Tooling up for 44-54?

Fulcrum of mass production, and therefore of the war effort, is the machine-tool industry which "makes the machines that make the machinery." Just how many lathes, grinders and milling machines have joined the war production lines is a military secret, but last week the National Machine Tool Builders' Association released some impressive figures.

Production increased from a mere three times normal output in 1940 ($450,000,000) to $775,000,000 in 1941. This year the industry will turn out tools worth $1,500,000,000—thus doing the work of ten normal years in one.

Significant fact: most of the weapons being used today were made six months ago,...

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