Production in Detroit

For the first time the U.S. Government last week officially recognized the production efforts of individual factory workers, handed five Packard Motor Car employes WPB's newly created award for production short cuts. The Packard Stakhanovites* received almost one-third of all the awards made--got the only award handed to the automobile industry.

Behind all this was a classic example of how honest, realistic labor-management cooperation can bolster worker morale and boost production. Packard's "Work to Win" production drive has boosted production as much as 80% in some departments, has brought in 7,000 worker suggestions on how to increase output. Better still, the scheme has brought Packard labor-management relations to new heights of sweetness & light.

The whole thing started in January when wide-awake, progressive Packard Vice President George T. Christopher began wondering how he could boost output without merely adding more plant or more men. Packard had plenty of war-production experience--it jumped the gun on all other automakers by snagging a British aviation engine contract in 1940. But its operations still lacked the drive needed for its terrific job, turning out endless thousands of Rolls-Royce aircraft engines (for Curtiss fighters) and Packard-designed supermarine engines (for PT boats). So Engine-Maker Christopher cooked up a production-boosting plan, based on the idea that: "It must bring in the entire organization."

Enter Labor. Christopher took his plan to stocky, clear-thinking Curt Murdock, president of Packard Local 190 (U.A.W.-C.I.O.), a unioneer who realizes that the only way to win the war is with more and faster production. In a two-month series of confabs, the two men pounded the original idea into the "Work to Win" program. Chief program points: 1) a speedup of machines rather than men; 2) individual recognition for work well done; 3) whoop-ups.

Since April, George Christopher has been Packard's president. On May 2 he startled all Detroit, broke the last chunks of labor-management ice with a joint banquet for 800 company officials, union leaders and Army-Navy brass hats. Since then it has been easy. Packard employes wear little "Work to Win" badges,* paste windshield stickers on their cars. In the rambling Packard plants, huge 15-ft. red, white & blue billboards blazon new worker-composed slogans each week, twin scoreboards tally each department's efficiency and production. At plant entrances toy soldiers march across miniature battlefields to show how each division's record compares with all others.

Most productive is the labor-management suggestion committee which scans thousands of ideas from Packard workers. Already 313 suggestions have been put to use in the company's plants, another 600 are being considered by company engineers. Among the ideas in use is one which combined boring and reaming operations on one machine, thus frees another machine for additional work; another shifted assembly operations so that nine men and two sets of tools can do certain engine assemblies 50% faster than 14 men with 14 sets of tools.

Result is that Packard has met every WPB quota. Despite higher & higher goals, aircraft-engine production was 17% above quota in May, 14% above in June and 13% above in July. Marine-engine output shows smaller gains. And since the plan started, there have been no strikes, no slowdowns, not even a minor labor fracas. Cheers. This has brought cheers from management, labor, Government. Three months ago Christopher twinkled through his spectacles, said the plan had "greatly increased production, stepped up efficiency, lessened waste." Union Man Murdock went overboard, said "the plan has worked out so well it has even fooled some of us."

* Russian symbol for self-imposed production speedup. Skilled Pneumatic-Drill Operator Alexei Stakhanov boosted coal output fivefold simply through better teamwork.

* Advertised Packard: "Ask the Man Who Wears One."

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