High off the success of the Quadricycle, Ford and Murphy created the Detroit Automobile Co. in 1899, which was to focus on improving the design of the vehicle. The company lasted only one year before going bankrupt, unable to build cars at a fast enough rate.
Determined to continue improving his designs, Ford began to focus on racecars. As he drove to victory in a number of high-profile races, word about Ford’s cars began to spread. On June 16, 1903, after having caught the attention of eleven investors and raising $28,000 in capital, Ford created the Ford Motor Co. In just a few months, Ford’s first car, the Model A, was being sold. In its first year, the company sold over 500 Model As.
Ford Motor Co. was not the first auto manufacturer to come into business; it already had 15 competitors in Michigan and 88 nationwide. But, Ford’s vision for the automobile was what distinguished him from the rest. Whereas most of the other automakers were focused on manufacturing luxury vehicles for only the very wealthy, Ford saw a market for his cars in the masses. He wanted to find a way to create a large number of affordable machines that the everyday person could afford.
In 1908, Ford moved one step closer to making his vision a reality. The Ford Motor Co. released the new Model T, a simpler car than the Model A and much easier to build. Just ten years later, half of all cars sold in the US were Model Ts. Demand for the new car had reached such peaks that Ford actually had to begin turning down orders. Never one to refuse a challenge, Ford began pondering how he could speed up production in order to meet the growing demand. This led Ford to his second major contribution to industrial production – the creation of the moving assembly line.
By assigning specific tasks to workers and removing their need to move from locations, Ford was able to cut the production of the model T in half from 12 ˝ hours. He continued to refine the system and within one year, it took only 93 minutes to build one car. Reducing production time allowed Ford to be able to cut the price of his cars by hundreds of dollars. In doing so, he was able to fulfill his dream of creating a car for the masses.
The assembly line also brought unforeseen difficulties to Ford – workers were experiencing burnout and thus Ford Motor Co. began to have high turnover rates. Ford turned to a high wage model of employment, paying workers $5 per day, which was twice the average. After his stockholders received his decision negatively, Ford decided to buy them out in 1919, giving him control over his own company. Ford Motor Co. then began to expand its production into tractors and planes and became the first operator of regularly scheduled flights for passengers.
Over the next few decades, the company would experience further problems. With only one car model, competitors such as Chevrolet, who released a new model each year, were beginning to make gains on Ford. The depression of the 1930s would also prove to be trying for the company. But, Ford came back with a new Model A car and the Ford V-8, both of which proved to be roaring successes.
While working on a government contract for warplanes, Ford suffered a heart attack. His son, Edsel, took over the company, but died of cancer at the young age of 49, forcing Ford to once again take control of his company. It wasn’t until 1945, due to his diminished capacities, that Ford appointed his grandson, Henry Ford II, president of Ford Motor Co. Ford died in 1947 of a cerebral hemorrhage but not before revolutionizing industrial production, the automobile industry and the world. Today, the company remains in the hands of the Ford family, employing 327, 531 employees and earning revenues in excess of $178 billion, making it one of the world’s ten largest corporations.
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