Chapter 305 Prepare for a rainy day and plan ahead
Wu Wei acted quickly. The next day he found Jiang Hui again and expressed his agreement to go to BMW Motors.
As for the remaining specific conditions and benefits, Jiang Hui asked Fang Huihui to deal with him.
And he rushed back to Shenzhen to make final preparations for the assembly of the BMW Light prototype.
“Director, except for the engine, all the various prototypes of BMW Light can be delivered as planned.”
"The main problem with the engine now is that the output power and other parameters were set relatively high before."
"The output power of our 1.5L displacement inline four-cylinder carburetor engine is not as good as the Capital Internal Combustion Engine Factory The production of 2.5L engines is almost close."
"This requires our various parts to be processed with relatively high precision, and the preparation of prototypes is much more difficult."
"Like. The engine connecting rod needs to be forged with high-strength alloy steel, so the accuracy is still far from what we expected.”
“Several other key parts such as pistons also have similar problems. .”
"Even an inconspicuous part like a bearing is very difficult to produce according to the conditions you require in the drawing."
Hu Shuiwen is under a lot of pressure now.
The other design work of BMW Light is going smoothly, only the engine he is responsible for is falling apart.
As the former director of the design department of the Capital Internal Combustion Engine Plant, he is considered one of the most technologically advanced people in the field of domestic engine design.
But the technical level of automobile engines in China is just like that, especially the design level, which is far behind the world's advanced level.
Even with Jiang Hui's influence, it would be very difficult to achieve a big breakthrough in a short period of time.
Take the bearing bush as an example. Its main function is to provide friction support between the crankshaft and the main bearing to reduce vibration and noise.
Not only that, the bearings can also withstand the rotational friction of the crankshaft and protect the crankshaft from wear.
Furthermore, an important characteristic of the bearing is the strength against impact forces, because it can not only withstand the pressure of internal movements, but also prevent friction of internal parts of the machine.
In addition, the bearing capacity of the bearings is also very strong. They can disperse the weight of the machine when it rotates and reduce the friction between mechanical parts, thus improving the efficiency and life of the machine.
Compared with other materials, the production and use of bearing bushes are more demanding. Only by selecting appropriate materials and processing techniques can the normal operation of the crankshaft be ensured.
The technical difficulty here is much higher than many laymen imagine.
“First solve the problem of existence, and then solve the problem of quality.”
“At this stage, we first assemble an engine according to the level that each supporting factory can achieve, and first look at the basics Are there any obvious problems with the assembly and coordination? "
"Then combined with the bench test, we can see which parts must be improved before our engine can be installed on the car, and which parts can be used. We will slowly improve our technology in the future.”
There will be problems in the development of the 1.5L gasoline engine, which Jiang Hui expected.
Who asked Jiang Hui to set various performance indicators so high.
Although it is only BMW Light that uses this engine now, in the future this engine is destined to shine in the development history of China's automobile industry and become a very well-known existence.
Textbooks such as "Principles of Internal Combustion Engines" at Capital Institute of Technology and other universities will use this engine as an analysis object in the future.
“If we just produce the parts first, then we can start assembling them next week.”
"Director, I think the BMW Light is our entry-level car after all. The engine performance cannot meet the design plan, but it can still be used."
"We can continue to use it when the time comes. The upgrade is just for others to feel our technological progress."
Following Jiang Hui's words, Hu Shuiwen immediately expressed his thoughts.
The current engine drawings are very well designed and have very high production requirements.
In his opinion, it can be divided into two stages or even three stages for improvement.
At that time, a replacement model will be launched in a few years, which will also allow the product to be sold better, and even attract some people to repeat the purchase of BMW Light.
“This can only be the case for now. Various domestic processing equipment are still too backward. Especially if we want to cancel the carburetor and promote the electronic injection engine, a single engine control unit can provide We have brought great obstacles.”
“We still have to find ways to cultivate more technical talents of our own so that the technical level of electronics can be improved quickly.”
“Otherwise we will have to do more. Compared with the international advanced level, there will be a growing gap between the engine technology and the international advanced level.”
Although Jiang Hui himself has a lot of expertise in auto parts, no matter how high a person’s level is, there will be a growing gap. There is no way to improve the technical level of an industrial chain in a short period of time.
Historically, it took the country almost thirty years to finally smooth out this path.
With Jiang Hui's intervention, it is possible to do many things earlier, but there is no way to reduce the time that should be spent.
"Through communicating with Suzuki engineers, I also discovered a problem."
Seeing that his idea was affirmed by Jiang Hui, Hu Shuiwen couldn't help but prepare to bring up a new topic.
BMW Technology has dozens of retired Suzuki engineers in the port city. Most of the time, these people are used to provide various technical training to BMW personnel.
Whether it is arranging for people from BMW to come to Hong Kong City or inviting these retired engineers to Shenzhen City, the relevant training work is always in full swing.
"What's the problem?"
Jiang Hui has always given everyone the impression that he is good at listening to different voices and will not mess with you because of your speech.
Today is no exception.
“I heard that countries such as Japan and the United States have begun to consider using a computer software called AutoCAD to draw drawings, which can be much more efficient.”
"I think the company can also consider trying to cultivate talents in this area, and use computers to draw pictures in the future."
I have to say that Hu Shuiwen has a very good vision.
Before the advent of AutoCAD in 1982, engineers crafted drawings by hand using a variety of pencils, erasers, T-squares, and set squares.
If any changes need to be made, engineers and draftsmen must start over and re-sketch.
This efficiency is definitely very low.
In some previous classic cars, the structure of various parts was relatively simple, especially the skeletal parts of the car body, and they often did not dare to design too complex. One of the important reasons was the drawing problem in part design.
It is too complicated, the drawing is very difficult, and the processing is also very difficult. Problems may arise accidentally. At the stage of computer-aided drafting and design, the situation slowly began to change.
Especially after Dassault's CATIA has been widely used in the automotive industry, the design and manufacturing of automotive parts has become much simpler.
Coupled with the simultaneous development of CNC machine tool technology during the same period, the level of processing various complex parts has also been greatly improved. Therefore, the design of automobile skeleton parts can fully incorporate the needs of collision strength and other aspects. , the design is weird.
"AutoCAD?"
"Japanese car companies have started taking action so quickly."
Jiang Hui is naturally familiar with the thing Hu Shuiwen mentioned.
Students studying engineering have basically used this software. This is a software that many schools will inevitably use when doing graduation projects or other things.
But for China in 1983, this software was really unfamiliar.
Even among FAW and Second Automobile Works, probably few people have heard of it.
“Yes, I heard a Suzuki engineer was very optimistic about this thing. He once praised it for half an hour while drinking.”
“But he retired this year. , In fact, I don’t know how to use this kind of software, and I only know a little bit about it.”
“But since car companies in the United States and Japan are trying it, I think BMW can also try it.”
Hu Shuiwen knew that Jiang Hui had high expectations for BMW cars.
So even though computers were said to be very expensive, and buying software from abroad was probably not cheap, he still mentioned it to Jiang Hui.
"Are there any teachers from domestic universities who are studying industrial software?"
Jiang Hui definitely wants to take computer-aided drafting.
But he thought more than Hu Shuiwen.
Both CATIA and AUTOCAD are currently in their infancy.
Functions in all aspects need to be improved, and the convenience of use has not yet been fully recognized by everyone.
In this case, if China also starts to research the same type of industrial design software, it is actually possible to catch up with other people's technology.
There is a chance to catch up at least in the next three to five years.
But in the past life, China was completely lagging behind the world in this regard. When the world pattern changed and large-scale use of overseas industrial software came with greater risks, it was discovered that there were technical differences between domestic and foreign companies in this regard. Too big.
Even if there are enough manpower and financial support, it is impossible to develop an industrial software similar to CAITA.
Even if it is developed by force, the manpower and material resources required to invest are extremely exaggerated.
The most critical thing is to develop industrial software, which is not a simple computer problem. It is essentially an industrial problem and a process problem.
The best thing is to let engineers who understand automobile parts design and processing technology go to schools to develop software development techniques, and let them develop these software, so that these software can truly become something that can assist everyone in designing parts.
Otherwise, let some "programmers" develop it, and what they develop will have no practicality at all.
A slight problem during design will lead to major problems with the parts. Which company would dare to use such software?
"I haven't heard of it yet. I guess there are individual organizations in the military industry system that do this kind of work. Other factories probably don't have talents in this field."
Hu Shuiwen's words made Jiang Hui a little disappointed.
Although industrial design software has just started, personal computers have also just started, but without anyone who understands technology to take the lead, it will be very difficult for BMW to develop industrial software on its own.
Jiang Hui can’t do everything by himself, can he?
“AUTOCAD, you can ask people at BMW Technology Headquarters to contact companies in the United States to discuss purchasing a few sets.”
“But I think what we should consider more is developing our own industrial software so that domestic factories can also use domestic industrial design software.”
“As an automobile OEM, as long as we use our own Industrial design software can completely require suppliers to use the same software simultaneously. ”
“Through our suppliers, we can also influence their suppliers and customers, and even directly invite the Ministry of Machinery and Industry. The Fifth Machinery Department and other relevant departments have helped to vigorously promote our industrial software.”
In a short period of time, developing industrial software yourself will definitely be a loss-making business.
But if we don’t start doing this kind of thing now, it will be very difficult to do it in the future.
With advanced vision as guidance, as long as some suitable technical personnel are recruited, it may not be impossible to surpass AUTOCAD and CATIA in a relatively short period of time.
If BMW really achieves this, it will actually have extraordinary significance for China.
After everyone develops usage habits in the future, we can fully recover all past investments by relying on paying users.
Look at CATIA in later generations. Dassault has made a lot of money around the world with this software, many of which were contributed by China.
Especially as the protection of intellectual property rights gets better and better, the more money Dassault can earn from CATIA.
Jiang Hui is not jealous of the money, but he doesn't want all the design data in China's automotive industry and even the aviation industry to be taken away by Human Love through backend bugs.
Even in extreme cases, someone can directly control your computer remotely.
This kind of thing that many people cannot understand now is completely possible in the future, and it is also completely possible to achieve through software.
"Director, would it be too difficult to design a computer-aided design software yourself?"
"The cost is probably higher than if we purchase it directly from AUTOCAD The software is much better.”
Although Hu Shuiwen didn't know much about industrial software, this simple truth was still easy to understand.
“You are right, doing it this way will definitely cost more money in the short term.”
“But in the future, BMW will become bigger and stronger and go global, even BMW If technology enters other fields such as equipment manufacturing, it will inevitably face more intense international competition.”
“We must reduce the possibility of being stuck as much as possible”
Jiang Hui. But people from later generations know all too well the bottomless operations of Americans.
According to the current development pace, BMW Technology is destined to be targeted or even sanctioned in the future.
In this case, it is necessary to plan ahead and plan ahead.
(End of this chapter)