3 basic principles of Ford

Fordism is the mass production system, through production lines, which was created by Henry Ford in 1913. From here are born the 3 basic principles of Ford; This system is an example of the trend of economic rationalization that marked the 20th century, in which mass culture exploded, even in the sphere of consumption.

In January 1914, Henry Ford introduced the first Assembly line automated in your factory. The first vehicle produced in this system was the famous Ford T. An important basis for his initiative was Taylorism, a management model aimed at increasing operational efficiency, previously developed by Frederick Taylor. And indeed, through the production line, Ford wanted to cut costs so that cars were more affordable and everyone could own one.

Ford's great innovation, then, was to think of a model in which the car passed through the factory in a treadmill, while the workers were parked, each performing only one task specific.

This format is strongly opposed to the previous model,

in which the same worker could perform numerous tasks in production. With the Ford model, the time spent moving workers was reduced and the hiring of truly qualified employees was made unnecessary.

3 basic principles of Ford

Like any production model, Fordism is based on some principles. In this case, there are three: intensification, economy and productivity.

1. The principle of intensification refers to intensifying production, reducing the time it takes for the product to reach the market. For example, with the implementation of the assembly line, a car, which previously took more than 12 hours to get ready, only needed 2 hours and 30 minutes to be assembled.
2. The principle of economy refers to the reduction of production cost. One of Ford's measures for this was that all cars have the same color, black.
3. The principle of productivity It consists of increasing the volume of production, making as many products as possible in the shortest time possible. For this, the worker specialization in a single task, which they could complete in a matter of minutes or even seconds.

Despite the undeniable importance of Fordism to the capitalism and the history of the economy, today there are many criticisms of this model. Let's find out some of the main ones:

• The first major criticism concerns the impact of Fordism on the relationship between the worker and his work. As already mentioned, each employee performed only one task, over and over again. With that, he turns away from the fruit of his labor and loses his purpose. It was a true mechanization of man. Chaplin portrayed this process in one of his most famous works: Modern Times.
• The second major criticism concerns the inflexibility of the model. It allows you to produce the same type of product in large quantities, but without meeting different demands. That is, many consumer expectations cannot be met by Fordism.

How the principles work in practice

To better understand how Fordism works, we have listed the main points about this system below.

Automated assembly line

One of the main changes brought about by Fordism was the introduction of the automated assembly line.

Ford implemented a conveyor belt system in its factories, in which vehicles were directed to assembly workers, who were parked. The process became more organized, with a beginning, a middle, and an end. In addition, the workers began to specialize in a single activity, without knowing the process in an integrated way. One of the effects was precisely the gain of a faster work rate.

Production from the basic principles

Fordism works on three basic principles already mentioned above: intensification, economy and productivity. Intensification consists of reducing the production time and, consequently, the waiting time until the product reaches the consumer.

The economy aims to reduce the pieces in minimum stock necessary, reducing waste and production costs. Finally, productivity, such as the ability to make the most of each worker's workforce. For this, the workers developed repetitive functions, until they completely mastered their respective stages in the productive process.

Appropriation of the principles of Taylorism

Taylorism, a work management system created by Frederick Taylor at the beginning of the 19th century, it was a system whose central objective was to gain operational efficiency through control of production, rationalization of work and the use of engineering techniques industrial.

Later, Ford appropriated the principles of Taylorism, eliminating waste, reducing the complexity of work and seeking maximum productivity. But one of the most striking differences between the two models is the insertion of technology by Ford.

From the conveyor belts, mass production based on the rhythm of the machines became possible.