deltrittennovels Chapter 199 Qilu Microelectronics
Chapter 199 Qilu Microelectronics
At nine o'clock in the morning, the air conditioner was humming in the finance office of Xinghuo Electronics Factory.
Ling Yun took two documents from the black briefcase: a grant notification and the new company registration materials. Ni Guangnan sat opposite him, wearing reading glasses and holding a red pen, revising the draft of the company's articles of association.
"Ten million US dollars," Ling Yun signed the disbursement notice and pushed it over. "It will arrive this afternoon. The account is at the Jinan branch of the Bank of China, a dedicated US dollar account."
Ni Guangnan took the notification, glanced at the amount, and his hand froze in mid-air.
"So many?"
"Not much." Ling Yun took out a checkbook from the box, wrote a check for one million US dollars, and handed it to Ni Guangnan separately. "This is your personal start-up capital. Use it for renting a place, buying equipment, and hiring people."
Ni Guangnan did not answer.
"I have a salary."
"This is the project funding." Ling Yun placed the check on the table. "You need to build a team, treat people to meals, and provide them with settling-in allowances. All of this costs money. I can't let you pay for it out of your own pocket."
Ni Guangnan was silent for a few seconds, then picked up the check, folded it, and put it into the innermost pocket of his shirt.
"I've found the person," he said. "Meet me at 2 PM this afternoon in the small conference room at the factory."
"several?"
"Seven. All of them are capable of working independently." Ni Guangnan took out a stack of resumes from his briefcase and circled the top three in red pen. "These three are the most important. Old Chen, who works on semiconductor materials, used to be the chief engineer at Emei Semiconductor Factory. Old Wang, who works on integrated circuit design, worked at Wuxi Huajing for eight years. Little Zhou, a recent PhD graduate from Tsinghua Microelectronics Institute, young but quick-witted."
Lingyun flipped through the resumes. Old Chen's photo was black and white; he was wearing a Zhongshan suit and had a serious expression. Old Wang's resume listed more than a dozen chip models he had participated in designing. Xiao Zhou's resume was the thinnest, but the publication section listed three English journal articles.
"What are their demands?" Ling Yun asked.
"Old Chen needs a lab and wants to import an ion implanter, even the oldest model will do. Old Wang wants to mentor five students, with a salary at the associate professor level. Little Zhou..." Ni Guangnan paused, "Little Zhou wants to go to the United States for six months of training, and I said you can arrange it."
"Yes." Ling Yun closed the resume. "Let's talk this afternoon."
We ate lunch at the factory canteen. Ma Baoguo specifically asked the chef to add two dishes: braised pork and steamed fish. No one spoke at the table, and they ate very quickly.
At 1:30, seven people were already seated in the small conference room.
Old Chen sat by the window, wearing a gray Zhongshan suit with the collar buttoned up tightly. Old Wang wore a jacket and held a thick notebook in his hand. Xiao Zhou was the youngest, wearing a white shirt, with a laptop on his lap—a rarity in 1997.
Ni Guangnan pushed open the door and came in, with Ling Yun following behind.
"Everyone, this is Mr. Ling," Ni Guangnan introduced. "He is the founder of Xinghuo Technology and also an investor in our new company."
All seven people stood up. Lingyun gestured for them to sit down.
"Let's get straight to the point." Ling Yun sat down, took out the business plan for the new company from his bag, and handed a copy to everyone. "The new company is called 'Qilu Microelectronics,' with a registered capital of ten million US dollars. Main business: integrated circuit design, semiconductor process research and development, and related equipment upgrades."
Old Chen opened the planning document and saw the equity structure on the first page: Ling Yun held 70%, Ni Guangnan held 10%, and the employee stock ownership pool held 20%. He looked up: "President Ling, has the technology roadmap been decided?"
"Start from the low end," Ling Yun said. "Electronic watch chips, telephone chips, VCD decoding chips. Survive first, then move upmarket."
Old Wang jotted down a few notes in his notebook: "What about the process details?"
"Let's start with 2 micrometers," Ni Guangnan continued. "There are a few usable 2-micrometer lines in China. We'll design them and find contract manufacturers. At the same time, we're preparing to upgrade 1-micrometer lines, with the goal of producing sample chips in the second half of next year."
"It's too slow," Xiao Zhou suddenly said.
Everyone was looking at him.
"Xiao Zhou, what is it?" Ling Yun said.
"Taiwan doesn't even do 2-micron anymore." Xiao Zhou opened his laptop and pulled up a table. "The international mainstream is 0.8 microns, and Intel is already working on 0.35 microns. If we start with 2 microns, by the time we make it, the market will be gone."
The meeting room fell silent.
Old Chen cleared his throat: "Xiao Zhou makes a good point. But the problem is, we can't buy the 0.8-micron equipment because of the Wassenaar Arrangement."
"It can be modified," Old Wang chimed in. "Some of Japan's outdated 1-micron lasers are no longer precise, but the basic structure is still there. We can buy them back and modify the control system and optical components ourselves. I participated in a similar project when I was at Huajing."
"How much will the renovation cost?" Ling Yun asked.
"Just the cost of upgrading a single line, not counting equipment..." Old Wang calculated, "is at least five million US dollars. And it requires the collaboration of four teams: optics, mechanics, control, and software. There aren't enough people like that in China right now."
"We've got everyone together," Ni Guangnan said. "I know several retired experts from the Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, as well as people from the Ministry of Aerospace who work on inertial navigation systems. We'll invite them over and have them work with the young people."
"What about their salaries?" Old Chen asked. "These senior experts already have very high pensions."
"Three times," Ling Yun said. "In addition to the original pension, add three times the salary. Provide housing, a laboratory, and all the necessary conditions."
Old Chen nodded and said nothing more.
Xiao Zhou raised his hand again: "President Ling, I'd like to ask about the training program in the United States..."
"Sure," Ling Yun said, "but not now. Next June, once the company has set up the framework, you'll go to the Stanford Microelectronics Center for six months. The company will cover all expenses, but there's one condition."
"What are the conditions?"
"When you come back, you'll lead a team and be able to independently take charge of a design direction," Lingyun said. "Moreover, for the next six months, you'll need to submit a weekly learning report, which will be circulated within the company."
"No problem!" Xiao Zhou's eyes lit up.
Over the next two hours, the seven people took turns speaking. Old Chen talked about material preparation, Old Wang talked about the design process, and the others talked about the difficulties in their respective fields. Ni Guangnan drew a technology roadmap on the whiteboard, from 2 micrometers to 1 micrometer, and then to 0.8 micrometers, with each node marked with time, budget, and key technologies.
Lingyun listened most of the time, occasionally asking a few key questions: Who in China can solve this technical challenge? Are there any alternatives for this equipment? Can this timeline be brought forward?
"The new company will be registered next Monday," Ling Yun concluded. "Everyone here is a founding team member. Mr. Ni will be the general manager, Mr. Chen will be in charge of the process, Mr. Wang will be in charge of the design, and Xiao Zhou will be Mr. Wang's assistant, while also preparing for overseas training. Mr. Ni will decide on the division of labor for the others."
He stood up: "Your salaries will be increased by 50% from your current levels. Project bonuses will be calculated separately. That's all for today; the HR department will handle the contract signings with you all."
After the meeting, Ni Guangnan stayed in the conference room to organize the materials. Ling Yun walked to the window and lit a cigarette.
"How is it?" Ni Guangnan asked.
"Not bad." Ling Yun exhaled a puff of smoke. "They're all people who get things done."
"The money's gone too quickly," Ni Guangnan calculated. "Ten million US dollars, half of it was gone just from upgrading one production line. The remaining five million, after paying salaries, buying materials, and renting space, won't last more than two years."
"So now we need to go to the municipal party committee." Ling Yun stubbed out his cigarette. "We need policies, we need land."