English Translation

237 Lecturer of the Minister of State Prague, 17 July 1944 Excerpt from the speech of the Reich Minister Spe r on the performance of arms and war production and the importance of self-responsibility of industry, held on 9 July 1944 before representatives of the Rhineland-Westphalian industry. Reichsminister Speer describes the so-called "self-responsibility of industry" introduced in the year 1942 as a decisive prerequisite for the greater increase of war production. Until 1942 the industry received its state orders from the authorities of the Reich, from the weapons offices of the Wehrmacht parts, etc. The officers were therefore responsible. Speer believes that arms production can only be increased by those people who emerged from the industry. He and Dr. Todt began their career in private companies and were called upon to perform important government tasks due to their successes. The first form of self-responsibility of industry was found in the form of organization resulting from the West Wall. One of its most important tasks was to carry out within a few months the change from the steering of armaments by the state authorities to the takeover by a circle of experienced and successful men in the armament industry. Thus, from spring 1942, any demand whose implementation was deemed impracticable by the previously competent authorities was accepted, for there were still considerable unexploited reserves in the factories and new methods of increasing production were enforced in an unburocratic revolutionary way. Speer has entrusted the best leading technicians with the overall responsibility for the production of tanks, weapons and ammunition. Zohland, Tix and Geilenberg were given the leadership of the three most important parts of the army equipment. Now in 2l main committees responsible for the final manufacture of the armor and in l2 rings, which must ensure the necessary supply, the whole and important arms and war production is controlled. For the development of the weapons own bodies are formed, in which constructors of the companies and representatives of the armed forces sit equal to each other. Presiding over these "communities" mostly have the best constructors from the industry, who also have the last decision on the development in the hands of the arms. This decision can only be lifted by the commanders-in-chief of the Wehrmachtteile together with Speer or by the Führer himself. The one-time organization of the self-responsibility of the industry consists of about 6 ooo volunteer technicians and engineers provided by companies. The organization has only made very few setbacks in relation to its extraordinary rapid construction. The voluntary workers from industry bear the responsibility of manufacturing in the individual plants and have the right of determination for necessary instructions and for the enforcement of their point of view. 2.