Forums

[SlaveNoMore]

Tyrone Slothrop
Rumsfeld's response to the troops was bad enough without this, but oh. My. God.

• Armor Holdings Inc., the sole supplier of protective plates for the Humvee military vehicles used in Iraq, said it could increase output by as much as 22 percent per month with no investment and is awaiting an order from the Army.
  
  U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday the Army was working as fast as it can and supply is dictated by “a matter of physics, not a matter of money.'’
  
  Jacksonville, Florida-based Armor Holdings last month told the Army it could add armor to as many as 550 of the trucks a month, up from 450 vehicles now, Robert Mecredy, president of the company’s aerospace and defense group said in a telephone interview today.
  
  “We’re prepared to build 50 to 100 vehicles more per month,'’ Mecredy said in the interview. “I’ve told the customer that and I stand ready to do that.'’

Bloomberg

Compare (from the Corner):

Mr. Lowry,

I can give you a partial answer to your query.

I friend of mine supervises the production of armor kits for trucks and Humvees here in Albany, GA. I can tell you for sure that they ARE working triple shifts and overtime to get the job done---and have been doing so for many months. They are also busy modifying existing designs in response to emerging threats and "customer" suggestions (e.g., increased height to improve head protection).

As for opening new factories: I have gotten the impression that there is some difficulty getting adequate supplies of armor grade steel. Such steel also requires special equipment to cut, shape, and weld, so maybe there is a shortage of facilities with the necessary capabilities. I do not know if Humvee armor incorporates ceramics (e.g. Titanium DiBoride) but, if so, there are relatively few companies capable of producing such materials in suitable sizes and volumes (e.g., Ceradyne Inc.).

I work for a manufacturer of parts for military aircraft. We are a small company that sells our parts to the large companies you have heard of (Raytheon, Northrop Grumman).

At least in my experience we are (now) working three shifts already. After a lull the business has really picked up and we are just about at capacity. I would say that there are several reasons that the production can't just be ramped up by adding factories.

The first is the byzantine nature of military purchasing. We usually hear about a job long before it gets to us... and by the time they get to us everything is already late.

The second is turf battles. If you have created a company that makes a specific part you are not particularly willing to share the engineering and process it takes to make that part with someone opening a new factory. It will take them a long time for any new entrents to the market to get up and running.

Thirdly - mil-spec. There are very demanding specifications for the manufacture of anything for the military. Many comapnies aren't particularly interested in, nor do they have the capacity to do the detailed work for the military. There are many hoops to jump through for every part. As each part is tested it may be approved - or it may be kicked back for repair or to be scrapped.

This is not like WWII when the nation was mobilized to build tanks for victory. I don't think the major automakers are going to shut down their minivan assembly lines in order to produce up-armoured Humvees.