Chapter 495 Opportunities of Containers
Regarding real estate bidding, Yang Wendong is not interested if there is no king-level land. As a top capital in Hong Kong, he cannot buy any small land. Even if there is profit, he will not like it. The same is true for the real estate giants. .
At present, Changxing Real Estate still has a large amount of undeveloped land in its hands. The most important thing is to gradually develop and cash out these land, because the previous loan purchase also owed a lot of debt. Although the mortgage was mortgaged by Changxing Shipping, the money is still Whoever needs it pays it back.
Facing this bull market that has just begun, Yang Wendong has not invested too much attention. There are still two large-scale infrastructure projects, one is the container terminal and the other is the Hung Hom Tunnel.
It has been more than half a year since we got the project, and both projects have begun to be constructed as planned. Many foreign engineers have been invited, and Kinmen Construction has also participated. Everything is developing in a good direction.
On February 6, the first working day after the Spring Festival, Zheng Yuhua from Changxing Shipping and Qian Junyi, the person in charge of the future container terminal, came to Yang Wendong’s office.
"Sit down, what's the matter? Is there anything going on at the pier?" Yang Wendong greeted. History has not changed because of him, which made him very happy and his mood improved a lot.
Qian Junyi said: 'Yang Sheng, everything at the terminal is proceeding according to plan and going very smoothly, but we have encountered another thorny problem, there are no containers. ’
"No container? Can't I buy this?" Yang Wendong asked curiously.
Since a container terminal is to be built, it naturally requires a large number of containers and even container trucks. This heavy investment can only be undertaken by the Changxing Group. Although the investment is large, as long as the operation goes smoothly in the later period and the containers, transportation, etc. are controlled, It will also be part of a large infrastructure construction, which can ensure long-term benefits.
Qian Junyi explained: "Yang Sheng, it's like this. Nowadays, container terminals are being built all over the world. Not only are there not enough container ships, but there are also not enough containers. At present, in Asia, the only ones that can produce containers are Japan and the Bay Area. , but their orders have long been booked by European and American companies. If we can’t grab them, we will suffer a huge loss if we forcefully spend money.”
"I didn't pay attention to this. There should be a serious shortage of containers now." Yang Wendong also reacted.
In his previous life, there were occasional container shortages. This was the case when major changes occurred in the shipping market. For example, for some reason, a large amount of goods were shipped from Asia to Europe and the United States, and in turn there was no cargo. The empty containers were not It will definitely be brought back, it’s such a loss, it’s better to buy a new one.
Zheng Yuhua said: "Yang Sheng, we have discussed internally that we might as well just invest in a container factory in Wanwan. I estimate that containers will be in short supply for a long time;
Not only is the demand for new goods high, but according to the standards in the United States and Europe, containers also have a scrappage period, usually 10-15 years, including a lot of damage, deformation, etc. during transportation. ”
"You really want to engage in manufacturing." Yang Wendong said with a smile.
Zheng Yuhua explained: "It's not that we think about it, but that we have no choice. Now that the container terminal is almost ready, some of the old freighters here can also be modified to carry containers, but there are no boxes. Isn't this urgent?"< br>
Yang Wendong asked again: "Is the production of this container complicated? Are you buying steel plates and welding them directly?"
Zheng Yuhua said: "Yes, we can buy steel plates directly from Japan and weld them ourselves, but the welding requirements are very high and require various strengths, otherwise the problem will be a big deal;
So if you want to invest, you have to invest a lot of money. Either you don't do it, or you have to do it well. ”
"Okay, you guys wait a minute, I'll ask Old Wei to come over." After Yang Wendong said that, he immediately took out the phone and dialed.
After a while, Wei Zetao rushed over. He happened to be at Changxing Building today.
"That's it, Old Wei," Yang Wendong roughly explained the matter and asked, "What do you think?"
Wei Zetao replied: "Containers will indeed be in high demand for a long time in the future, but I, Changxing Industrial, have not dealt with steel and other businesses. Does Yang Sheng want me to be responsible for this?"
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Yang Wendong nodded and said: "Who else is there besides Changxing Industrial? The business you did before was related to plastics and paper. Although these two businesses have not developed to the extreme, the growth rate of many businesses is very slow. The bottom line is that we are competing with many other companies;
If you want to change this, you either need to come up with creative products like trolley cases, or you can only make some new products that have just appeared. I am more optimistic about this container. ”
In the early days, Changxing Industrial relied on the creativity of time travellers, but creativity was also limited. If Yang Wendong had not strongly promoted the entry into the front-end industries of plastics, papermaking, and glue in the early years, Changxing Industrial would not even be half of its current size.
Now that there is a new big industry and there is still a chance to grow bigger, it is natural to take care of the eldest son of the group, otherwise sooner or later it will be surpassed by Watsons and Honor Electronics, which have a larger market.
"Okay, then I'm going to make plans to produce containers." Wei Zetao nodded.
Yang Wendong said again: "Okay, but there is one thing. Zheng Yuhua suggested to produce in Wanwan. I don't agree. You have to put the factory in Hong Kong."
The mainland is about to resume its seat in the United Nations, which is not good for the Bay. In addition, Singapore and even Malaysia can become its own industrial production base, so his investment in the Bay will be adequate and he will not invest too much.
Wei Zetao said: "Yang Sheng, making containers requires a large number of high-quality welders. It is difficult to find so many people in Hong Kong. If we build a factory in Hong Kong, we will have to poach people from Wanwan."
Yang Wendong said nonchalantly: "It's okay, just hire people directly. All accommodation and other arrangements have been arranged. The cost is nothing. If you need to hire technical personnel, you can hire them from Japan, Europe and the United States." As long as what you do is not the lowest level. In industry, more overseas high-wage technicians or workers will not have much impact. After all, competitors all have such wages.
"Okay," Wei Zetao agreed.
Yang Wendong asked again: "Is there any problem with the import of steel plates?"
Wei Zetao replied: "It should be no problem. Hong Kong also has a lot of steel products that need to be imported, especially construction steel products, both from the mainland and Japan. There may be fewer plates, but they can definitely be imported at the port."
"Okay, let's do a preliminary investigation first, and then give me a summary." Yang Wendong said again.
Wei Zetao agreed: "Okay."
Three days later, Wei Zetao came to Yang Wendong's office again with a document.
"Yang Sheng, this is the information I recently investigated." After Wei Zetao handed over the information, he introduced: "The container industry has existed in Europe and the United States for a long time. In the early years, it was used on trains. Later, an engineer thought of using it Put it on the ship, and then after many years of testing and operation, the current container industry came into being.
Due to the skyrocketing demand, there is a shortage of containers in Europe and the United States, especially in Asia. The first container factory in Japan was established five years ago, and the one in Bayan was two years ago. ”
"Then we won't be too late now. We still have a chance to catch up, or at least have a chance to make our own achievements." Yang Wendong also looked at the data in his hand and asked: "Is there a unified standard in the world?"
Like container ships, containers themselves are also in serious short supply, especially now that they have just appeared and the market is flooded with many of poor quality. After the container ships are used, problems occur on the sea and they immediately become a mess.
This has led to an acute shortage of "qualified" quality containers.
Wei Zetao said: "Yes, the United States has customized the global version of container size, quality requirements and other rules. When we make containers, we must strictly follow this standard so that they can be used everywhere around the world."
"What is the annual output of the first phase of the factory you are planning to build?" Yang Wendong asked again.
Wei Zetao said: "I think the first phase of the factory has a production capacity of 50,000, and it will make about 150 containers a day, but this is just a plan. This is considered a semi-heavy industry. Now we have nothing here, and we want to increase production capacity. , it still takes some time.”
"Where should we choose the location?" Yang Wendong asked.
Wei Zetao replied: "Kwai Chung can only be located near the port. The long-distance land transportation cost of such containers is very high. It is built next to the port and can be used directly by the port after being built. It is very convenient.
I have also communicated with the relevant departments of the Hong Kong government. They are also very supportive of our production of containers. The land and location still need to be negotiated, but they will definitely give us the land and price that meet the conditions. ”
"Okay, let's go to Kwai Chung." Yang Wendong nodded: "Is this kind of welding factory very polluting?"
Wei Zetao said: "There is a certain amount of pollution. There are a lot of container weldings, and there will be a lot of sewage and polluted gas. In addition, some chemical surface treatment is required after welding."
"In that case, don't place it near residential areas, stay away from towns, but the transportation must be good." Yang Wendong added.
No matter how important land hoarding is, there are many opportunities. There is no need to build polluting industries in residential areas. This is a basic quality and principle.
Wei Zetao said: "Okay."
Yang Wendong asked again: "What about personnel?"
Wei Zetao replied: "Ordinary employee-level management can be recruited in Hong Kong. For the welding technicians involved, I plan to go to Japan and Wanwan to recruit. Hong Kong will also gradually train local personnel in the future. According to estimates, the first phase There will be a total number of employees of about 1,000-1,500. ”
"Okay, then the next step is to make a budget. If there is no problem, I will sign it." Yang Wendong nodded and said.
PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
(End of chapter)