This Is How I Became a Chaebol

101 : Secret Weapon

Suseong Sugar, President’s Office.

「Pohang Iron and Steel is applying state-of-the-art facilities and the most advanced Böst method.

In particular, not only production facilities, but also ports, vast hinterlands, and welfare facilities are first-class.

Looking at the manager’s outstanding ability to independently plan and implement all of this, it seems certain that he will raise Pohang Iron and Steel to a world-class level.”

“Is that what the Japan Iron and Steel Federation judged like this?”

Do Byeong-cheol pointed to the report in front of him and asked Do Kwon-hee.

It was hard to believe that the report was written by Japan, given that Korean companies were evaluated so highly. Between the lines, Pohang Iron and Steel was already seen as a competitor.

“Yes, father. This is an official document obtained by dispatching a Joongdo Ilbo reporter to Japan.”

“Did you hear that something like the Voest Corporation is really possible?”

He said that the Böst method does not require an iron ore sintering plant and a coke plant.

At first, the Japan Iron and Steel Federation raised a fuss about the method without a pretreatment process, saying it was nonsense.

“The Japan Iron and Steel Federation did not seem to be convinced about that yet. However, it is said that a steel mill that does not require a pretreatment process will pose a strong threat to the Japanese steel industry.”

“To say that you’re not sure, yet a threat!”

“However, the members of the Pohang Iron and Steel Co. have a corner where they believe in something, so aren’t they rushing at it?”

“……”

Do Byeong-cheol only crumpled his teeth and could not refute.

It was because when I looked at the caisson and the construction of the runway in the jungle, I thought that Do Kwon-hee might be right.

In addition, the promotion committee held the groundbreaking ceremony very confidently.

Didn’t the president also participate in the presidential election ahead?

I don’t know if it was even pre-tested.

“Although not a threat, we must be vigilant.”

“Didn’t you say that Korea’s integrated steelworks were not competitive in the first place? There is no technology, and since all raw materials are imported, it is difficult to avoid deficits.”

If he had known that the steel mill would attract so much attention, Suseong should have been in charge of the steel mill, not the fertilizer factory.

“President Woo Chan-soo changed everything. Capital, technology, facilities, human resources, and weaknesses have disappeared everywhere. The net profit margin may not be large, but it seems clear that we will achieve a surplus from the beginning of the business.”

Even if a large-scale business consistently achieves a surplus, the benefits gained from the front and rear business are enormous.

In particular, isn’t the steel business a business that will continue as long as mankind exists?

I couldn’t bear it when I thought that the integrated steelworks business had left Suseong’s hands.

“So what do you want to say? Do you mean that our Mercury bows down to the upstart?”

“Not that far. I just need to clear up the misunderstanding with CEO Woo Chan-soo. It seems that they continue to build angles, starting with the Ulsan Fertilizer Plant.”

“Can you clear up the misunderstanding?”

“father. It’s just that the scale of Daese’s capital hasn’t been revealed, and it’s probably no less than our Mercury. Even if the current capital strength does not reach Mercury, it is investing in industries with clear growth such as synthetic fibers, lumber, shipping, and steel. The growth rate may be superior to Mercury, which is focused on natural fibers and light industry.”

Do Byeong-cheol swallowed his saliva without realizing it.

That’s why I pushed ahead with the fertilizer plant, and it was a golden opportunity to step into heavy industry… I missed it.

Because of Woo Chan-soo…

“Third, stop threatening this father and tell him what to do. Isn’t that why you came?”

Do Byeong-cheol tried to temper his emotions and asked.

He had information and analytical skills to the extent that it would be impossible to think of him as a son who had neglected his studies without a hint of pride.

It seems that it was not nonsense when he said that he studied people the most during his studies.

“What is needed now is to send a positive message to President Woo Chan-soo.”

“Yeah, admit it. How are you going to send it?”

“A lot of facilities are coming to Pohang Iron and Steel Company. You have to buy insurance in case something goes wrong. Suseong Life takes over the insurance and promises to give you 10% as a rebate.”

“what? Are you going to give me a kickback?”

“Yes. Pohang Iron and Steel is no different from a state-owned enterprise, isn’t it? You have to give it openly so there is no backlash, and you are helping Woo Chan-su’s work.”

“Help him, what do you mean?”

“Among the projects he proposed, there is the construction of a foreign village. I heard that it is a village for foreign engineers and their families. How about building a company house for Pohang Steelworks employees and even a school around it?”

At Do Kwon-hee’s words, Do Byeong-cheol’s eyes brightened.

Pohang Iron and Steel said that it would use Japanese loans to build loan apartments and even schools, but Suseong seemed to be in charge of part of it.

“Various newspapers praised it, saying it was a welfare policy worthy of a state-run company, but is it that we also add rebate funds?”

“That’s right. I will take it as a positive message as it will improve the image of Suseong, who always only cares about money, and cooperate with Woo Chan-su’s work.”

In a way, it was like attracting insurance and showing condescension by giving money.

“Run now. Show Woo Chan-su that Suseong is not an enemy.”

“Yes, Father.”

“At this point, you too should come out of Jungdo Ilbo and take charge of Suseong Life.”

“I understand, Father.”

I thought I would hear at least a word of thanks, but Do Byeong-cheol was taken aback by his calm tone.

Do you not know what it means to take charge of the life of Mercury, or do you know it and do it like that…

If it was the latter, the third son’s aspirations could be much bigger than he thought.

“Then, go and work.”

“Yes, I will report to you.”

Even the back of her back seemed reassuring.

The guy who didn’t have a presence before looked different.

‘It’s fortunate, Woo Chan-soo, I wondered if there was anyone who could stand up to him, but that’s my son! As expected, Mercury is not a family that will disappear like this.’

It was something that gave Do Byeong-cheol a little bit of energy, who was hurt a lot by falling over in everything he did recently.

***

Daese Shipyard, Yeongdo, Busan.

The government handed over the Korea Shipbuilding Corporation to me like roasting beans in a flash of lightning.

I sold almost all of the lumber remaining in Jinhae to pay for the acquisition.

As long as the Vietnam War lasts, wood will continue to pile up, but I felt sad because I felt like I was robbing my treasure store one by one.

And now, they are even robbing the steel plates brought from Quy Nhon. As materials were brought in from Quy Nhon, as many as 6,000 tons of materials were piled up in the warehouse at the shipyard.

These are surplus goods collected over a year and a half in Quy Nhon.

All materials are standard materials for the US military, so they were sufficient to be used as ship plates and frames for ships.

“Now, pay attention!”

“Everyone pay attention! The boss says!”

The chiefs set the mood, and I put the iron plate on the floor and held a torch and a faucet in each hand.

“Now, until yesterday, I sprayed anticorrosive on the steel plate, cut it by size, and even marked it as written in the blueprint. Did you all understand?”

“Yes!!!”

At first glance, the iron plate cut into pieces from the blueprint looks the same, but it is subtly different.

If you cut and attach iron plates in a fist-fighting way, the ship becomes rags, and the discarded materials are beyond imagination.

To prevent that, you need to write down the marking code that determines where the cut iron plate is used, and write down the name of the worker next to it.

In shipyard work, material management is the most important thing from start to finish.

“This time, we will make the curved part of the ship with this torch and faucet. As a reminder, anyone who is good at this pays double their wages.”

“Waaa!”

“You mean it’s never easy?”

“I am confident. Please teach me.”

No matter how much it is a dumb boat that is no different from a rickshaw, the exterior must be streamlined.

In this way, safety accidents caused by waves can be reduced.

If you have enough money, you can equip a large roller and press and print the curved surface of the iron plate, but now that is impossible, so you have to trust the craftsmen’s senses.

“Look closely. If you apply heat with a torch along the line drawn here on the iron plate and cool the area around it with water like this…”

Chiiyi profit. shoot it

I heated the griddle with a torch and sprayed water with the faucet to cool it down.

At first, the employees who were watching said, ‘What are you doing?’ After making a face, the iron plate gradually bent concave like a bowl, and they clapped their hands and cheered.

“Wow, bent! It bends!!!!”

It is a processing method called line heating. If you repeat heating expansion and cooling contraction with a torch and tap water, no matter how thick the steel plate is, it will bend.

Believe it or not, it is said that a shipyard veteran devised this technique after watching an iron plate placed on the deck dry like a squid in the scorching summer sun.

“If you apply heat with a wire, it will bend upward like a dried squid, and if you heat it in a triangular shape, it will bend downward.”

Triangular heating is used to create convex shapes.

Chiiyi profit. shoot it

“Aww, this is amazing. president.”

“Come out here and try it.”

“Yes!”

I ordered one of the artisans to do it, and he did it right away.

Do you do better than you think?

“Haha, how are you? This is how you create the curved surface shown in the blueprint. Be careful, greed is prohibited! The width of the machining block must never exceed 4.5 m. Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

“Boss, but how much heat do you have to heat to bend it the way you want?”

Someone asked a key question.

“It is not easy to put into words. You have to try it yourself. You can bend it a little bit at first, but later you can do it a little faster as you get used to it. That’s why you double your daily wage. At first, it will be difficult to do even one a day.”

“Wow! One outline a day?”

One in two days must be successful to make money.

Of course, if you succeed in one a day, you get twice the daily wage of the other person. Two a day makes it quadruple.

This job is so difficult that it is said that it is necessary to be in the shipyard for about 10 years.

“Come on, people who want to try it apply to each manager, and the managers select only 20 people.”

“Yes, boss.”

There must be people with good senses.

If you put a limit on the number of people like this, those who will fall out will fall out at the beginning.

“Chief, let me do it. I will try.”

Applicants have already flooded in, and managers will select welding veterans on their own.

If a rookie rushes at you for no reason, the managers will laugh at you and send them away.

“Come on, today’s education is enough. Let’s all go back and weld the block we’re in charge of.”

“Yes!”

In fact, when making a hull, there are far more blocks that make it square than curved parts.

It is important to build a ship as quickly as possible by dividing the work into veterans and rookies as veterans.

“Cry out, safety! safety! safety!”

“safety! safety! safety!”

Everyone raised their arms high to the sky, shouted for safety, and returned to their respective positions.

“Chief of Assembly Department 1. Has the automatic welding material supply device I mentioned completed?”

“Ah, you mean the automatic carriage. Ha ha, was that really a specialty? Let’s go.”

It was our secret weapon that was ordered to be made.

The assembly manager reacted violently to my words and ran forward. It seems he wanted to brag.

When I entered the warehouse in a corner of the shipyard yard (outdoor workshop), a technician who was working at the moment stood up and greeted me.

“Let me explain to the boss. I mean, the job is going well.”

“Yes, yes. This is the automatic carriage for welding materials that the boss mentioned. We are currently looking for optimal conditions, which allow continuous welding up to approximately 50 m.”

“… 50m at a time?”

Hey, are you a skilled craftsman?

Working 50m at a time in a row?

“Ayu, if you use this, 50m is fast. If you are skilled, you can do 70m in one run.”

The assembly manager shrugged and boasted.

Seriously, the machine in front of me pulled out the automatic carriage I used in my previous life and put it in.

In this era, if you weld a 40 cm long welding rod with tongs and weld roughly 15 cm long, it will wear out, so you have to replace it with a new one.

That’s not all that needs to be done.

Slag must be removed from the first welded portion to prevent defects from occurring in the subsequent welded portion.

It doesn’t sound like a big deal in words, but after repeating it a few times, it’s really annoying to death.

This automatic welding material carriage solves such troubles at once. I don’t know who invented it and when, but when I went to the shipyard, 100% of them were using it.

In this history, we should properly file a patent and receive a lot of royalties.

“Try it, let’s see.”

“Yes, 120A at 20V is optimal for now. It seems most desirable to fill the welding material with the steel plates to be welded about 5mm apart from each other.”

The form the craftsman said was unusual.

In this era, these noblemen made technological advances throughout the industry.

I thought it might be the cotyledon that will grow into a master.

chichichijik. Chi-chi-chi-chi.

When I put on my safety glasses, I saw that the welding was really smooth and perfect.

My insides were all cold.

“awesome. It works.”

“Thanks to the president’s idea. How the hell did the boss come up with this? Ever since I started using this, I don’t even want to look at the existing welding rods.”

“Ha ha ha, is that so?”

“Yes, using this will increase the work speed by a factor of two. To be sure, this is just as the president said.”

Productivity doubled?

I haven’t checked it out, but it must be true.

To be honest, if you develop this, you can even make an automatic welding machine. It will be one of the weapons that make Daese Shipyard the world’s strongest shipyard.

“First of all, let’s submit the patent and hide the detailed technology so that it is only the know-how of the general public. Provide security training to your employees.”

It is not necessary to describe every detail of a patent application.

We need to obtain a patent for the basic element of an automatic feeder, and keep it as our own secret until it spreads widely around the world and uses it to increase productivity.

There is no proper shipyard yet, and if we openly advertise this technology, it is rather like selling our know-how at a bargain price.

“of course. A breach of security is an unconditional dismissal.”

The 1960s had a military mindset, so it was more about information security than the 21st century.

Even if I think about it, this leak of confidentiality is a reason for dismissal.

It is a technology that more than doubles productivity and cuts the labor cost of welders by more than half.

“Let’s apply it to the field right away. Make as much as you need, no matter how much it costs, and spread it around your yard.

“Is that okay?”

“Of course it should. Our goal is to build six 35,000-ton rickshaws by May.”

“thank you. president. I’ll do my best.”

Most importantly, Israel must arrive in Australia and load up on as much iron ore as possible before Israel starts a war in the Middle East.

Even if a long-term contract is signed, if a war breaks out, Homersley may exercise a negative option, saying that Homersley couldn’t secure the stock.

Then, you may not be able to load the quantity you want.

It is necessary to load 200,000 tons in the first shipment so that you do not say anything else, so that a similar amount can be loaded and brought back according to the original contract.

The cargo ship that Nancy ordered had to be loaded with hematite.

Come to think of it, the tanker needs to be launched soon.

We need to check the progress of the crude oil storage facility being built at Ulsan Port as well as the Incheon Port facility commissioned by Hyunsan Construction.

They also have to charge Nancy for the construction cost of the crude oil storage, and there are not only one or two things to take care of.