King of Technology: A Fresh Start in 1983

Zhou Yuguang stared intently at Chen Jianghe.

He glanced again at the two technicians in the Tiangong Laboratory, whose eyes were also bloodshot from working so hard.

Looking at the simple yet tidy shelves, one sees carefully selected components and tools.

Thinking back to the market today, with all those demons and monsters...

He pondered for a moment, then his tone suddenly became extremely serious!

"Chen Jianghe, would you like to... start your own factory?"

What?

A factory of my own?!

Chen Jianghe's breath caught in his throat!

Zhou Yuguang's words instantly ignited his long-suppressed ambition and desire!

This blueprint, which had been swirling in his mind for months, was brought to light by this industry authority, making it all the more significant!

But after the initial excitement, the cold reality quickly brought him to his senses...

Money, land, equipment, personnel, and licenses—five major obstacles stand in our way!

"I'll figure out the money!"

Zhou Yuguang seemed to have noticed Chen Jianghe's concerns and said confidently, "With my old face, I can still get some favors from people in the X department."

"In addition, there are still some technical consulting fees to be paid to Xintong and Jinghai, so raising a few tens of thousands of yuan in start-up capital shouldn't be a problem."

"The equipment...that's even simpler!"

A shrewd glint gleamed in Zhou Yuguang's eyes. "I'll go and scavenge those old pieces of equipment that were phased out by the old factory under Department X!"

"Those oscilloscopes, signal generators, and old-fashioned surface mount machines can still be used after some repairs!"

"What about the land and the people?" Chen Jianghe pressed.

"Land? Easy, let's go to Huilongguan!"

Zhou Yuguang had clearly planned this all along: "The commune secretary over there is my student!"

"Current policies encourage the development of township enterprises. It's not difficult to get a plot of collective land to build a factory, and the rent is cheap! As for people..."

He looked at the two temporary workers behind Chen Jianghe, Xiao Wang and Xiao Li, whose eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion but whose skills were solid.

"I think those two are great! They're reliable and hardworking! Let's recruit a few more local, reliable, and willing-to-learn educated youth who returned to the city! Technical backbone... just you and me!"

A ruthless glint, unbecoming of his status, flashed across Zhou Yuguang's face. "I fucking refuse to believe that we tech guys can't beat those shady characters!"

"Technology is the greatest weapon! Your Pangu Card, once it's established, is the best advertisement!"

"Now that we've secured samples, why are we worried about not having business?!"

"As for the license..." Zhou Yuguang finally frowned.

"There are stricter regulations for individual business owners running electronics factories, especially those involved in specialized circuit board processing, which falls under the category of specialized industries."

"The Industry and Commerce Bureau, the Electronics Industry Bureau, and even the local street office all need their stamps! It's a multi-layered approval process, and it takes months to get it done! And..."

He lowered his voice, "Someone like Chung Chiu-fai would definitely use connections to trip me up!"

"This policy barrier is the toughest nut to crack!"

Hearing Zhou Yuguang say this, Chen Jianghe's heart sank.

He has the technology, while Zhou Yuguang has connections and startup resources.

However, policy red lines cannot be crossed by technical skills and connections alone!

Chen Jianghe looked at Zhou Yuguang: "Engineer Zhou, you've ignited the fire within me! No matter how difficult it is, I have to do it!"

A few days later, when He Dali sent a telegram saying, "An authoritative report has been received, and the situation has temporarily stabilized..."

Zhou Yuguang handed Chen Jianghe the outline of the core plan for the joint factory construction.

Over the next few days, Chen Jianghe and Zhou Yuguang went their separate ways.

Zhou Yuguang is a researcher at a research institute directly under the X Department.

Leveraging his years of accumulated technical expertise and personal integrity, he managed to secure an interest-free loan of 20,000 yuan in his own name.

There is also a list full of old equipment models that have been approved by Department X and are allowed to be purchased at scrap prices.

Then, through student connections, he secured a plot of abandoned threshing ground, about two acres in size, near the highway in Huilongguan Commune, for a rent of only 500 yuan a year!

Chen Jianghe then immersed himself in major libraries and Xinhua bookstores in Beijing…

I searched through every policy compilation, industrial and commercial administration regulation, and township enterprise law that I could find.

We studied the policy provisions word by word to find possible breakthroughs.

He attempted to skirt the rules by using the "electronic technology services" category within the business scope of Tiangong Technology Service Department.

An application report was submitted to the street office and the district administration for industry and commerce for "expanding the scale of business and adding electronic component assembly and debugging, and PCB manufacturing workshops".

Unexpectedly, the neighborhood committee clerk didn't even raise an eyebrow: "Electronic assembly? PCB manufacturing?"

"Do you have the department's approval? Do you have the premises? Do you have a fire safety permit? Do you have an environmental assessment? Get these first!"

The first hurdle of policy barriers is like an invisible wall, firmly blocking Tiangong's dream of building a factory from the outside.

As time went by, Chung Chao-hui's [Chung Card III], with its low price and channel advantages, frantically reaped profits in the low-to-mid-end market, making a resounding splash.

Although Pangu Card has established a foothold among high-end users thanks to its technological reputation.

However, limited production and sales channels have prevented them from achieving economies of scale. Cash flow is becoming increasingly strained.

One Sunday evening, Chen Jianghe and Zhao Xiaobo returned to Tiangong Technology Service Department from Zhongguancun Electronics Market…

I saw Xiao Wang holding a bare board from the Red Star Factory, carefully practicing his welding techniques with scrap material.

Zhao Xiaobo joked, "Xiao Wang, you're practically a Sunday engineer now, why don't you rest on the weekends..."

"Brother Xiaobo, it would be great if we could make our own board..." Xiao Wang didn't answer Zhao Xiaobo, but his eyes were full of longing.

Upon hearing Zhao Xiaobo's words, Chen Jianghe's heart skipped a beat!

Sunday Engineer!?

He suddenly remembered this term that had quietly become popular in the tech world in the 1980s!

The so-called "Sunday engineer" is a technical backbone of state-owned factories or research institutes who use their weekend rest time to provide technical consulting services to township enterprises and earn extra money.

A thought flashed through Chen Jianghe's mind in an instant!

Use our technological prowess to break down policy barriers!

Based on the international standards from my past life, I can come up with a set of production technology and process specifications that meet or exceed the national standards of this era…

Then Zhou Yuguang was asked to find several industry experts in the X department to jointly recommend it…

Once the matter is settled, we'll give them a consulting fee...

Correct!

Just do it!

Chen Jianghe immediately picked up a pen and paper, combining his experience in repairing the Pangu Card, the Huaxin bare board's craftsmanship standards, and the international standards from his previous life...

We have begun drafting the "Technical Specification for Precision Electronic Circuit Board Processing"!

...

Core content of the "Technical Specification for Precision Electronic Circuit Board Processing (Draft)" by Tiangong:

I. Environmental Standards:

II. Substrate and Manufacturing Process:

III. Welding process:

IV. Testing Specifications:

...

Two days later, the first draft of the bill was finally completed.

On the morning of the third day, Chen Jianghe and Zhou Yuguang brought the draft to the Standardization Research Institute of Department X and visited two senior researchers.