 At its peak in 1943 there were over 650,000 men and women employed in shipyards on all coasts and the Great Lakes building ships for the commission.Without the tremendous feats of production accomplished by the Emergency Program the lifeline to Great Britain may have been severed by Germany's U-Boat offensive and the ability for U.S. forces to project their newfound military power across both Atlantic and Pacific Oceans would have been severely diminished.A man with an amazing ability to retain information about shipyards and the vessels being built during the war, Vickery was tireless in his efforts to stay on top of the program.