The Economic Organization of the German Army

Soviet tanks required a lot less steel than German tanks. If I remember correctly, the German Panther tank required 4 times more steal than the Soviet T-34.

 

Wolfy may be on to something for tank production...but I don't think that the Germans produced that many heavy tanks in mid-1943, let alone mid-1942. Maybe it has to do with efficiency or distribution of resources or something. It would have to be serious, though.

I wouldn't say it was a huge problem. The industry base may have complained a ton (I wouldn't know), but the point still stands that they were able to do more with less three years later, especially after Speer's various reforms kicked in. Though slave labor and forced labor filled the ranks of Germany industry, the number of total German workers (including all factors) appears to have dropped for the mentioned time period (1939-1944), if our numbers are accurate. And the Germans still managed to produce more. Much, much more.

In other words, despite a drop in the quality of labor, the quantity of labor, and the restriction of centralization (bombing) German workers still managed to outproduce themselves by a ton as the years went by. And, of course, implement the double shift.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say about women, though.

 

The Panther tank, at least in Reichsmarks, cost only slightly more than the Panzer IV.

 

It was a huge deal. according to the mobilization tables, the the men drafted for the campaign of 1942 were skilled and irreplaceable members of the workforce .

While you rightly point out Speer's accomplishment suggests that Germany did not realize her industrial potential, it remains true that those workers deemed essential were lost, that they had no replacements that I am aware of and the Russians outproduced the Germans at 1941 and consistantly produced more almost continuously.

As for the Panther's production. They were produced at decentralized workshops, often manned by slave labor and were of a very complex design, were they not? It might not be much more expansive than Panzer IV, but does that mean it takes roughly as long as the Pz. IV to build?

 

As regards to women at work I am done. I dont know how to explain it any better.

 

I wasn't aware that Germany lost so many skilled workers in 1942, I'm glad that that was brought up.

As for the cost of a Panther tank, is that a good indicator? In wartime, the government controls the prices to a large extent...and cost is generally a nonissue unless they are astronomically high, or compete with other similar projects. Raw materials and man-hours is, in my opinion, more important. As long as the country's economy doesn't implode or something.

I haven't been able to find anything on how long it took (man-hours) to build a Panther, or how much stuff it took to build the final product...I'll keep looking. Don't expect much, though.

 

I've seen quotes of 55,000 Man hours for the Panther

 

Found this out in the latest issue of Strategy & Tactics magazine.
"During Sertember 1943,in the wake of the Italian surrender to the Allies,The Germans confiscated the following from that nation's armed forces and populance:1.3 million rifles,38,000 machineguns,10,000 artillery tubes,67,000 horses and mules,9000 tons of tobacco,13,000 tons of quinine,551,000 overcoats,2.5 million blankets,3.3 million pairs of shoes and boots,and more then 600,000 motor vehicles. At the same time, some 600,000 Italian military personnel were taken prisoner and sent to Germany to work in the war economy there."

 

I wonder out of all those stats that the 9000 tons of tobacco would be included ? LOL