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The Nature of Problems - Part 13

Even people whose entire training and experience has been pointed toward finding the simplest, most direct approach to solving a problem sometimes forget the obvious. Here is a true story of how such an oversight may have changed the course of history:

When Germany started development of the V-2 rocket, one of the problems that stood out was the need for a high-pressure pump to get fuel into the combustion chamber. A top engineer was assigned to the project, with the job of investigating various designs to see if something could be found that would serve. The specifications were rigid: the pump had to maintain constant pressure within -f- or — 0.4 per cent; it had to be capable of being stored for long periods of time, and yet be immediately available for use; and, after being out of service for some length of time, it had to come to full- and constant-pressure delivery within three seconds.

The engineer worked on this project for six months, during which time he succeeded only in refining the specifications. After that time, he recommended that all the pump manufacturers in Germany be called together and have the problem presented to them. His prime hope was that once these seemingly impossible specifications were presented, the manufacturers might be able to suggest some other new ideas that could be worked on to eventually develop the pump.

The audience of manufacturers listened quietly as the specifi­cations were read off. When they were finally asked, "Does any­one have any comments or any ideas?" one manufacturer rose and said, "Sir, it looks to me like what you need is the standard fire­fighter's pump. A standard fire pump has to deliver large volumes of water in order to put out a fire; it has to deliver the water at a high pressure in order that the firemen can be at a safe distance from the fire; the pressure must remain very constant, because otherwise the stream cannot be directed. A fire-fighter's pump has to be stored for long periods, because fires may not occur for six months or a year, and yet, when they do occur, the pump has to work and it has to come to full-pressure delivery in a very short time."

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