The Ingenieurbüro Glückauf was a department of the

Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production The Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production () was established on March 17, 1940, in Nazi Germany. Its official name before September 2, 1943, was the 'Reichsministerium für Bewaffnung und Munition' (). Its task was to improve the sup ...

, which during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

was the design office of the Hauptausschuß Schiffbau. It completed construction and production plans for

U-Boats U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare rol ...

of the

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...

. This affected both submarine types that were designed for the U-boat war, as well as

midget submarine A midget submarine (also called a mini submarine) is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to six or nine, with little or no on-board living accommodation. They normally work with mother ships, ...

s which were used by the small combat units of the Kriegsmarine.

Tasks, projects and localization

The Ingenieurbüro Glückauf was abbreviated as IBG. It was entrusted with the design and production planning of German submarines for the Navy during the final phases of World War II, for example the

Type XXI submarine Type XXI submarines were a class of German diesel–electric ''Elektroboot'' (German: "electric boat") submarines designed during the Second World War. One hundred and eighteen were completed, with four being combat-ready. During the war only tw ...

or the Type XXVII submarine. Towards the end of 1944, the design and production planning for the Type XXVI, which used the {{ill, Walter engine, de, Walter-Antrieb, was completed. For this purpose, the IBG designers produced construction drawings in the partial sheet system, from which the sequence of production and assembly could be seen. This method was used for the first time in German shipbuilding in the construction of the ''Type XXVI''. Previously, the partial blade system was only used in inland steel construction. The IBG was one of the central design offices of the Hauptausschuß Schiffbau (HAS) and had two branches in the

Harz The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German ...

highlands. In the offices in

Blankenburg Blankenburg may refer to: Places * Blankenburg am Harz, a German town in the district of Harz, Saxony-Anhalt * Blankenburg Castle (Harz), the castle in Blankenburg am Harz (see above) * Bad Blankenburg, a German town in the Saalfeld-Rudolstadt dis ...

and

Halberstadt Halberstadt ( Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the capital of Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town center that was greatly destroyed by Allied bombi ...

there were an average of 650 employees from summer 1943 to March 1945. Eberhard Rössler: ''Geschichte des deutschen U-Boot-Baus.'' Band 2: ''Entwicklung, Bau und Eigenschaften der deutschen U-Boote von 1943 bis heute.'' Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Bonn 1996, Seite 356.

References

Reich Ministries of Nazi Germany