2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 119 The Initial Model of the Technology Team
Technical people are generally quite proud, but they are not unreasonable; on the contrary, they will respect you if you offer some constructive suggestions.

This probably reflects a confidence in one's expertise and a disdain for laymen instructing professionals.

Dealing with technical staff is actually quite simple: meet their technical requirements, give developers full respect, and provide adequate compensation.

For the development of the exterior parts for the Flash series, Zhang Mingcan's factory also sent mold designers to follow up throughout the process, because all the subsequent plastic part molds will be handed over to Zhang Mingcan's factory for production.

Tan Jincheng essentially benefited from Zhang Mingcan's technical expertise for free. With the mold designer's full involvement, there were far fewer modifications needed for subsequent products, as the approaches to product development and mold design are different.

During the product development process, designers may design structures that cannot be manufactured on molds due to aesthetic or assembly issues. In such cases, modifications are required, which can waste a lot of time.

With the participation of more tradespeople, the progress will be much faster. Tan Jincheng even invited some experienced injection molding machine operators to supervise the process. Although these people may not even know how to operate computer software, they have rich practical experience.

As for where the samples come from, you can't just design them out of thin air, can you?
That's nothing more than buying a few popular products from the market, disassembling them, and then modifying them into the style you want, avoiding their structural types. In its early days, Flash was not exactly excellent; it just needed to open up the market and survive first.

Taking the path of imitation is also a last resort. No matter how standard the planning is, in the early stages it is just a larger-scale assembly plant with no technological content or technological barriers.

All they can do is rely on Tan Jincheng's forward-thinking vision, using innovative designs and exceptional value to catch their competitors off guard.

"Boss, isn't it a bit ugly that we made the front footrest so big? It just doesn't look right."

When Tan Jincheng suggested increasing the size of the front footrest, Wang Chao, an engineer poached from Xinri and currently the head of the Flash Technology Development Team, had some doubts, as they had previously focused on the luxury electric vehicle market.

In their eyes, this design approach seemed somewhat low-class and out of place.

Faced with such doubts, Tan Jincheng did not choose to use his power as the boss to force them to change their wishes to develop the business. Instead, he smiled and gave an example: "Brother Wang, imagine that you are now the owner of a clothing store. You need to transport a batch of clothes to your store. The distance is about 5 kilometers."

"Isn't it a bit wasteful to call a truck at this point?"

Wang Chao was stunned for a moment, not understanding the connection, but he still thought about it carefully: "That's true. Calling a truck, even if it's only 5 kilometers, would cost at least 10 or 20 yuan, right?"

“We don’t care how much it costs, but you’ll definitely have to spend money, right? And for a small shop like this, calling a truck would be a waste; it definitely wouldn’t be able to fill the truck completely. So, with our little electric scooter with its enlarged front end, we can put a bunch of clothes in front and tie another bunch to the back. Wouldn’t we be able to load them all in one trip? At worst, I can definitely haul them all in two trips, right?”

"If you're a shop owner with some financial resources, it's fine if you buy a small truck yourself. But for someone like us who's just starting out, shouldn't we save money wherever we can? A truck that costs only ten or so yuan can buy us one more piece of clothing, right?"

"That's true, but is it really necessary to increase the investment so much? It's not like we have to buy an electric scooter just to make two sets of clothes, is it?" Wang Chao is a technical developer and doesn't have much knowledge of the market. He usually just completes tasks according to the instructions of the chief engineer.

There's no way around it. With Tan Jincheng's current size, it's impossible to poach a chief engineer. Getting some mid-level technical staff from top companies is already quite impressive.

"I'm not giving this example to suggest that you should buy a small electric scooter just to haul clothes a couple of times. Rather, we're targeting third-tier cities and even rural markets, focusing on working-class people and small business owners. Our electric scooters shouldn't be simply seen as a means of transportation; they should be able to function as a means of production."

"You understand means of production, right? For example, when a farmer goes to deliver lunch to his family who is working in the fields, he puts a bundle of straw or other materials on the front footrest before leaving. At this time, our vehicle can carry more, isn't that an advantage?"

Other technical staff were also deep in thought along with Wang Chao. These designers were a bit lacking in ability, only thinking about aesthetics. This would be understandable if it were applied to the Windspeed series, but that's not the current positioning of the Flashspeed.

Take it slow and adjust to your own pace in a few days, and things should get better.

"Electric scooters are not just a means of transportation, but also a means of production. I think I understand now." Wang Chao was the first to realize this.

"Well, if you still don't understand, you can take a day to go to the entrance of some small shops, or to some rural areas, and see what people do besides carrying passengers on their electric scooters. After all, nowadays an electric scooter is equivalent to a month's or even a month and a half's salary for an ordinary worker, so it's not exactly cheap."

“Okay, we’ll think about it some more. We’ll go take a look if we have time,” Wang Chao nodded.

"Yes, you should follow this line of thinking. Go out and see more of the world. Also, observe the employees in the factory who have electric scooters and listen to their opinions on buying them. It's better to broaden your horizons than to work behind closed doors."

"I understand, I have some ideas, I'll continue to revise it."

"Okay, good luck to you guys. I'm not as knowledgeable about the specific design as you are. I'm just providing a product idea and helping you with logistics. Just let me know if you need anything. I hope to see your results as soon as possible."

"We will work hard, boss, don't worry about that," Wang Chao said.

Other ideas are negotiable, but this point is non-negotiable for him as the team leader. He was poached with a high salary to be the head, and if he fails to complete the task, he will feel embarrassed to stay without even being told by the boss.

As for the boss making demands, do they even count as demands? Aren't designers already making plenty of revisions? Isn't overtime normal?
Afterwards, Tan Jincheng made some promises to encourage everyone: if the trial molding of the plastic parts is completed by the end of June and the samples are qualified, the bonuses of the entire design team will be doubled, including the mold designer who was transferred from Zhang Mingcan's factory.

One month is a tight schedule, from product design to mold design and mold making, plus trial production. To be honest, it's a bit unreasonable, and there's no other way but to work endless overtime. But there's no other way; we have to do this to seize the market. Finishing a day earlier might make all the difference.

Using bonuses as an incentive is a more advanced approach. Nowadays, most product designers and mold designers receive a fixed salary, a fixed amount each month. Factories with better benefits may provide some overtime pay, but I've never heard of giving bonuses to the design department for good product sales.

The design department, as introduced by Tan Jincheng, also has reward regulations, which will more or less stimulate the enthusiasm of some employees for their wages. The sooner they finish, the more money they can earn. After all, what is the point of traveling thousands of miles if not for money?

The rest of the time was left to the designers whose hair was still thick. Tan Jincheng really didn't know how to use these design software programs, such as UG, PROE, and CAD. Some of them were even entirely in English.

Although his English foundation is not weak, staring at the English interface all day is still quite awkward. If he knew how to use it, Boss Tan would love to do it himself.

After leaving the design department, Tan Jincheng checked the time; it was almost five o'clock. It was time to check on the shooting progress. Since he brought them over in the morning, they had been left in the studio without anyone taking care of them, and he had no idea how things were going.

"Damn, I forgot to tell Brother Sun at noon to arrange lunch for them. I wonder if Brother Sun even noticed."

Upon arriving downstairs, Tan Jincheng didn't go directly to the photography studio. Instead, he first found Gu Qingqing and inquired about the progress of the shoot. He learned that the women's clothing shoot for today was already finished, and the men's clothing shoot was currently underway.

"Because it's a female photographer, Zhao Xianbo is a little shy, otherwise he would probably be faster," Qin Siyu said with a smile.

Tan Jincheng then realized that some of the men's clothing today consisted of men's boxer shorts, and it was understandable that he was shy during his first photoshoot.

"Xiao Zhao probably doesn't have a girlfriend, right? What's there to be shy about? He's getting a good deal," Tan Jincheng teased.

Then he asked, "How did you manage to have lunch?"

“A Mr. Sun ordered boxed lunches for us and said that we could eat in the cafeteria next time when they were delivered.”

Tan Jincheng nodded. Brother Sun had indeed done a good job in this regard, and was very meticulous. The canteen at Shanchi Auto was the first to be built, but it was still small in scale and could only accommodate 30 people at a time, but that was enough for now.

When workers come out to work, they pay more attention to wages and benefits, but sometimes some details can really make a difference. You don't need to invest too much; just showing a little humanistic care can make workers feel good about a factory.

"Mr. Tan, could I speak with you privately for a few minutes?" Qin Siyu hesitated, glancing at Gu Qingqing beside her.

"Hmm? Is it about filming?" Tan Jincheng glanced at Gu Qingqing without realizing it.

Gu Qingqing smiled gently and walked away. She knew what Qin Siyu wanted to say; this carefree classmate had already told her about it. It was quite rare to see the usually carefree Qin Siyu looking a little shy.

"What do you want to say?" Tan Jincheng asked with a smile as Gu Qingqing walked away.

"Are we really not showing our faces in these photos?"

"Of course it's true. You should have seen the interface of Jinshang Clothing's Taobao store, right? The other women's clothing store is the same. Gu Qingqing should have told you about this, right?"

"I did say that, but tomorrow's shoot is a deep V-neck, a bit revealing, so..."

Tan Jincheng blinked and smiled, "Add money?"

"Ah, how did Boss Tan know?" Qin Siyu asked in surprise.

How else would I know? If you didn't want to film, you didn't need to send Gu Qingqing away. It's just that you didn't want to give up this opportunity, but you felt that the deep V was a bit of a loss. But it's also normal, after all, this is 2005, and the style of dress is far less open than in later years.

"Tell me how much you want to add. I can accept anything within the normal range, but not too much." This was to give Gu Qingqing face, and besides, it would be too much trouble to find someone at the last minute.

If deep V-necks are unacceptable, what about QQ Lingerie? Surely they can't just hire people in certain professions to shoot it, can they?

"How about 300? If that's not enough, 280 or 250 will also work," Qin Siyu said, holding up three fingers.

It's obvious that this girl is short of money. Lishui is still considered an economically underdeveloped area in Zhejiang Province, so her family is probably really struggling financially. The collar of the T-shirt she's wearing today is already quite faded.

"Here'll be 300. After Zhao Xianbo finishes filming, you can take the clothing samples with you as usual. You can wear them or sell them, it's up to you."

(End of this chapter)