On the lasting importance of the SpaceX accomplishment.

On 2012-07-06, Jeff Findley wrote:
I run into people in management who make the mistake that knowledge
somehow resides with the company. It doesn't. It's in the heads of
the engineers.

That too is a mistake. It's in both, especially when you're talking
about the sort of highly coordinated methods, masses of documentation
and controlled procedures required for the aerospace industry.

Both are necessary. If company knowledge is lost, engineers will be
able to recreate some of it, but much will be untested new invention.
Likewise if engineers are lost, new engineers can be employed but they
will never be exactly the same.


Ever since the invention of writing (and to a lesser extent before),
groups of people have jointly had more knowledge than the sum of the
individuals.


--
Tim