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Henry Ford. My Life and Work
My Life and Work
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION—WHAT IS THE IDEA? I. THE BEGINNING. II. WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT BUSINESS. III. STARTING THE REAL BUSINESS. IV. THE SECRET OF MANUFACTURING AND SERVING. V. GETTING INTO PRODUCTION. VI. MACHINES AND MEN. VII. THE TERROR OF THE MACHINE. VIII. WAGES. IX. WHY NOT ALWAYS HAVE GOOD BUSINESS? X. HOW CHEAPLY CAN THINGS BE MADE? XI. MONEY AND GOODS. XII. MONEY—MASTER OR SERVANT? XIII. WHY BE POOR? XIV. THE TRACTOR AND POWER FARMING. XV. WHY CHARITY? XVI. THE RAILROADS. XVII. THINGS IN GENERAL. XVIII. DEMOCRACY AND INDUSTRY. XIX. WHAT WE MAY EXPECT. INDEX. INTRODUCTION
WHAT IS THE IDEA?
CHAPTER I
THE BEGINNING OF BUSINESS
CHAPTER II
WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT BUSINESS
CHAPTER III
STARTING THE REAL BUSINESS
CHAPTER IV
THE SECRET OF MANUFACTURING AND SERVING
CHAPTER V
GETTING INTO PRODUCTION
CHAPTER VI
MACHINES AND MEN
CHAPTER VII
THE TERROR OF THE MACHINE
CHAPTER VIII
WAGES
CHAPTER IX
WHY NOT ALWAYS HAVE GOOD BUSINESS?
CHAPTER X
HOW CHEAPLY CAN THINGS BE MADE?
CHAPTER XI
MONEY AND GOODS
CHAPTER XII
MONEY—MASTER OR SERVANT?
TOTAL $87,300,000
CHAPTER XIII
WHY BE POOR?
CHAPTER XIV
THE TRACTOR AND POWER FARMING
PRODOME
SORENSEN,
PERRY
COST, FORDSON, $880. WEARING LIFE, 4,800 HOURS AT ⅘ ACRES PER HOUR, 3,840 ACRES
8 HORSES COST, $1,200. WORKING LIFE, 5,000 HOURS AT ⅘ ACRE PER HOUR, 4,000 ACRES
CHAPTER XV
WHY CHARITY?
CHAPTER XVI
THE RAILROADS
CHAPTER XVII
THINGS IN GENERAL
CHAPTER XVIII
DEMOCRACY AND INDUSTRY
CHAPTER XIX
WHAT WE MAY EXPECT
THE BOOK ENDS
INDEX
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Henry Ford
Published by Good Press, 2019
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Our big changes have been in methods of manufacturing. They never stand still. I believe that there is hardly a single operation in the making of our car that is the same as when we made our first car of the present model. That is why we make them so cheaply. The few changes that have been made in the car have been in the direction of convenience in use or where we found that a change in design might give added strength. The materials in the car change as we learn more and more about materials. Also we do not want to be held up in production or have the expense of production increased by any possible shortage in a particular material, so we have for most parts worked out substitute materials. Vanadium steel, for instance, is our principal steel. With it we can get the greatest strength with the least weight, but it would not be good business to let our whole future depend upon being able to get vanadium steel. We have worked out a substitute. All our steels are special, but for every one of them we have at least one, and sometimes several, fully proved and tested substitutes. And so on through all of our materials and likewise with our parts. In the beginning we made very few of our parts and none of our motors. Now we make all our motors and most of our parts because we find it cheaper to do so. But also we aim to make some of every part so that we cannot be caught in any market emergency or be crippled by some outside manufacturer being unable to fill his orders. The prices on glass were run up outrageously high during the war; we are among the largest users of glass in the country. Now we are putting up our own glass factory. If we had devoted all of this energy to making changes in the product we should be nowhere; but by not changing the product we are able to give our energy to the improvement of the making.
The principal part of a chisel is the cutting edge. If there is a single principle on which our business rests it is that. It makes no difference how finely made a chisel is or what splendid steel it has in it or how well it is forged—if it has no cutting edge it is not a chisel. It is just a piece of metal. All of which being translated means that it is what a thing does—not what it is supposed to do—that matters. What is the use of putting a tremendous force behind a blunt chisel if a light blow on a sharp chisel will do the work? The chisel is there to cut, not to be hammered. The hammering is only incidental to the job. So if we want to work why not concentrate on the work and do it in the quickest possible fashion? The cutting edge of merchandising is the point where the product touches the consumer. An unsatisfactory product is one that has a dull cutting edge. A lot of waste effort is needed to put it through. The cutting edge of a factory is the man and the machine on the job. If the man is not right the machine cannot be; if the machine is not right the man cannot be. For any one to be required to use more force than is absolutely necessary for the job in hand is waste.
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