Return to Hong Kong Island for a Century

Chapter 173 Progress of Marine Outboard Engine Factory (Fifth Update, Please Subscribe and Vote)

Then Li Song offered a reward on a second-hand platform for a series of motorcycles: 125cc scooters, 150cc motorcycles, 250cc road bikes, off-road motorcycles, 400cc road bikes, touring motorcycles, off-road motorcycles, and 750cc road bikes.

Then Li Song offered a reward for several models of cranes, excavators, loaders, and other construction machinery.

After some thought, they offered a reward for a tunnel boring machine, but the condition was that it be manufactured using technology from 1980.

The motorcycle was still sold to the same seller as last time, and this time the cost was only $300 million, because many of the technologies were developed from the motorcycle patent offered in the last time, forming a unique approach.

The delivery time is half a month.

The engineering machinery cost $1400 million, and the tunnel boring machine cost $1600 million. There are two models, one for rock and one for soil.

The delivery time is one month.

August 5, 1980, the 8th day of the sixth lunar month, Tuesday.

Li Song returned to Guangzhou with his two bodyguards.

Back at the BMW motorcycle factory, Li Song learned from Ma Shengli that the main equipment for the marine outboard motor factory had arrived and would be installed and put into trial production within the month.

This marine outboard motor uses a large number of cast parts, reducing the number of parts and the overall weight.

Of course, this has both advantages and disadvantages, namely that the repair cost is high once it breaks down.

However, this thing will basically not break unless it is subjected to impact or anything.

Aluminum alloys have advantages, but they also have a major drawback: they are highly susceptible to damage upon impact.

This is why some exported motorcycles are made of cast iron, even in mountainous areas.

Otherwise, if a stone were to bump against it, the aluminum alloy might shatter or crack.

In addition, when it rains in mountainous areas and the roads become muddy, cast iron engines perform exceptionally well in such extreme environments because they are superior in terms of high-temperature resistance.

Li Song arrived at the marine outboard motor factory, where three 300-ton aluminum alloy hot casting presses had been installed and were being tested.

Heated molten aluminum is injected into the casting press, which completes the casting process in one operation and directly handles the temperature process. No secondary finishing is required after casting.

This reduces workload and lowers costs, because adding a processing step to a component increases costs significantly, including labor, electricity, machine wear and tear, and wear and tear on the component itself.

Looking at the parts being produced during the trial run, Li Song had already figured out how to advertise them.

When the time comes, we'll build a large aircraft carrier, and I guarantee that when those who ship goods see this kind of ship, their eyes will light up and they'll be eager to buy it.

Moreover, it's much cheaper than a small notebook.

It's not just Hong Kong Island traders who like it; traders all over the world like it.

There are also marine outboard motors now, and they are mostly small-scale products.

The small notebook actually gained its reputation in the minibus area.

There's a place in Xiaoba where there's a six-month rainy season and a six-month dry season. During the rainy season, the roads are cut off, so the only way to transport supplies is by boat, and there's a huge demand for this in Southeast Asia.

And then there's South America.

Li Song knew his only advantage was low prices and high volume sales with small profits. He planned to first destroy the market, making it impossible for others to survive, and then raise prices... Of course, this strategy had a prerequisite: the quality had to be excellent.

If the quality is poor, you can't play with it. If the quality is poor, no one will want it even if you give it away. For example, if the quality is poor, it will often break down at sea, or people will chase after it and it will go on strike.
Who would dare to take it?
Later, motorcycles from mainland China were rejected in Africa because of their poor quality and high price.

Leaving someone stranded on the road, who wouldn't be furious?

So what if the price is cheap?
In Africa, people who can afford motorcycles rely on them to make a living. What happens if they break down while hauling goods or people?
Of course, the reason for poor quality is not just the low price. Some factories have grown too big, and some people have come to reap the benefits, shouting slogans about lightweighting, fuel economy, and cost reduction.

The key issue is that while the slogans are high, the materials, technology, and manufacturing processes don't keep up. It's no wonder things go wrong.

And what kind of costs are being cut? Entertainment expenses? Reimbursements? Subsidies? Benefits? Bonuses?
How could that be? What are they here for? They're already being kind by not paying themselves a hundred million a year.

They mess things up and then leave, and who knows what kind of trouble the next one will cause.

Anyway, I'll work for a few years and then leave. What's there to be afraid of? I won't go bankrupt in these few years. I can eat, drink, and take what I want. At worst, I can let the accountant run away and then claim to the outside world that the accountant embezzled billions.

Li Song came from the future; the internet age has revealed so much.

Therefore, Li Song's approach is to assign responsibility to specific individuals, and every product can be traced back to its source. In the event of an accident, no one can escape accountability.

From the source of the parts manufacturers, the process involves inbound quality inspection, outbound quality inspection, installation, and final factory quality inspection.

Whether it's quantity or quality, it must be assigned to specific individuals and documented in official records.

You can find all the information about a motorcycle by its serial number.

Although this will increase costs, quality is the top priority, and the mainland currently has an advantage in labor costs.

Why not fight a business war now, instead of waiting until the costs are higher later?
How can it be!

"Mr. Li, is this ship's outboard motor authorized in China?" Ma Shengli asked.

"It's authorized, but not overseas. I'll do it myself overseas." Li Song nodded.

“That’s great, there are some companies that are suitable for producing this,” Ma Shengli said.

“No problem, just follow the usual procedures.” Li Song didn’t have any requirements for the domestic production process, because every factory is different. As long as the technology is licensed, that’s fine. As for the quality of the products they produce, that’s none of his business, and he can’t control that much.

Since they don't have any authorized brands, they can't even copy others' work properly, so who can they blame?
"Mr. Li, would you like to go to Chang'an to check out potential sites for building an aircraft manufacturing plant?" Ma Shengli asked again.

"Let's wait until the goods arrive. After all, I'm not at ease until I've seen anything," Li Song shook his head.

The people on the mainland haven't even told me yet, so going there would be pointless. I should leave professional matters to the professionals. I'll wait until they find someone in charge on the mainland, then I can go with them to get their professional advice, instead of just giving orders randomly.

The higher authorities haven't formulated an action plan yet, or perhaps they have, but haven't told us about it.

Then the car factory next door has just leveled the ground and is currently carrying out earthwork, which is even bigger.

Seeing such a large construction site and imagining the cars that would be produced here in the future, Li Song was filled with excitement.

Li Song returned to the BMW motorcycle factory and listened to a work report. The motorcycles were loaded directly at the nearby Huangpu Station, in wooden crates.

(End of this chapter)