The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 350 Giving the Ruhr Industrial Region a Small Technological Shock

On November 17, the Chinese women's volleyball team won seven out of seven matches at the third Women's Volleyball World Cup held in Osaka, Japan, and won the world championship for the first time.

Discussions about volleyball have begun to emerge in society.

During this period, the People's Canteen installed a television set in the lobby and in each private room.

The lobby features the city's first 21-inch color television.

The TVs in the private rooms come in different sizes, either 14 inches or 16 inches, depending on the size of the room.

As a result, the people's canteen naturally became even more popular.

Because there are too few television sets nowadays, and two particularly popular TV dramas have been imported to China this year:
First came "Man from Atlantis", then "The Dirty Dozen".

This television series has created a sensation across the country, initially airing on CCTV, and now local stations have also acquired the rights to broadcast it.

When these two TV shows are played in the restaurant, diners are so enticed that they stop eating and just watch TV.

Qian Jin immediately instructed Xu Weidong to start organizing people to find a second location to open a branch of the People's Canteen.

Also in November, the State issued the "Several Decisions on Opening Up More Avenues, Revitalizing the Economy, and Solving Urban Employment Problems," proposing that in the future, it is essential to focus on opening up employment channels in the collective and individual economies.

This is the Central Committee document No. 64 of 1980 that attracted widespread attention among educated youth.

The farmer Chen Zhaopan, whom Qian Jin brought back from Xiaochenzhuang Production Brigade, turned out to be quite useful.

He was sent to a training school to work as a current affairs and policy researcher, spending his days poring over national newspapers and magazines, meticulously crafting analytical reports.

I must say, he's much more useful than the commando team members; he always manages to deliver timely policy summaries to Qian Jin.

Qian Jin threw his summary report to Wei Xiongtu, and combined it with his own understanding of future policy changes to write an outline for Wei Xiongtu to revise and polish. Finally, he wrote an editorial and sent it to the Haibin Daily.

In early December, the People's Canteen Branch and the People's Non-staple Food Store opened simultaneously.

One of the branches specializes in hot pot and mala tang (spicy hot pot). It was already winter, and this winter was quite cold, so the restaurant did very well after it opened.

The clothing factory is also doing very well, with the "Romance on Lushan Mountain" series of clothing becoming a huge hit.

Three days after the opening of the first branch, the second garment factory also started operations, this time on a larger scale.

Qian Jin wants to arrange for 500 female workers!

Garment factories are labor-intensive enterprises, and they are crucial for solving the employment problems of educated youth returning to the city.

At the same time, the Labor Food Factory also began selecting a location and preparing to start operations.

This is a labor-intensive enterprise targeting men, and it is expected to start production as early as 1981, with a second factory to open in the same year.

According to Qian Jin's plan, the two factories will be able to solve the employment problem for thousands of young men.

On the 9th, Chen Zhaopan sent over another important policy analysis report.

This day happened to be a heavy snowfall, and the seaside city also welcomed its first snowfall of the winter.

On this special day, the state, through the People's Daily, pointed out that four problems must be solved to achieve the Four Modernizations:

First, there must be a firm and consistent political line.

Second, there needs to be a stable and united political situation.

Third, one must have a spirit of hard work and entrepreneurship.

Fourth, we need a cadre team that adheres to the socialist path and possesses professional knowledge and abilities.

The report emphasized the importance of upholding and improving the Party's leadership, and specifically pointed out that in the new era of reform and opening up, the country urgently needs a group of professional cadres who can do practical work and achieve results.

Qian Jin is that kind of cadre.

He is highly regarded by his superiors and relevant provincial and municipal leaders.

In order to live up to these expectations, Qian Jin continued to take care of the employment placement work of the labor shock brigades after taking office, but he also did not neglect his main task of introducing advanced foreign technologies and equipment.

Through his review, he found two problematic import contracts in Haibin City and five problematic contracts in the prefecture-level cities under his jurisdiction. However, these were all minor issues, and the import work could continue after rectification.

Meanwhile, the project he was in charge of, involving the introduction of urea synthesis tower equipment for the Haibin City Chemical Plant, finally entered a substantive stage at the end of 1980 after selecting partners and conducting initial telephone communications.

Qian Jin personally led the team, with Wang Zhenbang and Yang Dagang serving as deputy team leaders. Then, a more professional team flew to Germany to participate in contract negotiations.

He helped the chemical plant choose a very powerful partner: BASF Chemicals!
After the plane landed, they drove into the Ruhr industrial region.

It was already evening.

The night wind along the Rhine River carried the winter chill through the streets of Cologne.

The local environment is worrying. Industrial dust mixed with the moisture from the river condenses into a light blue haze, which hangs heavily on the outline of the rows of factory buildings.

Qian Jin looked out the car window. In this vast industrial area, towering chimneys pierced the twilight, each vying to spew out grayish-white steam.

As night fell and the moon rose, its cool light was blurred by the factory fumes.

Yang Dagang, an expert in chemical engineering, said with some surprise, "The pollution here is really severe."

Qian Jin calmly said, "If we want to develop industry, we can't avoid the problem of pollution."

Yang Dagang was stunned.

Qian Jin said, "Pollution can be addressed after development, but poverty has no priority. As long as you are poor and you don't try to become rich, you will remain poor forever!"

The gray Nissan Baning van skirted the edge of the industrial zone and entered the clean city.

Suddenly, Qian Jin spotted a huge tall building in the distance.

It was the main building of a factory, with huge "BASF" letters shining red on the roof, like several Cthulhu eyes overlooking the industrial area.

The car stopped at the hotel, and Qian Jin and his men got out and went inside.

Photographers waiting there took pictures.

A group of people with black hair and black eyes, rarely seen in Cologne, appeared in the night.

They were all dressed in matching black trench coats and black leather shoes, walking with a powerful stride, serious expressions, and taciturn demeanor.

Negotiations will officially begin tomorrow.

But none of the BASF staff came to pick them up or greet them at the airport today.

This is Germanic arrogance.

However, this was just right, as it gave Qian Jin time to work. Before going to bed, he treated his colleagues in the negotiation team to some German draft beer and also discussed the upcoming negotiation work again.

Well prepared!

The negotiations took place in a conference room at BASF's plant, as both sides first needed to tour the production line, have their questions answered, and then begin formal negotiations.

BASF has a large-scale plant in the Ruhr industrial region.

It is the dominant company here.

Qian Jin had heard of the Ruhr industrial region in Germany in his previous life, but by then China's industry had already grown and prospered, and the Ruhr industrial region had fallen into decline, becoming a symbol of Germany's historically powerful industry.

The Ruhr industrial region is still quite remarkable today.

Such a large industrial zone has not yet been developed in China.

This region was once a coal mining area in Germany. With a population of five million, it has become one of the largest settlements in Europe, stretching for more than 100 kilometers. Over the course of more than a century, it has developed from rural farms into an industrial belt encompassing nearly 20 cities.

Qian Jin and his group had some feelings about this when the plane landed earlier.

The immense and oppressive presence of this terrifying industrial zone can be best felt from a high vantage point.

Qian Jin was very envious of those rows of steelmaking blast furnaces and large factories.

It would be great if we could move everything to China.

However, the Ruhr industrial region has begun to show signs of decline. Since the 60s and 70s, the region has been mired in a structural crisis, with problems such as the decline of leading industries, a reduction in jobs, ecological degradation, infrastructure shortages, and population outflow.

However, West Germans may not have realized this problem yet, or rather, at this critical juncture in the ideological competition between East and West, West Germany could not disclose this information to the outside world.

Therefore, West German chemical industry workers, especially employees of their kingpin BASF, now stand tall and are very proud.

They are so proud that they can disregard business etiquette and treat customers with indifference.

As the saying goes, weakness is never an obstacle to survival; arrogance is.

BASF's glory may last for the next forty years, but their dominant position will be gone.

As Qian Jin pondered, the car entered the gate.

The main color of the BASF plant area is iron gray.

On a winter morning, this enormous, iron-gray structure stood on the earth, emitting a rumbling sound.

Qian Jin and his group got out of the car in the parking lot, where they were finally greeted by blond-haired, blue-eyed Germans.

But the first thing they said upon meeting was a warning.

The translator carefully relayed this to Qian Jin and the others:
"Mr. Hoffman asked me to kindly remind everyone that there are many research units within the factory area, and many things inside need to be kept confidential. Therefore, I hope that everyone will not wander in without BASF's permission."

Hoffman pointed to a wall not far away, where a row of heavy signs written in both German and English hung—

"Entry is strictly prohibited without permission."

"Exclusive area for authorized personnel".

The car door opens.

Yang Dagang chuckled and said, "This West German comrade probably doesn't have such a nice way of putting it, does he?"

However, he didn't care at all.

At this moment, his gaze had already passed over the cold steel forest of the factory area and landed on the outline of the towering synthesis tower deep inside.

Hoffman led them into an office where Schmidt, BASF’s Far East Business Director, was located.

This man was not tall but very stocky, with a head of silver hair neatly combed back. After the two met, he wore a formulaic smile and proactively extended his hand to Qian Jin:
"Mr. Qian, Mr. Yang, distinguished guests, welcome to Ludwigshafen. You must be tired from your long flight. Please come with me to the office to rest for a while. We have prepared some coffee and snacks, and we hope you will enjoy them."

Schmidt showed great enthusiasm.

But Qian Jin felt that he was trying to use his enthusiasm after the meeting to cover up BASF's disdain for the guests.

Qian Jin didn't care about this disdain.

Again.

International respect is earned through strength.

Might makes right!
He gave the translator he had brought from China a wink, and the translator began to translate his words:

"Thank you for your hospitality, Mr. Schmidt."

"We've long heard of the world-renowned German coffee, and we already tried it at breakfast. Now that the sun is shining brightly, why don't we take a look at the area where the equipment is located?"

“Our factory director, Mr. Yang, has long admired your Ammonia 880 series core equipment. Therefore, we would like to visit the synthesis reaction area and pressure control unit directly.”

A flicker of surprise crossed Schmidt's blue eyes behind his lenses, quickly replaced by professional appreciation.

The young man spoke with neither arrogance nor servility, and his attitude was sincere.

It's clear this wasn't just polite talk; the other party was genuinely after the equipment.

As a workaholic, he likes this kind of partner.

Schmidt then made a "please" gesture and took the lead: "Of course, Mr. Qian is an efficient partner. This way, please be sure to wear your safety equipment."

With a wave of his hand, several engineers dressed in light blue overalls immediately handed him heavy hard safety helmets, impact-resistant goggles, and thick green anti-static work clothes.

Upon entering the site, the heavy security doors slid open silently in front of them, and a complex industrial atmosphere washed over them.

It contains a mixture of high-temperature engine oil, chemical catalysts, and high-pressure steam, making it scorching and pungent.

Behind the door is a straight passageway that stretches for hundreds of meters.

It's very tall inside, like a giant beast's lair.

The ceiling was covered with thick pipes, the thinnest of which were the size of a bowl, all wrapped in a silver heat insulation layer, like the gnarled roots of a giant steel tree, stretching all the way to the horizon.

That is the furnace opening where molten golden flames burn.

Yang Dagang and his entourage were taken aback when they arrived, as they had never seen such an occasion in the country.

The floor is made of a special dark green material covered with fine anti-slip textures, so it won't be too slippery even when wet.

Yang Dagang curiously rubbed the ground with his foot and whispered, "It's really hard."

Qian Jin glanced at it and said, "Epoxy resin flooring is wear-resistant, slip-resistant, and does not generate static electricity."

The passageway was lined with all sorts of enormous machines.

Centrifugal compressors, cryogenic separation towers, catalytic reforming reactors, and other advanced equipment are still rarely seen in China.

Numerous mechanical devices stand like the skeletons of giants in mythology, only they are made of steel.

These skeletons are connected by a dense web of cables and stainless steel pipes, forming a cohesive whole.

Upon seeing it, Yang Dagang immediately took a deep breath and couldn't help but say to Qian Jin, "This equipment is far more advanced than the Japanese's!"

Even though Qian Jin wasn't an expert, he could see the difference between the equipment they were seeing now and the equipment they had acquired last winter.

Advanced things are indeed beautiful.

The air was filled with a deep, rhythmic rumble, the sound of a high-pressure steam-driven turbine in operation.

It is the core of this equipment; if we were to use a personification, it would be the heart.

Qian Jin had already seen the introduction to the Ammonia·880 urea synthesis composite equipment in the two books he purchased from the mall: "A Brief History of the Development of Chemical Industry in the Republic" and "Forty Years of Opening Up - Shortcuts and Detours in the Upgrading of the Chemical Industry".

This equipment helped the domestic chemical industry complete a small upgrade at the beginning of China's reform and opening up.

It's expensive, but very useful.

If the coastal chemical plant can successfully introduce this equipment and build a new urea synthesis tower.

Therefore, the chemical plant's productivity will not lag behind the times for the next thirty years.

Qian Jin wants to help the Haibin Chemical Plant upgrade so that it can continue to exist and contribute to agricultural production in the four provinces.

This equipment is good, but it also has some minor issues.

BASF concealed these minor issues, which did not cause major problems for the cooperation between the two parties. However, the constant minor problems resulted in domestic manufacturers being subject to BASF's control and end up supporting a number of engineers for BASF.

These engineers frequently come to China to solve problems, incurring high costs and demanding excellent travel benefits.

There was a joke circulating online that a machine in China broke down, and a German engineer came to repair it, quoting a price of 101,000 German marks.

When the engineer arrived, he glanced at the machine, pointed to a screw, and said that the screw was faulty and needed to be replaced.

The domestic factory replaced the screws and found that the machine indeed returned to normal operation.

This greatly displeased the factory leaders, who said, "You came and only glanced at it, replaced one screw for us, and now you want to charge us over 100,000 German marks?"

The engineer said the screw costs a thousand dollars, but I can tell the problem is worth a hundred thousand dollars.

After the internet became widespread, this became a joke, but Qian Jin only found out it was true when he read the book.

Now he saw this extremely expensive screw, worth thousands of marks.

Qian Jin followed Hoffmann and Schmidt around the field and got a general understanding of the equipment.

Then they returned to the water-cooled multistage centrifugal compressor, and Qian Jin's gaze fell on a heavy bolt on the compressor base.

The bolt was huge, about the size of a six-inch cake, and it was marked with bright red warning signs. Qian Jin tried to get closer, but Hoffman immediately stopped him.

The translator hurriedly asked, "Mr. Schmidt is asking you, what are you trying to do?"

Schmidt continued speaking, and the translator continued:
"Mr. Schmidt said that this is a bottom main load-bearing bolt, which is very important and must not be touched casually, because even a slight problem with it can cause the centrifuge to malfunction."

Qian Jin nodded: "Tell him that Chinese people are not uncultured barbarians. We understand technology, and we understand machinery even better."

“We are well aware of the high requirements for the level of the workbench and the high requirements for the bolts in this type of industrial centrifuge. It is precisely because we are aware of this that the problem arises.”

He frowned, pointed his index finger at the bolt, and said, "Ask these distinguished gentlemen, according to their company's equipment manual..."

He waved his hand, and Wei Xiaobo, who was accompanying him, immediately brought him a booklet.

Qian Jin had already marked the page and quickly flipped to the key points: "They definitely have this V-5 technical appendix A. Tell them to look at section 7.3; it's the regulation there."

"The main centrifugal compressor has extremely high requirements for the fixing bolts, requiring a preload torque range of 1220 to 1380 N·m, and the use of a specific grade of high-temperature anti-creep grease to lubricate the bolts."

"I'd like to know, is this a high-temperature anti-creep grease lubricated bolt? Does it meet the torque requirements?"

"If they can give an affirmative answer, could you please have their equipment maintenance supervisor check the real-time tightening torque reading of this bolt on-site? We brought a torque check wrench that conforms to DIN standards!"

Qian Jin raised his hand, and the technician who had been silently following behind immediately raised his hand as well: "We brought testing tools, including Hercules series torque calibration wrenches from WP Company."

Hoffman's smile instantly froze.

His eyes widened suddenly, and his gaze towards Qian Jin clearly revealed an emotion:
incredible!

The engineers who had previously introduced the functions of the various devices looked at each other blankly. One of the younger engineers stepped forward as if he wanted to say something, but was sternly stopped by Schmidt with a look.

Hoffman quickly replied, "Mr. Qian, I don't understand what you're talking about. Our equipment is running great, which is enough to prove that there's nothing wrong with the high-temperature anti-creep grease lubricated bolts we chose."

“No problem at all, then let’s conduct the testing publicly,” Qian Jin said. “That’s not an unreasonable request, is it?”

Schmidt looked at Hoffmann with a puzzled expression.

Not bad.

This is a perfectly normal request.

When customers come to look at the equipment, they can't just take a quick look and leave; random checks and tests will definitely be conducted.

So, is there really something wrong with this bolt?
He stared at Hoffmann, but Hoffmann didn't look at him; his expression was clearly starting to show signs of panic.
"Mr. Qian, how did you obtain this manual? And why does your manual have an appendix..."

Schmidt said, "What's wrong with what I gave him, what I gave to the client, the Hoffman engineer?"

Hoffman scratched the back of his hand and said, "Mr. Schmidt, you're overstepping your bounds. The appendix to this manual requires authorization from the chief engineer to access; we can't give it to clients, especially those who haven't yet made a deal..."

“It has been authorized by the chief engineer,” Schmidt said.

Qian Jin then said, "Aren't we talking about these bolts right now? Mr. Hoffmann, how did you get back to the equipment manual?"

Hoffman rubbed his nose and said, "Because our equipment manual is very important, according to the group's rules and regulations, we cannot arbitrarily disclose the contents of the appendix, as it involves our technical secrets."

"This has nothing to do with bolts. In fact, our bolts are perfectly fine, so why are we talking about bolts?"

This is not a person who is good at lying.

Schmidt's face darkened.

Qian Jin said, "How could it be unrelated? You know better than I do."

"For a high-pressure synthetic ammonia production line with a design life of forty years and a core equipment safety factor requirement of 3.8, the torque error of the main bearing bolt is a time bomb buried in the life cycle of the equipment."

Qian Jin shifted his gaze from the bolts and calmly looked at Schmidt:
“If you believe that on-site verification of such basic data also falls under the ‘highly confidential’ category, then as a potential system buyer, we have reason to distrust the entire basis of the cooperation.”

The deafening roar of machinery in the tunnel was not as loud as Qian Jin's voice at this moment.

Schmidt's blue eyes darted around rapidly as he gestured with his fingers, saying, "BASF's chemical production equipment should not be subject to any questioning. We will not allow our customers to distrust us."

He said to an elderly engineer with gray hair behind him:

“Karl, you know my temper. Immediately authorize access to the V-5 technical appendix.”

"Immediately send the maintenance team over with a high-precision dynamic torque analyzer. I need to see all the data for this damn bolt within ten minutes! If the error exceeds two-thousandths, he'll be cleaning the waste pipes next month!"

Hoffman, who was also an engineering supervisor, turned pale.

Carl looked at him, but he looked away.

Qian Jin watched the show with his arms crossed.

Schmidt was starting to get angry, and seeing this, Karl didn't hesitate any longer and went to take down the walkie-talkie hanging on the wall to issue instructions.

Qian Jin remained silent, patiently standing in place and waiting.

Yang Dagang then walked to a huge high-temperature steam flange and began to examine it.

He liked the large and sophisticated equipment.

Take this kind of flange for example. They also have it in their ammonia synthesis workshop, but the two are not comparable.

BASF's flanges fit together perfectly, and now, even after the flanges in their factory are fitted together, you can still stuff millet grains into the edges.

Xiaomi is very small.

However, when used on such precision instruments, this error becomes quite significant.

He reached out and placed his hand on the protective shield.

You can clearly feel the regular vibration frequency transmitted from the device when it is running at your fingertips.

Soon, workers in yellow overalls arrived quickly and huddled together with Hoffman and other engineers for a brief discussion.

Then, the maintenance supervisor said, "The machine is still running, the bolts can't be moved, maybe we should wait..."

Listening to the simultaneous translation, Qian Jin shook his head: "We don't have that much time to wait, let's turn it off."

“No, suddenly shutting down the machine while it's running will damage the equipment,” the supervisor firmly refused.

Qian Jin said, "Tell them that as long as the machine is working properly, we will buy back the production line equipment. Theoretically, it will be ours."

“A little wear and tear is fine; it can be written into the contract. We won’t make a big deal out of nothing.”

"But if there's a problem with the equipment, then we can't buy it. So what if there's some wear and tear? The equipment will need a full overhaul anyway."

The maintenance team was left speechless.

Schmidt couldn't hold back any longer. He reached out and pulled the maintenance team leader away, asking in a low voice, "What exactly is the problem?"

“Tell me, Victor, why are you all here damnably delaying me?”

The maintenance team supervisor looked distressed: "Mr. Schmidt, there's a problem with the high-temperature anti-creep grease lubricating bolts for the fourth quarter of this year. We didn't have the matching bolts, so we used another type of bolt to secure them..."

"Damn it!" Schmidt was furious. "Why? Why didn't I know?"

The maintenance team supervisor said helplessly, "I don't know, sir, but we didn't make the decision to replace the bolts ourselves. We reported the situation, and it was the equipment department that made the arrangement."

Schmidt put his hands on his hips, wanting to curse.

But with the customer right in front of them, they couldn't afford to lose face.

So he took a deep breath, smiled, and went back to negotiate with Qian Jin.

Qian Jin looked at him with a smile, patiently listening to his various explanations. After listening to his long and detailed explanation, he said:

"Admit it, Mr. Schmidt, your BASF equipment is not as advanced as you claim, and your production processes are not as rigorous and error-free as you promise!"

Despite being a seasoned veteran of the business world, Schmidt's face still turned red at this moment.

It's been at least ten years.

He had never made such a fool of himself before.

The equipment was malfunctioning, and someone caught us red-handed!

Qian Jin gestured again to the maintenance team workers:

"We've brought a Hercules series torque check wrench from WP, which is a special tool for unloading the high-temperature creep-resistant grease-lubricated bolts used in your equipment. So, should you unload the bolts, or should we do it?"

An awkward silence fell over the room.

“Director Qian,” Yang Dagang, who had been pacing around the flange, turned around, his expression revealing doubt amidst his seriousness, “the layout of the sealing line on this high-pressure flange is a little different from the standard design in the manual drawings.”

“Come and take a look. Am I seeing things? The standard design uses a type B retaining ring. Our expert team has discussed it and found that this model is the most suitable design to be used with our domestically produced parts.”

"But why does the chamfered shoulder transition in the seal line layout here seem too smooth?"

The translator voiced his question.

Hoffman's face paled even more. He stared at Schmidt in disbelief and said, "How can the Chinese be so professional? You said that their domestic chemical industry technology development level is very poor. How do they understand the technical principle of chamfering?"

Seeing his expression, Schmidt's heart skipped a beat: "Damn it, don't tell me there's more to this than meets the eye!"

Qian Jin rushed over to check, and his expression immediately turned grim.

Hoffmann, without responding to Schmidt, stepped forward to explain: "Gentlemen, it's like this, listen to me, we at BASF attach great importance to equipment upgrades."

"The sealing line layout of the high-pressure flange of this equipment was optimized for high-temperature vibration suppression at the beginning of this month."

Another person arrived; he was a senior systems engineer at BASF named Lauten Bach.

He arrived just in time to hear Qian Jin's questions and Hoffman's explanation, which caused his expression to change slightly. He interjected, saying:

"Dear valued customers, you have excellent judgment. This is version V3.4, which is the result of design iterations and optimizations made over the past six months to improve sealing safety under extreme conditions."

"Because it hasn't been updated in the standard manual yet, the technical standards for the equipment in this regard are different from the manual you received. But I can swear that our technical optimizations regarding high-pressure flanges have been verified by the DVGW standard..."

After listening, Qian Jin opened his notebook and glanced at it.

Schmidt, who was standing next to him, pretended to walk to the side and glanced at him as he passed by.

The top is covered with densely packed square characters.

do not know.

After reading it, Qian Jin solemnly said:
"Our engineers need to confirm the service data for this modified and optimized version with you, as well as copies of all original test reports."

"Before our working group went abroad, the senior engineering team in China reminded us that any design changes to the equipment that involve the interfaces of core pressure-bearing components must be supported by written traceability documents."

Bach and the other engineers nodded hastily: "Of course, of course, that's only natural."

Bach, who was in charge, gave Schmidt a wink, and after the two huddled together, he whispered, "Buddy, where did you find such a formidable group of buyers?"

"They are by no means ignorant bureaucrats; they are a group of very capable technicians!"

however……

This is the beginning.

After confirming that Yang Dagang had noted down his requirements, Qian Jin began to meticulously inspect the entire production line, referring to the technical manual and his own notebook.
From the redundancy design verification of the catalyst loading port pressure balance system in the synthesis tower, to the comparison of raw laboratory data on the core catalyst lifetime and regeneration cycle, and then to the setting of every logic gate parameter on the central control room operating interface...

Qian Jin's inspection was very professional. The previously arrogant Hoffman could only stand obediently on the side as a lackey, and Bach took his place to liaise with Qian Jin's team.

When Qian Jin requested access to the third-level code to view the range of underlying parameters, Bach panicked:
"Gentlemen, we do not have that authority, and according to our business and trade regulations, neither do our clients!"

Schmidt took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Qian Jin looked at him.

He immediately chuckled and said, "Damn, it's so hot inside."

Everyone knows that his cold sweat has nothing to do with temperature.

Whether it was Schmidt in a management position or Hoffman in a technical position, they had never seen a customer like this before.

The other side didn't send negotiation experts or bureaucratic leaders, but a technical acceptance team that was so well-prepared it was breathtaking!
And somehow, the other party seems to have obtained the details of the production line in advance!
Many details and flaws that even Schmidt himself was unaware of have now been discovered by others.

This is terrible!

Schmidt felt a heavy weight in his heart.

He had a feeling that the upcoming negotiations would not be easy.

Qian Jin insisted on gaining access to the third-level permissions to view the range of underlying code parameters, but Bach used this as an excuse, saying it did not comply with business transaction rules.

Upon seeing this, Qian Jin said, "To be honest, gentlemen, this is indeed not in accordance with the rules of business transactions."

"However, we are not forcing you to do this, because we were forced to make this decision by you."

"This ammonia synthesis equipment is not as excellent as you promised. We only conducted a cursory inspection and already discovered several problems..."

"It's just a minor issue; it won't affect the equipment's production performance at all," Bach tried to salvage the situation.

Qian Jin laughed and said, "Please remember this, Engineer Bach. When the Japanese newspapers, Mainichi Shimbun and Yomiuri Shimbun, interview us, we will relay your words..."

“Hey, hey! Don’t do that, Mr. Qian, we’re having a private conversation, it’s just friends chatting.” Bach’s forehead was also beaded with cold sweat.

German industry is known internationally for its meticulousness.

His words could be used by someone with ulterior motives to attack this 'rigor'.

He was wrong just now.

Qian Jin said, "If it's just a chat between friends, it's really not appropriate to share it with outsiders. But since we're friends, when we talk about prices later, I hope you can give us a friendly price."

Schmidt and Bach exchanged a glance and couldn't help but smile wryly: "Of course, of course."

Qian Jin said, "Let's stop here for the physical condition check of the core equipment. Let's go out for some fresh air and then move on to the next stage of work?"

Schmidt continued with a wry smile: "Of course, of course."

Qian Jin said to Wei Xiaobo, "The verification of the core equipment can be considered to have initially reached the level of 'meeting the basic description'."

The translator also translated these words.

The engineers felt a mix of emotions upon hearing this.

If an ordinary customer dared to act so arrogantly, they would definitely go up and argue with them, giving the customer a Germanic lesson.

But now they are speechless, and even grateful for the assessment that it 'matches the basic description'.

Upon learning that the inspection was over, the engineers secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

However, before he could catch his breath, Qian Jin continued speaking:

"But this is only a physical state."

Qian Jin's gaze swept over Schmidt and the astonished engineers behind him, a slight smile appearing on his face:
"Next, we need an MTBF mapping analysis report for the entire 880 series production line. This report must cover the actual service life and reliability commitments of key components, and must be based entirely on field measurement data. We need a mean time between failures that we can promise."

"Please remember our requirements: all data must be traceable to the equipment operation logs and cover the full operating spectrum over the past six quarters."

“In addition,” he added, glancing at his notebook, “the description of the composition ratio of the proprietary coating material for the high-purity hydrogen separation membrane in Annex B1 of the ‘Technology Transfer Scope Description’ you previously provided contains several ambiguities, including the missing description of the proportion range of the three core metal-organic ligands.”

"This must be supplemented in writing by your general technical department with legal force before the start of this round of consultations."

Lauten Bach's face fell completely. He looked at Qian Jin's smile, then at the thick notebooks carried by the Chinese technicians, and an indescribable chill rose up his spine.

Not quite right.

These people know too much!
This shouldn't be a problem they discovered during their on-site inspection!

There's a mole!
Schmidt's Adam's apple bobbed laboriously; he felt everything was becoming even more difficult.

He realized that the real negotiations had not yet begun; it was merely a routine visit. But the scales of victory seemed to be tipping in his favor.

At this moment, he cursed inwardly at his subordinates' investigation materials.

Aren't these Chinese officials supposed to be bureaucrats?

Isn't it said that their international procurement efforts in recent years have been very sloppy?
Why do I feel differently?
They walked out of the synthesis tower; those who wanted to smoke went to smoke, and those who wanted to drink coffee went to drink coffee.

This time, Hoffman invited Qian in for coffee in a very proactive, even somewhat humble, manner.

Schmidt then made a phone call.

Just before the formal negotiations began, someone hurriedly delivered several faxed documents:

"Mr. Schmidt, here is what you requested. Qianjin and Haibin Fertilizer Plant are internationally renowned. One of our competitors, Japan's Kawasaki Heavy Industries, suffered a significant loss at their hands around this time last year..."

Schmidt took the faxed documents and examined them carefully.

After reading it, he couldn't help but slam his fist into the wall next to him: "Damn it!"

“Our background check on them was completely wrong. Go tell Vice President Gao that we need to make some adjustments to our upcoming negotiations. This time we have encountered a formidable opponent!”

(End of this chapter)