Chapter 91

As the sun rose high, it brought boundless heat to the earth, causing the outdoor temperature to rise sharply, exceeding 20 degrees Celsius, which was no longer comfortable. However, a few kilometers outside Baotou Town, on a barren land, an artificial structure was gradually taking shape.

The brick walls enclosed several hundred acres of land, and next to it was a small hill that could provide a continuous supply of yellow earth for the brick factory. The masters had started mixing the soil from yesterday, combining the appropriate types of soil in preparation for today's trial run.

Two brick-making machines had already arrived, installed with the help of Yang Yuanzhao and several engineers. In modern China, there were not many large-scale industries, but they had nurtured a batch of elementary industrial workers. Among these people, a few with exceptional talent had self-taught themselves to become basic engineers. Although they might not be able to disassemble or repair complex machines and precision instruments, they could handle simple tasks.

This saved Yang Yuanzhao a lot of time. The blacksmiths were familiar with tractors and flour mills, but if they were to operate the brick-making machines, they would need step-by-step training. They were more like imitators rather than true engineers, working alongside Habi.

To secure fewer than 10 engineers, Habi had paid at least 2000 silver dollars, and their salaries were the highest in all of China, with each earning over 50 silver dollars per month.

Money was never a problem for Yang Yuanzhao; he was more concerned with whether the money would yield the desired results. This had already been clearly demonstrated from yesterday to today.

Yang Yuanzhao didn't need to personally instruct them; he only needed to tell them how to assemble the machines and what the desired outcomes should be. They were also familiar with the linkage between the steam engine and the power source, which significantly reduced the workload. The installation of the two brick-making machines began at 8 PM yesterday and was completed by 10 AM today, awaiting testing.

The master from the Wei family's brick factory in Taiyuan looked at the strange machine in front of him. Previously, the brick kilns were only larger, better sealed, and capable of withstanding higher temperatures, but they had no other advantages. To achieve several times the efficiency and save several times the labor, it could only be done with the brick-making machine. Traditional firing required mixing the materials and then manually making the brick molds, which were then dried in the shade before being placed in the kiln. Otherwise, damp bricks would easily crack during firing, leading to waste.

The steam engine began to roar first. From ignition to stable combustion, it took some time. Even with Yang Yuanzhao's optimization and modifications, these inherent issues could not be avoided. This was why steam engines were eventually replaced by internal combustion engines.

The roar of the machines sounded again. The 10 engineers from Shanghai remained calm. The longest-serving among them had been in the factory for 15 years, and the sound of the machines was familiar to them. On the contrary, the masters were puzzled by the presence of a steam engine, which was typically used in large factories, in a brick factory.

After less than 40 minutes, the steam engine stabilized, and the conveyor belt connected to the power source. The entirely steel-made brick-making machine began to operate.

"Ready to feed the material!" Yang Yuanzhao checked the machine, which was running smoothly, and nodded.

The prepared material was fed into the large inlet and directly conveyed to the main body of the brick-making machine. A brick mold, under the machine's operation, formed brick blanks from the material pile, which were then conveyed to the other side. The workers, who were already prepared, began to place the brick blanks neatly. This was a familiar task, and they arranged the brick blanks according to different methods.

The factory was bustling with activity. Wei Ming was silently calculating, but the speed of the brick-making machine was increasing so rapidly that he couldn't keep up. Yang Yuanzhao walked up to Wei Ming and said, "No need to count. I've calculated it. One brick-making machine can produce about 40,000 bricks per day!"

"Forty thousand!" A master surnamed Zhang exclaimed in surprise. Making brick molds was the most labor-intensive and demanding task, and only masters could do it. The Wei family's brick factory had only 50 masters after all these years. At a rate of 300 bricks per person per day, they could produce only 15,000 bricks, and that was theoretically. In reality, not every master was engaged in this task, and they couldn't maintain such high-intensity work every day.

Now, a simple machine could do the job without their hands, just by loading the mixed clay into the inlet. The rest was just a matter of workers moving the bricks, which greatly reduced the workload and increased efficiency. After the machine started making bricks, he had seen the brick molds, which were undoubtedly the best. They were not only very solid but also had a good appearance. Even the best masters might not produce better results.

Not only was the master surnamed Zhang surprised, but the other masters were also shocked. Some were even pessimistic, worrying about their jobs. The masters earned high salaries and many benefits because they were indispensable, being the pillars of the brick factory. Without them, the factory couldn't operate. However, a single machine could negate most of their skills, and the factory would no longer be constrained by daily production. As long as the personnel and power were in place, it could produce almost unlimited bricks daily.

At this moment, the other brick-making machine also began to roar. It was also pre-installed, and one steam engine was sufficient to power two brick-making machines. The power required by the brick-making machine was just to press the molds into the material pile and form fixed brick molds, which was a continuous and rapid process that consumed little power, far less than the power needed to grind flour. Therefore, only one steam engine was needed, and the brick factory didn't need to operate 24 hours a day. Producing bricks at night was both dangerous and inefficient.

Row after row of neat brick walls stood up. The skilled workers lined up, and there were gaps between each brick, which were dried in the shade. Later, with technical improvements, a dedicated kiln would be used to dry the bricks, with temperature and humidity control being key to the quality of the bricks. This would allow continuous brick production regardless of the weather, significantly increasing efficiency.

For now, this was unnecessary. The summer in the northwest was dry and hot, and by June, it was scorching. Yang Yuanzhao had many research projects, and he could leave these simple tasks to other engineers.

With the brick factory reaching this stage, it could operate normally. Yang Yuanzhao still needed to confirm one thing: the automation of the material inlet. Currently, the material feeding was controlled by the masters, and the speed of feeding directly affected the machine. Yang Yuanzhao noticed that a few masters couldn't keep up. Two brick-making machines were manageable, but as the industrial zone developed and the demand for bricks increased, this had to change.

The mixer from the future was a simple device for mixing materials. Yang Yuanzhao recalled and tried it out, drawing the mixer and integrating it perfectly with the brick-making machine. However, the material formula still required the cooperation of the masters.

Ordinary red and blue bricks, and tiles, were very simple in Yang Yuanzhao's view. In the future, there were many types of bricks, with different bricks used for different buildings, including specialized ancient-style bricks, glazed bricks, and glass bricks. Yang Yuanzhao was familiar with a few masters, especially the one surnamed Zhang, who had been with him and held a high status among the masters. He waved to call Zhang over and said kindly, "Master Zhang, let's discuss the brick-making formula. Can you tell me the proportions of yellow clay and other materials needed?"

"No!"

"Why not? It's just the ratio of materials, right?"

"No!" Zhang's voice was noticeably higher. When Yang Yuanzhao looked up, he saw Zhang staring at him with wide eyes, as if looking at an enemy.