Chapter 131: Test Bunker
A few days after Dojin Construction changed its name to Dojin Frontier,
Executive Director Oh Seong-hak and Senior Executive Hong Chung-ki came to see me with bright expressions.
“CEO, the acquisition of Hwareung Industries is complete.”
I nodded with satisfaction at Hong’s words.
“I guess the creditors were persuaded.”
“They were very cooperative when we said we would immediately repay Hwareung Industries’ debts. Thanks to that, we were able to settle the non-performing loans at a low price.”
After acquiring several companies such as Cheongun Electric, Pintech & Curetech, and NeoChips,
the two of them seemed to be accumulating more and more know-how.
“Was there no loss of technical personnel?”
“Some personnel left for other places before we acquired them, but fortunately, the lab director and core development personnel remained. In particular, there was almost no loss of personnel in the concrete division.”
At Hong Chung-ki’s words, I immediately got up from my seat.
I thought it would be better to see and judge for myself than to hear about it.
“Let’s receive the additional report at Hwareung Industries.”
…
…
Hwareung Industries.
The exterior of the building definitely showed signs of age,
but the experimental equipment and internal facilities were still surprisingly sturdy.
In particular, the pre-pressing experimental equipment in the center of the lab was still in a state where it could be fully used.
“Welcome. CEO.”
A man waiting at the entrance of the lab greeted me.
Wearing dark brown work clothes,
the man had a stern gaze behind his black-rimmed glasses.
Hong Chung-ki introduced him.
“This is Director Cha Dong-hyuk, head of Hwareung Industries’ Materials Lab and Chief Technology Officer.”
Director Cha welcomed me with a calm yet respectful voice.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Cha Dong-hyuk. I look forward to working with you, CEO.”
I shook his hand and responded briefly.
“I’ll be the one asking for more. I really need your experience and skills, Director Cha.”
After the formal greetings, we immediately started the meeting.
Director Cha, who had been briefed in advance, had the current research results and data displayed on the screen.
“We have been developing high-strength concrete using high-temperature, high-pressure pre-pressing processes, micro-composite fiber mixing technology, and nano-silica dispersion technology.”
Director Cha flipped through the data.
“However, the maximum compressive strength to date is about 58 MPa, and it remains at an average of 53 MPa.”
Director Cha said that the goal was set at around 150 MPa,
but it was difficult to achieve due to various challenges.
I continued with a question.
“What’s preventing us from reaching the goal?”
“The unresolved issues are the fine cracks in the material that occur during the high-temperature, high-pressure pre-pressing process and the problem of non-uniform dispersion of micro-composite fibers and nano-silica.”
As expected, it was the same problem I had anticipated.
I answered with a smile.
“Both problems seem solvable by precisely controlling the mixing ratio of the composite fibers and the process temperature for applying nano-silica.”
Director Cha looked at me in surprise.
“I heard that you are quite an expert in IT, but… you know about this field too?”
“Not to the extent that I know it well, but it is a field of interest.”
Having already heard countless times from Seong-hwan during the acquisition of Hwareung Industries, ‘What can’t you do, hyung?’
it wasn’t difficult to deflect such questions.
I displayed the process design I had prepared in advance on the screen.
“To catch the fine cracks that occur during the pre-pressing process, we need to further refine the composite fibers and disperse them uniformly. Nano-silica should also be added slowly in stages at a lower temperature than it is now.”
Director Cha, who carefully examined the process design I showed, exclaimed in admiration.
“This is definitely a method we haven’t tried before. However, if we proceed like this, the process time will increase significantly.”
“Quality should come first. We can optimize the process after creating the perfect material.”
You can’t expect to run before you can walk properly.
“So, what should we do first?”
“Let’s start by checking the pre-pressing equipment right now and remake the specimens. I’ll oversee it on-site.”
When I, the CEO, said I would go to the site directly, all the Hwareung Industries employees looked surprised.
From the atmosphere, it seemed that this had never happened during the previous CEO’s tenure.
But, regardless,
I headed straight to the site without the slightest hesitation.
The pre-pressing equipment in the central lab began to operate.
The high-temperature, high-pressure device slowly started rotating, generating tremendous pressure and heat.
I, now in work clothes, checked the process figures directly in front of the experimental equipment with Director Cha.
“What’s the current nano-silica temperature?”
“85 degrees.”
“Lower it to 75 degrees, and readjust the composite fiber mixing ratio to ‘1.28 : 1.02 : 2.1’.”
The researchers moved quickly according to my instructions.
It had been a while since I last came to the site directly, except when I first started the lens business.
It felt pretty good to be back on-site after a long time.
“CEO, should we maintain the pre-pressing pressure at this level?”
“Increase it by about 5% from now.”
Director Cha and the research team adjusted the equipment immediately according to my instructions without hesitation.
As I transferred the process data from my memory to reality,
whispers came from behind.
‘Does the new CEO really know what he’s doing?’
‘I don’t know either, but the way he’s overseeing the site doesn’t seem like it’s his first time.’
‘It’s not like what we’re developing can be done with just site oversight skills.’
‘That’s true. We’ve been struggling for the past two years and still haven’t succeeded.’
There was concern that just because a new CEO had arrived, it wouldn’t solve the problem.
But I deliberately didn’t react.
I knew it would be more effective to show them directly than to speak.
After the experiment continued until dawn,
the first specimen was slowly taken out of the equipment.
Everyone held their breath, unable to take their eyes off the cooling specimen.
“Will it work?”
Not only the Hwareung Industries researchers
but also Hong Chung-ki and Park Cheol-jin, who came with me, seemed nervous,
repeatedly clenching and unclenching their fists.
“Don’t worry, it will work.”
“What figure do we need to call it a success?”
Director Cha answered Hong Chung-ki’s question.
“120 MPa… no, even 80 MPa would be a success.”
It was somehow possible to create specimens at the 120 MPa level one by one on the sample line,
but creating specimens of that level on the mass production line, as we were doing now, was a very difficult task that had never been successful before.
Therefore, if this experiment ended successfully,
Dojin Frontier would establish itself as the first company in the country to commercialize ultra-high-strength concrete technology.
With everyone watching,
I directly operated the concrete compression strength tester.
My heart began to beat fast, wondering if the results from my memory would be reproduced.
The numbers on the screen quickly rose, displaying the figures.
50 MPa… 60 MPa…
It easily surpassed Hwareung Industries’ existing record.
70 MPa… 80 MPa
“Oh!”
Director Cha exclaimed in surprise,
and the researchers, their eyes wide, couldn’t take their eyes off the panel screen.
90 MPa… 100 MPa…
The numbers kept rising relentlessly.
120 MPa… 130 MPa…!
“Could it really be going higher?”
As everyone’s gaze remained fixed on the tester’s numbers,
the screen finally stopped.
“The final result… 147 MPa!”
As soon as Director Cha finished speaking, the lab erupted in cheers.
“Whoaaaaa!”
“It’s a success.”
“It actually worked like this?”
The Hwareung Industries researchers hugged each other, unable to hide their excitement,
and Hong Chung-ki and Park Cheol-jin, with astonished faces, looked at me and clenched their fists tightly.
“CEO, this is amazing.”
“To succeed in one go like this…”
The researchers, who had been looking at me with doubt just a moment ago, were now looking at me with awe.
“The new CEO is truly amazing.”
“I heard he’s an IT expert, but his skills in this field are no joke.”
At that moment, filled with trust and respect for me,
Director Cha said to me excitedly,
“CEO, let’s announce it to the press as soon as the sun rises tomorrow. The impact will surely be enormous.”
The researchers around him nodded in agreement.
“If we say we’ve secured the mass production of ultra-high-strength concrete, the industry will be turned upside down.”
“No kidding. Construction costs for anything will be much lower than they are now.”
I quietly raised my hand toward the excited group.
“It’s not time yet.”
“Huh? It’s not time?”
“With these results, there’s no shortage of reason to announce it to the press right away.”
I shook my head.
“The announcement can wait until after the NCC bid is over. For now, it’s more important to keep our competitors from knowing what we’ve developed.”
“Oh… I see. Understood.”
Director Cha, understanding my words, nodded in agreement.
I then turned to Park Cheol-jin.
“Now that we’re ready, let’s start production of the test bunker right away!”
“Yes, understood, CEO.”
I wanted to discuss it right away,
but since it was dawn, we decided to leave for the day
and meet again at Dojin Frontier in the afternoon.
After a late lunch, I entered the conference room to find Park Cheol-jin waiting for me with the design drawings displayed.
“The most important evaluation criteria in the NCC bid’s physical bunker test are the protective performance against explosions and impacts. Of course, it must also have defense capabilities against EMP and NBC (nuclear, biological, chemical) attacks.”
Park Cheol-jin continued his explanation calmly.
“The outer wall concrete thickness is designed to be at least 1.5 meters, with key load-bearing points and corners at 2 meters or more, and we plan to install a reinforced frame using micro-composite fibers inside to prevent crack propagation during impact.”
I asked,
“I heard that the bunker we’re building will have a three-stage Faraday Cage. Is there a reason?”
“Yes, that will maximize the defense efficiency against EMP attacks.”
The first stage involves constructing a steel mesh on the bunker’s outer wall,
the second stage involves creating a concrete layer coated with a special electromagnetic shielding material,
and the final third stage involves installing independent electromagnetic shielding boxes for internal equipment.
After nodding at Park Cheol-jin’s explanation,
I added,
“It would be good to design the NBC protection system with the latest HEPA and activated carbon filters in the air purification equipment to remove over 99.999% of biological and chemical contaminants, and to install contamination detection sensors.”
“We’re already preparing it that way.”
Hong Chung-ki, listening to the conversation, exclaimed in admiration once more.
“With ultra-high-strength concrete and the two of your skills combined, it seems like we’ve already won the NCC bid.”
However, I remained cautious.
‘You never know what tricks Aseong might have up their sleeve.’