What impact did the widespread use of the assembly line have on popular culture in the 1920s?

Mass production is the modern system of manufacturing that uses principles such as interchangeability and the use of the assembly line. Although notions regarding mass production existed in many industrialized nations, the concept wasn't fully realized until Henry Ford (1863-1947) put it to use in 1914. Ford's success in producing the Model T automobile set the early standard for what mass production could achieve. As a result, mass production quickly became the dominant form of manufacturing around the world. The idea of mass production also took hold in popular culture. Numerous artists, writers, and filmmakers used the image of the assembly line to symbolize either the good or the evil of modern industrial society.

Background

Notions of mass production date back to the 1800s and the development of machine tools. However, the nineteenth century witnessed the birth of a true machine tool industry. The earliest machine tool pioneers were in Britain. Henry Maudslay (1771-1831) built precision tool works necessary for mass production. Many of England's early machine tool artisans worked for Maudslay as apprentices. Later, these individuals crafted precision lathes, plane surfaces, and measuring instruments.

Even with the early successes in Europe, technology scholars attribute the widespread adoption of mass production to trailblazers in the United States. With its abundant waterpower, coal, and raw material but shortage of workers, America was the ideal place for building skill into the machine. From its earliest industrial beginnings, American leaders attempted to mechanize production of barrels, nails, and other goods. In the early 1800s American inventor Thomas Blanchard used mechanized production to make rifles and muskets for the U.S. Armory in Springfield, Massachusetts. Blanchard's efforts were supported by the War Department, which then supported other mass production applications.

The distinct system developed in the United States became known as the "American system of manufacturing." In the nineteenth century, the nation witnessed the rise of innovators such as Eli Whitney (1765-1825), Samuel Colt (1814-1862), and Cyrus McCormick (1809-1884). These leaders were committed to interchangeability and mechanized production. By 1883 the Singer Manufacturing Company sold over 500,000 sewing machines, while McCormick produced thousands of reapers.

Many factors came together in the early twentieth century to make mass production possible. In fact, Henry Ford's decision to produce an inexpensive automobile that working people could afford was a gamble. He succeeded in convincing his financial backers only through sheer determination. Also, Detroit had a history of mechanical innovation, which provided the skilled engineers and designers that could build Ford's factories. Another important component was that the immigration boom in the area provided the company with workers to man the lines.

Ford's determination to make Model Ts and only Model Ts helped in the development of mass production techniques. Each process was broken down into its smallest part, and as the components moved down the line, the pieces soon formed the whole. Throughout the process Ford emphasized accuracy, and experts noted the durability and soundness of the automobile.

As the early production process peaked, Ford introduced the assembly line to the mix. The assembly line gave Ford factories a fluid appearance and dramatically increased productivity. Without the assembly line, Ford would not have been able to keep pace with consumer demand for the Model T. More important for buyers, the increased efficiency brought with it a reduced cost. Model T prices quickly dropped from more than $800 to $300.

"Every piece of work in the shop moves," Ford explained. "It may move on hooks on overhead chains going to assembly in the exact order in which the parts are required; it may travel on a moving platform, or it may go by gravity, but the point is that there is no lifting or trucking of anything other than materials." Soon, Model Ts were being produced once every two minutes.

The company sold 11,000 cars from 1908 to 1909, which raised $9 million, a 60% increase over the previous year. Ford then outdid himself with the 1910 to 1911 model, selling 34,528. Sales skyrocketed, reaching 248,000 in 1914, or nearly half the U.S. market. The heavy demand for cars forced Ford to pioneer new methods of production. He built the largest and most modern factory in America on a 60-acre tract at Highland Park in north-central Detroit. Ford's net income soared from $25 million in 1914 to $78 million by 1921.

Another essential facet of Ford's mass production system was his willingness to adopt resourceful means of finding labor to man the assembly lines. The sheer size of the workforce Ford needed to keep pace combined with the monotony of the assembly line led to great turnover in the factories.

Early in 1914 Ford introduced the "Five Dollar Day" to deal with labor shortage. Ford decided that he would pay workers the then-outrageous sum of $5 for an 8-hour workday, much shorter than the industry average. The new wage far surpassed the industry's standard of $1.80 to $2.50 per day. The program made Ford a hero and extended his growing legend.

Because of mass production and Ford's high wages, company workers were given the ability to elevate themselves above working-class means. With the extra pay, they participated in the accumulation of material items previously out of their reach. In turn, other mass producers, especially of middle-class luxuries, were given another outlet for goods. The Five Dollar Day ensured the company that it would always have the workers needed to produce, while at the same time allowing working-class families a means to participate in America's consumer culture.

Impact

Ford's use of mass production techniques was a landmark step for American industry. Within the automobile industry, Ford's beloved Model T eventually declined in popularity, but mass production became a permanent part of the business. Mass production techniques spread to other car makers, and Alfred P. Sloan (1875-1966) of General Motors introduced the annual model change in the 1920s. The changing look of automobiles, made affordable by mass production, mirrored the changing national landscape. A sweeping car craze prompted the desire for material abundance that would mark the genesis of modern America after World War I.

Advertisers, artists, and writers used the factory and assembly line to symbolize life in the United States. Often, they associated manliness with technology and engineering. Many looked upon the factories that linked American cities with romanticism. Corporate marketing, advertising, and public relations staffs and outside agencies developed to massage this message into the public's subconscious.

Many factories even began offering tours to show off production capabilities. Ford's Highland Park factory received more than 3,000 visitors a day before 1920. General Electric, National Cash Register, and Hershey Chocolate established tours as well. They were a new form of public relations and left visitors with a deep impression of the company.

Over the next several decades, the influence and dominance of mass production solidified around the world. In preparing for both World War I and World War II, nations intensified mass production of arms and ammunition. The efficiencies of mass production allowed American businesses to switch from consumer goods to war stuffs quickly. The amount of armaments brought to the war effort by the United States turned the tide in both wars.

After World War II American industry shifted back to consumer goods but did not slow its pace of production. The rise of suburban living and the subsequent "baby boom"—a huge increase in babies born in the post-war era—kept assembly lines producing at phenomenal rates. The growth of the middle class, in both wages and desire for material goods, can be traced to the development and dominance of mass production.

Mass production also bears responsibility for the negative outcomes associated with unskilled labor. The process made workers dispensable and increased the power of the foremen, managers, and department heads that wielded power over them. These influences were mocked in the famous 1936 film by Charlie Chaplin, Modern Times. In real life, mass production led to worker unrest, turnover, and social conflict. Unionization efforts intensified as workers became more alienated in the factory setting. Thus, the advent of mass production had both positive and negative effects on society.

BOB BATCHELOR

Further Reading

Cowan, Ruth Schwartz. A Social History of American Technology. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Hounshell, David A. From the American System to Mass Production, 1800-1932. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1984.

Kranzberg, Melvin, and Joseph Gies. By the Sweat of thy Brow: Work in the Western World. New York: Putnam's, 1975.

Nye, David E. American Technological Sublime. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1994.

Cars changed the way people lived, worked, and enjoyed leisure time; however, what most people don’t realize is that the process of manufacturing automobiles had an equally significant impact on the industry. The creation of the assembly line by Henry Ford at his Highland Park plant, introduced on December 1, 1913, revolutionized the automobile industry and the concept of manufacturing worldwide.

Henry Ford was not a newcomer to the business of automobile manufacturing. He built his first car, which he christened the “Quadricycle,” in 1896. In 1903, he officially opened the Ford Motor Company and five years later released the first Model T.

Although the Model T was the ninth automobile model Ford created, it would be the first model which would achieve wide popularity. Even today, the Model T remains an icon for the still-existing Ford Motor Company.

Henry Ford had a goal of making automobiles for the multitudes. The Model T was his answer to that dream; he wanted them to be both sturdy and cheap. In an effort to make Model T’s cheaply at first, Ford cut out extravagances and options. Buyers couldn’t even choose a paint color; they were all black. By the end of production, however, the cars would be available in a wide variety of colors and with a wide variety of custom bodies.

The cost of the first Model T was set at $850, which would be approximately $21,000 in today’s currency. That was cheap, but still not cheap enough for the masses. Ford needed to find a way to cut down the price even further.

In 1910, with the aim of increasing manufacturing capacity for the Model T, Ford built a new plant in Highland Park, Michigan. He created a building that would be easily expanded as new methods of production were incorporated.

Ford consulted with Frederick Taylor, creator of scientific management, to examine the most efficient modes of production. Ford had previously observed the assembly line concept in slaughterhouses in the Midwest and was also inspired by the conveyor belt system that was common in many grain warehouses in that region. He wished to incorporate these ideas into the information Taylor suggested to implement a new system in his own factory.

One of the first innovations in production that Ford implemented was the installation of gravity slides that facilitated the movement of parts from one work area to the next. Within the next three years, additional innovative techniques were incorporated and, on December 1, 1913, the first large-scale assembly line was officially in working order.

The moving assembly line appeared to the onlooker to be an endless contraption of chains and links that allowed Model T parts to swim through the sea of the assembly process. In total, the manufacturing of the car could be broken down into 84 steps. The key to the process, however, was having interchangeable parts.

Unlike other cars of the time, every Model T produced on Ford's line used the exact same valves, gas tanks, tires, etc. so that they could be assembled in a speedy and organized fashion. Parts were created in mass quantities and then brought directly to the workers who were trained to work at that specific assembly station.

The chassis of the car was pulled down the 150-foot line by a chain conveyor and then 140 workers applied their assigned parts to the chassis. Other workers brought additional parts to the assemblers to keep them stocked; this reduced the amount of time workers spent away from their stations to retrieve parts. The assembly line significantly decreased the assembly time per vehicle and increased the profit margin.

As time passed, Ford used assembly lines more flexibly than he is generally given credit for. He used multiple parallel lines in a start-stop mode to adjust output to large demand fluctuations. He also used sub-systems which optimized extraction, transportation, production, assembly, distribution, and sales supply chain systems. 

Perhaps his most useful and neglected innovation was the development of a way to mechanize production and yet customize the configuration of each Model T as it rolled off the block. Model T production had a core platform, a chassis consisting of engine, pedals, switches, suspensions, wheels, transmission, gas tank, steering wheel, lights, etc. This platform was continually being improved. But the body of the car could be any one of several types of vehicles: auto, truck, racer, woody wagon, snowmobile, milk wagon, police wagon, ambulance, etc. At peak, there were eleven basic model bodies, with 5,000 custom gadgets that were manufactured by external companies that could be selected by the customers.

The immediate impact of the assembly line was revolutionary. The use of interchangeable parts allowed for continuous workflow and more time on task by laborers. Worker specialization resulted in less waste and a higher quality of the end product.

Sheer production of the Model T dramatically increased. The production time for a single car dropped from over 12 hours to just 93 minutes due to the introduction of the assembly line. Ford’s 1914 production rate of 308,162 eclipsed the number of cars produced by all other automobile manufacturers combined.

These concepts allowed Ford to increase his profit margin and lower the cost of the vehicle to consumers. The cost of the Model T would eventually drop to $260 in 1924, the equivalent of approximately $3,500 today.

The assembly line also drastically altered the lives of those in Ford’s employ. The workday was cut from nine hours to eight hours so that the concept of the three-shift workday could be implemented with greater ease. Although hours were cut, workers did not suffer from lower wages; instead, Ford nearly doubled the existing industry-standard wage and began paying his workers $5 a day.

Ford’s gamble paid off—his workers soon used some of their pay increases to purchase their own Model Ts. By the end of the decade, the Model T had truly become the automobile for the masses that Ford had envisioned.

The assembly line is the primary mode of manufacturing in the industry today. Automobiles, food, toys, furniture, and many more items pass down assembly lines worldwide before landing in our homes and on our tables.

While the average consumer does not think of this fact often, this 100-year-old innovation by a car manufacturer in Michigan changed the way we live and work forever.