214 STANDARDIZATION AS AFFECTING THE 
SUMMARY. 
History has shown conclusively that standardization has already greatly benefited man- 
kind; imagine the chaos if each mechanic cut screw threads to suit his own ideas, as was 
done in the early days. The whole point is that of arriving at well-balanced decisions on how 
far to go. Excessive standardization makes for lack of progress, while too little tends to 
restrict production. The right amount means the maximum of comfort and pleasure in life 
for the minimum cost, 7. e., the greatest good for the greatest number. The Ford car, 
Singer sewing machine and Remington typewriter are good examples. 
The same general principles can be applied to shipbuilding, particularly in countries 
where the volume of business is so proportioned to the number of plants that each can 
specialize along certain definite lines. There are different designs of cars, sewing machines 
and typewriters, each made by the same plant but for different purposes, so that even where 
standardization is most developed we do not find absolute uniformity. 
DISCUSSION. 
Vice-President Sadler in the chair. 
THE CHAIRMAN :—Gentlemen, you have heard this paper No. 11, entitled “Standardi- 
zation as Affecting the Shipbuilding Industry in the United States,” which has been pre- 
sented by Mr. Rigg, a Member of the Council. Mr. Rigg has made some very excellent 
points, and there may be some who want to discuss the paper. 
ProFressor WiLLt1AM HovcaarD, Member:—This is an important subject, and the paper 
is a very valuable contribution to it. Standardization, of course, can be driven to excess as 
stated by Mr. Rigg, but I think there is a way out of that by making the system of stan- 
dardization sufficiently elastic, and in this connection I want to draw your attention to what 
they are doing in Germany in this direction at present. Unfortunately I am not in a po- 
sition to give you full details on this matter; in fact I have most of my knowledge of it 
from a German magazine, Werft, Reederci, Hafen (Shipyards, Shipping, Ports). In almost 
every issue of that magazine there is a list of standard parts of machinery and equipment of 
merchant vessels, ranging from big pieces of machinery down to coat hooks, comprising all 
fittings that go into a ship. These lists are issued by an organization called “Handelsschiff- 
Normen-Ausschuss (H. N. A.), (Committee of Standards for Merchant Vessels), which 
appears to be a branch of a nation-wide organization embracing, as I understand it, the entire 
German industry. It appears that these standards are elastic, being capable of modification 
as necessary. 
The advantage of such standardization in the home market is obvious, but perhaps it is 
of still more importance in the foreign trade. Once a nation with a well-standardized in- 
dustry gets a foothold in the market of a foreign country, it will be very difficult for any 
competitor to dislodge it. I think the industries of this country should take note of and 
study carefully what is being done in Germany in this direction; perhaps it would be worth 
while to adopt a similar system here. 
