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104-649: The Henney Kilowatt was a project of National Union Electric Company , a conglomerate including Emerson Radio , and Henney Motor Company, which had purchased Eureka Williams in 1953. The project was initiated by C. Russell Feldmann , president of National Union Electric Company and the Eureka Williams Company. To build the electric cars, he employed the services of the Henney Motor Company coachwork division of Canastota, New York . Henney had been building custom coaches since 1868 and

208-563: A 20 percent stake (more than that held by Stephen and William Lane) by 1992, when they began a takeover attempt. The Lane brothers were seeking to restructure $ 180 million in debt, but conceded defeat in June 1992. Emerson's financial situation worsened, and in fiscal 1993 the company incurred a loss of $ 56 million on sales of $ 741.4 million. When the company filed for bankruptcy in October 1993, Emerson had been in default on $ 223 million in debt for

312-403: A 30% increase in output simply from changing over to electric motors. Electrification enabled modern mass production, as with Thomas Edison's iron ore processing plant (about 1893) that could process 20,000 tons of ore per day with two shifts, each of five men. At that time it was still common to handle bulk materials with shovels, wheelbarrows and small narrow-gauge rail cars, and for comparison,

416-456: A 72-volt system for the 1960 model year. It employed 12 six-volt batteries in series. The 72-volt models were much more practical than the 1959 36-volt models. The 1960 Kilowatt boasted a top speed of nearly 60 mph (97 km/h) with a range of over 60 miles (97 km) on a single charge. Although the Kilowatt is described by some sources as "the first transistor-based electric car",

520-643: A backbone "main" assembly line. A diagram of a typical mass-production factory looks more like the skeleton of a fish than a single line. Vertical integration is a business practice that involves gaining complete control over a product's production, from raw materials to final assembly. In the age of mass production, this caused shipping and trade problems in that shipping systems were unable to transport huge volumes of finished automobiles (in Henry Ford's case) without causing damage, and also government policies imposed trade barriers on finished units. Ford built

624-585: A canal digger in previous decades typically handled five tons per 12-hour day. The biggest impact of early mass production was in manufacturing everyday items, such as at the Ball Brothers Glass Manufacturing Company , which electrified its mason jar plant in Muncie, Indiana , U.S., around 1900. The new automated process used glass-blowing machines to replace 210 craftsman glass blowers and helpers. A small electric truck

728-475: A company that manufactured high-fidelity audio and visual equipment. Products were sold under the Scott name until 1991, the year the line was discontinued. In 1986 Emerson began importing and marketing compact refrigerators and Hi-Fi stereo VHS VCRs. Camcorders , telephones , and answering machines were added to its product line in fiscal 1988. In 1990 personal computers and facsimile machines were added for

832-403: A company to produce a larger quantity of one product at a lower cost than using traditional, non-linear methods. However, mass production is inflexible because it is difficult to alter a design or production process after a production line is implemented. Also, all products produced on one production line will be identical or very similar, and introducing variety to satisfy individual tastes

936-500: A constant flow, including and especially on assembly lines . Together with job production and batch production , it is one of the three main production methods. The term mass production was popularized by a 1926 article in the Encyclopædia Britannica supplement that was written based on correspondence with Ford Motor Company . The New York Times used the term in the title of an article that appeared before

1040-535: A couple of hours, were highly successful: over 100,000 Nissen huts were produced during World War I alone, and they would go on to serve in other conflicts and inspire a number of similar designs. Following World War II, in the United States, William Levitt pioneered the building of standardized tract houses in 56 different locations around the country. These communities were dubbed Levittowns , and they were able to be constructed quickly and cheaply through

1144-476: A distributor of audio, video and other consumer electronic product accessories in the United States and Canada . They promoted the sale of a wide variety of Emerson branded consumer electronic products and accessories. The owner of Fidenas's, Geoffrey P. Jurick, had assumed the position of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company in 1992 and in 1998 he added the titles of President and Chairman of

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1248-567: A diversified manufacturer. Its line of Quiet Kool air conditioners became a separate National Union Electric division. This company continued to produce radios, television sets and phonographs distributed under the Emerson and DuMont names and hi-fi equipment under the Pilot name. In addition, in 1966 it strengthened its position in the integrated electrical installation field upon acquiring Electro-Air Cleaner Company of McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania;

1352-484: A firm producing a line of electronic air cleaning units. Between 1967 and 1971 the National Union Electric division lost about $ 27 million due to too little volume to cover costs. The division contracted out the manufacturing of television sets and some other home entertainment products to Admiral Corp., and laid off 1,800 employees. In addition to importing some of its home entertainment products from

1456-524: A higher-priced line of television sets, phonographs and high-fidelity and stereo instruments, along with the DuMont trademark was added to Emerson's products. However, by this time, the US television market was saturated, and many customers who were in need of another set were waiting for color television instead of buying a replacement. Sales fell from $ 87.4 million in fiscal 1955 to $ 73.9 million in fiscal 1956, when

1560-468: A large portion of Cardiac Resuscitator Corp., a near-bankrupt company. Emerson spent heavily to develop and produce both an improved Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator and a pacemaker . In addition, the company took an 18 percent share in a developer of computerized axial tomographic (CAT) scanners. Because this line of products never made money, Emerson disposed of its holdings in them between 1987-88. Emerson Radio dropped its last U.S.-made product,

1664-737: A licensing agreement with Telesound Electronics for telephones, answering machines, and caller ID products in the United States and Canada. Net income for Emerson was only $ 289,000 on net revenues of $ 158.7 million in fiscal 1999 with a long-term debt of $ 20.8 million at the end of the fiscal year. Nearly 84 percent of its merchandise that year was imported, primarily from China , Hong Kong , Malaysia , South Korea , and Thailand . Tonic Electronics (32 percent), Daewoo (22 percent), and Imarflex (12 percent) were its main suppliers. The company depended heavily on Wal-Mart Stores, which took about 52 percent of its goods in fiscal 1999, and Target Stores, Inc. , which took about 24 percent. In 2001, Emerson exited

1768-417: A major roll-out to more than 500 Wal-Mart stores. In 1992 sales reached a peak of $ 891.4 million, but net income was only $ 10.4 million. Emerson's addition of personal computers resulted in a $ 150 million loss for the company. That coupled with the recession that began in 1990 brought the company's total loss to $ 37.5 million in the last nine months of the year. Shares of stock fell as low as $ 2, compared to

1872-463: A multiple head milling machine that could simultaneously machine 15 engine blocks held on a single fixture. All of these machine tools were arranged systematically in the production flow and some had special carriages for rolling heavy items into machining position. Production of the Ford Model T used 32,000 machine tools. The process of prefabrication, wherein parts are created separately from

1976-490: A net income of $ 7.4 million in fiscal 1995, Emerson dropped into the red again the following three years. They lost $ 13.4 million, $ 24 million, and $ 1.4 million in fiscal 1996, 1997, and 1998, respectively, with net revenues of $ 245.7 million, $ 178.7 million, and $ 162.7 million. Emerson Radio Corp. announced in November 1998 that it had entered into an exclusive agreement with Team Products International, Inc. of Boonton, N.J.,

2080-500: A phonograph and record salesman, along with his two brothers, ran the company and renamed it Emerson Radio & Phonograph Corp in 1924 after entering the radio business. The company's phonograph record interests were subsequently sold. Although Emerson introduced the first radio-phonograph combination sold in the United States, the company remained relatively obscure until 1932, when, during the Great Depression, it introduced

2184-584: A private U.S. automobile collector in the early 2000s. These two cars both have fewer than 500 miles (about 800 kilometres) and are impeccable examples of this historical vehicle. Additionally, there are at least two other documented "survivors" that are still driven periodically. The Kilowatt has been called the world's first mass production electric car , although early in the 20th century electric vehicles were produced in much larger numbers (thousands per year) by companies such as Detroit Electric and Milburn. Although electric cars outsold gasoline cars in 1900,

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2288-513: A spindle cutting machine, which could produce multiple parts at the same time. Terry hired Silas Hoadley and Seth Thomas to work the Assembly line at the facilities. The Porter Contract was the first contract which called for mass production of clock movements in history. In 1815, Terry began mass-producing the first shelf clock. Chauncey Jerome , an apprentice of Eli Terry mass-produced up to 20,000 brass clocks annually in 1840 when he invented

2392-591: A system of process control which uses various instruments to measure variables such as temperature, pressure, volumetric and level, providing feedback. Bulk materials such as coal, ores, grains and wood chips are handled by belt, chain, slat, pneumatic or screw conveyors, bucket elevators and mobile equipment such as front-end loaders . Materials on pallets are handled with forklifts. Also used for handling heavy items like reels of paper, steel or machinery are electric overhead cranes , sometimes called bridge cranes because they span large factory bays. Mass production

2496-579: A total of 100 rolling chassis were prepared by Henney Coachworks for the project, but of those only 47 functional cars were completed. A March 20, 1967, article in U.S. News & World Report states that 35 of the Henney Kilowatts were purchased by electric utilities in the United States. Company records show that there were 24 cars sold to electric utilities as 36 volt 1959 models and eight Kilowatts sold to utility companies as 72 volt 1960 models. Fewer than 15 Henney electric cars were sold to

2600-401: A tremendous amount of useless handling and hauling. The belt and line shaft were also tremendously wasteful – so wasteful indeed that no factory could be really large, for even the longest line shaft was small according to modern requirements. Also high speed tools were impossible under the old conditions – neither the pulleys nor the belts could stand modern speeds. Without high speed tools and

2704-480: A very large amount of trees. In order to speed up such efforts, fast propagation of trees may be useful. Some automated machines have been produced to allow for fast (vegetative) plant propagation . Also, for some plants that help to sequester carbon (such as seagrass ), techniques have been developed to help speed up the process . Mass production benefited from the development of materials such as inexpensive steel, high strength steel and plastics. Machining of metals

2808-412: A vested interest in shifting American automotive focus from fossil fuels to lead-cell batteries. Morrison McMullan, Jr., controller of Exide Batteries, was also a participant in the development of the Kilowatt. (In 1974, National Union Electric was purchased by AB Electrolux of Sweden .) The propulsion system was developed in consultation with Victor Wouk , then an electrical engineer at Caltech . Wouk

2912-607: A worker work on a whole product from start to finish. The emergence of mass production allowed supply to outstrip demand in many markets, forcing companies to seek new ways to become more competitive . Mass production ties into the idea of overconsumption and the idea that we as humans consume too much. Mass production of fluid matter typically involves piping with centrifugal pumps or screw conveyors (augers) to transfer raw materials or partially complete products between vessels. Fluid flow processes such as oil refining and bulk materials such as wood chips and pulp are automated using

3016-449: A year in royalty income. Also in 1995, Emerson Radio entered the home theater and car audio fields, and the $ 900-million-a-year home and personal security market with a carbon monoxide detector. The company planned to eventually lend its name to burglar alarms, motion detectors, personal alarms, smoke detectors , and safety lights; however, the company left this field in fiscal 1997. Additionally, Emerson announced it would license

3120-656: Is Jikji , printed in Korea in the year 1377. Johannes Gutenberg , through his invention of the printing press and production of the Gutenberg Bible , introduced movable type to Europe. Through this introduction, mass production in the European publishing industry was made commonplace, leading to a democratization of knowledge , increased literacy and education, and the beginnings of modern science . French artillery engineer Jean-Baptiste de Gribeauval introduced

3224-405: Is capital-intensive and energy-intensive, for it uses a high proportion of machinery and energy in relation to workers. It is also usually automated while total expenditure per unit of product is decreased. However, the machinery that is needed to set up a mass production line (such as robots and machine presses ) is so expensive that in order to attain profits there must be some assurance that

Henney Kilowatt - Misplaced Pages Continue

3328-448: Is a reduction of non-productive effort of all types. In craft production , the craftsman must bustle about a shop, getting parts and assembling them. He must locate and use many tools many times for varying tasks. In mass production, each worker repeats one or a few related tasks that use the same tool to perform identical or near-identical operations on a stream of products. The exact tool and parts are always at hand, having been moved down

3432-403: Is best known as one of the pioneers of hybrid electric cars . Wouk recruited Lee DuBridge , then President of Caltech , and Linus Pauling to assist in the assessment and development of the electronics. Although Pauling never did any active work on the project, DuBridge convened a group of Caltech experts to provide input. Wouk designed the necessary speed controller for the Kilowatt, although

3536-524: Is that while Taylor focused mostly on efficiency of the worker, Ford also substituted for labor by using machines, thoughtfully arranged, wherever possible. In 1807, Eli Terry was hired to produce 4,000 wooden movement clocks in the Porter Contract. At this time, the annual yield for wooden clocks did not exceed a few dozen on average. Terry developed a milling machine in 1795, in which he perfected Interchangeable parts . In 1807, Terry developed

3640-582: The Arcadia 2001 , the most well-known of the "Emerson Arcadia 2001" second-generation 8-bit game console variations. Although, considerably more powerful than the then-dominant Atari 2600 , the Arcadia 2001 wasn't released until just before the more-advanced Atari 5200 and the ColecoVision , in mid-1982. It was successful in other countries, however, because Atari had exclusive rights to many games, it

3744-615: The Far East , Emerson continued to be responsible for design, engineering, and marketing. In late 1972 National Union Electric announced that Emerson was discontinuing distribution of television sets and other home entertainment products. In 1973 Emerson sold its license for marketing products under the Emerson name to Major Electronics Corp. Founded in 1948 by Melvin Lane and incorporated in 1956, this Brooklyn-based company originally made children's phonographs. The company later diversified into

3848-620: The Ford River Rouge Complex with the idea of making the company's own iron and steel in the same large factory site where parts and car assembly took place. River Rouge also generated its own electricity. Upstream vertical integration, such as to raw materials, is away from leading technology toward mature, low-return industries. Most companies chose to focus on their core business rather than vertical integration. This included buying parts from outside suppliers, who could often produce them as cheaply or cheaper. Standard Oil ,

3952-560: The Henry Ford Company which was rebranded as Cadillac and later was awarded the Dewar Trophy in 1908 for creating interchangeable mass-produced precision engine parts, Henry Ford downplayed the role of Taylorism in the development of mass production at his company. However, Ford management performed time studies and experiments to mechanize their factory processes, focusing on minimizing worker movements. The difference

4056-517: The Industrial Revolution by many centuries; however, it was not until the introduction of machine tools and techniques to produce interchangeable parts were developed in the mid-19th century that modern mass production was possible. Mass production involves making many copies of products, very quickly, using assembly line techniques to send partially complete products to workers who each work on an individual step, rather than having

4160-664: The Portsmouth Block Mills in England to make ships' pulley blocks for the Royal Navy in the Napoleonic Wars . It was achieved in 1803 by Marc Isambard Brunel in cooperation with Henry Maudslay under the management of Sir Samuel Bentham . The first unmistakable examples of manufacturing operations carefully designed to reduce production costs by specialized labour and the use of machines appeared in

4264-643: The Venetian Arsenal produced nearly one ship every day in what was effectively the world's first factory , which at its height employed 16,000 people. The invention of movable type has allowed for documents such as books to be mass produced. The first movable type system was invented in China by Bi Sheng , during the reign of the Song dynasty , where it was used to, among other things, issue paper money . The oldest extant book produced using metal type

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4368-444: The "peewee" radio (see "Historical Products" below). Emerson Radio & Phonograph converted to military production for World War II in 1942, when it held one-sixth of the U.S. radio market. In 1943, it became a public corporation, when it offered over 40 percent of its stock to the public for $ 12 a share. In 1947, among its first post-war products, Emerson offered a television set with a 10-inch tube. Although its ending retail price

4472-480: The 18th century in England. The Navy was in a state of expansion that required 100,000 pulley blocks to be manufactured a year. Bentham had already achieved remarkable efficiency at the docks by introducing power-driven machinery and reorganising the dockyard system. Brunel, a pioneering engineer, and Maudslay, a pioneer of machine tool technology who had developed the first industrially practical screw-cutting lathe in 1800 which standardized screw thread sizes for

4576-455: The 20th century's definition of mass production appeared in a 1926 Encyclopædia Britannica supplement. The article was written based on correspondence with Ford Motor Company and is sometimes credited as the first use of the term. Electrification of factories began very gradually in the 1890s after the introduction of a practical DC motor by Frank J. Sprague and accelerated after the AC motor

4680-620: The Board . In December 1998 he held 60 percent of Emerson's common stock . Kenneth S. Grossman, a private investor, along with Oaktree Capital Management , a Los Angeles -based investment firm that held a smaller stake in Emerson Radio, proposed to buy Jurick's holdings in the company for more than $ 14.6 million. The offer was rejected as "inadequate." Emerson announced in August 1999 that it planned to sell to Oaktree for $ 28.9 million. On

4784-537: The DuMont trademark was added to Emerson's products. In 1979, Emerson began selling Heart Aide, after purchasing a large portion of Cardiac Resuscitator Corp. The company spent heavily to develop and produce both an improved implantable cardioverter-defibrillator and a pacemaker . In addition, the company took an 18 percent share in a developer of computerized axial tomographic (CAT) scanners. As this line of products never made money, Emerson disposed of its holdings in them between 1987-88. In 1982, Emerson manufactured

4888-440: The Emerson and G Clef trademark to U.S. retailers in 1999. They also had a licensing agreement with Telesound Electronics for telephones, answering machines, and caller ID products in the United States and Canada. Mass production Mass production , also known as flow production , series production , series manufacture , or continuous production , is the production of substantial amounts of standardized products in

4992-476: The Emerson name to more than 250 audio and video accessories made by Jasco Products Co. , an Oklahoma firm selling cables, remote controls , and appliance cleaning devices. The company took a 27 percent stake in Sport Supply Group, Inc., the largest direct-mail distributor of sporting goods equipment and supplies to the U.S. institutional market, for $ 11.5 million in late 1996. Subsequent to

5096-601: The Emperor's tomb is also believed to have been created through the use of standardized molds on an assembly line . In ancient Carthage , ships of war were mass-produced on a large scale at a moderate cost, allowing them to efficiently maintain their control of the Mediterranean . Many centuries later, the Republic of Venice would follow Carthage in producing ships with prefabricated parts on an assembly line:

5200-538: The Smartset clock radio which automatically sets itself with the correct time and date using a battery back-up oscillator time base to accurately set the clock's time when the alarm clock is powered-on and after a power outage . In recent years, the company has expanded the Smartset line adding models with features including a time projector , infrared touchless snooze control, CD-R / CD-RW , and an integrated "Made for iPod " top-mounting docking station. In 1915, at

5304-476: The armories designing and building many of their own. Some of the methods employed were a system of gauges for checking dimensions of the various parts and jigs and fixtures for guiding the machine tools and properly holding and aligning the work pieces. This system came to be known as armory practice or the American system of manufacturing , which spread throughout New England aided by skilled mechanics from

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5408-894: The armories who were instrumental in transferring the technology to the sewing machines manufacturers and other industries such as machine tools, harvesting machines and bicycles. Singer Manufacturing Co. , at one time the largest sewing machine manufacturer, did not achieve interchangeable parts until the late 1880s, around the same time Cyrus McCormick adopted modern manufacturing practices in making harvesting machines . During World War II , The United States mass-produced many vehicles and weapons , such as ships (i.e. Liberty Ships , Higgins boats ), aircraft (i.e. North American P-51 Mustang , Consolidated B-24 Liberator , Boeing B-29 Superfortress ), jeeps (i.e. Willys MB ), trucks, tanks (i.e. M4 Sherman ) and M2 Browning and M1919 Browning machine guns . Many vehicles, transported by ships have been shipped in parts and later assembled on-site. For

5512-504: The assembly line consecutively. The worker spends little or no time retrieving and/or preparing materials and tools, and so the time taken to manufacture a product using mass production is shorter than when using traditional methods. The probability of human error and variation is also reduced, as tasks are predominantly carried out by machinery; error in operating such machinery has more far-reaching consequences. A reduction in labour costs, as well as an increased rate of production, enables

5616-429: The blocks to ensure alignment throughout the process. One of the many advantages of this new method was the increase in labour productivity due to the less labour-intensive requirements of managing the machinery. Richard Beamish, assistant to Brunel's son and engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel , wrote: So that ten men, by the aid of this machinery, can accomplish with uniformity, celerity and ease, what formerly required

5720-535: The brand name G Clef, an homage to Emerson's logo. Emerson Radio Corp. was incorporated in 1915 as Emerson Phonograph Co. ( NAICS : 421620 Consumer Electronics Wholesaling), based in New York City , by an early recording engineer and executive, Victor Hugo Emerson, who was at one time employed by Columbia Records . The first factories were opened in Chicago and Boston in 1920. In December of that year,

5824-471: The car are virtually identical to those of the Renault Dauphine . The 1959 models all ran on a 36-volt system of 18 two-volt batteries in series. The 36-volt cars had a top speed of 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) and could run approximately 40 miles (64 km) on a full charge. After the 36-volt system was realized to be impractical, the Kilowatt drivetrain was redesigned by Eureka Williams as

5928-407: The cheap 30-hour OG clock. The United States Department of War sponsored the development of interchangeable parts for guns produced at the arsenals at Springfield, Massachusetts and Harpers Ferry , Virginia (now West Virginia) in the early decades of the 19th century, finally achieving reliable interchangeability by about 1850. This period coincided with the development of machine tools , with

6032-564: The company earned only $ 84,852. A cost-cutting campaign by Abrams rebounded net income which reached $ 2.7 million in fiscal 1959 on sales of $ 67.4 million. In fiscal 1964 (Emerson's last full year of independent operation) it earned $ 2.1 million on sales of $ 68.2 million. In 1965 the company acquired the Pilot Radio Corp. from Jerrold Corp. Later in 1965 Emerson Radio and Phonograph was purchased for approximately $ 62 million in cash and stock by National Union Electric Corporation ,

6136-485: The company fell victim to the sales slump which affected the entire phonograph industry caused by the post-World War I recession and the growth of the rapidly expanding commercial radio industry in the early 1920s. The company quickly went from the self-claimed third largest US record manufacturer into receivership . In 1922 Emerson Phonograph Co. passed into the hands of Benjamin Abrams and Rudolph Kanarak. Abrams,

6240-452: The company into air conditioning. Although radio represented only 15 percent of Emerson's revenue by 1954, the company credited itself as creating the first clock radio , self-powered radio, and transistorized pocket radio . Production of tape recorders began in 1955. When Emerson purchased Allen B. DuMont Laboratories, Inc. in 1958, a higher-priced line of television sets, phonographs and high-fidelity and stereo instruments, along with

6344-424: The company into air conditioning. Although radio represented only 15 percent of Emerson's revenue by 1954, the company credited itself as creating the firsts of the clock radio, self-powered radio, and transistorized pocket radio; production of tape recorders began in 1955. Emerson Radio and Phonograph paid $ 6 million to purchase the consumer products division of DuMont Laboratories in 1958. With this acquisition,

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6448-732: The company's inception, Emerson's main product was the Universal Cut Records, capable of being played laterally or vertically. Music offered included a wide variety of popular , band, opera , classical , religious, and folk music . Also during their first years, Emerson offered one of the last of the external-horn phonographs, which sold for only $ 3. The "peewee" Model 25 radio was introduced December 1932. Measuring about 8½ inches long and 6¼ inches wide, approximately 60 percent of all radios sold between early December 1932 and late May 1933 were Model 25s, half of which were manufactured by Emerson. The Universal Compact line

6552-684: The company's reintroduction of television sets in 1983. Emerson purchased sets from Goldstar Electric Co. (AKA LG Electronics ), a South Korean company, but sold them at a higher price point. In 1984, Emerson signed a 10-year contract with Orion Electric to produce a line of VCRs to its existing product lineup. In 1985, a compact disc player and microwave oven were introduced causing sales to once again double in fiscal 1985 to $ 357.5 million, and net income rose to $ 13.3 million. TV sets and VCR's accounted for two-thirds of sales that year. Later that year, Emerson Radio moved its headquarters to North Bergen, New Jersey, and acquired H. H. Scott, Inc. ,

6656-459: The controller was manufactured for the Kilowatts by Curtis Instruments . The electric propulsion system for the cars was designed and built by the Eureka Williams Company of Bloomington, Illinois , manufacturer of Eureka Vacuum Cleaners . Henney Coachworks was contracted to build the chassis of the car from tooling and parts purchased from Renault . Many body panels and interior components of

6760-646: The day the licensing agreement with Otake expired, Emerson replaced the company with Daewoo Electronics Co. Ltd. , which entered into a four-year agreement with Emerson to manufacture and sell television and video products bearing the Emerson and G Clef trademark to U.S. retailers. In 1999, Emerson also signed five-year license and supply agreements with Cargil International covering the Caribbean and Central and South American markets, along with WW Mexicana for certain consumer products to be sold in Mexico. They also had

6864-456: The fashion industry, particularly in the realm of fibers and materials. The advent of synthetic fibers, such as polyester and nylon, revolutionized textile manufacturing by providing cost-effective alternatives to natural fibers. This shift enabled the rapid production of inexpensive clothing, contributing to the rise of fast fashion. This reliance on mass production has raised concerns about environmental sustainability and labor conditions, spurring

6968-502: The finer steels which they brought about, there could be nothing of what we call modern industry. Mass production was popularized in the late 1910s and 1920s by Henry Ford's Ford Motor Company , which introduced electric motors to the then-well-known technique of chain or sequential production. Ford also bought or designed and built special purpose machine tools and fixtures such as multiple spindle drill presses that could drill every hole on one side of an engine block in one operation and

7072-559: The finished product, is at the core of all mass-produced construction. Early examples include movable structures reportedly utilized by Akbar the Great , and the chattel houses built by emancipated slaves on Barbados . The Nissen hut , first used by the British during World War I , married prefabrication and mass production in a way that suited the needs of the military. The simple structures, which cost little and could be erected in just

7176-471: The first instance of the application of mass production techniques (though not necessarily the assembly-line method) to marine engineering. In filling an Admiralty order for 90 sets to his high-pressure and high-revolution horizontal trunk engine design, Penn produced them all in 90 days. He also used Whitworth Standard threads throughout. Prerequisites for the wide use of mass production were interchangeable parts , machine tools and power , especially in

7280-594: The first time which in turn allowed the application of interchangeable parts , collaborated on plans to manufacture block-making machinery. By 1805, the dockyard had been fully updated with the revolutionary, purpose-built machinery at a time when products were still built individually with different components. A total of 45 machines were required to perform 22 processes on the blocks, which could be made into one of three possible sizes. The machines were almost entirely made of metal thus improving their accuracy and durability. The machines would make markings and indentations on

7384-475: The form of electricity . Some of the organizational management concepts needed to create 20th-century mass production, such as scientific management , had been pioneered by other engineers (most of whom are not famous, but Frederick Winslow Taylor is one of the well-known ones), whose work would later be synthesized into fields such as industrial engineering , manufacturing engineering , operations research , and management consultancy . Although after leaving

7488-431: The general public. Some of these cars may have been sold as 1961 models. The company continued promoting the Kilowatt in 1961 with hopes of securing enough prepaid orders to finish the remaining chassis components that had already been built. Few, if any, were sold in this manner. Although the 72 volt propulsion system introduced for the 1960 model year was substantially superior to the earlier 36 volt systems, Eureka Williams

7592-489: The high of $ 12.75 in 1987. Several shareholder lawsuits charged some Emerson directors and officials with breach of fiduciary duty and self-dealing . Emerson also fell into technical default on its long-term debt of $ 55.4 million at the end of the year. In 1988, Emerson Radio was sold to Panasonic . Fidenas Investment Ltd., a Swiss firm based in the Bahamas , began purchasing shares of Emerson Radio stock in 1989. It held

7696-457: The home theater and car audio fields, and the $ 900-million-a-year home and personal security market with a carbon monoxide detector , however, they left this field in 1997. Also in 1995, Emerson announced it would license its name to more than 250 audio and video accessories made by Jasco Products Co., a firm selling cables, remote controls, and appliance cleaning devices. Emerson began manufacturing and selling television and video products bearing

7800-436: The introduction of the Kilowatt followed a very lengthy period in which they had been out of favor. Emerson Radio Emerson Radio Corporation is one of the United States ' largest volume consumer electronics distributors and has a recognized trademark in continuous use since 1912. The company designs , markets , and licenses many product lines worldwide, including products sold, and sometimes licensed, under

7904-547: The invention of machine tools the manufacture of precision parts, especially metal ones, was highly labour-intensive. Crossbows made with bronze parts were produced in China during the Warring States period . The Qin Emperor unified China at least in part by equipping large armies with these weapons, which were fitted with a sophisticated trigger mechanism made of interchangeable parts. The Terracotta Army guarding

8008-423: The leather belt and line shaft , for it eventually became possible to provide each tool with its own electric motor. This may seem only a detail of minor importance. In fact, modern industry could not be carried out with the belt and line shaft for a number of reasons. The motor enabled machinery to be arranged in the order of the work, and that alone has probably doubled the efficiency of industry, for it has cut out

8112-455: The leveraging of economies of scale , as well as the specialization of construction tasks in a process akin to an assembly line. This era also saw the invention of the mobile home , a small prefabricated house that can be transported cheaply on a truck bed. In the modern industrialization of construction, mass production is often used for prefabrication of house components. Fabrics and Materials Mass production has significantly impacted

8216-793: The major oil company in the 19th century, was vertically integrated partly because there was no demand for unrefined crude oil, but kerosene and some other products were in great demand. The other reason was that Standard Oil monopolized the oil industry. The major oil companies were, and many still are, vertically integrated, from production to refining and with their own retail stations, although some sold off their retail operations. Some oil companies also have chemical divisions. Lumber and paper companies at one time owned most of their timber lands and sold some finished products such as corrugated boxes. The tendency has been to divest of timber lands to raise cash and to avoid property taxes. The economies of mass production come from several sources. The primary cause

8320-431: The manufacture of certain video products under the Emerson and G Clef trademarks for a three-year period to Otake Trading Co. Ltd. The company also licensed the sale of these products in the United States and Canada for the same period to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. As a result, Emerson's net sales fell from $ 654.7 million in fiscal 1995 to $ 245.7 million in fiscal 1996, with the licensing agreement only providing about $ 4 million

8424-511: The name "Emerson Research". Emerson's main focus is the distribution and sale of low to moderately priced products, therefore their distribution is primarily through mass merchants, discount retailers , specialty catalogers, and the Internet . As a brand , Emerson gains further leverage globally through various licensing agreements. For example, Emerson brand TV, DVD, TV/VCR/DVD combination units are made by Funai . Emerson Radio pioneered

8528-457: The need for greater ethical and sustainable practices within the fashion industry. Mass production systems for items made of numerous parts are usually organized into assembly lines . The assemblies pass by on a conveyor, or if they are heavy, hung from an overhead crane or monorail. In a factory for a complex product, rather than one assembly line, there may be many auxiliary assembly lines feeding sub-assemblies (i.e. car engines or seats) to

8632-515: The ongoing energy transition , many wind turbine components and solar panels are being mass-produced. Wind turbines and solar panels are being used in respectively wind farms and solar farms . In addition, in the ongoing climate change mitigation , large-scale carbon sequestration (through reforestation , blue carbon restoration , etc) has been proposed. Some projects (such as the Trillion Tree Campaign ) involve planting

8736-572: The phonograph line, in 1980 because it became unprofitable due to rising labor costs. Despite harsh competition, Emerson Radio raised its sales and earnings in fiscal 1980 to $ 81.9 million and $ 1.6 million, respectively. Their plan was to have their suppliers (mainly in Taiwan and South Korea) imitate Sony and Panasonic audio/video products and then sell them at a lower price. Sales increased from $ 94.8 million in fiscal 1983 to $ 181.6 million in fiscal 1984, when net income came to $ 9.1 million because of

8840-414: The previous two years. In 1994, the company emerged from bankruptcy pursuant to a plan of reorganization and with $ 75 million in financing arranged by Fidenas, which had assumed a 90 percent stake in Emerson. It then issued 30 million shares, some of which were claimed by creditors. Legal battles ensued and continued until mid-August 2001. In early 1995, in an effort to cut costs, Emerson Radio licensed

8944-479: The product against the plans or the other parts as it is being formed, there were jigs ready at hand to ensure that the part was made to fit this set-up. It had already been checked that the finished part would be to specifications to fit all the other finished parts—and it would be made more quickly, with no time spent on finishing the parts to fit one another. Later, once computerized control came about (for example, CNC ), jigs were obviated, but it remained true that

9048-421: The product will be successful. One of the descriptions of mass production is that "the skill is built into the tool", which means that the worker using the tool may not need the skill. For example, in the 19th or early 20th century, this could be expressed as "the craftsmanship is in the workbench itself" (not the training of the worker). Rather than having a skilled worker measure every dimension of each part of

9152-450: The production and sale of a broad line of low-priced home entertainment products that included stereos, radios, and clock radios. In 1971 Major also began importing low-cost radios. By 1975 the company was only manufacturing portable phonographs. In 1976 the company moved its headquarters to Secaucus, New Jersey , and changed its name to Emerson Radio Corp. in 1977. Sales rose from $ 11.5 million in fiscal 1975 to $ 49.2 million in fiscal 1978,

9256-463: The publication of the Britannica article. The idea of mass production is applied to many kinds of products: from fluids and particulates handled in bulk ( food , fuel , chemicals and mined minerals ), to clothing, textiles, parts and assemblies of parts ( household appliances and automobiles ). Some mass production techniques, such as standardized sizes and production lines, predate

9360-418: The skill (or knowledge) was built into the tool (or process, or documentation) rather than residing in the worker's head. This is the specialized capital required for mass production; each workbench and set of tools (or each CNC cell, or each fractionating column ) is different (fine-tuned to its task). Standardized parts and sizes and factory production techniques were developed in pre-industrial times; before

9464-448: The speed controller uses a combination of relays and diodes to switch the batteries and motor windings in different configurations for different speeds, not transistors. According to the official Eureka Company corporate history profile there were a total of 100 Henney Kilowatts manufactured during the entire two year production run, but of those 100 cars only 47 were ever sold. A French Renault Dauphine enthusiast website also states that

9568-444: The standardization of cannon design in the late 18th century. He streamlined production and management of cannonballs and cannons by limiting them to only three calibers, and he improved their effectiveness by requiring more spherical ammunition. Redesigning these weapons to use interchangeable wheels, screws, and axles simplified mass production and repair. In the Industrial Revolution , simple mass production techniques were used at

9672-678: The supply and distribution of Emerson originated product categories through SHEAC's 200 retail stores and maintenance service centers as well as its extensive BtoB and BtoC e-commerce network. Sanlian was to license the Emerson brand for additional product categories it finds suitable for China-wide distribution and cooperate with Emerson in the design, development and sourcing for such. Products include televisions ( flat tube and LCD ), VCRs , DVD players and combos, other video products, home theater , home and car audio , audio accessories, high-end acoustics , microwave ovens , office and wireless products. Some products are also marketed under

9776-513: The uncertain labour of one hundred and ten. By 1808, annual production from the 45 machines had reached 130,000 blocks and some of the equipment was still in operation as late as the mid-twentieth century. Mass production techniques were also used to rather limited extent to make clocks and watches, and to make small arms, though parts were usually non-interchangeable. Though produced on a very small scale, Crimean War gunboat engines designed and assembled by John Penn of Greenwich are recorded as

9880-476: The video electronics business (TVs, DVD players, VCRs) and handed 100% of the manufacturing operations to Funai , which continued to make and market Emerson consumer video products for Wal-Mart. In January 2003, Emerson announced it had entered into a letter of intent naming Sanlian Group of Shandong, China the exclusive distributor of Emerson branded products through its subsidiary , Sanlian Household Electric Appliance Company (SHEAC). The agreement contemplated

9984-556: The year in which phonographs, radios, tape recorders and players, compact stereos, digital clock radios, and other low to medium-priced electronic equipment was being imported, assembled, and marketed, primarily under the Emerson name. Approximately 60 percent of its components were being imported from the Far East and 20 percent from each Great Britain and domestically, and assembled in either Secaucus or Sun Valley, California . In 1979, Emerson began selling Heart Aid, after purchasing

10088-586: Was a well-recognized name in the automotive industry because of its affiliation with the Packard Automobile Company and the Ford Motor Company . Henney produced thousands of custom built limousines , ambulances , and hearses (most of them built on Packard or Lincoln chassis), before being contracted to begin the Kilowatt project. National Union Electric Company was also the producer of Exide Batteries—and naturally had

10192-667: Was developed by Galileo Ferraris , Nikola Tesla and Westinghouse , Mikhail Dolivo-Dobrovolsky and others. Electrification of factories was fastest between 1900 and 1930, aided by the establishment of electric utilities with central stations and the lowering of electricity prices from 1914 to 1917. Electric motors were several times more efficient than small steam engines because central station generation were more efficient than small steam engines and because line shafts and belts had high friction losses. Electric motors also allowed more flexibility in manufacturing and required less maintenance than line shafts and belts. Many factories saw

10296-605: Was greatly enhanced with high-speed steel and later very hard materials such as tungsten carbide for cutting edges. Fabrication using steel components was aided by the development of electric welding and stamped steel parts, both which appeared in industry in about 1890. Plastics such as polyethylene , polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) can be easily formed into shapes by extrusion , blow molding or injection molding , resulting in very low cost manufacture of consumer products, plastic piping, containers and parts. An influential article that helped to frame and popularize

10400-408: Was nearly equal to a month's salary for the average working American, it put Emerson at the lower end of the market. However, between fiscal 1948 and 1950, the high demand for television allowed Emerson to more than double its sales. Its net income reached a record of $ 6.5 million in fiscal 1950, with sales of $ 74.2 million. In 1953 Emerson Radio and Phonograph purchased Quiet Heet Corp., which entered

10504-574: Was nearly impossible for Emerson to market in the United States due to the lack of popular game titles. In 1983, Emerson began selling re-branded Goldstar televisions at inflated prices for a substantial profit. The compact disc player and microwave oven were introduced in 1985 doubling sales. In 1986 Emerson began importing and marketing compact refrigerators. Camcorders , telephones , and answering machines were added to its product line in fiscal 1988. Personal computers and facsimile machines were added in 1990. In 1995, Emerson Radio entered

10608-483: Was priced from $ 17.95 to $ 32.50. Emerson led the production and sale of this class of radio until 1938, having by then sold more than a million. In 1947 Emerson offered a television set with a 10-inch tube , which retailed for $ 375. It was among Emerson's first postwar products. They dropped the price to $ 269.50 by June 1948, when the newly developed television industry had sold 375,000 sets. In 1953, Emerson Radio and Phonograph purchased Quiet Heet Corp., which entered

10712-434: Was unable to produce the 72-volt system cheaply enough or quickly enough to attain the targeted $ 3600 sales price. Of the documented 32 Henney Kilowatts produced, it is estimated that there are between four and eight still in existence. The very first two Henney Kilowatts – the serial number 0001 car and the original prototype (serial number "EXPERIMENTAL") were stored by company executives for decades until being sold to

10816-430: Was used to handle 150 dozen bottles at a time where previously a hand truck would carry six dozen. Electric mixers replaced men with shovels handling sand and other ingredients that were fed into the glass furnace. An electric overhead crane replaced 36 day laborers for moving heavy loads across the factory. According to Henry Ford : The provision of a whole new system of electric generation emancipated industry from

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