Henry Ford. History of success

Talented people always have a different way of thinking. Henry Ford, whose biography is known to everyone, was no exception. A great engineer, a talented boss, an inventor with a vegetarian addiction.

Henry Ford: A Brief Biography. Childhood

On a hot day on June 30, 1863, the future founder of Ford was born in Michigan. He studied at an ordinary school, had many friends. On his thirteenth birthday, his father gave him a wristwatch. The mechanism interested the boy so much that, unable to bear it, he disassembled them, and later easily put them back together. He repeated the procedure more than once. Friends, seeing the natural talent of the master with a scrupulous approach to repairs, began to turn to the farmer's son for help in repairing wall and wrist clocks. There were not enough tools at that time, I had to use improvised means in the form of a penknife, an old screwdriver with knocked down teeth.

Young Henry felt that housekeeping was not his way. In July 1876, he and his father were in Detroit. A steam-powered vehicle was slowly moving past him on the road. According to his own recollections, it was a locomobile.

Youth

Henry Ford leaves his father's farm at the age of 16. He was never able to find use in agricultural work. After moving to Detroit, he gets a job in Drydock's workshop as an apprentice mechanic. All the subsequent time he studied accounting and focused on the study of steam engines, since from the first memorable meeting he knew what he wanted to change in this machine. His parents never shared his passion for mechanics, they firmly stood on the intention to transfer the farming skill to the only heir. After getting a job as an apprentice machinist in Detroit, Henry worked part-time by repairing clockwork. Thus, this occupation turned into a kind of hobby that Ford carried with him throughout his life.

Henry Ford: biography and personal life

Having met Clara Ale Bryant in 1888, Ford briefly forgets about his plans, marries a young beauty and returns to agriculture in order to feed his family. But after a few years he was invited on the recommendation of the Edison Illuminating Company. In 1893 he was appointed to the position of chief engineer due to his technical literacy, responsibility and work discipline. But the thought of creating his own horseless carriage did not leave him.

Henry Ford has said more than once that his wife is the best companion for him. Son Edsel - the sole heir to Ford Motor in the future - will disappoint his active father with his indifference to the automotive business. The close circle told that the early death of his son was not a strong tragedy for the elderly Ford. But Klara, like a mother, got out of depression for a long time. Henry Ford himself will not understand that his son repeated his fate as a farm boy, who dreams of racing in his own car, and not trudging on a harnessed mule.

First model

In 1896 he built his first model, the Ford Quadricycle. Then in the same year, he personally meets Thomas Edison and shows him his drawings of automotive technology. The directors and founders of the Edison Company were inspired by Ford's drawings and gave the go-ahead for the construction of an improved model.

Over the years, Henry and Thomas will become best friends and neighbors, discussing not only political and social issues, but also innovative implementations in the auto industry.

Achievements

Henry Ford, whose biography and achievements command great respect, never stopped halfway. Through numerous tests, in 1899 he already had a stake in a small car company. In 1903, at the age of 40, he founded the Ford Motor Company. The beginning production was attacked by a large auto syndicate. The litigation continued for about seven years, in the end the Ford company won and was cleared of plagiarism charges.

Industrial conveyor launch

Henry Ford, whose biography is described in the book "My Life, My Achievements", took as the basis of his work the methodology developed for Samuel Colt. Manufacturing steps include separate assembly for each item.

Ford introduced standardization of the parts used, thereby reducing overall assembly time and also reducing the number of skilled workers on the belt. Now the assembly could be controlled by ordinary workers.

Each workshop was engaged in its own work, which was actively modernized. Having figured out how to combine the work of the entire assembly mechanism, Ford created a single line at its production site that passes through most of the shops. Additional lines were connected to the main conveyor for the timely supply of the necessary elements during assembly.

By polishing the assembly process with a single assembly line, Ford achieved an amazing result. Every 10 seconds, a ready car stood on its way at the exit. Thus, the company managed to make a profit, reduce the final cost of a car, allowing the average resident to purchase an iron horse.

In the fall of 1908, the first model of the legendary engineer, the Model T, rolled off the assembly line. The employees of the "Ford" company fondly called her "Tin Lizzie". American farmers give this nickname to their workhorses, and the Irish, for example, give this name to disobedient and wayward mares. The price of the car was just over $ 200 at the time. This model made it possible to occupy a niche in the market, covering the circle of people with an average monthly income in the country.

By introducing mass production at his plant, Ford was able to achieve an increase in the daily wages of workers. All drinkers, gamblers, having problems with the payment of alimony, convicts, and those on the wanted list could not get into the collective. Later, the owner of the company will change his mind, changing his attitude towards people who have problems with family and the law, believing that this is not his concern. For order on the assembly lines, Ford often resorted to the services of crime bosses, appointing them to look at the sites. The reputation-destroying method worked flawlessly. There were no fights or squabbles, the workers were exclusively engaged in matters that were in their responsibilities.

The next step was the division of the working day into three shifts, the transfer of production to a round-the-clock operating mode. The eight-hour day was introduced by Henry Ford. His biography tells that he thereby organized several hundred jobs that are so necessary for local residents.

Many interesting things happened in the life of such a person as Henry Ford. The biography, a summary of which cannot convey all the details, includes many interesting facts from his life. By the way, the inventor described his life in his writings.

No one expected that the book, which was written by Henry Ford himself (biography in English), will be sold in such a circulation. It will become a kind of car bible.

Henry Ford will become America's first registered chauffeur. Although at that moment the rules of the road did not exist yet.

The first car Ford sold cost $ 200.

The great designer firmly believed in human reincarnation. Answering questions, Henry Ford, whose biography is set out in the book, will tell about the soldier he was in a past life.

At his famous plant in wartime, equipment was assembled for the Germans who idolized Ford.

The first car was black. The shade was not chosen for the love of color, it just dries faster.

The first model is among the top ten man-made objects that changed the world, according to Forbes magazine.

Coal in briquettes is another innovation invented by a brilliant and talented engineer.

Takeover of "Ford Motor"

In 1909, the Ford brand was registered in the patent office. The image has changed slightly over the years, as Henry Ford himself wrote. The biography in English tells about a triangle with spread wings, denoting lightness and the desire for speed. The colors - blue and orange - did not change until the end of the 20th century.

In 1919, Ford and his son bought out the remaining shares, and the company was completely taken over by the family. Ford Jr. takes the lead in production.

Ford Motor Crisis

While Henry Ford, whose biography had not yet been completed, was resting in retirement, his son was in crisis. Production was outdated, Model T was inferior to competitors in terms of technical characteristics. It was decided to close all Ford factories for restructuring and reconstruction of production facilities. However, at this time in the leadership race, General Motors came out on top, which a little earlier took care of expanding the range of cars - for any wallet and status.

The released Model A was defeated as a result, the sales rate was low. Consumers wanted a faster engine, more modern design. In 1932, Ford launched a monolithic eight-cylinder engine for the first time in history. Many years will pass while other companies implement their ideas on how to safely start such an engine. Henry Ford himself did not stand aside from the implementation of the project, the biography of that period indicates his indirect involvement in the grandiose breakthrough.

War time

The discoverer of briquette coal was always negatively disposed towards military operations, therefore he openly declared his pacifist sentiments. Imagine the surprise of society when it became known about the beginning of military production on the basis of "Ford Motor".

In 1942, the production of cars for civilians was stopped due to martial law. A massive campaign launched by Ford's son designed more than 50,000 military-grade elements in less than three years.

In 1943, Edsel Ford's only son dies of cancer. This was the reason for the return to the post of head of Henry Ford.

Last years

The first automobile tycoon Henry Ford met his old age with dignity. Biography, description of his life in his declining years confirm this.

Having transferred powers to his grandson, the brilliant engineer quietly retired and lived on his estate with his wife. He was awarded several honorary awards for his contribution to the automotive industry, received a medal of the highest standard for his contribution to the development of society. Ford died in 1947, at the age of 83.

After the death of the founder of the Ford Motor brand, his grandson continued the business and in several years raised production to a high level, capable of competing to this day.

Childhood with bolts and nuts in hand. A youth spent with dirty hands, always smelling of fuel oil. Not every boy dreams of such a life, but not Henry Ford. Originality of thinking, a kind of analytical mindset, natural talent and golden hands made him a person recognizable in every corner of the world. The biography of Henry Ford is a book that has become for many a hope for their future. With faith in himself and the Vedic spiritual forces, he persistently built his ladder of glory. The Ford Motor company created by him today is one of the leaders in the automotive industrial arena.

Henry Ford's success story began in the garage in which he assembled his first car at night. Henry Ford is considered to be the founding father of the American automobile industry.

Useful skills

Henry Ford was born in Dearborn, Michigan. His family was not poor, but all of her wealth was due to manual labor on the farm. Absolutely everything was done by hand - from the repair of equipment to the production of inventory.

Thanks to this, young Henry knew how to handle different instruments and even mastered watchmaking.

Interest in technology

At the age of 12 young Ford for the first time in his life saw a self-propelled vehicle, without a horse. The boy's delight knew no bounds. He wished to know in more detail the structure of this unit.

The driver explained to him that this carriage is driven by a chain drive suitable for the rear wheels. The chain is set in motion by a steam boiler with a furnace, and the fuel is coal.

This meeting, as Ford later wrote, turned everything upside down in his mind.

Self-propelled carriage seen in youth became Henry's dream and the reason why he later became involved in the construction of automobiles.

Own car

Ford's interest in invention was so strong that he dropped out of school, farming, and even abandoned his inheritance. All this was done in order to go to work at the Thomas Edison plant.

After work, at night, Henry worked in his garage to create his own car. In 1986 he completed his first work, the result of which was an analogue of an ATV that ran on gasoline. Henry's neighbors got scared when he started up his machine and drove it down the street.

First successes and failures

Success with the design of the first car prompted Ford to join the car company because he needed money. He was engaged in the construction of machines.

The owners of the company were interested in certain models of transport. They were not interested in the invention of the young designer. For this reason, Henry broke off cooperation with them.

In the first 10 years of the twentieth century, more than 500 companies engaged in the production of cars. Of this multitude, several have developed. During this period, Ford also created his first company, but was bankrupt after 1 year.

Perseverance and work

Irish roots allowed Ford to perceive his first business defeat solely as a simulator, and he continued to try to create an automobile production. As a result in 1903 the company "Ford Motor" was founded, which today is successful all over the world.

Ford's idea was to make a car that could be purchased by a worker in his factory. That is, it should be inexpensive in terms of price. It was he who became the "parent of the image of the American Dream", instilling in his employees the dream of their own car.

Budget car

In those days, the cost of a car was about one thousand dollars and more. To create a budget option, Ford did not care much about the interior of his brainchild, and even about the prestige of the Ford motor brand itself.

As a result, the first victory was the model T car (he began to name all his models in alphabetical order from the first letter of the alphabet), released in 1908, which had a cost of $ 800.

This was achieved, among other implementations and developments, by creating the first industrial conveyor. In the entire production, each worker was responsible for performing just one operation. Thanks to this, every 10 seconds a new car rolled off the assembly line at the Ford factory.

Model "T"

Model "T" was soon recognized as the most successful, it went off the assembly line first for 800 dollars, by 1920 for 600 dollars and later for 345 dollars! No one had such low prices. At the same time, Ford began to paint all cars in one color - black.

Competitors' grins

Major car manufacturers laughed at the idea of ​​a budget car and predicted bankruptcy for Ford. However, he did not listen to these ridicule and continued to develop his business.

An important moment was the decision to produce spare parts for machines.Ford, no other manufacturer did it then.

Since 1914, he has paid workers $ 5 a day. It was in twice more than the industry average. He shortened the working day up to 8 hours, provided his workers 2 days off!

Innovations in the Ford motor

In 1920, Henry Ford reorganized his company. As a result, the “management” staff was reduced. All downsized managers were offered to move to production shops. Those who disagreed were fired.

The bureaucracy in the company has decreased and the number of unnecessary meetings has decreased. All innovations accelerated the work of production and increased the flow of money, which Ford again invested in the development of his brainchild.

Henry quickly bought all the shares in the company from his associates and became the sole owner of Ford motor.

By 1927, 15 million Model T cars had been produced and sold. The cost of the company itself was estimated at $ 700 million. The capital of Ford, together with his son, reached 1.2 billion (at present, about 30 billion) dollars.

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Ford is a brand known all over the world. Probably, there is not a single modern person who, at the word Ford, will not have associations with something reliable and fundamental.

Henry Ford is the man who created a brand from his name that is firmly entrenched in the automotive industry.

Many articles and books have been written about Henry Ford, about the components of his success, but he himself remained silent about himself for a long time.

Henry Ford Books

And so, at the age of sixty, he wrote a very lively, interesting book about his business and his success, which he called "My life, my achievements".

Surprisingly, it is a fact that this book was printed in dozens of countries around the world, even in the Soviet Union it underwent several editions, and this was in 1924-1927. He also wrote a book "Today and tomorrow".

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Henry Ford is a successful entrepreneur, innovator, and engineer, on a par with Edison, Rockefeller, Morgan and other "America's builders." For many decades, the success story and biography of Ford was considered an example of how you can reach incredible heights only with the help of hard work and your own mind, and to this day his books do not lose their relevance among novice businessmen. How did it all begin and what did Ford have to overcome on the way to the title of automobile king?

A farm near Detroit

Henry was born into a farming family near Detroit, his parents were from Ireland, and besides him, 6 more children grew up in the family. Ford's father was able to provide for the family, there was enough money to live, and by farm standards, the Ford family was considered rich, although everyone had to work for this.

One of the most important events of his childhood, Henry considers a gift from his father - a wrist watch, which the curious guy took apart almost immediately in order to explore the internal mechanism. Love for technology and mechanics awoke in the boy from an early age, but the environment in which he lived and his father's beliefs did not contribute to the development of abilities, so soon Ford decides to leave the house.

Working by vocation

Henry twice tried to break out of his native farm in Detroit to work as an engineer. He fled to the city for the first time at the age of 16, and in order to somehow ensure his existence he worked at an enterprise for the production of carriages, and during the night shift he was engaged in repairing watches in a workshop. After 4 years of such a life, Ford returned home, where his father gave him 40 acres of land so that the guy would forget about cars forever.

For the second time, Henry Ford went to Detroit with his wife (by that time, by the way, pregnant) and received the position of mechanical engineer in the rapidly developing Thomas Edison Lighting Company. The zealous worker was soon promoted to chief engineer and began building his own car at home in the garage.

After successfully testing his creation, the young man received sponsors and became one of the co-founders of the Detroit Motors automobile company. A management position and a stake in an engineering company is a good springboard to the future, but soon Henry Ford, management and working methods that the other founders do not like, are forced to leave Detroit Motors. The conflict arose when a newly minted executive proposed to reduce the cost of making cars by making them available to ordinary workers, which ran counter to the company's policy of producing "expensive toys" for wealthy Americans.

Mid-range cars - a breakthrough from Ford Motors

A year after the departure of their Detroit Motors, Henry Ford, whose success story has received a new round, finds sponsors and founds his own company - Ford Motors. He still strives to make cars cheap and affordable for the working class, so when creating the Model T, he abandons expensive materials for finishing, but this is not enough and Ford decides to radically change the manufacturing process.

Ford Motors Introduces Assembly Line to Increase Efficiency, and the conveyors themselves rise to the level of the belt, which makes the work much more comfortable. In addition, lifting hooks and cables are installed on the production line, allowing engines and heavy vehicle parts to be lifted much faster and with fewer people.

The workflow optimization resulted in the $ 800 Model T, a third less than the starting price of most cars at the time.

The Model T was sold out at such a rate that soon Ford Motors became a monopoly in the market, occupying more than 50% of the segment... The improved model A.

Henry Ford's accomplishments are also in the reform of the organization of work. For the first time, workers were entitled to paid leave and a six-day work week with legal days off.

The work shift was reduced from 9 to 8 hours, and instead of two, three shifts worked, which created new jobs and made it possible not to stop production for an hour. The average monthly wage for a Ford Motors worker was about $ 130 ($ 100 was considered a very decent wage at the time), so the workers were motivated to stay with the company.

Henry Ford's secret of success

Examining the biography of Ford, one can notice that he had a tendency to work with various mechanisms from childhood, and in order to develop them as a young man, he had to sacrifice the quiet life of a wealthy farmer. Henry managed to work in several positions related to engineering and design, which undoubtedly allowed him to gain experience and move in the chosen direction.

Ford's engineering mindset was complemented by out-of-the-box thinking, which made it possible to radically change the production process, reduce production costs and literally break into the automotive market of that time.

But the story of Henry Ford is also a prime example of how you can achieve success using your own genius and fail because of overconfidence. Confident in his non-standard mindset, the founder of "Ford Motors" ignored the advice of many engineers and other specialists, as a result of which he received a monopoly on the market General Motors.

You can study the life and worldview of the great innovator in more detail in the books:

• Henry Ford - "My life, my achievements";
• Henry Ford - "Today and tomorrow";
• Henry Ford - Moving forward.

I want it. So it will be.
Henry Ford.

American engineer, industrialist, inventor, founder of the Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company, was the first to organize in-line production. Henry was born June 30, 1863 in Michigan. His father, William, a farmer who emigrated from Ireland, was dissatisfied with his son, considering him a sissy and lazy person. Because the guy was reluctant to carry out all the errands of his father on the farm. He did not like pets, fresh milk.

He believed that you can do more useful business than farming. At the age of 12, his father gave him a watch. The guy could not resist and opened the cover of the mechanism. He considered the structure of the clock for a long time, then assembled and disassembled them and came to the conclusion that the whole world is a large mechanism, just like. Everything in life has its own levers, and in order to succeed, you need to know which levers you need to press in time.

Another shock for Ford was the meeting with the locomobile, which was like a smoking and hissing monster for him. The boy at that moment would have given half his life to ride a locomobile. When Henry was 15, he dropped out of school and secretly left for Detroit at night, with only one thought - he would never be a farmer.

First job or the beginning of the path to success

He got a job at a plant for the manufacture of horse-drawn carriages. But here he did not work for long. Henry was very well versed in the machinery in the factory and quickly eliminated the cause. This caused envy among the other workers, and they kept the young man out of the factory. After a while, he gets a job at the Flower brothers shipyard. At night I worked part-time by repairing watches. But there was barely enough money to pay for the room he rented.

At the time, he did not yet know. At this time, his father offers him 40 acres of land on the condition that he will forget about cars forever. Henry agreed, but Hive did not even suspect that he was deceived. Since he had a fiancée, Clara, and he understood that her parents would not marry their daughter to a man who did not have a penny in his heart.

Marriage and childbirth

He married Clara Bryanat, who was three years his junior. They met at a country dance. Clara's parents were there too. Soon he built a small house on his land and settled there with his wife.

Henry and Clara moved to Detroit, Ford took a job at the Detroit Electric Company as an engineer. We must pay tribute to the wife, no matter what happened, she was always with her husband in good and bad moments. I always understood him and agreed with his decisions.

In November 1893, the family had a boy named Edsel. At the same time, Henry completed construction of his experimental car, which was called the "Quadricycle", weighed only 500 pounds and rode on four bicycle tires.

Leadership positions

In the same year he became the chief engineer of the Edison Company, in 1899 the chief engineer of the Detroit Automobile Company. But the management noticed that Ford did little to do with the business of the company and spends most of his time on his car. He is offered to take a leadership position on the condition that he abandon his car. Ford refused and decided to look for people who would buy his ideas. But nobody needed them. As a result, Henry found one businessman - Detroit, who agreed to work with him.

The Detroit Automobile Company was formed, but it did not last long. Because there was no demand for cars. In 1903, Ford becomes the managing director of Ford Motors.

Launch of car production

In 1905, Ford buys out a stake in the company from Alexander Malcolmson and becomes the owner of a controlling stake and president of Ford Motor Company. The production of a new car model "T" begins. This model was affordable for almost any American. Model "T" easily conquered the consumer market, and 15 million cars were sold during the years of its production. We think you will also be interested in the success of the Ferrari company.

In the production of Ford cars, there was an assembly line production, a clear control and planning system. He set a minimum wage for the first time, an 8-hour workday.

The inventor was completely confident in his genius, so he often ignored the advice of specialists in the production of cars. As a result, he lost the flexibility and flair of an innovator. Henry did not take into account the changes that took place in the market in the 30s, as a result of which General Motors took the leading position in the automotive industry.

In 1945, to avoid, the management of the company was transferred to the grandson of Henry Ford 2 and retired. Henry had no bad habits, he was obsessed with a healthy lifestyle, he loved to study the history of American culture. The famous inventor died when he was 83 on April 7, 1947. This man entered the history of mankind forever, and his cars are popular even now.