The Mech Touch novel Chapter 1115

In order to fabricate the best Aurora Titans for the upcoming product reveal, Ves obtained a special shipment of raw materials.

The metals, alloys and composites used in the fabrication of a mech was not as consistent as mech manufacturers would like. Various impurities and imperfections resulting from rushed and careless processing led to various inconsistencies in the materials.

Therefore, like any mech company, the LMC first scanned the materials in order to determine how many inconsistencies and impurities they contained. Any batch of materials that contained too many flaws would soundly be rejected and sent back to the supplier.

Aware that something like this might happen, Professor Ventag went out of his way to have NORA Consolidated ship an excellent batch of materials to Cloudy Curtain. It was enough to fabricate six complete copies of the Aurora Titan!

When the mech technicians scanned the materials and inspected their quality, they couldn’t help but sigh in admiration at the lack of impurities! They were almost completely flawless!

"All of these materials are the cream of the crop." Chief Cyril noted to Ves, who visited the warehouse floor in order to supervise the inspection process. "Our existing suppliers are nowhere near as good as those who have a long-term relationship with a big mech company like NORA Consolidated. The suppliers give their fixed customers the best batched at reasonable rates, while dumping their excess batches of middling quality into the open market."

In other words, up until now, the LMC only received the leftovers from the big suppliers in the Bright Republic.

This wasn’t as bad as it sounded like. Any company that did business in the open market needed to deliver what they promised, or they would run afoul with the law.

Even so, no company promised that the batch of materials they delivered would always be of acceptable quality.

Did Ves wanted to keep working with materials of mediocre quality? Of course not! Yet establishing a close relationship with a supplier did not come about just because he wanted to. A company led by an Apprentice Mech Designer simply didn’t sell enough mechs to earn the consideration of all the major suppliers!

"Right now, the LMC hasn’t acquired enough standing in the mech industry." Ves stated frankly. "Only until I advance to Journeyman or the company sells ten times as much mechs will they finally realize that we exist."

"How long will it take to reach that point?"

"Not long, I hope. Please finish the inspection of the materials. I want to work with them as soon as possible."

The mech technicians didn’t rush their work but instead continued to perform their duties diligently. Even though they hadn’t found any major issues with the materials they received, Ves still wanted to be absolutely sure that neither the supplier or some nefarius third party tampered with the batch."

He couldn’t rule this possibility out. Ves had various enemies and his recent exploits garnered him the attention of even more opponents. Ruining the upcoming product reveal by fudging with the materials used in the fabrication of the show models sounded like an easy way to ruin his career.

The mech technicians found nothing amiss. Even though it took a decent amount of time to inspect the special shipment, Ves felt relieved that all the elements were in place to fabricate the inaugural copies of the Aurora Titan.

"These gold label mechs will set the standard for this mech model!"

Ves went to work with the excellent batch of materials. They were simply too tempting for him to leave aside, so after a bit of prepwork they had all been transferred down to the manufacturing floor.

After some consideration, Ves decided to fabricate his new mech with one of the new Hanover production lines instead of the old Dortmund production line. The specialized production equipment of the Hanover production line shared some resemblance to the high-quality machines in Professor Ventag’s private workshop facility.

"It’s better to fabricate my components with specialized equipment rather than leave it entirely to an all-purpose 3D printer."

Specialization often led to greater results. The Hanover production lines may have been a potentially ruinous investment for the LMC, but Ves could not deny that they deserved their price.

To assist in the fabrication process, Ves enlisted the aid of Ketis and some of the best mech technicians of the LMC. He felt confident that his Spirituality was strong enough to minimize the influence of others during the fabrication process. As long as he played a pivotal role in the creation of the mechs, their X-Factor would still remain pure.

They worked slowly. Ves wanted to insure as little imperfections carried over into the physical copies of the design. He instituted regular breaks in order to relax his mind so that he would be able to return to his peak state.

During these breaks, engaged in regular conversation with Ketis on the nature of their work.

"The Aurora Titan should be the first mech design in which you are formally credited with its development." Ves said.

"Really?" She perked up.

"Yep. As long as the MTA completes the validation process and puts its stamp of approval on the design, you will be credited as one of the handful of assisting mech designers who participated in our joint design project!"

That was no small honor for a mech design as sophisticated as the Aurora Titan! Even though she would be placed alongside a number of other Novices and Apprentices from NORA Consolidated that performed all of the simulation work, Ves believed that Ketis already got off to a great start in her career.

Naturally, Ves deserved most of the credit as the lead designer in the joint project. While he couldn’t have designed the Aurora Titan so well without the help of Professor Ventag, the Senior was content with leaving behind his name on the project as a lesser co-designer.

As the first production mech of the Aurora Titan design slowly took shape, Ketis and some of the mech technicians already began to feel its remarkable nature. Even in an unfinished state, the Aurora Titan’s X-Factor already started to exert its influence!

"There’s something funny about this mech." Ketis frowned after the first production mech was halfway done. "Ever since I arrived at the LMC, I often studied your mechs, you know? Your designs are all remarkable from the schematics, but they always manage to look even better up close. This mech carries that same quality, but there’s something very different about it! What did you do with the mech that makes it stand out so much?"

Ves confidently smiled back at Ketis while he petted Lucky who was nuzzling on his lap. "Do you recall my design philosophy?"

"Something about making mechs come alive and turning them into valued partners for mech pilots. To be honest, I never understood your design philosophy. Even now, I still can’t say what you are trying to achieve, but this mech.. this mech has given me a clue."

"All of my mechs are special, Ketis. Out of every mech designer in the galaxy, there is hardly anyone who treats them with more care and affection than me. All of these mechs are my babies in a sense."

The old Ketis would have dismissed the unusual nature of the unfinished mech frame. The new Ketis who gulped a large amount of candy was different.