Mass Production :: Economics

Mass Production Mass production is the manufacture of products of uniform quality in large quantities using a standardised mechanical process or assembly line. After a short post-war depression, the American economy grew rapidly in the early 1920s. By 1926, the standard of living in the USA was the highest it had ever been in the country's history and America was officially the richest nation in the world. Natural resources such as oil were abundant and this gave the USA an advantage that no other country enjoyed at that level. This profusion of natural resources led to a large-scale industrial development. New techniques meant that goods could be produced much more cheaply on a large scale which led to the production of masses of cheap goods which could be afforded by thousands of normal Americans. Mass production was pioneered by Henry Ford in 1913. He could not manufacture cars fast enough to keep up with demand and so he introduced the concept of an assembly line. As a result, one Model T could be produced every three minutes. Components were added as the car moved along and each worker did one specific job. By 1920, a car was produced every ten seconds and Ford realised that if cars could be produced more cheaply, more people would be able to buy them and as demand rose and the company sold more cars, he could make them even cheaper. Between 1908 and 1925, over 15 million Model T's were made and by the mid 1920s, one out of every two cars sold was a Model T. The cost of cars fell from $1200 to  £295 by 1928 which meant that even normal people could afford them. Henry Ford's mass-production techniques were taken up by other industries in America and the USA quickly became the most efficient producer in the world. The falling cost of each input offset the smaller profit margin because demand was stimulated. Employment prospects also improved with many people moving to live in the industrial cities and American industries saw huge profits and expanded enormously. However, mass production also meant that as the rich got richer, the poor got poorer. Mass production changed the fabric of American society forever. Social freedom was achieved and mass production bought an immense sense of liberty to the rural areas. Making cars affordable changed the face of America and it resulted in large scale urbanisation and the development of suburbs. It encouraged the building of roads, and the growing popularity of owning your own car made it easier to move around so people did not have to be within walking distance to work. The car contributed to the industrial boom of the 1920s by stimulating Mass Production :: Economics Mass Production Mass production is the manufacture of products of uniform quality in large quantities using a standardised mechanical process or assembly line. After a short post-war depression, the American economy grew rapidly in the early 1920s. By 1926, the standard of living in the USA was the highest it had ever been in the country's history and America was officially the richest nation in the world. Natural resources such as oil were abundant and this gave the USA an advantage that no other country enjoyed at that level. This profusion of natural resources led to a large-scale industrial development. New techniques meant that goods could be produced much more cheaply on a large scale which led to the production of masses of cheap goods which could be afforded by thousands of normal Americans. Mass production was pioneered by Henry Ford in 1913. He could not manufacture cars fast enough to keep up with demand and so he introduced the concept of an assembly line. As a result, one Model T could be produced every three minutes. Components were added as the car moved along and each worker did one specific job. By 1920, a car was produced every ten seconds and Ford realised that if cars could be produced more cheaply, more people would be able to buy them and as demand rose and the company sold more cars, he could make them even cheaper. Between 1908 and 1925, over 15 million Model T's were made and by the mid 1920s, one out of every two cars sold was a Model T. The cost of cars fell from $1200 to  £295 by 1928 which meant that even normal people could afford them. Henry Ford's mass-production techniques were taken up by other industries in America and the USA quickly became the most efficient producer in the world. The falling cost of each input offset the smaller profit margin because demand was stimulated. Employment prospects also improved with many people moving to live in the industrial cities and American industries saw huge profits and expanded enormously. However, mass production also meant that as the rich got richer, the poor got poorer. Mass production changed the fabric of American society forever. Social freedom was achieved and mass production bought an immense sense of liberty to the rural areas. Making cars affordable changed the face of America and it resulted in large scale urbanisation and the development of suburbs. It encouraged the building of roads, and the growing popularity of owning your own car made it easier to move around so people did not have to be within walking distance to work. The car contributed to the industrial boom of the 1920s by stimulating