Chapter 429: Difficulties

On October 12, all matters in Donghai were completed, and Song Ci and Liu Shishi set out to return to Peking.

Early in the morning, the Gulfstream G650 landed smoothly on the private apron of the Capital Airport.

The cabin door opened, and Liu Shishi took her husband's arm and walked slowly towards the gangway.

"Yi Yi, are you going directly to the company?"

"Um."

Liu Shishi's eyebrows curved and she smiled lightly: "When you come back from get off work, I'll give you a surprise."

"good."

The couple chatted all the way to the airport exit, then got into their cars and left.

In the Tengda headquarters office, Song Ci was concentrating on reviewing documents.

Across from him, Secretary Jian Ning asked quietly, "Director Song, will you go to Dewen to work these days?"

Song Ci did not even raise his head, and kept writing: "Is there something important about Dewen?"

"Su Lan called just now and said that Mr. Wang wanted to report on the Dewen headquarters building. When would it be convenient for you?"

"I don't plan to go to Dewen these days, let Mr. Wang come to Tengda."

Jian Ning responded: "Okay, I'll notify Lidya Su and ask Mr. Wang to come over."

About an hour later, Wang Fengying, who received the notice, brought Song Xueying and Su Lan to the Tengda Technology Building.

In the lobby on the first floor, Wang Fengying couldn't help but look around.

Although she has been following Song Ci in starting a business, this is her first time setting foot in Tengda Group.

This world-renowned Internet giant's global headquarters has a magnificent interior and is full of technology.

She couldn't help but yearn for it and wonder when Dewen Manufacturing would have such a landmark headquarters building?

"Mr. Wang, Mr. Song, the director is in the office. Please follow me." Jian Ning, who had been waiting in the lobby, stepped forward and led the three of them straight to the elevator.

The numbers on the display kept jumping and the elevator slowly climbed.

Jian Ning introduced at the right time: "This technology building has 39 floors above ground, and Mr. Song works on the top floor."

When they reached the 30th floor, the heavy metal door opened and a middle-aged man walked in. When he saw Song Xueying, he was slightly startled: "Secretary Song!"

Song Xueying responded with a smile: "Mr. Chen, long time no see."

"Jane Ning, who are these two?"

"Mr. Chen, this is Wang Fengying, the president of Dewen Manufacturing Company, and Su Lan, another secretary of Mr. Song."

Jian Ning stepped aside to introduce, "Mr. Wang, Mr. Chen is the Chief Financial Officer of Tengda Group."

"Hello, Mr. Wang." Chen An did not dare to be negligent.

The company's top management is well aware that Chairman Song Ci started his second business at the beginning of the year. The Dewen Manufacturing he established is a cutting-edge manufacturing company with prospects no less than that of Tengda back then.

Wang Fengying's role in Dewen is comparable to Zhang Yong's role in Tengda.

"You're welcome, Mr. Chen." Wang Fengying responded modestly.

There is a huge gap in strength between Dewen and Tengda. The person in front of him is the CFO of Tengda and his status is far above his own.

While we were chatting, the elevator arrived at the top floor.

Chen An walked to the access control first. After passing the facial recognition, the heavy glass sliding door opened automatically.

"Thank you, Mr. Chen." Jian Ning simply thanked him and led the three people into Song Ci's office.

Chen An stood in the corridor, looking at the backs of several people thoughtfully.

Dewen Manufacturing, founded by the chairman, has been hoarding rare minerals around the world and has begun to show its potential. Its future potential may be no less than that of Huawei. If Tenda can make a strategic investment, it will certainly be of great benefit to the development of the group.

On the other side, Wang Fengying had already started reporting to Song Chu: "Mr. Song, the land approved by the municipal government for Dewen has been approved."

Song Ci closed his pen upon hearing this and asked with concern: "Oh? Which piece of land was approved?"

Su Lan immediately took out a map of Peking from her bag and spread it flat on the office desk.

Wang Fengying pointed to the red circle in the picture and said: "It's on Xibeiwang North Road, about 2.8 kilometers away from Tengda Technology Building."

"Not bad." Song Ci nodded with satisfaction. This distance was convenient for him to travel between Dewen and Tengda, saving a lot of travel time. "How much does the land cost?"

“The area is about 120,000 square meters, and the total land price is 600 million yuan.”

Song Ci nodded: "Land prices in first-tier cities are still rising, so if it's suitable, just take it.

The sooner Dewen's headquarters is completed, the more employees will feel a sense of belonging to the company. Having a decent headquarters building is also a reflection of the company's strength. "

Seeing that the big boss agreed to buy the land and build the building, Wang Fengying was delighted and hurriedly took out another stack of drawings, which were 3D renderings designed by major well-known architectural design institutes for Dewen headquarters.

"Mr. Song, these are the plans we selected after comprehensively considering the architectural design highlights, space function planning and investment costs. Please take a look."

Song Ci flipped through the books with great interest, and one of the designs, which was full of three-dimensional technological sense, particularly suited his taste.

Song Xueying leaned closer and explained at the right time: "Mr. Song, this "Sky City" was designed by the British Foster + Partners.

The overall structure adopts a suspended steel structure system, the main body is built with 55,000 tons of steel, and is composed of "primary load-bearing components and secondary load-bearing components."

The more Song Ci read it, the more he liked it. He praised it repeatedly: "It is worthy of Foster + Partners, which has designed world-famous landmark buildings such as Apple Headquarters and HSBC Building in Hong Kong. The technological innovation and aesthetic breakthrough are indeed unique."

Seeing that the big boss favored this plan, Song Xueying gave a detailed introduction: "The building consists of two towers, the west tower is 193 meters high and has 43 floors, and the east tower is 211 meters high and has 47 floors.

Six glass facade boxes are hung on the outside, supported by giant trusses, creating a visual effect of "stacked containers", which has both a sense of lightness and industrial aesthetics. "

Song Ci chuckled: "It's really good, it looks more impressive than the Tengda Technology Building."

"Please look here." Song Xueying added, pointing at the drawing.

“Because it is a suspended structure, the number of internal columns is greatly reduced, and an open office area surrounded by a 270-degree panoramic glass curtain wall can be created, which can improve spatial flexibility and natural lighting.”

Considering the company's drone business, the east and west towers are connected by a glass bridge, which is convenient for passage and also serves as the entrance for drone test flights. The specially designed skylight on the top can also provide drone test flights. "

Song Ci pondered for a moment. The headquarters building was related to Dewen's global image. Judging from the overall effect alone, the "Castle in the Sky" was indeed the most suitable for him.

But buying land and building a building still requires calculating the cost: "If this design is used, how much will the building cost?"

Wang Fengying replied: "The preliminary estimate is around 1.5 billion, no more than 1.6 billion."

"The total cost is about 300 million US dollars." Song Ci calculated in his mind. This cost was within his acceptable range. He immediately stopped hesitating and made a decisive decision, "Use this plan and start the building as soon as possible."

Wang Fengying was overjoyed when she heard this, and her heart finally settled down.

"Please sit down. I have something to ask you." Song Ci ordered. Since Wang Fengying was here, he naturally had to ask about Dewen's affairs.

Wang Fengying and Song Xueying sat down at the desk, while Jian Ning and Su Lan quietly left the office and closed the door gently.

Song Ci clasped his hands together, leaned back in his boss chair, and looked at his two subordinates: "Are there any progress in photovoltaic energy storage and new materials?"

Dewen Manufacturing's core businesses are mainly divided into six major sectors: trams, rockets, drones, photovoltaic energy storage, new materials, and supply chain companies.

Among them, the electric car layout is the earliest, the first model is under development, and the Jinling factory has also started construction, and it can be carried out step by step.

He doesn't need to worry too much about rocket development because his mother is helping to oversee it; both drones and the supply chain have produced results.

The only two left were photovoltaic energy storage and new materials. Although the two business units reported their progress every week and Song Ci would visit them when he had time, there was still no progress.

Although technological research and development cannot be achieved overnight, more than half a year has passed since Dewen Manufacturing was founded. He has invested a large amount of money, so he should see some results.

Upon hearing this, Wang Fengying's expression suddenly became serious.

Dewen Manufacturing has four presidents, one president and three vice presidents. Tang Jun is in charge of drones, rockets and supply chain.

Yang Bowen is in charge of digital infrastructure, patent pool and strategic investment; Song Xueying is in charge of finance, human resources, legal affairs and other logistical support.

The remaining trams, photovoltaic energy storage and new materials are the businesses that she, as the president, is directly responsible for.

Wang Fengying thought for a moment, as if she was organizing her thoughts: "Let me first report to you about the new materials. Considering Dewen's business characteristics, we are currently focusing on three core tracks.

First, in cooperation with electric vehicle manufacturing, we will focus on power battery materials, such as high-nickel ternary positive electrodes, silicon-carbon negative electrodes, as well as carbon fiber composite materials, new aluminum alloys and other lightweight materials.

The second is high-temperature resistant carbon-ceramic composite materials and radiation-resistant satellite protective coatings suitable for rockets and satellites, which are being developed in cooperation with Beihang University.

In addition, there are photovoltaic materials such as transparent conductive films.

New materials are one of the seven strategic industries in the country's "12th Five-Year Plan". The company has applied for the "National Large-Scale Integrated Circuit Manufacturing Technology" 02 special subsidy. "

"The idea is right." Song Ci never objects to taking advantage of policy dividends. Applying for special projects is a way to strengthen the linkage between government and enterprises.

Seeing the chairman's approval, Wang Fengying continued: "In addition, I am preparing to work with CATL to take the lead in formulating the "Specifications for Lithium-ion Battery Materials for Electric Vehicles" and lead the formulation of standards."

Hearing this, Song Ci couldn't help but praise: "Not bad, a first-class enterprise sets the standard."

"General Manager Yang's strategic investment center is also taking active actions, trying to acquire the carbon fiber patents of Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States and the carbon fiber division of Toray Industries, Japan."

Wang Fengying glanced at Song Ci and cautiously probed, "It's just that whether it's key technology acquisitions or material research and development, it takes time, and it may take a year or two to see results."

Seeing Wang Fengying's nervous expression, Song Ci spoke to comfort her: "I don't mean to urge you to produce results immediately, but the company must ensure that the direction is correct.

In your report just now, there is absolutely no problem with Dewen’s development ideas in the new materials field. The key next is to ensure that the execution is in place.”

Wang Fengying breathed a sigh of relief: "Don't worry, I have always been very strict in the management of my subordinates, and the execution is absolutely guaranteed."

Song Ci did not comment on Wang Fengying's strict management approach. Currently, Dewen Manufacturing is thriving, and cost control and other aspects are in place.

Fine-grained management is not his forte, and before Dewen encounters problems, he will not interfere with Wang Fengying's exercise of daily management authority as CEO.

“Let’s talk about photovoltaic energy storage.”

Wang Fengying's expression changed, and her face was suddenly filled with worry: "Mr. Song, the entire photovoltaic energy storage industry is now in a deep predicament, which can only be described by the four words "internal and external troubles."

Song Ci was stunned. He knew that this was the window period for the iteration of photovoltaic energy storage technology, and various problems would inevitably be encountered during the development. But from Wang Fengying's tone, the situation seemed to be much worse than he had imagined.

"Thanks for your trust in me to serve as the president of Dewen. I have never been able to tell you in detail before, but the photovoltaic energy storage business is really difficult. Today I can only complain to you."

Song Ci looked unhappy: "Boss Wang, this is not right. We should seek truth from facts at work. How can we only report good news and not bad news? Don't be afraid of any difficulties you encounter, just tell me directly. Come on, lay out the problems one by one."

Wang Fengying took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "In 2011, seven US photovoltaic companies complained to the Ministry of Commerce, accusing my country of dumping photovoltaic products and accepting government subsidies, and demanded the imposition of high tariffs. Subsequently, the European Union also launched a similar investigation.

This year, the United States has initially imposed anti-dumping duties of 31.14%-249.96% and countervailing duties of 14.78%-15.91% on Chinese photovoltaic companies.

"The high tariff of 249%!" Wang Fengying's voice suddenly rose, her tone full of excitement, "It directly resulted in the products being unable to be exported to the European and American markets.

Products are unsalable in the domestic market, and in order to survive, the entire photovoltaic industry can only fall into a vicious cycle of "low-price internal circulation".

What’s worse is that many core technologies and equipment are dependent on foreign countries.

At present, polysilicon purification mainly relies on the German Siemens method, and high-end string welding machines and PECVD equipment can only be purchased from Germany and the United States. "

After listening to Wang Fengying's detailed introduction to the entire photovoltaic energy storage industry, Song Ci felt a headache.

With overcapacity, anti-dumping and countervailing measures from Europe and the United States, and technology still restricted overseas, it is no wonder that she used the words "internal and external troubles" and "struggling hard" to describe the situation.

"Let me think about it." Song Ci lowered his head and pondered, and began to mobilize the memories deep in his mind. The advantage of foresight was highlighted at this moment, "Please remember it."

Wang Fengying quickly took out her notebook, with the tip of her pen hovering over the paper, ready to take notes at any time.

Song Ci said: "There is no need to worry too much about the problem of overcapacity for the time being. The key to breaking the deadlock is still technology!

First of all, we need to develop cold hydrogenation technology to replace the Siemens method, and at the same time acquire domestic photovoltaic equipment manufacturing companies to achieve localization of core equipment as soon as possible. These two points are of utmost importance.

Secondly, we still use the old method, taking the differentiated technology route, targeting the high-end market, and avoiding homogeneous competition. That day, I asked Tang Jun to do the same thing, and the same applies to the development of drones.

I don’t understand photovoltaic technology. The company’s professional engineers should know which technology belongs to the high-end market, right?”

Wang Feng responded without hesitation while writing furiously: "Thin-film plus crystalline silicon stacking technology, combined with photovoltaic building integration, is the high-end market direction in the industry."

"You should communicate with experts on the technical route in detail. Regarding the "double anti-dumping" measures, you can consider expanding overseas.

We can build module factories in Malaysia and Vietnam, or acquire small and medium-sized PV companies in the EU and directly establish distribution channels there. In short, we should take it step by step and make steady progress.”

"clear."

Song Ci gave a few more instructions, and Wang Fengying wrote them down one by one. She was about to say goodbye with Song Xueying, but then she remembered something and stopped.

Seeing that his subordinate was hesitant to speak, Song Ci took the initiative to ask, "Anything else?"

"Um, Mr. Song! Can you also arrange a supercomputer for Dewen?" Wang Fengying felt a little embarrassed.

Purchasing a supercomputer costs at least tens of billions of dollars, plus the daily maintenance costs, the expenses are really staggering.

Dewen is now in a state of disrepair and relies entirely on the big boss for support. It is a request that she finds difficult to bring up.

But supercomputers are of great importance to the company. Tram road condition simulation and drone simulation flight both require the computing power of supercomputers, so she had no choice but to ask for help.

"Buy, buy, buy!" Song Ci waved his hand. He had already invested nearly 5 billion US dollars in Dewen Manufacturing. Spending an extra two or three hundred million US dollars was nothing.

(End of this chapter)