Worksheet The Assembly Line

Video Worksheet – Modern Marvels: The Assembly Line Answer the questions below as you watch the video “Modern Marvels: The Assembly Line.” 1. According to Bob Casey, curator of the Henry Ford Museum, what is the most significant technological development of the 20th century? ______The assembly line _________________________________ 2. Complete the quote: “Nearly everything we use, we would not have it in the ___quantities_____________________ we have it, and at the __prices__________________ we have it, without the assembly line.” - Bob Casey 3. What does the narrator mean by “work in motion?” ____The work moves to the person rather than the person moving to the work.____________________________________________ 4. What was the assembly line originally about the need for? ______To move work faster _______________________ 5. In what industry did the idea of “work in motion” originate? _____Meat industry____________________________________ 6. Who was the car inventor that first experimented with assembly lines? ______Henry __________Ford________________ 7. What were Henry Ford’s goals in implementing assembly lines at the Ford Motor Company? ____Drive the price of the car down but keep the quality high. As well as keep the production volume up.___________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What did labor efficiency expert Frederick Spoede Taylor believe about human intelligence in the production process? _________That it was a hindrance to the process of production __________________________________________________________________________________ 9. Describe Taylor’s process for speeding up work: __Break down a job into smaller tasks, providing low skilled jobs that required little to no experience. This would speed up production.________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. How long did it take one man to build a Ford Model-T car before the assembly line? __728 hours _________________ 11. How long did it take with the assembly line? ____90 minutes _________________________________ 12. How many cars did Ford’s factory produce in 1912? ___82,000_________ In 1914? __267,000_________________ 13. As a result, the price of a Model-T dropped from $__600____________ to $___490____________ 14. Why did workers hate the assembly line? _______because it was boring and repetitive _________________________________________________ 15. Who replaced highly skilled workers on assembly lines? ___lower paid unskilled workers _________________________________________ 16. Since people did not want to do these low-skilled, boring jobs, what was the “bait” needed to keep people working these jobs? ________increased wages _________________________________________ 17. In what two (2) ways did Henry Ford respond to workers leaving his factories? a. ________doubled the wage to $5 a day _________________________________________________________ b. ____________shortened the work hours from 9 to 8 _____________________________________________________ 18. What did the wage increase for factory workers allow them to do? ___buy the they were building _________________________________ 19. Roosevelt Ford (no relation to Henry) is shown in the video as a skilled tradesman in the Ford factory. Why was this significant? _____________Becuase he inspired four generations of his family to work on the assembly line._____________________________________________________________ 20. In 1929, what was the rate at which cars came off the line? ___1 every 10 seconds ________________________________ 21. By the late 1920s, what percentage of the world’s goods was produced in America thanks to the assembly line? ____43%__________________________ 22. What did Ford’s (and others’) mass-production require to maximize profits and minimize costs? _____mass consumption_____________________________ 23. What are two goods that used to be only for upper-class people that assembly lines made available to everyone? ____radios __________________________, ___phonographs ___________________________ 24. In 1927, how much more purchasing power did an American factory worker have than a decade before? __third_______ 25. What was the one glaring exception that Americans did NOT want mass-produced? ____housing_______________ 26. What was one drawback to Ford’s assembly line production? ___it offered no variety __________________________________ 27. How did General Motors try to compete against Ford? _____offer something different with a small bump up in price to a model t.______________________________________ 28. What car model did Ford introduce in 1927 to compete with General Motors? __model a ______________________ 29. What factor led to auto manufacturers changing their assembly lines? _people wanted variety in vehicles ______________________________ 30. What major historical event during the 1940s caused Detroit automakers to have to change their production again? __world war 2 _______________________ 31. What two major groups of people were first brought onto assembly lines in large numbers due to worker shortages during World War II? _women ________________, ____african americans ______________ 32. What was one of the major reasons the US won World War II? ____we were able to produce all kinds of war material, at a fast rate and cheaper price.____________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 33. What percentage of the white male wage did women and blacks earn during World War II? _____doesn’t say____________ 34. According to John Shook from the Lean Enterprise Institute, if Henry Ford invented the car assembly line, what company perfected it? ____Toyota___________________ 35. How did the Japanese assembly lines treat their workers’ mind power compared to assembly lines in the US? _They saw the intelligence of their workers as a part of the assembly line rather than a obstruction.__________________________________________________________________________________ _____ 36. How did this affect worker satisfaction with their jobs? _____They got more stuff done as they felt fulfilled. ____________________________________ 37. How did “Lean Production” increase efficiency and lower labor costs? ______Labor was cut and workers were told to do more tasks and improve umpon them.__________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 38. What economic event in the 1970s led American consumers to seek smaller, more fuel-efficient cars? _______severe gas shortage _____________________________ 39. In what year did Japanese auto production surpass American auto production? __1980_____________ 40. What technological innovation is poised to revolutionize auto production in the 21st century? ___automation____________ 41. What effect does automation have on the quantity and quality of production? ___With the increase in quality comes the greater quantity of automation.________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 42. Which jobs are done in an automated assembly line by robots? ___tasks that require heavy automation.____________________________________ 43. Which jobs are done by humans? ___The assembly of the engine. ____________________________________________________________ 44. How does Hyundai’s plant in Alabama incorporate “lean production” into its production? __They hav implemented _electric conveyers rather than chain driven ones. They also have a quiet environment which allows workers to key in and concentrate on their tasks. Along with ergonomic devices that reduce strain on workers. And finally they encourage flexible thinking among their laborers. _______________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 45. What does Jim Jordan mean when he says Ford’s assembly line methods were “perfect for his time” and “we have a lot of rethinking to do” with respect to assembly lines? What does this say about how humans must respond as economic conditions change over time? ___The beginning stage of the assembly line were perfect for Ford’s time as he was able to produce one vehicle and kept making it, until he had to implement new models and colors. As technology advances we are faced with different challenges and that brings new solutions and innovations onto the assembly line. Humanity must adapt to changing times as they’re unpredictable and challenging but, they spark a new set of lessons and problems to the future generations. ________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________