William Crozier (artillerist)

In November 1901 he was promoted to brigadier general, passing over several more senior officers, and succeeded General Buffington as Chief of Ordnance of the United States Army. He served until 1918, not counting the time he was commandant of the Army War College in 1912 and 1913. The provision of munitions in World War I was under his charge until December 1917, eight months after the American entry into World War I. He was then made a member of the Supreme War Council, and in the discharge of this office was in France and Italy for the first half of 1918.[5]

Crozier presided over adoption of the M1911 and the obscure M1909 Benét-Mercié light machine gun, as well as the replacement of .30 Army Gatling Guns. He also oversaw and authorized donation and sale of various condemned cannon for use in town centers, soldier's monuments, and posts for fraternal organizations such as the Grand Army of the Republic. His Notes on the Construction of Ordnance, published by the war department, were used as text-books in the schools for officers, and he also authored several other important publications on military subjects.[3]

Crozier also presided over the adoption of the M1903 rifle, the M1918 BAR (adopted in 1917), and the M1917 machine gun, all of which would serve well into the latter half of the 20th century. He also played a role in the rejection of the Lewis Gun by the Army, although it was quickly adopted by the British and used effectively through both World Wars. A few were used by the United States Marine Corps, and eventually, by the Army to a limited degree. In 1907, he was interested in Orville and Wilbur Wright's novel ordnance delivery method.[6]

Crozier was promoted to major general in July 1918 and retired from the Army on 1 January 1919.

In 1917, after inspection of factories in which Henry Gantt had installed his methods, Crozier, then Chief of Ordnance, retained Gantt as a consultant on production, first at the Frankford Arsenal, and then, immediately after the April declaration of war, in the Ordnance Department at Washington.[7]

Large orders had been placed with arsenals and other manufacturing plants for the production of arms and munitions, but it was difficult to get a comprehensive idea of what progress was being made in the filling of these orders. Quantities had suddenly jumped from hundreds to millions, and it was impossible to convey by means of typewritten tables the significance of such unusual quantities or the time necessary to produce them. Charts of the usual type were unsatisfactory because they did not sufficiently emphasize the time and because of their bulk, since only one item could be put on a sheet.[7]

Gantt concentrated on developing charts which would show a comparison between performance and promise. Several years previous to this time, he had used a chart on which the work for machines was "laid out" according to the time required to do it. The Gantt Progress Chart, as developed from this early form, was found to help in the making of definite plans and to be highly effective in getting those plans executed. The rate at which the work goes forward is continuously compared with the advance of time, which induces action to accelerate or retard that rate. These charts are not static records of the past: they deal with the present and future and their only connection with the past is with respect to its effect upon the future.[7]

Crozier quickly grasped the possibilities of this chart in helping to fix responsibility for action or lack of action, and had it introduced in various branches of the Ordnance Department. During 1918 these charts were used in the United States arsenals, in the production of naval aircraft, and in other government work, such as that of the Emergency Fleet, the Shipping Board, etc.[7]