Chapter 755 Tools and Hardware
"Of course we are here to participate in the exhibition, what about you?" Guo Tao replied with a smile.
"Haha, me too." Song Yuanchao said this vaguely, and then asked: "Brother Guo's unit has been transferred? Is he now participating in the exhibition on behalf of the new unit?"
"Yes, not long after we met last time, I went to a new company , which is the hardware factory I mentioned to you at the beginning." Guo Tao nodded and said, "I am now the director of this factory. The factory is not in a good situation at the moment. My main task after I went there is to improve the efficiency of the factory. Well, this spring trade fair is an opportunity for our factory. Originally, our factory was not qualified to participate in the fair, but I used some connections and finally got a quota..."
As he spoke, Guo Tao looked at the crowd around him and called to Song Yuanchao, "Come on, stop chatting here, come sit over there and have a cup of tea."
Song Yuanchao readily agreed and followed Guo Tao, squeezing through the crowd and walking in one direction. When he passed by, he found that Guo Tao was holding a thermos in his hand. He bent down while walking to protect the thermos for fear of bumping into people. He must have come out specifically to get water .
Guo Tao and his team's booth was not in a very good location, being located in a corner and very small, with the total area being less than seven square meters.
There were three people at the booth, one man and two women. The man was about 40 years old and looked like he was in supply and marketing from his behavior. One of the two women was about the same age, and the other was younger, about 30 years old. When the man saw Guo Tao coming back, he quickly stepped forward and took the thermos from Guo Tao.
"How is it?" Guo Tao asked.
"Our booth is not very good. There are many merchants passing by, but few of them stop to ask questions. But don't worry, Factory Director. I will take out the information and distribute it later. I should be able to attract a few interested merchants." The middle-aged man replied .
Guo Tao nodded. To put it bluntly, their exhibition area was a corner, remote and unnoticeable. Passers-by would hardly . But there was nothing they could do. Guo Tao's factory was not of high level, and they had only got the opportunity to participate in the trade fair through connections. They were not originally on the list of the Shanghai Trade Fair, so it was already very good for them to squeeze out this position.
"Let me introduce you. This is Comrade Song Yuanchao, an old classmate of my wife. He is also here to attend the trade fair." Guo Tao pointed at Song Yuanchao and said to his colleagues. He then said, "This is Cui Yudong, the head of our supply and marketing department. This is Comrade Yu Meifang from our factory's finance department. This is Comrade He Lingmin from the factory office."
"Hello, hello, Comrade Song Yuanchao, you can just call me Lao Cui." Song Yuanchao guessed correctly that this middle-aged man who looked a bit greasy was indeed engaged in supply and marketing. He immediately shook hands with Cui Yudong and said hello.
As for Yu Meifang, the financial officer, perhaps because of the nature of her job, she seemed a little introverted, but she still politely shook hands with Song Yuanchao. On the contrary, the younger He Lingmin was very enthusiastic and talkative. Not only did she shake hands with Song Yuanchao, she also specifically asked Song Yuanchao which company he represented to participate in the exhibition and how they met here by chance.
Song Yuanchao laughed and looked towards Guo Tao and his team's booth.
Guo Tao and his team's exhibition area was not only small, but also simply decorated. There was a billboard at the back of the exhibition area with the name and introduction of Guo Tao's factory written on it. In addition, there were some samples and a few folding chairs. That was it.
"Does your factory produce tools and hardware?" After taking a closer look, Song Yuanchao realized that the specific products produced by Guo Tao's factory were tools and hardware such as pliers, hammers, screwdrivers and other tools of different sizes.
"Yes!" Guo Tao introduced: "Our factory is an old one in Shanghai. We mainly produce tools and hardware products. In the past, our products were mostly supplied to factories in this city and surrounding areas. However, sales have not been good in recent years, and the competitive benefits of similar companies are not very good."
"I came here to try my luck and see if I can get an order from abroad. Look, these... and these... are our factory's flagship products."
Looking at some of the samples on display, Song Yuanchao picked up a pair of needle-nosed pliers and took a look. It was a very ordinary pair of needle-nosed pliers, which looked no different from ordinary pliers. It had a metal structure and the handle was made of red plastic. Song Yuanchao held it in his hand and opened and closed it a few times, frowning slightly.
What can I say about the workmanship of the needle-nosed pliers? It can only be said to be so-so. It is fine for normal use, but the finishing is a bit lacking. The texture of the handle is very ordinary, and it feels rough in the hand. In addition, it is a bit not smooth when opening and closing, and it feels like more force is needed.
"It's a bit tight." Song Yuanchao said.
"All new pliers are like this. You'll get used to it after a while." Cui Yudong explained.
Song Yuanchao put down the needle-nosed pliers in his hand and picked up another pair of pliers to try. It was still a little tight, and even the grip didn't feel very good.
Song Yuanchao had worked on the front line in his previous life, and he had used things like pliers a lot. After all, doing line work at a telephone bureau was not much different from being an electrician, and the tools used were almost the same.
Cui Yudong actually didn't do what he said. This kind of tool hardware is basically like this. New tools have various problems. After getting the tool, the user will open and close it for a while to loosen it, so that it can be more convenient to use.
Putting down the pliers in his hand, Song Yuanchao picked up the wrench beside him and looked at it, then turned back to Guo Tao and asked, "Are most of these cast?"
"Yes! Our factory's products are basically made using casting technology, and some are made using forging technology."
With a sigh in his heart, Song Yuanchao put the things down and was not optimistic about the products of Guo Tao's factory.
There are several methods for manufacturing tool hardware. Casting and forging are the two most common methods. In addition, there are rolling, cutting and other processes. After the initial formation of the product, a series of grinding, oxidation peeling, dephosphorization, etc. are required. In addition, forging is divided into hot forging and cold forging. The materials used are also different from those with chromium and those without chromium. For a good hardware tool, the whole set of procedures is very complicated.
Although Song Yuanchao did not understand the specific production of tools and hardware, he knew the pros and cons of tools and hardware. The products of Guo Tao's factory were the most common hardware tools. This kind of tools and hardware might be competent in daily use, but for real technicians, such tools have many disadvantages, which many professionals can see at a glance.
And there is another problem, that is, the materials of the tools and hardware they produce are not good enough. Tools like wrenches are fine, but the steel mouths of pliers are also important. When Song Yuanchao looked at the pliers just now, he paid special attention to the steel mouths of the pliers. The material, craftsmanship and strength of the steel mouths are far inferior to some international brands. Once the intensity of use is too high, such steel mouths will not be able to meet the requirements.
"Not bad, not bad." Song Yuanchao didn't say much and put the things down.
"Haha, we are a state-owned factory after all. We have been producing tools and hardware products for decades, so our products must be good." Cui Yudong said with a smile. As soon as he said this, Song Yuanchao labeled this person in his mind. It seems that Cui Yudong still has the old supply and marketing ideas in his mind, and he has a sense of superiority of state-owned enterprises in his bones. No wonder this guy looks smart, but has not been able to improve the supply and marketing of his own company. He is completely unqualified as a supply and marketing section chief.
Song Yuanchao and Guo Tao just knew each other. This was their second meeting today, so they were not very familiar with each other. Moreover, as an outsider, he had some things to say, so he just smiled and echoed a few words, following Cui Yudong's words to say that the products were good, and congratulated them in advance on getting more overseas orders at this spring trade fair.
After chatting for a few sentences, Song Yuanchao said that it was getting late and he had to go back to their exhibition area. He immediately apologized to Guo Tao and said that the trade fair would last for quite a few days anyway, and he would come over to talk when he was free.
After saying hello to everyone, Song Yuanchao turned to leave. Guo Tao insisted on seeing him off. Song Yuanchao declined but could only smile and nod. The two walked about ten meters forward from the exhibition area of Guo Tao's factory. Guo Tao suddenly said to Song Yuanchao, "Yuanchao, shall we go over there and have a cigarette?"
Song Yuanchao looked in the direction of his finger. On the right was a connecting corridor. Smoking was not allowed in the convention and exhibition center. After all, there is no ban on smoking indoors. Especially now that most of the company's executives are heavy smokers, it is unrealistic to stop them from smoking.
But because the spring trade fair is being held here and most of the visitors are foreign merchants, most people are still very conscious and try to avoid smoking in the booths. Even if they do smoke, they do so outside the venue or in the connecting corridors.
"Have mine." Song Yuanchao took out a cigarette from his pocket with a smile. Guo Tao thanked him and took it. He used a lighter to light it for Song Yuanchao, then lit his own and took a deep puff.
"Yuan Chao, did you not think highly of our products just now?" Guo Tao suddenly asked after taking two puffs.
Song Yuanchao was stunned and didn't know how to answer.
Guo Tao sighed and said, "Although you didn't say it just now, I can see that you are not optimistic about our products..."
"Brother Guo..."
Guo Tao waved his hand and said, "Listen to me first." He took another puff of cigarette and said, "I have been working in this hardware factory for a short time. Let me tell you the truth. The factory is in a very bad situation now. In addition to the problem of product sales, the factory is also under a heavy burden. There are more than 150 employees in our factory, but less than 60 of them are actually working. The rest are just taking up positions and getting paid. In addition, there are more than 200 retired workers whose monthly wages need to be paid. You can imagine how much pressure the factory is under."
"I made a great decision to attend the trade fair this time. I overcame all objections. You know, the cost of participating in the exhibition and traveling alone is not a small amount. If the results of the exhibition are not satisfactory, I may not be able to pay my salary for next month after returning. To put it bluntly, I am going to take a gamble this time."
