Building the First Industrial Empire in Another World

The very next morning, Ernest arrived at the factory carrying a stack of papers under one arm.

Blueprints.

Sketches.

Cost estimates.

And enough expansion plans to make Hollen nervous.

The forge owner immediately noticed them.

"Oh no."

Ernest looked up.

"What?"

"That’s the same look you had before we built three factories."

"I have lots of looks."

"No. You have a specific look that costs me money."

Several nearby workers laughed.

Ernest simply smiled.

Unfortunately for Hollen, he was right.

The steam engine had changed everything.

And it bothered Ernest.

Not because something was wrong.

Because they were wasting power.

A lot of power.

The fifty-horsepower engine had been operating for several days now.

Production had become smoother.

More reliable.

More efficient.

Yet according to his calculations, the factory was using barely a quarter of its available power.

The rest?

Unused.

Forty or so horsepower simply sat there.

Waiting.

That was unacceptable.

Inside the office, Ernest spread the papers across the desk.

Hollen looked at them.

Then sighed.

"How much?"

"You haven’t even seen the plans."

"How much?"

Ernest chuckled.

"I love your priorities."

"How much?"

The young businessman finally sat down.

"We’re expanding the factory."

The forge owner closed his eyes.

Of course they were.

"Explain."

Ernest pointed toward a rough drawing of the production hall.

"This is our current arrangement."

Several workstations were marked.

Mixing vats.

Cutting stations.

Stamping tables.

Drying racks.

Storage.

Then he placed another drawing beside it.

The new layout.

The difference was enormous.

Hollen blinked.

"That’s almost double."

"More than double."

Ernest nodded.

"We currently have four large mixing vats."

He pointed at another sketch.

"I want eight."

The forge owner frowned.

"Eight?"

"Yes."

Then another page.

"Three cutting stations."

"I want six."

Another.

"Two stamping lines."

"I want four."

Another.

"I also want dedicated drying chambers."

Hollen looked confused.

"Don’t we already have drying areas?"

"We do."

Ernest nodded.

"But they’re inefficient."

He walked toward the chalkboard.

Then began drawing.

Current layout.

Expanded layout.

Arrows connected everything.

Workers.

Materials.

Finished products.

The difference became immediately obvious.

The current arrangement forced workers to carry materials back and forth.

The expanded arrangement reduced unnecessary movement.

Hollen looked at the drawing.

Then looked again.

"How long have you been planning this?"

Ernest looked guilty.

"Several months."

The forge owner laughed.

"Of course."

Actually, Ernest had started drawing expansion plans the moment the steam engine project began.

Because he knew something important.

Power was only valuable if it was used.

Unused horsepower earned no money.

Production capacity did.

Then another thought struck Hollen.

"Wait."

"What?"

"If we double production here, won’t our other factories complain?"

Ernest blinked.

"Complain?"

"Because we built three new factories to increase production."

That was true.

Northport.

Ravenford.

Eastgate.

All existed to increase output.

The room became quiet.

Then Ernest smiled.

"No."

"No?"

"No."

He walked toward the map.

Then pointed.

"The new factories supply their regions."

Then another point.

"This factory remains our headquarters."

Then another.

"And eventually our largest industrial center."

Understanding slowly appeared.

The expansion wasn’t replacing the branches.

It was strengthening the center.

Helmarte remained important.

Very important.

The headquarters.

The research center.

The location of the steam engine.

The location of the machine workshops.

The location of future industrial projects.

The forge owner slowly nodded.

That made sense.

Then Ernest revealed another sketch.

This one caused silence.

A completely new building.

"What is that?"

"A machine workshop."

Hollen looked suspicious.

"What for?"

Ernest looked genuinely confused.

"To build machines."

"I understood that part."

The young businessman grinned.

"We need our own machine shop."

He pointed toward the steam engine outside.

"We built this with temporary arrangements."

Another point.

"We borrowed equipment."

Another.

"We improvised."

Then he folded his arms.

"If we’re going to build more steam engines, we need dedicated workshops."

The forge owner stared.

He had forgotten about that.

The steam engine business.

The one they had already agreed to pursue.

A proper machine workshop suddenly made perfect sense.

Then another realization struck him.

"Oh no."

"What?"

"You’re building another company."

Ernest laughed.

"No."

"That’s exactly what you said before."

Several workers nearby burst into laughter.

The young businessman chose not to answer.

Because he wasn’t entirely sure Hollen was wrong.

The rest of the morning was spent reviewing plans.

The factory supervisor eventually joined.

Then another manager.

Then another.

Soon, half the office was occupied.

Everyone studied the drawings.

The atmosphere slowly shifted.

At first there was skepticism.

Then curiosity.

Then excitement.

Because the numbers were absurd.

Eight mixing vats.

Six cutting stations.

Four stamping lines.

Expanded storage.

Additional workers.

Larger production runs.

The possibilities became obvious.

One manager looked up.

"How much more soap can we produce?"

Ernest smiled.

"Three times."

Silence.

The manager blinked.

"Three?"

"Approximately."

Nobody spoke.

Three times.

The number sounded ridiculous.

Yet the calculations supported it.

They possessed the space.

They possessed the power.

They possessed the workers.

The only thing missing was construction.

Finally, Hollen leaned back in his chair.

"I have a question."

"Go ahead."

"What happens if demand keeps increasing?"

Ernest smiled.

The forge owner immediately regretted asking.

Because he knew that smile.

The dangerous one.

The one that usually preceded expensive ideas.

The young businessman pointed toward the steam engine.

"We build another one."

Silence.

Then someone laughed.

Then another.

Then everyone.

Because somehow, that answer sounded completely reasonable.

A year ago, building one steam engine would have sounded impossible.

Now?

They were already discussing the next one.

The factory manager looked through the window.

The chimney of the engine house released a steady stream of smoke into the sky.

Hiss.

Clank.

Hiss.

Clank.

The sound reached the office even from this distance.

The manager smiled.

"It’s strange."

"What is?" Ernest asked.

"We spent years worrying about not having enough power."

He looked toward the engine house.

"Now we have so much power that we don’t know what to do with it."

Ernest laughed.

"That’s the kind of problem I want."

Several people nodded.

Because it was true.

A month ago, the factory was limited by power.

Today, power had become abundant.

And abundance changed everything.

Outside, the giant flywheel continued turning.

Steam continued flowing.

Coal continued burning.

Fifty horsepower of iron and engineering worked tirelessly beside the factory.

And for the first time in Helmarte Soap Works’ history...

Their biggest limitation was no longer power.

It was how quickly they could build enough machines to use it.