Siheyuan: I am protecting Shazhu, who dares to object?

While Guangming Factory continues to make efforts in agricultural reform and social responsibility, the entire agricultural machinery industry is also facing a series of new challenges.

The ever-changing international situation, the fluctuating and rising prices of raw materials, and the increasingly fierce market competition are all hanging over the heads of many manufacturers like a haze.

On this day, Wang Dashan once again convened a meeting of the factory's management and technical backbones. The atmosphere in the meeting room was a little heavy.

Wang Dashan frowned and said, "Comrades, we all know that the industry situation is not optimistic these days. The price of raw materials has been rising. Take the steel commonly used in manufacturing tractors, for example. The price has increased by nearly 20% compared to before. This has put a lot of pressure on our production costs. In addition, international competitors are not idle either. They are constantly making small moves and trying every way to squeeze our market share. Everyone, tell me, how should we deal with this situation?"

The production manager, Lao Liu, sighed and said, "Director, the rising prices of raw materials are really a headache. We have to readjust our previous purchasing plans, but even if we find new suppliers, it is difficult to find one that is both affordable and of guaranteed quality. Moreover, if we choose inferior materials to reduce costs, the quality of the products cannot be guaranteed. This is not worth the loss."

Zhao Gang, the director of the technical department, also said, "Yes, Director. International competitors have come up with a lot of new tricks. I heard that some manufacturers have launched a new type of agricultural machinery, claiming that it is more efficient than our tractors. If we don't come up with a countermeasure quickly, they will really take away a lot of our market share."

Wang Dashan listened to everyone's words, thought for a moment and then said: "Comrades, there are indeed many difficulties, but we can't be scared. In terms of raw materials, we have to organize a special procurement team to go to the market more often to find more suitable suppliers, or see if we can negotiate with existing suppliers to get more favorable prices. At the same time, we can't relax in the field of technological research and development. Since others can come up with new tricks, we must also speed up the pace of innovation and improve product performance."

After the meeting, a purchasing team was quickly formed, led by experienced buyer Lao Zhang, and set out on a journey to find suitable raw material suppliers.

Lao Zhang and his team traveled to many places and contacted many suppliers, but the situation was not optimistic.

One day, Lao Zhang returned to the factory dejectedly and reported to Wang Dashan: "Director, this trip was not easy. Many suppliers were reluctant to give us preferential prices after hearing the quantity we wanted, and the shortage of raw materials. A few suppliers were able to supply us, but I was a little worried about the quality."

Wang Dashan patted Lao Zhang on the shoulder and said, "Lao Zhang, you've worked hard. This situation is also expected, don't lose heart. Let's think of other ways. If it doesn't work, we can tap the potential within and see if we can make some changes to the production process to improve the utilization rate of materials. This can also alleviate the cost pressure to a certain extent."

Just when Guangming Factory was worried about the raw material problem, some good news came from the aspect of technological research and development.

After working day and night, the technicians have made new breakthroughs in tractor energy-saving technology.

Technical backbone Xiao Li excitedly ran to Wang Dashan's office to report: "Director, we succeeded! We have developed a new energy-saving technology. After applying it to tractors, it can reduce fuel consumption by at least 15% while ensuring operating efficiency."

When Wang Dashan heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up and he said happily, "Great, Xiao Li, you did a great job! This is really great news. With this technology, our products will be more competitive in the market. Let's make arrangements and apply this technology to the production line as soon as possible."

However, when Guangming Factory's competitors learned the news, they could no longer sit still.

A competitor named Shengli Factory has always regarded Guangming Factory as its biggest competitor, and they decided to take some measures to suppress Guangming Factory.

Liu Shengli, the director of Shengli Factory, called a meeting of the factory's management and said gloomily, "Humph, Guangming Factory has come up with a new trick this time. If we let them promote it so smoothly, our factory will have a harder time. Everyone, let's talk. We have to think of a way to stop them."

Xiao Wang, the sales manager, said, "Director, I think we can spread some negative news about Guangming Factory's new products in the market, such as saying that although their new products are energy-saving, they may have hidden dangers in other aspects. In this way, consumers will be suspicious and may not dare to buy their products easily."

Liu Shengli listened, nodded and said: "Well, this is a solution. However, this alone is not enough. We also need to work on product prices, lower the prices of similar products in our factory, and attract more customers."

So, Shengli Factory began to take secret actions in the market.

On the one hand, they spread rumors through some gossip channels that the energy-saving technology of Guangming Factory's new tractors had hidden dangers; on the other hand, they lowered the prices of similar products of their own factory and put up the banner of low-price promotions.

For a time, negative rumors about Guangming Factory's new products spread throughout the market, affecting many customers and causing them to have doubts about Guangming Factory's new tractors.

The sales department of Guangming Factory soon noticed the situation. Sales manager Li Hua hurried to Wang Dashan's office to report: "Director, this is bad. There are rumors everywhere in the market that there is a problem with our new product. Many customers have come to ask what is going on. In addition, Shengli Factory has lowered the price of their products. Now many customers who originally planned to buy our products are a little shaken."

Wang Dashan frowned and said angrily, "Humph, it must be Shengli Factory behind this. They are trying to suppress us through unfair means. We can't just sit there and do nothing. We have to find a way to clarify the facts and let our customers know that there is no problem with our products."

Zhang Min, the head of the public relations team, said: "Director, I think we should first release a statement in major media outlets, explaining in detail the energy-saving technology principles of our new products and the rigorous testing process they have gone through, to prove that our products are safe and reliable. At the same time, we can also invite some professional evaluation agencies to evaluate our products, and then publish the evaluation results to let customers understand the advantages of our products more intuitively."

Wang Dashan nodded and said, "Well, Zhang Min, your idea is good. Let's do it this way and make arrangements quickly. In addition, the sales department cannot relax either. We must strengthen communication and explanation work with customers to let them understand the true situation of our products."

While Guangming Factory was actively responding to the crisis, other manufacturers in the industry with a sense of justice also noticed this matter.

Chen Hongxing, the director of one of the factories, Red Star Factory, was very dissatisfied with the unfair practices of Shengli Factory.

Chen Hongxing called Wang Dashan and said, "Director Wang, I heard about the tricks that Shengli Factory did behind the scenes. They are too dishonest. We are all in the same industry. We should improve ourselves through fair competition instead of relying on such despicable means. Don't worry, we at Hongxing Factory support your Guangming Factory. If there is anything we can help you with, just let us know."

Wang Dashan was touched when he received the call and said, "Director Chen, thank you. Your words make me feel more at ease. The current market situation is indeed a bit complicated. It would be great if I could get your support."

With the support of some manufacturers such as Red Star Factory, Guangming Factory has become more confident in dealing with this crisis.

The public relations team quickly prepared statement materials and released them in major media outlets, explaining in detail the principles and safety of the new tractor's energy-saving technology, and publishing the evaluation results of a professional evaluation agency, proving that the product was indeed as energy-saving and reliable as advertised.

The sales department staff also worked overtime to communicate and explain with customers, and invited customers to visit the factory so that they could witness the product production process and quality inspection process with their own eyes.

After a period of hard work, the negative rumors in the market about Guangming Factory's new products gradually subsided, and customers regained their confidence in Guangming Factory's products.

Although Shengli Factory's low-price promotion strategy attracted some customers in the short term, it soon lost its appeal because its products did not have any substantial improvement in performance.

After this incident, Wang Dashan realized that when the industry faces challenges, peers should not undermine each other, but should unite and face difficulties together.

Wang Dashan decided to invite some major manufacturers in the industry to hold an industry seminar to discuss how to deal with the various challenges currently faced.

At the seminar, Wang Dashan took the lead in speaking: "Dear colleagues, I believe you have all heard about what happened to our Guangming Factory this time. When the industry is facing many challenges, we cannot fight alone, but should unite, support each other, and jointly find solutions to the problems. Let's talk about what good ideas and suggestions we have for the problems of rising raw material prices and fierce market competition?"

Chen Hongxing, the director of the Red Star Factory, said: "Director Wang is right. We should indeed unite. Regarding the issue of rising raw material prices, I think we can unite and form a purchasing alliance. This way, we will have more say when negotiating with suppliers, and maybe we can get more favorable prices."

Li Jianguo, director of another manufacturer, also said: "In terms of market competition, we can jointly formulate some industry norms to eliminate those unfair competition methods and make market competition more fair and orderly. At the same time, we can also strengthen technical exchanges and cooperation, learn from each other, and jointly improve the performance and quality of products."

Wang Dashan listened to everyone's speeches and nodded frequently, saying, "Everyone's words make sense. Let's follow what everyone said and set up a purchasing alliance to see if we can make some breakthroughs in raw material procurement. At the same time, we will also implement the formulation of industry standards and the strengthening of technical exchanges and cooperation. I believe that as long as we unite, we will be able to cope with these challenges and make our industry develop better."

Driven by this seminar, manufacturers in the industry have taken action.

A purchasing alliance was soon established, and through joint purchasing, it successfully obtained certain discounts on raw material prices, alleviating the production cost pressure of each factory.

At the same time, industry norms are being gradually formulated and improved, unfair competition methods have been effectively curbed, and the market competition environment has gradually become fair and orderly.

Technical exchanges and cooperation are also in full swing. Technical personnel from various factories often get together to share each other's research and development results and experiences, and jointly promote technological progress in the agricultural machinery industry.

During this industry transformation, Guangming Factory not only responded to various challenges on its own, but also contributed to the development of the entire industry by uniting its peers, further enhancing its influence in the industry.