parentshiftbook Chapter 201 Arranging the Coordination Work
Chapter 201 Arranging the Coordination Work
After leaving the finance department, Ling Yun went directly to the workshop to find Ma Baoguo.
The workshop was filled with the roar of machines. Injection molding machines were producing mouse shells. One by one, black shells fell out of the molds. Workers picked them up with pliers, inspected them, and put them into turnover boxes.
Ma Baoguo was standing next to a machine, talking to a repairman. When he saw Ling Yun, he patted the repairman on the shoulder and walked over.
"President Ling."
"I need to talk to you." Ling Yun gestured for him to go to the office.
The workshop office was small, with production schedules and quality management flowcharts posted on the walls. On the table sat a large tea mug, the tea leaves already blackened from steeping.
"The municipal party committee allocated a piece of land," Ling Yun said. "It's over 300 mu (approximately 20 hectares) next to the Qilu Software Park."
Ma Baoguo's eyes widened: "Three hundred mu? What do we need such a large area for?"
"Build the group headquarters." Ling Yun pulled a sketch from his pocket, which he had drawn yesterday. "A high-rise office building, about twenty stories high, will serve as the management center. The rest will all be low-rise R&D buildings, no more than five stories high. There will be three underground parking garages. Apart from the buildings and roads, the entire surface will be green space."
Ma Baoguo picked up the sketch and looked at it: "This...how much will this cost?"
"The land is worth over 30 million, which can be paid in installments. Construction costs..." Ling Yun calculated, "Based on current construction costs in Jinan, it's about 1,200 yuan per square meter. The total construction area is approximately 150,000 square meters, with a construction cost of 180 million yuan. Including the parking garage, landscaping, and supporting facilities, the total investment will be over 200 million yuan."
"Two hundred million?!" Ma Baoguo's hand trembled, and the sketch fell onto the table. "Where would we get that much money in our accounts?"
"We'll invest 25 million first to get the land and complete the preliminary procedures. Construction payments will begin next year and will be made in three installments," Ling Yun said. "If we don't have enough money, we can use the land and the construction in progress as collateral for loans."
Ma Baoguo sat down and took a big gulp of tea. The tea was too strong, and he frowned.
"Mr. Ling, no offense," he put down his teacup, "but our electronics factory is doing well, our internet cafe is making money, and our chip company is just starting out. Suddenly investing two hundred million to build a building... isn't that... too much of a leap?"
"Not much," Ling Yun said. "Our current offices are scattered around, which leads to high communication costs and low management efficiency. Building a headquarters to centralize R&D, management, and presentation will save more money in the long run."
"But two hundred million..."
"This is an investment, not consumption." Ling Yun looked at him. "The headquarters will be located in Qilu Software Park, which is a key high-tech zone that Jinan is focusing on developing. If we take the lead in moving in, the government will provide more support. Moreover, having our own park will make it more attractive to attract talent—if you come to work here, I will provide you with a world-class office environment."
Ma Baoguo remained silent for a while.
"Then...who will liaise with the municipal party committee?"
"You," Ling Yun said, "go to the High-tech Zone Management Committee this afternoon and find someone from the Land Bureau. Bring your company documents, financial statements, and project planning documents. I've already gotten a template of the land transfer contract from Secretary Zhang; have your legal counsel review it, and if there are no problems, sign it."
"Me?" Ma Baoguo pointed to himself. "President Ling, I'm just a roughneck. All I know is how to manage production. I'm no good at dealing with the government."
"You're good," Ling Yun said. "You're honest and straightforward. Government officials like to deal with honest people. Remember a few things: First, be sincere; we genuinely want to get things done. Second, ensure the data is accurate; what is reported is reported. Third, always keep your promises."
Ma Baoguo took a deep breath and then exhaled.
"Okay, I'll give it a try."
"This isn't a 'try,' it's a must-do." Ling Yun stood up. "The land acquisition procedures must be completed within a month. Construction will begin next spring, and it should be operational by the end of the year after. Time is very tight."
"Then I'll go this afternoon."
"There's one more thing." Ling Yun walked to the door but then turned back. "Contact Sun Peng's father. Their construction company has a design institute; ask them to come up with a design plan. The requirements are as I just mentioned: a high-rise main building, a low-rise R&D building, a three-story underground parking garage, and a large green area. Show me the design plan within a month."
"Design fee..."
"Pay at market price, but demand they send their best team."
"Understood."
Ling Yun left the workshop and returned to his office.
On the table were three documents awaiting processing: a user growth report for the Windows version of Xingyu, a production plan for Compaq's OEM orders, and registration materials for Qilu Microelectronics Company.
He first looked at the Star Language report. The number of users had exceeded 1.2 million, with 430,000 daily active users. The Windows version had been online for two weeks, with 250,000 downloads. At the end of the report, it was marked in red: Server bandwidth needs to be increased.
Annotation: Approved. Increase bandwidth budget by 50%.
Let's look at Compaq's orders. The production schedule is packed: 20,000 units by the end of December, 30,000 by the end of January, and 15,000 units per month thereafter. The raw material procurement list is attached; the main chips are sourced from Intel and AMD, while the motherboards are manufactured in-house.
Comment: Agreed. Pay attention to quality control; Compaq will send quality inspectors to the factory.
Finally, let's look at the materials for the microelectronics company. Registered Name: Qilu Microelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. Registered Capital: US$50 million. Business Scope: Integrated circuit design, semiconductor device R&D, optoelectronic device manufacturing…
He picked up the phone and called Ni Guangnan.
"Mr. Ni, I've reviewed the company registration documents. Please add one more item to the business scope: computer system integration."
"Why add this?" Ni Guangnan asked.
"This will make it easier to take on government IT projects in the future," Ling Yun said. "Chip development takes time, but system integration can generate cash flow quickly, so we can operate on two fronts."
"Understood. I'll have the legal department add it."
"Also," Ling Yun paused, "I'm going back to Silicon Valley next week for about a month. Please take care of things here."
"Don't worry," Ni Guangnan said, "I'll lay the foundation."
It was already noon when I hung up the phone.
In the canteen, Ma Baoguo and several workshop foremen sat at a table, talking about something. Upon seeing Ling Yun, Ma Baoguo stood up and waved.
"Mr. Ling, shall we go together?"
Lingyun carried her tray over and sat down. Lunch consisted of steamed buns, braised pork ribs, stir-fried cabbage, and egg drop soup.
"I told them about buying land and building a factory," Ma Baoguo said. "Everyone was a little worried that if the money ran out, the factory wouldn't be able to keep up with cash flow."
Several workshop foremen ate their meals with their heads down, without saying a word.
"The money in the account is earned through everyone's hard work." Ling Yun put down his chopsticks. "I won't squander it. Building the headquarters is for making more money in the future. Think about it, if we have our own R&D center, we can design better products; if we have our own showroom, customers will see our strength and we'll get more orders; if we have a good office environment, we can attract more outstanding talent. All of this will ultimately be reflected in everyone's salaries and bonuses."
An older director looked up: "President Ling, it's not that we don't believe you. It's just... two hundred million, that sounds terrifying."
"It is frightening," Ling Yun laughed. "But if we don't even dare to invest in ourselves, why should others trust us?"
He picked up the soup bowl and took a sip.
"This afternoon, Director Ma went to the management committee to handle the land procedures. Everyone should continue with what they were doing. Production cannot stop, and quality cannot be compromised. Once the headquarters is built, I will treat everyone to a meal at the new canteen—at that time, we will have to poach our canteen chefs from a five-star hotel."
Someone burst out laughing.
"Really?"
"Really," Ling Yun said earnestly, "I keep my word."
After finishing my meal, I returned to my office. Section Chief Wu was already waiting at the door, holding a freshly printed cash flow forecast.
"Mr. Ling, based on the model you mentioned, I've calculated it." He handed over the table. "If we maintain a 30% growth rate over the next three years, we can utilize approximately 20 to 25 million yuan annually. But this is an ideal scenario. If the market fluctuates, or if there are large amounts of accounts receivable that cannot be collected, cash flow will be tight."
"How much safety cushioning was provided?"
"Based on the worst-case scenario, we have set aside six months' worth of operating funds, approximately 18 million."
"That's enough." Ling Yun signed the calculation sheet. "Transfer 25 million from the account to the special account to prepare for the land payment."
"Should we row now?"
"Now."
Section Chief Wu nodded, took the form, and left.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Ma Baoguo changed into a dark suit—the suit was a bit tight, and his tie was tied crookedly. He carried a briefcase containing company documents, financial statements, project plans, and the sketch that Ling Yun had given him.
The sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating a corner of the desk.
Ling Yun picked up the phone and dialed a number.
"Sun Peng," he said, "is your father in Jinan?"
"Yeah, Yun-ge. What's up?"
"I have a piece of land and would like to ask him to design a development plan. It's 300 acres."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.
"Three hundred acres?! Brother Yun, what are you planning to do?"
"Let's build the headquarters," Ling Yun said. "Have your dad call me back this afternoon to schedule a time to discuss this in detail."
"Great! My dad'll definitely be happy!"