Kunlun Lubricant: Battling the Torrential Rain and Doing Everything to Guarantee Supply

July 2, Saturday. At 10 a.m. the mobile phone of Sun Qubo, industrial oil sales representative of the Anhui Representative Office of the East China Lubricant Sales Branch, rang suddenly. On the line was the anxious voice of the head of the non-oil business department of Anhui Provincial Sales Company: 'The equipment just installed at JAC Motors' Anqing new energy vehicle plant urgently needs a batch of lubricant for commissioning; the equipment must complete trial running by July 8 at the latest. The situation is urgent, and the enterprise not only needs to guarantee oil supply but also needs technical staff on site to guide filling. We hope the representative office can assist us in completing this service!'
Since mid-June, one round of heavy rainstorms after another had struck Anhui, Jiangxi, Hubei and other places, and many parts of Anhui were severely affected. In particular the southern Anhui region, which is mountainous and borders the Yangtze, saw flash floods, collapsing roads and urban waterlogging. The JAC Anqing new energy vehicle project, a new energy project of key national interest, is a leading enterprise in new energy vehicles and is located right in the affected area.
The enterprise's needs are an order to the sales staff, and the enterprise's needs are the sales staff's task. After hanging up, sales representative Sun Qubo immediately reported the situation to Yang Feng, manager of the representative office. Looking at the pouring rain outside the office window, Yang Feng said to the sales representative: 'The situation is indeed fairly urgent. At this point there is no time to ask technicians from the branch to come to Hefei and then go on to Anqing. You are responsible for lubricant sales to the provincial company, and southern Anhui is now facing floods and waterlogging, which is fairly dangerous. You must coordinate the source of supply while making sure you stay safe, and go to the site to assist and guide the filling. I will coordinate from the office here; if you need any materials, call in good time and I will report to the branch leadership and give you support!'
After these brief instructions, and because time was tight, the relevant people from the provincial company came to join them. Carrying documents and materials, the party set off out of the city in one car through the heavy rain. At the expressway entrance, because the rainfall was too heavy and the water on the road surface was deep, entry onto the expressway had already begun to be released intermittently. The vehicle threw up spray like white cloth on the expressway. The people in the car were also anxiously discussing how to coordinate nearly 300 drums of oil in the shortest possible time. This was not because dealers in Anhui had no stock, but because the water in southern Anhui was too deep and logistics trucks from elsewhere were no longer willing to deliver to Anqing. Another reason was that going through logistics meant delivery would take until the next day, which was also too late. In the end, after the sales representative made repeated, unremitting calls, they first secured the oil of the local Anqing agent and then urgently transferred more from the nearest surrounding areas.
Rushing to the Enterprise's Equipment Site Overnight and Connecting with Its Equipment Staff
With the oil secured, the sales representative let out a long breath in the car, but looking out of the window the pouring rain was still coming down, and at every service area the car passed a warning sign reading 'Deep water, do not enter' had been put up, so his heart, which had just settled, rose again: 'Anqing, new energy vehicles, here we come, but we do not know what the situation is like on your side...'
After driving along the way, it was already past 8 p.m. when they left the expressway. After entering the Anqing urban area the water level on the road gradually deepened. The flickering street lamps reflected on the water on the road surface, and the vehicle was like a small boat tossing about. When the vehicle passed an overpass, the water suddenly deepened and almost submerged the front hood of the car, and the spray it threw up beat against the car window glass; everyone in the car held their breath nervously, afraid that something might happen. Fortunately, after the car struggled through several hundred meters in the water it slowly rose, and this temporary escape from danger set off cheers in the car.
The First Load of Oil Arrives After the Flood Peak for Loading and Unloading
Just then Sun Qubo's phone rang, and he remembered that, in the rush to leave, he had forgotten to say goodbye to his family. He answered his wife's call: 'Temporary emergency assignment, I'm on a business trip, and I'm already in Anqing now...' 'What? In such heavy rain, and so many places around Anqing are already flooded, why go at a time like this?' 'There's no choice, it was an urgent temporary need so we had to come. Besides, didn't I tell you, this is my duty as a frontline salesperson, and I can't shirk it just because it is a bit dangerous...' 'Say no more, you just make sure you stay safe. Also, you won't be back for our daughter's birthday party tonight either, will you?' 'Tell our daughter I'm sorry. Once we get there and settle things, I'll call her...'
The vehicle passed through the Anqing urban area and headed straight for the development zone where the new energy vehicle enterprise is located, gradually leaving the city behind, with fewer and fewer street lamps and pitch darkness outside the car. About a kilometer from the plant area, the road ahead was temporarily closed because the water was deep. There was no choice but to get out of the car, put up umbrellas and walk to the enterprise through waist-deep water. Walking through the enterprise's gate, the workshop was still brightly lit and the workers installing and commissioning the equipment were working overtime. The engineer responsible for lubricant filling was very moved to see them arrive and, gripping their hands, thanked them again and again excitedly: 'Making you come all this way in such heavy rain, we really had no alternative...'
Two Hundred Drums Arrive by Truck, the Gem Flower Especially Bright After the Rain
After a brief introduction, Sun Qubo firmly told the person in charge of the enterprise's equipment that the oil had been coordinated and that one truck would arrive first thing the next morning to start filling, with the rest delivered one after another, guaranteeing that all the Kunlun Lubricant would be poured into the equipment before July 3.
It was already past 10 p.m. when they left the plant area, and they found a hotel not far from the development zone and hurriedly checked in, only then relaxing after a tense day, and only then noticing that their clothes were wet, their stomachs empty and their bodies weary. In the pitch-dark night of the suburbs, in the pouring rain, there was nowhere left to eat. Each of them made a cup of instant noodles and went to sleep as soon as they had finished. Lying on the bed, Sun Qubo looked at the caring messages from colleagues in the company's WeChat group and listened to the swish of the rain outside, and found he could not sleep after all, worrying: with rain like this continuing, would tomorrow's truck be able to deliver into the plant area? Would the oil transferred from outside arrive on time tomorrow? Would they be able to complete the task? Tossing and turning and unable to sleep, he simply got up, telephoned the agent again and confirmed everything once more. Once he was sure, he finally drifted off to sleep with his weary body...
At first light the next day Sun Qubo immediately woke the still-sleeping driver and set off for the road to the plant area to scout, to find out about standing water and traffic conditions. Because there had been another night of heavy rain, in some places the water was too deep for cars to pass, so they rolled up their trouser legs and, leaning on sticks, went to test the depth; once they learned that larger vehicles could still get through, they immediately contacted the local agent and began delivering the oil.
All the Oil the Enterprise Needed Arrives
An hour later, outside the plant gate amid their anxious waiting, the first oil truck slowly and steadily drove in through the water to the plant gate, and everyone almost cheered. It had finally been delivered! Washed by the rainstorm, the gem flower emblem on the Kunlun Lubricant drums looked especially bright and vivid!
As soon as the first load of oil arrived at the plant they began to assist the enterprise's equipment staff in registering, filling and sampling the oil. Soon afterwards the second truck, fully loaded with 200 drums, slowly entered the plant area, and the tense work of unloading and filling went on busily until after 5 p.m. When the assistance work was finished, and the person in charge of the enterprise's equipment had signed his name on their receipt, he said with deep feeling: 'I always thought state-owned enterprises had long procedures and were slow, but I never expected you to be so efficient this time! Working with your Kunlun, we feel reassured!'
Leaving the plant area after completing the task, the sky was still overcast, but the rain falling from it had visibly lessened, and the whole party let out a long breath of relief. Someone suggested summing up this oil supply service in one sentence. One said: 'A narrow escape!' Another said: 'Selling Kunlun oil is a mountain of pressure...' But sales representative Sun Qubo said: 'If you ask me, the one thing I most want to say to our enterprise customer is: rain or shine, Kunlun is at your side! In the rainstorm the gem flower shines more brightly, and no flood can stop Kunlun's service!'