Mining And Construction Tycoon [EN]: Chapter 116

116. Solar Apartments Construction Plan (1)

At the airport, subordinate employees were waiting for Taesu’s return home.

“Chairman.”

“Taesu!”

Along with the three key figures from the affiliates, Song Chang-jun and Skinny were also present.

And Kim Woo-jin was also waiting for Taesu.

“Have you made a decision?”

“Please accept me.”

It was Kim Woo-jin’s conclusion.

“Instead, I want to start over here, not in Korea. I want to return in glory.”

“Good.”

Taesu handed over a contact number on the spot.

It was Secretary Song’s contact information.

“If you contact this number, you will receive assistance. You will be given a suitable job, depending on your performance.”

Secretary Song is a veteran at managing people.

Kim Woo-jin is worth training well and utilizing properly.

In his previous life, Kim Woo-jin was a capable man who elevated Daewoon Construction to the ranks of a conglomerate through aggressive investment, business expansion, and construction in the Middle East.

“Then let’s go.”

“Yes.”

Taesu and his party headed for home.

“It’s been a while, so we should gather all the Solar family members and go on a team-building vacation.”

Taesu was announcing their first team-building vacation.

He had already sent telegrams to Korea a few days prior.

Park Cheol-wan cautiously asked Taesu.

“It seems like a waste to use Geumsan’s golden business card [a high-privilege membership card] just for a staff team-building vacation.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“That’s what it’s for.”

No, it wasn’t.

Even Kim, the secretary at Geumsan, reportedly clutched the back of his neck when he heard about this.

* * *

The plane carrying Taesu arrived in Korea.

And from Korea, they took another plane to Jeju Island.

The weather, which had become much cooler in September, welcomed them.

“Good.”

“It’s nice.”

They rented the entire Geumsan Resort on Jeju Island.

They chartered Geumsan’s passenger ship to transport the Solar Group family members to Jeju Island.

They chartered Jeju Island tour buses operated by Geumsan Travel.

He used the golden business card for all of this.

That’s why Park Cheol-wan felt it was a waste.

“We’ve arrived.”

They arrived at Geumsan Resort.

In front is the Jeju Island sea, and behind is Hallasan Mountain [the tallest mountain in South Korea].

The scenery is amazing.

There is a well-maintained garden and walking path, and a sports facility is also set up on one side of the wide open space.

It was a luxurious resort that even operated an outdoor swimming pool and an outdoor restaurant.

‘Geumsan must have invested a lot in tourist destinations.’

It was a time when people couldn’t travel abroad much yet.

Jeju Island was the number one honeymoon destination.

Famous figures in the political and business world used Jeju Island hotels and resorts like overseas villas.

“Chairman!”

“The president has also arrived.”

“Shall we have dinner together first?”

The employees were gathered, grilling meat.

Among them were Taesu’s parents and Hansu.

It was a huge team-building vacation with all the employees of Solar’s affiliates.

* * *

The Solar Group’s team-building event was grand in scale.

To have a meal even once, they had to reserve a dozen restaurants.

They took tour buses and traveled to Jeju Island tourist attractions in teams.

During the day, they played in the sea or climbed Oreums [small volcanic cones on Jeju Island].

The Solar Group employees were happy.

“A team-building vacation like this is something other groups can’t even imagine.”

“I’ve never been to Jeju Island for my honeymoon, but I never thought the company would send me to Jeju Island.”

“This place is really good. It’s like a foreign country in the south.”

That’s how the last day of the team-building vacation arrived.

Taesu grabbed the microphone in the resort’s underground auditorium.

“Did everyone have a good time?”

“Yes!”

A thunderous answer that seemed to shake the auditorium came back.

It was called a team-building vacation, but it was actually a company-sponsored tourism and leisure event.

The employees who had a satisfying vacation had very bright faces.

Taesu was also satisfied.

“The reason we have all gathered together today is to talk about the path that Solar will take.”

Everyone focused on Taesu’s words.

“The Solar Group can be broadly divided into five areas: construction, oil refining, heavy equipment, mining, and finance.”

There are a total of 16 affiliates of the Solar Group.

“The time has come for each group to connect with each other and carry out projects.”

‘Is there such a thing?’

The employees were puzzled.

“First, Solar Apartments. We plan to make these apartments the synonym for Korean apartments, the highest-end brand apartments.”

Behind Taesu, two employees unfolded a large drawing that they had prepared in advance.

“This is the Daechidong Solar Apartment, which will be the start of the Gangnam development. It is a large-scale apartment complex with a site area of approximately 87,000 pyeong [approximately 287,769 square meters], 58 buildings, 14 floors, and a total of 4,824 households.”

People’s mouths dropped open.

The scale is too large for a single apartment complex.

“One household will usually be 32 pyeong [approximately 106 square meters] in size. As you go to the upper floors, we will also include large households of 48 pyeong [approximately 159 square meters] and 64 pyeong [approximately 212 square meters].”

‘Isn’t this a crazy plan?’

Most rural houses are only 12 pyeong [approximately 40 square meters] or 15 pyeong [approximately 50 square meters].

Apartments are usually 18 pyeong [approximately 60 square meters], and if they are large, they are 24 pyeong [approximately 79 square meters].

But the basic size is 32 pyeong, and if it’s large, they’re building up to 64 pyeong.

“We will also create plenty of parking spaces. Soon, the ‘My Car’ era will come when middle-class people will be supplied with their own cars. When that time comes, the residents who move into the highest-end apartments will be the first to buy cars. If the parking lot is insufficient and inconvenient, you can’t call it a top-class apartment.”

To do so, they bought 10,000 pyeong [approximately 33,058 square meters] more land than the existing plan.

For the future, the parking lot and common land should be as large as possible.

It’s just that they can’t invest that much because of money.

“We need to put in parks and community facilities. There will be one children’s playground for every six buildings, as well as facilities for the elderly, security facilities, and waste disposal facilities.”

It sounds good just listening to it.

To think that they would build such a large-scale, top-class apartment complex.

The employees looked at each other and couldn’t hide their excitement.

That’s because they were building on a larger scale than the Cheongil Apartment in the past.

‘It’s 3 or 4 years faster than the Cheongil Apartment land purchase period.’

Good luck also played a part.

It was easier because Jang Mal-dong gave up 10,000 pyeong of land in Daechidong.

It’s faster because Park Jeong-hwan readily allowed the construction of the apartment.

There was no need to spend more than a year lobbying for apartment construction like Han Cheong-ho.

Furthermore, he met Park Cheol-wan in advance and put a lot of effort into the apartment construction plan for a long time.

‘I’ve been waiting for a long time. The moment of Gangnam apartment development!’

Taesu grabbed the microphone, looked at the employees, and said.

“Each apartment will have an oil boiler. We plan to pay special attention to individual heating systems and cooling and heating insulation.”

Most people used briquettes [compressed coal blocks] at the time.

Because of this, there were many carbon monoxide poisoning accidents.

It is common for briquette ash to be piled up on every alley and broken down, making the road dirty.

As the coal industry declined due to government regulations in the 1980s, oil boilers began to be installed.

In comparison, Solar Apartment’s oil boiler, especially individual heating in each house, was revolutionary.

‘Cheongil Apartment had a central supply-type combined heat and power system.’

Individual heating is the best.

Individual heating, which allows you to use as much as you want without worrying about others, is the best.

“We will install individual meters for water and electricity in each house. We will put in 220V electrical facilities instead of 110V in each house.”

The employees couldn’t close their mouths as they opened them.

At the time, where did they install individual water and electricity meters in each house?

It was a time when three families under one roof divided utility bills appropriately.

Besides, wasn’t it a time when 110V was commonly used?

It was in the 1990s that 220V electricity became commonly available.

This is because the demand for electricity is increasing.

However, Taesu is already demanding 220V basic wiring 15 years, or at least 10 years, ahead of time.

‘Each home needs air conditioning, washing machines and refrigerators, and televisions. If you add a few more fans and appliances, you will soon run out of power.’

What’s the point of having a power shortage in a top-class apartment?

He plans to allocate enough electricity so that cooling and heating can be turned on in the middle of summer and winter.

“Each apartment building will have an elevator.”

There is an elevator.

However, it is very rare and is barely installed in luxury hotels, and an elevator attendant provides guidance.

‘An elevator in an apartment!’

‘There are 58 buildings, and each building has an elevator? Does that make sense?’

Why doesn’t it make sense?

At the time, Cheongil Apartment also had elevators.

There were a total of 12 units. It was put in at a rate of one unit per 144 households.

“We will properly maintain the sewage system. So we will put in flush toilets, and even Western-style toilets and bathtubs.”

Apartments need flush toilets.

However, just having a flush toilet is enough to be called a rich house, but a Western-style toilet!

“That’s why we need your connected cooperation.”

There are many things to do.

There are too many things to develop to build an apartment.

The employees were very nervous.

“To build Solar Apartments, Solar Construction will be the base, and Solar Electric will support the electrical facilities.”

“Yes!”

“Solar Electronics will develop individual meters and oil boilers. Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

The presidents and employees of the companies concerned answered loudly.

“If you want to run an oil boiler, the oil refinery should also participate. We need to build large gas stations around it. We need to think about how to raise oil to a height of 14 floors.”

“Yes!”

“Heavy equipment should support the elevators.”

“Yes!”

Taesu said to the employees with emphasis.

“Solar Apartments must not collapse even if there is an earthquake, and must not shake even if there is a typhoon. In addition, let’s build it properly so that there is no noise between floors.”

In the 1970s, it was natural for several families to live in one house.

It was a time when you knew the number of spoons in the next house, so noise between floors was not a problem.

However, in the future, there will be a world where people stab each other because of noise between floors.

If you build it properly from the beginning, there will be less chance of neighbors getting angry with each other.

“There can be no shoddy construction. Don’t skimp on the steel that will be the skeleton, and use high-quality cement.”

“Yes!”

“Solar Heavy Stone and Solar Cement, as well as Solar Wood, Solar Windows, and Solar Chemical. You will be very busy during the apartment construction period.”

“We are prepared!”

“Solar Heavy Equipment seems to have to accelerate the development of ready-mixed concrete and pump cars.”

“Don’t worry. I’m already researching it these days. There are some results coming out.”

Satisfied.

“Solar Insurance should develop new products related to Solar Apartments. Prepare apartment fire insurance and think about housing insurance products.”

“Yes!”

All the Solar employees answer in a loud voice.

There will be a lot of work to do in the future, but it seems like they can really build a top-class apartment.

“What we are building is not just apartments. Surrounding the apartments, there will be four elementary schools, two middle schools, and two high schools each. We also need to build Yeongdong 5-ro, Yeongdong 6-ro, and Nambu Beltway [major roads in Seoul].”

At the time, the largest road in Korea was Sejong-daero in front of Gwanghwamun.

In his previous life, Cheongil completed this Yeongdong-daero, the second largest road.

Fortunately, the area around Gangnam is still rice paddies, so they haven’t built Dogok-ro yet.

“The road is planned to be a 14-lane, 70-meter-wide avenue. We plan to cover all road paving materials with asphalt.”

Asphalt roads have their advantages.

It is completed quickly and is easy to construct and repair.

It is good for constructing many underground installations, including water and sewage, under the road.

Also, it has a good ride, so it is good for luxury cars to drive on.

“Solar Oil, let’s support asphalt for road construction.”

“Yes!”

“Solar Heavy Equipment, we need to add the development and support of road rollers to be used when laying asphalt.”

“I understand.”

Is that all?

“We plan to build a Solar Shopping Center that can satisfy the convenience of apartment residents, and create an academy district that will raise the educational level of children.”

This is a project that Park Cheol-wan has been planning, working overtime every day for the past few years.

“The Solar Group’s headquarters will be located in the middle of that shopping center.”

The Solar Group’s headquarters?

“We are scattered all over the place right now. But we can’t keep doing that forever. We need a headquarters to serve as a control tower.”

The employees also nodded.

There will be even more things to connect and cooperate with in the future.

Even if we leave the factories and branches, we need a center of gravity.

Even to reduce unnecessary travel time.

“Daechidong will be the center of Gangnam development. We will start from there.”

The Solar Group is starting to stretch properly.

The prime location in Gangnam, where land prices have soared hundreds of thousands of times in a short period of time.

Solar planted its flag there instead of Cheongil.