An Assignment on

HENRY FORD

Name : Harshil V. Dodiya

Roll NO : 10 ( SFI )

Sem. : II Batch : 2010-2012

MBA PROGRAM

Sub : Marketing Management ( Year 2010-2011 )

Guided By : Dr. Jay Badiyani

Submitted To : Department Of Business Administration,

Faculty of Management,

Bhavnagar University, Bhavnagar

Henry Ford was the founder of Ford motor Company. He was the One of the first to apply assembly
line manufacturing to the company. He looked at other industries and found four principles that would
further their goal: interchangeable parts, continuous flow, division of labor, and reducing wasted
effort. Ford put these principles into play gradually over five years, fine-tuning and testing as he went
along. In 1913, they came together in the first moving assembly line ever used for large-scale
manufacturing. Ford produced cars at a record-breaking rate.

Birth & Childhood

Henry Ford was Born in July 30, 1863, on his family’s farm in Dearborn, Michigan. Henry’s father
name was William Ford ( Birth 1826, Death 1905 ) and his mother’s name is Mary O’Hern Litogot
Ford ( Birth 1839, Death 1876 ) Henry enjoyed a childhood typical of the rural nineteenth century,
spending days in a one-room school and doing farm chores.

At an early age, he showed an interest in mechanical things and a dislike for farm work. In 1879,
sixteen-year-old Ford left home for the nearby city of Detroit to work as an apprentice machinist,
although he did occasionally return to help on the farm. He remained an apprentice for three years and
then returned to Dearborn. During the next few years, Henry divided his time between operating or
repairing steam engines, finding occasional work in a Detroit factory, and over-hauling his father's
farm implements, as well as lending a reluctant hand with other farm work. Upon his marriage to
Clara Bryant ( Birth 1866, Marriage 11-Apr-1888, Death 1950 ) in 1888, Henry's father gave him a
large piece of land on which Henry built a small house, a sawmill, and a shop to tinker in. Henry
supported himself and his wife by running a sawmill.

Henry gave up farm life for good when he and Clara moved back to Detroit in 1891 so that Henry
could learn more about electricity by working at the Edison Illuminating Company. In 1891 he started
working for Thomas Edison as an engineer with Edison Illuminating Company. His experiments with
internal combustion engines, led him to built the self-propelled Quadricycle. In his free time, Ford
worked on building a gasoline engine ignited by electricity. On June 4, 1896, Henry Ford, at age 32,
completed his first successful horseless carriage, which he called the Quadricycle.
Henry Ford Trivia

On January 12, 1900, the Detroit Automobile Company released its first commercial automobile - a
delivery wagon - designed by Henry Ford. This was Ford's second car design - his first design was the
quadricycle built in 1896.

In 1903, Ford Motor Company is officially incorporated. Ford's first Model A appears on the market
in Detroit. Henry formed company in 1903 and soon made it the undisputed industry leader.

On July 15, 1903, the Ford Motor Company sold its first car, a Model A, to Dr. E. Pfennig, a dentist,
for $850. Ford continually worked to improve the cars' design and soon created Models B, C, and F.

Model T

In 1908, Ford designed the Model T, specifically designed to appeal to the masses. It was light, fast,
and strong. Henry had found and used Vanadium steel within the Model T which was much stronger
than any other steel available at the time. Also, all Model T's were painted black because that paint
color dried the fastest.

Since the Model T quickly became so popular that it was selling faster than Ford could manufacture
them, Ford began looking for ways to speed up the manufacturing.

Assembly Line

In 1913, Ford added a motorized assembly line in the plant. The motorized conveyor belts moved the
car to the workers, who would now each add one part to the car as the car moved passed them.

The motorized assembly line significantly cut the time, and thus cost, of manufacturing each car. Ford
passed on this savings to the customer. Although the first Model T was sold for $850, the price
eventually dropped to under $300. Ford produced the Model T from 1908 until 1927, building 15
million cars.

Although the Model T had made Henry Ford rich and famous, he continued to advocate for the
masses.

Paternalistic Policy
Ford's main contribution to the Industrial Revolution is the assembly line. At the peak of the Model T,
a car came of the assembly line every 93 minutes. In 1914, Ford instituted a $5 a day pay rate for his
workers, which was nearly double what workers were paid in other auto factories. Ford believed that
by raising the workers' pay. He cut the workday from nine to eight hours in order to convert the
factory to a three-shift workday. Ford's mass-production techniques would eventually allow for the
manufacture of a Model T every 24 seconds. His innovations made him an international celebrity.

The workers would be happier and faster on the job, their wives could stay home to care for the
family, and the workers were more likely to stay with the Ford Motor Company leading to less down-
time for training new workers.

Henry was very much against unions.

Henry owned a controversial newspaper, The Dearborn Independent, that published anti-Jewish
articles which offended many and tarnished his image

Henry Promoted the early use of aviation technology

Henry Built Village Industries, small factories in rural Michigan, where people could work and farm
during different seasons, thereby bridging the urban and rural experience

Henry Was one of the nation's foremost opponents of labor unions in the 1930s and was the last
automobile manufacturer to unionize his work force

Henry Mobilized his factories for the war effort and produced bombers, Jeeps, and tanks for World
War II

Henry Established schools in several areas of the country that provided educational experiences based
on traditional one room school techniques, modern teaching methods, and "learning through doing

Henry also Established an Indoor / Outdoor museum to preserve historical item that illustrate the
American experience and American ingenuity.

In 1999, Edsel B . Ford( Birth 1893, Death 1943), son of Henry Ford, is named president of Ford
Motor Company.
In 1921, Ford Motor Company dominates auto production with 55 percent of industry's total output.
On May 27, 1927, production ended for the Ford Model T - 15,007,033 units had been manufactured.
In 1926, Henry Focuses on air transportation and develops the Tri-Motor airplane.
In 1927, Henry Transfers final assembly line from Highland Park plant to the Rouge. Production of
the Model T ends, and the Model A is introduced.
In 1932, Henry Ford introduced his last engineering triumph: his "en block", or one piece, V-8 engine.
In 1941, Ford company signs a contract with UAW

On January 13, 1942, Henry Ford patented a plastic-bodied automobile - a car 30 percent lighter than
metal cars.

In 1943, Edsel B. Ford dies at age 49.

The T in Model T

Henry Ford and his engineers used the first 19 letters of the alphabet to name their automobiles,
although some of the cars were never sold to public.

End Of Henry Ford

Henry Ford died on 7th Apr 1947 at age 83 and cause of his death was Cerebral Haemorrhage and his
grandson Henry Ford II took over as chairman of the company.

References

Hyden Middleton, “ Henry Ford The People’s car-Maker ”, Oxford university Press, 1999

Steven Watts, “ The People’s Tycoon ”, Henry Ford and the American Century

Sidney Olson, “ A picture of the First Forty Years ”, Young Henry Ford

Carin T. Ford, “ Henry Ford : The Car Men ”, Enslow, 2003, 32 Pages

Henry Ford, “ My Life and Work ”, Filiquarian Publishing, LLC. , 2006

Jonathan Leonard, “ The Tragedy Of Henry Ford ”, (New York : G.P Putnam’s sons, 1932