After the prototype steam engine proved its reliability after three days of continuous work, Zhou Qingfeng immediately transferred Zhao Ze and the entire engineering department of the Revolutionary Army to Jinzhou. This was the first department to be transferred away from the frontline, even faster than Xu Bing's administrative department.
The next step was up to Zhao Ze and Shi Dong.
The Revolutionary Army bought a lot of iron ingots from Shandong and Tianjin, and these metal materials were transported from Lushun to Jinzhou. Shi Dong had already built a large steelmaking furnace in Jinzhou, using all kinds of indigenous methods. The technology came from a Cultural Revolution pamphlet on steelmaking. This kind of popularized technology pamphlet was especially common during the Cultural Revolution, and the level was uneven. There were many of them in the technical school library.
The carbon content of the bought iron ingots varied greatly, and the impurities were also inexplicable. The quality was good and bad. Shi Dong, the minister of the mining department, wore a pair of sunglasses every day and squatted at the mouth of the furnace, leading hundreds of steel plant workers to train. After the death of a few reckless people, everyone understood that steelmaking also had to abide by the basic rules.
Using ready-made iron ingots for short-distance steelmaking could greatly improve the efficiency of steelmaking and save time. In order to seek rapid development in Liaodong, which was threatened by the enemy, the Revolutionary Army lacked time.
After the prototype steam engine was transported to Jinzhou, it was immediately modified to drive a forging machine. The steel ingots produced by the steel plant were immediately sent to the forging machine for processing. A forging machine was hundreds of times more efficient than a blacksmith, and it could work 24 hours a day. The metal parts that had been forged could eliminate all kinds of defects in the smelting process, optimize the microstructure, and obtain better quality.
After stocking up enough metal parts, Zhou Qingfeng would rush from Gaizhou to Jinzhou to drive the CNC machining center, and Zhao Ze would personally process more steam engine cylinders, boiler barrels, and other parts. This process was repeated continuously, and one steam engine after another was made like cutting and copying.
"I named it 'Type 1616 32 horsepower steam engine.'" Zhao Ze pointed to a small ugly machine and said to Zhou Qingfeng, "Due to the lack of precision parts such as pressure gauges, I made some simplifications to this thing. It's a bit cumbersome, but it can basically be used. Currently, the monthly production is five units, mainly used to power the forging machines in the steel plant. "
When it came to the treasures he created, Zhao Ze was very proud. "Because of the increase in forging efficiency, the iron from Shandong is not enough. Shi Dong had already decided to develop several local iron and coal mines in the Liaodong Peninsula. He wants to build two more coke ovens and a steelmaking furnace, but it will take at least three months before they can start production. "
Zhou Qingfeng didn't know much about technology, but he was a little dissatisfied with the monthly production of five units. "Can you produce more?"
"This can't be rushed. I am building a machinery factory, an instrument factory. But all of this takes time. " Zhao Ze shrugged. "Everything is blank. There are too many things missing in the technology tree. I can only fill in the gaps bit by bit. Next month, the steam engine would be able to produce up to seven units per month. There are many factors that limit the production capacity. For example, I'm the only one operating the CNC machining center, and I need your cooperation.
I'm planning to use the CNC machining center to manufacture some simple manual lathe parts, from advanced to low-level, and train a group of professional metalworking apprentices. After all, the CNC machining center can easily produce low-precision screw rods and other machine tool parts. We need to get a certain amount first, then we can talk about quality. So don't rush me, I have plans! "
Although he said not to rush him, Zhou Qingfeng still frowned and asked, "When can we get guns and cannons?"
Zhao Ze smiled bitterly again. "Wait until I finish the 100 horsepower steam engine, build a stronger forging machine, and finish the deep hole drilling machine. Instead of guns and cannons, you might as well think about how to start a chemical industry. After all, after we have firearms, our gunpowder consumption will greatly increase. The amount we smuggled from the Ming Army is not enough. "
The steel factory in Jinzhou was very simple. It was just a few large wooden sheds built by the engineering department. The steelmaking furnace occupied a wooden shed. After the molten steel was poured into the mold and solidified, it would be hoisted by a few workers using a simple crane to the anvil of the forging machine. The steam engine drove a heavy forging hammer up and down, and the huge force smashed the steel ingot, causing sparks to fly everywhere.
Just the parts of the forging machine itself were constantly being forged. At first, the forging hammer was only a few dozen kilograms, and the anvil was not very sturdy. But now, the weight of the forging hammer had increased by ten times, and the anvil had also become thick and heavy. The effect of forging had also increased by several times. Industrial production had this kind of continuous replication and continuous strengthening ability.
The forging machine in the steel factory not only produced the metal parts needed for the steam engine, but also produced a large number of weapons and farming tools. The 'Revolutionary Army' had previously bought a lot of spears, and now the forging hammer was producing half-body breastplates and helmets. These breastplates were two millimeters thick, and weighed eight to ten kilograms. Weapons like bows and machetes could not break the defense, and normal soldiers would not be able to do anything to them.
To break these metal breastplates, one must be a general with a certain level of cultivation. But when the soldiers of the 'Revolutionary Army' began to wear these breastplates, Zhou Qingfeng did not believe that the Kennu would have so many powerful generals. Even with the cultivation of level nine, there was a limit to the spells that could be released. When the spiritual power was exhausted, the barbarians would die from exhaustion, and it would be useless for Mangurtai to come up.
The breastplates forged by the steel factory were still semi-finished products. In the later stages, they would be sent to the armor workshop for some female workers to make leather suspenders and binding ropes. Zhou Qingfeng reached out to grab one and lightly knocked on it. He sighed: "Unfortunately, I currently do not have a good horse, nor do I have strong enough soldiers. Otherwise, I could play as a breastplate cavalry."
In the era of cold weapons, the breastplate cavalry was a typical heavy cavalry. When they launched a wall charge, they dared to charge at the enemy's heavy troops, forcefully break through the enemy's formation, and disrupt any resistance of the enemy. Now, these breastplates were used to equip a small number of elite troops. After all, there were not enough of them.
"How much longer do I have to stay in the era of cold weapons?" Zhou Qingfeng complained.
"Be content. Other people want your cold weapons but don't even have them." Zhao Ze followed and said: "The only thing we need to do now is to increase production, desperately increase production. If our Imperial Guard were fully armored, it would be a terrifying military force. "
Zhou Qingfeng put down the semi-finished breastplate and walked to another forging machine. The forging hammer of this forging machine was smaller, but it used a cam to control a total of five hammer heads. The hammer that kept falling was not forging breastplates, but farming tools of a lower level.
The Liaodong Peninsula was about to carry out large-scale farming. Zhou Qingfeng was buying cattle everywhere. The steel factory currently had to produce tens of thousands of plows to ensure that the upcoming spring plowing could be completed smoothly. In addition to plows, iron shovels, iron shovels, iron hoes, kitchen knives, iron pots, these things were urgently needed by the 'Revolutionary Army'.
The forging hammer driven by the steam engine worked day and night, and in front of each anvil was a blacksmith who was sweating profusely. When Zhou Qingfeng approached, it was a group of blacksmiths who were changing shifts. Due to the harsh working environment, the blacksmiths in the steel factory would rest every two hours and could get off work after working for six hours.
Seeing the blacksmiths who were changing shifts, Zhou Qingfeng stepped forward and asked, "Masters, are these forging hammers good?"
The blacksmiths who were changing shifts were bare-chested, and their faces were red and shiny from the high temperature. When they saw Zhou Qingfeng stepping forward, they hesitated for a moment and were wondering if they should kneel down.
"Don't be too afraid, I'm just asking. Just treat it as a chat!" Zhou Qingfeng deliberately laughed loudly to make the blacksmiths who were changing shifts more relaxed. The blacksmiths also giggled, and after a long time, someone said, "Young Marshal, this forging machine is really good. It's strong and well-proportioned. It's much more comfortable to work here than in the past. "
When one person spoke, the other blacksmiths immediately echoed.
In the past, blacksmiths were really tired. The masters and apprentices would work together, and the big and small hammers would keep hitting, and after a long time, they could only make a hoe. To be a blacksmith, one must be in good health, and must eat meat and water. Therefore, those who could be blacksmiths could be called rich, and because of this, ironware was particularly expensive. This situation still existed after the founding of the country, and it was completely a manifestation of the lack of industrial capacity.
But now, with the forging hammer, the blacksmiths' labor intensity was greatly reduced, and the quality was more guaranteed. They only needed to clamp the iron ingot with steel pliers and keep turning it under the hammer, and a farming tool could be formed in a few moments. The production efficiency had increased dozens of times, and the labor intensity was less than one-tenth of the past.
In the past, a master and apprentice could forge two or three farming tools in a morning, and it would be good if they could do more than that. Now, a blacksmith could forge hundreds of farming tools in half a day, and it was easy and not tiring. Because the steel factory implemented piecework wages, all the blacksmiths wanted to work again after a shift, and felt that it was a sin to work only six hours a day. How could there be such a good thing in the past?
"Young Marshal, why don't you let us work for 12 hours a day? We're really not tired! "A blacksmith said," If we go home after six hours, I don't feel at ease. "
Yes, yes, yes. The other blacksmiths kept echoing.
For the blacksmiths who took the initiative to work overtime, Zhou Qingfeng shook his head and smiled, "It's not only you who have to work, there are other blacksmiths. Our 'Revolutionary Army' is still constantly training more blacksmiths, and even recruiting blacksmiths in Shandong and Liaoxi. If you do all the work, what will the others do? "
"Young Marshal, you can hire fewer people." The blacksmith who spoke only wanted to make more money.
Zhou Qingfeng laughed and said, "I know you're not tired, but I want to hire more people. Because the number of forging machines here will soon increase, and the work will only increase. And if I have one more blacksmith here, my enemies will have one less blacksmith. It's very cost-effective. "
The blacksmiths could only smile when their request was rejected. They only felt that the forging machine was strong and efficient, and it saved them from the fatigue of hammering. But they didn't know that the number of forging machines would increase, and they didn't know the horror of industrialization. In a few hundred years, even rabbits would dislike their own steel production capacity — why produce so much steel? It can't be eaten, and it's not easy to sell.
Now Zhou Qingfeng was distressed that his steel raw materials were limited, and the processing capacity was also limited. The more it developed, the more impatient he became, and he wanted to run into communism. He wanted to make a big leap here, but suddenly someone came to report that two groups of people had come to Lushun. They said that they were the young marshal's old acquaintances and specially came to pay a visit.
"Who is it?"
"Both groups are led by a woman. One calls herself Fan Wan 'er, and the other says that her surname is Yuan, but she refused to tell the guard her name. But the woman surnamed Yuan also brought a very tall foreign ghost woman, the especially fierce kind. "
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