Chapter 128 Overall Coordination Method

The rise of the United States after World War II can be attributed to a combination of favorable conditions, strategic advantages, and the right timing. The fact that they managed to outsmart their British ally was quite a feat. However, considering the shared lineage between the United States and Britain, the establishment of dominance by both countries can be seen as a continuation of the father's legacy by the son, not a significant loss.

Wilhelm, on the other hand, scoffed at the conspiracies and tricks of the Americans. Whether victorious or defeated, everything was unfolding contrary to the script of history. Even if he were to lose in the end, the United States wouldn't have an easy time. Letting Ming intervene and benefit from the situation wouldn't be a bad thing.

So, he welcomed the influx of American capitalists. The more intertwined their interests became, the more people in the future would oppose Roosevelt's declaration of war on Germany. If the two countries declared war, all assets of Americans within Germany would be frozen and confiscated, representing a considerable fortune.

Not dwelling on American affairs any longer, Wilhelm continued his inspection of the next arms factory, the Bruno Firearms Production Plant.

Several world-class firearms were produced here.

The ZB37 heavy machine gun had a barrel that could be easily changed. In battle, when the barrel heated to a certain degree, soldiers could quickly replace it, ensuring the machine gun worked more efficiently. It had reliable performance and was exported to multiple countries.

The ZB26 light machine gun was a well-known firearm during World War II and one of China's famous anti-Japanese guns. Its production structure was simple, and its operation was straightforward. It could maintain good performance in various environments, although its magazine capacity was somewhat limited, making it unsuitable for sustained firepower. Overall, it was a very good machine gun.

The CZ83 pistol, a famous Czech handgun during World War II, was compact and comfortable to hold. It could use two different types of ammunition, had high accuracy, and significant stopping power. It received unanimous praise from soldiers on the battlefield and was not only widely used in Czech but also equipped by many other countries' forces. It utilized a conversion kit, allowing the CZ83 to use both 7.65mm Browning and 9mm Browning Short ammunition, as well as the Soviet Makarov ammunition.

The ZK383 9mm submachine gun had distinctive features. It was more like a 9mm machine gun than a submachine gun. It had two legs that could be folded under the barrel guard when not in use.

It could also quickly change the barrel. The barrel was fixed on the receiver through two flanges at its rear end. By pulling the barrel locking catch behind the front sight seat and rotating the front sight 90°, the barrel could be pulled out of the receiver.

Although the design was somewhat peculiar, the gun's performance was reliable, earning soldiers' approval in actual combat.

Wilhelm acknowledged the excellence of these firearms, but Germany had already adopted the MG3 general-purpose machine gun, the classic MP40 submachine gun, and the Walther P38 pistol. Additionally, German rifle ammunition had long been changed to the 7.62x51mm specification. Unfortunately, these Czech light and heavy weapons still used 7.92x57mm Mauser rifle ammunition. Incorporating these weapons into the equipment would undoubtedly increase logistical burdens.

However, since these firearms had good performance, recycling them was too wasteful. "Seal the ZB37 heavy machine gun and ZB26 light machine gun for now. See which ally may need them in the future, and then provide support. The CZ83 pistol and ZK383 submachine gun will be left for the second-line forces. We'll fully produce our standard weapons."

After touring all the arms factories, Wilhelm returned to the presidential palace and called Speer into his room. "Speer, it's up to you now. Integrate the production capacity here as much as possible and unearth their full production potential." Currently, Czech arms factories could produce 20,000 heavy machine guns and 36,000 light machine guns annually. If replaced with MG3, which utilized cost-saving stamping technology, they could produce at least a hundred thousand units per year.

Speer replied solemnly, "Your Highness, this requires the most precise calculations and arrangements, and it may involve some extreme measures."

Wilhelm nodded. "I understand this is a colossal task. It's not easy for you, but capable people are needed. No one is more suitable for this job than you." Integrating a country's military industry, systematically tallying and planning it, and computing the content might be so complex that it could make a supercomputer crash. He handed Speer a handwritten notebook on his thoughts about the planning method. "Take a look at this; it should be helpful."

Coordination method is a mathematical approach to organize work processes, involving various means to change the inherent work format and optimize work efficiency. Its practical application is extremely wide-ranging and can be applied in enterprise management, basic construction, and the organization and management of complex research projects.

Let's illustrate it with a very simple example of making tea.

Method A: Wash the kettle, pour in cold water, place it on the fire; while waiting for the water to boil, wash the teapot, teacup, and get the tea leaves; when the water boils, brew and drink tea.

Method B: Prepare some things first, wash the kettle, teapot, and teacup, get the tea leaves; when everything is ready, pour and heat the water; sit and wait for the water to boil, then brew and drink tea.

Method C: Clean the kettle, pour in cold water, place it on the fire, sit and wait for the water to boil; after the water boils, hurriedly find the tea leaves, wash the teapot and teacup, brew and drink tea.

At a glance, the first method is better, while the latter two methods are inefficient.

However, this seemingly simple scientific application only truly began to develop systematically in the 1950s.

In 1956, the United States pioneered the study of coordination methods.

Morgan Walker of DuPont, a U.S. chemical company, and Jim Kelley of Remington Rand, a business machine manufacturer, jointly researched the Critical Path Method (CPM) to coordinate the work of different business departments within the company. They first applied this method to the construction of a chemical plant, completing the construction project two months ahead of schedule. Subsequently, they applied this method to the maintenance of the plant, reducing downtime by 47 hours, achieving significant savings of one million dollars in the same year.

In 1958, the U.S. Navy Weapons Planning Bureau's Special Planning Office developed the Polar Star Missile Submarine Program, which involved about 3,000 work tasks and more than 11,000 participating manufacturers. In order to implement such a complex task in an orderly manner, the leader of the Special Planning Office, Willard Fazar, actively supported and promoted the Plan Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) created by a dedicated group. As a result, the development plan was completed two months ahead of schedule, achieving great success.

The remarkable effectiveness of CPM in civil enterprises and PERT in the military-industrial complex naturally gained widespread attention. In a short period, CPM and PERT were applied to complex planning and management work in industries, agriculture, national defense, research, and more. They were subsequently promoted worldwide. In the process of applying and promoting CPM and PERT, various distinctive methods with different focuses emerged. However, despite the variations, the basic principles of these methods all originated from CPM and PERT.

CPM and PERT, in essence, are similar, so people collectively refer to them, along with other similar methods, as network planning technology, or simply network technology or network methods, commonly known as coordination method.

Speer, receiving the notebook as if it were a treasure, carefully read it for a while and suddenly showed deep respect. "Your Highness, you are truly a genius!"

Having heard countless praises like these over the years, Wilhelm was already immune. "I'm just standing on the shoulders of giants." The giant in this case being history.