Return to 78: Why are all the Americans panicking about doing scientific research?

"Uncle Niu, you..."

"Kaifeng, listen to what Uncle Niu has to say."

Niu Yonggui interrupted Lin Kaifeng and said seriously, "You are a man who can do great things. Uncle Niu saw this ten years ago. At that time, our group was still a small county-level machinery factory with only a few hundred employees and a lot of foreign debts. From the county hospital to other brother companies, no one looked at us straight in the eye."

"Ten years later, the machinery factory became the Northern Machinery Group. I couldn't even tell how much money I had. If the group wanted to grow, it had to constantly recruit new talent. All of us old guys retired one by one, and now it's my turn."

Over the years, Northern Machinery Group has undergone several rounds of major changes.

Half of the former front-line workers were promoted to middle-level management.

The department leaders at that time retired one after another and returned home to enjoy their retirement.

The only leaders remaining in the group’s management are Lu Changshun and Niu Yonggui.

Fearing that someone would talk behind his back and accuse him of occupying the toilet without doing anything, Niu Yonggui came up with the idea of ​​retiring voluntarily.

Take the initiative to step down and gain a good reputation for being upright and honest.

As the vice president of the group, Niu Yonggui felt increasingly powerless.

Whether it was the group's overseas development or investment in various fields, Niu Yonggui had no say at all.

Not even able to make suggestions.

By taking the initiative to step down, he would not only gain a reputation for being upright and upright, but would also allow Lin Kaifeng to continue taking care of the Niu family.

Niu Yonggui's two daughters and one son all work at the Northern Machinery Group.

Today, the three have been promoted to middle management.

Whether we can go further depends entirely on Lin Kaifeng's personal intention.

"Uncle Niu, I understand what you mean."

Lin Kaifeng took Niu Yonggui's retirement application, took out a pen and signed his name.

Seeing this, Niu Yonggui seemed to have unloaded a burden from his heart, and said with a smile: "I am no longer the vice president of the group, so I can say some things with confidence."

"Kaifeng, you have helped the group grow bigger and stronger over the years, and you have also solved various problems for the country. You have done a good job in all aspects of your work, but there is one big problem that you have never paid attention to."

Niu Yonggui hesitated and said, "Uncle Niu thinks you should pay special attention to this matter."

"whats the matter?"

Lin Kaifeng looked up and said.

"copper."

Niu Yonggui sat down on the chair opposite Lin Kaifeng and said, "You are a man of culture and the most visionary entrepreneur in our country. You should be aware of the copper shortage in our country, right?"

Lin Kaifeng smiled and said, "Uncle Niu, let me correct you. Our country is not short of copper. What we lack is high-quality copper ore. The quality of copper ore mined in various mining areas is not high, and most of the copper mines are located in more complex places, which makes mining difficult and costly."

Niu Yonggui said stubbornly: "Whether it is true or not, we need a lot of copper anyway, isn't that right?"

"Yes."

Lin Kaifeng vaguely understood what Niu Yonggui meant.

Leaving aside some more complicated issues, Longguo is indeed short of copper.

And it is in great shortage.

In the year Lin Kaifeng passed away, China ranked first in the world in copper mine imports, accounting for 71% of the world's copper production.

In other words.

More than two-thirds of the world's copper is bought by the Dragon Kingdom.

The reason is simple: Longguo is developing too fast.

The fields where copper is used are expanding day by day, and the consumption is increasing day by day.

Before the 1980s, Longguo was besieged by the two superpowers, the Soviet Union and the United States, and the pace of domestic development and construction was relatively slow.

The copper produced domestically each year is sufficient to meet the country's development needs.

In the 1970s, Longguo carried out economic restructuring and purchased a large amount of industrial equipment and technology from the West.

Construction is developing at a faster pace and the demand for copper is becoming greater than ever before.

Especially in the home appliance industry.

Copper is used in almost every household appliance.

Including refrigerators, air conditioners, washing machines, electric fans, and tape recorders.

In short, household appliances equipped with motors must contain copper.

Without copper, the motor cannot turn.

Niu Yonggui said: "I have been responsible for the procurement of production materials. The amount of copper we purchase is two to three times higher every year than in the previous year, and the purchase price is also rising accordingly."

"The group is developing rapidly, and the country's construction is also rising rapidly. We need copper, and the country must be in greater need than us. You are very capable and know a lot of foreign entrepreneurs and leaders. Can you find a way to buy a few copper mines abroad to solve some of our copper material shortage problems?"

Before, Niu Yonggui would never say these words.

As the saying goes, in the melon field, under the plum tree, Niu Yonggui, as the vice president, is responsible for the procurement of production materials for the group.

If we propose to buy copper mines from abroad at the meeting, it might arouse speculation from others.

Do you think Niu Yonggui has improper connections with certain suppliers?

Why don’t you say it earlier or later? You have to say it now.

"It will definitely cost a lot of money to buy copper mines from abroad, but it is worth it no matter how much money you spend."

"Home appliance production is one of the group's main businesses. Once there is a problem with copper supply, our business will definitely be hit."

Niu Yonggui said earnestly: "In addition to the home appliance business, automobile production also needs cooperation. Foreign countries can supply us with barrels normally. What if one day, the foreign companies cooperating with us suddenly terminate the cooperation like BM Group, or they do the same as the photoresist companies in the island countries and raise the price at will? At that time, it will be too late to find a way to buy copper."

"I'm going to buy a few copper mines..."

Lin Kaifeng nodded.

In addition to the fields of home appliances and automobiles, mobile phones, another main project of Northern Machinery Group, are also a major copper user.

"Uncle Niu, thank you for telling me this. I will immediately implement the purchase of the copper mine."

"As the saying goes, having something by yourself is better than having it by your parents."

"The supply of important production materials has always been in the hands of others, who can cut off supply and raise prices at any time."

Seeing that Lin Kaifeng accepted his opinion, Niu Yonggui showed a gratified smile on his face.

Niu Yonggui stood up and patted Lin Kaifeng's arm, saying, "You are already over 30 years old and have your own ideas about doing things. As an old comrade, I will no longer give you random suggestions. Remember, you must keep the important production materials in your own hands."

"With this capability, even if the sky falls, we can handle it calmly."

After saying that, Liu Yonggui waved his hand, politely refusing Lin Kaifeng's offer to send him out.

With his hands behind his back, Niu Yonggui slowly left the office.

Arriving downstairs at the group headquarters, Niu Yonggui looked up at the group building, which had been expanded three times and now stood at more than twenty floors, his face full of memories.

Ten years is neither long nor short.

Lin Kaifeng single-handedly led the Northern Machinery Group to create a miracle that no one else could ever emulate.

It turned a heavily indebted county-level enterprise with almost no production capacity into the largest enterprise in Longguo.