"bite!"
Accompanied by a crisp metal collision sound, a 40 mm thick steel plate was easily penetrated, and a cloud of black smoke exploded behind the steel plate.
Leaving the sandbag fortification, Sun Zezhong, the chief engineer of Fuwo Automobile Company, walked to the steel plate, stared at the pierced steel plate and said.
"At 100 meters, a 37mm gun can still penetrate it, which means we have to further thicken the armor."
"Engineer Sun, if you add more thickness, the tank won't be able to move!"
Lin Ling, who was following the chief engineer, said.
"I calculated that our tanks weigh more than 9 tons now. If we add thicker armor, it will definitely weigh more than 10 tons. The increase in tank weight requires not only new engines, but also stronger tracks. If there is too much flour, we have to add water, and if there is too much water, we have to add flour. If we keep adding more, it will not be a problem!"
Although he was only an assistant engineer, Lin Ling knew from his communications with the military that the military was very sensitive to the weight of the tanks.
"Moreover, the military is not willing to armor tanks that are too heavy. After all, not all bridges on the battlefield can accommodate tanks. If the tank is too heavy, there will be fewer bridges to choose from. The military even thinks that the Type 18 is a bit too heavy. They would like to reduce it by a few hundred kilograms."
Thick tank armor can indeed increase survivability, but for the military, they value passing performance more. Tanks that cannot be deployed at will on the battlefield cannot play their effectiveness.
"I know, but we have to consider the enemy's firepower. Haven't you heard? The United States has produced thousands of tanks, and the United Kingdom has produced hundreds. Our tank troops will definitely encounter their tanks. Without heavy armor, how can we protect ourselves?"
As an engineer, Sun Zezhong still sticks to his previous point of view - thicker armor and larger artillery, the combination of the two will naturally mean more powerful combat power!
"But simply thickening the armor is not a solution."
Looking at the pierced steel plate, Lin Ling thought for a moment and then said.
"Or, how about considering armored steel? The defensive capability will definitely be stronger if armored steel is used! It saves us from blindly increasing the thickness of the steel plate."
"Armored steel..."
Sun Zezhong pondered for a moment and then spoke.
"The best solution is to use both! However, armored steel... I'm not sure if any steel mills are willing to sell it to us! After all, the Navy has bought up all the armored steel in the country. Otherwise, how could the Army not use armored steel?"
In fact, Sun Zezhong had considered armored steel from the very beginning, but the steel companies directly refused to provide him with armored steel. Their reason was simple - the navy had already monopolized all the production capacity, and it was impossible to supply them at least until there was surplus.
The chief engineer's words made Lin Ling frown and mutter.
"This... this is a problem, but, but..."
With a frown on his face, he stared at the target board. Suddenly, he spoke as if he had thought of something.
"We can't help but ask the small steel company for help. Maybe they can help."
"A small steel company?"
Lin Ling's suggestion made Sun Zezhong's eyes light up.
"That's an idea, but are they willing to produce armored steel?"
"The profits from armored steel are so huge, how could they not see it!"
…
"Armored steel!"
In the research room of Xingye Steel Company, Li Pingcai put forward his request directly.
"I hope you can combine our company's equipment to develop armored steel."
Although the steel company's profits more than tripled after the outbreak of the war due to rising steel prices, Li Pingcai, the company's general manager, was still not satisfied with the current profits. Not only did he need funds to expand production and repay loans, but more importantly, he also needed products with higher profits.
"General Manager, we only have experience in producing manganese steel. Armor steel is a nickel-chromium alloy steel, and its production is very complicated."
As the chief engineer of Xingye Steel Company, Brown had never produced armored steel, but he was not unfamiliar with it. After all, the production and manufacturing of armored alloy steel was considered the crown of the steel industry and was an advanced technology that any steel company wanted to master. He thought about it and said directly.
"As far as I know, the technical process of producing the new surface-hardened armor is very complicated. First, a piece of high-quality nickel-chromium alloy steel needs to be cast, and then it needs to be rolled to meet the requirements of density, thickness and shape. After the surface and edges of the steel are trimmed, the steel plate will enter the carburizing process. There are several different methods, such as solid, liquid, and gas, according to the carburizing process form. High temperature heating is used to make carbon atoms penetrate into the steel plate to increase the surface hardness, while keeping the internal toughness not greatly affected."
Brown's explanation made Li Pingcai laugh.
“It doesn’t sound complicated.”
"My God, General Manager, it sounds very simple, but it is actually very complicated. We also need to build a new factory, purchase the equipment needed to manufacture armor plates, and introduce carburizing technology from Imperial Steel Company and obtain patent authorization. In short, it is very complicated and technically difficult. Even the basic nickel-chromium alloy steel smelting is difficult for us. After all, we..."
Before Brown could finish speaking, Li Pingcai patted him on the shoulder and said.
"Mr. Brown, I believe in you. You will definitely be able to solve these technical problems, just like when you came here and solved many technical problems of the company,"
Li Pingcai always felt that it was his luck to be able to hire the chief engineer in front of him. When Xingye Steel Company was expanding, it could only hire from abroad due to a shortage of technical personnel. Brown's arrival not only solved the problem of technical personnel, but he also researched the production technology of various alloy steels including manganese steel. He can be regarded as a contributor to the development of Xingye Steel Company.
However, the company did not treat him unfairly. It not only provided him with funds, but also some stocks. Today, Brown is no longer the ordinary engineer in the United States, but a wealthy man.
"The most important thing is profit, my friend. The price of one ton of armored steel is now over 400 yuan! Can you imagine how much profit we will make if we can make a breakthrough?"
How can you not imagine it?
It has to be said that money is the most powerful weapon to persuade others. Just a simple sentence made Brown tempted. The profit is indeed considerable!
It’s not very impressive, but it’s very amazing!
"I, I can give it a try, but General Manager, are you sure we have a chance to enter this market?"
The reason why he asked this was because in the empire, military business was not easy to do, not only because the military's conditions were harsh, but also because the military had traditional suppliers.
"It's not certainty, but we must know that armored steel has a wide range of uses on the battlefield. It's not just warships that need armored steel. Army tanks and armored vehicles also need armored steel. We just need to research it. Once it's produced, we don't have to worry about its sales."
As a businessman, Li Pingcai has always been very good at seizing opportunities and also good at discovering opportunities.
It seems that armored steel is the current trend...
The old group is down, so I created a new book club group: 739209015. Everyone is welcome to join and discuss and deduce the plot together.
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