Weapons Acquisition Process:; Economic Incentives

xxi, [1], 447, [11] pages. Illustrations. Occasional Footnotes. Selected Bibliography. Index. Ex-library. Usual library markings. Book has some wear and soiling. Military acquisition has a long history spanning from ancient times (e.g., blacksmithing, shipbuilding) to modern times. Modern military acquisition is a complex blend of science, management, and engineering disciplines within the context of a nation's law and regulation framework to produce military material and technology. This complexity evolved from the increasing complexity of weapon systems starting in the 20th century. For example, the Manhattan Project involved more than 130,000 people at an estimated cost of nearly $24 billion in 2008 dollars. In the twenty-first century, the trend has been for countries to cooperate in military procurement, due to the rising cost-per-unit of military hardware such as ships and jets. For example, NORDEFCO (established 2009), a grouping of Nordic countries that cooperate in defence spending, the Defence and Security Co-operation Treaty, agreed to between the United Kingdom and France in 2010, and Joint Strike Fighter program, which selected the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II in 2001, included the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Italy, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Turkey, Israel and Japan. From Wikipedia: "Frederic Michael Scherer (born 1932 in Ottawa, Illinois) is an American economist and expert on industrial organization. Scherer received his A.B. degree from the University of Michigan and his M.B.A. with distinction from Harvard University in 1958 and his PhD in economics from the same institution in 1963. Scherer served as the chief economist for the Federal Trade Commission in 1974-76. Since 2006 Scherer has been Emeritus Professor of Public Policy and Corporate Management at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. His research specialties include industrial economics and the economics of technological change, on which he has many much-cited publications, Scherer has also published concerning patent policy reform. Scherer may be the scholar with the most expertise concerning the theories of former Harvard professor Joseph Schumpeter.…