Technology: Start by selling mobile phones

Chapter 123 I have a friend...

"I don't know about that."

"For specific quotations, you can ask Mr. Bao in person."

Mo Ran nodded slightly and did not continue to ask. He basically knew what the situation was.

no doubt,

Now Mr. Bao Youcai of "Runfa Electronic Technology" is encountering great difficulties.

According to what Li Zhi said, Bao Youcai purchased the photolithography machine and other production equipment with a loan.

If there is no production order, equipment and personnel will be idle, and interest expenses and employee wages alone will be a huge expense.

Now Bao Youcai has only two options:

Either find a way to package and sell the "photolithography machine business" as a whole to stop losses, or find a way to save yourself.

But……

Mo Ran's eyes fell on Li Zhi again.

"Are you sure you can get the production order when you go back? Help Mr. Bao get out of this predicament?"

Li Zhi suddenly fell silent.

As a practitioner in the chip industry, he certainly knows that this is an almost impossible task.

The chip industry is unlike other industries. Not only is the technical threshold high, but the industry concentration is also very high.

For example, in the "SSD master chip" industry that Mr. Bao wants to enter this time, 80% or even 90% of shipments are concentrated in the top three to five companies.

These mature leading companies have long had foundries with stable quality that they have cooperated with for a long time.

A new factory like "Yunfa Electronics Factory" has just been established.

There is no strong relationship at all.

Without any excellent technology, who would kick out the foundry that was doing a good job and give the order to "Yunfa Electronics Factory"?

Totally impossible.

Take Mr. Bao as an example. Didn’t he dare to enter the chip production industry this time because of his connections with high-level fellows?

and……

Li Zhi sighed slightly.

In fact, in the high-end manufacturing industry, even if you have some connections and skills, it is still very, very difficult to truly replace an original parts supplier.

Whether it is domestic Huawei and BYD, or Apple or Tesla,

If a high-end company with a certain scale wants to become their supplier, it is not just as imagined: "My parts are good and cheap, come and use them."

If you want to become a supplier to top companies, the first step is to send parts samples for testing.

After the enterprise passes the performance test and meets the enterprise standards, it will be shortlisted for the enterprise's "supplier candidate list."

This step takes about three months.

After entering the candidate list, the company will not use your parts immediately.

To put it simply,

I have a product with sales data of hundreds of millions or even billions, and it is selling well. Why should I suddenly replace it with your parts?

Your parts have not been tested by the market. What if something goes wrong on a large scale?

Who is responsible if something goes wrong?

so……

Not only do you need some connections and skills, but you also need the company to be willing to support you.

Does the current "Runfa Electronics Factory" have such connections and strength?

Apparently not.

Thinking of this, Li Zhi smiled bitterly.

"I'm not sure, but... Mr. Bao treats me well. I still want to go back and work hard."

Seeing that Li Zhi's tone was still firm, Mo Ran didn't want to say anything more.

He waved his hand and said:

"Okay, don't rush this matter yet."

"Leave it to me. I'll understand it first and then talk about it."

Having said this, Li Zhi could only nod.

"Then I'll wait for your news."

"Um."

After leaving Li Zhi's office, Mo Ran returned to the car.

However, he did not rush to start the car, but sat in the driver's seat and quietly went over the matter.

At this time, his focus was no longer on whether Li Zhi would stay, but on the lithography machine.

first,

What Li Zhi understands, Bao Youcai can definitely understand.

Therefore... deep down, Bao Youcai must still be more willing to package and sell the "lithography machine business" instead of looking for orders to save himself.

so.

Theoretically, it is entirely possible for me to buy the photolithography machine from Mr. Bao.

But the problem now is,

Not only did Nietzsche have no money on his books, he was also in debt of 420 million...

After thinking for a moment, Mo Ran rubbed his temples heavily, and finally took out his cell phone, opened his address book, and found the phone number of Bao Youcai from "Runfa Electronics Factory."

"Let's not worry about it for now. Let's ask Mr. Bao what the specific price is!"

After saying that,

Mo Ran took a few deep breaths, and then began to adjust his emotions to sound lower.

All set, dial.

After five or six rings, the call was finally connected.

"Hey, Mr. Mo."

Bao Youcai's voice came from the phone.

Mo Ran could clearly feel the tiredness in his voice, which was completely different from the energetic look he had during the last call.

"Well, it's me."

Mo Ran responded, his tone lowered.

"Mr. Bao, he has already told me about Li Zhi."

"Didn't I still have a balance of 1 million for the equipment that I haven't settled with you before? Now that this happens to you, I will ask the finance department to transfer the money as soon as possible."

"Slow down your urgent need."

Bao Youcai didn't expect that Mo Ran took the initiative to call him for this matter, and he was a little touched at the moment.

Although the 1 million was originally his final payment, the affection was truly felt.

He sighed slightly, with a hint of apology in his tone.

"Mr. Mo... I also know some of the situation on your side. Li Zhi is indeed very important to you."

"But I also hope you can understand me, brother. I really encountered a big problem this time, and it is really necessary to let Li Zhi come back."

"I understand, I completely understand."

Mo Ran responded repeatedly, and his emotions gradually became sympathetic.

"To be honest, I have always been grateful that you were able to sell me the 'TF memory card' equipment at such a refreshing price."

"Now that you are encountering difficulties, I will do my best to help you no matter what."

"It's just... there's not much I can do."

After the words fell, Bao Youcai fell silent on the other end of the phone, and a warm current slowly flowed into his heart.

to be honest,

He and Mo Ran didn't have a deep friendship, and they only communicated with each other a few times. However, when he heard these caring words at this low point in his life, he couldn't help but be touched.

"It's good that you can make a phone call."

"With just these few words of yours, I am determined to be your friend."

Mo Ran laughed.

"Mr. Bao, I have already regarded you as a friend."

As he spoke, he changed the topic and suddenly changed the subject.

"By the way, I heard from Li Zhi that you seemed to have thought about selling the entire set of lithography machines in a package. What was the reason why you shelved it in the end?"

Bao Youcai was stunned for a moment, then sighed.

He said slowly:

"To tell you the truth, it's the price."

"price?"

"Well, when I bought it, my fellow executive was the one who brokered it. I bought it from a company in Taiwan, and it was a bit premium."

“Later, when I wanted to sell it, several batches of people came to see it, but the price offered was too low.”

Moran nodded, which was similar to what Li Zhi said just now.

He pondered for a moment and asked in a deep voice:

"Then what was the price you paid for it at that time? How much did they pay for it?"

"Um?"

Bao Youcai let out a light sigh, then reacted and asked:

"Mr. Mo, are you interested?"

"Ha ha."

Mo Ran smiled sarcastically.

"It's not that I'm interested, I have a friend..."

"Well, yes, I have a friend who talked about this topic with me before. He is somewhat interested in the chip industry."

"If you are willing to package and sell it, I can help you find the connection."

Bao Youcai paused for a moment and then said:

"It's not really a big secret."

"When I bought this lithography machine from a Taiwanese company, it cost 700 million. Including other equipment and factory upgrades, it cost almost 850 million."

Mo Ran had chatted with Li Zhi about lithography machines before, and he knew in his heart that they were probably worth hundreds of millions.

but.

When I heard the amount of 850 million at this time, and then thought about the balance of Nietzsche's account, I couldn't help but sigh.

“It’s indeed a bit expensive!”

"yes!"

Bao Youcai also sighed.

After a while, he suddenly sighed on the phone.

"Hey, it's my fault for being too greedy."

"Actually, the Taiwanese company that sold me the lithography machine had a total of two lithography machines for sale. I chose the most expensive one myself."

"oh?"

Mo Ran was slightly startled, obviously not expecting there to be other stories.

Bao Youcai continued:

"There were two lithography machines at the time, one of which had a resolution of 64 nanometers."

"Normally speaking, a 64-nanometer photolithography machine is completely sufficient to produce a 'main control chip', and the price is only 200 million yuan."

"But I just fell in love with this one at that time."

With that said, Bao Youcai let out another sigh.

"The lithography machine in my hand is a DUV lithography machine produced by ASML. The maximum resolution can reach 32 nanometers. It is the best lithography machine available in the second-hand market."

"What I was thinking at the time was - 'one step to get it right'. Although the production of the 'main control chip' does not require a process as high as 32 nanometers, what if it happens?"

"What if there is a high-end chip business that can be expanded in the future?!"

"So... in the end I gritted my teeth and bought this 32nm lithography machine produced by ASML."

"But now, I'm really going to lose money. If I had bought a 64-nanometer lithography machine, I wouldn't have lost so much, and I wouldn't have had problems with my capital chain!"

"I regret it so much."

oh?

ASML?

32nm?

The best photolithography machine you can buy on the second-hand market?

Several keywords in succession made Mo Ran's eyes completely brighten.

Even though he doesn't know much about the chip industry, he knows that 32nm is definitely mid-to-high-end.

In addition to top-level SOC chips such as mobile phones and computers, 32 nanometers is enough to meet the requirements of almost all other types of chips.

He was calculating rapidly in his mind, thoughts surging.

While comforting Mr. Bao, he couldn't help but smile.

"Mr. Bao, there is nothing wrong with your decision."

"Anyone would definitely choose the more expensive one. After all, it's all done right the first time."

"Hey, I thought so too at first..."

During the conversation, Mo Ran asked again:

"But... logically speaking, shouldn't the better things be easier to sell?"

“Why are the prices offered by other companies so low?”

"Hey, now that we've said it, I'll make it clear."

"One of the companies that came to see us was SMIC and the other was Hua Hong Semiconductor. They were only willing to give 700 million."

SMIC?

Mo Ran's hand holding the phone suddenly tightened.

I had heard this name countless times in my previous life, but I didn't expect to hear it from Bao Youcai's mouth again this time.

His mood fluctuated slightly, and the doubts in his heart became more and more puzzled.

"700 million? Why are they offering so low? Are you going to lose more than 100 million?"

"yes!"

Bao Youcai took a breath and continued:

"They knew I had no orders for Phison Electronics, so they had no choice but to throw it away."

"Second."

"Later I heard that SMIC seemed to be purchasing ASML's higher-end EUV lithography machine. This 32-nanometer lithography machine with DUV light source seemed a bit useless to them."

Mo Ran suddenly realized that this explanation was feasible.

At this time, there are no messy restrictions on the purchase of lithography machines. In my impression, SMIC did purchase an EUV lithography machine from AMSL in 2018.

In the end, due to well-known reasons, I was stopped at the shipping dock.

but.

As a leading company, SMIC plans to purchase higher-end EUV lithography machines. What about Hua Hong Semiconductor?

Don’t they want 32nm DUV lithography machines?

"What about Huahong Semiconductor?"

“If it’s understandable that SMIC’s bid is low, then why isn’t Hua Hong Semiconductor anxious?”

"Wanting to lower prices is one aspect."

"On the other hand, they feel that the 32-nanometer lithography machine will not be used for the time being because the resolution is too high."

"Can't use it temporarily? The resolution is high?"

As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Mo Ran understood.

At this time in early 2017,

The era at this time is far from the era of later generations when the entire country was engaged in chip development.

Domestic chip companies in this era, even SMIC, have not completely solved the 28-nanometer packaging process and cannot independently produce 28-nanometer chips, let alone Hua Hong Semiconductor.

A large number of Yanguo chip companies are technologically backward and can only produce the lowest-end chips.

In addition, no one expected that lithography machines would no longer be available, so they never thought about purchasing lithography machines in advance.

So... for lithography machines, even the "mid-to-high-end" DUV lithography machines of this era, domestic chip factories are not so eager to buy them.

After figuring this out, the call between Mo Ran and Bao Youcai was coming to an end.

certainly.

Mo Ran still had doubts about the specific price mentioned by Bao Youcai. He did not believe that Bao Youcai could disclose the price to him without reservation.

All I can say is that I roughly know a price range.

Now.

The most important question before Mo Ran is-"Should we find a way to buy this lithography machine?"

The temperature in winter is not high, but I still feel a little stuffy after sitting in the cab for a long time.

Roll down the window and let the wind blow.

Five minutes later, he called Lawyer Wu.

"Lawyer Wu, please come to my company now."

Mo Ran is ready to give it a try.

Based on the price mentioned by Bao Youcai, he can probably estimate a price range - if you want to participate in this transaction, you must prepare at least about 500 million first.

Needless to say, there are no more reasons to buy a photolithography machine. The most important thing now is to raise money.

so.

He first set his sights on the recently purchased LeTV copyright.