DETROIT (1890 -1920)

The Mass Production of Mobility

Invention of mass production of automobile how and why Henry Ford did it ??
And why Detroit ??

American automobile Industry

Beginnings of automobile lay in Europe

All major innovations were taking place in
Europe

Daimler and Benz built the first vehicle in 1895

American technology was ten years behind

Americans found themselves reinventing the

automobile

Daimler and Benz's first car

Detroit

Detroit was similar to Manchester of the 1770's

Major growth came after opening of Erie Canal
and after discovery of iron and copper.
Leading manufacturer of ships, carriages, rail
road cars and furniture.

Biggest stove maker in the United States

Biggest copper refiner in the world

Struggle For Supremacy

The automobile industry was scattered

Detroit was a busy manufacturing center
It had a rich network related industries
Subcontracting tradition in the city
Detroit became an immigrant town, providing cheap
labor
Workforce was flexible
Detroit's bankers had good business sense and were
ready to take risks

Detroit Skyline

New England vs Detroit

Detroit was not a favored candidate

A number of inventors and pioneers were in the
city
Detroit's manufacturers saw car as a necessity
New England's Manufacturers saw car as a
luxury
They were not concerned business end

The Move to The Mass Market

Reasons for going into Mass Market

Detroit made the cheapest cars

Entrepreneurs were trying to mass produce
cheap cars
Old's runabout accounted for 56% of national
production
Americans were ready for cheap mass car

Old's curved dash runabout

Ford Beginnings

Henry Ford

Born on July 30, 1863

Worked as an engineer in
Michigan car company

Worked on his car in spare

time

Founded Detroit Automobile

Company with W.H.Murphy

Birth of Model T

Ford wanted a car that cheap car which could

substitute the family horse
The car should be light weight reliable and easy
maintain
Focused on designing a car for the mass
market

Norman Rockwell's Painting

Model T

Model T's features and production

Simplistic design only four constructional units

The running expenses were low

No special skill for repair or replacement

DRIVE TO MASS PRODUCTION

Invention of the idea of mass production

Using machines already developed

Principle of social organization

Assembly line manufacturing

Assembly line manufacturing in Detroit

Ford Factories

No organization

No specific duties

No line of succession

No authority

FORD
AND
THE DETROIT ELITE

WHAT ALLOWED FORD TO

INNOVATE WHEN OTHERS
FAILED???

Old companies focused on selling luxurious

cars

Social prejudices cost them the industry

Ford focused on lower strata of society

After 1910, power depended on mass

production

RISE OF GENERAL MOTORS

Freezing of Model T design

Resignation of Couzens in 1915

Entire company left to be dependent on Ford's

whim

General Motors rose during this time

Merging of GM, United Motors and Chevrolet

Alfred P Sloan

Sloan reorganized General Motors

Selling at different price brackets

Bought in components

Ford's customers wanted something different

Chevrolet competed with Model T in terms of
looks

Sloan invented installment buying

Used car trade-in

Closed cars

Annual models

DETROIT AS INNOVATIVE MILIEU

EUROPEANS VS AMERICANS???

EUROPEANS

Larger skilled
workforce
Technical perfection
Market wasn't big
enough

AMERICANS

Unskilled labor

Standardized designs

Better tools

U.S was the right place!

Large and expanded market

High standards of living

Natural resources

Transportation

Precedents ( especially Detroit )

Machine tools

Assembly line

Ford's talented in-house engineers

SO WHY DETROIT??

Rapid growth of natural resources

Rich engineering culture

Production of transportation equipment

Railroad car manufacturing

Rich network of interdependencies and skills

Union of old money and young innovation

Ready supply of venture capital

Equal interest in potential of the motor car

DETROIT TODAY

Off shoring manufacturing jobs

Shuttering of factories

Great recession

Declared bankruptcy in 2013 - $18 billion debt

Resurged in manufacturing last year

Federal bailout of GM and Chrysler enabled the

Big 3 U.S Automakers thrive

THANK YOU :)