Rebirth 99 to become a car giant

When Ji Hua was inquiring about the situation of Cao Yang's Ford Motor, a discussion about the Nanshan 6AT was also going on at the Ford headquarters in the United States.

Both Design Director Metz and Purchasing Director Chris reported their ideas to CEO Jacques Nasser.

For general parts procurement, it must be decided by Chris, and there is no need to rise to the level of CEO.

But this time Chris had some innovative proposals, so he specially asked Metz to report to Nasser.

"Mace, are you sure that the information in this report has not reversed the information of our own 6AT and Nanshan 6AT?"

After Nasser listened to the report, the first reaction in his heart was whether the people below had made a low-level mistake.

The information of both parties was directly reversed in the materials.

There is no way, this information is too strange, it has exceeded his imagination.

The 6AT gearbox that Ford has spent a lot of manpower and material resources on has been installed and used in many Ford models.

Now you are telling us that the level of this gearbox is not as good as that produced by a Chinese company?

Hearing what Nasser said, Mace was a little embarrassed.

However, he had heard the information of this report beforehand and raised some questions, so it was obviously not a problem.

"Nasser, although I also hope that the people below accidentally made a mistake, but unfortunately, this is actually the correct information."

"Nanshan's 6AT gearbox is better than the 6AT we researched and produced in terms of transmission efficiency and other aspects."

"Even in terms of fuel consumption, the other party can save 2% to 3% compared to us."

Embarrassment is embarrassment, the question still needs to be answered.

"Then our price is more than seven hundred dollars higher than the other party?"

When Nasser said this, not only Metz felt embarrassed, but Chris also felt a little uncomfortable.

After all, although the cost issue is largely determined by design, procurement is absolutely inescapable.

"Huaxia's enterprises have always had an advantage in terms of parts production costs."

"For example, their production workers earn less than $200 a month, but our workers earn more than that per day."

"In addition, Nanshan itself can produce parts such as bearings, gears and bolts, and even their bearings are still better than SKF."

"That's why their 6AT can be done at a much lower cost than ours."

"This is why we have been expanding the use of parts from China."

When Chris answered this question, he had a decision in his mind.

In any case, it is necessary to convince various departments of the company to let some of the models adopt Nanshan 6AT.

In this way, the cost can be reduced by a large amount.

This is an additional price reduction after completing the price reduction task this year.

"Everyone knows the reason you said."

"But I'm wondering why the 6AT developed by Ford itself can't beat the cost of China, even ZF and Aisin can't compare?"

Nasser is also under a lot of pressure this year.

Ford Motor has now begun to enter the downhill stage. If he, the CEO, has no way to save the situation, his future is worrying.

"There are many dimensions to this issue."

Mace and Chris looked at each other, and chose to stand up and answer the question by himself.

"First of all, in terms of design, Nanshan's 6AT is smaller and lighter than ours, and the amount of related materials is also lower."

"And their structural design is relatively ingenious, and various tasks such as shifting are completed with a relatively simple part structure."

"Besides, their various components are basically involved by themselves, and they can cooperate with a high degree."

"As for the cost, just like what Chris said just now, it is very difficult for us to make up for China's advantages in this area."

After Metz finished speaking, he glanced at Chris again, and the latter immediately stood up and added, "Combining this situation, the procurement center made a bold proposal."

"Can we purchase some components of the gearbox from Nanshan, and then assemble the 6AT in Ford's own gearbox factory, and finally load it on our models?"

"Of course, the premise must be that Nanshan's 6AT has passed various durability and real vehicle tests."

Obviously, Metz and Chris made such a report today in order to persuade Nasser to agree to their new plan.

However, this is not all of the new program.

"Nanshan is not stupid. They can't sell 6AT properly, so they have to sell us components?"

When Nasser said this, Chris immediately said: "You are right, if it is our own 6AT, Nanshan will definitely be happy to provide us with bearings and other parts."

"But if we want to produce Nanshan 6AT, we need the other party's authorization."

Speaking of this, Nasser thought for a while after listening.

Although this situation is a bit embarrassing, the powerful Ford Motor actually wants to find a Chinese manufacturer to authorize the 6AT technology.

"Can we consider this way, we go to Nanshan to purchase a batch of 6AT, and then they share the technology of these 6AT with us for free, and they will become Ford's 6AT in the future."

"Of course, we also promise that this 6AT will only be used on Ford cars and will not be sold outside."

"On the 6AT we purchased from Nanshan, the price can be raised appropriately, which is equivalent to charging a technology authorization fee."

As the CEO of Ford Motor Company, Nasser thinks about issues at a higher level.

It's not good to hear that Ford Motor has paid technology licensing fees to Huaxia parts companies.

It's better to pay this fee in another way.

"This solution sounds feasible, but it may depend on how many 6ATs we plan to purchase from Nanshan and at what price we plan to purchase them."

"If you only purchase 10,000 to 20,000 units, it is estimated that the other party will not agree."

"But if the quantity purchased is too large, it will be difficult for us to accept it."

"Another thing is that the other party may worry that after obtaining the one-time order, Ford will produce 6AT every year in the future, and they will feel unfair."

Chris hopes to facilitate this proposal as soon as possible.

But he needs to take into account the interests of both parties, otherwise it will be difficult to agree with this plan, and the pressure will be on the purchasing center at that time.

"I do have a suggestion. Can we agree that 10% to 20% of the 6AT used in Ford vehicles will be purchased from Nanshan every year?"

"In this way, it is roughly equivalent to purchasing about 300,000 to 400,000 units from the other party every year, which should be a relatively sincere number."

Mace made a new suggestion on the sidelines.

About 40% of Ford's current gearboxes use the 6AT produced by itself.

In the future, with the increase of automobile production and the increase of the used models, this number will increase.

"Mace's proposal is good, but it is necessary to reduce the proportion of Nanshan 6AT directly purchased every year as much as possible."

"Otherwise, when the production capacity of our own gearbox factory is vacant, but we are still purchasing gearboxes, it will be difficult for us to explain when shareholders criticize it."

As a professional manager, Nasser needs to consider more about how to communicate with the board of directors and how to communicate with shareholders.

"Of course, if Nanshan cooperates, we can properly tilt towards them on the bearings and other components of the gearbox, which can be regarded as making up for them."

When Nasser said this, Chris knew it.

There is a high probability that this matter can be discussed.

As for whether Nanshan completely disagrees?

That's a big deal, just copy it directly, and there will be a lawsuit later.

Of course, this must be the next best thing to do.

...

The gearbox is the most important part of a car after the engine.

Considering that the engine is produced by the car company itself most of the time, the gearbox is the most important part among the purchased parts.

For this reason, Chris specially flew to China to negotiate with Cao Yang face to face.

"Cao, your 6AT is still under testing, but judging from the parameters you provided, it is very good."

"Ford Motor now intends to further expand cooperation with Nanshan."

As Director of Purchasing for Ford Motor Company, Chris has a very busy schedule.

So after coming to Yangcheng, he also came directly to Nanshan Technology Co., Ltd., and talked about cooperation with Cao Yang straight to the point.

"Chris, last week we specially mailed a batch of 6AT to General Motors Aviation for them to start the real vehicle test."

"Judging from the current situation, the data confirmed by General Motors in the early stage and the information reported by Nanshan at that time are both correct."

"I think everyone has reason to imagine that other materials reported by Nanshan at that time are also true and reliable."

"Then we can draw a conclusion that Nanshan's 6AT is the best among all suppliers."

"I believe Ford is doing the same internal confirmation work on this."

"Chris, Ford Motor is Nanshan's main customer. We are willing to offer a very competitive price, and we may even consider setting up an assembly plant in the United States to support Ford Motor locally."

Cao Yang and Chris are old acquaintances, and they know that the other party doesn't like to beat around the bush.

So I expressed my sincerity from the very beginning.

"Cao, you also know that Ford itself has 6AT. It is impossible for us to completely abandon our 6AT and buy it from Nanshan instead."

"This point has nothing to do with technology and cost. I believe you understand this, right?"

Chris stared at Cao Yang, wanting to see his reaction in his eyes.

Every move in the negotiation can release some special meaning.

Chris has a lot of experience in this area.

"Of course I understand this truth, but Ford's 6AT, in addition to its own production, is also bought by Aisin, right?"

Cao Yang's words were a refutation of Chris's words just now.

"That's right, so it's not impossible for Ford to consider buying 6AT from Nanshan, but..."

As Chris said, he wondered if it would be better if he cut the mess quickly.

"But the situation I just mentioned also exists objectively and must be considered."

"Can Ford purchase 500,000 6ATs from Nanshan in the next five years, but Nanshan needs to share this 6AT technology with Ford for free to produce 6ATs ourselves."

Seeing that Cao Yang didn't intend to interrupt him, Chris threw out the plan directly.

Of course, as a veteran negotiator, it is impossible for him to show his cards all at once.

Hearing such a proposal from Chris, Cao Yang did not immediately refute it.

This is the first time I have heard of such a plan.

Although this is definitely not the plan that Cao Yang hoped for, it cannot be said that Ford Motors has no reason at all.

Just like many times when some aircraft or armored vehicles are ordered, people will buy some directly, and the other part will have to set up factories in their own country for production, or directly authorize their own production plans.

So in essence, the solution given by Ford Motor can be regarded as the solution currently used in some fields.

It's just that Cao Yang has to find a way to get the best benefit for himself.

"Chris, I am very grateful to Ford for recognizing Nanshan's 6AT. I can also see a certain degree of sincerity in your company's plan."

"But you also know that Ford sells almost 7 million cars a year around the world. Even if only half of the models are equipped with 6AT, that is still 3.5 million."

"Your company will purchase 500,000 units of 6AT from Nanshan in the next few years, which is roughly equivalent to giving Nanshan a few points of annual demand."

"This ratio is very unacceptable."

"Is it possible to consider giving half of the annual demand to Nanshan and half to Ford's own production?"

Negotiating conditions, it must be the lion's mouth.

So Cao Yang asked for half of the order as soon as he opened his mouth.

On this basis, any technology sharing is easy to say.

"impossible!"

"Cao, it's impossible for Ford to keep the production capacity of its transmission factory idle. Instead, it purchases 6ATs from Nanshan."

Chris reacted a little strongly.

This demand is too different from his idea.

"Chris, can I ask what the current production capacity of Ford's transmission plant is?"

Instead of continuing to bargain with Chris directly, Cao Yang changed the question.

Of course, Chris is smart enough to know the meaning behind this question.

If he answered, Cao Yang would definitely say that for the demand beyond the production capacity, he should find Nanshan.

This was not an option Chris could accept either.

Because that number will go to the point of millions of units.

"Cao, this is not the point of the question. Ford is sincere in cooperating with Nanshan, but I hope you will not be too greedy."

"Otherwise, the final situation is definitely something no one wants to see."

Although he has a little personal relationship with Cao Yang, Chris will definitely not make any concessions during the negotiation.

That is related to his KPI.

"Our 6AT is so advanced that it will remain competitive even in another 10 years."

"So an order of 500,000 units in total is definitely not appropriate."

"Chris, I also very much hope to cooperate with Ford Motors. If the annual demand of 50% is too high, can you consider giving 30% of the annual demand to Nanshan?"

Cao Yang made a quick calculation in his mind, and felt that he should try his best to negotiate success.

Otherwise, it may be uncertain whether these Americans will come up with some moths.

That would not be beautiful.