Twenty years of cold chain

It was past 8 p.m. after dinner. Liu Zhiying's daughter had already gone to bed, and then the two went to the study.

Hu Shutong glanced at Liu Zhiying's book collection. Several of the books were in his office, and they were all the same edition. There was an open suitcase on the floor with a few books that had not yet been put on the bookshelf.

These books were quite worn, with curled corners and misaligned pages.

There were even some torn pages scattered haphazardly there. It was strange that Liu Zhiying, who only came back twice a year, brought so many books.

There was a tea table in front of the desk, and the two sat down there. Ding Na was very attentive, coming in every now and then to refill their water.

Occasionally, some fruit would be cut and brought in.

When the technical issues of Tongxing's 300,000-ton cold storage facility were learned at the dinner table,

Liu Zhiying didn't reveal much until after the tea was brewed and the cups were sipped, at which point he finally spoke.

"Senior,"

The mainstream cold storage products are all in the hands of cold storage companies; their systems are sufficient for nationwide use. I'm curious, why build such a large warehouse?

"The location of this cold storage facility is extremely important, but the land is very limited."

"In other words, its functions are very complex."

Hu Shutong nodded. "That's right. If we focus on storage, we'll waste that prime location. If we focus on transportation, the internal scheduling space there is limited, so we can't fully utilize our logistics capabilities."

"Then it seems we should move towards a more refined approach, combining storage and transportation at the scale of primary and semi-processing, and leveraging the advantages of our location to maximize efficiency."

Hu Shutong carried the tender documents with him, but had no opportunity to show them; Liu Zhiying's words were entirely based on speculation.

But because of these things that have nothing to do with technology,

This demonstrated Liu Zhiying's profound expertise to Hu Shutong. The reason was simple: for ordinary technicians, dealing with a 300,000-ton warehouse could easily lead to calculations and calculations, but Liu Zhiying's primary concern was functionality.

"For us, cold storage is actually a mathematical problem. Everything can be calculated. The complexity lies in serving the function. Only by doing a good job of tailoring the function can the storage capacity have meaning. All the frameworks need to have a core."

Sometimes, not saying much doesn't mean it's unimportant; rather, it means having unwavering confidence. It's easy to tell from Liu Zhiying's words that storage capacity is not a problem at all. This is understandable; for someone who has worked in large-scale port warehousing for many years, capacity and scheduling are practically mantras. In this area, the person before me is undoubtedly a top expert in the industry.

In a short time,

Hu Shutong suddenly realized,

Perhaps because things were in such a rush, the people at Tongxing R&D Center became somewhat obsessive about discussing data models. Hu Shutong, who was involved, also regarded achieving a capacity of 300,000 tons as a difficult problem to overcome.

"Zhiying, the tender document doesn't provide a very detailed description of the cold storage's functions; it's mostly just general talk. However, after studying it, I have a vague feeling that a large part of its function is to serve as a central kitchen."

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhiying suddenly adjusted her glasses, her gaze shifting downwards as she pondered.

The concept of "central kitchen" has not yet become widespread. If we were to break it down, its characteristics, standards, intensification, models, and so on, even tens of thousands of words of discussion might not be enough.

In short, a central kitchen is the ultimate form of cold chain primary and semi-processing. Its products include room temperature and low temperature quick-freezing, microwave pre-cooked food, compound seasonings, pre-cooked dishes, and even pre-cooked and then quick-frozen food. Through the central kitchen, raw materials are upgraded and a sales network is formed by utilizing the purchasing of supermarkets and large enterprises.

Its advantage lies in the comprehensive transportation of products, providing catering packaging solutions for customers. Moreover, it can "transport heat using cold water," much like the supply channels in the prepared food sections of major supermarkets, where many rely on cold chain systems. Therefore, this is something that no other cold chain park or semi-processing facility can achieve, and its prospects are very broad.

This explains why such warehouses need to be built. The radius of influence of a central kitchen will not exceed thirty kilometers. It not only needs to be close to the city, but ideally, it should be located within the city. Centralized storage capacity is the greatest benefit. It eliminates the need for coordination between several warehouses, allowing the entire volume to be managed within this one large warehouse.

"If the central kitchen is a major function, then I understand everything. The processing area needs to be recalculated, and semi-processed products need to be separated, with processing rooms built according to their characteristics. In this way, let alone 300,000 tons, even if it's going to be built to 600,000 tons, this method will make it manageable!"

The word "re-" left Hu Shutong bewildered, as they hadn't discussed any plans beforehand. As for something like a central kitchen, Liu Zhiying clearly didn't need much explanation; communicating with someone like her made everything simple.

Suddenly, Hu Shutong realized that the news he had heard about Liu Zhiying before was very one-sided. People were used to labeling things, as if people in the shipping industry only had more say in shipping containers and large warehouses.

In fact, the expertise of one region serves as a foundation for a hundred regions. He deeply understands that capacity is merely a carrier, and it is by no means about binding oneself to the hardware, but rather about being familiar with the market and having a broad view of the industry.

"Zhiying, regarding this plan, I would like to invite you to Tongxing to discuss it with everyone. I'd like to invite you to be a consultant for this project, and as for compensation, it will be handled according to the standards of the R&D center."

"Then I've taken on a really big personal job."

Before we knew it, the night had deepened. In the distance, the tops of tall buildings were adorned with a striking yet indistinct sign. Closer by, people ate, chatted, and gathered together, the occasional howl of a stray cat quickly drowned out by the clinking of glasses.

Liu Zhiying slowly looked out the window, a kind of inexplicable melancholy on her face.

"Senior, I won't pretend to be an expert and give a long lecture. For me, just watching is enough. Why don't you arrange a day trip to Tongxing for me, so I can see what the first and second batches are like? That way, I won't feel the need to say anything more."

Hu Shutong smiled at Liu Zhiying, this scholarly fellow, whose words were full of hidden humor.

It's just that when there's not enough to say, they never reveal it.

……

I've loved cold chain logistics for twenty years.