Chapter 2773
What? Our tunnel boring machine is a downgraded version?
Chapter 2773 What? Our tunnel boring machine is a downgraded version?
When Yang Xiaotao arrived at the office, he saw Huang Lao, Xia Lao, and a group of people sitting there chatting. They all stood up when they saw Yang Xiaotao.
"Boss, you seem to be living a very leisurely life!"
Yang Xiaotao came up and joked with a smile. Old Huang laughed and said, "That's right. We come to the office every day now, have lunch, and play chess in the afternoon to pass the time. The day is over in no time."
Old Xia, who was standing nearby, also laughed, "I heard you're living a pretty comfortable life."
Yang Xiaotao gave an awkward laugh and quickly explained, "No, that's not true. I'm just too busy with all these tasks."
“Especially since Secretary Liu left, there’s been no free time at all. Why don’t you let Secretary Liu go back? You look very healthy; you can work for at least another twenty years.”
Old Huang turned his face away and said, "Forget it, you're the best at slacking off."
He then glanced at Liu Huaimin, a satisfied look on his face.
He is much more mature than when he was transferred to the First Ministry of Machine Building last time.
Perhaps it was because he saw more of the world in the Nine Departments and broadened his horizons that he was able to handle things with ease.
I feel at ease entrusting the Ministry of Machine Building with someone like that.
Yang Xiaotao cried out that he was innocent, but Old Huang ignored him completely.
Old Xia, who was standing next to him, walked over and said with a smile, "Alright, alright, we asked you to come here to help out. You're making yourself look bad. Do you think we'll never be able to ask you for help again?"
Yang Xiaotao immediately shook his head, "Leader, please don't wrong me. I'm completely loyal to our Ministry of Machine Building."
"We should never forget the well-digger when we drink the water, and we should always return to our roots. Our Ninth Department has been part of the First Ministry of Machine Building since the steel rolling mill era. Our leaders are like family."
"Today's matter involves a lot of things, including Old Chen, Old Wang, and Old Qian, so I came here. Why?"
"Isn't this our home?"
Old Xia felt relieved to hear this, as he had been in charge of the steel rolling mill and the machinery factory back then.
His mark is on the body of the Ninth Division.
Otherwise, why would he hold such a high position in the Ministry of Machine Building now?
After the Nine Divisions were established, Sun Wukong never bared his teeth at him again.
He was happy inside, but on his face he was laughing and scolding, "I think you came here to hide."
Yang Xiaotao was embarrassed. "Old boss, it's better to see through things but not say anything."
Upon hearing this, Old Xia burst into laughter.
After chatting for a while, Yang Xiaotao greeted Sun Lao, Niu Lao, Li Lao, and other people from the Ministry of Machine Building before taking his seat.
However, this casual conversation allowed the people in the room to realize that this Minister Yang had a good relationship with them.
My mindset changed instantly.
It really feels like two families working together.
Yang Xiaotao sat to Huang Lao's right, opposite Xia Lao, and next to Liu Huaimin.
Looking inside the room, I was surprised to see several young faces.
Yang Xiaotao immediately realized that the First Ministry of Machine Building was slowly transitioning its power.
He wondered if the Ninth Division should prepare in advance, but then he thought about all the troublesome things that might happen, and put the matter out of his mind.
"Well, Xiao Liu already told you, right?"
Old Huang didn't stand on ceremony and asked directly without any polite words.
Yang Xiaotao nodded, "I mentioned it when I came, but it was just a general overview; I don't know the specifics yet."
Seeing this, Old Huang nodded, then looked at the engineer Pang Guo standing to the side.
When Yang Xiaotao came in, Pang Guo immediately stood up, and the two nodded and smiled when their eyes met.
At this moment, Old Huang looked over and quickly stood up, saying, "Minister Yang, let me explain the specific situation."
Yang Xiaotao nodded, "Old Pang, we're all acquaintances, no need to be so polite, sit down and let's talk."
Pang Guo was even more moved when he heard this, as it was telling everyone about their relationship!
Now that Secretary Liu and Minister Yang are backing me up, who in this Ministry of Machine Building will dare to look down on me?
Pang Guo smiled and sat down, then picked up the prepared materials and looked at Yang Xiaotao again, saying, "Minister Yang, after nearly a year of follow-up investigation, we have a general understanding of the overall performance of the 'Forward' tunnel boring machine, and we also understand some of its shortcomings."
"We have done a lot of work to address the shortcomings and are preparing to make improvements to create a better tunnel boring machine."
Yang Xiaotao listened and nodded slightly to Huang Lao. This was a white paper from the Ministry of Machine Building. Huang Lao had asked him before if it was worthwhile.
His answer at the time was that it could be used as a ten-year development goal.
Mr. Huang was very excited when he heard that.
However, they all overlooked one fact: the longer the development goal is over a longer period, the more difficult it becomes.
This does not mean that short-term development goals are easy to achieve, but rather that short-term goals may require overcoming a difficulty in order to achieve them in one step.
Long-term goals require overcoming difficulties in multiple areas and continuing to overcome them until the goal is finally achieved.
Just like the CNC machine tools of the nine departments, we have only produced the design drawings now. There is still a long way to go before we can achieve the requirements of the design drawings in the later research.
On the other side, Pang Guo continued, "The main problem troubling us now is the cutting tools of the tunnel boring machine."
"Most of the knives we use today are made of tungsten alloy, which is also the best material we use at present."
"Even so, after 30 to 50 hours of use, the cutting tools of the tunnel boring machine will have problems and need to be stopped for maintenance."
“Each maintenance not only consumes manpower and resources, but also wastes a lot of time.”
"If we make good use of the time allocated for maintenance, we could probably repair this railway!"
Pang Guo chuckled self-deprecatingly at the end, while those around him nodded in agreement.
Mr. Xia also lamented, "This problem has seriously slowed down the progress of the project, so we need to solve it as soon as possible."
"Otherwise, if we export them overseas and they're constantly being repaired, people will get annoyed, and we can't send people there every day!"
Yang Xiaotao nodded in agreement. This tunnel boring machine was intended for export, and if it had such quality issues, it would easily damage its reputation.
However, considering that tunnel boring machines abroad are also of this quality, and may not even be as good, it's worth noting that they are not as good as these machines.
Keep in mind that even if you work for thirty hours, at the current speed, you can still advance one or two hundred meters.
If this were dug manually, it would probably take three to five months to complete.
However, this tunnel boring machine does indeed need improvement.
For no other reason than to reduce the burden on railway workers and to expedite the construction of railways.
Moreover, Yang Xiaotao had already made modifications to the tunnel boring machine design drawings when they were first presented.
It can be said that this design was not the original version of the system reward, but was made to adapt to the current industrial situation!
For example, regarding the requirements for cutting tools, we are currently using tungsten-titanium alloy cutting tools designed by Yang Xiaotao based on the current situation, because this is the most suitable alloy material in China at present.
However, the original design drawings did not specify the materials for the knife. If Yang Xiaotao remembered correctly, the original knife was not made of an alloy material, but rather a combination of tungsten carbide, titanium carbide, tantalum carbide, and a certain proportion of cobalt.
These materials, when combined, can improve the hardness and wear resistance of cutting tools, making them suitable for various complex geological conditions.
Upon seeing these materials, Yang Xiaotao was immediately overwhelmed.
Has this been researched in China?
Are they available overseas?
At the time, it wasn't clear, so Yang Xiaotao changed the design.
Now that the Ministry of Machine Building had made the request, Yang Xiaotao felt he could go with the flow and bring out the original design drawings.
Let them figure it out themselves.
If we could actually figure it out, it would definitely be a contribution to the revolution.
Perhaps even the nine departments will benefit from this.
However, Yang Xiaotao still needs to carefully consider how to present these materials.
After all, people might not believe you if you just say something about the materials needed for a knife.
However, Yang Xiaotao was also confident, since the original design was already in his mind.
Yang Xiaotao remained silent for a moment, and everyone waited quietly without disturbing him.
After a long while, Yang Xiaotao picked up the enamel mug on the table, took a sip, and then looked at everyone.
Everyone had been watching Yang Xiaotao's actions closely, and upon seeing this, they listened even more intently. Then Yang Xiaotao spoke, "I understand what Engineer Pang said!"
"Now it seems the main problem lies with the knives, right?"
Pang Guo immediately nodded, "Yes, we also tried to find solutions after we discovered the problem."
"But we've tried quite a few, and none of them have solved the problem well!"
Yang Xiaotao nodded, then said to Old Huang, "In my opinion, on the surface it's a problem with the tunnel boring machine's cutting tools, but in essence, it's a problem with the overall coordination of the tunnel boring machine."
Upon hearing Yang Xiaotao's words, Pang Guo raised an eyelid and looked thoughtful.
Old Huang, Old Xia, and the others looked at each other, somewhat puzzled.
Yang Xiaotao then continued, "The coordination I'm referring to can be observed by everyone when the tunnel boring machine is working."
"Does the tunnel boring machine experience noticeable slowdowns in its operating speed when the environment changes?"
"Does the bearing torque suddenly increase when the excavation is progressing forward?"
"And the rotating cutterhead..."
With each word Yang Xiaotao spoke, Pang Guo's expression grew more puzzled.
Because the situations Yang Xiaotao described all exist.
Moreover, they encountered this problem many times during operation, but they thought it was a normal phenomenon and did not manage it.
Only after Yang Xiaotao brought it up did he belatedly realize the truth.
Huang Lao, Xia Lao, and the others also noticed Pang Guo's expression, and their hearts sank, realizing that Yang Xiaotao was right.
After Yang Xiaotao finished speaking, Pang Guo couldn't wait to ask, "Minister Yang, the problems you mentioned do indeed exist!"
"So, what should we do?"
Yang Xiaotao smiled, fiddling with the small bean on the enamel mug lid in his hand. "What should we do?"
"To put it simply, with the current tunnel boring machines, replacing the cutter head, no matter how good the cutter head is, will be useless; they will all wear out."
"It's just that the wear and tear time is different!"
"If you can tolerate the current level of wear and tear, I suggest you keep it as it is!"
"Anyway, it's much faster than doing it manually, isn't it?"
Old Huang frowned, then asked, "What if we want to improve it?"
Yang Xiaotao put down the cover and casually laughed, "Then let's redesign the tunnel boring machine!"
"Redesign?"
Pang Guo exclaimed in surprise, then took a deep breath, "Redesigning? That's too time-consuming!"
Liu Huaimin, standing beside him, nodded and said, "Yes, redesigning not only takes time, but there's also the issue of success rate."
"And even if a successful design were made, it might not be as good as the current one!"
Old Xia on the other end nodded in agreement, “You’re right, this redesign is indeed a bit of a losing proposition.”
Just as everyone was nodding in agreement that redesigning the tunnel boring machine was not advisable, Old Huang was staring at Yang Xiaotao.
Feeling Huang Lao's gaze, Yang Xiaotao felt a little embarrassed, then leaned back in his chair and laughed, "Alright, boss, you have such discerning eyes, nothing escapes your notice!"
Old Huang was shocked when he heard this, because he thought Yang Xiaotao was just acting on instinct, and felt that since the boy had said those words, he must have a backup plan.
But he wasn't sure himself. Now that Yang Xiaotao said this, it was probably just as he had guessed.
While deeply shocked, his face remained calm as he simply placed his hand on the enamel mug.
Before anyone could react, Yang Xiaotao laughed and said, "Actually, back when I was designing the tunnel boring machine, I made two preparations and designed two sets of tunnel boring machines!"
Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes widened in disbelief.
Liu Huaimin, sitting next to Yang Xiaotao, almost stood up from his chair.
He was in the Ninth Department at the time; how could he not know about such a big thing?
No, it's that nobody knows.
Old Xia leaned forward, almost lying on the table, and asked, "What did you say?"
"Two sets of design drawings? For the tunnel boring machine?"
Even though Old Huang was mentally prepared, things weren't much better.
It took several attempts to close the enamel mug lid.
As for the others, such as Sun Laoniu and Lao Pangguo, they were all dumbfounded.
They had also seen the design drawings of the tunnel boring machine.
Honestly, let alone designing so many parts, just writing on so many values would be a headache for them.
And this guy actually made two sets of these design drawings?
While everyone was still in surprise, Yang Xiaotao nodded and said lightly, "When I made the first version, I was a bit too much of a perfectionist. Only after the design was completed did I realize that there were many aspects that would be difficult to present with our current industrial level."
"So I modified the original version to adapt it to our actual situation, and that's how the tunnel boring machine came to be."
After Yang Xiaotao finished speaking, everyone, whether surprised, incredulous, or bewildered, was speechless.
After a long silence, Old Sun smacked his lips and slowly said, "So, the thing we worked so hard to make is just a castrated version?"
Then he looked at Old Niu beside him and said, "I feel like our First Ministry of Machine Building has been offended!"
Old Niu nodded instinctively, then shook his head when he saw Yang Xiaotao looking over. He then said to Old Sun in a serious tone, "What nonsense are you spouting, you monkey?"
"What do you mean by 'censored version'? What do you mean by 'offensive'?"
"This is called seeking truth from facts. It's a change made based on real needs, a change that meets the needs of the revolution. Do you understand?"
"You have absolutely no revolutionary consciousness! You better stay away from me!"
Old Sun was taken aback by Old Niu's sudden outburst, not understanding why this person next to him was suddenly attacking him when he had just spoken the truth.
But then I realized that this old ox was trying to curry favor with Yang Xiaotao.
Just because of what happened at the hospital last time…
Then Old Sun fell silent.
Because the hospital in Guangdong had become the largest source of revenue for the Ministry of Machine Building.
Even the sales of tunnel boring machines can't compare.
Where do hospitals get their medicines?
They came from the Jiubu Hongxing Pharmaceutical Factory.
They made a lot of money in Guangdong by getting cheap medicines from pharmaceutical factories.
Now, if anyone speaks ill of the Ninth Division in front of Lao Niu, he'll definitely explode.
What's more, this is happening right in front of Yang Xiaotao.
Well, Old Sun didn't dare say anything more. He just considered it as him playing the bad guy to help Old Niu.
The two interruptions brought a lot of peace to the room.
Old Huang came to his senses, then took a deep breath, his face showing a hint of helplessness.
Finally, he said, "Your simplified version of the tunnel boring machine almost overwhelmed our First Ministry of Machinery Industry."
"Luckily you didn't bring out the original, otherwise..."
Old Xia said sullenly from the side, "Otherwise, if we can't make it in a year or two, then our First Ministry of Machine Building will become a laughing stock."
Upon hearing this, everyone nodded.
Yang Xiaotao suddenly laughed and said, "Isn't it true that times have changed?"
"I believe that everyone here has thoroughly mastered the technology of tunnel boring machines after this period of adjustment!"
"Now, if you need it, I can give you the original design drawings, but I don't know..."
At this point, Yang Xiaotao looked at Old Huang.
Everyone's eyes turned to Old Huang.
In an instant, Old Huang felt immense pressure.