The History and Rise of the Manufacturing Industry
We owe most of our consumer items today to the rise of the manufacturing industry. Without the technological advancements and innovations made years ago, who knows what the world would be like today? Would we have the same stuff? Or, how would they differ? How hard would life be if humanity did not progress the way that it did?
We can only theorize the possibilities, but thankfully, the industrial revolution played a major part in the formation of the world we now know.
Humble and simple beginnings
The industrial revolution gave birth to the manufacturing industry. And over the years, it has constantly evolved and improved itself. But how did it actually all start?
Manufacturing, in its basic definition, means the creation of goods and products. This can be done either by hand or with the use of machinery. Such machinery produces items in large volumes and in less time compared to traditional hand-made manufacturing.
Introduction of factories and assembly lines
Factories sprouted all over the world as demand for products increased. This also triggered an increased demand for raw materials. This instantly caused the rise in cost for most materials and finished products.
In these factories are assembly lines where skilled workers work on benches or production lines that use various machines and equipment, such as the table top chain conveyor. Such equipment and systems allow manufacturing speeds to blaze ahead by designating people to work only on a specific part of the products. These then get passed on to the next production line where another expert linesman will do the next part of the job.
An example for such an effective use of the production line is the average automobile. Henry Ford was the first person to accomplish a fully functioning automobile assembly line. His workers worked the hours to create the Model T in the factory using the same concept of one-man, one-task for the vehicle.
Robotic manufacturing takeover
Nowadays, robots and AI have taken their place alongside human workers in the production line. In some instances, robots are the only key workers for specific parts of the production. This can be either mainly for safety purposes or for efficiency and speed reasons.
However, nothing will replace the presence and judgment of actual humans in the production line. While robots may be more efficient and accurate with their jobs, there is still a human working behind the scenes, tinkering with the robot’s components and instructing it on what to do.
Robots can be argued to be still in their infancy. As long as they cannot fully sustain themselves and make their own decisions, the presence of human operators will still be needed.
All of these developments in the manufacturing industry have allowed humanity to thrive with its love for consumer goods. Without these constant improvements and innovations, the industry that we know might have a hard time supplying the things that we need and want. So, who knows what will happen further down the future? Will robots take over the production line? Will manufacturing, in its entirety, be given to AI? Only time will tell.
