Abstract This article provides a close study of information processing at Allianz, a West German insurance company, in the two decades following World War II. It contributes an international perspective to the history of information by analyzing corporate information technology decisions outside the United States and by tracing exchanges about information technology between insurance managers in the United States and Germany. The article argues that Allianz managers, claiming that electronic information processing would reduce office operating costs, meticulously sought to document these savings to legitimate their computer acquisition in an otherwise adverse economic and political climate.

中文翻译：

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节省成本的机器：德国安联保险公司的计算

摘要 本文详细研究了二战后二十年间西德保险公司安联的信息处理情况。它通过分析美国以外的公司信息技术决策以及追踪美国和德国保险经理之间关于信息技术的交流，为信息历史提供了国际视角。这篇文章认为，安联管理人员声称电子信息处理将降低办公室运营成本，他们精心地试图记录这些节省，以便在不利的经济和政治环境中合法购买计算机。