Higgins Boat Interactive PowerPoint Activity 2: A Louisiana Specialty (GLEs: 45 , 51 , 53)

1. Higgins Boat Interactive PowerPointActivity 2: A Louisiana Specialty (GLEs: 45,  51,  53) Go to “Slide Show” on the top menu. To go “view show”. Type your name in the blank below. Read the directions on slide 2 and the story on slide 3. On slide 4, complete the information. Name(s)

2. Activity 2: A Louisiana Specialty(GLEs: 45,  51,  53) • Share the story on Slide 2 about 1940’s business story of Andrew Higgins from New Orleans. • Once the proposed plans are completed, have each student write a paragraph analyzing the key changes that had to be considered. In their explanations have students address the application of the economic term specialization in this situation. Finally, each student should conclude with selected comments on the potential advantages of specialization in this situation involving mass production and production efficiency. • Provide students with a conclusion regarding the success and impact the Louisiana-based Higgins Industry played in the outcome of World War II. Additional facts on the Higgins Industry and its association in World War II can be found at the websites below. • The Higgins Landing Craft D-Day Project: http://library.thinkquest.org/J0113143/ • The National World War II Museum: http://www.ddaymuseum.org

3. Andrew Higgins was in the lumber business from 1923-1929. As the lumber industry experienced an economic decline, Higgins shifted his business efforts to the construction of specialty boats that were able to maneuver over Louisiana’s marsh and swamps and proved very useful to the lumber industry. The U.S. Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers contracted Higgins to provide these governmental agencies with a small fleet of these sturdy boats for navigating Louisiana’s waterways. Higgins managed to convert his slumping lumber business to a modestly successful boat building enterprise. The New Orleans-based business initially may have employed an average of100 to 200 employees during the economic depression years of the 1930’s. As the U.S. became engaged in the European and Pacific Theaters in World War II, the U. S. Armed Forces developed a major interest in the use of a Higgins-designed boat for beach landings. The government contracts included production of a range of small boats (PT, LCMs) at an average of 700 boats per month.

4. Higgins BoatsChallenge: Must increase production from constructing 20 boats/month to 700 boats per month