Technology: Start by selling mobile phones

April 26, 2018.

Wang Xiaole breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

The "TF memory card" automated production equipment with an annual production capacity of 10 million pieces, purchased urgently due to Xiaomi's order, has finally been debugged and will be officially put into production today.

When "Yellow River Memory" was first established, it only had a "TF memory card" department, and the first set of "TF memory card" production equipment had an annual production capacity of only 2 million pieces.

Over the past year and more, as the sales of "Nietzsche

But with an annual production capacity of 3.5 million in the entire "TF memory card manufacturing industry", that's just the existence of Xiaokarami, not worth mentioning!

Until the last time, a month ago, with the popularity of "Brilliant S1", the "Jinghong series" ushered in an explosion, and the "TF memory card" production department urgently purchased a set of automated production equipment with an annual production capacity of 5 million pieces. .

The annual production capacity of "Yellow River Storage" TF memory cards has been increased to 8 million pieces!

Now.

The large-scale "automated production equipment" with an annual production capacity of 10 million pieces has been put into production. The annual production capacity of "Yellow River Storage" TF memory cards has been increased from 8 million pieces to 18 million pieces. It has truly jumped from a small manufacturer to a small and medium-sized manufacturer of some scale. !

True to what the president of SanDisk said, "Yellow River Storage" has doubled its TF memory card production capacity!

And it doubled several times in a short period of time!

but.

Faced with the rapid increase in production capacity, what makes Wang Xiaole even more painful and happy is that with orders for Xiaomi TF memory cards and "Jinghong series", now three sets of automated production equipment with an annual production capacity of 18 million seem to be a bit overwhelming!

All three sets of equipment are now operating at 120% full power and capacity. The entire production department has no idle capacity at all, and is continuously consuming the "flash particles" produced by its own "3D-NAND" department and the "chip department" "Master chip\

,"Eventually, it turned into TF memory cards and was sold one by one.

The complete closed loop of the supply chain made Wang Xiaole feel an inexplicable happiness.

In just one month,

Not only the production efficiency of the "TF memory card" production department has improved visibly,

Upstream, the "3D-NAND flash memory particle department" and the "main control chip production department" that supply the "TF memory card" production department have also been completely driven, and the efficiency and production capacity have skyrocketed!

Warm and joyful emotions are spread throughout "Yellow River Storage", and the "TF memory card" business that realizes independent supply of the entire industry chain has begun to truly drive "Yellow River Storage"!

…

And the other side.

Just when Wang Xiaole was busy recruiting people all over the world,

April 27,

Samsung, one of the only five giant manufacturers in the world that can produce "flash memory particles", took the lead in starting to significantly increase the ex-factory price of "flash memory particles".

Immediately afterwards,

The four giants Hynix, Micron, Toshiba and SanDisk also announced price increases at the same time.

The latest ex-factory price,

The ex-factory price of 64Gb flash memory particles has increased from the previous 65 yuan to 72 yuan, a price increase of 10.7%!

128GB has been adjusted from the previous 130 yuan to 143 yuan, a price increase of 11%!

256GB has been adjusted from the previous 265 yuan to 295 yuan, a price increase of 11.3%!

512GB has been adjusted from the previous 520 yuan to 580 yuan, a price increase of 11.5%!

The prices of all series of flash memory chips have increased, and they have increased by as much as 10% at once!

but,

Even though the increase has been huge, after the "joint reluctance to sell" by the five major manufacturers in the past half month, the market has become even crazier, and countless manufacturers are eagerly waiting for the "flash memory particles" to be sold.

Therefore, as soon as the news of the price increase came out, instead of quenching the market demand, it actually became more popular!

The news spread back to Xiaomi Group.

Xiaomi, which has a "half-year price guarantee clause of 175 yuan", is naturally very happy.

There were no surprises. Less than a month after signing the agreement, the price of "flash memory particles" increased, and the magnitude was not small. No matter how you look at it, the contract was signed perfectly.

Ke Yu, who was responsible for the whole process, naturally would not miss this opportunity to express himself.

The meeting of senior Xiaomi cadres in the morning had just ended. Before the meeting was over, Ke Yu walked up to Rebus with a smile on his face and pretended to be casual and mentioned:

"Mr. Lei, the price of 'flash memory particles' increased on the market yesterday. Did you see it?"

Rebus also noticed the relevant information.

When I saw Ke Yu deliberately mentioning this, I immediately understood what he was thinking.

"You did a good job this time and signed the contract well."

"Well, I'm just going to talk to you about this, so come to my office."

Ke Yu narrowed his eyes with a smile and nodded repeatedly.

It would be a great honor to be praised by Rebus.

"Okay, okay, Mr. Lei, please."

Ke Yu quickly followed Rebus to the office. As soon as he entered, the spacious and bright office was filled with the strong aroma of tea.

A pot of top-quality Tieguanyin has been brewed and placed quietly on the desk.

"sit down."

Ke Yu sat down gently, Rebus picked up the tea cup, took a sip, and said:

"I saw the news about the price increase of 'flash memory particles' last night. I came here this morning to re-read the agreement we signed with 'Yellow River Storage'."

"We have signed a half-year guaranteed price contract with Yellow River Storage. Depending on the situation, the order of 10 million sheets will be delivered in 10 months, with 1 million sheets delivered every month."

"However... now that the price of 'flash memory particles' has increased so quickly, you should always pay attention to the situation of 'Yellow River Storage'. Our 'Xiaomi 8' will be launched on June 1, and the sales volume of 'Xiaomi TF memory card' will definitely be There will be an outbreak, so don’t let this affect production capacity and affect our sales.”

Ke Yu looked startled, then nodded heavily.

Xiaomi has many products under its name, and it cooperates with dozens of OEMs. It has also encountered situations where the price of raw materials has increased, resulting in delays in delivery or less delivery.

Although liquidated damages were signed in the contract, Xiaomi naturally did not want this to happen.

"Also...I did the math and found that even based on the price of 'flash memory particles' after the price increase, 'Yellow River Storage' still makes a little profit."

"Please urge me to let them deliver the order as early as possible. When appropriate, you can also talk to them about cooperation for the next batch of orders."

Ke Yu understood the meaning of Rebus' words and immediately replied:

"Well, don't worry, Mr. Lei, I will pay special attention to this matter."

"That's good."

After hearing this, Rebus finally showed a smile on his face and his expression relaxed.

After a moment, he changed the subject and spoke in a brisk tone.

"Then let's talk about the recent sales of our 'Xiaomi TF memory card'. How is the sales?"

"It's alright!"

Ke Yu has been paying attention to this matter and said with a smile on his face:

"I heard early this morning that the operations department was discussing whether to increase prices."

"Our 'Xiaomi TF Memory Card' was originally priced very cost-effectively. Now that the price of raw materials for 'flash memory particles' has increased, it is estimated that the price of the product in the consumer market will be adjusted in a few days. By then, our prices will be even more cost-effective."

"Ha ha!"

Rebus laughed.

The purchase price of 175 yuan for 128GB capacity is definitely not available now.

128GB flash memory chips on the market now cost 143 yuan. Taking into account the main control chip and labor costs, the factory cost of a 128GB memory card is estimated to be around 170 yuan.

In addition, the OEM makes some money, and the brand owner makes some money, and the retail price will exceed 200 yuan!

"Ke Yu, now that you say this, we have to urge Yellow River Storage to speed up delivery!"

"This time we have a huge cost advantage. I estimate that our sales of 'TF memory cards' will be more popular than expected!"

Ke Yu didn't dare to neglect and nodded quickly.

"Well, I'm going to hurry them up."

…

the other side.

SanDisk was not upset because "Yellow River Storage" snatched the order. Instead, it was a bit surprising and even happy because "Yellow River Storage" matched the half-year price guarantee of 175 yuan.

To be precise, I am happily waiting to watch the show.

The 175 yuan "guaranteed price clause" was originally a "trap clause" created by SanDisk president Porter Haney.

For the world's top five giants, such terms are just a matter of earning more or less, but for "small-scale" Huanghe Storage, which needs to rely on industrial chain supply, once the price of raw materials for "flash memory particles" rises sharply, the final payment will be It is very possible to lose money on orders and get involved in lawsuits.

As long as there is a contract dispute between "Yellow River Storage" and "Xiaomi Group", Xiaomi Group will most likely find itself again and re-sign the production agreement.

As for "Yellow River Storage", it will gradually lose reputation and orders due to these negative news, and even the credibility of domestic OEM companies will also decline. Market orders will flow more to powerful multinational companies like SanDisk.

This is not to be taken for granted.

In fact, over the years, in the brutal market competition, there are many domestic companies that have been driven out of business by various small tricks and clauses of foreign capital.

The most famous is the soybean industry.

In 2003, the price of soybeans in Yanguo was about 2,300 yuan per ton. By 2004, the price of soybeans rose to 4,400 yuan per ton.

The situation at that time was almost exactly the same as the current rise in "flash memory particles".

The soaring price of soybeans made domestic oil merchants very nervous. At this time, the four major foreign grain merchants began to jointly raise prices and spread the news in the market that soybeans may exceed 5,000-6,000 yuan in the future.

Market supply and demand are tighter.

Finally, in order to ensure sufficient soybean supply to maintain operation, domestic oil merchants began to go overseas to snap up soybeans.

In March 2004, domestic oil merchants collectively raised funds to go overseas and snapped up 8 million tons of soybeans at a historical high of 4,300 yuan. As a result, within a month, the four major foreign grain merchants cooperated with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to sell soybeans in large quantities and go short. .

In just two months, the price of soybeans plummeted from 4,300 yuan per ton to 2,200 yuan, and domestic oil merchants went from meager profits to huge losses.

With such a huge loss, domestic oil companies had to choose to breach the contract, and the final compensation amount for 8 million tons of soybeans was as high as 10 billion yuan.

The most important thing is that after this battle, the domestic soybean processing industry suffered a devastating blow, and more than a thousand oil-extracting companies went bankrupt.

In the end, the entire industry, except for oil-pressing companies with state-owned backgrounds, could barely survive. The other 95% of oil-pressing companies were acquired at low prices by the four major grain merchants and other foreign investors.

So far, after 2004, the entire domestic soybean industry has been almost completely taken over. The four major grain merchants have successfully controlled 85% of the domestic soybean industry. If indirectly controlled companies are included, the share even exceeds 90%!

The entire industry is like this.

In the commercial boom of domestic development, there are also companies such as daily chemical companies and beverage companies. It is not uncommon for them to be merged or bankrupted by foreign investors taking advantage of contract terms.

In the office, Chen Yue, SanDisk's national business manager, looked at President Porter Hanni with a smile on his face.

"Mr. President, the prices of 'flash memory particles' all increased yesterday. Now we have a good show."

In fact, as the business manager of Yanguo District, Chen Yue would not pay so much attention to a small Yanguo company under normal circumstances.

But there was no way. As "Yellow River Storage" stepped into the "contract trap" designed by President Porter himself, President Porter became very interested.

"Chen, it's still early. Even after the price increase, they are still profitable at the current price."

"What I'm looking forward to now is, if the price of 'flash memory particles' continues to increase during this six-month contract, can they really stick to it?"

"I am looking forward."

As he said this, President Porter couldn't help but smile, his eyes flashing with amusement.

After a moment, he continued with a relaxed expression and a brisk look:

"I have calculated it for them. Based on their costs, if the ex-factory price of 'flash memory particles' increases by another 9 yuan, they will face losses."

"With the current market enthusiasm, I feel that the increase will exceed 9 yuan next month. By then, they will lose a fortune if they produce one piece. That's when the real show will start!"

"Ha ha."

Chen Yue also laughed.

"Mr. President, you are right, the fun is yet to come."

"Before coming here, I specifically contacted Hynix, the flash memory particle supplier of Yellow River Storage, through a personal relationship, and they provided me with important news."

“In the past half month, ‘Yellow River Storage’ wanted to purchase 5 million flash memory particles, but in the end only 1.1 million were purchased.”

"According to the original supply agreement provided by Xiaomi, one million copies per month, we should see them losing money next month."

"Next month, they may not be able to guarantee supply to Xiaomi!"

"Haha, you're right."

Potter smiled and nodded, his smile even brighter.

"But I do have some interest in them."

"I've been learning about their 'TF memory card' these days, and I have to say that the main control chip is pretty good."

"And... what surprises me is that they have other chip businesses, but many of them are not yet mature, Chen..."

At this point, Porter paused, the smile on his face faded, and he looked directly at Chen Yue.

"So...Chen, you should pay more attention to this 'Yellow River Storage'. If they encounter any trouble, you should tell me in time."

"I'm interested."

interested in?

Chen Yue was stunned for a moment, and then everything was lost in words.

He solemnly said:

"Okay CEO, I understand, I will pay close attention to them."

…

the other side,

Just when Xiaomi and SanDisk were immersed in the joy of the price increase of "flash memory particles", Mo Ran also received the news of the price increase.

However, compared to the happiness of the two of them, Mo Ran was also very happy.