Tech startup: I really do make mobile phones!

Chapter 188 New Changes at Far Orange
In Shenzhen, at the Yuancheng New Energy Industrial Base in Longhua, a black Mercedes-Benz S600 slowly drove by.

Unlike the bustling city center, this area was once a cluster of scattered electronics manufacturing industries, represented by the Guohong Industrial Park, and was also a "barren land" outside the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone. It was only this year that it was officially incorporated into the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone and began to be subject to the special economic zone policies.

Today, the most prominent area is already plastered with signs for the "Yuancheng New Energy Industrial Base," and this has been going on for almost half a year, with signs appearing at intersections and on road signs.

Before the vehicle even approached the base gate, the scene outside the window surprised Chen Mo slightly.

The streets, which were rather deserted three months ago, are now bustling with activity.

Various snack stalls, fast food restaurants, convenience stores, and fruit stalls lined the street. Most of the old-fashioned single-story houses were also converted into shops. The streets were bustling with people, most of whom were wearing uniform blue work clothes.

The noisy hawking, the aroma of food, and the relaxed laughter of workers after their lunch break create a vibrant picture of everyday life.

"What a big change!" Chen Mo couldn't help but mutter in amazement.

When he came here in April to conduct intensive research on third-generation gaseous lithium technology, there were only a few scattered vendors. Now, however, it has spontaneously formed a prosperous living area serving thousands of Yuancheng workers.

Upon closer examination, this explosive growth is actually quite reasonable.

仅仅是2011年上半年，远橙就斩获了军采120亿、国企订单60亿、自销30.8亿、智橙统采34.2亿的巨额订单，总营收半年就达到惊人的245亿！
If we use Yuancheng's revenue from the first half of this year as the unit of measurement, and make a horizontal comparison with all companies in the Orange Group:
1个远橙=16个橙子=40个橙科=80个橙宝=1200个橙创

Since March of this year, with the support of China's infrastructure boom, the planned 15-square-meter renovation site has taken shape, and the basic functional areas have been completed.

Of the expected 10,000 workers, more than 3,000 have already arrived (mainly on semi-automatic production lines). Relying on revolutionary third-generation gaseous lithium technology, the company has achieved a daily output of 1.5 million gaseous lithium battery cells, with an average monthly revenue of 40.8 billion yuan.

A simple and intuitive comparison: Yuancheng's monthly revenue is almost enough to buy the entire "Orange Technology" excluding patents and payment licenses!
Orange: How did I become a unit of measurement? Who told you to calculate it that way?
And this is the revenue achieved before the domestic new energy vehicle market had even begun to take off.

Once the subsidy policy is implemented, market demand will surge.
Chen Mo even felt that it was not impossible for Far Orange's daily revenue to buy an "orange" in the future.

Currently, due to the lack of land available for expansion, the planned functional areas of the Yuancheng New Energy Industrial Base are mainly factory areas and do not include living and leisure areas for workers.

The functional area planning mainly includes:
1. Cell production area (40%): injection production line, laser etching production line, gaseous lithium cell main production line.

2. Module assembly area (25%): Battery pack integration and assembly.

3. Testing and quality inspection (15%): Battery performance laboratory, safety verification center.

4. Logistics and warehousing (12%): Automated three-dimensional warehouse, raw material pre-processing area, and controlled Class A catalyst storage warehouse.

5. Office and R&D (8%): ​​Located adjacent to the production area, facilitating technical collaboration.

Currently, the base has an actual usable area of ​​about 5 square meters, while another 10 square meters are vacant, leaving ample space for future production ramp-up.

At this moment, in front of the grand gate of the Yuancheng New Energy Industrial Base, General Manager Xu Mingyuan, along with two other people who were obedient to orders but not to direct commands—Liu Jiping, who was in charge of production, and Liu Mingzhen, who was in charge of research and development—as well as a group of key executives, were already lined up and waiting.

The spectacle drew the attention of workers passing by on their way home from get off work, while roadside vendors whispered among themselves, speculating about what important figure was coming to inspect the company, that would warrant the presence of all of the company's top leaders, including General Manager Xu, General Manager Liu, and General Manager Liu.

A black Mercedes-Benz S600 drove smoothly in.

Seeing the welcoming procession at the entrance, Chen Mo immediately signaled to Xiao Zheng to park the car at the entrance and not to go any further inside.

He took a mask from Zhou Yumeng in the passenger seat.

This is the "Valentine Orange" brand registered by Chen Lan, the second sister of Chongqing, after obtaining the "official" authorization. Knowing that he always wears a mask when appearing in public, she specially customized the style for him.

Since it was for her younger brother, Chen Lan put a lot of effort into making the mask, and the quality of the mask was truly exceptional.

The material is skin-friendly and breathable, and the design is minimalist yet exudes a sense of luxury. The three different fabrics conform to the physiological structure of the face, so it won't press on your nose even after wearing it for a long time.

But then Chen Mo thought about it again and couldn't help but mutter to himself: What legitimate luxury brand would make face masks? Even if it's a counterfeit luxury brand, it's still outrageous!

What's even more interesting is that the same custom-made mask is also available at the "Valentine Orange" store, which is located next to the LY and Guci stores on the second floor of the Shancheng Bancheng Building.

It was directly classified as a "luxury item," with a single piece priced as high as 3999 yuan. The total design cost was 12 yuan, the manufacturing cost was 165 yuan per piece, and the overall cost was approximately 180 yuan.

Even more unbelievable is that the second sister had previously told Chen Mo that the sales of these masks were not bad, and that they could sell more than 30 masks a month.

Chen Mo couldn't comment on this, and could only sigh silently. His second sister's approach to operating the Southwest flagship store was completely out of sync with his own.

You're supposed to be the flagship store for Orange Mobile in Southwest China, responsible for marketing, operations, and logistics in the region. But instead of doing your job properly, you're making money entirely through side hustles. Isn't that going too far?
Moreover, Lin Xiaoxia actually approved of this model and issued a report requiring that this approach be replicated and promoted when developing new markets in the future.

Sometimes, Chen Mo felt that he was biased against his second sister. Anyway, no matter what, the Southwest flagship store of Orange didn't need the headquarters to worry about it. They were living a very comfortable life, and the publicity, operation and logistics were not delayed.

What else could Chen Mo say?

After putting on his mask, Chen Mo got out of the car amidst the curious gazes of everyone and greeted Xu Mingyuan, Liu Jiping, Liu Mingzhen, and others one by one.

"President Xu, there's no need for such a grand display!" Chen Mo's voice sounded somewhat distorted through his mask, but his tone was gentle.

The surrounding workers and vendors became even more curious.

"Who is this young man? He's got quite the nerve."

"You didn't know that?" A well-informed worker immediately whispered smugly, "That's Orange Chen! You know Orange Phones, right? Yuancheng Battery is a subsidiary of Orange Phones! He's the big boss behind it!"

What followed was a series of embellished and imaginative accounts of "business secrets" and "legends" about "Chen Chengzi's battle against Ali Ma and Liu Fantasy last year."

Finally, amidst the skeptical gazes of the crowd, he uttered "Believe it or not," and then drifted away, concealing his achievements and fame.

"Alright! Let's not stay out in the sun, everyone, let's go inside!" Chen Mo instructed.

The group accompanied Chen Mo into the factory area.

The deep rumble of the machines filled the air, along with the faint smell of metal and insulation materials, creating a bustling scene of production.

Xu Mingyuan introduced, "President Chen, the infrastructure renovation of the park has been completed, and we are now making every effort to expand production capacity and train new workers!"

Chen Mo nodded: "I've read your second quarter report. You've achieved 15.1% of the planned production capacity, producing 151 million battery cells per day, right?"

The custom-made mask covered most of his face, revealing only a pair of calm yet sharp eyes, which made some of the executives from Far East Orange, who were meeting the big boss for the first time, even more reserved and respectful.

“Yes, Mr. Chen!” Xu Mingyuan replied, “The factory area is divided according to function, and the production lines have also been upgraded and transformed.”

"Oh?" Chen Mo raised an eyebrow: "Perfect, show me around."

Xu Mingyuan immediately summoned the park's internal tour bus, which had been prepared in advance.

This is a three-row tram with only a roof.

“Mr. Chen, although the park we are currently using only occupies one-third of the area, the various functional areas are quite scattered and the area is very large. Taking a vehicle to tour the park is more efficient!” Xu Mingyuan explained.

"Ha!" Chen Mo chuckled. "That was just my habitual way of thinking. I didn't expect Yuancheng to change so much every month, expanding its operations more and more!"

The group boarded the vehicle, and the tour bus arrangements were as follows:

In the first row, the driver is in the front seat, and Xiao Zheng is in the passenger seat.

Zhou Yumeng, Liu Jiping, and Liu Mingzhen were sitting in the second row.

In the last row, Chen Mo and Xu Mingyuan sat with their backs to the back of the car, holding onto the rear railing so that Xu Mingyuan could point out the specific functional areas and give an introduction.

The battery cell production area includes: a material injection production line, a laser etching production line, and a main gaseous lithium battery cell production line.

"Mr. Chen, we have transformed the old integrated production line into a segmented production line!"

Xu Mingyuan pointed to the massive equipment cluster as he introduced it.

"Now, when we produce first-generation, second-generation, and third-generation battery cells, we only need to combine different segmented production lines like building blocks. There is no need to completely transform the production line, which greatly improves efficiency and flexibility!"

Material injection production line: Two types. Solid injection (used for first and second generation processes).
Vaporization injection (used in third-generation processes)
Laser etching production lines: three types.

MOF structure etching (first generation)
MOF-1 honeycomb structure etching (second generation)
MOF-8 honeycomb structure etching (third-generation single-stage boost process)
Chen Mo asked, "Aren't you going to make a third-generation two-stage turbocharger?"

Xu Mingyuan instinctively shook his head: "The cost is too high, and the market acceptance is not high enough for the time being. We cannot afford the cost of pushing for commercial mass production in the early stages!"

"So who are the customers for the third-generation first-level boosted battery cells that are currently in mass production?" Chen Mo couldn't help but ask.

Xu Mingyuan is in charge of the self-sales channel business, so he answered directly.

"Mainly the Yangtze River."

Last year, they developed the 'Qingling Generation 1' personal gimbal drone. With the help of Hongshan International Capital, they not only secured international suppliers for some parts, but also used Apple Store's North American distribution channels. They shipped an average of 120,000 units per month at an average price of around $2500.

We're currently using our 2000mAh, 11V Far Orange 3.1.1 gaseous lithium battery.

Chen Mo suddenly realized: No wonder it's $500 more expensive than in my previous life, it turns out the battery has been upgraded.

Next is the main production line for gaseous lithium-ion cells: this is the general section, where the final fixing process and packaging are completed regardless of the generation of the cell.

The tour bus sped through this area and then arrived at the module assembly area.

The module assembly area includes the battery pack integration and assembly.

Chen Mo raised his hand to signal the car to stop and then walked into the production line himself.

When the workers saw that General Manager Xu and others were accompanying a young man wearing a mask, they subconsciously became more serious and began to speculate about his identity.

In the honeycomb power battery assembly area, rectangular battery cells based on second-generation gaseous lithium technology are stacked up like mountains.

Chen Mo picked up a silver-cased battery cell without a label. It felt relatively light and had exquisite craftsmanship, with visible improvements in its appearance.

He pointed to a hexagonal battery pack about 1.2 meters long that was being assembled, which consisted of heat-dissipating and flame-retardant outer packaging material, 666 battery cells, and one Infineon power management chip.

"Is this the honeycomb power battery developed by Far Orange?"

Xu Mingyuan proudly said, "Yes, President Chen! The technical solution was tackled by President Liu's team, and the segmented production line was modified by President Liu. The production line utilization rate has increased by 13.2%, and the cost has decreased by 3%."

Faced with Xu Mingyuan's boasting, Chen Mo couldn't help but chuckle.

"President Xu, you're no less impressive. You've secured a high-end client like Dajiang and facilitated the mass production of the third-generation turbocharger technology. The three driving forces of Yuancheng have all made invaluable contributions!"

Looking at the Infineon power management chip, Chen Mo couldn't help but ask again.

"Mr. Xu! Whose BMS power management system do you use?"

Xu Mingyuan looked slightly embarrassed: "Currently, we are using BTD's complete solution, and we have to pay a 10 yuan BMS software license fee for each battery pack!"

Chen Mo understood and did not blame him.

It is already quite an achievement that Far Orange was able to produce mass-produced power batteries in less than six months, and the BMS system is not something that can be developed in a short time.

He instructed, "We need to recruit a team to develop the BMS software ourselves. We can't handle the hardware like the power management chip right now, but we can get the software working first. If our parents can provide it, we might as well have it ourselves!"

Xu Mingyuan solemnly agreed, indicating that he would not continue to rely on the BTD-authorized BMS software power management system.

Chen Mo then looked at the 2000mAh Far Orange 3.1.1 model battery customized for Dajiang.

Compared with mainstream 2000mAh liquid lithium batteries on the market, it is 1/3 smaller in size, 1/2 lighter in weight, and has an energy density comparable to ternary lithium batteries. It is currently the most advanced mass-produced product in commercial use by Far Orange.

As for 3.2 generation gaseous lithium, it remains at the laboratory level due to issues of cost and market acceptance.

To put it simply, it's expensive but unavailable!

People will do business that could cost them their lives, but nobody will do business that loses money!

Then, the tour buses passed by in turn.

Testing and Quality Inspection Area: Cell Performance Laboratory, Safety Verification Center (rigorous testing is conducted on needle penetration, extrusion, overcharge and over-discharge, etc.).

Logistics and warehousing area: The automated three-dimensional warehouse operates efficiently, the raw material pre-processing area is well-organized, and the confidential catalyst storage warehouse is heavily guarded.

Office and R&D area: Adjacent to the production area, facilitating technical collaboration.

After visiting the R&D laboratory, Xu Mingyuan reported on the progress of the office building acquisition.

"Mr. Chen, the acquisition of Guohong's two Grade A office buildings is progressing smoothly. The other party is interested, and the details are being discussed. It is expected that the deal will be completed by September at the latest!"

Chen Mo nodded: "Hurry up, the girls from Orange Customer Service are still upstairs squeezing in with Orange Baby!"

Xu Mingyuan nodded seriously, promising to urge the progress to be accelerated.

Afterwards, in the conference room, Chen Mo listened to a detailed report from the "Three Horsemen of Far Orange".

Xu Mingyuan reported on business expansion and the company's financial health.

Liu Jiping then reported on the progress of production ramp-up, production line optimization, and new worker training.

Liu Mingzhen reported on the laboratory's research and development achievements and the progress of ongoing projects (including the third-generation two-stage turbocharging and the pre-research of high-voltage fast charging for supporting power batteries).

Chen Mo expressed satisfaction with the overall progress of Far Orange and then dropped a bombshell.

"This year marks the foundation of Yuancheng, and the three of you have made outstanding contributions. Next year, I will launch Yuancheng's Series A financing. If you are interested, you can cash out a portion of your shares at that time!"

Excitement flashed in Xu Mingyuan and Liu Jiping's eyes, while Liu Mingzhen remained calm and focused on his technology.

After the meeting, Liu Mingzhen stayed behind alone.

"Mr. Chen, I've encountered a bottleneck in my research on perovskite solar cells. Could you please offer some guidance?"

Chen Mo then remembered this matter. After listening carefully to the problem she encountered, he pondered and said, "I need to think about this problem. I will give you a research and development direction within a week!"

He thought to himself: There are still 6 points in the system, enough to develop a first-level solar cell technology. Anyway, Orange doesn't use her phone, so I'll just give her an idea and help her get the research topic for the academician candidate election.

After leaving the house, Chen Mo gave instructions to Zhou Yumeng.

"Make a note of this. I need to give President Liu a mind map outlining the R&D strategy for solar cells in a week!"

周雨萌立刻认真地在陈默的行程表上设置了多次提醒（第1、3、5、6、7天），确保万无一失。

After completing the inspection and personally confirming that the "Honeycomb Power Battery" was a genuine, mass-producible product, and not a mere facade made to fraudulently obtain subsidies, Chen Mo finally felt relieved.

He could finally relax, no longer worried that his subordinates would falsify documents and embarrass him in front of his superiors.

The current Far Orange factory, with its 15-square-meter structure, has taken shape and is now being fleshed out and replenished.

With a 5-square-meter production area, 3000 workers, and a daily output of 150 million battery cells, coupled with the flexibility and efficiency of its segmented production lines, it has become a major battery manufacturer with a daily production capacity of one million cells.

Far Orange is fully prepared to make a final push for the upcoming new energy vehicle subsidy program.

Its next goal is to transform into a "super battery factory" capable of producing tens of millions of battery cells per day.

When Xiao Zheng drove his black Mercedes-Benz S600 (W221) away from the Yuancheng Base
The roar of machines and the beeping of forklifts in the factory area, along with the bustling sounds of people, vehicles, and vendors on the road outside, create a vibrant and hopeful symphony of industry and people's livelihood.

(End of this chapter)