Chapter 213
After the clamor of the factory-wide discussion, what remained was an even heavier sense of confusion and stalemate. Various viewpoints clashed fiercely, but failed to find a clear and feasible way out. The question raised by Liu Li—"What can we actually do?"—was like a heavy wedge driven into everyone's heart, yet no one could immediately pull it out.
The meeting adjourned temporarily in a depressing atmosphere after ending without any results. But Liu Li didn't stop. In the following days, she locked herself in her office, supplemented by technical support from Fu Jingchen and market information gathered piecemeal from the sales department and visits to old clients, and began writing furiously.
She reviewed all of Hongxing Factory's assets: a vast machining capacity, a team of experienced technical workers, complete heat treatment, casting, and forging equipment, and valuable experience accumulated in the field of precision manufacturing. She also calmly analyzed its weaknesses: a simple and cumbersome product structure, high costs, almost no knowledge of the consumer goods market, and a lack of flexible marketing awareness and channels.
Then, she turned her gaze to the rapidly changing world outside the factory. She recalled the vitality of township enterprises she had witnessed during her research trip south, and how their simple, inexpensive small agricultural machinery and hardware products, which genuinely addressed the pain points of farmers' production and lives, were selling so well. She analyzed the enormous demand unleashed by the implementation of the household contract responsibility system in rural areas after the shift in national policy, as well as the initial desire of urban residents to improve their quality of life.
A few days later, a thick document entitled "Proposal on the Transformation and Development of Hongxing Machinery Factory into Civilian Products" was solemnly placed on the desks of every member of the factory's leadership team.
This proposal doesn't contain empty slogans; it's more like a rigorous business plan that combines technical feasibility studies with market analysis.
Part One: Current Situation and Crisis Analysis. Using detailed data, the article once again clearly reveals the severe situation facing the Hongxing Factory, including inventory backlog and depleted funds. It explicitly points out that relying on the old path of a planned economy is no longer viable, and waiting for rescue from higher authorities is tantamount to sitting and waiting for death.
The second part analyzes the advantages and opportunities. It objectively lists the core advantages of Hongxing Factory in terms of equipment, technology, and talent, emphasizing that these advantages are not limited to the production of large industrial components. She raises a key argument: "By applying our technology, used for producing precision machine tool gears, to civilian products with slightly lower requirements but huge market demand, we will achieve an overwhelming advantage in quality and durability."
The third part, which is also the core of the proposal, is the direction of transformation and specific product ideas.
Liu Li did not aim too high; her proposed entry point was extremely pragmatic, directly targeting the most promising market at the time—the countryside.
1. Small Agricultural Machinery: The key recommendations are the development of small hand-cranked/powered corn threshers, small feed grinders, and household water pumps. She analyzed that these products have moderate technical barriers to entry, Hongxing Factory's machining and sheet metal capabilities are fully capable, and the market demand is clear and broad. The attachment even includes preliminary principle sketches and technical parameter estimates for several products drawn with Fu Jingchen's help.
2. Daily Hardware and Tools: It is proposed that stamping and casting capabilities can be used to produce higher-quality household wrenches, pliers, hinges, bolts, etc., to replace the poorly made products on the market.
3. Laying the groundwork for the future: She even proactively suggested that preliminary research could begin on "upgraded products" with a certain level of technical content, such as small single-cylinder diesel engines and simple food processing machinery, which could leverage the technological advantages of the Hongxing Factory, in order to reserve technology for future development.
Part Four: Implementation Path and Risk Control.
She proposed a strategy of "small steps, quick iterations, and trial and error":
• Establish a new product development project team, concentrate superior resources, and prioritize the development of 1-2 products with the most urgent market demand and the shortest development cycle (such as hand-cranked corn threshers).
• Utilize existing idle equipment or establish small production lines to conduct small-batch trial production, strictly controlling initial investment.
• Adopt flexible sales strategies, such as cooperating with supply and marketing cooperatives, organizing sales personnel to go directly to rural areas to promote sales, and even allowing the use of grain coupons or other agricultural products as partial payment, to quickly open up sales channels and recover funds.
• Establish a risk warning line and clarify the upper limit of initial investment. If the trial sales are unsuccessful, adjust the direction in a timely manner to avoid greater losses.
This proposal is based on solid data, rigorous logic, a clear direction, and well-defined steps. It doesn't negate the past of the Hongxing Factory, but rather attempts to find a new path for its glorious industrial manufacturing capabilities to survive and thrive in the new era. Like a beam of light, it pierces through the pessimistic fog that permeates the factory, pointing to a breakthrough direction that, while challenging, is at least clearly visible.
As the factory leaders perused the weighty proposal, looking at the product sketches and analytical data that incorporated the factory's technical drawings, a long silence fell over the meeting room. This time, it wasn't the tension before an argument, but rather the shock and deep reflection brought about by this highly persuasive and actionable plan.
The same thought lingered in everyone's mind: Perhaps this path is really worth trying?
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