Yang Xuan carefully reassembled all the parts back onto the machine.
From the outside, the machine seemed unchanged, but almost every internal component had been replaced. Only the metal frame remained untouched.
“How is it? No problems with the installation?” Chief Engineer Xiao Man Chun asked anxiously.
“No problem. We can run a test right away.” Yang Xuan said.
“That’s great! If it succeeds, our factory can finally handle high-precision machining. Let’s see how stable the machine is first.” Xiao Man Chun was visibly excited.
Factory Director Yang stood by, observing the process without interfering. Being an outsider to the technical details, he wisely chose not to add to the confusion.
In this aspect, Factory Director Yang was quite sensible.
“Master, why don’t you operate it? Just follow the normal procedures.” Yang Xuan instructed.
Zhou De Min felt a bit tense. Yang Xuan had spent months working on this machine. If he, by mistake, caused damage during operation, he would be letting Yang Xuan down.
Yang Xuan could sense his master’s nervousness and said with a smile, “Master, this machine has improved in precision, but it’s not that fragile. If normal operation causes problems, it means there’s still something wrong with our modifications. Don’t worry, even if something happens, we can rectify it promptly.”
Xiao Man Chun nodded. “After the technical transformation is complete, these machines will be operated by ordinary machinists. So, the machine must be stable and easy to operate. Otherwise, we won’t be able to achieve large-scale high-precision processing.”
After hearing Yang Xuan and Xiao Man Chun’s words, Zhou De Min finally relaxed a bit.
Once the machine started, the noise level was significantly lower than before. Previously, the machine vibrated heavily, and the noise was quite loud. Now, it felt smoother, and although the noise couldn't be entirely eliminated, it had improved significantly. You could now have a conversation without shouting.
A smile immediately spread across Xiao Man Chun’s face. Even without looking at the processing results, he could tell that this machine’s performance had increased significantly compared to the previous one.
A stable machine naturally leads to more stable processing. Even with the same level of precision, the processing quality would be vastly different.
Zhou De Min, operating the machine, felt the difference even more, especially when he started machining the workpiece. The process was incredibly smooth.
Zhou De Min didn't immediately express his feelings. He was completely focused on the workpiece in his hands.
Despite the increased precision, the machining speed hadn't slowed down much. In fact, the improved accuracy even led to a slight increase in speed.
Combined with the auxiliary tools Yang Xuan had designed for the machine, the operation became both stable and fast.
Zhou De Min completed the machining of the higher-precision workpiece in two-thirds the time it normally took for a similar part. He shut down the machine and removed the finished workpiece from the fixture.
“Yang Xuan, these fixtures you designed are amazing. They save so much time compared to before. And the stability is greatly improved.” Zhou De Min said excitedly.
Xiao Man Chun was very satisfied. “Let’s measure it first and see how the precision is. Regardless, this technical transformation is basically a success. If the precision meets the requirements, we can then implement large-scale technical transformation. In the future, we can focus solely on high-precision machining.”
Factory Director Yang was very pleased. “If we can truly reach this stage, we must reward Yang Xuan.”
“He’s only sixteen years old. Giving him awards or recognition would be too early. It might even have a negative impact on him. It’s better to give him some practical rewards. Young people like bicycles. Let the factory give him a bicycle as a reward.” Xiao Man Chun suggested.
“No problem. We just received a batch of bicycle coupons from the Ministry. The factory can use them for rewards.” Factory Director Yang said.
The measurement results came out quickly, and all precision parameters met the design requirements.
Xiao Man Chun laughed heartily, “We can complete the Ministry’s task! Factory Director Yang, we should immediately report to the Ministry and propose a comprehensive technical transformation for our workshop to specialize in high-precision machining. I believe the Ministry will approve it.”
Factory Director Yang nodded. “We'll finish the Ministry’s project first, and then we’ll go together. The Ministry will definitely be willing to support our technical transformation.”
The machine modified by Yang Xuan was temporarily used to complete the Ministry’s project. So, Yang Xuan didn’t continue with further modifications. Factory Director Yang gave Yang Xuan a few days off to rest.
A few days later, Factory Director Yang and Xiao Man Chun went to the Ministry to report the situation.
The top leader was very satisfied with the results of the technical transformation at the rolling mill.
“Was this technical transformation Yang Xuan’s idea?” The top leader asked.
Xiao Man Chun nodded. “Although Yang Xuan is young and has little formal education, he has a genuine talent for this area. Who would have thought that a sixteen-year-old boy could help the rolling mill with technical transformation?”
The top leader also praised Xiao Man Chun. “It’s your good judgment that allowed you to promote Yang Xuan and give him important responsibilities. I fully support your technical transformation plan. However, production tasks are currently very heavy. You should try to carry out the technical transformation without affecting production.”
Xiao Man Chun said, “We won’t stop all the machines at once for technical transformation. It won’t affect production.”
The technical transformation plan was approved by the Ministry without any issues. And soon, the top leader personally visited the rolling mill to see for himself how powerful the machine Yang Xuan modified was.
When the top leader arrived at the technical modification workshop, he patted Yang Xuan on the shoulder kindly. “Little Yang, keep up the good work. Get the rolling mill’s machines completely modernized as soon as possible. We’re in urgent need of machines that can perform high-precision machining.”
Yang Xuan said, “Top Leader, actually, the technical transformation we’ve done is just a temporary solution. After all, these machines are already outdated in the grand scheme of things. Even though we’ve improved their precision, the overall performance enhancement is limited. Ideally, we need to make fundamental improvements.”
The top leader nodded. “It’s difficult. Our starting point is too low. We can’t expect to become rich overnight.”
“But I still want to try. I want to design a fully automatic high-precision machine.” Yang Xuan said.
“Do you think you can do it?” The top leader asked.
Yang Xuan explained his idea of forming a research and development team.
Xiao Man Chun felt that Yang Xuan was getting ahead of himself. “Little Yang, I think we should focus on completing the technical transformation first. Then, we can consider designing a new machine. Fully automatic high-precision machines are not easy to design. Right now, the number of units nationwide that can do this can be counted on one hand.”