Opting for Oil

This book investigates the causes, course, and consequences of the shift in West German chemical technology from a coal to a petroleum basis between 1945 and 1961. It examines the historical underpinnings of technological culture of the German chemical industry; changing political and economic constraints on technological decision-making in the postwar period; and the actual decision-making process within five individual firms. The study's main importance lies in its detailed portrayal of decision-making within individual chemical firms. By addressing a wide variety of broader issues, as well--including the origins and impact of the division of Germany; the effects of the Wirtschaftswunder, or economic miracle; European integration; and the changing role of the West German Federal Republic in the international political order--this book explains how West German industry regained and then retained a competitive position in world markets.

• | Author: Raymond G. Stokes
• | Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• | Publication Date: Jan 28, 1994
• | Number of Pages: 274 pages
• | Binding: Hardback or Cased Book
• | ISBN-10: 0521451248
• | ISBN-13: 9780521451246