From knock-off old-man's electric vehicles to industrial giant

Chapter 100 Optimization 2.0 Final Assembly Plant, Management of 1,000 Jobs

Seeing everyone's expressions, Xu Yi was both amused and exasperated.

He suspected that Wuling might actually have a similar plan...

But soon, he stopped worrying about it.

Anyway, the slogan has already been sent out.

Whatever—I'm the original creator!!
...

"Alright, let's talk about the progress of the factory renovation first."

Xu Yi changed the subject.

The market report was only mentioned incidentally at this internal meeting.

The real focus should be on optimizing the production side.

They currently have two factories operating at high intensity.

One is the Xingchen Mini assembly plant in the High-tech Zone near the Zibo headquarters, and the other is the Xingchen 01/02 four-wheeled vehicle manufacturing plant.

The situation at the Luzhou Xingchen four-wheeled vehicle manufacturing plant has basically stabilized, so there's no need to worry about it anymore.

The related distributor system is also independent, stable without any fluctuations, and requires little management cost.

Currently, the steady monthly sales are around 17,000 to 18,000 units, occasionally exceeding 20,000 units.

With tightening policies, unlicensed four-wheeled vehicles are finding it harder to operate in second- and third-tier cities, resulting in a slight reduction in market share. As a result, they are forced to penetrate deeper into lower-tier markets, focusing on towns and rural areas.

Secondly, after several rounds of fierce market competition, two of the original leading four-wheeled vehicle brands have been forced out of the market, but many speculative counterfeit manufacturers have also joined in.

Because this thing doesn't really have any manufacturing bottlenecks.

Some newly joined counterfeit manufacturers have chosen an even more unscrupulous path: ruthlessly reaping profits while cutting corners to the extreme.

In some rural areas, the price of four-wheeled electric vehicles for the elderly has been reduced to 14,000 yuan or even 12,000 yuan.

The battery uses refurbished second-hand lead-acid batteries, the overall steel plate quality and plastic materials of the vehicle are further reduced, and no extra configuration is added where there is a need to cut corners.

However, the exterior and interior decoration adopt a "high-end" style.

It looks similar to Starry Sky 01.

In terms of style, they have also developed more luxury cars and luxury brands... It is said that they have developed more than 30 kinds, basically any car on the market can be copied.

It features a wilder, more unscrupulous, and fraudulent business model.

However, it must be said that this model is also effective in many rural areas, because Xingchen cannot produce such a low standard.

Despite the pressure and competition from policies and numerous counterfeit manufacturers, it has managed to maintain sales of nearly 20,000 units, remaining the uncrowned king of the market for elderly recreational vehicles in lower-tier cities.

Xu Yi ignored all of these things.

As time goes on, the market for electric vehicles for the elderly will continue to shrink, and by then, Xingchen Automotive will have long since gone out of business.

Meanwhile, at the Star Mini assembly plant, production line optimization has been ongoing for several months.

Zhengzhou Railway is in charge because the previous production line was only at the Industry 2.0 level. In terms of efficiency, cost, and model, it has fallen behind the current mainstream Industry 3.0 level.

Not to mention the 3.5 factories of large manufacturers, and the very few 4.0 digital factories, which are currently only available to giant enterprises in China.

The 4.0 factory built by Xingchen Automotive and Chengtou is actually an "automation + digitalization" standard of Industry 3.5, because the current Industry 4.0 model is still in the pilot stage and the cost is too high.

However, with the popularization of "MES system" and "robot + AGV", as long as the new model can be launched and generate stable profits, it can be upgraded to 4.0 factory in one step.

...When the Star Mini assembly plant first started production, it was still in the 2.0 mode of "old stamping machines, manual welding, and assembly line assembly". After a lot of investment and transformation, it has become more advanced and automated.

"Mr. Xu, we have been optimizing and modifying the original factory for three months."

On the stamping line, the old 2000-ton stamping press was replaced with a 4000-ton high-speed stamping press, and more handling robots were purchased for the welding line. Combined with optimized workstation layout, production efficiency increased by 60% compared to before.

Zhengzhou Railway produced several factory upgrade reports, and the current operating environment of the final assembly plant was displayed on the conference screen, including videos and high-definition images.

Xu Yi had already inspected the production line once last month.

This time, the factory interior has undergone a complete transformation.

Brand-new stamping presses and automated equipment, handling robots, and meticulous workers are busy at their workstations, each responsible for different aspects of the Star Mini production process...

Judging from the images, the layout has been completely optimized, and there are more automated robots.

Now that they have stable sales, they can invest more in upgrading their factory.

"After a series of upgrades, if there are enough orders and production capacity is maximized through overtime, a monthly production capacity of 20,000 units should not be the limit."

Zhengzhou Railway's air intake system is seeing its market share gradually expand and order demand steadily increase, which is naturally exciting for the production side!

Many problems can be solved once sales increase.

The larger the output, the more production costs can be optimized.

The more you sell, the greater your production capacity!

The larger the production capacity, the lower the cost!
Lower costs mean higher production capacity!

……

"How are the workers' benefits being implemented in all aspects?" Xu Yi asked.

To put it simply, the defining characteristic of large-scale manufacturing can be summed up in one word—big!

Large in scale, with large capital, a large industrial chain, a large business network, and a huge number of employees!
Starry Mini's monthly sales have just exceeded 10,000, but the factory's total workforce has already surpassed 1500.

With such a large number of people employed, related management and compensation issues must be considered according to standards.

Otherwise, problems such as low efficiency, safety hazards, and chaotic employee management will follow one after another.

"The previous staff apartment building has been completely renovated. It is a six-person room, provided for all workers. It is equipped with complete electrical appliances such as air conditioning, water heater, and washing machine. Accommodation is free, and the electricity cost is shared by each person at 20 yuan per month..."

"The base salary for employees varies from 5000 to 8000 yuan depending on the skill level of the job, which is about 15% to 20% higher than the average wage in the area. There are also overtime pay and performance bonuses. Formal workers who have passed the training and probation period have their social insurance coverage increased from the previous five insurances to five insurances and one housing fund. There is no outsourcing."

"The staff canteen has also been rebuilt, providing 600 yuan per month for meals, and free late-night snacks for those working overtime late at night."

"New employees undergo a comprehensive medical examination and safety training before starting work..."

"With the expansion of the support department, the product process and quality control have become more stable. If any violations or safety hazards occur, the team leader will be held accountable at the very least, and at worst, performance bonuses will be deducted and the employee will be suspended for retraining."

……

The new standards and regulations are listed one by one, representing the current employee benefits and related provisions of Xingchen Automobile Manufacturing Plant.

In the beginning, the recruitment standards were not yet perfect.

The staff apartment building is not renovated, the canteen is too simple, quality inspection is lax in order to focus on production, there are not enough staff in the support departments, training is insufficient, and there are potential safety hazards.

Now, it has become fully standardized and is considered a high-standard, high-paying manufacturing plant in the local area.

……

(End of this chapter)