Chapter 156
There were nearly fifty people attending the meeting today. When Ye Manzhi stood in front and spoke, he always kept his attention on the department leaders in the first row.
Ye Manyi felt relieved when she noticed that most of the leaders in the front row were looking at her seriously.
The department has been supporting the province's famous brand products, and companies that won the inter-provincial competition last year also received special support funds.
She started by using a famous brand as a gimmick, which was obviously more effective than complaining.
"Besides our reputation, what other advantages does our Binjiang No. 1 Food Factory have?"
"The first thing I want to emphasize is our advantageous geographical location! Our No. 1 Food Factory is located in Binjiang, the provincial capital. Binjiang is a key transportation hub for our province's external connections, with convenient roads, railways, and shipping. Whether it's importing raw materials or shipping finished products, whether it's for distribution within the province or exporting to other provinces and cities, Binjiang is the most convenient, fastest, and most efficient city in the province."
Several comrades from the Binjiang Industrial Bureau nodded frequently.
The advantages of the provincial capital are so obvious!
"As everyone knows, the formula for soda isn't complicated. Producing it only requires resolving three major issues!" Ye Manzhi stretched out his right hand and counted. "First, we need to solve the production equipment problem. Second, we need to solve the water problem. Third, we need to solve the supply of soda glass bottles."
"The First Food Factory has been developing in Binjiang for half a century. To produce the highest-quality canned fruit, we've found the city's best water source. With the soda business now settled in our factory, we don't need to find another water source to build a new factory; we can directly use the water we use for canning."
"As for the supply of glass bottles, no city in the province offers a more convenient supply than Binjiang," Ye Manzhi said with a smile. "Binjiang has a brewery, a soda factory, a liquor factory, and even the canning workshop of our First Food Factory. Its consumption of glass bottles is enormous. Before last year, our province's glass bottle supply was always insufficient, requiring us to import them from other provinces and cities. However, last December, the province established its first mechanical glass bottle factory—the Binjiang Glass Bottle Factory. Since then, the province has been completely self-sufficient in beer, soda, and canned goods."
"This Japanese soda production line allocated to us by the Ministry of Light Industry can produce 200,000 bottles of soda per day if it is running at full capacity. Even if it only works one 8-hour shift, it can still produce 70,000 bottles of soda per day. With such a huge demand for glass bottles, other regions in the province, except Binjiang, simply cannot meet their own needs based on current production capacity. Even after the soda production line is established in other regions, a large number of glass bottles will still need to be transported from the Binjiang glass bottle factory."
Ye Manzhi looked at the representatives from other zones and asked with a smile, "Since we have to ship it from Binjiang anyway, the distance, space, and shipping costs for shipping glass bottles and finished soda should be similar, so why not ship the soda directly from Binjiang?"
Comrades from other zones: “…”
Why do you say that?
Although it was a bit troublesome to transport glass bottles from outside, by building the soda factory on their own land, all taxes and profits were counted into the local fiscal account.
After the factory is built, it will provide a lot of jobs and solve the problem of surplus labor in the city.
However, transporting soda back from Binjiang is pure consumption!
Ye Manzhi ignored the reactions of other representatives and continued at his own pace.
In fact, she deliberately exaggerated the importance of the glass bottle.
Unlike cans, glass beer and soda bottles can be recycled and reused.
Even if there is loss, it is not necessary to purchase tens of thousands of new bottles every day.
She said this just to highlight the geographical advantage of the First Food Factory. After all, it is next to the glass bottle factory, how convenient!
Ye Manzhi continued, "The comrades from the Zhongjiang District Industrial Bureau mentioned earlier that Zhongjiang has a tradition of making dried and candied fruits. After the soda factory is completed, we can develop and produce fruit juice soda. In fact, our Binjiang No. 1 Food Factory is already working on developing fruit juice soda!"
"Your fellow Binjiang residents may have heard that our food factory has opened a syrup station. We sell the leftover syrup from the day's canned fruit. It's cheaper than soda; you can buy a large bottle for eight cents. Since the beginning of summer, it's been a hit with residents."
"Some residents recently complained that the only drawback with sugary drinks is that they lack the fizzy, refreshing flavor of soda. Therefore, to meet consumer demand, our factory's Chief Process Engineer, Yu Youfang, is leading engineers, technicians, and workshop workers in developing a brand new fruit juice soda!"
After he finished speaking, the food factory team sitting in the audience, led by Niu Enjiu, applauded.
This is what their No. 1 Food Factory does, always at the forefront of the industry!
Ye Manzhi said to the department leaders in the first row, "After this Japanese soda production line is settled in our factory, we will do our utmost to tap its value. In addition to producing regular soda and fruit soda in various flavors, we are also preparing to produce salt soda!"
"The province has always called on light industry to serve agriculture and heavy industry. As a food factory directly under the Provincial Department of Industry, our Binjiang No. 1 Food Factory has also been responding to the department's call and committed to serving heavy industry."
"In heavy industry enterprises, many workers perform high-temperature operations. In such environments, workers can sweat as much as 5-10 liters every eight hours, losing 30-50 grams of salt through sweat. The average person consumes no more than 20 grams of salt per day through their diet. Therefore, to meet health needs, most factories provide salt water to workers working in high-temperature environments to supplement their salt intake."
Deputy Director Li nodded and said that it was necessary to provide additional salt for workers working in high temperatures.
Ye Manzhi continued, "Most heavy industry companies provide workers with salt soda tablets, which they dissolve in boiling water before drinking. However, according to our investigation, these salt soda tablets dissolve very slowly, often with a light taste at first but a strong, even bitter, taste at the end. Some workers experience nausea after drinking the salt soda."
Her husband, Lao Ye, is a welder. He has to perform high-temperature work every day and needs to replenish a lot of salt after sweating a lot.
According to Lao Ye, the salty soda tablets tasted terrible and he always felt like vomiting after drinking them. He would rather add more salt to the dishes than drink the salty soda tablets.
"Because so many workers were experiencing nausea, some larger factories started making bottled salty soda, similar to how they make soda. For example, the Heavy Machinery Factory, Binjiang Machinery Factory, and Factory 656 all opened small salty soda factories to provide bottled salty soda to their workers working in high-temperature environments. It's very popular with the workers."
"However, smaller companies with less-equipped facilities don't have the resources to provide this type of salty soda to their workers. If this imported soda production line could be established at the First Food Factory, we would set aside one shift per week to produce salty soda, providing it to heavy industry companies throughout the city and even the province, meeting the health needs of workers exposed to high temperatures!"
The food factory team applauded again.
This is the superiority of being the No. 1 food factory in the province. Their factory is so conscious!
Xia Zhujun also clapped along with them.
"The idea of providing salty soda to the heavy industry is a great one and deserves encouragement! Regardless of where this production line is ultimately located, I hope everyone will consider the idea of producing salty soda."
There was no question-and-answer session. After Ye Manzhi finished his speech, he returned to his seat and reunited with other factory leaders.
Niu Enjiu and the others applauded her, "Director Ye spoke very well and completed the task successfully!"
If they were the department leaders, they would definitely hand over this production line to the First Food Factory!
However, there is no shortage of smart people on the scene.
After the first three units finished speaking, the deputy commissioner of Dehua District decided on the spot that they could solve the problems of water, fruit juice soda, and salt soda.
As for soda bottles, that is not a problem either. Dehua has a well-developed brewing industry, and there are many small local glass bottle factories serving the breweries.
Soda bottles can be recycled. They can first order tens of thousands of glass bottles from the Binjiang Glass Bottle Factory, and the remaining losses will be supplemented by local glass bottle factories.
When he finished his speech, the only advantages left of Binjiang No. 1 Food Factory were its reputation and geographical location.
The department leaders did not give any results on the day of the special meeting.
After returning to the factory, Niu Enjiu said, "A slight advantage is still an advantage. Furthermore, our reputation and geographical location are not slight advantages. With just these two points, we can surpass other companies! We finally got an imported production line, and the leadership must coordinate the overall situation and maximize its value. This can't be given to just those with weaknesses!"
The food factory team is confident that the factory can get this production line.
But I always feel uneasy until things are finalized.
Niu Enjiu went to the Industry Department almost every other day to inquire about the latest decisions made by the leadership.
He went to the Industrial Department frequently and brought back a lot of news.
After returning to the factory that day, Director Niu held a team meeting with a gloomy face.
At the meeting, he said, "The Binjiang Municipal Industry Bureau wants to work with us to obtain this production line!"
Everyone looked at him with bewildered eyes. Wang Shihu asked in confusion, "What do you mean? Didn't the Industrial Bureau want to hand over the production line to the Second Food Factory? The special meeting is over, why do they want to cooperate with us again?"
Jiang Wenming curled his lips and said, "He must have felt that he had no chance. This production line will either not be given to Binjiang, or if it is given to Binjiang, it will definitely be handed over to our First Food Factory."
They are the biological offspring of the provincial department, and have both fame and geographical advantages.
No matter how you look at it, it's stronger than other units, right?
The Municipal Bureau of Industry probably felt that they had no hope, but did not want to miss this good opportunity, so they set their sights on them again.
"They're trying to take advantage and profit!" Chen Qian muttered, then asked, "Director, how does the Industrial Bureau want to cooperate? We have the factory and the equipment. Can the Industrial Bureau provide money or something else? Since it's a collaboration, they have to contribute something, right?"
Niu Enjiu said, "They can't do anything, but Director Zhang seems to have some influence with Director Luo."
The others suddenly looked surprised.
I see.
The ownership of this production line was mainly decided by Deputy Director Li and Xia Zhuyun.
But the development concepts of these two deputy directors are completely different.
Xia Zhuyun preferred to hand over the production line to the First Food Factory, fully leveraging the brand's advantages to expand and strengthen the enterprise. Much like the central government's pilot trust enterprises, they could create a leading enterprise in the province that would also have a certain degree of national recognition and influence.
Deputy Director Li believes that the province should develop evenly and that Binjiang should not take all the good things. In the past two days, he has frequently received comrades from Dehua District and Zhongjiang District.
It seems that they don't want to keep the production line in Binjiang.
The two sides have significant differences, and after going around in circles, the final decision may still have to be made by Director Luo.
If Director Zhang from the Municipal Industrial Bureau can have some influence with Director Luo, then we can indeed cooperate.
However, Ye Manzhi still had doubts about Director Zhang's role.
She said sternly, "Director, I think there's no problem cooperating with the Municipal Bureau, but if the Municipal Bureau only has lip service, that won't work. Everyone, don't forget, we're directly under the management of the Industry Department. If we cooperate with the Municipal Bureau to open a soda factory, there must be a clear shareholding ratio. Even if the Industry Bureau only holds one share, we must explain clearly to the Department why this share is being given away. If the Department asks about it, we can't say that the Municipal Bureau acted as a PR agent for Director Luo, can we?"
That would make people laugh out loud!
Chen Qian chuckled. "Director Ye is right. If they want to cooperate, the Municipal Bureau must show some sincerity. The Second Food Factory's factory area is small, and it's obviously impossible to accommodate a soft drink factory. When the Municipal Bureau secured this production line for the Second Food Factory, they were probably already prepared to build a new factory building."
"They want to cooperate, right? Okay. I think our factory is a bit crowded. Why don't we ask the city to pay for a new factory building on the vacant land south of our factory? We can set up a branch factory, which will specialize in producing soda."
Niu Enjiu kept a serious face and said nothing.
They had previously wanted to cooperate with the Municipal Bureau to apply for a production line, but the Municipal Bureau kept making excuses.
Now that the possibility of the First Food Factory obtaining the production line has increased, the Municipal Bureau has changed its mind and wants to cooperate with them.
This made Niu Enjiu feel extremely disgusted.
He didn't want the municipal bureau to take advantage of this, but many of the food factory's businesses were subject to local management.
If you refuse an olive branch offered by someone, there is a 99% chance that you will offend that person.
Ye Manzhi smiled and said, "Director Chen is right. Our factory is indeed quite crowded. In order to secure the soda production line, we can temporarily occupy the canning workshop. However, the factory's canning business cannot be neglected. If new canning equipment is added in the future, production space will be a problem. Why not consider cooperating with the Municipal Bureau? We can each contribute a little money to build a soda factory as a branch of our food factory."
No matter who pays for building the factory, it is the country's money. If the city is willing to get involved, let it get involved.
Being able to set up a branch factory and establish good relations with the municipal bureau is actually not a disadvantage.
Old Ox, don’t get stuck in a rut!
Of course Niu Enjiu knew everything she said.
But it is not that simple to jointly set up a branch factory. The Municipal Bureau has paid the money, so can it not take control of the personnel?
Ye Manzhi could guess a little of what he was thinking, but didn't say anything at the meeting.
After the meeting, she went to Niu Enjiu's office alone.
"Director, we have to think about the future. It's okay to refuse the municipal bureau now, but if the food factory is transferred to local management in the future, our factory will inevitably be in an awkward situation."
Niu Enjiu asked vigilantly, "Director Ye, have you heard anything?"
Is the Department of Industry going to transfer the First Food Factory to Binjiang?
Ye Manzhi quickly shook his head and said, "No, no, it's just my own idea. It's better to be prepared. Think about it, ten years ago, the Industrial Department had hundreds of enterprises under its jurisdiction, but in the past few years, they have all been transferred to local management. The provincial department now directly manages either heavy industries or more important light industries such as sugar production, textiles, and leather. We are the only food factory left..."
If the department changes its mind one day and transfers the food factory to local management, the Municipal Industrial Bureau will be their immediate superior.
They can now refuse the municipal bureau because they have the support of the provincial department. It would be embarrassing if they fall into their hands in the future.
Niu Enjiu: "..."
*
Perhaps because he was anxious to get the production line, or perhaps because he listened to Ye Manzhi's advice and wanted to leave a way out for himself, Niu Enjiu finally negotiated cooperation with the Municipal Industrial Bureau on behalf of the factory.
Both parties jointly applied to the provincial department for this production line and jointly built a branch factory.
But Lao Niu has merged several factories before and is quite experienced in this regard.
When negotiating with the Industrial Bureau, he asked the Bureau to jointly pay for the construction of a new factory building, otherwise the factory would not be able to explain to the provincial department.
Moreover, the profit sharing will be calculated starting from the completion of the branch factory.
Before that, soda was produced in the canning room of the food factory.
As for when the branch factory will be completed, that all depends on the municipal bureau.
Anyway, the food factory was busy rebuilding its canning workshop and didn't have much cash.
Niu Enjiu personally followed up on the soda production line. This time, with the Municipal Bureau acting as a lobbyist, Niu Enjiu was even busier and ran outside the factory almost every day.
While everyone's attention was on the soda production line, something big happened in the canning room.
Workshop worker Du Tao, with the cooperation of an engineer, successfully designed a stirring soda machine!
On the day of trial use of the soda machine, many workers in the workshop drank carbonated peach syrup.
When Ye Manzhi heard the news and rushed to see what was going on, the workers in the workshop were having a heated discussion.
"Du Tao, did you really design this soda machine?" Ma Zhichao asked doubtfully, "Could it be Engineer Liu's work?"
Du Tao pushed his glasses up and stammered honestly, "I really designed it."
"Can you draw a blueprint?"
"A little."
Engineer Liu came forward to explain: "The agitator soda machine was indeed designed by Comrade Du Tao. He provided the blueprints, and I helped him find the materials and make it."
Ye Manzhi took a cup of peach juice from the broken jar that didn't look very good and drank it carefully.
There are fine bubbles bursting in the mouth, it is indeed peach-flavored soda!
Ye Manzhi glanced at Du Tao. She remembered that Sister Chen had recommended Du Tao before, saying that he had made the design drawings of a flotation washing workshop, but because he was not a professional, he was not trusted by the workshop director, and the matter was left unresolved.
"Comrade Du Tao, I didn't expect you to develop a soda machine so quickly. You're amazing!"
Du Tao scratched his head and said, "Actually, this machine is not difficult. Put sugar water in the jar, fill it with carbon dioxide to a certain pressure, then crank the handle to drive the blades inside to stir, so that the sugar water and carbon dioxide mix. It's not difficult!"
“Many inventions sound easy, but most people don’t realize that a single idea can be worth a fortune!”
The fly net and honeycomb coal stove made by Dr. Wu in their family didn't seem difficult to make.
But no one had invented it before.
Good ideas are hard to come by!
Ye Manzhi asked curiously, "How long will the soda in this can last?"
"About three or four hours," Du Tao explained, explaining the machine in detail. "Although the handle is sealed, it still leaks. So, if you put it in a soda station to sell soda, you have to add carbon dioxide once a day."
"I heard that you provided the factory with the design drawings for the flotation washing plant before?"
Du Tao said embarrassedly: "Ah, fortunately the factory didn't listen to me at that time. There seems to be something wrong with the design drawing. I've been revising it recently."
Ye Manzhi: “…”
You are quite honest and tell everything.
She encouraged Comrade Du Tao and asked him to give full play to his imagination and hands-on ability to come up with more inventions.
Then she followed a large group of people to the sugar water station to buy fruit juice soda.
This time it’s really carbonated juice!
Her husband Wu Yuzhuo must be so happy!
The mixing soda machine is still in the trial stage and looks a bit ugly, making it inconspicuous in the dessert station.
Consumers outside the factory did not know the value of this ugly machine, and when they saw the food factory workers in work clothes queuing there, they were still wondering.
When they heard the employee who had drunk the sweet soup burp loudly, they realized that today's sweet soup was carbonated!
"Comrade, how much is the soda?"
"The factory hasn't set the price yet. Today we're selling it at eight cents, but tomorrow they might raise the price. It's soda, after all!"
Ye Manyi filled a military kettle with soda and screwed the lid tightly.
When she hurried home, the juice was still quite fizzy.
Comrade Wu Yuzhuo finally drank carbonated peach syrup!
She sat cross-legged in the chair, took two gulps from the kettle, burped, and exclaimed happily, "I'm so happy!"
Ye Manzhi said with a smile: "You are quite grateful for what you have."
Just drink a soda and you'll be happy.
She has actually been quite worried these days.
Her daughter's fifth birthday is coming up soon, but Dr. Wu is still on a business trip.
On her fourth birthday, she was on a business trip in Beijing. This time, for her fifth birthday, Wu Zhengrong went on a business trip to Shanghai again.
Anyway, one of the parents is not around.
Ye Manzhi thought that since her biological father was not at home, she had to celebrate this birthday with her child no matter what.
However, she hasn't figured out what to do specifically.
The next day was the weekend, she didn't have to go to the factory for work, and she didn't have any special plans.
The weather was good, and she and Wu Yuzhuo agreed to do a thorough cleaning at home first, then take care of their personal hygiene, and then the mother and daughter would go to the public bathhouse to take a bath together.
The morning sun was warm. Ye Manzhi was sitting on the bed, taking off and washing the quilt. Wu Yuzhuo and Lihua were lying on the table next to them, doing the homework left for her by her great-grandfather.
There were some noises coming from outside the yard, and the silence in the room was soon broken by Kuihua's cry.
Wu Yuzhuo glanced out the window and said, "It must be Uncle Li delivering the newspapers!"
Their family subscribes to People's Daily and Binjiang Daily.
Without her mother's instructions, she jumped off the chair and ran out to open the door for Uncle Li.
However, when she tiptoed to open the gate and prepared to welcome Uncle Li with Kuihua and Lihua, she found that the newspaper delivery person had been replaced.
And this uncle is riding a sidecar motorcycle, not a bicycle!
"Uncle, who are you looking for?" Wu Yuzhuo asked with his eyes wide open.
Lihua and Kuihua were also standing nearby, looking at the strangers warily.
"I'm looking for Comrade Ye Manzhi," the visitor said with a smile. "I have her telegram!"
After hearing the other party's reply, Wu Yuzhuo ran back to the house excitedly and shouted, "Mom, there is an uncle at the door. There is a telegram for you!"
She has never seen a telegram. What does a telegram look like?
A telegram kept her and the cat and dog busy. Before she could even find her feet, she ran out happily behind her mother.
Ye Manzhi came to the door and asked casually while receiving the telegram: "Comrade, where did the telegram come from?"
"From Shanghai."
Upon hearing this, Ye Manzhi couldn't help but speed up his movements.
The telegram sent from Shanghai is most likely from Wu Zhengrong.
She picked up her daughter, and the mother and daughter read the telegram sent by Dr. Wu from Shanghai for the first time.
Telegrams are charged by the number of words, and Wu Zhengrong's concise and to the point style is particularly suitable for telegraphic communication.
The telegram unfolded, containing only a few short words:
[Canning equipment is available at the Shanghai Industrial Expo, come quickly! ]
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