GMD's "flat pack" truck

[Spenser TR]

Some of my favorite discussions here are about how higher tech might bleed onto lower tech worlds, so this article caught my eye - it introduces a "flat pack truck" ( links to a carsguide -dot - com article ) that can be packed ( flat, heh ), shipped, and assembled on-sight with little effort and no infrastructure.

A quote from the article:

"GMD estimates that the Ox can be assembled by a team of three skilled people in approximately 12 hours, with nothing more than a set of spanners and an Allen key."

 

[nobby-w]

Here's a video of some folks demonstrating the disassembly and reassembly of an ordinary WWII-vintage jeep.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBxiRx8vOdY

 

[Spenser TR]

Ha! I wonder how long they drilled for that...

 

[Timerover51]

Some of my favorite discussions here are about how higher tech might bleed onto lower tech worlds, so this article caught my eye - it introduces a "flat pack truck" ( links to a carsguide -dot - com article ) that can be packed ( flat, heh ), shipped, and assembled on-sight with little effort and no infrastructure.

A quote from the article:

"GMD estimates that the Ox can be assembled by a team of three skilled people in approximately 12 hours, with nothing more than a set of spanners and an Allen key."

The US Army routinely did that in World War 2 when shipping trucks overseas. I would have to check, but they had vehicle reassembly plants in Cairo, the UK, and the Persian Gulf for the reassembly of trucks for Russia. I will have to check it there are any photos online or at the National Archives showing this. The British also used the idea.

The US also experimented with cutting trucks in half for delivery to paratroops by glider, and then welding the two halves together once delivered.

 

[Ackehece]

Part of the uplift of technologies for Imperial Planets.

The issue is while you may ship the truck to the location and use it after assembly, you have not actually transmitted the technology itself to create the truck in situ. It's the old "give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." (or my favorite version: Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Take his fish away and tell him he's lucky just to be alive, and he'll figure out how to catch another one for you to take tomorrow."

A research project knowing what base level technologies need to be in place to increase the abilities and technological base is a very interesting study.
basics to create a technological society (as we know it)

1. Metal Foundry
2. Glass Foundry
3. Lathe
4. Milling Machine
5. Kiln
6. Schools/Apprenticeships

things like screws (which are VERY HELPFUL) for making lathes and gundrills for pipes and bar stock are things that take time but if you build a lathe you can eventually build screw stock on it.. chicken and egg thing.
Amazingly enough the drive screw and the lathe itself can be made from plant material to start with (the screw would be hand carved!)

these tools allow for mechanized mining, machine tools and the foundations of fine tolerance tools... and building ball bearing plants, Cold Hammer Forges, Induction Foundries etc are all possible once those basic tools are created.
electronics are now a viable level...
once you have that... higher orders of tech can be quickly acquired as the basics are now in place.
Once that phase is created then electronics really takes off.