Learnings in Operations Management from Henry Ford, Sloan and Toyota
The success of Henry Ford till 1925s
Henry Ford did not invent the automobile. He didn’t even invent the assembly line. But more than any other single individual, he was responsible for transforming the automobile from an invention of unknown utility into an innovation that profoundly shaped the 20th century and continues to affect our lives today.
Model T (A car for everyman)
In simple terms, the Model T changed the world. It was a powerful car with a possible speed of 45 mph. It could run 25 miles on a gallon of gasoline. It carried a 20-horsepower, side-valve four-cylinder engine and two-speed planetary transmission on a 100-inch wheelbase.
It was Henry Ford’s foresight which saw the potential market of automobiles. In his opinion transportation was a basic need of human and if affordable anyone would be willing to buy it. It was with this vision of delivering automobiles to everyman that Ford started to experiment with different production methodologies to lower the cost of production.
Influence of Frederick Taylor on Henry Ford
Frederick Taylor was a contemporary of Henry Ford. His theory of scientific management had a big impact on Henry Ford.
According to Henry Ford, the assembly line was based on three simple principles: "the planned, orderly, and continuous progression of the commodity through the shop; the delivery of work instead of leaving it to the workman 's initiative to find it; an analysis of operations into their constituent parts." A scientific approach to these principles, the next logical step in the organization of work, had already been enunciated by
Frederick Taylor in what is now called as scientific management.
Henry Ford used the techniques specified by Frederick Taylor in increasing the efficiency of his process. Taylor 's scientific management consisted of four principles:
1. Replace rule-of-thumb work methods with methods based on a scientific study of the tasks.
2. Scientifically select, train, and
Henry Ford did not invent the automobile. He didn’t even invent the assembly line. But more than any other single individual, he was responsible for transforming the automobile from an invention of unknown utility into an innovation that profoundly shaped the 20th century and continues to affect our lives today.
Model T (A car for everyman)
In simple terms, the Model T changed the world. It was a powerful car with a possible speed of 45 mph. It could run 25 miles on a gallon of gasoline. It carried a 20-horsepower, side-valve four-cylinder engine and two-speed planetary transmission on a 100-inch wheelbase.
It was Henry Ford’s foresight which saw the potential market of automobiles. In his opinion transportation was a basic need of human and if affordable anyone would be willing to buy it. It was with this vision of delivering automobiles to everyman that Ford started to experiment with different production methodologies to lower the cost of production.
Influence of Frederick Taylor on Henry Ford
Frederick Taylor was a contemporary of Henry Ford. His theory of scientific management had a big impact on Henry Ford.
According to Henry Ford, the assembly line was based on three simple principles: "the planned, orderly, and continuous progression of the commodity through the shop; the delivery of work instead of leaving it to the workman 's initiative to find it; an analysis of operations into their constituent parts." A scientific approach to these principles, the next logical step in the organization of work, had already been enunciated by
Frederick Taylor in what is now called as scientific management.
Henry Ford used the techniques specified by Frederick Taylor in increasing the efficiency of his process. Taylor 's scientific management consisted of four principles:
1. Replace rule-of-thumb work methods with methods based on a scientific study of the tasks.
2. Scientifically select, train, and