How has the Automobile Changed History?

Early Automobile Industry

Although the automobile was being made in Europe and America in the late 1800's, it wasn't until the start of the 20th century that they really came into their own.

In 1895 in the US there were 300 cars manufactured. Just ten years later there were 78,000, then 459,000 in 1910 and 1.7million by 1914. The popularity of the automobile didn't stop and has continued to grow ever since.

Today the automobile is an essential part of everyday life.

Ford Revolutionizes Manufacturing

In 1914 Henry Ford revolutionized the whole manufacturing process by creating the continuous, moving assembly line.

The Henry Ford assembly line method, meant that each worker had a standardized job in one place, instead of moving around performing different tasks. This increased the safety factor and led to more output per worker.

Ford reduced the working day from 9 hours to 8 hours, so that he could operate 3 shifts per day.

He increased wages to almost double that of other manufacturers and created a plan to profit share with his workers.

These innovations increased production dramatically and reduced costs, making automobiles more affordable to the general public.

It also made Ford something of a celebrity and other industries soon adopted his methods.

The assembly line was here to stay.