John told Cornelius Jr. about his intention to take a stake in Caterpillar and asked him to arrange for a team of think tanks to conduct a detailed investigation of the company's current situation. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

After all, most of what he knows about this company comes from that Caterpillar enthusiast neighbor in his previous life, and who knows if there is a fallacy in it. In order to further formulate a specific investment plan, it is necessary to conduct a field investigation first.

Coincidentally, there was a marketing expert named Ziegler in the think tank team, who once worked for a Caterpillar dealer and helped them sell agricultural tractors to Argentina, Chile and other Latin American countries.

Soon, Ziegler found out a lot about the company through his old friends at Caterpillar. It turns out that behind this power crisis of Caterpillar is the shadow of the Holt family, a manufacturing tycoon on the West Coast.

John still knows a little about the Holt family. The founder of this family, Benjamin Holt, is revered as "Uncle Ben" in wealthy circles in the United States. In addition to running a business, he is also a well-known inventor with 45 patents for his inventions, including the world's first tracked tractor.

Uncle Ben founded many businesses in his life, and the Holt Tractor Company in Stockton, California, was just one of many businesses to his name. Until John's crossing, the Holt family had a strong influence in the American business community. That Spurs owner, Pete Holt, is the great-grandson of "Uncle Ben."

In 1925, after "Uncle Ben" acquired the Best Tractor Company in Illinois, he overruled that the new company would be handed over to Best, a young inventor he was fond of. This has caused strong dissatisfaction among several of his sons.

After Uncle Ben's death, the Holt family wanted to regain control of Caterpillar. However, in recent years, Caterpillar has been developing very well, and Best's position in the company is very solid, and the Holt family has never found a suitable opportunity.

Therefore, when Caterpillar was in trouble due to the U.S. government's trade ban on the Soviet Union, and several mergers and acquisitions led by Best were aborted one after another, the Holt family began to exert force. They wanted to regain control of the company by pushing the company's vice president, Newmiller, to the top of the position.

Ziegler told John that after Caterpillar went public, after several rounds of financing and expansion, the Holt family's stake had slipped to just 23 percent. Although he is still the largest shareholder in the company, if he wants to help Newmiller overthrow Best, he needs to have something to impress many other directors and shareholders.

This was good news for John. Because now, he has a "big business opportunity" in his hand that is attractive enough for both the Holt family and Newmiller.

Not long ago, John had heard that the Ordnance Service was planning a tender for a diesel tank engine that could withstand the rigors of combat conditions with no on-site adjustments.

Historically, Caterpillar engineers converted a star-shaped gasoline aircraft engine into a diesel tank engine and won the order in one fell swoop. Later, this engine was massively installed in the M4A2, a modified version of the Sherman tank, as well as in the M10 tank destroyer. Whether it's in the scorching deserts of North Africa, the freezing ice fields of the Soviet Union, or the humid Pacific islands, this engine performs well.

Now that Hughes Aircraft Company has its own patent for a star-shaped gasoline aircraft engine, why not use this tender as a stepping stone to Caterpillar's board of directors under the banner of cooperation.

As long as John joined forces with the Holt family to help Caterpillar win orders for diesel engines from the military. Regardless of how much profit it can bring to the company, the mere fact that reversing the company's current decline and reinvigorating market confidence in the company will be enough to help Newmiller win the support of the majority of the board members.

I believe that before the temptation to return to the helm of Caterpillar, the Holt family should not refuse John's small request to occupy a seat on the board of directors.

As for how to develop after entering the board of directors, John is even more confident. After the United States entered the war, Caterpillar would naturally be included in the national military production system due to the needs of war readiness.

At that time, most of Caterpillar's products will be discontinued, and it will focus on producing diesel engines and D7 tractors for the allies. (Because these tracked tractors are often equipped with a dozer blade, Patton and most members of the military are accustomed to referring to them as "bulldozers".) Historically, the D7 tractor has been used for a wide range of purposes on the front lines of warfare.

The Army used them to repair crater-ridden roads and build new transport lines to keep logistics flowing. They were used to bulldoze tank pits, dig new trenches to stop enemy counterattacks, and take on the task of building pillboxes and artillery positions if necessary. Patton once said that if he was forced to choose between tanks and bulldozers in an offensive, he would choose bulldozers.

Not only the Army, but also the Air Force is equipped with a large number of D7 tractors, which are used to quickly repair bombed runways and build new forward airfields. Even the Navy favored the D7, and during the Pacific War's island seizure operations, the Marines often used their bulldozers to deal with the Japanese hiding in strong fortifications, completely sealing them in the fire. Admiral Halsey even called the bulldozer, along with submarines, radars, and airplanes, the four major weapons of the Pacific War.

When the military became Caterpillar's sole customer, John's role in the Army's logistics system was naturally magnified. By that time, it wasn't too difficult for him to expand his presence within Caterpillar. There's always a way for him to tie a Caterpillar to a FedEx chariot.

Before the Ordnance Department bidding meeting, John took the stake plan developed by the think tank team and went to the "Fight for Freedom" committee to find Hughes. When it comes to making deals with the Holts, Hughes is the perfect middleman.

Hughes's father started his oil drilling equipment business back then, and he had a good relationship with "Uncle Ben". Their Hughes Tools Company and many of Holt's companies have cooperated. During the years when Hughes himself was working on movies in Los Angeles, he also had a tacit cooperation with the Holt family.

In Hughes's film "Man-Power" (a 1927 Paramount silent film, borrowed here), a Holt 10-ton tractor heroically plugs the dam breach and saves nearby residents. When the movie was released, the Holt family also sponsored a batch of Hughes 60 crawler tractors for free through Caterpillar Inc., and went to the door of movie theaters across the country to do publicity.

After listening to John's explanation, Hughes stared at him for a long time: "John, I know that you are a capable and thoughtful person, but I didn't expect that your ambition is even greater than I imagined. Are you going to be the next Cornelius? ”

"Times are different, if you want to go fast, you have to go alone, if you want to go far, you have to go together, don't you?" John was implying to Hughes that their interests were aligned. Both Hughes Aircraft Company and Caterpillar Inc. will profit from the take-off of FedEx's logistics business.

"Yes, we can go far by walking together." Hughes nodded and agreed to John's request, "I'll talk to Bill (Bill Holt, the current head of the Holt family), I think he'll be interested in this collaboration." ”