The late 19th-century United States is probably best known for the vast expansion of its industrial plant and output. At the heart of these huge increases was the mass production of goods by machines. This process was first introduced and perfected by British textile manufacturers. In the century since such mechanization had
begun, machines had replaced highly skilled craftspeople in one industry after another. By the 1870s, machines were knitting stockings and stitching shirts and dresses, cutting and stitching leather for shoes, and producing nails by the millions. By reducing labor costs, such machines not only reduced manufacturing costs but lowered prices manufacturers charged consumers. In short, machine production created a growing abundance of products at cheaper prices. Mechanization also had less
desirable effects. For one, machines changed the way people worked. Skilled craftspeople of earlier days had the satisfaction of seeing a product through from beginning to end. When they saw a knife, or barrel, or shirt or dress, they had a sense of accomplishment. Machines, on the other hand, tended to subdivide production down into many small repetitive tasks with workers often doing only a single task. The pace of work usually became faster and faster; work was often performed in factories
built to house the machines. Finally, factory managers began to enforce an industrial discipline, forcing workers to work set hours which were often very long. One result of mechanization and factory production was the growing attractiveness of labor organization. To be sure, craft guilds had been around a long time. Now, however, there were increasing reasons for workers to join labor unions. Such labor unions were not notably successful in organizing large numbers of workers in the late
19th century. Still, unions were able to organize a variety of strikes and other work stoppages that served to publicize their grievances about working conditions and wages. Even so, labor unions did not gain even close to equal footing with businesses and industries until the economic chaos of the 1930s. To find other documents in Loc.gov relating to this topic, you might use the terms work or workers, factories,
or specific occupations such as miner, machinist, factory worker, or machine operator. Part of
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Summary Read a brief summary of this topicmass production, application of the principles of specialization, division of labour, and standardization of parts to the manufacture of goods. Such manufacturing processes attain high rates of output at low unit cost, with lower costs expected as volume rises. Mass production methods are based on two general principles: (1) the division and specialization of human labour and (2) the use of tools, machinery, and other equipment, usually automated, in the production of standard, interchangeable parts and products. The use of modern methods of mass production has brought such improvements in the cost, quality, quantity, and variety of goods available that the largest global population in history is now sustained at the highest general standard of living. The Industrial Revolution and early developmentsThe principle of the division of labour and the resulting specialization of skills can be found in many human activities, and there are records of its application to manufacturing in ancient Greece. The first unmistakable examples of manufacturing operations carefully designed to reduce production costs by specialized labour and the use of machines appeared in the 18th century in England. They were signaled by five important inventions in the textile industry: (1) John Kay’s flying shuttle in 1733, which permitted the weaving of larger widths of cloth and significantly increased weaving speed; (2) Edmund Cartwright’s power loom in 1785, which increased weaving speed still further; (3) James Hargreaves’s spinning jenny in 1764; (4) Richard Arkwright’s water frame in 1769; and (5) Samuel Crompton’s spinning mule in 1779. The last three inventions improved the speed and quality of thread-spinning operations. A sixth invention, the steam engine, perfected by James Watt, was the key to further rapid development. After making major improvements in steam engine design in 1765, Watt continued his development and refinement of the engine until, in 1785, he successfully used one in a cotton mill. Once human, animal, and water power could be replaced with a reliable low-cost source of motive energy, the Industrial Revolution was clearly established, and the subsequent centuries would witness invention and innovation the likes of which could never have been imagined. In 1776 Adam Smith, in his Wealth of Nations, observed the benefits of the specialization of labour in the manufacture of pins. Although earlier observers had noted this phenomenon, Smith’s writings commanded widespread attention and helped foster an awareness of industrial production and broaden its appeal.  Britannica Quiz Machinery and Manufacturing From drilling holes and moving freight to car engines and their production, tinker with these questions and test your knowledge of machinery and manufacturing in this quiz. The next major advance was made in 1797 when Eli Whitney, inventor of the cotton gin, proposed the manufacture of flintlocks with completely interchangeable parts, in contrast to the older method under which each gun was the individual product of a highly skilled gunsmith and each part was hand-fitted. During the same period similar ideas were being tried out in Europe. In England Marc Brunel, a French-born inventor and engineer, established a production line to manufacture blocks (pulleys) for sailing ships, using the principles of division of labour and standardized parts. Brunel’s machine tools were designed and built by Henry Maudslay, who has been called the father of the machine tool industry. Maudslay recognized the importance of precision tools that could produce identical parts; he and his student, Joseph Whitworth, also manufactured interchangeable, standardized metal bolts and nuts. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Subscribe Now By the middle of the 19th century the general concepts of division of labour, machine-assisted manufacture, and assembly of standardized parts were well established. Large factories were in operation on both sides of the Atlantic, and some industries, such as textiles and steel, were using processes, machinery, and equipment that would be recognizable even in the early 21st century. The growth of manufacturing was accelerated by the rapid expansion of rail, barge, ship, and road transportation. The new transport companies not only enabled factories to obtain raw materials and to ship finished products over increasingly large distances, but they also created a substantial demand for the output of the new industries. At this point in the Industrial Revolution, the methods and procedures used to organize human labour, to plan and control the flow of work, and to handle the myriad details on the shop floor were largely informal and were based on historical patterns and precedents. One man changed all of that. Pioneers of mass production methodsIn 1881, at the Midvale Steel Company in the United States, Frederick W. Taylor began studies of the organization of manufacturing operations that subsequently formed the foundation of modern production planning. After carefully studying the smallest parts of simple tasks, such as the shoveling of dry materials, Taylor was able to design methods and tools that permitted workers to produce significantly more with less physical effort. Later, by making detailed stopwatch measurements of the time required to perform each step of manufacture, Taylor brought a quantitative approach to the organization of production functions. At the same time, Frank B. Gilbreth and his wife, Lillian Gilbreth, U.S. industrial engineers, began their pioneering studies of the movements by which people carry out tasks. Using the then new technology of motion pictures, the Gilbreths analyzed the design of motion patterns and work areas with a view to achieving maximum economy of effort. The “time-and-motion” studies of Taylor and the Gilbreths provided important tools for the design of contemporary manufacturing systems. In 1916 Henri Fayol, who for many years had managed a large coal mining company in France, began publishing his ideas about the organization and supervision of work, and by 1925 he had enunciated several principles and functions of management. His idea of unity of command, which stated that an employee should receive orders from only one supervisor, helped to clarify the organizational structure of many manufacturing operations. What method of manufacturing introduced in early 1800s made mass production possible?One of the most important new methods in manufacturing was the use of interchangeable parts. This meant that parts could be mass-produced and then used to assemble a variety of products. This made manufacturing much more efficient and allowed for a wider variety of products to be produced.
What is mass production 1800s?Mass production makes it possible to manufacture things faster, and often at less cost. It also means that a replacement can be obtained for any part of a manufacturing machine or other product that breaks down. Mass production began in 1800, when the United States was building up its army.
How was mass production made possible?Manufacturers implemented mass production through division of labor, assembly lines, large factories, and specialized machinery—requiring huge financial investment. Henry Ford and his engineers applied techniques developed in the automobile industry to revolutionize tractor production.
In which industry was mass production first used?Mass production was popularized in the late 1910s and 1920s by Henry Ford's Ford Motor Company, which introduced electric motors to the then-well-known technique of chain or sequential production.
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What method of manufacturing produced in early 1800s made mass production possible?
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