The technical department was located on the second floor of the factory building, on the east side. It was a completely different world from the workshop downstairs—the windows were sparkling clean, and sunlight dappled the green-painted cement floor. The air was filled with the smell of ink and old paper, and it was so quiet that you could hear the scratching of pens on paper. You even had to speak in hushed tones, a stark contrast to the noisy, clattering atmosphere of the workshop.

Liu Li sat at the dark brown wooden table by the window. The edges of the drawing board on the table were slightly chipped, and there were still some ink stains on the T-square. The HB pencils were sharpened to a fine point, and the ink bottle caps were screwed on tightly. Everything was arranged neatly according to the technical department's rules. But hidden within these rules was an inexplicable sense of estrangement.

She'd been here a week. The day before, Section Chief Chen had introduced her to her colleagues with a smile, but afterwards, everyone kept a polite distance. Middle-aged technician Zhang always kept his Zhongshan suit buttoned tightly, looking at her as if he were assessing whether this female worker actually knew how to draw. Young technician Li occasionally struck up a conversation with her, but it always revolved around questions like "Is working in the workshop tiring?" He never mentioned anything technical. Liu Li knew perfectly well that in the eyes of these people who made their living from blueprints, she, "who came from the workshop," probably hadn't yet shed the label of "only knowing how to tighten a wrench."

That week, she did nothing but sort out old drawings and check standards in the archives, far from actually compiling process specifications. Until that morning, Engineer Zhang leaned over from across the room and handed her a drawing: "Xiao Liu, you should have machined this B-07-34 bushing in the workshop, right? The department wants you to compile a process specification, which is your first real job."

Liu Li took the drawing, her fingertips brushing against the yellowed edge of the paper—B-07-34. She could picture it clearly even with her eyes closed: a cylindrical sleeve, 50 millimeters on the outside and 20 millimeters on the inside. The precision wasn't top-notch, but when it was being machined in the workshop, the inside hole always tended to become elliptical.

"Okay, Engineer Zhang, I'll do my best." She didn't say much, but she knew in her heart that this was the first litmus test the technical department had given her. If she messed it up, it would be even harder for her to gain a foothold in the future; if she did it well, these people would take her seriously.

Zhang pushed up his glasses and added, "No rush, take your time. Show me when you're done. There are templates in the filing cabinet; follow the format." The phrases "take your time" and "show me first" revealed a hint of unease.

Liu Li didn't look at the template; instead, she spread out the drawings and traced the lines with her finger: blanking, rough turning, finish turning, drilling... But just looking at the drawings wasn't enough. What kind of cutting tools were they using in the workshop? Would they deform during clamping? She remembered what Master Wang always said: "Drawings are static, but work is dynamic." She stood up and said, "Engineer Zhang, I'll go to the workshop and see how it's actually processed."

Engineer Zhang was taken aback: "You still can't understand the blueprints?"

“It’s not that I don’t understand it,” Liu Li said honestly. “The craftsmanship must be able to guide the work. If you don’t look at the site, the craftsmanship might not be practical.”

Zhang Gong didn't say anything more and waved her away. Liu Li, carrying the blueprints and notebook, hurried downstairs. As soon as she entered the workshop, she breathed a sigh of relief—the smell of machine oil mixed with the smell of metal filings hit her, and the lathes were humming around. It was much more comfortable than the office.

Master Wang was leading his apprentice in planing iron blocks. Holding a plane in his hand, he didn't turn his head but shouted from afar, "Why aren't you upstairs? Why are you coming down here to eat dust?" His tone was harsh, but Liu Li sensed a hint of concern in his voice.

“We’re working on the process, let’s ask Master Li, who was machining the part, how it was done.” She walked up to Master Li, who was working on the part.

Upon hearing this, Master Li immediately shut down the lathe, wiped the oil off his hands, and said, "Technician Liu, you've come to the right person! This job looks simple, but the inner hole is the hardest part! I use a Yt15 cutter, and for roughing, the speed is 320 and the feed rate is 0.3; for finishing, it has to be slower, with the speed increased to 480 and the feed rate not exceeding 0.1, otherwise the surface finish will not be good enough."

As he spoke, he pointed to the chuck: "Look, you have to use a copper pad when clamping the outer diameter, otherwise if you clamp it too tightly, the inner hole will become elliptical! I learned this the hard way last time and ruined two pieces!"

Liu Li took out her notebook and wrote down even things like "copper pad" and "finishing feed rate below 0.1". She also drew a simple sketch of an open protective sleeve: "Master Li, if we make this protective sleeve, wouldn't it be more effective in preventing pinching injuries?"

Master Li came over to take a look: "Hey! That's a great idea! Why didn't we think of that before?"

She went to the material preparation section to ask about the bar stock dimensions, checked the tool inventory in the tool room, and even memorized the method by which the inspector used an inside micrometer to measure the inner diameter of the hole before returning to the technical department.

In the afternoon, Liu Li hunched over her desk writing out process sheets, not following the rigid format of the templates, but writing them honestly:

Part Name: Bushing (B-07-34)

Material: 45# steel, bar stock φ55x105

1. Cutting: Use a saw to cut the material to size, and chamfer both ends with c1 (don't chamfer too much to avoid wasting material when machining the end face later).

2. Rough turning: C620 lathe, three-jaw chuck. Clamp one end, extending 70 mm, turn the end face, drill the center hole, and turn the outer diameter to φ52±0.5; turn the lathe around and clamp it to φ52 (with copper padding!), turn the other end face, ensuring the total length is 100±0.5, and drill the center hole.

3. Finish turning: C620 lathe, one chuck and one support. Turn the outer diameter to φ50-0.02/-0.05, surface finish ▽6; ensure the step surface is 15±0.1. Note: Before finish turning, calibrate the chuck, do not clamp too tightly, and use an open sleeve to prevent pinching damage. Speed ​​460-480 rpm, feed rate 0.08-0.1 mm/rpm (test cut scrap material before starting the actual work!).

4. Drilling: Vertical drill, three-jaw chuck (with copper padding required), φ20 drill bit. Grind the drill bit symmetrically, center it slowly, and avoid drilling off-center.

5. Inspection: Use a vernier caliper to measure the outer circle, a micrometer to measure the length, and an inside micrometer to check the inner diameter (measure the opening, middle, and bottom of the hole to prevent ellipticity).

She also added in the notes: "If there is a lot of material left after rough machining, add an annealing process to relieve stress, otherwise the precision machining will easily deform" - this is the experience summarized from seeing the deformation of the parts before.

It was getting dark when she finished writing. Liu Li folded the process sheet and placed it on Zhang Gong's desk: "Zhang Gong, it's finished. Please take a look."

As Zhang Gong was packing up to leave work, he picked up the process sheet and flipped through it. At first, he was casual, but when he got to the lines about "copper padding to prevent pinching" and "trial cutting waste," his fingers paused, his eyebrows twitched, and he slowed down. He didn't speak immediately, but when he looked up at Liu Li, his gaze was less indifferent than before, and more thoughtful: "Just put it here, I'll look at it tomorrow."

Liu Li nodded, packed her things, and left work. As she walked out of the office building, the workshop bell rang. In the twilight, she clenched her fist—this process sheet was her first step in the technical department; her trips to the workshop hadn't been in vain, and she hadn't let Master Wang down. She knew that she would have to work this hard from now on to truly establish herself.