Reborn in 2012, building a new energy empire

Chapter 141 Exhibition Opportunity

The 20th day of the first lunar month, in the afternoon.

The window of the small conference room at Qilin Technology was slightly ajar, letting in a cool early spring breeze that dispelled the stuffiness from the air conditioning.

The whiteboard was covered with writing, charts, and erasure marks.

There were a few cigarette butts piled up in the ashtray, and a faint smell of tobacco and coffee lingered in the air.

Zhao Haichuan stood in front of the whiteboard, holding a laser pointer in his hand. The red dot stopped on a prominent LOGO: "—So, based on information from insiders in the association and our assessment, the scale and influence of this year's SNEC exhibition will reach a new high."

"It is expected that there will be more than 2,000 exhibitors and more than 200,000 professional visitors. Almost all major photovoltaic manufacturers, equipment suppliers and material suppliers from around the world will be present."

He switched to a slide showing the booth layout. "This is the preliminary plan for the core exhibition area. Halls N1 and N2 are the equipment and materials halls, which are also our most competitive battleground."

"International giants such as Shin-Etsu Chemical from Japan, Meyer Burger from Switzerland, and Applied Materials from the United States will participate. Their booths are usually over 500 square meters, in the best locations, and with the most dazzling decorations."

The laser pointer's red dot moved to a few grayed-out areas at the edge of the floor plan: "If we decide to participate, given our new company's qualifications, we'll most likely be assigned a corner location in Hall W or Hall E, with an area of ​​perhaps only 50 square meters—"

100 square meters.

Gu Qiushi frowned: "The location is remote and the area is small, so it will attract very little attention."

"Yes," Zhao Haichuan nodded, "but that's reality. SNEC isn't a charity show; it's a business battlefield where location and size are bought with strength, reputation, connections, and money."

Jiang Haoran asked, "Approximately how much would it cost to participate in the exhibition?"

"A standard booth, built on a basic scale of 50 square meters, plus necessary promotional materials and personnel travel, conservatively estimated at 500,000 to 1 million yuan. If you want to do a custom-designed booth to highlight the technical image, add another 200,000 yuan or more," Zhao Haichuan quoted the figures. "This does not include potential public relations and event costs."

The meeting room fell silent for a moment.

More than a million is not a small amount for Kirin Technology, which is still burning money on research and development.

"What's the target output?" Jiang Haoran asked calmly. "According to your plan, what's our core objective for participating in the exhibition? To directly secure orders?"

"Impossible." Zhao Haichuan shook his head. "For core consumables like diamond wire, customers can't just place an order after seeing it at a trade show. Stability is of paramount importance to the company."

"Especially newcomers like us are even less trustworthy. So I think our core objectives for participating in this exhibition are threefold."

He wrote on the whiteboard:

1. Brand debut, establishing industry presence.

2. Contact potential customers and partners to conduct initial technical exchanges.

3. Observe competitors and understand the latest industry trends.

"Especially the second point should be the core task of our current market expansion," Zhao Haichuan emphasized, raising his voice.

"During the exhibition, almost all the key technology and purchasing decision-makers of our target customers will be present. This is an extremely efficient and intensive opportunity for contact."

"We can identify our target customer group and hold a small, closed-door technical exchange meeting to showcase actual samples and data from the actual prototype cutting process. This is ten times more efficient than a regular door-to-door visit."

Gu Qiushi pondered: "If we could showcase a fully validated small-batch trial production sample at the exhibition, along with real cutting data—"

"That would be extremely convincing," Zhao Haichuan chimed in. "It's more effective than any brochure. Therefore, the timing of our participation in the exhibition must coincide with the successful completion of our small-batch trial production."

Wang Qiming calculated the timeline: "If we follow Mr. Wang's plan, supplementing personnel, accelerating the testing process, and if everything goes smoothly, we should be able to produce 100-kilometer-scale wire samples with continuous production and stable performance by the end of April or early May. The exhibition is at the end of May—"

"Although the time window is very tight, theoretically we can still conduct a few more rounds of testing." Jiang Haoran looked at Jiang Guqiushi and Wang Qiming. "However, the premise of everything is that the research and development and process solidification cannot have any major flaws, and we must have a real product."

The pressure was then transmitted back to the R&D side.

Jiang Haoran did not immediately express whether he would participate or not. He stood up and walked to the window.

Downstairs on the park road, trucks were unloading goods, and workers were busy. Not far away, the factory buildings of other companies stood quietly.

In this manufacturing and pragmatic park, international exhibitions like SNEC seem like another world—noisy, glamorous, and performative, yet an inescapable arena for companies to prove themselves.

To go or not to go?

If we go, even if we complete the project on schedule, it means that the newly mass-produced products will be exposed to the most professional eyes at home and abroad and subjected to the most stringent scrutiny.

Any minor flaw can be magnified and become a handle for competitors to attack or for customers to question. An investment of over a million dollars could also be lost due to a poor location.

If we don't go, it would be safer to focus on continued research and development.

However, it also means missing a golden opportunity to showcase your talents and connect with key people.

The photovoltaic industry changes extremely rapidly; if you're even a step behind, you might miss out on an entire era.

He recalled Lin Miaomiao's analysis of customer psychology in her report: "—Customers generally hold a wait-and-see attitude towards new domestic technologies. They need to see concrete, verifiable evidence, as well as the professionalism and confidence demonstrated by the technical team."

An exhibition is a stage to provide "evidence" and showcase "confidence," even if the stage is a little off-center or small.

He turned around, his gaze sweeping over the people in the conference room waiting for a decision, and finally made his decision.

"Then let's participate in the exhibition." His voice wasn't loud, but it was firm. "Haichuan, for now, follow this process and participate under the name of Qilin Technology. The exhibition theme will be: 'The Game Changer for Domestic Diamond Wire Cutting Solutions.'"

Zhao Haichuan's eyes lit up, and he nodded emphatically.

"But there are a few requirements." Jiang Haoran walked back to the table. "First, the booth setup shouldn't be too luxurious, but the technical presentation must be professional and solid."

"Don't just focus on those fancy concepts. Show us the key components of the prototype, real cut silicon wafer samples, complete test data reports, and play a loop of live video footage of the cutting process."

"Our goal is to attract truly knowledgeable professional users and target groups through technical exchanges."

"Secondly, we need to schedule a provincial technical exchange meeting in advance, and we should start preparing the list and plan now. Based on the customer analysis in this report, we should select 5-10 target customers who are most likely to be interested in our technology and start extending targeted invitations a month in advance."

"Third," he looked at Gu Qiushi and Wang Qiming, "the R&D progress is the bottom line. By April 25th, I want to see samples and reports with stable performance data that can be used at the exhibition."

"If the indicators still fluctuate significantly by then, the exhibition plan will be postponed. It's better to miss it than to embarrass ourselves with an immature product."

Gu Qiushi took a deep breath, exchanged a glance with Wang Qiming, and nodded emphatically: "Understood. We'll deliver the samples on April 25th."

"Mr. Zhao," Jiang Haoran turned to Zhao Haichuan, "you are in charge of overall curation, budget control, and client invitations."

""

"For this budget, let's start with 1.5 million. If there are any special circumstances requiring special funding, then come to me."

"Also, try to use your connections to contact the exhibition organizing committee and see if it's possible to secure a slightly better location or participate in a new technology launch session."

"After our Kylin Technology won the first prize in the provincial college student entrepreneurship competition, we were able to get provincial policy support. We can also look into this to see if there is any funding and policy support available."

"I have communicated with provincial leaders and the Provincial Department of Science and Technology has also introduced supportive policies. We can study in detail whether there are any preferential policies for domestic substitution, which can be used as a starting point for communication."

"Okay, I'll start pushing it out tomorrow." Zhao Haichuan was full of enthusiasm.

"One last thing," Jiang Haoran said, looking at everyone, "From today onwards, SNEC's debut will become a top priority for the company."

"Everyone—R&D, production, and marketing—must adjust their pace around this goal. What we're fighting isn't just a technological battle, but a meticulously prepared showcase."

"The success of this exhibition depends on the solid work done behind the scenes, so the R&D department has the heaviest task. Everyone, please keep your spirits up."

The meeting ended, and everyone left with clear tasks and tight schedules.

Jiang Haoran stayed alone in the conference room, continuing to review the overall progress. Looking at the circled "SNEC" on the whiteboard, he felt both the pressure and the motivation of running a business.

In late May, the exhibition hall on the banks of the Huangpu River in Shanghai will become a new battleground.

There is no quiet rigor in the laboratory, no undercurrents at the negotiating table; there will be a direct contest under the spotlight, a comprehensive display of technology, products, brand, and even the founder's confidence and courage.

He pointed his still-unpolished "sword" at the stage where powerful figures gathered.

The risk is very high.

But the opportunities are equally enormous.

He picked up the eraser and slowly wiped away all the other writing on the whiteboard, leaving only the conspicuous LOG0 and date.

Then, next to it, he wrote two words with force:

Bright Sword.