After listening to Zhang Lianchang's words, Chen Xia asked again:
"You mentioned money and a person. What's the other important point?"
Zhang Lianchang unconsciously sat a little closer to Chen Xia. Chen Xia silently moved his chair back half a step. He was really not used to such intimacy. Besides, being too close could easily spread infectious diseases.
“The only thing left is the machine.
To produce chips, you need 16 main machines, including photolithography machines, etching machines, ion implanters, etc. Why are wafer production lines expensive? The reason for the high cost is these machines.
"These machines are basically monopolized by developed countries, and the prices can only be described as exorbitant. But the kicker is, they also have the Coordination of the United Nations (COCOM) agreement, which imposes an embargo on our country. Isn't that infuriating?"
"Ah, an embargo on our country? Then we can't even develop. We can't even buy machines."
Chen Xia slapped his thigh, feeling very unhappy. He thought, if you don't sell to me, be careful, I will burn you all with a big fire, and no one will have fun.
Ye Shirong coughed lightly a few times beside him:
"Boss, Professor Zhang, you may have forgotten that this is Hong Kong, which is currently part of England. Moreover, we are a Hong Kong company and are not subject to the embargo."
Chen Xia and Zhang Lianchang raised their heads and slapped their thighs together:
"Right, Chen Xia isn't from the mainland now, and Four Seasons Group is also a Hong Kong company. Technically, it's British-owned, so it's not on the embargo list at all."
Well, now that we have the right time, right place and right people, there is no reason for Pumpkin Vine not to develop its own chips.
Once Four Seasons Group has the most advanced wafer production line and updates it from time to time, no one will be able to block the products of Pumpkin Vine Medical Device Company in the future.
Chen Xia would rather spend more money to keep the entire industry chain in his own hands as much as possible.
It's said to be late but it's actually early, as the Frankfurt Industrial Fair in Europe is about to be held.
These are some of the world's largest industrial exhibitions, and related companies from all over the world will participate, including manufacturers of lithography machines.
Chen Xia took Ye Shirong, Zhang Lianchang and others with him and flew directly there on the newly arrived private plane.
This couldn't help but make Chen Xia anxious, because the medical equipment branch factory in Tsuen Wan, Hong Kong was already under construction, and all other preparatory work was in progress. If the chip problem was not resolved, Chen Xia would never be able to feel at ease.
Now we are preparing to spend 1 billion or 2 billion US dollars to solve the problem of wafer production line at once, which is of great significance to Pumpkin Vine Pharmaceutical Company.
You should know that after the WHO came to consider Four Seasons Hospital and Margaret Hospital last time, many countries expressed their desire to purchase a large number of various laparoscopic instruments and develop laparoscopic surgery technology.
As the only manufacturer in the world that can produce this type of laparoscope, Pumpkin Vine is in an absolute monopoly position, which means it can set the price and decide how much to sell.
How could Chen Xia miss such an opportunity.
He placed this medical device company in Hong Kong to facilitate future exports.
This thing is different from medicine. Chen Xia plans to let his company have exclusive control of the market. At worst, he can contract out the "distribution rights" and earn the wholesale price.
Today he was being slaughtered by others because of the chip, and tomorrow he will still slaughter them with the machine he invented. It will be his retribution.
At the Frankfurt Industrial Fair.
In front of the booth of ASML, the world's largest supplier of lithography machines and a giant in southern China.
Chen Xia frowned and looked at the white manager in front of him and asked:
"Sir, aren't you going to sell us your most advanced lithography machine? We are a Hong Kong company and have little to do with Red China."
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Chen, because Hong Kong will soon return to your China, which means that you have begun to slowly lose your immunity. This is what the British government has stated within the CoCom, so we can only treat it with caution.
Our products are in short supply right now. Even if you get authorization from the British Hong Kong government, we currently don't have the machines to supply you. We are truly sorry."
Upon hearing this, everyone cursed in unison.
Everyone knows that the British government was constantly taking action before 1997, but now Hong Kong is still your territory, and you have been secretly listed on the cautious list.
It shows how quickly the British government can change its stance, and only ordinary citizens are still kept in the dark.
The same thing happened when we met with a Japanese company. Their technical barriers were blatant discrimination against us.
Unable to buy the latest lithography machine, Chen Xia's eyes started to wander. Damn it, if you don't sell it to me, can't I just steal it myself?
This is his old specialty, and he has even stolen lithography machines before.
Chen Xia quietly nudged Zhang Lianchang:
"Professor Zhang, if I could obtain a lithography machine through illegal means, would you engineers have the ability to operate it?"
Zhang Lianchang shook his head:
"It's useless. The programs in these machines are all encrypted. Only their engineers can decrypt them. Moreover, only the manufacturer can perform subsequent repairs and maintenance. Without the manufacturer's assistance, the machine will just be a pile of scrap metal."
"Depend on!"
Chen Xia really wanted to raise his middle finger so that he couldn't take advantage of it.
What should I do if I can’t buy what I want and can’t steal what I want?
At this moment, a young white man suddenly appeared from the side and said, "Hi, Mr. Chen, can we talk privately?"
Chen Xia looked closely and remembered that the white guy was one of ASML's salesmen, whom he had just seen at the booth.
The two walked to an empty corner, and Chen Xia asked curiously:
"Oh, hello, what can I do for you?"
"Sir, my name is Vito, and I'm currently the sales manager at ASML. If you're willing to pay anything, I'd be happy to tell you who ordered our lithography machines. Perhaps you can think of a solution from there."
Chen Xia narrowed his eyes after hearing this.
"Oh, what good would it do me if I knew who bought your machine? Would they sell it to me?"
The white salesperson chuckled and said straight to the point:
"TJD in Taiwan and LID in Australia have previously ordered more than 30 lithography machines. If you can get them to cancel their orders, our company will be unable to meet its sales targets and will definitely beg you to buy more."
Chen Xia's eyes lit up: "Can you tell me, for example, under what circumstances can they cancel the order?"
"There are many ways. For example, if their sales are poor, they won't need so many lithography machines. Or maybe something unexpected happened to their production line, preventing them from starting operations. In short, they will have to face some unforeseen troubles..."
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