| Show Place for Factories Is Factories In Smaller Community N Big Bg City Ford Says Manufacturer Cites Instances Where Farmers Work In His Plants and He Sees Possibility That M Much h Machine V Work VoIk oIk Soon May Be Done In Homes Workers I By HENRY FORD 1 In In Collaboration with Samuel Crowther Copyright I Copyright 1926 b by by Doubleday rage Page Co All lights Eights Reserved J cTT IT big JT HAS always ays been taken for granted grained that big business I brings in its wake big buildings and great numbers of m n n in these big buildings and going home at nt to tos s slums pr or hovels ho ls And meaning many well meaning people have ha opp serl jig big business because they they saw saw in iii it only the thc slum with all that the slum means means I Big Bir business animated t d only by bythe bythe the pro profit tit motive motivo makes make mak s nl al this Inevitable The plants r con and they open up and and nd shut hut down don according to whether the getting is i good good food or Ol bad Tin Un- Tinder Un Under der del these Conditions condition cond the tho man man never has ha enough ahead In money to choose Where where ho he zany may live And also he ho has bas been com corn compelled compelled for tOl lack of ot transportation to live Jive within walking o I of his work worle or to spend a siz siz- siz sizable lz-abl lz able part of his Income and en- en energy en-crey en I orgy ergy riding riding- on crowded cars He has had bad to take tak what he could get In the the- way of h housing Arid And Andas as long lone as Industry believes es itt In and does docs not fol- fol fol follow low low tho the wase motive just so ao long will this condition coo coo- con continue CHARITY CUo OT But the remedy Is not to 10 I Ibe i be found In any charitable housing schemes If It you appl the wage theory to the building of ot houses then it will bo be easily possible possible- to build good rood houses house which self re rc people can live In at a rental they can can pay ay And the thc 0 neu of ot those houses house can lan earn earna a any profit-any profit any sort tort of oo well conducted will earn a profit If It does not something Is tun- tun fun wrong wrone with the plan Turning to charity Is I always bad but when applied to conditions broUght broUcht In- In In Industry Industry man aged ran can n take Lake care car of ot lt tile itSelf elt and everone everyone connected with It it Charity merely covers up Ills that ought to and can be cured Big Ble business However ver did not concentrate because there thero was anything in big ble business which made for concentration ne Really llly big business cannot concentrate In one place for fOl the reason that transportation charges aside from all other factors discourage II it ItA A great gleat business has to have far far- far flung markets and In these theo day days I It does doe not pay to transport heavy products raw or finished over overlong overlong long distanceS But what some somo years cars ago aco was thought to be big business did concentrate SOfI JUST SWELL Similar sorts of Industries have to group croup In neigh neigh- neighborhoods neighborhoods And big biff business elm elm- im imply ply followed little business be- be because be because cause n n-d n one on stopped to in think that little business and bIg bif bust bust- business buil nets ness have more important dir dir- dif differences than size There Thele Is a kind of ot busine business which Just ju t swells ells an and l becomes cumbersome and whIch Is I sometimes thought to be big business but It Is only little elephantiasis business suffering from lasts The Tho bIg bic business which IS 13 worth while grows crow to power Continues 0 Or On rage Page Three 1 Place for Factories Is In Smaller Community Not Big City Ford Says 11 f I Continued from rage Page One It Is ie not size without strength It Is big and quick and stron strong Any business which truly serves senes must grow In resource resource and might though though that resource and might wilt will quickly dwindle when hen the service which built It ceases cases There Is now no reason at all for building a factory In a u big city or oX near a 0 labor labor market and there are many compellinG reasons for not doing so IiO Wo We started as has be been ft told in My Life LICe and Work Vork In a u small brick building In Detroit and some somo years later lateS moved to a larger building also In the tho city When then the time came camo tor for greater ex- ex expansion ex expansion we moved out into nto nto what was M then a 8 suburb of or Detroit Detroit- Detroit Highland park and Park and there for Years ears we the e made our automobiles We 0 grew so 80 quickly that we tol- tol fol followed lowed lowed the perfectly natural course of or expanding Highland Park We Wethen wethen e then were buying far tar more or of orthe the automobile than wo we 0 made and although Highland Park grew to be a u factory It was for a long Ions longtime time essentially an on assembling plant It was when we reached a x production or of o one thou thousand and cars carsa a day clay and jammed the freight facilities or of o Detroit that we be- be began fran be-fran Jan gan seriously to examine Into the wIsdom of or having ha so EO large a plant I PROFITEERING G We Vo approached the subject from several directions directions First It did not seem to be bo In the best In- In Interests In Interests of or business In gen general ral to conc so much wage pur chasing power In a u single local local- localIty locality locality ity both because the people who bo our product ought to have ha some somo of or he advantages of or the sums disbursed In the making and also our own men were becoming crowded ded and being profiteered upon Ulon They were not getting value tor for tho the money they earned Se Second ond the number of or men be- be became be bt became came came eo so large that the tho hours had to be so arranged that not too many men would wO get through 01 or come on en at the one time other time other otherwise wise could not be provided ed And having men go- go goIng going go going ing and coming all the while Is not goo good l for tor production Ye We not for been able to havo not or years have hoo a 0 single pay day because or of the general Inconvenience nce it t would cause IlUS not noi OnlY omy 10 to our our- selves oui-selves selves and to our workmen but butto butto butto to the community In n general To out some somo millions of or d on on onn n 11 certain dayd day lay each cacti week would have made it necessary fo for the stores to carry Idle stock against the pay-day pay rush It would have ha been an invitation to crooks crook or of all kinds to gather around on had the one day when everyone have made monc money and It would local banking exceedingly dlen- dlen difficult difficult cult On On our own part It would have 11 1 0 made mado necessary a largo pay Jay payroll payroll roll force torce and even at the best est the men would have ha lost bouts walling wallin for or their pay So now Almost every we e J pay In groups hour or of o the day Is pay day somewhere In the plants We have overcome o the difficulties difficulties ties tics of or handling large bodies ot of otmen It Is 15 men but that Is not enough better belter to a avoid old difficulties rather overcome them und and we not small emali- smaller IOnly find tind It easier to manage er plants but also which also which Is most the important ther costs of or production In the smaller plants aro are lower Any change In method which re- re re results aults In higher costs no co coats ts no no matter how public spirited it ma may on the surface seem to be Is bad it if it In- In costs But that we do not have to bother about for every change chango of or real merit results In do- do decreased de decreased creased costs Fl GREAT T CITIES Now go back a bit and start wIth the whole theory ot of manufacturing manufacturing turing and ond big business and how It bly It tt leads cads one away ay from the great gret clUes cities Management Is not something In Inan inan Inan an office building miles away from the product It starts with the Product Itself and then step by step work works back A fine tine machine is a good thing to look upon ot or It- It Its It s but In a factory no machine is b worth giving floor space to un- un un unless loss less it contributes exactly and ac- ac according ac according cording to a I plan to the tho doing o of whatever It Is you ou have havo started out outto outto outto to do There need be bo no guess- guess guesswork work vor about a machine People used to talk about hand work as though It were better than machine work but now the tho proper kind ot of machine will not only work to a thousandth of or an Inch or to what what- Is necessary nece Eary o eser or accuracy sary ry but will III do U j U every time It It's Itis s is the thO fault tault of the tho management It if Ita ifa IIa a machine or a series o of machines Jr Ie ves yes anything to be bo done dono by band hand We e used to think of or a 0 machine oS as asa asa a machine machine-as machine as a thing which the employer owned and which could b used to make money for tor or him Now ow we know that D a a machine tool Is t a method for tor the application ot of power A man can hit a harder with witha than can blow blow with a hammer than he can with his hi bare baro tho fist 1st tho mans man's pow pow- power power er r Is Increased by the extra force orco ot of the leverage le of or the hammer handle and the wear and tear on the ham ham- hammer hammer mer head head- Is 1 substituted for wear and tear on his hie hand The Tho power bower hammer goes ROCS much farther than the hand Iland lI hammer it puts more power at the service of or the worker Therefore There There- Therefore fore the tho operator or of itji a power ham ham- mer do can much more In a 0 day dayI daythan daythan th than ln can a a man Dlan with a hand hammer ham ham- hammer hammer mer that ho he caa earn for tor himself I a wage than can tho the hand worker and at the same time pro pro- produce produce pro produce duce a u cheaper product WHO I A machine does docs not belong to the man who ho buys It or to the man who operates It but to tho the 1 and It advantages the tho worker and andI I the proprietor only as they use It to the advantage ot of the public It benefits the public when and only when It Is used to turn out cheap made made well well well designed designed articles that satisfy a public need The workman and the owner cannot expect to derive a 0 benefit from the operation or from the ot of the machine excepting as It benefits the tho public Wo We are learn learn- learnIng learning learn Ing Ing that a n machine Is a public ser ser- ser servant that ant vant that It It Is useful only as It serves I A place which has hns power and which subdivides It through what what- whatever whatever whatever ever number of or machines may mal be j jA necessary necessary- to accomplish a u given ob- ob object ob object Jec Is 1 a factory and It it too pays only as it serves The factory may generate perform Its 0 own onn n po poster porter er and per per- per form torm within Its own walls all the operations necessary for tor or a complete product or again it may buy Its power and perform only a u part ot of the necessary operations Its course Is surely determined by the measure of or service which It has hils adopted It means nothing to say that you OU carry your product from the raw material stage to the fin fin- finIshed finished fin finished article unless under your control this process results In a cheaper product and a n better one than you could achieve by as- as assembling assembling as assembling instead of manufacturing The product alone that governs governs that Is Is the public governs And seeing that it does govern Is management mani ement I Ithe Only a small mall percentage of or our automobiles are lire are used In or around Detroit and fo so we quit assembling whole cars cara excepting for or the dis- dis district district dis district and In instead began to ship the parts paris out to as assembly embly points through the tho countr country This saved the cost of or final assembly at the factory of r testing knocking of-knocking of ot knocking down and crating and of or the extra freight on a bulk bulky piece or of machIne machinery like an ass assembled automobile L LO LABOR O Rl MARKET ET ETI I The business or of parts to b bo be assembled into an automo automo- automobile automobile bile brought up the question ot of whether these x parts artl had all to be made under one lne roof root There seem seem- seemed seemed ed to be no escape from he the big factory and ana there mere could have hae heen r no escape It If our o main factory hall had to turn out a 11 completely assembled product But having found that It was wasteful completely to as- as assemble as assemble I at tho the factor factory th the reason for tor complete completo construction In t a great factory or group ot of factories vanished It has hils been more or loss less taken for tor granted that a factory ought to b be near what viat is called th the labor because it tt has also been taken for fot granted R that Industry had to ho be Intermittent H It If a plantis plant plantIs Is continually shutting down ant opening up again it saves m money ne to have at hand a fund of or unemployed unemployed unemployed skilled workers who ho can be put Into operation without th the delay and expense of or training A tabor labor market means at the tha least leasta a small city or some densel densely pop pop- populated populated populated district A district of or this character where a majority of o people leople take unemployment aa as II a natural condition certainly cannot be prosperous and the living con con- conditions con conditions cannot approach those thoM necessary Sary for a 0 decent standard or of health The Tho workman wages this thia month and none next month will be mo most t of or tho the time In debt to his grocer butcher and whIch landlord which means that his livIng costs him more than It should A man who has to buy buyon buyon buyon on credit because he la Is unable to pay cash Is la not In a position to question prices The upkeep of or a 11 city Is expensive and therefore taxes are arc high and land values are high Therefore t to get rid of or the over over- overhead overhead overhead head of or the big city to try to find the balance between Industry and agriculture and more widely to distribute the purchasing i power of the wages we pay pay among the people who buy our products we wo began to decentralize VILLAGE GF INDUSTRIES We began bes-an our experiments to tn village Industries seven years ago by taking over an old mill at Northville NorOn about a 0 dozen miles up the River Rouge and turning It Into a valve shop The Rouge Is only a 0 little stream at North North- North yUle vile scarcely more than a 0 small creek and and though we wo I planned lanned to touge use water power at the beginning we 0 are only now getting around to Installing a turbine which will furnish a 0 part of or the power We Yo took the mill as It stood and sent five thirty the production men and the tho necessary machinery from Highland Park Our Idea was to the men from rom th the the surround surround- surroundIng surrounding surrounding ing countr country but we had to make a start with rm re experienced experienced workers espe especially to set up the machInery The making of or a valve Is divid divid- divided divided ed td by us Into 21 operations an and men aro now employed Those valves cost us 8 cents each ellch to tomako tomake tomake make mako at Highland Park and that was thought to be a u low tow cost Northville is turning out a day at a cost of 3 I cents a valve SOME OWN OWN OW r n FARMS IS That is on one part of or the stor story Here IsI Is I a more |
