what to do, suddenly, his eyes lit up!
Since the right path is difficult, why not try a different approach?
I definitely can't get into those big factories and big projects by myself.

Steel that can be allocated must always have a place for collection, distribution, and allocation.

Southwest Marshalling Yard!
The Southwest Marshalling Yard is located in the southwest corner of the West Railway Station, only two or three stops away from the repair shop, but it is one of the distribution centers for steel in Pian'er City.

All goods transferred from other places, whether they are cold-rolled steel from Baobao Steel or thick plates from An'an Steel, must eventually be unpacked and distributed there.

High-quality materials in bulk are naturally matched and sent to major factories.

But there are always one or two bundles of scraps left in a corner.

These odds and ends are often not included in the official inventory list, and no one is willing to drive a special truck to deliver them. In the end, they either pile up to collect dust or are simply disposed of as waste.

As long as someone is willing to run errands or make a conversation, they can easily take this small amount of money.

However, the railway staff are keeping a close eye on things, and since I'm not a familiar face, I might not be able to succeed even if I go.

But how will you know it won't work if you don't try?

Moreover, the factory is waiting to start operations, and the technical school students are waiting for practical training.

Even if we only manage to get back a ton or two, it will quench our immediate thirst!
Chen Luyang's eyes grew brighter and brighter as she thought about it, and her mind became more and more open!

I'll try my luck tomorrow when it gets light; what if I succeed?

(End of this chapter)