Just in time manufacturing is a good thing. Why would you want to launch missiles from 1995 - todays technology is better in important ways. For that matter why would you want to launch 2026 missiles in 2030 - who knows what advances will be made (you should have a good guess about what they are working on based on the current Ukraine situation)
Mostly because build times are slow. If you have a stockpile you can make a big splash right off the bat, and keep the tempo up while drawing both from new stock and from stockpiles. Once you are only hitting with just-made arms, your tempo is greatly reduced.
Which is to say we need the ability to quickly scale production. I said a couple years ago the US needs to have the ability to produce 1000 patriot interceptors per month - many said I was wrong then, but today looking at Ukraine and Iran it seems like I was low. (Ukraine is an example of how sometimes nothing your diplomats do is enough, Iran is an example of how sometimes you are stupid)
Not that we shouldn’t have a stock pile. We need the ability for every city to defend itself for a week based on what they currently have in stock (remember those stock piles will be an early target and interceptors are not perfect). However after a week we should be making new interceptors as fast as they are used.
And this I believe is where public and corporate interests diverge.
Corps like the current situation of boutique production. Nice margins, easy to manage processes and they can selfimportantly hobnob with politicians and military brass. Apparently a lower cost to produce patriot variant was cancelled. I can’t see how corporations want something like that.
I believe easy and cheaply mass producible munitions need to be engineered differently. But why develop such munitions, if the old paradigm produces so much gravy and influence?
Just in time manufacturing is a good thing. Why would you want to launch missiles from 1995 - todays technology is better in important ways. For that matter why would you want to launch 2026 missiles in 2030 - who knows what advances will be made (you should have a good guess about what they are working on based on the current Ukraine situation)
Mostly because build times are slow. If you have a stockpile you can make a big splash right off the bat, and keep the tempo up while drawing both from new stock and from stockpiles. Once you are only hitting with just-made arms, your tempo is greatly reduced.
Which is to say we need the ability to quickly scale production. I said a couple years ago the US needs to have the ability to produce 1000 patriot interceptors per month - many said I was wrong then, but today looking at Ukraine and Iran it seems like I was low. (Ukraine is an example of how sometimes nothing your diplomats do is enough, Iran is an example of how sometimes you are stupid)
Not that we shouldn’t have a stock pile. We need the ability for every city to defend itself for a week based on what they currently have in stock (remember those stock piles will be an early target and interceptors are not perfect). However after a week we should be making new interceptors as fast as they are used.
And this I believe is where public and corporate interests diverge.
Corps like the current situation of boutique production. Nice margins, easy to manage processes and they can selfimportantly hobnob with politicians and military brass. Apparently a lower cost to produce patriot variant was cancelled. I can’t see how corporations want something like that.
I believe easy and cheaply mass producible munitions need to be engineered differently. But why develop such munitions, if the old paradigm produces so much gravy and influence?