Sail across the sea

Chapter 320: A Hands-Off Manager

In the following days, Gao Fan took Bob to Wuyuan County again and had another meeting with Pang Zhongmin, the director of Wuyuan Fertilizer Plant.

Pang Zhongmin had already spoken to Yin Baowen on the phone before and knew the requirements and relevant cooperation conditions of Canghua Science and Trade. When he met with Gao Fan and others, he did not beat around the bush and readily agreed to all the requirements put forward by Gao Fan. Gao Fan also reciprocated and promised to arrange a suitable position for Pang Zhongmin in the vitamin factory in the future.

Further down the road, the Chemical Industry Department, Luping Administrative Office, and the governments of Yanxiu and Wuyuan counties negotiated with Canghua Science and Technology Trade, and finally decided to stop production at the fertilizer plants in the two counties. The plants were taken over by Canghua Science and Technology Trade, and two sets of equipment were built for vitamin C and vitamin E. Some of the employees of the two fertilizer plants were retained, while the others were transferred to other units by the county.

Taking into account that the employees of the two fertilizer factories were originally state-owned enterprises, while the vitamin factory was a joint venture, the relevant departments agreed that all retained employees could retain the state-owned employee quota in the labor bureaus of the two counties, which was equivalent to working at the vitamin factory on unpaid leave. This was a handling method that was characteristic of the times.

The work of dismantling and renovating the old equipment of the two fertilizer plants was in charge of the two old factory directors Yin Baowen and Pang Zhongmin, while the manufacturing and installation of the vitamin equipment was in charge of Gu Kunquan, Liao Derong and others. Gao Fan and Bob, the two young people, had no chance to help. Bob left China and returned to the United States to continue his studies, while Gao Fan brought his sister Gao Min to Shuinan Renqiao.

"Gao Fan, you are such a hands-off boss! Our factory has been producing reflective paint since the beginning of the year, and now it's the end of the year, and you just remembered to come and take a look."

In the director's office of the Xinglong Paint Factory, Chen Xingquan complained to Gao Fan with a smile while making tea for Gao Fan and his sister.

Gao Fan smiled and said, "Brother Chen, you are being unreasonable. I went to the United States in June and originally said that I would take time to visit Shuinan after returning to China, but you sold me out. The military unit found our school and recruited me to the research institute with an official letter to stay for several months, and you still have the nerve to criticize me."

"Gao Fan, this matter has no impact on you, right?" Chen Linfa, who held the title of factory director, asked somewhat anxiously. He heard from Chen Xingquan that Gao Fan was seconded to Fenglin Research Institute, but he did not know the details.

Gao Fan said, "Uncle Chen, it's nothing. They just heard that I was doing some research on special resins and asked me to go and help. I stayed there for a few months and learned a lot. I also met some experts. Maybe I can use them in the future."

"It's good that there is no hindrance." Chen Linfa nodded and explained for his son, "Xingquan can't do anything about this matter. They are a military unit. We can't keep silent when they ask about the paint production."

Gao Fan waved his hand, changed the subject, and asked the Chen family father and son: "Uncle Chen, Brother Chen, how is the paint factory doing now? Are there any difficulties?"

  When Gao Fan asked this, Chen Xingquan was no longer sleepy. He placed the tea he had prepared for Gao Fan and his sister on the coffee table in front of them, found a stool and sat down, then began to introduce the dishes with great excitement:

"Gao Fan, our reflective paint is now selling like hot cakes. When I first went to the highway bureaus in several regions of our province to promote it, they were skeptical and said they would give it a try first. After trying it, everyone said it was good. People from other provinces came to visit and said it was better than the reflective paint they imported from Japan, so they all came to our door.

"Do you remember what our factory looked like when you came here last year? Now look at it again. The scale has expanded five times. We can't even keep up with the production even if we work overtime every day."

Gao Fan smiled and nodded. When Chen Xingquan picked them up from Renqiao Railway Station today, Gao Fan had already noticed that the current Xinglong Paint Factory was completely different from what he saw when he came here last year.

Last year, the paint factory was just a small yard built with old bricks, and the production workshop was just a few small sheds. Now, the yard has expanded several times, and the workshop has become a fixed brick-concrete structure. The factory director's office where they are now is also newly built, with a large area, and the quality of the office furniture and sofas is also quite good, which makes it look a bit like a formal enterprise.

"Is the anti-fouling paint still in production?" Gao Fan asked.

"Of course, there is money to be made, so why not do it?" Chen Xingquan said, "However, the sales of antifouling paint are not as high as last year. Two companies in Renqiao have also developed antifouling paint, but the effect is slightly worse than ours. They sell at a lower price and have taken away a lot of our market share."

"What about reflective paint? Is anyone following the trend?" Gao Fan asked again.

"Yes," Chen Xingquan said, "It's a common practice here. If someone's product sells well, they will follow suit. However, the products produced by those factories that follow suit are not as good as ours, and the Highway Bureau doesn't recognize them, so they haven't threatened our sales for now."

"Those who buy anti-fouling paint are all fishery teams and private boats. They care more about price. Reflective paint is bought by the government, and the government cares more about product quality." Chen Linfa explained to Gao Fan.

Gao Fan took out a document, handed it to Chen Xingquan, and said, "Brother Chen, this is a new formula I brought. It can increase the wear resistance of the paint by 1% and make the reflective effect more obvious. You can tell all the highway bureaus that this is our new generation product, which will be launched in January next year. The price remains the same, and the price of the old product will be reduced by 10%."

"Is this something you newly developed?" Chen Xingquan took the information, his eyes lit up, and asked Gao Fan.

Gao Fan said, "I asked a teacher from Peking University to help me improve this. We will upgrade our products every year. The strategy will be the same as this. The price will remain unchanged after the upgrade, and the price of the previous generation of products will be reduced by 10%."

"This is a good idea!" Chen Lin praised, "We are always one step ahead of others, so it will be difficult for others to follow suit."

Chen Xingquan looked at Gao Fan and asked with a smile: "Gao Fan, do you have a newer generation of products? Do you want to wait until others imitate you before bringing them out?"

Gao Fan spread his hands and said, "Brother Chen, you have wronged me. I am so innocent, how could I have such a mind? It takes time for teachers from Peking University to improve a formula. It is enough to upgrade one generation a year."

Although he said this, the expression on his face said something else.

(End of this chapter)