Henry Ford and the Application of Industrial Engineering Principles - Research Paper Sample

Industrial Engineering deals with designing and improvement of complex systems. It involves making work easier by eliminating wastage of time, resources, money, machine power, and a workforce that is of no use in the system or process. It aims at improving productivity, as well as the quality of systems. The knowledge and skills in mathematics and social sciences along with the methods of engineering are used in predicting and evaluating results obtained from systems. The principles of industrial engineering can be utilized in various fields to improve the systems involved those fields. The fields where industrial engineering principles have played a significant role include agriculture, economics, technology, environment, manufacturing industries, and healthcare. Henry Ford applied industrial engineering principles in his company that left other fields borrowing and modifying his ideas.

Henry Ford played an important role in Industrial Engineering. He built an automobile and assembly line company known as the Ford Motor Company. Through this, he made cars that were affordable to families and that had average mass consumption. He was able to achieve such by reducing the manufacturing cost thus producing the vehicles in masses. He also gave his workers high wages which motivated them to work more effectively. Ford is known for the manufacturing philosophy known as Fordism (Boyer & Durand, 2016). It is a philosophy that tries to improve production by producing products in a large-scale standardized manner for mass consumption.

Ford used three fundamental principles and implemented them in his company. The first was the principle of economy. This principle aims at reducing materials used in production. He applied this principle in his automobile industry. He made cars before the deadline for payment of the raw materials had reached. Time in which products are produced should be fast and effective. The other principle involved the use of available resources and materials to produce a product thus reducing time spent on production (Wilson, 2014). The last principle was by making sure productivity level was at the top. He utilized the assembly line to increase the capacity of production of man. He also developed specialized systems that enabled him to have an increased production, as well as the employee earning more income.

Industrial Engineering Principles in Health Care

Henry Ford bought a general hospital and renamed it after his name. He tried to change various practices that were in the hospitals design and management. Ford considered putting the patients interest at first before anything else. He discovered that a lot of time was wasted by the doctors and nurses on walking from here to there. Less time was spent for the care and treatment of the patient. He decided to change his hospital by having each floor complete. That aimed at reducing steps and motion of the nurses and doctors. Most of the modern hospitals have implemented this to make sure that their patients receive maximum attention and less time is spent in walking. The hospitals have also been designed that all storage facilities are under one location and it is centrally placed. Such is because nurses spend most of their time walking in search of medication and equipment.

The healthcare system has implemented other various principles to satisfy their end users who are the patients. Industrial engineering principles are applied in cases of bed capacity analysis. The principles are used to determine if the beds can accommodate the patients, both who are admitted and emergency cases. Industrial engineers are concerned with the health of operators. Healthy operators make production easier and efficient. Any improvement in the productivity should not lead to any fatigue or disorders. The vehicle, tractor or any mobile machinery should be safe for the use of the operator and should be comfortable as well. By implementing such, productivity can be achieved.

Industrial Engineering Principles in Manufacturing Industry

In automobile manufacturing, the six sigma is vital for production. The method not only aims at reaping profits but pleasing its customers. The six sigma aims at producing products with less defect making sure that about 99.9% of the products are error free (Pyzdek & Keller, 2014). The Ford Company has utilized this method since the beginning, and it is evident by its products. The cars produced by Ford are of high quality since they highly value their customer satisfaction. The product being of high quality increases the trust of the customers and in return brings enormous profits. Other companies such as Toyota have implemented this method as a way of getting more customers. The six sigma maximizes profits and reduces the cost of manufacturing.

The textile manufacturing industry has a lot of challenges. Some may include the high cost of production, competition, and inefficiency. Industrial engineering has reduced some of the difficulties drastically with certain implementations in place. Industries involved in textile manufacturing further train their employees on how to operate sews. It has been applied to conducting researches and analyzing the designs to be used in the textile. The quality of the product produced increases. Work performed by sewing operators is measured to allow time allocated to them to perform their tasks (Morse, Babcock & Murthy, 2014). A standard time is set through which the operators are allowed to use the sewing machine and perform manual tasks. Such ensures there is a balance of task performed thus ensuring a timely production.

In food manufacturing industries, industrial engineering plays a major role in ensuring food safety. Industrial engineering alongside other bodies such as Food and Drug Administration makes sure that food is safely processed to avoid harming the consumer. The machines used in food processing are made sure to be of standard productivity and are safe. In the United States, processed food is widely consumed thus creating demand. Industrial engineering principles are applied to ensure that the demand for production meets the consumers need.

Industrial Engineering Principles in Transportation

In the transport sector, industrial engineering can be utilized to improve transportation systems. In the current society, individuals feel the need for transportation systems being fast and efficient. Other than being fast, there is a need for individuals not getting tired by the means they decide to choose. Transport systems have been developed to meet the needs of every individual. Industries use transportation systems to transport materials and products from one place to another. There is a need for materials and products arriving on time. Industrial engineering principles can be applied to ensure such by building roads accessible to areas without a road. Transportation systems need not affect the environment. Such can be implemented by the use of public means or the development of cars that consume less fuel. Significantly, there has been the introduction of cars that use electricity or solar power as a fuel thus do not pollute the environment.

Industrial Engineering Principles in Agriculture

Agriculture is an essential aspect of humanity. Through agriculture, people get food and also earn. Industrial engineering principles are useful in the field of agriculture and have been implemented in various ways for benefit and problem-solving. Industrial Engineering principles can be used to develop farm machinery. Henry Ford used his automobile company to develop tractors that could be implemented in agriculture. The tractors replace human labor which makes farming simpler and easier. Principles of the machine, equipment, and tools utilization economy are important in guiding the decision in productivity. Through the utilization of essential machines such as electric motors and pumps, agriculture can be boosted. Such can also be achieved by utilizing all resources available. Through this, a lot of food produced is cheaper and accessible to everyone.

Industrial Engineering Principles in Technology

Industrial Engineering principles have been applied widely in technology. The use of computer-aided design has enabled development of complex machinery. CAD has allowed people to work on what they want to develop before doing it (Dieter & Schmidt, 2013). It acts as a technological blueprint of what is yet to be developed. It is an effective representation of the end product. In case of mistakes, the product may be modified to fit the desired qualities and aspects. CAD allows perfect designs that have a high precision. It is utilized in the development of cars, buildings. As such, it has allowed for the reduction of mistakes and defects.

The use of simulation is another application of industrial engineering in technology. Simulation can be widely used in cases of transport. When one is learning how to fly a plane or drive a car, simulation is used. Such creates an environment where the learner uses to adapt and learn safely before exposure. Pilots are trained thoroughly before flying an actual plane. Such allows the reduction of resource wastage since what is only needed is simulator machine and environment as opposed to the plane which is quite expensive. Simulation is also used to create events and predict outcomes. Such may be in cases of weather. It is used in depicting effects of a weather situation and how to overcome it. It is also used for medical instances by simulating patients and teaching how to handle such cases.

Industrial Engineering Principles in Environment

Industries consume a lot of energy and produce a lot of gas emissions, as well as waste products. Such pollutes the environment thus destroying it. Through industrial engineering and its application, the environment might be saved from this pollution. It is vital to cut energy cost while increasing efficiency in production. There are various applications of industrial engineering in the environment. There is the creation of environmental policies and regulations which aid in preventing industries from polluting the environment. The creation of devices that determine the concentration of pollutants and introducing of designs combustion processes to reduce air pollution. As such, the air quality is maintained.

Drinking water is ensured to be safe through water treatment methods such as membrane technology and desalinization. Further treatment of wastewater from industries and domestic activities is done to ensure that water discharged to the environment is clean and causes no harm to the environment. Management of solid waste is also assured through industrial engineering. The engineers develop systems that recycle and dispose of waste which can be a health or environmental hazard. Through modern technologies, materials that are of use can be recovered and be further utilized. Such ensures that products produced are of standard and do not harm the environment of the consumer.

Industrial engineering principles can be applied in constructions. It is mostly associated with the construction of processing plants, energy systems, and industrial constructions. In the case of the power plant, the designs regarding how the plant will produce and store power are essential. It requires further research and knowledge. Regarding energy, it entails generation from sources, transportation, and its distribution. Planning is essential when it comes to construction as it determines if the end product will be achieved and what factors may hinder it. It is also important in determining the cost of the project. By applying the principles of industrial engineering, materials can be reduced thus cutting down on cost. Selection of op...