SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
A COLLECTION OF THE
MORE SIGNIFICANT ARTICLES DESCRIBING
THE TAYLOR SYSTEM OF MANAGEMENT
EDITED BY
CLARENCE BERTRAND THOMPSON, LL.B., A.M.
T 1 V
LECTURER ON MANUFACTURING IN HARVARD UNIVERSITY
CAMBRIDGE
HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS
LONDON: HUMPHREY MILFORD
Oxford University Press
1914
COPYRIGHT, 1914
HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS
PREFACE
The Taylor system of industrial organization, to which the
name Scientific Management " has been applied and by
which it is generally known, has become a subject of intense
interest to business men and students of management.
During the past fifteen years the movement has been de¬
veloping a fairly extensive literature. Fortunately the
main authorities — the classics on the subject — are easily
available: Taylor's Shop Management, Principles of Scientific
Management, Art of Cutting Metals, and Gantt's Work, Wages
and Profits. A thorough mastery of these is indispensable to
a real knowledge of Scientific Management.
There is a wide-spread demand, however, for more de¬
tailed information regarding certain phases of Scientific
Management than is given in these books. " Practical
men" want to know exactly what is meant by such phrases
as "elementary time study" and "functional foremanship."
They want to know also how the system has actually worked
in the industries to which it has been applied. Thorough
students of industrial development wish to know more of
the theory underlying this latest type of organization. The
public at large is interested in the social and economic
bearings of the movement, particularly in its favorable effect
on the welfare of the laboring classes and, through them^ of
the community as a whole.
Something of value has been published on all these sub¬
jects. It is scattered, however, through many magazines
and official reports and in books on other subjects. Much of
it is either out of print or in technical periodicals difficult of
access to the layman.
V
PREFACE
It is the editor's aim to bring together in this volume the
best (in some cases the only) articles available to meet
the varied demands enumerated above. The variety of the
demand accounts for the variety of the offering. Editorial
effort has been applied to the selection of material, conden¬
sation where practicable, and comment only when necessary
for fuller understanding or for correction of errors of fact or
theory. The result, it is hoped, is a useful supplement to the
standard works of Taylor and Gantt referred to above.
It remains but to render grateful acknowledgment to the
authors and publishers to whom detailed credit is given in
the body of this book, and to Edwin F. Gay, Dean of the
Graduate School of Business Administration of Harvard
University, without whose stimulus and encouragement the
editor would probably never have found the time to finish
this task.
C. Bertrand Thompson.
Boston, Mass., August, 1914.
CONTENTS
page
táe Literature of Scientific Management. (Reprinted from
Quarterly Journal of Economics) 3
By C. Bertrand Thompson
Tnoustrial Administration and Scientific Management. (Re¬
printed from Machinery) 49
By Forrest E. Garbullo
I. What Constitutes Scientific Management 49
II. Caußes of Industrial Inefficiency 66
III. Consideration of the Most Important Objections to Scientific
Management 84
Unsystematized, Systematized, and Scientific Management.
(Address before the Amos Tuck School of Administration and
Finance) 103
By Henry P. Kendall
I. Unsystematized Management 104
II. Systematized Management no
III. Scientific Management .' 115
The Science of Management. (By permission of the American
Society of Naval Engineers) 132
By Lieut. G. J. Meyers, U. S. N.
Diagrams: Laws of Management (151); Relation of Depart¬
ments (152).
The Present State of the Art of Industrial Management.
(Majority Report of the Sub-Committee on Administration
of the American Society of Meclanical Engineers, 1912) . . 153
Appendixes 171
Discussion 175
Management Principles and the Consulting Engineer. (Re¬
printed from the Engineering Magazine) 205
By Charles Day
Scientific Management in Business. (Reprinted from the Review
of Reviews) 217
By A. W. Shaw
A History of the Introduction of a System of Shop Manage¬
ment. (Presidential Address to the American Society of
Mechanical Engineers) 226
By James Mapes Dodge
An Object Lesson in Efficiency 232
By Wilfred Lewis
vii
• • •
Vlll
CONTENTS
page
On the Art of Cutting Metals. (Presidential Address to the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers, December,
1906) 242
By Frederick W. Taylor
Prerequisites to the Introduction of Scientific Management.
(Reprinted from the Engineering Magazine) 270
By H. K. Hathaway
On the Art of Cutting Metals. (Selections from the Discussion
of Mr. Taylor's paper) 279
The Spirit in which Scientific Management should be Ap¬
proached. (Address before the Amos Tuck School of
Administration and Finance) 286
By James M apes Dodge
The Successful Operation of a System of Scientific Manage¬
ment. (By permission of the American Society of Naval
Engineers) 296
By Lieut. Frank W. Sterling
Diagrams: Functional Plan of Organization (298); Speci¬
fication for Estimate (303) ; Order Sheet (304) ; Bill of Ma¬
terial (305) ; Copying Order (306) ; Purchase Tickler (307) ;
Purchase Tickler (308); Arrangement of Planning Depart¬
ment (311) ; BiU of Material (312) ; Route Sheet (314) ; Master
Time Card (315); Route Tag (316); Stores Issue Slip (317);
Time Card (318); Reverse of Time Card (319); Machine
Shop Duplicate Time Card (320) ; Move Card (321) ; Worked
Material Issue Slip (322); Shaft Sketch (323); Inspector's
Slip (324); Contract Job Time Card (325); Reverse of
Duplicate, Contract Time Card (326); Balance of Stores
Sheet (327); Method of Keeping Balance of Stores Sheet
(330); Requisition for Stores (331); Y-Order (332); Bin Tag
(333)» Reverse of Bin Tag (334h Storekeeper's Receipt
(335); Stores Credit Slip (336); Worked Materials Credit
Slip (337); Job Order Tag (338) ; Foundry Tag (338); Noti¬
fication of Stores Receipt (339); Report of Freight Receipts
(340); Daily Shipping List (341) ; Progress of Work Kept
by Production Clerk (343) ; Tickler (344) ; Total Selling Cost
of Job (345) ; Machine Card (346) ; Contract Cost Summary
(347); Pay Card (348); Old D. M. Time Card (348); D. W.
Time Card for Bonus Work (349) ; Reverse of Time Card for
Bonus Work (349); Weekly Summary of Shop Cost (350);
Monthly Cost Sheet of Worked Materials, Accounts of Con¬
tract (351); Monthly Cost Sheet for Drawing and Erection
Accounts of Contracts (352); New Form, Summary of Con¬
tract Cost (354); Old Form, Summary of Contract Cost
(355); Contract Cost Summary (358).
Appendix 360
CONTENTS ix
page
The Planning Department, Its Organization and Function.
(Reprinted from Industrial Engineering) 366
By H. K. Hathaway
The Foreman's Place in Scientific Management. (Reprinted
from Industrial Engineering) 395
Slide Rules for the Machine Shop as a Part of the Taylor
System of Management. (By permission of The American
Society of Mechanical Engineers) 405
By Carl G. Barth
Diagrams: Graphic Representation for Two Equations
(408); Shde Rule for a Machine Shop (411); Same (facing
page 412); Earth's Time Shde Rule (416); Earth's Speed
Shde Rule (417); Gear Shde Rule (418).
A Graphical Daily Balance in Manufacture. (By permission of
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers) 420
By H. L. Gantt
Till*
Diagrams: Foundry Production Sheet (facing page 422);
A. L. Co. Production Sheet (facing page 423); Production
Sheet when Works are short of Frame Drilling Capacity
(facing page 424); Day Work Card (427).
Discussion 430
The Tool Room under Scientific Management. (Reprinted from
Industrial Engineering) 434
By Robert Thurston Kent
Fig. i, Rack for lathe and planer tools (437); Fig. 2, Rack
with boxes, drawers, and trays for boring and drilling tools
(439) ; Fig. 3, Rack for tools of various classes, having drawers
for stocking milhng cutters (441) ; Fig. 4, Rack showing adap¬
tation of standard boxes for stocking holding-down bolts, etc.
(443); Fig. 5, Rack with, compartments for jigs and tem¬
plates (445) ; Fig. 7, Approved Plan of Tool Room for Shop
of 100 Machinists (447) ; Fig. 8, Recommended Arrangement
of Tool Grinder (448).
Nomenclature of Machine Details. (By permission of The
American Society of Mechanical Engineers) 452
By Oberlin S¿pth
Diagrams: Symbol Table A (458); Symbol Table B (459).
Classification and Symbolization. (Reprinted from System) . . 461
By C. Bertrand Thompson
I. Giving a Business a Memory; How Materials, Processes, and
the Functions of an Organization are Given Places and Identi¬
ties 461
Diagram: Functional Classification of a Factory (469).
X
CONTENTS
page
II. Memory Tags for Business Facts; What a Right Classifica¬
tion System does for a Factory or Store and How to Make
One 470
Diagram : Symbol Table for Departments and Details (479).
III. Taking Factory Costs Apart; How to Analyze, Classify, and
Charge Expenses According to What They should Buy . . 480
Symbol Tables (485, 486); Detailed Diagram of Symbols
(489).
IV. Listing Stocks to Index Wastes: How Classification of Ma¬
terials Cuts the Capital Investment and Insures a Constant
Supply 490
Diagrams: Symbol Table of Stores (493); for Printing
Plant (495); of Various Stores (496); of Inks (496, 497); of
Paper (497, 498); for a Machine Shop (499, 500, 501).
V. Keeping Tab on Finished Parts; How Mnemonic Classifica¬
tion of Products Saves Time and Prevents Error in Factory
and Office 501
Diagrams: Molding Machines (503, 504); Table for Con¬
struction (507).
VI. Right Filing and Easy Finding; How a Logical Mnemonic
Classification Expedites the Handling of Records and Corre¬
spondence 508
Diagrams: Symbol Tables, Construction (513, 514, 515);
Advertising (517).
Elementary Time Study as a Part op the Taylor System or
Scientific Management. (Reprinted from Industrial En¬
gineering 520
By H. K. Hathaway
Tables: Classified Elementary Time Units for Fitting
Drills with or without Sleeves (531) ; Tool List (533) ; Classi¬
fied Elementary Time Units for Clamping Work to Drill Press
Tables (534-535); Time on Screwing a Nut (536); Machine
Handling Time for Betts Horizontal Boring Mill (538, 539) ;
Instruction Card for Operation (540, 541).
Scientific Management in Retailing. (Reprinted from System) . 544
By C. Bertrand Thompson
Introduction 544
I. Cost Classification for Retail Stores 548
Tables: Expense Classification (554); Expense Symbol
Tables (555-558).
H. Making Departments Pay Their Share 560
Tables: Bases of Distribution of Expenses (566) ; Account¬
ing Department Symbols (567) ; Salary Symbols (568).
HI. A Stockhandling System for Merchandise 568
Tables: Base Sheet for Kitchen Ware Department (576);
for Grocery Department (576); for Stationery (577); for
Shoes (578).
_j»
CONTENTS xi
page
Scientific Management in the Operation of Railroads. (Re¬
printed from the Quarterly Journal of Economics) 580
By William j. Cjjnningham
Table: Cost of Locomotive Repairs and Renewals (587).
The Application of Scientific Management to a Railway Shop.
* (Reprinted from the Railway Age Gazette) 600
By H. F. Stimpson
The R^lways and Scientific Management. (Reprinted from
Engineering and Contracting 610
The Mistakes of the Efficiency Men. (Reprinted from the
Railway Age Gazette) 615
I. Extravagant Statements and Claims 615
II. Neglect of the Human Element 617
III. Unscientific 621
IV. Impatience for Results 624
V. Neglect of Large Factors 625
VI. Incompetent Counsel 628
Conclusion 630
Scientific Management. (Reprinted from the/íaí/way Age Gazeííe) 632
By F. Lincoln Hutchins
A Piece Rate System: Being a Step Toward Partial Solution
of the Labor Problem. (By permission of The American
Society of Mechanical Engineers) 636
By Frederick W. Taylor
Index to Paragraphs 639
Discussion 666
Tables: Analysis of Man and Machine Work (652); Cost
of Production per Lathe per Day (662).
Wages and Wage Systems as Incentives. (Reprinted from Sys¬
tem) 684
By C. Bertrand Thompson
The Relation of Scientific Management to the Wage Prob¬
lem. (Reprinted from the Journal of Political Economy) . 706
By c. Bertrand Thompson
Scientific Management and the Wage-Earner. (Reprinted from
the Journal of Political Economy) 720
By Frank T. Carlton
IM*
Another Side of Efficiency Engineering. (Reprinted from The
American Machinist) 734
By Dexter S. Kimball
Principles of the New Industrial Efficiency 736
Some Claims of the Advocates of the New Methods .... 737
Parallel between Labor-saving Machinery and Labor-saving
Management 738
• •
XII
CONTENTS
page
The Taylor System of Shop Management at the Watertown
Arsenal.
Appendix I to Report of the Chief of Ordnance, 1913 . . . 741
Extract from the Report of the Chief of Ordnance, 1911 . . 771
Extract from the Report of the Chief of Ordnance, 1912 . . 788
Tables: Premiums Earned during May, 1913, by Molders
(795) ; in Machine Shop (795-798) ; by Craneman and by
Chipper (798) ; by Machinists' Helpers (798) ; by Laborers
and by Rigger (799) ; by Fireman, by Teamsters, Blacksmiths
and Blacksmith Helpers (800) ; by Carpenters (801).
Scientific Management as Applied to Women's Work. (Re¬
printed from Making Both Ends Meet, The Macmillan
Company) 807
By Sue Adjslee Clark and Edith Wyatt
Table: Women's Wage Increase_(83o).
Scientific Management as Viewed from the Workman's Stand-
point. (Reprinted from Industrial Engineering) 835
Preface to the French Edition of " The Principles of Scienti¬
fic Management," by Frederick W. Taylor : 842
By Henri Le Chaxelier
Bibliography of Scientific Management 863
By C. Bertrand Thompson
I. Development and Theory of Scientific Management .... 863
II. Scientific Management in Operation 868
III. Scientific Management and the Railroads 869
IV. Methods 871
V. Personal Factor in Scientific Management 875
VI. Scientific Management and Organized Labor 877
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
THE LITERATURE OF SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
by c. bertrand thompson
Reprinted by permission of Quarterly Journal of Economics
Any discussion of the literature of scientific management is
confronted at the outset with the question, What is scientific
management ? The development of the factory system brought
with it many new problems connected with the organization and
management of labor, the structure and equipment of factories,
and the technique of production. By successful manufacturers
these problems have always been solved in a way to make manu¬
facturing at a profit possible. Early solutions, however, were
necessarily crude and roughshod. With the enormous increase
in demand for manufactured products, in the investment of
capital, and in the number of men engaged in the business, with
the consequent development of ever-keener competition, the early
methods have been found insufficient. Especially within the
last twenty years a degree of skill and technical training has been
brought to bear upon the solution of factory problems which has
made modern factory management a thing much more elaborate,
refined, and effective than ever before. A series of improvements
in administration and methods have been made by many engi¬
neers and managers, and not a few of them have been developed
by a method which might truly be called scientific. Where,
then, can we draw the fine between modern management in
general and what has come to be known technically as " scientific
management " ?
Out of the mass of engineers and managers who are responsible
for present-day methods, there has grown a group originating
with Mr. Frederick W. Taylor of Philadelphia, who have per-
3
4 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ceived certain principles underlying the practices of management
hitherto unrelated and uncoordinated. A collation of isolated
successful experiments in various details of factory administra¬
tion and methods has apparently shown a possibility of classifica¬
tion and generalization. Such classification and generalization
are the basis for the development of a science, and the term
" scientific management " is applied generally to the body of
principles deduced from experience by Mr. Taylor, and the
engineers associated with and trained by him, and to the methods
by which the resultant principles are applied to industry. " Scien¬
tific management," therefore, is distinctively scientific', since it
aims to correlate and systematize all the best of modem develop¬
ments in factory administration, and to push development
further in accordance with the principles discovered.^
On the basis of this definition it is not difficult to select that
portion of the large current literature of factory management
which deals with scientific management from that other portion
which describes and outlines the many unrelated improvements,
methods, and principles which are continually being evolved.
The literature of scientific management as such is that which has
been published by those who approach the subject in a scientific
manner. Of these Mr. Taylor is the acknowledged pioneer and
leader both in practice and theory.^
The literature of scientific management is found in a few books
written by practitioners of the science, a few official reports
growing out of disputes as to railroad rates and labor difficulties,
technical articles which have appeared in the transactions of
engineering societies and in engineering and other technical
magazines, and a considerable mass of " popular " articles written
to satisfy the recent wide-spread interest in the subject.
These books and articles may be classified, for the purposes of
the present review, in six groups.
1 Mr. Charles B. Going has published an article, " The Efficiency Movement —
an Outline," Transactions, The Efficiency Society, vol. i, p. ii, showing the place of
scientific management in the modern developments of factory organization and
pointing out the common element in many movements.
2 With the possible sporadic exception of Charles Babbage, whose book. The
Economy of Manufactures, was published in 1832, fifty years ahead of its time.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
S
The first group includes those incidental to or dealing with the
development and theory of scientific management as a whole.
It consists of the original publications of the pioneers and such
popular statements as reveal a clear grasp of the movement.^
The second group includes descriptions of scientific manage¬
ment in operation, written as a rule by managers of plants which
have developed the system.
As a result of the injection of scientific management into the
discussion of railroad rates, there has arisen a considerable body of
literature on the possibility of the application of the system to
railroads. This is of sufficient consequence to constitute the
third class.
In the fourth class are the many detailed descriptions of
methods which are either distinctive of scientific management, or,
though not peculiar to scientific management, coordinated and
assimilated by it into its own system.
Those methods of scientific management which affect most
directly the human factor in production have stimulated a litera¬
ture which is of sufficient importance to warrant being put into a
fifth class by itself.
In the sixth and last group is the series of discussions dealing
with the relation of scientific management to organized labor.
The more important books and articles are discussed briefly
in the text. Others not sufficiently distinctive or noteworthy
to call for special review, but important for students of the
movement, are referred to in the notes. The text and notes
together cover nearly ninety per cent of all that has been pub¬
lished on the subject in English.^
i. Development and Theory oe Scientific
Management as a Whole
In 1832, Charles Babbage, the eminent mathematician, pub¬
lished a book 3 in which he attempted to deduce from the practice
^ Many of the popular articles are evident pot-boilers, too ill-considered and
ephemeral to be worthy of discussion and preservation.
2 Practically everything of any consequence is included in the bibliography at
the end of this volume,
® The Economy of Manufactures. Chas. Knight. London, 1832. (Out of print.)
6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of manufacturing as it existed in his time, the general underlying
principles which apparently controlled it. This piece of work,
though crude in the light of modern advance, was so far ahead of
the state of contemporary manufacturing intelligence that its
significance was entirely overlooked, and it is only today that the
force of his analysis is evident. Although it does not appear that
the modern group of scientific managers are in the slightest degree
indebted to Babbage's work, it is interesting to observe in it the
suggestion of the extension of specialization beyond manual labor
to mental labor, which is at the basis of the Taylor doctrines of
functional foremanship and the separation of planning from
execution. Babbage also foreshadows the use of timing as an aid
in the development of processes; but in this he was not so fortu¬
nate, and the undeveloped method he used is not even remotely
connected with modern time study.
The important stimulus to the modern development is found
in the work of a group of managers and engineers, members of the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers, who drew the atten¬
tion of their fellow-members to the influence of wages on the
output of workmen. The earliest of these was Mr. Henry R.
Towne, president of the Yale & Towne Manufacturing Company.
Mr. Towne has always been essentially a thinker in industry.
Early in the eighties he wrote a paper ^ which was a plea for the
technically trained engineer to concern himself in the financial and
profit making aspects of management — to be an " economist "
because he effects economies. As a result of taking his own
advice in his own plant, and after a realization of the practical
inefficiency of profit sharing as an incentive to production, Mr.
Towne evolved ^ and described a modified type of profit sharing
which he called " Gain Sharing." It consisted in modifying
profit sharing by applying it to departments instead of to the
business as a whole, and basing it upon demonstrable gains in
the efficiency of departments as evidenced by careful accounting.
1 " The Engineer as Economist," Transactions, American Society of Mechanical
Engineers, vol. 7, p. 425. These transactions will be abbreviated hereafter Trans.
A. S. M. E.
2 " Gain Sharing," Trans. A. S. M. E., vpl. 10, p. 600.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 7
Out of the discussion of this paper grew practically the entire
modern literature on wage systems as incentives.
Prominent on this subject were the papers of Mr. F. A. Halsey
and Mr. James Rowan ^ and an article by Mr. Rowan.^ The
object in the mind of these managers was to provide a definite
basis on which gains in efiiciency could be measured, and to bring
the gain and the consequent bonus home to the individual work¬
man. It was an attempt to remedy the defects both of profit
sharing with its indefiniteness and of piece rates with their
temptation to cutting; and it amounts practically to the rough
determination of a standard of individual performance and the
announcement in advance of a systematically graded and ex¬
pected cut.
While this discussion (the very considerable literature of which
is outside the scope of this paper) was in progress, Mr. Frederick
W. Taylor, an engineer of Philadelphia, who had become foreman
and master-mechanic of the Midvale Steel Company, was trying
to solve the problem of individual and plant efficiency by another
and an essentially different method. One result of his experi¬
ments was the development of a new form of piece rate now known
as the " differential piece rate," according to which a workman
is paid a low rate per piece for ordinary production and a con¬
siderably higher rate for production according to a standard,
determined by careful and accurate time study, and made possible
of attainment by systematic training of the workman and by
such management of the plant as facilitates to the utmost the
operations performed by the laborer. Mr. Taylor's first state¬
ment of his methods and results was submitted to the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers in a paper® which has been
described by Mr. Going, the accomplished editor of the Engineer¬
ing Magazine, as " one of the most valuable contributions that
have ever been made to technical literature."
^ " The Premium Plan of Paying for Labor," Trans. A.S.M. E., vol. 12, p. 755.
Reprinted in Sibley Journal of Engineering, vol. 16, p. 219, and in Trade Unionism
and Labor Problems, chap, xi, edited by John R. Commons. Boston, 1905.
2 " A Premium System applied to Engineering Workshops," Proceedings, Insti¬
tute of Mechanical Engineers, March 20, 1903, p. 203.
® " A Piece Rate System," Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 16, p. 856; reproduced in
this volume, p. 636.
8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
At this stage of the development, the system consisted of
" three principal elements: (i) an elementary rate fixing depart¬
ment, (2) differential rate system of piece work, (3) what he (Mr.
Taylor) believes to be the best method of managing men who work
by the day." The rate fixing department analyzes and stand¬
ardizes work and piece rates with the aid of elementary time
study. This procedure differs from that of other rate fixing
departments " in that a careful study is made of the time required
to do each of the many elementary operations into which the
manufacturing of an establishment may be analyzed or divided.
These elementary operations are then classified, recorded, and
indexed and when a piece work price is wanted for work, the job
is first divided into its elementary operations, the time required
to do each elementary operation is found from the records, and
the total time for the job is summed up from these data."
The differential rate system of piece work is defined briefiy as
offering two different rates for the same job, a higher price per
piece in case the work is finished in the shortest possible time and
in perfect condition, and a low price if it takes a longer time to do
the job, or if there are any imperfections in the work (the high
rate should be such that the workman can earn more per day than
is usually paid in similar establishments)." The best method of
managing men who work by the day " consists of paying men and
not positions. Each man's wages as far as possible are fixed
according to the skill and energy with which he performs his work,
and not according to the position which he fills. Every endeavor
is made to stimulate each man's personal ambition." The advan¬
tages of this system as deduced by Mr. Taylor from ten years'
experience with the Midvale Steel Company are: first, lower cost
of production with, at the same time, higher wages; second, by
substituting knowledge for guess work, the elimination of the
motive for " soldiering"; third, the substitution of exact knowl¬
edge leads to a treatment of the men with greater uniformity and
justice, and their response with more and better work; fourth,
cooperation of the men and the management is made obviously
their common interest; fifth, the system is rapid in attaining the
maximum productivity, which is automatically maintained by
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 9
the differential rate; sixth, it selects and attracts the best men,
develops many slow and inaccurate workmen into first class men,
and discourages and sifts out men who are incurably lazy or
inferior; seventh, " it promotes a most friendly feeling between
the men and their employers, and so renders labor unions and
strikes unnecessary."
The paper then proceeds to discuss the Towne and Halsey wage
systems and profit sharing, and points out the absence in all of
them of a definite measure of a day's work. It then describes the
method of elementary rate fixing and the application of the dif¬
ferential piece rate by its means, with illustrations of the results
attained.
It is significant of Mr. Taylor's habit of mind that this early
paper is a description of methods and results, including hardly a
suspicion of theoretical deduction. It is a testimony to the
accuracy of Mr. Taylor's later statement that scientific manage¬
ment is not a theory to be applied to practice, but that it is first
and primarily a practice out of which, many years after its hegin-
ning, a theory has developed.^
The difficulty of bringing a plant to the necessary perfected
degree of administration and the apparent severity of the dif¬
ferential piece rate led one of Mr. Taylor's collaborators, Mr.
H. L. Gantt, to develop a different form of premium system,
which retained, however, the essential element of an accurate
time study basis. This method, known as the " Gantt bonus
plan," is a time rate method. It guarantees the operator the
regular hourly or daily rate but adds a bonus for achievement of
the standard quantity and quality of work, known as " the task."
This standard is set, as with Mr. Taylor's differential piece rate,
by time study. Mr. Gantt has published a large number of
articles on the subject, the best of which, together with his own
^ An interesting description of the application of this form of piece rate is found in
" The Taylor Differential Piece Rate System, " The Engineering Magazine, vol. 20,
p. 617, by Mr.Sanford E. Thompson, one of the early collaborators with Mr. Taylor
and a recognized expert on time study. A good discussion of the whole matter grew
out of a weak paper by Mr. F. Richards, " Is Anything the Matter with Piece
Work ? " Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 25, p. 68, participated in by Mr. Taylor, Mr.
Emerson, and others.
lO
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
development of the relation of scientific management to some of
the human problems involved, have been collected in one volume.^
Mr. Gantt points out how by the ordinary methods of manage-.
ment the cost of production, which is at the basis of the great
problem of the increasing cost of living, follows a vicious circle
of higher wages to meet higher cost and increased cost as the
result of higher wages. The way out is to manage production in
such a way that higher wages bring a decreased cost; and this
is the aim of scientific management. This is accomplished by
standardizing the conditions for efficient operation, instructing
the workmen thoroughly in the best methods, and using wages
as an inducement to them to accept the instruction and the con¬
ditions provided. The development of the Gantt bonus and its
relation to piece work are described in detail, and the effect of the
system on the workman's habits of industry and cooperation is
outhned and demonstrated with charts and diagrams showing
comparisons between old methods and the new. These charts,
based upon the records of actual workers, are extraordinarily
interesting human documents, showing the gradual overcoming
of difficulties and the fixation of habits of punctuality, reliability,
and efficiency. The 1913 edition adds a chapter to the effect
that, as the great natural resources of this country can be rehed
on less and less in competition with other countries, our future
depends upon the application of scientific methods and the in¬
crease in the efficiency of operation, and concludes with a brief
chapter illustrating some of the detailed methods of the Taylor
system as developed by Mr. Gantt.
This book of Mr. Gantt's is one of the best that has appeared
on the subject and is entitled to rank with Mr. Taylor's Shop
Management and The Principles of Scientific Management, as one
of the standard authorities.
Scientific management, however, is not merely a system of
wage payment. One of its essential features is the determination
and application of standards not only of performance, but of
^ Work, Wages and Profits. Engineering Magazine Co., New York, 1910.
The first edition, published in 1910, is somewhat enlarged and considerably-
revised in the second edition, 1913.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
II
methods and equipment. In fact, it is a cardinal principle of
scientific management that a proper standard of performance
cannot be attained in the absence of standardized methods and
equipment; and it was in the effort to secure standard perfor¬
mance that Mr. Taylor and his associates were led to investiga¬
tions of detailed processes which have themselves become classics.
One of the earliest of these is Mr. Taylor's " Notes on Belting," ^
which, with the later paper by Mr. Carl G. Barth,^ has had an
immense influence on the current manufacture and use of belts.
Another investigation growing out of Mr. Taylor's work was
concerned with the proper composition and method of heat
treatment of tool steel, and the shape of cutting tools. This
investigation, carried on with the assistance of Messrs. Gantt,
Barth, and Maunsel White, and extending over twenty-six years,
led incidentally to the discovery of high-speed steel, which has
revolutionized machine shop practice and the design and con¬
struction of machine tools all over the world. The results of
this investigation are published in Mr. Taylor's paper called
" The Art of Cutting Metals." ^
While Mr. Taylor was carrying forward in a variety of indus¬
tries the development of his distinctive type of management, but
was publishing nothing about its details,^ Captain Henry Metcalf
had been developing independently and describing ® a system of
^ Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 15, p. 204.
2 " Transmission of Power by Leather Belting," Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 31, p. 39.
® Trans. A. S. M. £., vol. 28, p. 31. The introduction and a part of the
discussion of this paper are reproduced in this volume, p. 242. An interesting
explanation of one of the means by which Mr. Taylor's results are applied in
machine shop practice is found in the paper by Mr. Carl G. Barth, the mathe¬
matician of the group, on " Slide Rules as Part of the Taylor System," Trans.
A. S. M. E., vol. 25, p. 49. An illustration of the effect of such work as a stimu¬
lus to the application of thought to management appears in the article by Mr.
Charles Day called "The Machine Shop Problem," ibid., vol. 24, p. 1302, which em¬
phasizes the need of coordination, analysis, and a scientific determination of facts.
* The only paper by a member of the Taylor group dealing with any detail was
Mr. Gantt's " Graphical Daily Balance in Manufactures," ibid., vol. 24, p. 1322,
reproduced in this volume, page 420, which was a description of the method of
scheduling introduced by him at the American Locomotive Works.
® "The Shop Order System of Accounts," Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 7, p. 440.
The Cost of Manufactures and the Administration of Workshops, John Wiley & Sons.
New York, 1885. 3d edition, 1907.
12
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
routing and accounting in the government arsenals, and Mr.
Oberlin Smith, president of the Ferracute Machine Company,
had presented an interesting paper on the naming of machine
parts.^ When the opportunity came Mr. Taylor helped himself
freely to the suggestions in these papers and incorporated them,
with considerable modification, into his practice.
Finally, after twenty years' experience, Mr. Taylor submitted
to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers the history
and methods of his system in what seemed to him to be definite,
complete, and coordinated form. This was his famous paper on
" Shop Management," ^ which has been extensively reprinted
and translated into French, German, Dutch, Italian, Russian,
Lettish and Japanese. In response to the popular interest in the
subject brought about by the railroad rate case in 1911, Mr.
Taylor was induced to pubhsh a less technical statement under
the name The Principles of Scientific Management.^
" Shop Management " is a considerable expansion of the earlier
paper on " A Piece Rate System," and includes much of the
detailed methods that had been developed by Mr. Taylor in the
intervening years, together with some analysis of the industrial
and economic principles involved in his system. The emphasis is
laid throughout on the importance of " the coupling of high wages
for the workman with low labor cost for the employer," and the
eventual interest of the public in the reduced prices resulting
from this combination. The difference between the " first class
man " and the average workman, the means for selecting or
developing the former class, the methods of accurate scientific
time study, the philosophy and operation of the task idea in
management, the determination of standards, the separation of
planning and execution, the development of functional foreman-
ship and the planning department, and steps to be taken in chang-
^ " The Naming of Machine Parts," Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 2, p. 366, repro¬
duced in this volume, page 452.
2 Trans. A. S. M. E.. vol. 24, p. 1337. New edition. Haroer & Bros.. New
York, 1911.
3 Harper and Bros., New York, 1911. A very brief résumé by Mr. Taylor,
" Principles and Methods of Scientific Management," is found in the Journal of
Accountancy, vol. 12, pp. 117, 181.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ing from ordinary to " the bçst type of management/' are dealt
with extensively. Emphasis is laid on the " evils of soldiering "
and the failure of piece rates and premium plans to overcome
them; it appears that Mr. Taylor's entire system grew out of his
determination to break up this practice.
The objects sought can be attained, according to Mr. Taylor,
most easily by the application of the following principles : —
(a) A Large Daily Task. — Each man in the establishment, high or low,
should daily have a clearly defined task laid out before him. This task
should not in the least degree be vague nor indefinite, but should be circum¬
scribed carefully and completely, and should not be easy to accomplish.
(b) Standard Conditions. — Each man's task should call for a full day's
work, and at the same time the workman should be given such standardized
conditions and appliances as will enable him to accomplish his task with
certainty.
(c) High Pay for Success. — He should be sure of large pay when he
accomplishes his task.
(d) Loss in Case of Failure. — When he fails he should be sure that sooner
or later he will be the loser by it.
When an establishment has reached an advanced state of organization,
in many cases a fifth element should be added, namely: the task should be
made so difficult that it can only be accomplished by a first class man.
The rest of the book is an amplification of the methods by
which these so-called " principles " are applied.
The Principles of Scientific Management develops the same ideas
in a slightly different way. Considerable emphasis is laid on the
importance of the substitution of scientific knowledge and
incentive on the part of the management for the old reliance on
the crudely stimulated initiative of the workman. There is the
samé discussion of "soldiering," inadequacy of piece and premium
systems, and a non-technical review of certain typical methods
of the system, with illustrations of the application of scientific
method to such diverse operations as shovelling, pig-iron hand¬
ling, and the cutting of metals.
It is interesting to note in the later book a restatement of the
" principles," otherwise referred to as " elements " ; —
First. The development of a true science. Second. The scientific
selection of the workman. Third. His scientific education and develop¬
ment. Fourth. Intimate friendly cooperation between the management
and the men.
H
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In an earlier section of the same book, these " principles " are
restated in slightly different form as the " new duties " devolving
on the management. In this case they are given as follows: —
First. They develop a science for each element of a man's work, which
replaces the old rule-of-thumb method.
Second. They scientifically select and then train, teach, and develop the
workman, whereas in the past he chose his own work and trained himself as
best he could.
Third. They heartily cooperate with the men so as to insure all of the
work being done in accordance with the principles of the science which has
been developed.
Fourth. There is an almost equal division of the work and the responsi¬
bility between the management and the workmen. The management take
over all work for which they are better fitted than the workmen, while in the
past almost all of the work and the greater part of the responsibility were
thrown upon the men.
It is evident from these statements that Mr. Taylor does not
distinguish sharply between principles, duties, and methods, and
it is difficult to see why the methods selected for elevation into
the class of principles are limited to those given and do not include
such fundamental and radical departures as functional foreman-
ship and the task and bonus. This is but another evidence of the
fact that the Taylor system is in reahty the summation of years
of the varied experience of many individuals, which has not even
yet been thoroughly coordinated and developed into such a
system of real principles or laws as characterizes other modern
sciences. I believe that the principles are there and that they
only await deffnite and systematic formulation.
In the summer of 1911, the unionized machinists and molders
employed at the Water town Arsenal, where the Taylor system
was being developed by Mr. Carl G. Barth, walked out; and on
being taken back petitioned that the Labor Committee of Con¬
gress investigate the subject and recommend such legislation as
would be necessary to protect their interests. A Committee was
appointed consisting of Mr. William B. Wilson, the present
Secretary of Labor, Mr. William C. Redñeld, now Secretary of
Commerce, and Mr. John Q. Tilson, " to investigate the Taylor
and other systems of management " in government shops. The
SCIENTIFIC MAÑ\AGEMENT
15
investigators confined themselves practically to the Taylor
system, held hearings at the principal navy yards, and took
testimony of workmen, foremen, managers, " efficiency experts,"
and practically the entire group of Taylor system engineers.
The result of their investigation was a brief report that no legisla¬
tion was necessary. More useful, however, was the publication
of the great mass of testimony taken.^ This report of the hearings
is a perfect mine of information in regard to the history, methods,
practice, and results of the Taylor system and must be strongly
recommended as one of the fundamental sources on the subject.
Another important body of testimony is that introduced by
Mr. Louis D. Brandeis as part of the case of the shippers in the
" Eastern Rate Case " ^ which is carefully sifted, analyzed and
coordinated in Mr. Brandeis' brief.^
The most important publication of Mr. Taylor, in addition to
those mentioned, is a book prepared by him and Mr. Sanford E.
Thompson,^ which includes, in addition to an acute analysis of
concrete construction, certain chapters on time study and valu¬
able tables of unit times determined in accordance with the
Taylor methods.®
^ Hearings before the Special Committee of the House of Representatives to Inves¬
tigate the Taylor and Other Systems of Shop Management. Government Printing
Office, Washington, 1912.
2 Interstate Commerce Commission Reports, vol. 20, p. 243.
® A part of this brief was published under the title Scientific Management and
Railroads, Engineering Magazine Co., New York, 1912. The testimony in this case
had no effect on the decision of the Interstate Commerce Commission; but the
spectacular and seemingly extravagant form in which some of the testimony was
given by persons outside the Taylor group but influenced by it, caught the popular
fancy and was responsible for the great publicity the movement suddenly attained.
^ Concrete Costs, John Wiley and Sons. New York, 1912.
® Two interesting articles by Mr. Taylor, " Why Manufacturers Dislike College
Graduates," Sibley Journal of Engineering, vol. 24, p. 196, and " A Comparison of
University and Industrial Methods," Stevens Indicator, vol. 24, p. 37, set forth his
convictions in regard to the place of college graduates in manufacturing and partic¬
ularly his criticisms of their point of view and the handicaps under which they
labor and for which their college training is responsible. Chief among these are the
inability to concentrate on an undertaking and bring it through to a conclusion, the
failure to recognize the importance of punctuality and the value of time and disci¬
pline, and a lack of appreciation of the point of view of the workingman.
There is an interesting comment on this in Mr. D. C. Jackson's " Criticism of the
Engineering Schools," Stevens Indicator, vol. 27, p. 25.
16 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Although the Taylor system has been applied to many types
of industry other than machine shop production in which it
originated, Httle has been pubHshed on these appHcations by those
closest to the movement. Among the detailed discussions of
other industries, however, must be mentioned the book by Mr.
Charles Day,^ dealing with the construction and layout of
factories. Mr. Day points out the influence of the design of the
plant upon the efficiency of operation and details the work inci¬
dent to the planning and building of the plant, from the selection
of the site to the construction of buildings and the installation of
equipment. Excellent illustrations are given of the best layout
and routing of materials in factories of different types. Mr.
Gantt has published a short paper dealing with the textile
industry,^ and Mr. Day has pointed out the possibihty of appH-
cation to diverse industries including public service corpora¬
tions.^
Growing out of the contributions of Mr. Taylor and his original
group are a number of articles dealing with the theory of scientiflc
management as it appears to those who first met it in its de¬
veloped form. Among the most interesting of these are the
Report of the Sub-Committee on Administration of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers.^ This report, after pointing
out the reasons for the present great popular interest in the sub¬
ject, attempts to find the one basic principle in the movement,
and discovers it in " the transference of skill." Just as the intro¬
duction of machinery meant " the transference of skill from the
inventor or designer to the power-driven mechanism," so scienti¬
fic management is the transference of skill from the manual
worker to the planning department and functional foremen,
resulting in the saving of labor and the increased output and
reduction of cost. The report includes a collection of interesting
^ Industrial Plants. Engineering Magazine Co., New York, 1911.
2 " The Mechanical Engineer and the Textile Industry," Trans. A. S. M. E.,
vol. 32, p. 499.
® " Management Principles and the Consulting Engineer," The Engineering
Magazine, vol. 41, p. 133, reproduced in this volume, page 205.
^ " The Present State of the Art of Industrial Management,"/owmaM. 5'. i/.E.,
vol. 34, pp. 1131-1150. Reproduced in this volume, page 153.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
17
attempts to state the underlying principles of scientific manage¬
ment.
Mr. Forrest E. Cardullo ^ has compared " conventional/'
" systematic/' and " scientific " management, with illustrations
of administration of the various types. Then follows a discus¬
sion of the causes of current inefficiency, which may be grouped
into three classes: those which are chargeable primarily to the
employer, those which are chargeable primarily to the workman,
and those which are chargeable primarily to our political and
industrial system. They include mental laziness, prejudice
against so-called " non-productive " labor, timidity of capital,
lack of foresight and adaptability, mental inertia, lack of study
of industry, inefficient wage systems, and avarice, on the part of
the management; and on the part of the workmen, disinclination
to work at other than their accustomed pace, lack of ambition,
mental laziness, and enmity to their employers; and on the part
of the pohtical and industrial system, periodical depressions,
seasonal variations in work, intense individualism, wasteful
competition, and sudden changes in laws, customs, fashions, and
social conditions. The paper closes with an enumeration of the
objections to scientific management and the answers to them and
is, on the whole, one of the best contributions to the subject.
Lieut. G. J. Meyers ^ has made an interesting attempt to deduce
and formulate " laws " of management. He gives the following
synopsis of laws: —
Law I. — What to do.
Law II. — Instructions before work starts.
Law III. — Machines and tools.
Law IV. — Workmen.
Law V. — Insure instructions are carried out.
Law VI. — Costs.
Law VII. — Study for improvements.
Each statement begins: " It is necessary in any activity.
Thus Law I is in this form: It is necessary in any activity to
^ " Industrial Administration and Scientific Management," Machinery, vol. 18,
pp. 843, 931; vol. 19, p. 18, reproduced in this volume, page 49.
® " The Science of Management," Journal of the American Society of Naval Engi¬
neers, vol. 23, p. 994.
i8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
have a complete knowledge of what is to be done and to prepare
instructions as to what is to be done before the work is started,"
and so for each topic in the synopsis. The formulation of each
law is followed by a brief statement of the reasons for it and the
method of its application. The paper is a highly interesting
essay in the formulation of industrial principles.^
The present writer ^ has pointed out that the time study
methods of the Taylor system provide a definite basis for one
side of the wage bargain: to wit, the content of a day's work, but
makes no attempt to determine the equivalent day's wage, except
to provide a means through the bonus or differential rate for the
application of the principle that superior service should be paid
at a superior rate.
M. LeChatelier's Introduction to the French translation of
The Principles of Scientific Management^ the fear both
on the part of the employers and the workmen, that the radi¬
cally new methods of scientific management will bring about
critical economic problems of readjustment; and lays this fear
to ignorance of the gradual working out of economic changes.
Mr. Morris L. Cooke, now director of Public Works in the City
of Philadelphia, and one of the later additions to the original
Taylor group, was retained by the Carnegie Foundation to make
an investigation of academic efficiency from the point of view of
1 To these should be added the following: Mr. H. P. Kendall's " Management:
Unsystematized, Systematized and Scientific," Scientific Management, Tuck School
Conference, 1912, p. 112; reprinted in Industrial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 374, a com¬
parison of the types of management mentioned, reproduced in this volume,
page 103, based on the writer's personal experience with the last two and a
wide acquaintance with the first. Mr. Tracy Lyon's brief review of principles in
" Scientific Industrial Operation," in Technology and Industrial Efficiency, p. 200,
New York, 1911. Reprinted in Iron Age, vol. 87, p. 922, and in Industrial World,
vol. 45, p. 464. Mr. A. Hamilton Church's " The Meaning of Scientific Manage¬
ment," Engineering Magazine, vol. 41, p. 97, which is one of numerous suggestive
but unsuccessful attempts to find " the one " principle underlying the movement.
Finally, the editorial " Scientific Management More Than a Labor Problem,"
Industrial Engineering, vol. 11, p. 46?) pointing out the inclusiveness of the
method.
2 C. B. Thompson, " Relation of Scientific Management to the Wage Problem,"
Journal of Political Economy, vol. 21, p. 630, reproduced in this volume, page 706.
' Reproduced in this volume, page 842,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
19
an industrial administrator.^ In his report Mr. Cooke discusses
current types of university organization, the college teacher as a
producer, research, the economical use of buildings, functional
activities, financial administration, and student administration.
According to him, there is no present gauge to efficiency in acad¬
emic work and, while recognizing that the product of the uni¬
versity is of so intangible a nature as not to be subject to exact
measurement, he points out the possibility of the application of a
unit, the student-hour, to the measurement of administrative
efficiency. His discussion is brought to bear in detail upon the
administration of a physics department and includes an applica¬
tion of some of the methods of industrial administration.^
Interesting suggestions for the partial or complete application
of the Taylor system to varied industries are made by Mr. F. B.
Gilbreth ^ when he shows the revolutionary result of the applica¬
tion of motion study to a trade so ancient as laying bricks, and
by Mr. B. M. Ferguson ^ who details the favorable results of his
experiments, particularly in its application to outdoor construc¬
tion.
The success of the application of the Taylor system to the
government arsenals drew the attention of engineers in the Navy
to the possibility of its application to their branch of the service.
This is discussed by Mr. C. S. Brewer ® and by Lieut.-Commander
W. B. Tardy.® Particularly interesting is the Report of the
^ "Academic and Industrial Efficiency," Carnegie Foundation Bulletin No. 5,
1910.
2 The following articles may be taken as samples of the comment provoked by
this study: " Educational and Industrial Efficiency," Science, N.s., vol. 33, p. loi by
Richard C. Maclaurin, President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
who is apprehensive that the methods proposed by Mr. Cooke will consume too
much of the time of officers of instruction and will tend to distract attention from
the fimdamental purpose of a university; " Educational or Administrative Effi¬
ciency," Engineering Magazine, vol. 40, p. 606 (anonymous); and " Scientific
Management and Academic Efficiency," The Nation, vol. 93, p. 416 by Professor
A. G. Webster.
' Bricklaying System. Clark Publishing Co., New York and Chicago, 1909.
^ " The Application of the Taylor System to Gas Works," American Gas Light
Journal, vol. 95, p. 225, and Progressive Age, vol. 29, p. 830.
® " Scientific Management in the Army and Navy," World's Work, vol. 23, p. 311.
® " A Plea for a Standard Organization of the Engineer Division Aboard Ship,"
etc., Journal of the American Society of Naval Engineers, vol. 23, p. 681.
20
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Civilian Expert Board ^ on Industrial Management of United
States Navy Yards. This Board, appointed by the Secretary
of the Navy and consisting of Messrs. H. L. Gantt, Harrington
Emerson, and Charles Day, investigated the present functions
and conditions of navy yards. They discussed the efficiency of
their management in comparison with that of industrial plants
and made certain recommendations in regard to the nature of the
work properly to be performed in navy yards and " that scientific
management be introduced and perpetuated in the navy yards
which it is decided to operate."
The most ambitious attempt to apply the Taylor principles to
selling has been made by Mr. Charles W. Hoyt.^ He describes
such modern methods as training classes, salesmen's conventions,
standardized talks, and outlines rather inadequately the applica¬
tion of the scientific method of approach to the problems of
salesmanship.^
The growing realization that perhaps the greatest economic
waste from which we suffer is due to the inefficient management
of household economy has resulted in some thought being given
to the working of the Taylor principles in domestic management.
The most suggestive article on this subject is that by Mr. J. B.
Guernsey,'^ which, however, is rather too vague and theoretical
to be of practical service.
It is not strange that the best known and most popular books
on the principles of scientific management are not those written
by its originator and his co-workers; they are the product of
persons who have been influenced by them and whose gift of
expression is more highly developed. Foremost among these
are two books by Mr. Harrington Emerson,^ marked by a
^ Prepared by direction of Hon. George von L. Meyer, Secretary of the Navy.
Government Printing Office, Washington, 1912.
2 Scientific Sales Management. Woolson & Co., New Haven, 1913.
® Other articles dealing briefly with this subject are Mr. Amasa Walker's " Scien¬
tific Management applied to Commercial Enterprises," Journal of Political Economy,
vol. 21, p. 388, and Mr. J. George Frederick's " Applying the Science of Manage¬
ment to Selling," Industrial Engineering, vol. 12, p. 204.
^ " Scientific Management in the Home," Outlook, vol. 100, p. 821.
® Efficiency, Engineering Magazine Co., New York, 1909, revised edition, 1912,
and The Twelve Principles of Efficiency, 1911, revised edition, 1912.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
21
breadth of interesting information, and a capacity for inspiring,
almost poetic, elucidation, which have made them the most
popular expositions of the subject.^
Mr. Emerson discusses certain typical inefficiencies and their
significance, the causes of national industrial prosperity, the
strength and weakness of existing systems of organization. He
then proceeds to an exposition of his own method of line and staff
organization, the determination and realization of standards, cost
accounting, the location and elimination of wastes, and the
Emerson bonus system. His method differs from that of Mr.
Taylor in two respects: in the first place, in the line and staff
organization, the staff consisting of the experts occupies an
auxiliary and advisory relation to the management, whereas in
the Taylor system, the experts are the functional foremen and
are an integral executive part of the organization; in the second
place, the Emerson bonus proceeds on the rough determination
of a standard efficiency which he calls ioo%; the workman who
attains 67 % or less gets his guaranteed day wages, and is paid a
bonus on a sliding scale for every increase in the percentage of
efficiency; at 100% the bonus amounts to 20% of his wages and
I % is added for each additional i % of efficiency. As the task is
not originally so accurately and thoroughly set as in the Taylor
system, the workman can, and frequently does, exceed the
ICQ % mark.
Mr. Emerson states the principles of management as follows:
(i) clearly defined ideals; (2) common sense; (3) competent
coimsel; (4) discipline; (5) the fair deal; (6) reliable, immediate,
and adequate records; (7) despatching; (8) standards and
schedules; (9) standardized conditions; (10) standardized opera¬
tions; (11) written standard-practice instructions; (12) effi¬
ciency reward. Most of these are not by any meajis peculiar to
scientific management, nor can it be said that Mr. Emerson's
application of them is distinctively original. Incidentally it is
^ Two other simplified expositions worth mentioning are the Primer of Scientific
Management, Van Nostrand Co., New York, 1912, by Mr. F. B. Gilbreth, and the
misnamed " Psychology of Management," Industrial Engineering, vol. 11, pp. 343,
429; vol. 12, pp. 13, 6s, 116, 155, 199, 248; vol. 13, pp. 18, 66, 113, 161, 213, by
Mrs. L. M. Gilbreth.
22 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
interesting to note the gradual change from Mr. Emerson^s
acknowledgment of indebtedness to Mr. Taylor in certain discus¬
sions in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers to the
reversal of this position in his later published work.
Out of the large number of books written within the last five
years on the general subject of factory administration, four of the
most important devote attention to a discussion of scientific
management and show in general considerable influence by it.
The most noteworthy of these are by Mr. (Charles B. Going ^ and
Mr. Dexter Kimball,^ — these two are especially valuable for the
setting they give scientific management in the development of
modem administrative methods; Messrs. Galloway, Hotchkiss
and Mavor; ' and Mr. Hugo Diemer.^
It is natural that such a radical and far-reaching movement as
scientific management should meet criticism. It has in fact been
a veritable storm-centre. Much of the criticism is aimed at details
and will be discussed later; but the following articles go for the
system root and branch and should properly be enumerated here.
The most comprehensive criticism is that by Admiral John R.
Edwards,® who sums up the comments of most of the adverse
writers, and adds on his own account that scientific management
does not cover the whole of management, and that in any case
management is an art rather than a science, that the Taylor
system antagonizes the workmen and neglects the personal
equation, and that whatever advantages have come from it
have been incidental by-products. Another severe criticism is
that by Mr. A. Hamilton Church,® who attacks particularly
certain extracts from Mr. Taylor's writings, leading to the con¬
clusion that Mr. Taylor does not show a science.^ Mr. Church
^ Principles of Industrial Engineering. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1911.
® Principles of Industrial Organization. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1913.
' Business Organization. Alexander Hamilton Institute, New York, 1912.
* Factory Organization and Administration McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1910.
® " The Fetishism of Scientific Management," Journal of American Society of
Naval Engineers, vol. 24, p. 355*
® " Has Scientific Management Science ? " American Machinist, vol. 35, p. 108.
* The same point is made in an editorial called " The Science of Management
Defined, and the Scope of this Science," Engineering and CorUracting, vol. 39, p. 339.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
23
and Mr. L. P. Alford ^ undertook to enumerate the principles of
management and pointed out the place of the Taylor system in
them.2
As already stated, most of the popular articles on the subject
are obviously journalistic and ephemeral. The most spectacular
discoveries of Mr. Taylor and his co-workers lend themselves
easily to " popular " treatment; and the possible results of the
application of the stop watch and the micrometer appeal effec¬
tively to the imagination of magazine and newspaper writers.
Most of their work contains nothing new or significant. The
few popular articles of real value are listed below.^
1 " The Principles of Management," American Machinist, vol. 36, p. 857. Re¬
viewed by Mr. D. S. Kimball and Mr. J. Calder, ibid., p. 965.
® Other important general criticisms are those by Mr. Dexter S. Kimball,
" Another Side of Efficiency Engineering," American Machinist, vol. 35, p. 263,
reproduced in this volume, page 734, developing briefly some of the social and eco¬
nomic implications of the movement and calling attention to the absence of a
discussion of distribution; by Mr. H. G. Bradlee, "A Consideration of Certain
Limitations of Scientific Efficiency," in Technology and Industrial Efficiency, p. 190,
New York, 1911; reprinted in Stone & Webster's Public Service Journal, \o\. 2>,
p. 323, pointing out that for the most effective application conditions must be
uniform, work repetitive and the area of operations small; by Mr. E. C. Peck,
" Systematic versus Scientific Management," Iron Age, vol. 88, p. 364, drawing
attention to the scarcity of real experts and the dangers of inexpert work; and by
Mr. James R. Johnson, " A Manager's View of the Taylor System," American
* Machinist, vol. 34, p. 885, presenting the point of view of the typical successful
manager, that we should let well enough alone.
' The following contain good enough ideas, well enough expressed, to warrant
listing and recommending them: Mr. A. G. Popke's " The Relations of Capital,
Labor and Efficiency in Manufacturing," Engineering Magazine, vol. 43, p. 857,
pointing out the necessity of increasing efficiency; Mr. E. Perry's " The Outsider
and the Busy Business Man," ibid., vol. 40, p. 249, answering the old saw that
improvement should come from the inside and not from the outside expert; a series
of articles by Mr. E. M. Wooley. — " The One Best Way," System, vol. 20, pp. 227,
356,460, 614; " Scientific Management in the Office," ibid., vol. 21, p. 3; " Getting
Out the Mail," ibid., vol. 21, p. 284; " The Wanton Waste of Labor," ibid., vol. 21,
pp. 13, 173, "Lost Motions in Retail Selling," ibid., vol. 21, pp. 366, 465, — well
written and suggestive; Mr. H. S. Philbrick's " Scientific Management," World
To-day, vol. 21, p. 1167, developing the idea that scientific management is a resump¬
tion of the direct oversight over production which had gradually vanished; an
anonymous article, " What is Scientific Management, and What Does it Do ? "
Industrial Engineering, vol. 9, p. i ; an article, also anonymous, on " Efficiency
Program/' Independent, vol. 70, p. 739; an anonymous article entitled " Aspects of
Scientific Management," The Nation, vol. 92, p. 464; and an excellent article by
24 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
2. Scientific Management in Operation
As yet nothing has been published summarizing the results of
the application of scientific management in any large proportion
of the plants which are using it. The nearest approach to a
review of its present status is in the Report of the Sub-Committee
on Administration of the American Society of Mechanical Engi¬
neers, referred to above. It is significant that one of the signers
and, I believe, the actual writer of this report is Mr. L. P. Alford,
mentioned above as one of the critics of the movement. Mr.
Alford has written another excellent article,^ based on the expe¬
rience of a well-known Philadelphia company. Mr. A. W. Shaw,
editor of the magazine System, gives a good brief review,^ describ¬
ing the work of the system at the Tabor Manufacturing Company
in Philadelphia, and suggesting the method of its application to
business problems in general and the results that might reason¬
ably be expected from it. The experience of the Link Belt
Company of Philadelphia is described by Mr. James M. Dodge,
its president,^ and a complete and detailed explanation of the
operation of the Taylor system in that plant is given by Lieut.
Frank W. Sterling.'* The experience of the same plant is the
basis of an article by Mr. C. W. Adams, its superintendent.^
The same methods, as worked out by the Midvale Steel Company,,
are described by Mr. H. L. Arnold.® An excellent description of
the early application of the system at the Bethlehem Steel
Mr. F. B. Copley, " How it Works: What Manufacturers and Workmen are
Getting out of Scientific Management," American Magazine, vol. 75, p. 11, sum¬
marizing the results of an extensive investigation and approved personally by Mr.
Taylor.
1 " Scientific Management in Use," American Machinist, vol. 36, p. 548.
2 " Scientific Management in Business," Review of Reviews, vol. 43, p. 327,
reproduced in this volume, page 217.
2 " A History of the Introduction of a System of Shop Management," Trans.
A. S, M. E., vol. 27, p. 720, reproduced in this volume, page 226.
^ " The Successful Operation of a System of Scientific Management," Journal of
American Society of Naval Engineers, vol. 24, p. 167, reproduced in this volume,,
page 296.
® " The Differential Piece Rate," American Machinist, vol. 34, p. 18.
® " Pre-eminent Success of the Differential Piece Rate System," Engineering
Magazine, vol. 12, p. 831.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 25
Works is pubUshed by Mr. H. L. Gantt/ and the story of its
introduction and results at the Tabor Manufacturing Company
is told by Mr. Wilfred Lewis, the president of the company.^
The methods described in Mr. H. P. Kendall's paper ® are in the
main those of the large printing and binding establishment of
which he is the general manager. Mr. Carl G. Barth gives an
interesting anecdotal account.^ Lieut.-Commanders W. B.
Tardy ® and A. M. Cook ® give the results of the application of the
principles of the system to gunnery practice and to the adminis¬
tration of a navy yard. The same subject is also dealt with by
Mr. Holden A. Evans in a series of articles.'
Two extended and complete accounts are those by Mr. Charles
B. Going and by General William Crozier. Mr. Going's article ®
describes the results achieved by Mr. Emerson in the application
of his form of scientific management to the Santa Fe Railroad,
and presents the conclusions of a disinterested spectator removed
from the stress of the conflict between the railroad managers and
their critics. It will be discussed in more detail in the next sec-
^ " A Practical Application of Scientific Management," Engineering Magazine,
vol. 41, p. I.
2 " An Object Lesson in Efficiency," in Technology and Industrial Efficiency,
p. 173. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1911. Reproduced in this volume,
page 232.
® " Management: Unsystematized, Systematized, and Scientific," Scientific
Management, Tuck School Conference, 1912, p. 112. Abstract in Industrial
Engineering, vol. 10, p. 374, reproduced in this volume, page 103.
^ " Betterment of Machine-Tool Operation by Scientific Metal Cutting,"
Engineering Magazine, vol. 42, p. 586.
® Scientific Management and EflSciency in the United States Navy," Engineering
Magazine, vol. 41, p. 545. American Review of Reviews, vol. 44, p. 229.
® " Scientific Management Methods at a Naval Magazine," Engineering Maga¬
zine, vol. 42, p. 75.
' " Reduction in Cost of Navy Yard Work," American Machinist, vol. 33, p.
1200; " General Instruction for Machine-Shop Methods," ibid., vol. 31, p. 610;
" Detailed Instruction for Machine-Shop Methods," ibid., p. 645; " Do Taylor's
Methods Increase Production ? " ibid., vol. 34, p. 1133; " Output under Scientific
Management," ibid., p. 1202.
The application to an automobile repair shop of the modification of the Taylor
System used by Mr. Emerson and his disciples is described by Mr. A. Flack in
" Machine-Shop Experience with the Principle of EflSciency Reward," Engineering
Magazine, vol. 41, p. 641.
® " The Methods of the Santa Fe," Engineering Magazine, vol. 36, p. 909; vol. 37,
PP- 9, 225, 337, 541.
20
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
tion. The reports by General Crozier on the application of the
Taylor system to government arsenals ^ are exceptional in that
they give detailed costs and comparisons to an extent not con¬
sidered practicable by the managers of private concerns. The
1911 report gives an excellent brief résumé of the introduction of
the system in the Watertown Arsenal, and a rather full demon¬
stration of the statement that " the practical effect of these
methods at the Watertown Arsenal has been a material reduction
in the cost of general manufacture at that place," and describes
the beginning of the trouble at that Arsenal with the molders
and machinists. The 1912 report pursues the same subject and
quotes comparisons of the cost of production at Watertown and
other Arsenals where the system had begun to be installed with
bids on the same items from outside concerns. The appendix to
the 1913 report gives the recent petition of the Watertown
employees for the abolition of the Taylor system, and the ex¬
tended and conclusive reply of General Crozier.^
3. Scientific Management and the Railroads
In the Eastern Rate Case, the application of the railroads to
the Interstate Commerce Commission for permission to raise
freight rates was met by the shippers, under the advice of Mr.
Louis D. Brandeis, with the counter-argument that, instead of
raising the rates to spend more money, they should make their
operation efficient to get more out of their present expenditure.
In the course of the hearings, the following testimony was intro¬
duced :
Mr. Brandeis. You have been quoted, Mr. Emerson, as stating that in
your opinion, by the introduction of proper efficiency system of scientific
management, the railroads of the United States could effect an economy of
perhaps $300,000,000 a year, or not less than $1,000,000 a day.
Mr. Emerson. That is correct — that is, I have been quoted as having
stated that.
Mr. Brandeis. Is it your opinion that that is the fact ?
Mr. Emerson. At least that.®
1 Reports of the Chief of Ordnance for 1911, 1912, and 1913. Government
Printing Office, Washington.
2 Reproduced in this volume, page 741.
' Brief on Behalf of Traffic Committee of Commercial Organizations of the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
27
Although, as stated above, the decision of the Commission was
not affected by this testimony, the publicity it received stirred
up an intense discussion, much of which on the part of the
railroads showed signs of the spirit of the man who has been
stung.
The best summary of the testimony bearing on this subject is by
Mr. Louis D. Brandéis,^ who has analyzed the meaning, the
requirements, and the effects of scientific management, and who
groups the evidence of the witnesses in accordance with the
analysis. In an earlier article ^ Mr. Harrington Emerson had
pointed out that, in his opinion, the railroads could save $300,-
000,000 a year, and his articles ® suggest the method by which he
approaches this conclusion. Mr. Emerson had been retained by
the Santa Fe to develop his form of scientific management in part
of their work and the results are described by Mr. Charles B.
Going,^ who outlines the problems of the road and describes Mr.
Emerson's treatment of the stores keeping, shop order and works
order systems, maintenance of motive power, the bonus system,
the apprentice system, and relations with the employees. The
bonus system is further described by Mr. Fred H. Colvin, editor
of The American Machinist.^
Atlantic Seaboard, before the Interstate Commerce Commission, re Investigation of
Proposed Advances in Freight Rates by Carriers in Official Classification Territory,
p. 92.
^ Scientific Management and Railroads. Engineering Magazine Co., New-
York, 1911. Ably reviewed by Mr. Edward D, Jones in the American Economic
Review, vol. i, p. 833.
2 " Preventable Wastes and Losses on Railroads," Railway Age Gazette, vol. 45,
p. 12.
® " How Railroad Efficiency Can be Measured," Engineering Magazine, vol. 42,
p. 10; and " The Methods of Exact Measurement Applied to Individual and Shop
Efficiency at the Topeka Shops of the Santa Fe," American Engineer and Railroad
Journal, vol. 81, p. 221. Mr. Emerson's work in the Santa Fe work-shops is praised
by Mr. W. J. Cunningham in the discussion of Mr. Taylor's address on scientific
management before the New England Railroad Club (Oct. 10, 1911).
^ " Methods of the Santa Fe," Engineering Magazine, vol. 36, p. 909; vol. 37,
pp. 9, 22s, 337, 541.
® " How Bonus Works on the Santa Fe," American Machinist, vol. 36, pp. 7,165.
See also two articles by Mr. Charles H. Fry, associate editor of the Railway Age
Gazette, in the Railway Age Gazette, vol. 41, pp. 476, 504, followed by an editorial on
the same subject, vol. 45, p. 413. Mr. Fry outlines the organization of the wofk on
28
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Severe criticism of Mr. Emerson and his methods was made by
Mr. Wilson E. Symons.^ Mr. Symons attacks Mr. Emerson's
statistics, shows the impossibility, in his opinion, of a million
dollar a day saving, denies that Mr. Emerson's work on the Santa
Fe was of any value, and gives examples of what he considers real
railroad efficiency. Whatever may be the worth of Mr. Symons'
statistics, it is evident to any one acquainted with scientific
management that he knows practically nothing of the latter
subject, and the paper is valuable mainly by reason of the dis¬
cussion participated in by many well-known railroad men.^
The bitterness of the reaction by some railroad men is illus¬
trated in a series of anonymous articles,® with such titles as
" Extravagant Claims," " Impractical Theories," " Neglect of
Human Element," " Unscientific Method and Impatience for
Results," and " Neglect of Large Factors," which criticize
severely some of the practices the writer had apparently met with.
It is unfortunate that no means of identification are given, and
there is apparently some point to the comment in the letter by
Mr. F- L. Hutchins ^ to the effect that the writer of the articles
that road and illustrates with charts and statistics the results attained, particularly
in machine shops.
It is generally understood that the influence of Mr. Emerson pervades the book
of Mr. H. W. Jacobs, Betterment Briefs, Wiley & Sons, New York, 1909. 2d ed.,
dealing with Santa Fe machine shop improvements, reviewed in the Railway Age
Gazette, vol. 47, p. 1192.
1 " The Practical Application of Scientific Management to Railway Operation,"
Journal of the Franklin Institute, vol. 173, pp. i, 140, 271, 365. See also his reply to
an editorial criticism of his own paper in the Railway Age Gazette, vol. 51, p. 1107.
2 In the same Journal appeared a defence of Mr. Emerson by Mr. C. J. Morrison,
" Letter on Scientific Management," Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, p. 214, and a fair
criticism with acknowledgement of variation of the Emerson and the Taylor
methods in an anonymous article on " What is Scientific Management ? " ibid-,
vol. 50, p. 839. Two good editorials on the subject are contained in The Railway
Age Gazette: one of which, vol. 50, p. 18, holds that " the basic principles under-
l3dng scientific management are correct," and the other, vol. 50, p. 210, that " the
value and effectiveness of scientific time study cannot be questioned." Some
justification of Mr. Emerson's criticism of the efficiency of the raUroads may be
foimd in an article by Mr. L. C. Fritch, a well recognized railroad expert, on " Op¬
portunities for Economy on Railways," ibid.; vol. 51, p. 1059.
3 " The Mistakes of the Efficiency Men," Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, pp. 29,
230, 391, 849, 1059, reproduced in this volume, page 615.
* Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, p. 268, reproduced in this volume, page 632.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
29
was mistaken in his classification of "efficiency men." The
articles are well worth reading, however, as they appear to de¬
scribe accurately the kind of things done by the many ill-prepared
and inexperienced practitioners of " efficiency."
The objection to scientific management on the railroads on the
ground that interference of the labor unions makes it impossible
is voiced by Mr. J. O. Fagan ^ who reiterates his point that the
difficulty with the railroads is the employees.^
Other fundamental objections to the application of scientific
management to railroads are discussed by Professor W. J. Cun¬
ningham.^ After stating the principles of the Taylor system, he
discusses the testimony of Mr. Emerson and points out the
vagueness of the methods proposed by him. He criticizes severely
Mr. Emerson's statistics and particularly the method by which
he arrives at the one million dollar a day saving. Acknowledging
the success of scientific management in commercial undertak¬
ings, he points out four essential differences between manufac¬
turing establishments and railroads: (i) area and extent of
activity; (2) nature of product and output; (3) relations with the
public and the government; and (4) relations with labor unions
— any one of which, in his opinion, makes an application of the
system to railroads impracticable. He then shows that the
railroads have in fact for some time been applying scientific
management of their own kind, and that the remedy for their
administrative difficulties lies in a further application of the
same methods by better and more efficient men.
Another railroad man, Mr. C. deL. Hine, in a stimulating and
suggestive book,^ develops the thesis that specialization has
^ " The Dream of Scientific Management on Railroads," Journal of Accountancy,
vol. 12, p. I.
^ See also the discussion between him and Mr. E. H. Abbott in " Humpty
Dumpty's Question, and its Answer," Outlo,ok, vol. 97, p. 543. The subject is also
dealt with in an anonymous article in the Iron Age, " Railroad Efficiency and the
Labor Unions," Feb. 23,1911; and the responsibility for the problem is traced in an
anonymous article, " Genesis of Railway Brotherhoods," Railway Age Gazette,
vol. 50, p. 782; the point is also mentioned by Mr. W. D. Hines in " Scientific
Management for Railways," Nation, vol. 91, p. 576.
® " Scientific Management in the Operation of Railroads," Quarterly Journal of
Economics, vol. 25, p. 539, reproduced in this volume, page 580.
* Modern Organization. Engineering Magazine Co., New York, 1912.
30
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
already been carried too far on the railroads and that what they
need is decentralization rather than the increased centralization
characteristic of scientific management.^
One of the principal arguments of the railroads was that, so
far as scientific management was applicable to railroading, it was
already being applied, as was pointed out in Mr. Cunningham's
article already referred to. An attentive study of the examples
given by the railroad writers, however, shows that in the main
they have mistaken isolated applications of scientific methods for
the systematized organization of administration, which is meant
by " scientific management." ^
In the meantime, practical heed is being given to the possibility
of making some form of application of the new system to rail¬
roading. For obvious reasons little is being published on this
point, and any reference to the fact that the methods are those
of Mr. Taylor or Mr. Emerson is carefully avoided.^
The fact seems to be, as expressed ^ by Mr. C. C. Leech, that
" the efficiency men simply got in wrong " and that when per¬
sonalities came to be forgotten, the railroad managers were as
alive as any one to the possibilities of improvement.® As
^ Attention shovdd also be called to two editorials in the Railway Age Gazette, vol.
SO, p. 265 and p. 387.
2 See Mr, C. B, Brewer's " Substitute for the Rate Increase," etc., Scientific
American, vol. 104, p. 596; Mr. B. S. Hinckley's " The Scientific Thought Applied
to Railroad Problems," in Technology and Industrial Efficiency, p. 181. McGraw-
Hill Co., New York, 1911; Mr. S. M. Felton's " Scientific Management of
American Railways," ibid., p. 221; and an anonymous article, "The Compara¬
tive Merits of Fvmctional and Geographical Systems of Organization," Engin¬
eering News, vol. 64, p. 692.
® This is shown in the articles by Mr. W. J. Harahan on " Scientific Manage¬
ment," Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, p. 212; by Mr. M. H. C. Brombacher on
" Application of Scientific Management to a Railway Shop," ibid., vol. 51, p. 23; by
Messrs. H. F. Stimpson, L. W. Allison, J. S. Sheafe, and C. J. Morrison, on " Appli¬
cation of Scientific Management to a Railway Shop," ibid., vol. 51, p. 33; and by
Mr. B. A. Franklin on " An Efi&ciency Experiment Station for the Railroads,"
Engineering Magazine, vol. 42, p. i.
* " A Letter on EflSciency," Railway Age Gazette, vol. 51, p. 221.
® An anonymous article, " Scientific Management of Railway Shops," Machinery,
vol. 10, p. 16, calls attention to the steps taken by railroads to investigate efficiency
as a result of the agitation; and an editorial in Engineering and Contracting, " The
Railways and Scientific Management," vol. 35, p. 379, points out that scientific
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
31
evidence of the truth of this,^ may be cited the work in the
Canadian Pacific Shops where scientific methods have been in¬
stalled by Mr. Gantt and maintained and developed by Mr.
Vaughan, a leading railroad expert.^
4. Methods
In current discussions of scientific management so much
emphasis has been laid upon such things as time study, motion
study, functional foremanship, instruction cards, and slide rules
that there is serious danger of these mechanisms of the system
being taken for the system itself. With the warning, however,
that detailed methods, either separately or in mere aggregation,
are not scientific management, it is worth while to report the
best of the articles and books which hâve appeared describing
these methods. Nor is it superfino us to warn readers of these
articles that the methods dealt with are so technical in their
nature that their successful practice requires not only an expert
in the method used, but an expert in the proper adjustment of
these methods to each other and particularly to the entire spirit
of scientific management.
There is an excellent series of articles dealing with the method
of approach to the system,^ most of which are amplifications of the
management is now being applied to the railroads, reproduced in this volume,
page 610.
^ In spite of the conclusion by Mr. George J. Bums in " Notable Efficiencies in
Railway Machine-Shop Operation," Engineering Magazine, vol. 42, pp. 161, 386,
616, that the setting of standards in a railroad shop is impossible.
2 " Canadian Pacific Shop Management," American Machinist, vol. 45, p. 1164;
and " Schedviling Locomotive Repair Work on the Canadian Pacific Railway,"
Industrial Engineering, vol. 8, p. 380.
® The best of these are Mr. James M. Dodge's " The Spirit in Which Scientific
Management should be Approached," Scientific Management, Tuck School Confer¬
ence, p. 142; 2¡bstxa.ct\n Industrial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 350, reproduced in this
volume, page 286; Mr. H. K. Hathaway's " Prerequisites to the Introduction of
Scientific Management," Engineering Magazine, vol. 41, p. 141, reproduced in this
volume, page 268; the editor of Industrial Engineering has an excellent editorial
on " Installation of Scientific Management," Industrial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 301;
and there is a good article in the Iron Age by Mr. E. M. Taylor, " Modern Methods
and the Business Specialist," vol, 84, p. 184. There is a suggestive and humorous
account of the way not to do it, called " Echoes from the Oil Cotmtry," by Mr.
32 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
warnings so liberally scattered through Mr. Taylor's own books.
The point of all of them is that no management should undertake
to develop the Taylor system in its plant, unless it is prepared
for a very considerable expenditure of time, money, and effort
and a slow process of mental revolution on the part of itself and
its employees.
Of the growing shelf of books on the entire subject, the best
is of course Mr. Taylor's Shop Management referred to above.
This book deals mainly with machine shop practice, but the
principles and methods are developed in such a way that their
application to other types of industry is not difficult if made by
those sufficiently trained. The book on Concrete Costs by Mr.
Taylor and Mr. Sanford E. Thompson, referred to above, applies
scientific management to concrete construction. The other
books detailing methods of application are written by men who
have studied more or less with Mr. Taylor, or have been strongly
influenced by his methods. One of the best of these is by Mr.
F. A. Parkhurst,^ which includes a series of articles reprinted
from Industrial Engineering. The book includes an outline of
the organization of a plant under scientific management, and
detailed statements of the functions of all the principal functional
foremen, an analysis of routing, stores systems and time study, a
discussion of standardization and many illustrations of forms and
appliances. The methods described are based on the practice
of the Ferracute Machine Company, and differ only slightly
from the approved practice of the original Taylor group. An¬
other excellent book by Mr. Holden A. Evans, formerly Com¬
mandant of the Mare Island Navy Yard,^ deals particularly with
machine shop, smith shop, and woodworking shop methods, and
illustrates reductions in cost accomplished by these methods in
Navy Yards under the author's supervision. In addition to its
treatment of costs, it is concerned mainly with such developments
W. Osborne, American Machinist, vol. 34, p. 1036; and another by Mr. H. K.
Hathaway, in the discussion of Mr. Taylor's " Art of Cutting Metals," Trans. A.
S. M. E., vol. 28, p. 287, reproduced in this volume, page 279..
^ Applied Methods of Scientific Management. Wiley & Sons, New York, 1912.
' Cost Keeping and Scientific Management. Wiley & Sons, New York, 1912.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
33
in the direction of scientific management as may be undertaken
by a manager not specially trained in the Taylor methods.^
The application of scientific management to foundries and
machine shops is given in some detail by Mr. C. E. KnoeppeP
in a series of articles reprinted from the Engineering Magazine.
This is an interesting and well-written description of the applica¬
tion of scientific management as interpreted by Mr. Emerson and
his disciples.^
The best articles describing the functions of the planning
department are those by Mr. H. K. Hathaway,^ in which he
outlines briefly the duties of the functional foremen and illustrates
the practical working of the extension of specialization to mental
and supervisional work.
Perhaps the most distinctive feature of scientific management
in the popular conception of the term is its time study. Current
methods of time study, however, are frequently confused with
the Taylor method. In ordinary practice watches are often used
to determine roughly the time an operation usually takes, and
the result is sometimes made the basis of a piece rate. This
type of time study is known to the Taylor group as an " over-all "
study and is never used by them. The Taylor method consists
in the analysis of operations into their elementary units and the
^ There is a good statement of underlying principles in Mr. Evans' article
"Scientific Factory Management," American Machinist, vol. 33, p. 1108. The
" System " Company of Chicago has published a little book, " How Scientific
Management is AppHed," Chicago, 1911, consisting of a series of reprints of System
articles.
^ Maximum Production in Machine-Shop and Foundry. Engineering Magazine
Co., New York, 1911.
' Attention may be called to articles by Mr. Holden A. Evans, " Detailed In¬
structions for Machine Shop Methods," American Machinist, vol. 31, p. 16, and
" An Analysis of Machine Shop Methods," ibid., p. 468, and by Mr. Frederick A.
Waldron, " Modem Methods o? Shop Management," Iron Age, vol. 85, p. 982,
which are almost too brief to be very useful.
* " The Planning Department," Industrial Engineering, vol. 12, pp. 7, 53, and 97.
reproduced in this volume, page 366. With these should be read an anonymous
article, " The Foreman's Place in Scientific Management," Industrial Engineering,
vol. 9, p. 197, reproduced in this volume, page 395; and the criticism of functional
foremanship in John Calder's " The Production Department," Transactions, The
Efficiency Society, vol. i, p. 155,
34 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
determination of the best methods and time for the performance
of each of these units and their siunmation into a total time for the
entire job.
The best descriptions of elementary time study as practised
by the Taylor group of engineers are those by Mr. H. K. Hath¬
away ^ and by Mr. H. W. Reed.^ A comparison of these articles
with the tables of operating times given in Babbage's Economy
of Manufactures will effectively dispose of any claim that the
Taylor methods were anticipated by Babbage.
The practice of time study involves motion study. The aim of
motion study is to determine the most effective motion to accom¬
plish a desired result; and one of the elements in the determina¬
tion of its effectiveness is the time it takes to execute it. Time
study and motion study, therefore, go hand in hand, but it is not
impossible to make an effective and proñtable motion study
without the use of any timing device. There is an interesting
foreshadowing of modern motion study in an experiment carried
out in 1837. This was described by Théo tiste Lefevre,^ a foreman
in the famous printing plant of the Didots, who was struck with
the fact that the traditional layout of the printer's case was not
the one best adapted to the setting of type, in that usually the
compositor had to reach farthest for the most frequently used
letters. Lefevre, therefore, re-designed the case with a view to
the maximum economy of effort and, after a test of both layouts
adopted the revised case for his plant. After some years of
struggle with the traditions of the printing fraternity, the new
case was abandoned; but the experiment is a good early illustra¬
tion of the application of motion study.
The best descriptions of motion study as such are given by Mr.
Frank B. Gilbreth.^ Mr. Gilbreth endeavors to list the variables
affecting the efñcient performance of manual work, and to point
1 " Elementary Time Study as a Part of the Taylor System of Scientific Manage¬
ment," Industrial Engineering, vol. 11, p. 85, reproduced in this volume, page 520.
2 " A Time Study under the Taylor System," American Machinist, vol. 35, p. 689.
A good article is that by Mr. N. E. Adamson, Jr., " The Taking of Time Study
Observations," Engineering, vol. 10, p. 439.
3 Guide Pratique du Compositeur. Firmin Didot, Paris, 1883 (nouvelle edition).
^ Motion Study. Van Nostrand Co., New York, 1911. See also ch. âv of his
Bricklaying System. New York, & Chicago, 1909.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
35
out the extent of their influence. They are classed as variables
of the worker, including anatomy, brawn, contentment, creed,
earning power, experience, fatigue, habits, health, mode of living,
nutrition, size, skill, temperament, and training; variables of the
surroundings, including appliances, clothes, color, entertainment,
heating, lighting, quality of material, rewards and penalties, size
of unit moved, special fatigue-eliminating devices, surroundings,
tools, union rules, and weight of unit moved; variables of the
motion, including acceleration, automaticity, combination with
other motions, cost, direction, effectiveness, foot-pounds of work
accomplished, inertia and momentum overcome, length, necessity,
path, play for position, and speed. The application of motion
study to operations so small that they cannot be noted by the
human eye unaided is accomplished by means of moving pic¬
tures.^
The result of properly directed time and motion study is the
standardization of methods and equipment to secure the largest
output in the minimum time with no material increase of effort.
Once standardization is effected, the method is reduced in detail
to writing in the form of an instruction card ^ which is given the
operator as a guide to the accomplishment of the predetermined
standard of production.
The multiplicity of data from which instruction cards are
compiled must be reduced to such form that they can easily be
^ " Micro-Motion Study — a New Development in Efficiency," Scientific
American, vol. io8, p. 84. An illustration of the kind of results achieved is given by
Mr. H. L. Gantt, " ' Hipped ' on Motion Study," Industrial Engineering, vol. 8,
p. 307, and by Mr. William D. Ennis, " An Experiment in Motion Study," ibid.,
vol. 9, p. 462. Professor Walter D. Scott, " The Rate of Improvement in EflS-
dency," System, vol. 20, p. 155, presents a useful side-light on its application. The
following articles show how it may be used in fields outside manufacturing: Mr.
E. M. Wooley's "Lost Motions in Retail Selling," ibid., vol. 21, pp. 366, 465,
"Getting out the Mail," ibid., p. 284, and Mr. J. G. Frederick and Mr. H. S.
McCormack's " Motion Study in Office Work," ibid., p. 563.
2 These instruction cards are illustrated in the article by Mr. Hathaway on time
study referred to above, and in the following: Mr. H. W. Reed's " Following a
Fixed Schedule Under the Taylor System," American Machinist, vol. 35, p. 1020;
and " Two Turret Lathe Instruction Cards," ibid., vol. 36, p. 915. See also Mr.
Frank B. Gilbreth's " The Instruction Card as a Part of the Taylor Plan of Manage¬
ment," Industrial Engineering, vol. 11, p. 380.
36
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
made available. Particularly is this true in the case of the condi¬
tions affecting the most economical cutting of metal. The vast
body of information on this subject as given in such a work as
Mr. Taylor's " Art of Cutting Metals " ^ must, for practical
purposes, be made handy for use by the instruction card man.
This is the purpose of the slide rules devised and described by Mr.
Carl G. Barth.2 Mr. Barth shows how the same methods by
which slide rules for the solution of ordinary mathematical prob¬
lems have been constructed, may be appHed to the construction
of slide rules for the solution of the more complicated mathe¬
matical problems involved in the determination of the proper
speed, feed, and depth of cut for machine tools.
In spite of the fact that standardization is so fundamental a
feature of scientific management, nothing of any consequence
has been written on the subject.^ In an article by Mr. P. Bal¬
lard,^ the movement is criticized as not scientific, because its
standardization methods stand in the way of progress. This
illustrates a common fallacy in the discussion of standardization
as that term is used by the scientific managers. It must be
understood that standardization in their sense does not mean
standardization of product, which is the common acceptance of
the term, but the determination of the best material, equipment,
and process discoverable at any given time and adherence to it
until a better is found. So far from standing in the way of
progress, this conception of standardization rather stimulates
and aids more rapid improvement.
1 Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 28, p. 31.
2 " Slide Rules as Part of the Taylor System," Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 25, p. 49,
reproduced in this volume, page 405.
2 The best available is in an article by Mr. Charles Day, " Advanced Practice of
Economical Metal Cutting," Engineering Magazine, vol. 27, p. 549, and in a book by
Mr. C. U. Carpenter, Proßt-Making Management. Engineering Magazine Co.,
New York, 1908. There is a brief but suggestive article by Mr. E. M. Wooley on
" Scientific Management in the Ofifice, " System, vol. 20, p. 3, dealing with the
standardization of ofifice equipment and supplies, and a characteristic note by
Mr. Frank E. Gilbreth on " The First Case of Standardization," Trans., The
Efificiency Society, vol. i, p. 257, taking the shape of a brick as his example.
* " Scientific Management and Science," Cassier's Magazine, vol. 41, p. 425.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
37 '
In the Taylor system, the term " routing " has two significa-
Lions. Sometimes it refers to the physical layout of plants and
the relationship of departments, — in this sense it is most com¬
pletely treated by Mr. Charles Day; ^ more usually, however,
t is concerned with the analysis of the sequence of operations
m the work and the determination of the place and time for each
opération and group of operations. On this latter, the most
ntricate feature of the system, practically nothing has been
published ^ outside of Mr. Taylor's Shop Management.
Another characteristic feature of the Taylor system is the
extensive use of classification and mnemonic symbolization. A
series of articles by the present writer points out the purposes
ind methods of classification and mnemonic symbolization and
its application to the various functions of costs, administration,
stores system, routing, and filing.^
Although the Taylor system has a distinctive type of cost
accounting, its details have not been published. The first part
of Mr. Holden A. Evans' book ^ deals with the subject, but not
exactly in the manner in which it is practised by the Taylor
group.®
^ Industrial Plants. Engineering Magazine Co, New York, 1911.
2 The only reference of consequence outside the books is the article by Mr. H. L.
Gantt, " The Mechanical Engineer and the Textile Industry," Trans. A. S. M. E.,
vol. 32, p. 499.
® C. B. Thompson, " Giving a Business a Memory," System, vol. 22, p. 588;
" Memory Tags for Business Facts," ibid., vol. 23, p. 21; " Taking Factory Costs
Apart," ibid., p. 131; " Listing Stock to Index Wastes," ibid., p. 260; " Keeping
Tab on Finished Parts," ibid., p. 386; " Right Filing and Easy Finding," ibid.,
p. 286, reproduced in this volume, page 461.
The only other article on the subject is a brief abstract of a paper by Mr. H. G.
Benedict, " The Mnemonic Symbolizing of Stores under Scientific Management,"
Industrial Engineering, vol. 12, pp. 24, 69.
^ Cost Keeping and Scientific Management. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1911.
® Mr. A. Hamilton Church's The Proper Distribution of Expense Burden, En¬
gineering Magazine Co., New York, 1908, and Production Factors, Engineering
Magazine Co., New York, 1910, describe a method arrived at by him quite
independently, which has been used in part for some time by the Taylor
group. There is a brief anonymous article on " Cost and Time Keeping Outfit of
the Taylor System," \4wenco» Machinist, vol. 29, p. 761, and another by Mr.
Charles "J. Simeon on "The Scientific Management of a Foxmdry," Iron Trade
Review, vol. 50, p. 68, which deal with some of the mechanical details.
38
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The Taylor method of administering a tool room is admirably
described by Mr. R. T. Kent,^ emphasizing the importance of
standardization, classification, maintenance, and control. The
administration of belting is discussed by Mr. F. W. Taylor.^
Attention has often been called to the fact that the second
cardinal principle in Mr. Taylor's system, the scientific selection
and training of employees, has received no systematic treatment
at the hands of the Taylor group, at least so far as selection is
concerned. Training is duly emphasized and illustrated by Mr.
Gantt in his Work, Wages and Profits referred to above. There
are two good popular articles on the subject by Mr. E. M. Wooley,
The One Best Way," and " The Wanton Waste of Labor,"
referred to above. The only thing I have found on the selection
of employees by any one even remotely connected with scientific
management is a pamphlet by Mr. Harrington Emerson,® and
this is an argument for the application of a system of selection
which can only be characterized as a refined and slightly modern¬
ized phrenology, described in a book by the originators, Dr.
Katherine M. H. Blackford and Mr. Arthur Newcomb."^
It must be evident from this survey that the Hterature dealing
with the actual method of applying scientific management is as
yet quite meagre. This situation is due to a number of factors,
one among which is the natural reluctance of specialists to divulge
the details of their profession, because of their apparently well-
grounded fear that the attempt to describe methods which must
be modified to meet a wide variety of contingencies must neces¬
sarily be inadequate and to a certain extent misleading, and that
therefore it is safer not to attempt at all to describe them in
writing. In view, however, of the rapid extension of scientific
management to many varieties of industries, and the compara¬
tive scarcity of qualified " experts," it appears that the time is
ripe for such an exposition of methods as may be immediately
^ " The Tool Room under Scientific Management," Industrial Engineering,
vol. 9, p. 87, reproduced in this volume, page 434.
2 " Notes on Belting," Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 15, p. 204.
® The Scientific Selection of Employees. The Emerson Company, 30. Church
Street, New York.
* The Job, the Man, the Boss. Doubleday, Page & Co., New York, 1914.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
39
and directly useful to any manager of the requisite intelligence to
sense their place in the system and to apply them with the
thoroughness and discretion necessary.
This criticism of meagreness does not apply to one of the prin¬
cipal methods of scientific management, — the use of wages as
an incentive. There is nothing new about such use of wages,
but the method of the Taylor group is characteristically different.
With them wages are not used primarily as an incentive to pro¬
duction but as an incentive to the acceptance of standardized
conditions and training and the following of instructions.
Increased production is the direct result not of the bonus or
differential piece rate systems but of the utilization by the em¬
ployee, in consideration of higher wages, of the improved methods,
materials and equipment provided him by the management.
This was the point, though it is not made very clear, in Mr.
Taylor's paper on " A Piece Rate System and Shop Manage¬
ment " referred to above, and it runs all through Mr. Gantt's
Work^ Wages and Profits}
^ This is brought out a little better by Mr. Harrington Emerson in a paper on
" A Rational Basis for Wages," Trans. A.S.M. E., vol. 25, p. 868. Out of the mass
of books and articles on this subject, the following are also suggested, not necessarily
because they are written by members of the Taylor group, which few of them are,
but because a study of them will help make clear the philosophy of the use of wage
systems by that group. The following are comparative discussions of various
methods of wage payment: Mr. S. E. Thompson's " The Taylor Differential Piece
Rate System," Engineering Magazine, vol. 20, p. 617; " Differential Piece Rates "
(anon3mious). Engineering, vol. 80, p. 413; Mr. Clive Hastings' " The Efficiency
of the Worker and His Rate of Pay," American Engineer àr Railroad Journal, vol. 81,
p. 238; Mr. Harrington Emerson's " Different Plans of Pa5dng Employees," Iron
Age, vol. 82, p. 1150; and Mr. C. B. Thompson's "The Reason for a Pa3Toll,"
System, vol. 22, p. 249, and " When Higher Wages Pay," ibid., p. 339, reproduced in
this volume, page 684. To get one's bearings in the discussion, the articles by
Messrs. Towne, Halsey and Rowan, referred to above, should be read, and the
following: Mr. W. 0. Walker's " The Value of Incentives," American Machinists,
vol. 26, p. 996; and Mr. C. J. Morrison's " Piece Rates versus Bonus," ibid., vol.
36, p. 178. Highly interesting in this connection are also Mr. CarroU D. Wright's
"Profit Sharing," Bureau of Statistics of Labor, No. 15; and the Report of the
British Board of Trade on Profit Sharing and Labour Co-partnership in the United
Kingdom. Wyman & Sons, London, 1912.
40
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
5. The Personal Factor in Scientipic Management
The apparently cold-blooded statements of Mr. Taylor in
Shop Management and The Principles of Scientific Management in
regard to his methods of training employees and the mathematical
determination of the incentives which actuate their conduct have
led to a considerable discussion of the treatment of the " human
factor " by scientific management. Discussion is usually based
on the truisms that system cannot take the place of honesty and
intelligence, that speciahzation can be carried too far, that driving
is an undesirable feature of factory management, that the work¬
men should not be made into automata, that they should not be
set working against each other's interests, that attention should
not be centered exclusively upon men above the average of abihty,
that the factors of habit and prejudice should not be ignored, that
no solution of economic problems is complete which ignores the
problem of distribution, and that the desires and aspirations of the
men toward self-government and democracy must be recognized.
Most of these points are mentioned in the Report of the House
Committee on Labor appointed to investigate the Taylor and
other Systems of Management,^ leading to the conclusion that no
recommendations were necessary, presumably because the
criticisms suggested did not apply to the Taylor system.
The importance of a consideration of the human problem is
emphasized by Mr. William C. Redfield.^ The nature of the
psychological problems involved and an indication of the method
of approach to their solution are discussed at some length by
Professor Hugo Münsterberg.^ The significance of the work
begun by Mr. Taylor and his associates as it appears to a psychol¬
ogist is emphasized, and examples are given of the more refined
methods by which the psychological laboratory may be made an
aid in the discovery of principles for industrial application."*
1 Government Printing Office, Washington, 1912.
® " The Moral Value of Scientific Management," Atlantic Monthly, vol. no, p.
411.
' Psychology and Industrial Efficiency. Houghton, Mifflin Co., Boston, 1913.
* The fear that scientific management is an effort to substitute a system for
integrity and ability is voiced by Mr. F. J. Whiting in " The Personal Equation in
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
41
In a remarkable book by Miss Josephine Goldmark/ there is a
^iuggestion that, although scientific management has thus far
avoided the pitfall of driving, there has not been the intensive
and scientific study of fatigue which might reasonably be ex¬
pected from the scientific attitude of the leaders in the movement.
Mr. F- H. Dwight ^ insists that the bonus as applied at the Beth¬
lehem Steel Works is but another method of driving. The
completest answer to the criticism of practice, no matter what
may be said in regard to the absence of a scientific study of fatigue,
is made by Clark and Wyatt,® who give the results of an intensive
investigation of the effect of the Taylor system on women
employed under it. This inquiry, begun with the expectation
of finding the science of driving reduced to practice, ended after
exhaustive personal study in many plants in a complete exonera¬
tion of the Taylor-Gantt methods from this charge.^
The criticism that scientific management suppresses the
initiative and ambition of the workman is presented by Mr.
Sdentíñc j.vianagement," Stone & Webster's Journal, vol. 8, p. 411. The fear of
over-specialization finds expression in an editorial in Engineering (London) on
" Scientific Management," vol. 93, p. 289, and is apparently the point of an article
by Dr. Luther H. Gulick on " The Human Element," Transactions of the Effi¬
ciency Society, vol. i, p. 181, and of one by Mr. A. Hamilton Church on " Intensive
Production and the Foreman," American Machinist, vol. 34, p. 830. The answer
to these may be deduced from Mr. M. P. Higgins' " Intensified Production and Its
Influence upon the Worker," Engineering Magazine, vol. 20, p. 568; Mr. Frank H.
Rose's "The Rise of Labor Through Labor-Saving Machinery,' ' ibid., vol. 27, p. 836;
Mr. A. E. Outerbridge, Jr.'s " The Educational Influence of Macliinery," ibid.,
vol. 9, p. 225, and " The Emancipation of Labor by Machinery," ibid., p. 1012.
The value of scientific management in finding the place to which the laborer is best
fitted and in fitting the man perfectly to fill it is emphasized in an editorial in
Machinery, " Helping a Man to Find His Place," vol. 18, p. 279; in Mr. David Van
Alst3me's " Profitable Ethics," in Technology and Industrial Efficiency, p. 207,
McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1911; and in Mr. Harrington Emerson's "Ethics
and Wages," Outlook, vol. 99, p. 682.
^ Fatigue and Efficiency, The Russell Sage Foundation. New York, 1912.
^ " The Taylor System as a Machinist Sees It," American Machinist, vol. 34,
p. 989.
® Making Both Ends Meet. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1911. See espe¬
cially chap. 7, reproduced in this volume, page 807.
* Other significant articles on the same subject are: " Scientific Management as
viewed from the Workmen's Standpoint," Industrial Engineering, vol. 8, p. 377,
reproduced in this volume, page S35, and Mr. Wilfred Lewis' " F. W. Taylor and
the Steel Mills," American Machinist, vol. 34, p. 655.
42 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Frank C. Hudson ^ and further discussed by Mr. Holden A.
Evans,^ and particularly and most effectively by Mr. Charles B
Going ® who points out that one distinctive feature of the modern
systems of management is the restoration of the individuality of
the workman.
The complaint that the effect of the task and bonus method is
to concentrate the efforts of each workman exclusively upon his
own success and well-being, has not been dignified with a formal
article, but is given expression occasionally in the hearings before
the House Committee on Labor. It is pretty effectively an¬
swered in an article by Lieut. E. D. K. Klyce,^ which points out
the absolute necessity of mutual helpfulness and cooperation in
the Taylor system.
Mr. Taylor talks so much about the " first class man " and has
emphasized so little his explanation that by the first class man
he means the man adapted to the job he is doing, that the sup¬
position is only natural that this system aims at the selection of
the best only and the elimination of the average and mediocre.^
Illustrations given by Mr. Taylor do unquestionably show the
strongly selective effect of his method; but this should not be
allowed to distract attention from the effect of systematic
training on the development of average and mediocre into
" first class " men.
The undue haste with which outside followers of scientific
management have attempted to revolutionize the methods and
habits of thought of workmen and employers has called forth
impressive and valuable warnings from Mr. James Hartness.®
The relation of scientific management to larger social problems
is hinted at by Mr. Taylor in The Principles of Scientific Manage-
1 " The Machinist's Side of Taylorism," American Machinist, vol. 34, p. 773. .
2 " Effect of the Taylor System: What is to Become of the Mechanic ? " Ameri¬
can Machinist, vol. 33, p. 1095.
' " The Efl&ciency of Labor," Remiena of Reviews, vol. 46, p. 329.
* " Scientific Management and the Moral Law," Outlook, vol. 99, p. 659.
® This misunderstanding underlies the criticism in Mr. John R. Godfrey's
" Eliminating the Inefl&cient Man," American Machinist, vol. 34, p. 1232.
® " The Factor of Habit," Transactions, The Efl&ciency Society, vol. i, p. 237.
Still more effective is his book. The Human Factor in Works Management.
McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1912.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
43
ment and the ultimate bearing of the application of the system
to social welfare, through the reduction of the cost of production
and the increase of the purchasing power of the consumer, is
briefly suggested. If it could be supposed that the tendencies
inherent in the system would be allowed to work themselves out
to their logical conclusions, social and economic consequences of
a far-reaching nature would reasonably be expected. This
possibility has raised unduly the hopes and enthusiasm of some
of the advocates of the movement and has brought down upon it
the criticism of those calmer individuals who realize, in the first
place, that no economic tendency ever does or can work out to its
logical conclusion, and, in the second place and particularly, that
production and consumption are but a part of the entire economic
problem. Those who are looking for a panacea for social ills and
who suppose that scientific management was offered as such a
panacea are keen to point out that it does not deal finally with the
problem of distribution. Professor Edward D. Jones ^ was
acute enough to see that Taylor's work developed a principle of
distributive justice, namely, the rewarding of the individual for
his individual performance, and was not disappointed that it did
not go further in this matter than it professed to go. Mr. Dexter
S. Kimball in the article mentioned above, Mr. Ralph E. Flan¬
ders,^ and Mr. W. H. tierschel ^ have pointed out, with the air
of making a discovery, that the Taylor system does not solve the
problem of distribution. Mr. Louis Duchey ^ hails the failure
of the system to solve the system of distribution and its one¬
sided emphasis on production as the force which will do most to
intensify class consciousness and hasten the destruction of
capitalism.
^ Review of Taylor's " Shop Management," American Economic Review, vol. 2,
p. 369.
® " Scientific Management from a Social and Economic Standpoint," Machinery,
vol. 18, p. 764.
® " Social Philosophy and the Taylor System — Will the Ultimate Result of the
Taylor System be Beneficial ? " Engineering News (London), vol. 65, p. 577.
* " Scientific Business Management. What is it ? What effect Will it Have
on the Revolutionary Movement ? " International Socialist Review, vol. 11,
p. 628.
44 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The test of democracy has, of course, been applied to this
movement. Mr. Meyer Bloomfield ^ points out, apparently
with some misgiving, that the loyalty of the employee must be
secured by keeping the enterprise democratic; while Mr. Paul U.
Kellogg,2 one of the editors of the Survey, is more specific to the
effect that this new industrial force must be socialized. Mr.
Frank T. Carlton ^ goes still further by pointing out how the
movement should be made democratic by giving the workman a
voice in the determination of the conditions and the rate of bonus '
under which he will work. Scant agreement with this concep¬
tion can be found in the writings of Mr. Taylor. His attitude
and that of men of similar training and experience ^ is that the
employee has no right to control or participate in the manage¬
ment of the establishment. If this is strictly true, there is
obviously in scientific management no place for recognition of
trade unionism, the collective bargain, and other mutually
agreed arrangements,
6. Scientific Management and Organized Labor
The attitude of Mr. Taylor and his immediate followers toward
labor organization is difficult to determine from their writings.
Thus he says, in Shop Management: " There is no reason why
labor unions should not be so constituted as to be a great help
both to employers and men. Unfortunately, as they now exist
they are in many, if not most, cases a hindrance to the prosperity
of both." He acknowledges the current obligation of society to
organized labor for increased safety, shorter hours and in some
cases better working conditions. It appears to be his belief,
however, that where scientific management is practised fully and
completely, the working man is automatically protected by the
self-interest of his employer, owing to the fact that the adminis-
1 " Scientific Management: Cooperative or One-Sided," Survey, vol. 28, p. 312.
® " A National Hearing for Scientific Management," Survey, vol. 25, p. 409.
® " Scientific Management and the Wage Earner," Journal of Political Economy,
vol. 20, p. 834, reproduced in this volume, page 720,
< " The Human Element in Scientific Management," by Messrs. H. R. Towne,
Oberlin Smith, John Calder, A. C. Higgins, and A. Falkenau, Iron Age, April 11,
1912.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
45
tration of the task and bonus is dependent on the wilKng coopera¬
tion of the man and the maintenance of his efficiency through the
complete standardization of conditions. Nowhere is he very
clear, however, on the practicability of the collective bargain in a
scientifically managed régime; while on the other hand he is
definite and forceful in his denunciation of some of the methods
of unionism, particularly the restriction of output.
Whatever Mr. Taylor's real view of the matter may be, the
fact is that the labor unions have taken a violent antipathy to
scientific management. This is at least partly due to what one
writer calls Mr. Taylor's " unfortunate and tactless statements" ^
in regard to labor. There are, however, other and more funda¬
mental reasons for this lack of agreement. An anonymous
writer in the Electrical Railway Journal^ points out that spe¬
cialization, through its easy training of the unskilled, strikes at
the heart of labor unionism as at present organized. An editorial
in the World^s Work ^ prophesies that " the foolish unions will
oppose it as they opposed the introduction of machinery, and
lose." The Century Magazine ^ observes that the labor union
insists upon " equality." Mr. G. F. Stratton in the Outlook ®
finds the point of divergence in the fact that the unions set a
minimum wage which the employers treat as a maximum. The
chief reaâon, however, appears to be found in the policy of
restriction of output. The belief that restriction of output is a
confirmed labor union policy is apparently borne out by the
Eleventh Special Report of the United States Commissioner of
Labor, on the Regulation and Restriction of Output,® — one of
those government reports which, like the report on the hearings
before the Labor Committee investigating the Taylor System and
the Report of the Civilian Expert Board on Industrial Manage¬
ment of the United States Navy Yard, which favored the applica-
^ Mr. C. H. Stilson, " Letter on Scientific Management," American Machinist,
vol. 35, p. 175.
® " Scope of Scientific Management," vol. 41, p. 451.
* " Scientific Management and the Labor Unions," vol. 22, p. 14311.
* " Taking Ambition out of the Workman," vol. 82, p. 462.
® " Ca-Canny and Speeding Up," vol. 99, p. 120.
' Government Printing Office, Washington, 1904.
46 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
tion of scientific management to the navy yards, was suddenly
and mysteriously " out of print " almost immediately after
publication.
As was seen in an earlier section, railroads in their controversy
with the scientific managers have not hesitated to point to the
opposition of the labor unions as one of the reasons for the
impracticability of the application of the system to their industry,
and to substantiate their argument, as in an article in the Iron
Age ^ by quoting the restrictive laws of such an organization as
the International Iron Holders' Union.^
The published expressions of labor union leaders referring
directly to scientific management have ranged from an attitude
of suspended judgment to one of bitter antipathy. Mr. John
Golden of the Textile Workers,' is non-committal but suspicious.
Mr. J. P. Fry of the Iron Holders ^ is sure that it is at least
unscientific. Mr. James Duncan, vice-president of the American
Federation of Labor,® conveys the impression that scientific
management is the summation of all the evils of all the genera¬
tions of oppression of the working man. Yet this opinion is
mild compared with that of the before-mentioned Mr. James
O'Connell (now a member of the National Commission on
Industrial Relations, which just now is once more investigating
scientific management) in an official letter to Machinists' Unions,
in which he says: " Wherever this system has been tried it has
resulted either in labor trouble and failure to install the systemj
or it has destroyed the labor organization and reduced the men
to virtual slavery and low wages, and has engendered such an air
of suspicion among the men that each man regards every other
man as a possible traitor and spy. ... We trust that you will
be impressed with the importance of this matter, and will see the
1 " Railroad Elfidency and the Labor Unions," vol. 87, p. 476.
® Other interesting articles on the attitude of the unions towards premium plans
are those by Mr. H. M. Norris, " Actual Experience with the Premium Plan,"
Engineering Magazine, vol. 18, pp. 572, 689, and Mr. James O'Connell, " Piece
Work not Necessary for Best Results in the Machine Shop," ibid., vol. 19, p. 373.
® " The Attitude of Organized Eihor," Journal of Accountancy, vol. 12, p. 189.
* " Relation of Scientific Management to Labor," Iron Trade Review, vol. 52,
p. 917.
® " Efl&dency," Journal of Accountancy, vol. 12, p. 26.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
47
impending danger. Act quickly." The published articles in
newspapers on this subject are very numerous; they are not listed
here as they are variations on the same theme.
The Machinists Union and after it the American Federation of
Labor have made the application of scientific management in
government arsenals, particularly in the arsenal at Watertown,
Massachusetts, the object of their official attack. Reference has
already been made to the report of the committee appointed to
investigate the trouble there in 1911. In the 1913 report,^
General Crozier deals with the recent petition of the Watertown
employees referred to above. This petition is evidently the first
gun in the campaign inaugurated by the American Federation of
Labor at their 1913 convention in Seattle, at which they decided
officially to fight the extension of the Taylor system.^
The best articles counselling the unions to take a saner point
of view are those by Mr. Louis D. Brandeis,® in which he argues
that scientific management is but the application of thought and
knowledge to industry, that increased efficiency and production
operate in the interest of the working man, and that its progress
and ultimate success are inevitable. The same thought is
expressed by Mr. Harrington Emerson.'^
On the other hand, scientific managers have been freely advised
to recognize more fully the necessity of cooperation with the
unions. This is the attitude of Mr. John R. Commons,® who
points out that the bonus system implies an individual bargain
with the workman, and therefore strikes at the very existence of
the union, unless its terms can be made the subject of a collective
^ Report of the Chief of Ordnance, 1913. Government Printing Office, Wash¬
ington. Reproduced in this volume, page 747.
2 Interesting articles bearing on the subject are those by Mr. Max H. C. Brom-
bacher, " The Rock Island Arsenal Labor Trouble," Iron Age, vol. 89, p. 476; by
Lieut.-Colonel W. S. Peirce on " Government Shop Management," ibid., p. 476;
and an article, " Scientific Management at United States Arsenals," ibid., vol. 88, p.
1022, which includes a statement of former Secretary of War, Stimson.
® The New Conception of Industrial Efficiency," Journal of Accountancy, vol. 12,
p. 35, and " Organized Labor and Efficiency," Survey, vol. 26, p. 148.
* " The Fimdamental Truth of Scientific Management," Journal of Accountancy,
vol. 12, p. 17.
® " Organized Labor's Attitude Towards Industrial Efficiency," American
Economic Review, vol. i, p. 463.
48
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
bargain; of Dr. John H. Gray,^ and of the present writer,^ who
holds that the labor unions may and should assist in the deter¬
mination of the standardized conditions and of a day's work and
its attainment, and that the existence of the unions is and will
continue to be necessary to maintain an adequate minimum
wage.
^ " How Efficiency should benefit the Employer, the Employee, and the Public,"
Transactions, The Efficiency Society, vol. i, p. 67.
2 C. B. Thompson, " The Relation of Scientific Management to the Wage Prob¬
lem," Journal of Political Economy, vol. 21, p. 630, reproduced in this volume,
page 706.
INDUSTRIAL ADMINISTRATION AND SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
by forrest e. cardullo
Reprinted by permission of Machinery
I
What Constitutes Scientific Management
The work of the engineer may be divided into three great
departments, since it has to do with the design of machinery, the
methods of constructing and operating it, and the administration
of the plants in which it is constructed and operated. The first
two departments (namely the design of machinery, and its con¬
struction and operation) have received the careful attention of
trained specialists for more than a century. Even at the begin¬
ning of the nineteenth century when engineers first began to
apply the resources of modern science to their work, the arts of
machine design and construction were in an advanced state,
owing to the efforts of many generations of skilled mechanics.
The third department of engineering work, however, has lagged
far behind the other two, since comparatively little attention has
been bestowed upon it. It is doubtful if any substantial advance
in industrial administration was made in the thirty centuries
preceding the year 1880, and even at the present time only a few
men are devoting serious attention to the fundamental problems
of management.
importance of industrial administration
At the present time, industrial administration is the most
important of the three departments of engineering work. It is
not, of course, confined to purely engineering projects, but is an
essential part of all commerce and manufacturing. Since the
greater part of our working population is engaged in some kind
of industrial work, the proper supervision of their efforts is a
matter of prime importance to the well-being of the country.
49
50
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Most of the readers of Machinery are, or ought to be, interested
in the proper administration of the mechanical industries.
Hence this series of articles will discuss more particularly the
management of shops and factories engaged in the metal trades.
As has already been intimated, the art of industrial administra¬
tion was stationary for a long period of time. In spite of tre¬
mendous changes in our social, economic and industrial systems,
we have been content to adapt or modify methods which origi¬
nated thousands of years ago. I may liken the system of admin¬
istration which obtains in most industrial plants to one of those
" old homesteads " which dot our New England landscape.
They started as a log cabin, to which was successively added a
lean-to, a barn, a shed, an ell, an upper story, and other " modern
conveniences." As a result, they are roomy — and also incon¬
venient. The common system of industrial administration is
constructed of the surviving remains of Greek slavery, Roman
militarism, Saxon serfdom, the mediaeval guilds, and various
other historical oddities, slightly altered to adapt them to the
twentieth century conditions, and engrafted on one another in
very much the same way as the additions to the old house. This
system of management has been a growth in which each manager
appropriated those developments of the past which appealed to
him. Sometimes methods were adopted as a result of a carefully
and properly conducted investigation, but nine times out of ten
they were adopted because the manager " guessed " they were
the best ones.
CONVENTIONAL MANAGEMENT
We will designate the system of management described in the
preceding paragraph as " conventional management." It
must not be inferred from the description the writer has given that
conventional management is always and utterly objectionable.
When the manager is a good guesser, he will usually choose good
methods of work. If his lieutenants are able and energetic,
these methods will be well carried out. Of course the system is
not perfect, and in many cases it is not even satisfactory. Never¬
theless conventional management can be made to work, and to
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 51
work well, when it is in the hands of capable administrators.
Different men will, of course, adopt different methods, and in
different shops we will find that the work of administration is
carried out in very different ways. In every case, however, the
distinguishing feature of conventional management is the accep¬
tance of something already in existence and the choosing, by
guess, between methods which have been developed by some one
else.
SYSTEMATIC MANAGEMENT
Within the past thirty years, however, two other systems of
management have arisen. One of these may be called " sys¬
tematic management," while the other has been named by its
originators, " scientific management." The systematic system
of management is the development of the clerk and the book¬
keeper. It aims at the keeping of careful records and the col¬
lecting and classification of information. It aims to proceed
by continually bettering existing records. It aims to inform
the management as to the preferable one of two alternative
methods of work, each of which must be tried out in practice.
Systematic management is, then, simply the keeping and com¬
parison of records in order to determine the relative value of
methods of work.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Scientific management, on the other hand, has been developed
by the engineer. Scientific management aims at the careful
investigation of every problem of the industrial world in order to
determine its best solution. It is not content to rely upon records,
or upon the judgment of the most experienced workman. It
brings to its aid all the resources of science. Every possible
method of performing a piece of work is carefully analyzed and
the best elements of all of the methods combined in order to
form a new method. Having established the best methods of
work, scientific management then instructs the workman how
best to perform his task, and offers an incentive to do it in the
prescribed manner. Scientific management is often called the
" Taylor System " in honor of its foremost exponent.
52
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Scientific management is not an invention but a discovery.
It is the application of the scientific method of research to the
problems of the industrial world. In so far as it is concerned
with the investigation of these problems, it is science and nothing
else. In so far as it is concerned with the proper application of
the results of these investigations, it is management and nothing
else. The combination is therefore correctly termed " scientific
management.'*
Just as in the old days, certain types of machinery reached a
very high state of development without the aid of the scientifi¬
cally trained engineer, so in these days, the administration of
certain of our industries has been very highly developed without
the aid of scientific management. In some kinds of work, as for
instance, watch making, the problems of administration are
simple on account of the limited character of the product and the
extensive use of automatic machinery. In industries of this
class reasonable piece rates have been established by a series of
cuts and other prolonged labor troubles. Such industries have
arrived at an efficient system of management by a very strenuous
and unpleasant process, and the adoption of scientific manage¬
ment would not always bring notable advantages. On the other
hand, most industries are not in this class. The character of the
labor employed, the quantity and character of the output, the
kind of machinery used, and the kind of material supplied is
continually changing. In the first class of industries a process of
evolution extending over two or three generations has established
the best methods of management. In the second class of indus¬
tries the best methods are continually changing as conditions
change.
In most industries, the introduction of scientific management
promises to effect great gains, and to greatly increase the efficiency
of our whole industrial system. Scientific management has been
applied to many different kinds of work, and seems to be almost
if not quite universal in its application. It has brought to light
many problems in connection with industrial administration of
whose very existence we were previously ignorant. Every time
it is applied to a new set of conditions, even in the same industry;
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
53
new problems are presented. If, in the near future, it is exten¬
sively applied to all industries or even to any one industry, it will
give rise to very serious political, social and economic problems
as well as intensify a great many of the problems that are now
pressing for a solution. It will be seen, then, that the applica¬
tion of scientific management in industrial administration is not
only important to the factory owner, the superintendent, and the
workman, but to the law maker, the citizen and, in fact, to every
man, woman and child in the country. The field of industrial
administration is a very great one, but we cannot appreciate the
importance of a right understanding of the problems which will
be raised by the extensive introduction of scientific management
until we realize how this field is interrelated with our entire polit¬
ical and social system.
AN EXAMPLE OF EFFICIENT MANAGEMENT
It is a fact which cannot be controverted, that very few shops
in this country produce more than sixty per cent of the work
which it would be possible for them to produce with the same
wage roll and the same physical equipment. A few of the best
managed shops produce probably eighty per cent of the work
which it would be possible for them to produce, and occasionally
departments in well managed shops reach an efficiency of over
ninety-five per cent. On the other hand, there are numerous
shops in this country which, without any considerable change in
their equipment or increase in their wage roll, could produce from
three to five times as much work as they put out at present.
This statement, extraordinary as it may seem, is not the result of
a wild guess, but may easily be verified by any one who will
make a study of conditions in these shops. Some two years ago,
the writer made a trip through southern New England inspecting
some of the representative industries. The most efficient depart¬
ment that I ever saw was the grinding department of the Norton
Grinding Co., Worcester, Mass. I do not know that the engineer,
Mr. Norton, made a conscious attempt to install the system
developed by Mr. Taylor, but I do know that by a careful study
of the work of this department he has raised the standard of
54
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
efficiency so that every man that I saw was employed continu¬
ously in producing a very high class of work with a rapidity that
was astonishing, and by methods which the average shop foreman
would say were impossible. In conversation, Mr. Norton em¬
phasized the necessity of a careful study of shop problems and
stated that such problems were worthy of attention from the most
highly trained engineers. Although he never once used the .term
" scientific," it was quite evident that his study was scientific
in the best sense of that term, and that no single problem which
had presented itself in his grinding department ever escaped a
most thorough and searching investigation. I shall always
remember this department of Mr. Norton's work as one of the
finest examples I have ever seen of excellent management, and
also I shall always remember the type of employee which I saw in
the department as a representative of the very finest type of the
American mechanic. Every man seemed to be a man of unusual
intelligence and skill and seemed to be putting into his work that
indefinable something, which for the lack of a better term we
designate as " brains."
A third matter which attracted my attention was the fact that
Mr. Norton seemed to be personally acquainted with every man
working in that department; seemed to know their especial
abilities and the work for which they were best fitted, and seemed
to take great interest in seeing that each man was doing the kind
of work for which he could realize the highest pay. So far from
adopting the attitude of the average employer, who is inclined
to think it a matter of good business policy if he can drive a
sharp bargain with his men, and obtain a day's work for a mini¬
mum wage, Mr. Norton spoke with pride of the unusual earnings
of several of his men who were working under a premium system.
AN EXAMPLE OF INEFFICIENT MANAGEMENT
At another time I visited a concern in which it seemed to me
that the majority of the men were doing absolutely nothing that
was useful. This concern was one of the largest ship building
yards of the Atlantic coast. I had no opportunity to talk with
any of those responsible for its management and therefore can-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
55
not say what attitude they adopted toward various questions of
administration. There did, however, seem to be a dearth of
foremen, and as in the time of the Judges in Israel, " every man
did that which was right in the sight of his own eyes." I remem¬
ber seeing one man who was engaged in chipping a plate with a
pneumatic hammer, and he had two assistants whose duty
seemed to be to drag the air hose after them and carry his hammer
as he went from place to place. At another place I saw a man
measuring a plate and marking upon it an opening which was to
be made in a bulkhead, with five or six workmen lounging around
him doing nothing. Most of the work of the establishment
seemed to be conducted in that manner, and altogether, it was the
most disgusting exhibition of shiftless management that I have
ever seen in my life. The matter was so apparent that several
students who were with me at the time called my attention to
it, although they were men unaccustomed to shop administra¬
tion and most of them were men totally unfamiliar with methods
of shop work.
ADMINISTRATION OF AVERAGE AMERICAN SHOP
The administration of the average American shop is a mean
between the slipshod methods of the shipyard and the careful
and efficient methods of the Norton Grinding Co. In such a
shop such obvious inefficiency as I have described in the case of
the shipyard would be promptly squelched. On the other hand,
in such a shop, careful investigation will usually show very great
inefficiency in many departments although such inefficiency is
not at first obvious. This inefficiency is due to a variety of causes.
It may be that work is slack and the workmen are " nursing their
jobs " in order to avoid discharge. It may be that they are
prolonging an easy and agreeable task in order to avoid being
assigned to a more difficult and disagreeable one. It may be
that illness or unsanitary shop conditions have deprived the work¬
man of a measure of his usual energy and ability. In many shops,
inefficiency has nothing to do with the workmen, but is entirely
chargeable to the management. All of the men appear to be
busily employed and the work to be carefully conducted, but at
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the same time, the type of machines used, the sequence of opera¬
tions employed, the conduct of the toolroom, or any one of a
dozen different things for which the management is or should
be directly responsible, greatly reduces the efficiency of the shop.
The writer was once employed by a firm that manufactured
small steam engines for the oil trade. Each of these engines
was equipped with two ffywheels weighing about 600 pounds
apiece and the only machine work done upon the wheels con¬
sisted in boring the hub, reaming it, and cutting the keyway.
I was employed to bore the hubs, which was done upon a home¬
made machine having a stationary spindle and a revolving table.
There was a crane which was used to place the wheels upon the
table, but before the wheels could be lifted by the crane, they had
to be brought about 500 feet from that part of the yard in which
they were stored after being cast. I was instructed to get
another apprentice who was named Gus, to help me roll them
from the storage yard to a point under the crane. During this
time, both my machine and Gus's machine were idle, since they
were of a character which required constant attention. This job
had to be done several times a day, and I doubt if those two ma¬
chines were running more than half the time.
As I remember conditions in that shop, I can see that there
were endless possibilities of increasing the output by improving
the methods of management. Nevertheless, to one who is not
in the habit of thinking about the possibilities in this line, the
shop appeared to be busy and well managed. It was conducted
by a foreman who had an excellent reputation and who was
supposed to know " how to get out the work." He was a man
of considerable experience and knew about how much time
certain work would take when done by the average machinist
in the average way. Most shops would have considered him a
valuable acquisition, and in a great many shops he would have
introduced notable improvements. The ship building company^
I have already described would have been fortunate had he taken
their affairs in hand, but any department managed by him would
have made a sorry showing alongside of the grinding department
of the Norton Grinding Co. He employed the usual methods of
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
S7
conventional management, that is, he allowed his men to choose
theii* own methods of doing work, and then eliminated those
men or those methods which were obviously incompetent or
inefficient. He was not at all versed in the scientific plan of
finding the methods of greatest efficiency, and of appl3dng them
in the administration of his department.
MISAPPREHENSION OE PRINCIPLES OE SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
I have heard a good many men say, in regard to scientific
management, that they have managed their affairs scientifically
without knowing that they were scientific. However, when I
have come to talk over the matter at length with them, I find
that what they mean is that some of the inefficiencies not usually
obvious had become apparent to them, and that they had adopted
some of the methods of scientific management in attempting to
eliminate the inefficiencies which had come to their attention.
This is a very different matter from installing a system of scien¬
tific management, although the efficiency of a good many plants
had been greatly increased in this manner. However, the men
of whom I speak do not understand what scientific management
is. They think that scientific management is a collection of best
methods, that it necessarily involves the use of certain kinds of
blanks and records, or that it is a form of organization, a method
of wage payment, or something of that kind. Of course such
things are employed in scientific management, but they are only
the tools which it uses, and just as a carpenter will change his
tools for different kinds of work, so scientific management will
adopt different methods, different forms, or different plans of
organization, as conditions change.
A great deal of harm is likely to come from the unintelligent
employment of some of the methods of scientific management
by such men, even when they are acting in the best of faith.
The introduction of some of the methods will often cause antag¬
onism among workmen, and, they will sometimes prove ineffi¬
cient under new conditions. In either case scientific management
is blamed for the failure, when, as a matter of fact, scientific
58
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
management would probably have employed other methods
under the given conditions. Scientific management must libt be
confounded with its forms or its methods, just as a man must not
be confounded with his clothes, or a religious creed with its form
of church organization.
METHODS UNDER DIFFERENT TYPES OF MANAGEMENT
It will help us in our consideration of different types of manage¬
ment, if we take a concrete example and note the differences of
the several types, as they appear in the example. Let us suppose
that a piece of lathe work is to be done, such, for instance, as the
turning of a crankshaft. In the conventional type of manage¬
ment the foreman will assign such a job as this to the first man
having a vacant machine in which it can be conveniently per¬
formed. Systematic management will usually do the same thing.
Scientific management, on the other hand, will assign the piece
of work to that machine in which it can best be performed.
Having received the work, under conventional management,
the workman will determine the plan of procedure, will choose
and grind his own tools, and will proceed to work, using those
feeds, cuts, and speeds which he thinks will be the most satisfac¬
tory. In case the workman is receiving day wages, the pace of
the work will depend upon the foreman. As the foreman goes
about the shop, he will occasionally take notice of the condition
of the work and the way in which it is being performed. If the
workman is obviously incompetent or inefficient, the foreman
will instruct, reprimand, or discharge him, as his judgment will
warrant. On the other hand, if the work appears to the foreman
to be going forward at a reasonable pace, nothing will be done.
In case the workman is being paid by some piece work or pre¬
mium plan, he will be anxious to earn as large a wage as possible
and therefore will attempt to determine the best cuts, feeds, and
speeds for the work in hand. There are two methods open to
him for doing this. One is to guess at the best conditions and
the other is to experiment until he. has determined them. The
first method, of course, leaves much to be desired. The second
method is open to the objection that it takes a considerable
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
59
nmnber of experiments to determine the best conditions of work,
even when the experiments are confined to the performance of a
certain job on a certain machine. The workman is rarely, if
ever, able to devote the necessary time to such experiments, and
he has not the training which would enable him to properly per¬
form and record them. With the facilities which he usually has
at hand, it is impossible for the average workman to do any more
than gradually improve his performance by careful attention to
his methods of work.
Conventional management determines the time required to
do a piece of work, or the piece rate to be paid for it by one of
two methods. The first method is for the foreman or some
other experienced person to guess at the time required to do the
work. The other is to put a capable and conscientious workman
at the work and see how long it will take him to do it. Of course
the guess of the foreman is about as good as the guess of the
average drummer would be if he tried to estimate the population
of a village while he was riding through it on a train. The other
method of allowing a pace maker to determine the piece rate is a
better one. Since, however, the pace maker usually does not
have the opportunity of making a careful study of the best
methods of performing the work, his time allowance will usually
be too large.
Systematic management, like conventional management,
leaves the method of performing the work entirely to the work¬
men. It does not, however, leave the question of the proper pace
to the foreman. The records of previous performances have
established a pace and the management can readily determine
whether or not the work is being conducted at the best pace of
which there is previous record. If it is not, the foreman is notified
and the workman is obliged to increase his pace. He may do
this in one of two ways. He may experiment in order to deter¬
mine the possibilities of the work, or he may go to some one who
knows more about it than he does for assistance and instructions
in regard to feed, cuts, speeds, and methods. In either case he is
nagged into bringing up his pace to that of the previous man, and
in this way the production is kept up to the best previous record.
6o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Under scientific management, the sequence of operations, the
cuts, feeds, and speeds, the tools and appliances, and the methods
of work are determined by the management and not by the work¬
man. Before the work is commenced, a specialist considers all
the possible methods of doing the work and after carefully analyz¬
ing them determines which of these methods are the best. Having
fixed upon the methods of work, a time allowance is then estab¬
lished for each operation. A typewritten or blueprinted instruc¬
tion sheet is then prepared which informs the workman exactly
what he must do, and how long it should take him to do it.
Instead of grinding his own tools, he receives a supply of properly
formed and ground tools. Instead of depending upon the fore¬
man or upon previous records for establishing the pace of work,
the time required to perform each of the several operations is
exactly known. The whole series of operations has been sub¬
jected to a careful analysis, every possible variation has been
considered, and the methods developed are not only good ones,
but are the best possible ones, considering the limitations of
that particular shop.
In order to accomplish the best results, not only must the
workman receive an instruction sheet, but he must be shown
how to perform many operations. One of the officers of adminis¬
tration is, therefore, the teaching foreman,^ who makes it his
business to instruct the men in the proper ways of doing work
and who is always ready to come to the aid of those men who are
unable to perform their tasks in the allotted time.
In order to encourage the workman to follow the proper
methods of work and to perform his task in the allotted time,
a piece work, premium, or bonus plan is adopted for the pay¬
ment of wages. The plan which seems to give the most satis¬
faction is known as the Gantt bonus plan. This consists in paying
the man a certain definite percentage of his daily wages as a
premium whenever he performs his task within the allotted time.
If his task, for instance, consists of ten pieces a day, and he
1 This is the foreman called by Mr. Taylor " the speed boss," because the
proper speed of the machine is one of the things in which it is his business to
instruct the workmen. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
6l
succeeds in making ten or more pieces, he will receive from twenty
to sixty per cent additional wages as a premium. In case he
produces less than ten pieces, he receives the regular day wages,
but no premium. A man's earnings are computed each day and
he knows on the morning of the following day whether or not he
has earned the premium. If he has not, it is the duty of the
teaching foreman to go over his work with him and instruct him
in those points in which he may be deficient. In order to make
sure that this teaching is thorough and effective the teacher
receives as a bonus a fraction of the bonus ^ earned by his work¬
men and in case all of his workmen earn bonuses, the teacher
receives an extra bonus. It will readily be seen that with such
a system of wage payment, thorough instruction and cooperation
are the invariable order of the day, and that the foreman as
well as the workmen are always on the lookout to see that the
tools, machines, and stock are all in perfect condition.
Not only does the man receive adequate instructions, and a
reward for obeying these instructions, but he is offered every
reasonable facility for doing his work quickly and well. He does
not have to spend his time hanging around the smithy or the
tool room getting the things that may be needed for his work.
He spends no time repairing his machine, taking up the belts, or
fixing the tools supplied to him. The management makes it its
duty to see that nothing hinders him in his work so that his entire
time and attention may be devoted to the performance of, and
not to the preparation for, that work. This requires that certain
assistants shall perform tasks which conventional management
usually delegates to the workman himself.
COLLECTING DATA NECESSARY FOR SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
It will be apparent from the foregoing, that instead of depend¬
ing upon judgment, scientific management depends upon knowl¬
edge, in its task of administration. Judgment is the instinctive
and subconscious association of impressions derived from previous
^ This does not mean that the teacher's bonus is deducted from that of the
workmen, but that it is a very much smaller percentage, the aggregate amount
of which depends upon the number of workmen whom the instructor has brought
up to the bonus-earning point. — Ed.
02
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
experience. When a man's experiences are wide, his impressions
of them are correct, and his memory is good, his judgment will be
good. But even the best judgment falls far short of knowledge,
and any system of administration based on judgment alone must
fall short of scientific management. Judgment will always have
its place in any system of administration for two reasons, firstly
because knowledge cannot always be obtained, and secondly
because it may sometimes cost more to obtain it than the knowl¬
edge is worth. In either case judgment is valuable, if not
absolutely necessary. But at the best, judgment is only a guess
and not to be relied upon if accurate information is available.
Not only does scientific management depend upon knowledge,
but this knowledge is carefully and systematically collected and
the data so obtained are classified and digested until the knowl¬
edge is instantly available whenever a problem is presented to the
management. Back of the form of organization is a knowledge
of the needs and the work of the plant. Back of the plan of wage
payment is a knowledge of pyschology and sociology. Back of
the instruction sheet is a knowledge of the sciences of cutting
metals and of handling work. As examples of the way in which
such knowledge is obtained, let us take the two subjects last
mentioned, and see what scientific management has done to
develop the sciences of cutting metals and of handling work.
Most readers of these articles are doubtless familiar with the
paper of Mr. F- W. Taylor on the art of cutting metals, which
was published in abstract in many of the technical magazines
shortly after it was delivered, in 1906. The work described in
this paper is probably the best example of the scientific study of
methods of manufacture which has ever been made. Mr. Taylor
and his associates at the Midvale and Bethlehem steel com¬
panies were engaged in the work for nearly twenty-six years,
and during that time made many notable discoveries in the line
of their work.^ One of the most important of these was the
discovery of high-speed steel; which is, at a very conservative
estimate, worth fifty million dollars per year to the machine
^ See introduction to F. W. Taylor's " The Art of Cutting Metals " in this
volume, page 242. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
63
industry of this country. Other no less important but less
spectacular results were the discovery of the best forms for
cutting tools, the invention of a sUde rule for the determination
of proper cutting speeds, and the resulting developments in the
form, rigidity, and power of machine tools.
In making this investigation suitable machines were prepared
and after establishing certain standards in regard to the kind of
material to be cut, the form and chemical composition of the
cutting tools, and the length of time which the tools must run
without regrinding, a very elaborate series of tests was made.
The object of these tests was to determine the maximum per¬
missible speed of cutting with different feeds, depths of cut, kinds
of tool steel, forms of tools, classes of material, and conditions of
work. There were in all twelve conditions affecting the cutting
speed, each of which could be varied. Some of these could be
varied over a very wide range, and every time one of the condi¬
tions was altered a large number of experiments was necessary
in order to determine the permissible cutting speed. It is obvious
that in such a complicated problem as this, thousands of experi¬
ments were necessary before it could be solved. As fast as experi¬
mental data were collected, the results were worked up in order
to determine the mathematical laws governing the cutting of
metals. Since these laws were found to be extremely compli¬
cated, and since, if the work was to be practical, quick and simple
methods of solution had to be devised, a great deal of time and
effort was spent in devising methods for determining the proper
cutting speeds for any given conditions. Finally after many
years of work, a slide rule was invented which gave a quick and
accurate solution of the problem.^
This investigation was probably the most important investiga¬
tion of the kind ever attempted. It was very thorough, requiring
a period of twenty-six years for its completion. The total cost
is stated to have been $800,000. The results, in which every
metal working shop in the country has shared, are unquestionably
worth one hundred million dollars a year. Hardly one manager
^ See Mr. C. G. Earth's " Slide Rules for the Machine Shop as a Part of the
Taylor System of Management," in this volume, page 405. —Ed.
64
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
out of one hundred, probably not one mechanic out of a thousand,
realizes the immense value and scope of the impro'^ements result¬
ing from this investigation. They rank in importance with the
development of the steam engine, the railroad and the printing
press. There are equally great opportunities for a dozen, possibly
one hundred investigations of like character in other industries.
It is to be hoped that they will be soon commenced and that they
will be prosecuted with the same energy, tenacity and intelligence
with which this investigation was so greatly marked.
MOTION STUDY AND ANALYSIS
The method employed in determining the best way to handle
work is known as " motion study." Motion study is almost a
science in itself, and is really a branch of applied psychology.
Motion study is not peculiar to scientific management, but has
long been utilized by athletes in their endeavor to improve
athletic records. A high jumper, for instance, will carefully
train himself to do his work in a certain way, taking a certain
number of steps in running up to the bar, throwing his limbs and
body in a certain position as he jumps over the bar, and endeavor¬
ing in every way to develop that smoothness and machine-like
precision of action which charg,cterizes what he terms " form."
The hurdler does the same thing, day after day making trial of
different methods of running and jumping, timing himself by the
stop watch, in order to achieve the most perfect form.
The same sort of study can be employed to advantage in
training workmen to perform their tasks, when the tasks are
repetitive in character. There is, however, one very great dif¬
ference between motion study for the athlete and for the work¬
man. Whereas the athlete strives to perform a task which taxes
his strength and endurance to the limit, the workman strives to
develop that form which will enable him to perform his task
quickly and with a minimum of fatigue. In the case of the
athlete, he is striving to excel for one supreme moment. The
workman, on the other hand, must be trained to repeat his
task, day after day, month after month, year after year, without
injury to his strength or his health, because only in that manner
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
6S
can the industry in which he is engaged reach its maximum
prosperity. It takes a more carefully trained observer and a far
better understanding of men and their physical capabilities to
train a workman to do a task quickly and well without over¬
exertion, than it does to train an athlete to perform his task
quickly and well, where the question of over-exertion does not
come in.
Any one who has ever had anything to do with athletics
understands how impossible it is for a man without training to
compete with the trained athlete. Just as it would be impossible
for the average healthy and vigorous man to enter an athletic
contest and do creditable work in competition with trained
athletes, so it is impossible for the average workman to go into a
shop and accomplish a creditable amount of work, in competition
with a workman who has been properly trained after a motion
study has been made of his task. In the same way, just as it is
impossible for the average man who likes to look at the stars, to
predict the time of an eclipse or the future configuration of the
heavens, so it is impossible for the average machinist to compete
with the trained engineer who has at hand a slide rule which will
tell him exactly the cuts, feeds and speeds which it is possible to
employ with a given class of material and a given machine. We
find it advisable to employ designing engineers who have spent
years in studying the strength of materials and the sciences upon
which engineering depends. It is equally advisable to employ
another class of engineers who will study the principles of manage¬
ment, and methods of doing work.
So far we have only touched on two points in regard to the
turning of our crankshaft, namely motion study and the science
of cutting metals. There are a dozen other branches of science
involved in the direction of the shop, all of which are used by
scientific management in furthering administration. When we
consider these things, it becomes apparent that in many indus¬
tries the introduction of scientific management will completely
revolutionize methods of work, methods of administration, and
even methods of selling the product and of financing the industry.
It will be seen from what has just been said that scientific
66
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
management is by no means a simple matter, that it requires
forethought and care in its application, and that, above all things,
it requires the scientific spirit in order to make it successful. It
will also be apparent to every one that, while scientific manage¬
ment will very probably greatly increase the output per man
or per machine, the staff which it requires for the planning of
the work, for the conducting of experiments, and for keeping
workmen supplied with material and tools will be quite an ex¬
pensive one. The question of whether or not scientific manage¬
ment is profitable, and therefore practicable, will hinge upon the
question of whether the savings which scientific management will
effect will pay for the staff which it is necessary to maintain. In
my opinion, the savings will usually be more than sufficient to
pay for the extra cost of scientific management, although some¬
times they will not. The application of all of the methods and
machinery of scientific management to the pattern shop, where
every job is different and where the principal part of the work
consists in planning rather than in executing, will not usually be a
success. On the other hand, where scientific management is
applied to repetitive work, there is no question but what the
cost of maintaining the staff will be but a very small fraction of
the savings which will result.
II
Causes of Industrial Inefficiency
So far this article has considered only the broad aspects of
industrial administration. In order to get a better idea of the
objects of scientific management, the methods which it is likely
to adopt, and the obstacles which it must overcome, I propose to
classify and describe some of the causes of inefficiency in our
industrial life. In studying the causes of inefficiency we will
discover the remedies which a proper system of administration
should apply, and develop some of the principles underlying
scientific management. I do not claim that all theífaults which I
will describe are prevalent in every industrial plant not under
scientific management. I will admit that most of them can be
eliminated without the complete adoption of scientific manage-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
67
ment I do know, however, that they are astonishingly preva¬
lent in our industrial life, and that neither conventional nor
systematic management has succeeded in uprooting them.
The causes of inefficiency may be divided into three classes:
The first are those causes which are chargeable primarily to the
employer, the second those which are chargeable primarily to the
workmen, and the third those which are chargeable primarily to
our political and industrial system.
Those causes of inefficiency which are chargeable primarily
to the employer may, in turn, be divided into two classes. Those
of the first class arise from a lack of knowledge. They can be
remedied by showing the management the possibilities of better
methods. Those of the second class arise out of moral defects
on the part of the employer, and will require more than a change
in the system of management or full information of the conditions
of the plant in order to eliminate them.
MENTAL LAZINESS
The first and most prolific source of inefficiency is mentaK
laziness. Most of us dislike to think. While a good many of
us will devote a spare hour now and then to the consideration
of some interesting subject, no man will, if he can avoid it,
devote two hours a day, not to mention eight hours a day, to the
task of devising and comparing methods of work. That kind of
thing is entirely too strenuous to suit the average officer of admin¬
istration. In the average plant, each officer places upon the
shoulders of his underlings the burden of detail for which he himself
ought to be responsible. When work is to be done, the manager
" puts it up " to the superintendent. The superintendent, in
turn, puts it up to the foreman, the foreman to the gang boss, and
the gang boss to the workman. Upon the workman devolves the
task of devising the methods and of planning the details of the
work. Now as I will show later, the workman is no fonder of
thinking than the management, and performs his task in that
way which involves a minimum of mental effort. He is not to be
blamed for so doing, because he has merely followed the example
of the management. It is the duty of the management and not
68
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of the men to study the work, to discover the most efficient
methods, and instruct the men in those methods. When, because
of lack of instruction, the men fail to perform their work in the
most efficient manner, it is the fault of the management and not
of the workmen. Conventional management is fundamentally
wrong, in that it compels the workmen to originate the methods,
and leaves to the management only the task of criticism.
When the management of an industry is reproached for lazi¬
ness in not properly directing the workmen, the officers of admin¬
istration will usually reply to this effect: " These workmen which
we hire are supposed to be competent men. They are experts
in machine molding, tool dressing, lathe work, or whatever it is
that we hire them to do. They have devoted their lives to these
lines of work, and know a great deal more about it than we do.
When a man receives a job, he can devote his entire attention
to that one job. His task is easy, because he has to think of but
one thing at a time. If we devised the methods of work, we
would have a thousand jobs to figure on each day. They could
not receive the same amount of attention that they get now, nor
would that attention be as satisfactory, since we are not experts,
and the men are. When you ask us to direct the workmen in the
details of their work, you are demanding of us an overwhelming
and impossible task."
In answer to this argument, it is onlv necessary to say: First,
while the workmen _ar£ usually much more capable than the
management, this is due to the lamentable ignorance of the man¬
agement, and not to the extraordinary knowledge of the work¬
men. It is practicable for the management to acquire and
apply knowledge which it is impossible for the workman to have.
Second, many shops that are eminently successful do direct all
of the acts of their workmen. Third, when the workmen devise
the methods of doing work, they are handicapped by being
obliged to use such tools and machines as the management pro¬
vides, while, when the management devises the methods, they
can and will secure the proper tools and machines for doing the
work.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
69
PREJUDICE AGAINST SO-CALLED NON-PRODUCTIVE LABOR
A second source of inefficiency is a dislike on the part of most
managers to employ a considerable executive staff to direct the
efforts of their workmen. The management balks at such a staff,
and claims that " non-productive " labor is a necessary evil if
you have to employ it, and an unnecessary evil if you can do
without it. In the old days draftsmen were regarded as an
unnecessary evil, and the designing was done by rule-of-thumb
and the head patternmaker. Experience has shown that Johnny
Pencilpusher is not an evil, nor is he unnecessary, and that it
pays to employ him. Accordingly he is now classed as " pro¬
ductive " and not as " non-productive " labor. The men who
direct the work of the shop are just as necessary as the men who
make the designs, yet it is difficult to persuade the average man¬
ager that a large executive staff is desirable even when you can
show him that a gain will result from its employment. The
attitude toward such a staff is well shown by the name " non¬
productive," so often applied to this class of labor. The labor of
the planning department is just as truly productive as the labor
of the drafting department, the machine department, or the
erecting department. A new attitude in regard to the employ¬
ment of indirect labor is a pre-requisite to greater efficiency in
many of our shops.
TIMIDITY OF CAPITAL
A third fault of management is timidity. Capital seems to
be ruled byTiax"qïïît^âs often as by judgment. Men dislike
to risk their money in something which they feel is not absolutely
sure to bring adequate returns. They especially dislike to risk
money in any investment which is of such a character that they
cannot recover the principal in case they decide to give up the
enterprise, even though adequate returns are almost certain.
Managers often hesitate to spend money for new tools or equip¬
ment until other firms have tried the tools or equipment and found
them to be successful.
70
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Probably one of the best examples of this is the difficulty which
Mr. George Corliss had in selling his engines at a reasonable price,
when they were first brought out. It will be remembered that
in some cases he had to take for his pay the value of the coal which
his engine could save in a given period of time, and was under
bonds to take out his engine and reinstall the old one in case the
purchaser decided that the new engine was unsatisfactory. Just
as Mr. Corliss' customers were fearful of spending money for an
improved t3^e of engine, and insisted on making a contract which
was, in reality, unfavorable to themselves, so the present-day
employer is fearful of assuming the expense incident to proper
management, even though it can be shown that great gains ought
to be realized from proper administration.
LACK OF FORESIGHT
This brings us to a fourth fault nf managpmpnt, which is lack
of foresígfítT The management, in performing the work of today,
fails to make allowance for the needs of next week, or the growth
of next year. Plants grow in haphazard fashion. Equipment
is added without making plans for the future. No attempt is
made to insure that there will always be a corps of trained work¬
men and a staff of able foremen. The lack of definite and far-
reaching plans for future work is not felt at the time that such
plans should be made, but is felt later.
MENTAL INERTIA AND LACK OF ADAPTABILITY
^ fifth fault of management i^ one which may best be de-
scribedaS~^nñenlal irie Managers tend to follow methods
which have been satisfactory in the past, but which changing
conditions have made unsatisfactory for present requirements.
Whenever a new invention of any importance is introduced into
a shop the conditions of work are greatly altered. The intro¬
duction of high-speed steel is a case in point. When the time
required for machining work is cut down to a third of that
formerly required, the amount of crane service for a given number
of machines is trebled. The foundry and forge shops must be
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
71
made very much larger in order to furnish the stock required by
the machine shop. The amount of storage room required for
,stock and for finished product is greatly increased. The relative
importance of different items of cost is radically altered, and
the nature of the problems of administration is greatly
changed. Notwithstanding these changes, we will find that
in most cases the management will attempt to get along
with the least possible change in equipment, and in methods of
work and administration. Many men resist change simply
because it is change, in spite of the fact that the change may be
desirable.
One of the best examples that comes to mind of the mental
inertia that prevents the adoption of new ideas is the general
disregard of Mr. Taylor's discovery that the use of a heavy
stream of water at the cutting point of a roughing tool increases
the permissible speed of cutting by forty per cent. If the ma¬
chines of a shop are engaged on roughing work for one-third of
the time, by the use of such a stream of water their output will
be increased by thirteen per cent. In a shop in which 100 men
are employed on machine work, this will mean a reduction in the
cost of machining of about $20,000 per year. To install a system
for distributing soda water to all the machines in such a shop, and
for returning and purifying the water, will certainly not cost
more than $20,000, yet, so far as the writer is aware, there is only
one shop in which such a system has been installed, even though
it would unquestionably pay one hundred per cent on the invest¬
ment. This is an example of bad management arising from mental
inertia, which occurs in almost every shop. When the subject is
brought up in any plant, the management fortifies itself in its
obstinate attitude, by advancing as arguments statements which
are untrue, for instance, that the system costs more than it is
worth, that the soda water destroys the machines, or that it is
always giving trouble. Were the management to give the matter
proper study, however, it would find that practical experience
has demonstrated that the benefits realized are so great that their
shops cannot afford to operate in any other way.
72
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
LACK OF STUDY OF THE INDUSTRY
A sixth and probably one of the greatest of all causes of ineffi¬
ciency is the fact that the management very seldom makes a
careful study of the industry. In the few cases where a careful
study is made, it is usually done for the purpose of improving the
materials used or the quality of the output, or increasing the
amount of work turned out by the use of a given method.
It is of equal or even greater importance that the methods
themselves should receive the same careful study. Probably
the best example of a scientific study of methods of manu¬
facture is the work of Mr. Taylor on the art of cutting metals,
to which reference has already been made. It is probable that
a similar study of methods would result in equally important
developments in other lines of industry. Such studies are not
made for three reasons. In the first place, managers do not
realize the need of such studies nor the advances which are pos¬
sible. In the second place, very few men are capable of making
such studies. In the third place, inertia opposes the changes
which would result from such studies, and timidity hesitates to
expend the money necessary to carry them out. Very few
managers would have the courage to commence an investigation
whose final cost would be $800,000 and which would take twenty-
six years for its completion, and while the management of sonie
very large industries might be willing to take a chance on an
investigation of this kind, even the most sanguine would deride
the possibility of such an investigation producing such valuable
and far-reaching results as have followed from Mr. Taylor's
experiments. When all is said and done, it will be found that
most managers want some one else to do the experimenting,
feeling that by so doing they can participate in the profits of such
work without sharing its expenses.
SYSTEMS OF REWARDING LABOR
A seventh source of inefficiency in many industrial plants is
the system of wage payment adopted. It would be hard to
devise wage systems better calculated to limit efficiency than
the two which are in most common use; namely, the day wage
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
73
plan, and the piece work plan with frequent cuts. Under the
day work plan, the man receives no reward for his efficiency,
he is instead punished for inefficiency. This is a method which
is fundamentally wrong, and only to be employed when no other
method is possible. When a man receives day wages, he is paid
for Ithe time which he spends at his work. The first question
which arises in connection with this system of wage payment is:
What wages ought a man to get ? The answer is he ought to get
all he can. He is selling a commodity, labor. He asks for it the
highest price he can get, and is justified in so doing. His labor
is measured by time and the value of the labor performed in a
given time has nothing to do with the payment which he receives.
The only thing which limits him is the fact that if he does not do
a satisfactory amount of work, he will be discharged. What
constitutes a satisfactory amount of work, neither he nor anybody
else knows. The whole thing works out very much as it would if a
man when buying a quart of milk were to insist simply that there
be some milk in the quart measure, and the matter of how much
milk there was to be in the measure should be left with the milk¬
man, with the understanding that the milk-man would lose his
customer in case the amount of milk was not satisfactory to the
purchaser.
When you discuss with the average workman the question of
proper wages and the proper amount of work to be done in a day,
he will tell you that his motto is " a fair day's work for a fair
day's pay." Different men, however, have very different ideas
as to the amount of work which constitutes a fair day's work.
Some employers think that it is all the workmen can possibly
accomplish. Some workmen think it is the least that they can
accomplish and still not get fired. Most workmen think it is
work they can do when working steadily at the gait that habit
and temperament have fixed in their cases. Most employers
think it is the amount of work which their most honest and
industrious employee normally does. When there is such a great
diversity of opinion as to what constitutes a fair day's work, it
will naturally be seen that there will be great diversities in the
efficiencies of different men and different shops.
74
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
When a piece work plan is adopted, the management usually
knows very little about the possibilities of the work. If the
management fixes what the men think to be a reasonable piece
rate, the men will soon so increase their output that they will be
making exorbitant wages. The management will then cut the
piece rate, and after the men have experienced a series of cuts
as a result of successive increases in efficiency, they will discover
that the management does not propose to pay them more than a
certain amount of money, and will work just hard enough to
secure a trifle less than the maximum amount they can secure
without experiencing a cut.
If, on the other hand, a proper piece rate is established in
the first place {i. e., one by which the men can earn fifty per cent
to one hundred per cent more than a regular day's wages when
they have reached their best efficiency), the men will believe
that it is impossible to earn reasonable wages under the proposed
piece rate, and will decline to accept it.
" HOLIER THAN THOU " SPIRIT OF SOME EMPLOYERS
An eighth cause of inefficiency is one which is happily becoming
less frequent. It is a disposition on the part of some employers
to regard their workmen as being of a lower order of humanity
than themselves. I have talked with such men on more than One
occasion. Among their associates they were highly regarded for
their kindness of heart, but I have heard them speak of their
workmen as " beasts " and " ignorant brutes." No man who
regards his employees in that light can be persuaded to adopt
scientific management nor can he bring the efficiency of his plant
to a high standard, because such feelings will unconsciously affect
his attitude in dealing with his employees, arouse their antag¬
onism, and destroy that feeling of cooperation which is the
essential basis of high efliciency.
On the other hand, even though the employees of such a man
are ready and anxious to cooperate with him, his attitude will
prevent him from doing many things which would utilize such
potential cooperation to advantage.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
75
AVARICE OF THE MANAGEMENT
The last source of inefficiency of which I will speak is avarice
on the part of the management. Avarice reduces wages, cuts
piece rates, purchases inferior materials and equipment, em¬
ploys unskilled labor, skimps on supplies and makes unjust
exactions of its employees. Avarice refuses to expend money
for the collection of information, for increasing the facilities of
work, and for improving the efficiency of administration. Ava¬
rice hampers the administrative staff at every point. Avarice
is the sin of the board of directors and the stockholders, and not
of the superintendent and his staff. Scientific management
often requires a large staff of clerks and costly experiments
when it is being introduced into a new line of work, and this
effectually prevents its adoption by the avaricious employer.
Not only will avarice prevent the adoption of scientific manage¬
ment in a great many cases, but it is also very likely to give
scientific management a black eye by adopting some of its
methods, without adopting its spirit. An avaricious employer
finds himself coming out second best in competition with one
who utilizes scientific management. He attempts to appro¬
priate the experience of his competitor in the same spirit in which
he imitates his trade-marks, copies his designs, and steals his
methods of work. Now while it is possible to imitate a trade¬
mark or steal a method, it is not possible to imitate or to steal
the scientific habit of mind or the spirit of fair play, which lie at
the basis of scientific management. The reward and instruction
are just as essential to scientific management as the discovery of a
method of work, but the avaricious employer cannot be made to
see this. When his neighbor has discovered a method of work
better than that which his workmen employ, he will attempt to
torce his workmen to accomplish the same results without teach¬
ing them the new method and without offering them the reward
to which they should be entitled, and his attempts will therefore
always end in failure. While there is no question but that scien¬
tific management will continually discover new and improved
methods, processes and materials, and while these improvements
76
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
will gradually find their way into shops which do not employ
scientific management, the extraordinary performances possible
under scientific management will never be achieved in the* shops
of the avaricious employer because knowledge alone will not lead
workmen to increase their efiiciency.
I have not by any means exhausted the list of causes for ineffi¬
ciency which arise from faults of the management. It would be
as easy to name a hundred as to name nine, but the task is not
agreeable. I have endeavored merely to point out the fact that
such faults exist, that they can be remedied, and that before
scientific management can be applied to an industry, they must
be remedied.
CAUSES OF INDUSTRIAL INEFFICIENCY DUE TO THE
WORKMEN
While most of the causes which lead to inefficiency are charge¬
able to bad management, I would not have it inferred that the
workmen are free from blame in the matter. I know of many
shops in which the blame rests almost wholly on the workmen.
In one that I have particularly in mind, the management is
keenly alive to the possibilities of improvement. They could
today increase their output fifty per cent, and would gladly
increase their wages in the same proportion, if the workmen
would cooperate with them. Time and again they have at¬
tempted to make changes leading to higher efficiency, but in
every case the opposition of the workmen was so strenuous that
they were convinced that it was the part of wisdom to accept
the inevitable and to permit the inefficiency which they deplored.
Were they to insist on a change of methods, it is quite likely that
labor troubles would force their plant into bankruptcy on account
of their limited capital.
THE NATURAL PACE OF WORKMEN
The first source of inefficiency chargeable to the workmen is
their disinclination to work at any other than their natural pace.
If a man is allowed to work as he pleases he will soon settle down
into a certain pace which suits his temperament and nervous
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
77
organization, and will keep to that pace without very much
variation from day to day. I may call this his natural pace.
It is perfectly possible for such a man to work very much faster
without tiring himself, and if he is properly trained and given
adequate inducement, he will adopt the faster pace, and make it
his habit to work at that faster rate. I may call this faster
pace his proper pace. In order to illustrate the relation of the
natural to the proper pace, I would like to compare them to the
natural gait which a horse takes when his driver allows him to
go at his own free will, and the proper gait which an experienced
driver will set for the horse, in order that he may accomplish the
best results. A careful and experienced driver will get a great
deal more work out of a horse if he urges him to travel at the
proper gait. Notwithstanding this, the horse will be no more
tired at the end of the day when driven at the proper gait, than
he would be had he traveled at his natural gait. The faster gait
does not mean undue wear and tear, and the horse will maintain
good health and vigor just as long when working for a careful
driver who makes him work, as he will if he works for an indif¬
ferent driver who allows him to do as he pleases.
A man differs from a horse in two ways. In the first place he
cannot be driven, and in the second place, a reward offered him
for extra labor must seem to him to be reasonable. It is not
difficult to get a man to change his pace if you offer him an
adequate reward. If, however, he finds that the reward is not
always forthcoming, i. e., if he finds a piece rate being cut or a
premium reduced, or if he feels that the reward is inadequate,
he will not respond. He cannot be driven by threats of discharge
or by fines, and he cannot be coaxed by broken promises or gold
bricks.
LACK OF AMBITION
A seCöfld source of inefficiency is lack of ambition. While
most men will be stimulated by a proper reward, there are some
classes of labor which cannot be reached in this way. Some
workmen do not accomplish as much or as good work when well
paid as they do when poorly paid. In certain sections of the
South contractors find that when negro laborers are paid seventy-
78
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
five cents a day they will work a full week, when paid $i a day
they will lay off one day in the week, and when paid $1.50 a day
they will lay off half the time. The reason is that these men are
not ambitious. Four dollars and a half a week supplies their
needs, and when they have earned that amount they do not care
to work any more. It is needless to remark, however, that the
average artisan is not of that character. He is ambitious, and
invariably responds to a suitable reward, unless he believes that
in so doing he is acting against the best interests of himself, or
his fellow workmen.
MENTAL LAZINESS OE WORKMEN
A third source of inefficiency lies in the fact that the workman
does not like to think any more than the superintendent, the
foreman, the manager, or the board of directors. He prefers to
work without thinking when it is possible. Few men are physi¬
cally lazy, but nearly all men are mentally lazy. The only way
that a man can work without thinking is to do the job the way
in which he or some one else has done it before. When he has to
do a new job, he must do some thinking, but usually it will be
found that the workman will adopt the method which requires
on his part the least mental effort for its origination. Very
seldom is the method adopted the best one. In the course of
his work, ideas will come to the workman. Sometimes these
ideas are good. If the ideas make it easier for him to perform
the work, that is, if the new method is in accord with his tempera¬
ment and habits, the idea is put into practice. If the idea makes
it harder for him to work, that is, if it requires him to do some¬
thing disagreeable or not in accord with his habit, the idea will
be rejected. An investigation of methods of work will usually
show that men who are physically restless will often adopt
difficult and tiresome methods of work on account of their tem¬
perament. Men who are physically lazy will adopt easy-going
and slipshod methods of doing work. In every case the work¬
man seeks to conform the methods to his temperament, in order
that the mental and nervous effort which he must make in accom¬
plishing the work shall be a minimum.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
79
FALLACY OF THE ARGUMENTS AGAINST A GOOD DAY'S
WORK
A fourth, and possibly the most prolific source of inefficiency
is the belief held by many workmen, and unfortunately, taught
by many union officials, that in doing efiicient work men are
displacing other workmen and lowering wages. There can be no
greater economic fallacy than this. One illustration alone will
serve to make clear the falsity of the argument that a man who
works efficiently reduces wages and the opportunities for labor.
Let us suppose that on account of the increased efficiency of the
workmen, the cost of making cement is materially reduced, and
the output greatly increased. Of course, if the demand for
cement were fixed at so many barrels per year, some cement
makers would be thrown out of employment, but with the in¬
creased output and diminished cost there will come an increased
demand for cement, and there will be a greater amount of con¬
crete construction. Instead of reducing the number of men
employed, it is quite possible that a larger number of men will be
employed in manufacturing cement, and it is certain that a very
much larger number of men will be employed in concrete work.
If these concrete workers, in turn, become more efficient, cheap¬
ening the cost of concrete construction, the use of concrete will
be stimulated, more cement makers will be employed, new
factories, warehouses and bridges will arise, and finally every
branch of industry will be stimulated by the improvement.
The workman who increases his output is a benefactor, not
alone to his employer, but to every man in the community.
His increased efficiency will result in higher wages, and more
general prosperity.
The facts in the case are so simple and so easily understood
that it is strange to me that every workman does not understand
and appreciate them. If all workmen were twice as efficient, the
annual value of the products of labor would be twice as great as
at present. The products of labor are distributed among the
community (somewhat inequitably it is true), and the share
which each member of the community can get will be propor-
8o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
tional to the total amount to be distributed. Any increase in
efficiency means that there will be more goods to be divided, that
every one will get a larger share, and that the community will be
benefited. It is impossible in an article of this character to go
into the subject of economics, but the more the subject is studied,
the more clearly the advantages of increased efficiency will be
seen. As a matter of fact we can only reach that millennium
when poverty, disease and unhappiness will disappear, by the
straight and narrow path of increased industrial efficiency, and
anything which impedes that efficiency is in reality as great a
crime against humanity as the poisoning of a well, or the
adulterjition of drugs.
ENMITY TO EMPLOYERS
A ifth source of inefficiency chargeable to workmen is a feeling
of enmity against their employers. A great many workmen are
unable to see the community of interest between the workman
and the employer. Some workmen act as if they believed that
the two were at war, and that anything done to injure the
employer was a benefit to labor.
Now there will always be discussion and bickering between
capital and labor as to how the wealth created by their joint
effort should be divided. There can, however, be no discussion
over the point that each must have a share, and that the amount
of wealth which they can divide between them, and the size of
the share to which each is entitled, will be great or small accord¬
ing as they are more or less efficient.
Any sensible man can see that the more efficient the workmen
are, the more prosperous their employer will be, the better able
he will be to extend his works and employ more labor, and the
higher wages he will be able to pay. Until all feeling of enmity
between capital and labor is replaced by a knowledge of mutual
need and appreciation of mutual interest, and a desire for mutual
success, not only efficiency, but also prosperity, must suffer.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
8l
CAUSES DUE TO POLITICAL AND INDUSTRIAL SYSTEMS
Those sources of inefficiency which arise out of the imper¬
fections of our political and industrial system are just as impor¬
tant as are those due to faults of management or of workmen.
Unlike the latter, however, it is impossible for either the manage¬
ment or the workmen to correct the faults we are about to con¬
sider. It is not usual to discuss such matters in a technical
paper and on that account this phase of industrial administration
will be dealt with in the briefest possible manner, confining the
discussion to a description of the causes, and not to a discussion
of legal remedies. Every one studying the industrial history of
this country will be struck with the fact that we have alternate
periods of feverish activity and of deadly dulness. In so-called
" boom times " factories are run twenty-four hours a day,
efficiency and quality of workmanship are sacrificed to output,
our railroads are crowded to the limits of their capacity, untrained
and inefficient men find ready employment in all trades, ill-
considered plans for industrial expansion are hastily carried into
effect, inferior and unsatisfactory equipment is eagerly purchased
and installed because no other kind is available, and the general
efficiency of our industrial system suffers a severe decline.
As a result of this inefficiency a " period of business depres¬
sion " sets in, men are discharged, plants lie idle, wages fall, men
are forced to move at great expense, and to seek new employ¬
ment for which they are not trained, and again inefficiency is the
order of the day. Now there is no reason why these alternations
of activity and dulness should occur, except that our methods of
conducting business are wrong. Proper laws, proper methods
of banking, improved business customs, and a rational develop¬
ment of our natural resources and methods of communication
will very nearly eliminate such conditions.
Certain industries, however, are subject to seasonal variations
of opportunities for work. Agriculture aiid the canning indus¬
tries are examples. Other industries are subject to seasonal
variations in the demand for their products. The automobile
industry and the manufacture of Christmas goods are examples.
82 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Where the supply of raw materials for an industry is subject to
seasonal variations, nothing can be done except that such an
industry may be operated in connection with another industry
so that the workers and possibly a portion of the plant may be
efficiently employed, practically all the time. Where the demand
for the products of an industry is subject to seasonal variations,
the industry may run steadily throughout the year if an accu¬
mulation of stock is permitted. The amount of capital tied up
in the stock will usually, in such a case, be less than the capital
otherwise tied up in the plant, since a plant which turns out a
given product in three months will have to be four times as large
as one which turns out the same product in a year, working the
same number of hours per day. There is also the possibility of
operating such an industry in connection with another industry,
possibly of a like character, in such a way that both the plant
and the workmen may be efficiently employed throughout the
year.
We must all recognize that one of the causes of inefficiency
at the present time is the struggle which is going on in the business
and political world over the question of whether capital shall be
used for the benefit of those who nominally own it, or whether
it shall be used for the benefit of the community. Originally
the position sanctioned by law was that capital belonged abso¬
lutely to the one owning it, and that he might use this capital
in any way that he saw fit, except that he might not employ it
in levying war on the sovereign, or in committing a criminal act.
We are gradually coming to the view that capital must be used
for the benefit of the community, and while we believe that the
nominal ownership and the detailed administration of industrial
enterprise should be left to individuals, we are coming to insist
that a business shall be conducted efficiently, that in case the
business is not regulated by competition the profits shall be
reasonable, and that the methods of making and marketing the
products shall be those which will further the well-being and
efficiency of the community as a whole, rather than the profits
and self-satisfaction of the owner of the business. While we are
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
83
engaged in this process of changing the fundamental principles
of law and of business, we must expect that inefficiency will be
more or less the order of the day.
One of the economic sins of the present day which is very
effective in destroying efficiency, is foolish and wasteful com¬
petition. The construction of parallel and competing lines of
railway when one line is adequate to serve the traffic is a case
in point. The installation of two telephone companies in the
same city, of competing street car and electric railway lines, the
duplication of generation and distribution plants by two electric
power companies, and competition in other so-called " natural
monopolies " are other examples. There are certain kinds of
industrial work in which competition is undesirable and inevi¬
tably leads to inefficiency, and laws which permit or encourage
such competition place a premium upon such inefficiency.
Another cause of inefficiency is frequent and sudden changes
in laws, customs, fashions, and social conditions. For instance,
a bounty, subsidy, or extraordinary high tariff may cause the
factories and workmen of an industry to be transferred from
Europe to America. This transfer means a considerable tem¬
porary loss, and in case American conditions are not naturally
favorable to the development of the industry, it causes a per¬
manent loss. A few years later the abolition of the tariff or the
bounty may cause the plant to be re-transferred to Europe and
the workmen to be thrown out of employment, with a further
loss. Similarly, a change in the direction or amount of traffic
in a given district, the development of new resources, the sudden
growth or decline of a transient industry and many similar things
may affect the efficiency of a given plant, or even a whole industry.
Often these changes are entirely beyond human control, or are
incident to increased efficiencies in other and more important
lines.
84
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
III
Consideration of the Most Important Objections to
Scientific Management
Enough has been said to show that laws and economic con¬
ditions have a very great effect upon our industries and the
efficiency with which they are conducted. Changes in the law
which decrease efficiency are usually objectionable and changes
are usually more far-reaching and important than most men
believe to be possible. While the engineer usually considers
such matters to lie entirely outside his work, yet they affect it
so vitally that he will before long be compelled to give them his
attention, and to apply to them the same hard-headed and
rigorous analysis that he now gives to the design or construc¬
tion of a piece of machinery. When he does, the law maker will
regard his efforts skeptically, the financier will regard him as a
meddlesome bungler, and most men will regard him as a gross
materialist without proper regard for the higher things of life.
In the same way that we have previously classified and ex¬
amined the sources of industrial inefficiency, let us classify and
examine the objections which may be raised against scientific
management. These objections come from three sources, the
employer, the employee and the public.
objections of employers to scientific management
Taking first the objections raised by the employer, they usually
arise either from a misunderstanding of what scientific manage¬
ment is or from a misconception of the fundamental principles of
industrial administration. The objection most often raised is
that scientific management very greatly increases what some
men term the " expense burden " and what others term the
" overhead charges." This is true and yet it is not an objection
to scientific management if it can be shown that the total cost of
manufacturing a given product is reduced by thus increasing the
overhead charges. The introduction of a drafting room or of a
pattern shop into an establishment which has previously pur¬
chased such work outside, will increase the overhead charges,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
85
but most plants find it cheaper to maintain drafting rooms and
pattern shops in spite of this fact. If four men are employed,
it is just as well to have one of them constantly engaged in plan¬
ning the work of the other three, and keeping them supplied with
tools and material, as it is to have each one plan his own work and
run his own errands.
The question of whether scientific management unduly in¬
creases the expense burden is one which can only be answered
by experience and in the terms of dollars and cents. If the cost
of doing a given piece of work is reduced by scientific manage¬
ment, the question of the ratio of the overhead to the direct
charges is of no consequence. If, on the other hand, the cost is
increased by scientific management no other argument is neces¬
sary in order to condemn the system, and the ratio of the direct
and indirect expenses is a matter of purely academic interest.
While some employers are willing to admit that the cost of
manufacture is reduced when scientific management is employed,
they advance the argument that while direct labor may be dis¬
charged when it is not employed, the men in the planning depart¬
ment cannot be discharged without destroying the efficiency of
their organization, and so must be retained at considerable
expense during periods of industrial depression. Similarly,
while the wage cost is cut off entirely when men are discharged,
the extra fixed charges upon the larger plant usually called for
by scientific management do not cease when times are slack, and
that, therefore, in those industries which are particularly subject
to periods of depression, scientific management will be a failure,
although during periods of prosperity, it may show a reasonable
saving in costs of manufacture. To this objection two answers
may be made. First, when scientific management shows a gain
after taking account of the periods of depression, it ought to be
adopted. Second, if scientific management enables a firm to
manufacture more cheaply than competitors, that firm will be
able to accumulate a surplus so that it can continue to manufac¬
ture and store its product when it would otherwise have to be
sold at a loss. Furthermore, it will be able to undersell its com¬
petitors, will do a fairly large business in dull times, and will
86
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
therefore be able to operate its business with less attention to
industrial conditions than is given by other firms. If scientific
management is able to show a saving at any time, the chances are
that it will be able to show a saving all of the time.
A third objection often raised to scientific management is that
when a shop is run as systematically as this method of manage¬
ment requires, a sudden change in plans is impossible without
seriously disarranging the work, so that the rush order or the
special job does not receive the attention which it should. The
answer to this objection is that scientific management should
contemplate all of the conditions likely to arise in the plant and
should provide special means for expediting certain work when
that is necessary. If such special means are not provided, the
system is imperfect and is not scientific management since it is
not adapted to the needs of the particular plant.
A great many objections raised against scientific management
come from men who have seen shops in which scientific manage¬
ment has been attempted by managers, superintendents or others,
who did not understand what it was. Such men have often
attempted to combine scientific management with conventional
systems, and while they have sometimes developed improvements,
they have often fallen into ludicrous blunders. Such blunders
cannot be charged to scientific management, and when it is
claimed that scientific management has failed in specific instances,
it is well to investigate the case, and see whether the failure is one
of scientific management or of unscientific management.
OBJECTIONS OF WORKMEN TO SCIENTIFIC MANAGE¬
MENT — WEARING OUT MEN
On the part of workmen there is considerable objection to
scientific management. I believe that it usually arises from an
idea that efficiency lowers wages and throws men out of employ¬
ment. This objection, however, is rarely if ever alleged, but
others are sought to take its place. The first one, and the one
worthy of most serious consideration, is the objection that under
scientific management men are urged and compelled to work at
such a pace that their health and vitality suffers. Now it is
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
87
doubtless true that men can be overworked in certain industries,
but it is equally true that it is very difficult to overwork men in
most industries unless the hours are unusually long. What is
termed overwork is usually a matter of unsanitary laboring or
housing conditions or insufficient nourishment. For instance,
a man may be compelled to work in a cramped position or exposed
to great heat or poisonous vapors, he may be compelled to eat and
sleep in a hot and dirty tenement, or his wages may be too small
to buy nourishing food. If the adoption of scientific management
lengthens the time during which he is exposed to unsanitary con¬
ditions, his health will suffer, but this is not a matter of overwork
but a matter of industrial sanitation. Scientific management
recognizes the fact that workmen are often exposed to unsanitary
conditions, but the scientific method is to change the conditions
and not to reduce the amount of work required.
When we come to discuss the trades usually carried out under
sanitary conditions, and requiring a considerable expenditure of
muscular effort, we will find that the amount of effort required
to accomplish a given task may be reasonable for some men but
unreasonable for others. Whether a task is too severe or not
depends on the strength and endurance of the individual work¬
man. Tasks possible for a vigorous man are impossible to one
who is ill or weak. Men lacking in strength or vigor are not fitted
to engage in certain occupations and they should be transferred
to other occupations for which their physical defects do not unfit
them. For instance, a man whose strength is unequal to the
tasks demanded of a hod carrier or blacksmith helper may be
very well fitted to become storekeeper's assistant or to operate
a punch press.
In this connection it must be noted that a man is not like a
machine, but that the wear and tear of the body are repaired by
periods of rest. So long as the degree of exertion requiréd of a
man is not such as to produce discomfort when continued for
several minutes, and so long as proper rest periods occur at suit¬
able intervals throughout the day, the man will not be over¬
worked, but after becoming accustomed to his task will be able
to continue his work week after week without any diminution
88
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of vigor. If he is properly nourished and works and Kves under
sanitary conditions, such a man will be just as vigorous and long-
lived as though he were engaged in some less laborious occupation.
As a matter of fact it does not pay to wear men out. If men
are caused to work at such a rate that their vigor diminishes,
they will in their lifetime do less work than they would had they
worked at a slower and less exhausting pace, and both the indus¬
try which employs them and the community in which they live
will suffer accordingly. On that account we need have no fear
that scientific management intends to overwork men, although
in isolated instances men may be overworked under scientific
management either because they are not fitted to the task to
which they are assigned or because the one assigning the task was
not experienced enough or careful enough to assign a proper
task.
One of Mr. Taylor's early successes was to increase the amount
of pig-iron carried by laborers by properly training them for the
task. The amount of pig-iron carried after proper training and
selection was about forty tons against a previous record of ten
tons per day. The first laborer trained for this task was a man
named Schmidt, and one of Mr. Taylor's critics thinking the
task excessive and severe, very justly inquires, " What became
of Schmidt ? " Mr. Taylor informs me that Schmidt is at the
present time well and hearty and still capable of strenuous tasks
and financially much better off then he would be had he not been
helped by scientific management.
HARDER WORK WITHOUT CORRESPONDING PAY
The second objection raised by workmen against scientific
management is that the men are expected to " work very much
harder " without receiving a corresponding increase in pay.
Often 'by the introduction of scientific management, a man's
output will be increased three or four fold while his wages will
be increased not more than from thirty to sixty per cent. The
average workman feels that under such circumstances his wages-
should be increased in the same proportion as his output. When,
however, we come to analyze the matter, we find that the work-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
89
man*s contention is not true and that he ought not to expect his
wages to be increased in that proportion.
When a man receives his wages, he is paid for several things.
In the first place he is paid for his time. In order to get a grown
man of potential value as a workman to come and sit in an office
and do nothing for eight hours a day, or even to amuse himself in
some manner, it would be necessary to pay him something, and
probably it would be hard to find men willing to undertake such
work, if it may be called work, for a dollar a day. In the second
place he is paid for his physical effort. Work requiring no
knowledge or experience and which merely requires physical
effort does not usually command very good pay. Of course it
commands more pay than does the mere expenditure of time,
but certainly the effort which an ordinary laborer puts forth
cannot be estimated to command more than 75 cents to $i a day,
and I doubt if the average laborer who receives $2 per day would
be willing to take a job at 11.50 per day which did not require any
expenditure of effort. A third element for which a man is paid
is the ability to receive and understand instructions. A fourth
element is skill or dexterity, which enables him to perform a task
quickly and well. A fifth element is a knowledge of the details
of a trade, which is usually attained by experience and observa¬
tion.
Let us suppose that a man is engaged in the turning of heavy
pieces of steel and that by means of scientific management {i. e.,
by furnishing him proper tools, by standardizing the material,
and by informing him of the proper speeds and feeds to use) his
output is increased three fold. The time required is the same as
before. That portion of his wages which he receives for time
expended should therefore be the same as before. The effort
required is three times as great as it was before. Since, however,
the most of his time is expended in watching his machine and only
a small portion of it in changing tools and work, the pay which he
receives for the effort expended is very small, and the increase in
pay due to the increased effort is proportionately small, cer¬
tainly not more than 25 to 30 cents per day. The dexterity
which he has, and the knowledge of the details of his trade, are
90
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
no greater than before, and these elements do not call for any
increase in his wages. A larger measure of ability to follow in¬
structions is required, and this element of his pay should be
increased. Of the five elements of his pay two require an increase,
and three should remain unchanged. Altogether the increase in
pay required by the extra effort and by the increased ability to
follow instructions is quite modest, and if the man receives thirty
or forty per cent increase in wages, he has received all that he
can in fairness ask for. The only way in which we can fix a fair
rate of pay is by reference to the rates received by other men
engaged in substantially similar occupations. The application
of scientific management in different industries will result in
different increases in efficiency. In some lines a workman's
efficiency will be increased only 20 or 30 per cent, while in other
lines it may be increased five hundred or even one thousand per
cent. If the work done in the two lines is similar, the pay of the
workmen is probably nearly equal before the introduction of
scientific management, and ought to be equal when they have
attained their best efficiency.
Let us take as an example a foundry in which two different
molders are engaged, one on light brass molding and the other
on heavy iron molding. Let us suppose that each is paid at the
rate of forty cents per hgur, that the brass molder puts up twenty
flasks a day, and that the iron molder puts up two. Let us sup¬
pose that as a result of a careful time study it is found that the
brass molder can, without tiring himself unduly, put up thirty
flasks a day, while the iron molder can put up six. Each man is
then working at his best rate, and while it might be possible for
him to do a trifle more work, it can only be done at the expense
of his physical welfare. If now, the pay of each is increased in
proportion to this increased output, it will be seen that the brass
molder will get a fifty per cent increase and the iron molder a 20
per cent increase, the brass molder receiving 60 cents per hour,
while the iron molder receives twice as much, or $1.20 per hour.
Now, when you come to think over the results of the applica¬
tion of time study in these two cases, it will be plain that if the
work of the brass molder was formerly worth 40 cents an hour,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
91
that of the iron molder was worth only 20 cents an hour, and it
would be highly unjust after the change in conditions had taken
place, to pay the iron molder twice as much as the brass molder.
In other words, for work requiring substantially the same intelli¬
gence, the same effort, and the same training, workmen should
receive substantially similar pay, and this pay should be based
upon what constitutes a fair wage under the best conditions, and
when they have reached their best efñciency.
The same thing which applies in the case of two molders will
apply in the case of two different trades in the same industry,
or for that matter, in different industries. If the efficiencies of
the workmen engaged in two different trades were ünequal before
the introduction of scientific management, it follows that injustice
will be committed if the increase in wages in each trade is made
proportional to the increase in output after, in each case, the
workmen have attained their best efficiency.
Another way to look at the matter is to treat it as though the
workman were selling his labor under the same conditions as any
other commodity. Whenever there is a great reduction in the
cost of manufacturing a given product, we expect that there will
be a corresponding drop in the price, and usually this is true.
The cost to the workmen of doing a given piece of work is the cost
of living. The fact that he does a much larger amount of work
than he did before does not increase his cost of living, and con¬
sequently the cost to him of doing a given amount of the work is
materially reduced, being in the case we have chosen, only one-
third of what it was before. Under such conditions the employer
may reasonably expect that there will be a decrease in the labor
cost, and while the workmen should expect to get higher wages,
the employer expects with reason, to pay a lower price per piece.
When the workman has an opportunity to do a larger amount of
work without any increase in the cost of living, and to receive for
his work a larger wage, he is in exactly the same position as the
merchant, who by reducing his price is enabled to sell a larger
quantity of goods in a given time, to turn over his capital oftener,
and to make a larger profit in the course of a year, although he
makes a much smaller profit on each article sold.
92
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Finally, we must consider that when a man's efficiency is in¬
creased as a result of the application of scientific management,
only a small part of this increase in efficiency is due to his own
effort and that the most of it is due to the study and effort of the
employer. Accordingly any gain which is realized must be
divided between the employer and the employee, and usually with
the public in the form of lower prices, in order that the public
may absorb the larger output resulting. If the employee is to
receive all the benefit resulting from scientific management,
which would be the case if wages were increased in proportion
to output, then it would be no object for the employer to utilize
scientific management and its adoption would be of no advantage
to the community. If the employer realizes a third of the gain
due to scientific management, he has had his share, and must
recognize that the other two-thirds belong respectively to the
employer and to the community.
ON BEING NOT REQUIRED TO THINK, BUT TO CARRY OUT
INSTRUCTIONS
A third objection often urged by workmen against scientific
management is that they are not required to think, but merely
to carry out instructions. They feel that when they receive
complete instructions as to the method of performing work, it
places their work upon a lower plane, transforming them from
intelligent workmen into automatons. As one man has ex¬
pressed it, " I like to think I think, even if I don't think." The
answer to this is that Americans have in the past laid undue
stress on originality and not enough on ability to follow instruc¬
tions. If ten men are given explicit instructions as to exactly
what to do and how to do it, very seldom will it be that one out
of the ten will do exactly as he is told. On the other hand, if ten
men are given a puzzle to solve, most of them will succeed within
a reasonable time in solving the puzzle. The solution of a puzzle
or the origination of a method of work really does not require
any higher order of intellect than the exact following of a de¬
scribed method, and is, in the majority of cases, a gift of consider¬
ably lower social value.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
93
I have had considerable experience in writing out exact direc¬
tions informing men in the junior and senior classes of an engineer¬
ing school, how to perform certain experiments — for instance,
how to calibrate a gage. Three men out of five when given the
directions for calibrating a gage will read them over and then go
to work to calibrate the gage by a method of their own, which is
usually incorrect. In the same way, it will be found that when
a workman is given a piece of work to do, he will perform the
work by a method of his own which is usually incorrect, in that
it is not the most efiicient method. This brings up the question
of whether, for his own amusement, a workman ought to be
permitted to adopt inefficient methods of work. When it is put
in this blunt manner, every workman will admit that he ought to
adopt the most efficient methods of work, and when he realizes
that his wages are reduced and his employment endangered if he
follows inefficient methods, he will usually be perfectly willing
to follow instructions.
The use of instruction cards does not, however, take away
from a workman the power of initiative. When a workman
succeeds in devising a better method of doing a piece of work
than that devised by the planning department, his method will
be adopted, and he will receive a reward for devising it. If a
workman shows himself capable of devising good methods of
work, a place will soon be found for him in the planning depart¬
ment in which he can use his superior ingenuity to his heart's
content. Because he has been accustomed to the use of the best
methods, he will have a very much better fund of experience to
draw upon than a man who has always worked in shops in which
the workmen devised their own methods, and on that account
his work will be of a superior character.
The use of instruction cards does not prevent a workman from
thinking about his work, or from striving to originate new
methods, in case he has any originality. Instead, when working
from instruction cards, he has constantly before him examples
of the best methods of doing work, and his experience is very
much superior to that of a man who works in a shop where the
workmen devise their own methods.
94 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMEJ^T
A man who is minded to do so can advance very much faster
in a shop under scientific management, provided he is willing to
study and learn. To the intelligent workman such a shop is a
trade school, which will help him to a better understanding of
his trade, and a chance for larger usefulness.
The argument that scientific management destroys the work¬
man's power of thinking is a fallacy, because it assumes that the
only thinking which the workman does is in regard to his work.
The higher wages which scientific management involves will
bring to the workman opportunities outside of his work which he
cannot get otherwise. It will give him money for the purchase
of books, for the building of his home, for the education of his
children and for increasing the refinements of life. Even if it
were true that scientific management curtailed the workman's
opportunity to exercise real originality in his work, his intellectual
life would still be the gainer from its introduction.
The workman's principal objection to scientific management
is that he likes to do things his own way, to work as he pleases
and when he pleases. Scientific management is objectionable
to him because it compels him to change his habits, which is an
uncomfortable process. If a workman were trained under
scientific management from the beginning of his apprenticeship,
and after several years were put to work in an ordinary shop,
the change in habit would be just as disagreeable to him. He
would object strenuously to being saddled with additional
responsibilities while at the same time his pay was substantially
reduced. The shipshod methods of his fellow workmen and the
general inefiiciency of the shop would grate on his nerves, and
be ten times more disagreeable to him than the change in habits
which scientific management usually introduces.
We must recognize that men are prone to complain and that
anything new, especially if it involves a change in habit, will
be the butt of the complaint. If they could not complain about
scientific management, they would complain about the length
of hours or the temper of the boss or the tools furnished for their
work.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
95
SCEENTiriC MANAGEMENT INVOLVES A CHANGE
OF HABIT
The fact that scientific management involves a change in habit
which is disagreeable to many men is not a serious argument
against it. People who become accustomed to living in dis¬
orderly and dirty surroundings find themselves uncomfortable
when obliged to clean up and put things in order. Habits of
labor which are inefficient are just as objectionable from the
standpoint of the social welfare as habits of life which are unsani¬
tary. Coming generations will look scornfully upon those who
are inefficient, just as the present generation looks scornfully
upon those who are dirty.
The change of habits involved in the adoption of scientific
management is, from the practical standpoint, the strongest
objection that there is. The minute you can show a workman
that it is to his financial advantage to adopt the methods of
scientific management, that minute all objections but this will
disappear, but this one is ingrained in his temperament and
nervous system, and cannot be reached by logic. Habit is one
of the easiest things to form and one of the hardest things to
eradicate, but even habits and prejudices must disappear at
the demand of social welfare.
A great many misguided souls will urge against scientific
management the same arguments which are urged against all
other advances of civilization, namely that it impoverishes the
imagination, takes the poetry out of life, puts men to work at
machine-like tasks, etc. The same arguments are leveled
against all improvements. The sanitary dwelling is less pic¬
turesque than the thatched cottage; the mowing machine is
not so poetical as the scythe; the division of labor which enables
ten little minds in combination to accomplish ten times the task
that was formerly done by the ten master craftsmen is said to
deaden men's souls and to limit their horizon. It is the eternal
battle of common sense and the good of the community against
selfish sentiment which regards only its own mental pleasures
and takes no account of the good of the swarming many that are
benefited bv industrial advancement.
9^
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
NO PROVISION FOR UNIONS OR " COLLECTIVE BARGAINING "
Another and very valid objection which workmen urge against
scientific management is that it makes no provision for unions
or " collective bargaining " as our friends the sociologists prefer
to term it. It is undeniable that unions are necessary for the
welfare of workmen and that without organized effort it would be
difficult for them to maintain satisfactory wages and conditions
of employment in the face of the tendency of capital to combine
into trusts and associations. If scientific management is incom¬
patible with labor unions, workmen cannot afford to accept it,
because when scientific management has been adopted and unions
have been destroyed, the whole of the benefits will be appro¬
priated by capital, and labor will receive nothing for its increased
ejß&ciency.
Notwithstanding that many of the leading exponents of
scientific management are opposed to labor unions, and believe
that individual bargaining is one of the essentials of scientific
management, this is not true. We can still have agreements in
regard to minimum wages, hours of labor, conditions of employ¬
ment, and many other things which affect the welfare of the
workmen. The unions, however, must stop short of making any
requirements in regard to methods of work or quantity of out¬
put or maximum wages paid or premiums given, because such
things are not proper subjects of discussion between the unions
and the employer, and because any effort on the part of the unions
to interfere in such matters will harm workmen even more than
employers.
I believe that the reasons that the advocates of scientific man¬
agement feel their work to be incompatible with unionism is that
many of the unions have in times past interfered in matters which
were not properly their concern, and by doing so have harmed the
cause of labor. Whether scientific management is largely
adopted or not, unions will some day cease to interfere in these
matters, because it is contrary to their own interests to do so.
Since proper demands on the part of unions do not interfere with
the operations of scientific management, and since those demands
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
97
which would interfere with its operation are contrary to the
interests of labor, I cannot see that there is anything incompatible
in having scientific management in a union shop, and I believe
that any effort to destroy unions when introducing scientific
management can only serve to delay the date of its introduction.
Even the most serious objections to scientific management on
the part of workmen, however, fall to the ground in the face of
the fact that when scientific management is adopted workmen
receive from thirty to sixty per cent in increase in wages. Not
only will there be an immediate increase in wages as a result of
scientific management, but with the extensive introduction of
scientific management, there will be a substantial decrease in the
prices of all those commodities in the manufacture of which it is
generally applied. It is usually found that it is impossible to
combat the self-interest of a community for a considerable
period of time, and as soon as it becomes apparent that the work¬
ing class, in common with all members of society, receives sub¬
stantial benefit from scientific management, the objections to it
will disappear and those things which at first were regarded as
serious drawbacks will eventually be deemed to be mere trifles
and in some cases be regarded as positive benefits.
OBJECTIONS OF THE PUBLIC TO SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
From the standpoint of the general public, objection can be
made to scientific management if it can be shown that it is ineffi¬
cient, that it injures the health of the workmen, that it lowers
the quality of the product, or that it brings about undesirable
social or economic changes. The public does not, however, need
to worry about the question of efficiency, because if scientific
management is not efficient, it will not be used by manufacturers.
Scientific management will for a long time be under very severe
scrutiny by workmen themselves and it is unlikely that any harm
will come to the physical welfare of the workmen unless in very
exceptional cases.
Scientific management does not usually lower the quality of
the product. In certain cases quality may suffer, but in most
cases quality will improve as a result of scientific management.
98
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Sometimes a decrease in the quality of the product is not a serious
matter, while at other times it is. If it is, scientific management
is prepared by proper inspection to insist on such quality as may
be commercially desirable. Whenever the public is disposed to
require a certain standard of quality, and is willing to pay for
that quality, there need be no fear that the quality of output will
suffer from the introduction of scientific management.
The principal objection to scientific management is that it will
bring about very important social and economic changes with
which our present laws are not capable of dealing. One of the
effects of scientific management will undoubtedly be the destruc¬
tion of the small manufacturer.^ Scientific management achieves
its greatest success in comparatively large plants. Those firms
which adopt scientific management and are able to secure suc¬
cessful administrators, will crowd their competitors to the wall,
eventually absorbing their business and becoming monopolies.
Since our present laws are obviously inadequate to deal with
such a situation, it follows that we must have a little scientific
management in the law making department of our government
if we are to avoid social and political evils from the growth of
scientific management.
It may be pointed out in this connection however, that men
of the " public-be-damned " class do not take kindly to scientific
management. Men who are successsful in introducing scientific
management are those who recognize their duties, and are pre¬
pared to act for the welfare of the community as well as of their
workmen and themselves. And aside from this fact those
monopolies which will be the outgrowth of scientific management
will be less oppressive and objectionable than those which are
the outgrowth of high finance, legislative favors, or the cornering
of natural resources.
* Experience thus far does not bear out this statement. Plants in which
scientific management has been successful vary in number of employees from-
about one hundred to about three thousand. In other words, they are small and
medium-sized concerns. In view of the degree of centralization necessary under
scientific management, it is rather to be expected that it would fit the smaller
plant more eflSciently than the very large establishment.— En.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
99
Another economic evil which may result from the adoption of
scientific management is the mis-direction of effort which will
mark the transitory period while conditions are becoming settled.
The cause of this is that by the use of scientific management the
output of an industry will be very greatly increased.^ Sometimes
the increase will be so great that the community cannot absorb
the entire output at the cost of manufacture. The result will
be that certain lines of work will be overdone and we will be some
time in finding a rational and proper outlet for the extra produc¬
tive capacity made possible by improved management.
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC EFFECTS OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Upon surveying the social effects of scientific management,
one is impressed with the idea that scientific management will
improve social conditions very greatly and that there are only
two economic evils prevalent at the present time that will not be
materially diminished by the direct or indirect effect of scientific
management. The first of these is the misdirected application
of capital which results in potential overproduction in certain
lines of industry. The second is the diversion of capital from
industry for private pleasure. As an example of the first evil, I
may cite the textile industry where capital is invested to such an
extent that the mills are capable of filling all demands for textile
goods when working at only a fraction of their capacity. Ex¬
amples of the second evil are unnecessary since they will suggest
themselves to most of my readers.
Scientific management must, in the long run, depend for its
success upon the habit of mind of those who administer it. We
think of the scientist as being a man who is, above all things,
intelligently honest, who is without passion or prejudice; who
is open-minded and determined to arrive at the truth. The
scientific habit of mind is the only one compatible with the admin¬
istration of scientific management. The man in authority must
divorce himself from prejudice, from preconceived notions and
snap judgments, and from everything which will turn him aside
^ On the contrary, experience thus far has shown that the increase in output
is sufficiently gradual to be easily provided for in advance. — Ed.
lOO SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
from the truth. In adopting scientific management, he must
recognize certain great principles; some of which are economic,
some of which are psychological, some of which are ethical, and
some of which are merely physical.
An industrial establishment is merely a part of a great economic
system. Recognizing this, the employer will see that if the
establishment does not minister to the needs of the community,
it is useless. Not only must its product be valuable, but its work
must be carried on in such a way as not to harm the community.
Work which is carried on at the expense of a part of the com¬
munity, in order to benefit the remainder, cannot be justified.
By such work I mean work carried out under dangerous or un¬
sanitary conditions, or where the wages paid are insufficient to
maintain the community standard of living. It may be cheaper
to carry on work in that manner, but the moral sense of the
community will not in the long run permit of it, and scientific
management recognizes the fact.
The interests of all men engaged in a given industry are
identical. A certain school of thought is accustomed to regard
the labor situation as a war, in which employer and employee are
striving to obtain an advantage over each other, each striving
to secure from the other the largest possible proportion of the
total returns of the industry. Scientific management recognizes
this to be an error, and knows that cooperation between employer
and employee is essential. It recognizes not only that the em¬
ployer must purchase the cooperation of the employee by high
wages and fair treatment, but also that he must cooperate with
the employee by assisting him in every way to become as efficient
and valuable as possible. Each must cooperate with and assist
the other, and must purchase by fair dealing and generous
attitude the cooperation of the other.
The greater the productivity of a community, the more pros¬
perous the community will be. High wages and restricted
production are incompatible, and only by achieving the highest
efficiency can the greatest prosperity be reached. There may
be, however, overproduction in certain lines of work, because
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
lOI
too much capital or too many men may be engaged in that line.
This does not mean that too many men are employed or too
much capital is available. It merely means that men are
employed in the wrong industries and that capital is invested
in the wrong lines. Consequently, the application of scientific
management to all establishments engaged in one particular
industry may result in throwing the industrial system out of
balance by producing more of one kind of goods than is necessary.
CONCLUSION
Work well done under proper conditions is interesting and
healthful when the worker is healthy and well nourished. Work
under unsanitary conditions is unhealthful. A poorly nourished
workman is always overtaxed by relatively small tasks. Unsatis¬
factory surroundings and slovenly work results in nervous strain
which breaks down the workman's health. Men differ mentally
and physically in innumerable ways, and each workman must be
studied in order to discover the most useful place in which to put
him. He must be put in that place where his abilities will be
utilized to the utmost.
A careful study of a piece of work by a man of scientific habit
of mind, having at his command the knowledge of a large number
of expert workmen, will result in the development of methods of
doing work which are far superior to the methods usually em¬
ployed. Workmen naturally perform their tasks in improper
ways as a result of habit. In order to have them perform the
tasks in a proper way they must have supervisors to see that they
form correct habits of work, and they must be encouraged by
extra pay to continue in these habits.
The cooperation of workmen must be secured by persuading
them that the employer has abandoned the attitude of war
and that he is willing to divide the results of his improvements
with the men whose cooperation makes these improvements
possible.
Finally, the benefits of scientific management are so many and
so varied that not only employers and workmen but the com-
I02
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
munity generally will participate in them. It is therefore
proper not to object to scientific management but rather to study
the ways in which we can eliminate the evils which may possibly
come from its use, and take advantage of the benefits just as we
take advantage of the benefits of railroads, printing presses and
steam power, in spite of the manifold evils which some men
thought they foresaw as a result of their introduction.
UNSYSTEMATIZED, SYSTEMATIZED, AND
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
bY henry p. kendall
MANAGER OE THE PLIMPTON PRESS, NORWOOD, MASS.
Reprinted by permission of the Amos Tuck School of Administration and Finance.
The plan of this paper is similar to one written previous to the
hearings before the Interstate Commerce Commission protesting
against the general increase in freight rates. The purpose of
that paper was to make clear what was meant by Scientific
Management, a term then unfamiliar. To present the same line
of thought again receives its justification by the first words in the
announcement of this conference, which states: " Notwith¬
standing the fact that much has been written concerning Scien¬
tific Management in newspapers and magazines, there is no
definite conception in the minds of manufacturers and business
men of its nature."
That this type is not well known even now is scarcely to be
wondered at. Until recently little had been written for the
public press and but few manufacturers were working under it,
and the small group of men who were associates of Mr. Taylor,
or kindred spirits, were too engrossed in their own tasks to do
much talking or writing. It is my object, then, to illumine
Scientific Management by describing it in terms of business with
which we are all familiar, and by comparing some of its essential
features with those of more familiar types of management.
Any manufacturing or mercantile business made up of differ¬
ent processes more or less interdependent must, to secure the
best results, be so organized that the separate processes and the
unit members within these will be brought into systematic con¬
nection and operation as efficient parts of the whole. To bring
about and maintain this is the function of the management. To
do it to the highest known degree is possible only by what we
choose to call the science of management.
103
I04 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
All types of management seem to fall readily under three
heads which, for want of a more explicit terminology, we will
call:
I. Unsystematized Management.
II. Systematized Management.
III. Scientific Management.
Of course no classification of this kind is exact. Some de¬
partments of an unsystematized plant may equal those in a
systematized, and likewise those in the second class may approach
the third in efficiency in places; but on the whole this seems a
natural division. The functions of the three types of manage¬
ment which will be compared are:
A. Accounting.
B. Purchasing.
C. Storage of Materials.
D. Execution of the Work.
E. Efficiency of the Workers.
I. Unsystematized Management
This classification is not made on a basis of the earnings of
this group, nor does it mean that they are not meeting their own
competition successfully or making money. Such a condition
depends on the margin which exists between their costs and selling
prices. It does classify them on a basis of efficiency, and means
that their costs are not so low as they would be were their form
of management the systematized or scientific type. In the
opinion of the writer fully 70 per cent in number of the plants
in this country would belong in this class, and they are easily
recognized. I do not mean that 70 per cent of the workmen in
the country are working under unsystematized management,
but I think that 70 per cent of the concerns in number would
come under this class. We will look at the first function, namely:
A. Accounting. The accounting in a business includes not
only the ordinary bookkeeping, but the entire clerical system
which has to do with orders, records and costs. Accounting
is the only means by which the management is informed from
time to time of the condition of the business, the progress it is
making, its weak and strong points, its selling values and costs,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 105
and the efficiency of all its departments. How thorough, lucid
and complete the information is as shown by the books indicates
to some extent the efficiency of the management and its grasp
on the affairs of the company. In the unsystematized plant the
accounting generally consists of a statement prepared after the
annual or semi-annual stock-taking, which shows (i) Profit and
Loss; (2) Assets and Liabilities. It may possibly show profit
and loss by departments or by products, but this last depends
on a correct method of ascertaining costs which the unsyste¬
matized plant seldom has. Such statements are merely a record
of an historical fact in most cases. If the statement is bad it is
too late to remedy the troubles of the previous year because it
shows merely the result of that year. Frequently, due to imper¬
fect methods of stock-taking, appraising and compiling, the
yearly statement may be delayed; then the history it tells is
ancient.
One example from my own observation — by no means
unusual — will illustrate : A large concern ended its fiscal year
on January 31 and did not know the result of its year's business
until July 17 following, and then in the simple form of profit and
loss, assets and liabilities. This information came nearly six
months after the close of the business year and was then from
six to eighteen months old, too late to do anything to stop the
leaks of that year. This was a dangerous case, but a common
one.
Any firm of accountants can testify that it is no unusual thing
to audit the books of a concern which thinks it is prosperous,
and to show that concern that it is insolvent. Within twelve
months the writer has had experience with a business in which
an audit was made of the books because the proprietor thought
his bookkeeper had been dishonest. The audit showed that the
bookkeeper had been honest but that the concern was insolvent,
and shortly after it paid its creditors thirty cents on the dollar.
A lack of proper cost accounting in the unsystematized plant
is the cause of losses and of many failures. A notorious example
of this appears in the printing industry. In Chicago one large
department store makes the boast that it secures its printing
io6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
below cost. Its method is to send for estimates on printed forms
to a large number of printers for every job of printing it has to
give out, and then to give it to the lowest bidder on the assump¬
tion that some one will have figured below cost. It is reported
that at the close of one fiscal year there were no less than fifteen
failures of printers in the city of Boston, and it would not be
strange if this proportion held throughout the country in this
particular industry.
So much importance is placed upon cost of printing at the
present time, that one national organization of employing
printers has no less than eight men employed installing uniform
cost systems in printing offices of its members throughout the
country. Too little importance is placed upon accounting in
the unsystematized plant, and as increasing competition in various
industries is continually lowering the margin of profit, the ac¬
counting must become relatively more and more important to
this class of business.
B. Purchasing. The purchasing of materials, stock and
miscellaneous supplies under this type of management may be
done by one man or by a purchasing department; but more
likely this duty is not very well defined and the purchasing is
done by a number of persons, especially those needing the ma¬
terial. Little study is put on the standardization of materials,
and different kinds of stock for the same use are often bought.
This tends to remnants on some kinds, overstock and understock
on others. The buying is seldom done on exact specifications,
is not always even by written order, nor is there a predetermined
maximum and minimum established of eacli article that should
be carried in stock. The head of the business or the buyer may
be an exceedingly shrewd trader and may buy very close at times;
but he will not always buy the materials best suited to the work,
often overbuys or underbuys for lack of definite information,
and is frequently tempted by bargain lots that seem cheap but
may cost more to use in the shop.
The lack of well-organized purchasing results in work pro¬
gressing to a certain extent through the shop until it is stopped
and occupies space waiting for some material which has been
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT lOJ
overlooked, or which is not suited for the purpose. A fairly
successful publishing house in one of our large cities does its
buying by the unsystematized fashion. Last year in making
up its statement of profit and loss, the inventory of paper amoun¬
ted to $20,000. Three-fourths of this paper exists as overruns,
or odds and ends of lots which are stored in various printing
offices and cannot be used on an average-sized job. They are
so scattered they cannot be combined and the make, color, finish
and size are different in nearly all the lots. When this house
realizes what this stock is, it will be forced to write off nearly
$15,000 from its books on what it now considers good assets.
Had the buyer in that publishing house standardized his paper
so that whatever remained from one lot could readily be used
on the next, had concentrated paper of certain kinds in one print¬
ing office, and had accurate records of his available supply, this
amount of money represented in stock could be appreciably less
and would equal the original cost of the paper. This sort of
buying is common among unsystematized concerns.
C. Storage of Materials. Many manufacturers are willing
to devote unlimited space for workrooms, not realizing that
the room for the proper storage of materials is just as impor¬
tant and just as profitable as that used for manufacture. In
the unsystematized plant there may be a general storeroom, but
seldom are all the stores to be found in it, and generally they are
piled around almost anywhere and in any way that happened to
be convenient when received. The order in which such stores
are kept usually depends upon the initiative of the men directly
in charge, and seldom can one person assume or carry out this
responsibility.
The storage of materials and purchasing are very closely
related to each other. Loss of time hunting for material is the
same whether the material is lost in the storeroom or has not
been purchased, and a lack of system in one department will
undo attempts at system in the others. The effect of badly
organized stores is: (i) Loss of time; work which should go
through the manufacturing departments rapidly is held up at
different places waiting for materials of the proper kind or
io8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
amount, and this is a direct loss. (2) Loss of space; more space
is required to hold stores in an unsystematized way, and for lack
of standardization more stores will be kept on hand than are
required. Space is also lost in the workroom because work in
process does not pass promptly through the workrooms if delayed
for material. (3) Loss of capital, because more money is tied
up in stores which are not systematized and properly regulated,
and more money is tied up in the jobs which represent labor and
material sidetracked throughout the plant. A lack of proper
records of stores is almost always to be found in the unsyste¬
matized plant, and the management seldom sees the need for the
so-called extra work necessary to conduct that department
properly.
D. Execution of Work, Orders in the unsystematized shop
are recorded in a simple manner, sometimes even received and
transmitted verbally by the salesman. These are described in
part verbally to the superintendent, who may further enlighten
the foreman on any of the details of such orders. It is assumed
that the superintendent knows his business, that the foremen
know theirs, and a workman is expected to sense what is wanted
and to ask questions when he is not sure. In this way an attempt
is made to fill in the exact and accurate information which the
selling end has either not secured or has not transmitted in
writing.
The " single foremanship " plan prevails where one foreman
handles as many men as he can. The number of men and the
amount of work he can look out for is limited by the amount of
detail which he can carry in his head and by his physical and
nervous endurance. He gives work to each workman when the
latter has finished his last job, and depends largely on the worker's
knowledge of what to do and how to do it. As questions arise
in the progress of the work, or where the written order is incom¬
plete, the workman goes to the foreman who in turn goes to the
office for instructions. Meanwhile progress on the work stops.
The workman goes for and selects his tools and appliances,
and does his work in the way in which he is accustomed to do
that particular kind of work. A difference in method of doing
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
109
the same kind of work by different workmen and in different
shops is often quite marked. A detailed schedule of the average
workman's day in the unsystematized shop, where such day's
work is varied, will show a surprisingly small proportion of effec¬
tive time.
Piece work is often used, but is bound to be unequal. The
rates, determined by no exact method, are often subject to
change, and the output of such piece work is frequently limited
by the unions. This lack of planning the work at the start,
of complete instructions, of coordinating the departments and
routing work throughout each operation, results in a congestion
of unfinished work at many points. This slows down the out¬
put, occupies space and ties up capital. The frequency of mis¬
takes in rush times and of shortages that must afterwards be
made up, are not always called to the attention of the manage¬
ment. It is exceedingly difficult also in this t3q)e of plant to
secure a high quality of work and to maintain it uniformly.
Then, too, the costs fluctuate a good deal.
E. Efficiency of Workers. The efficiency, as a whole, is low
and especially so in dull times. It is uneven and varies according
to the executive ability of different foremen. The output of a
man or machine is largely determined by the opinion of the fore¬
man and not by any exact standard. Piece work is not always
fair, and may be too high or too low. There is no special incen¬
tive for a foreman to cooperate with the workman. Therefore,
while the majority of the men may be doing what they consider
a fair day's work, and some few may be working efficiently, the
efficiency of the whole is low.
One example will illustrate a well-known loss in efficiency.
A workman in the hat trade performed one process in making
a hat by piece work, and earned not over $15 a week. He was
well adapted to that kind of work and could easily have earned
$25 a week at that rate and would have been happier doing his
best, especially as he needed the money. He was limited to $15
a week by the union. It cost that firm more by this method,
because the floor space occupied by this part of the work could
have turned out 60 per cent more hats if the men had been rightly
no
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
selected for that kind of work and had been permitted to do their
best. It also cost more because overhead charges were 60 per
cent more per hat than was necessary for that operation. More
than that, a workman who is well fitted for a task is not happy
when he is not doing his best and earning all of which he is
capable. There is an economic loss to each, and the result is
bad. Even greater inefficiency than this may occur with day
workers.
II. Systematized Management
This term as used here applies to the well-organized and
managed plants which make no claim to Scientific Management
as such. In these plants the managers are methodical and
systematic, have studied and systematized each department
carefully and aimed to secure the best that has been done in the
line of systematizing up to the present time. As stated before,
in some departments of many such plants the efficiency is exceed¬
ingly good.
A. Accounting. In this form of management the accounting
is well done. The books will show the condition of the business
quarterly or monthly, and in considerable detail. This will
include the comparative feature; that is, for example, last year's
costs to date with this year's costs for the same period, for a
given department or product; will show costs of materials and
labor, and the proportion of overhead charges that make up the
cost of a single job or a given product. Such results may even
be charted and shown in graphic form to the management each
month. Other records will come up weekly or even daily. As
accounting is the means by which is ascertained the exact condi¬
tion of the business at a given time, the systematized management
recognizes the importance of this information. Much of this
accounting, however, is done with the ultimate end of securing
correct costs, and these cost data are relied upon almost wholly,
(i) to establish the selling price, and (2) to point out excessive
costs and indicate perhaps where they may be reduced. Many
believe that when their accounting is well done they have a
systematized and efficient plant, but this really covers one phase
only of the management.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
III
Frequently, too, the clerical work in the different departments
is not a part of the general accounting, and is not controlled by
the ledger accounts. In other words, the same general system
of accounting does not permeate the whole plant and help to
support itself.
B. Purchasing. Materials and supplies are purchased
through one man or department, a maximum and minimum
generally established, and a decided effort made to purchase
the materials best suited to the workrooms. Some analytic
methods are used in determining the proper materials, and
standardizing is done on the more important kinds. This
purchasing department aims to have a stock of everything
required, but buys largely what it is asked to. It does not
always make purchases on complete specifications, and a lack
of complete standardization increases the detail of that depart¬
ment. So far as the clerical system is developed, however, it
is generally quite good.
You will recall the words of a well-known railroad president
some time ago who stated, before the Interstate Commerce
hearings, that the railroads had reached their ultimate end of
efficiency. It is interesting in the light of this statement to note
an example of efficiency in purchasing by one system of railroads,
which has been acknowledged to me by railroad officials as
leading in this particular department. This is the purchasing
as done by Mr. Thorne, who buys over $40,000,000 worth of
materials annually for the Union Pacific and Southern Pacific
railroad systems. One characteristic of Mr. Harriman when he
took over a railroad was that he would go to any expense in order
to standardize every bit of material used. Mr. Thorne is the
man who carried this out. In a letter the other day he told me
that in the standardization of printed forms alone he had saved
over 30 per cent in the purchase of that particular commodity.
In standardizing these forms he reduced them in number, specify¬
ing certain standard sizes of paper, t5q)e, and other conditions
to be followed, and I have no doubt that in his other purchases
his methods have secured a great saving over those of competing
roads.
112
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
C. Storage of Materials. A marked contrast to the storage
methods of the unsystematized plant will be seen at once. Here
is an adequate room in charge of a storekeeper who issues stores
only on requisitions, and is expected to keep his place neat and
orderly and deliver his stores on call. A perpetual list is kept
in the office and balanced with the stores, and the balance is
proved by an actual count of the stores once a year or oftener.
Stores are partially classified and standardized to some extent.
It is only the most-used stores that are assigned to orders before
actually called for. The physical handling of the stores, moving
them in and out of the storeroom, is done by the assistants of
the storekeeper and the efficiency of this work and the orderliness
of the department depend wholly upon the kind of man in charge.
The central office can exercise very little real control in this
department.
Not all systematized plants control work from a central plan¬
ning station by writing the operations for each process before
the work is started; therefore materials are not exactly pre¬
determined and work is still likely to be started before it is
discovered that some material is lacking. Neither are the
quantities always kept up automatically through the purchasing
department by a predetermined maximum and minimum of
each kind. Also, it is general practice to have storage space for
different departments, some of which are not under, control of
the office; for instance the miscellaneous supplies used for the
power department for repairs, piping and plumbing, electrical
maintenance, etc., may be scattered about with little idea of
order, while the actual materials for use in manufacture may be
in good order.
D. Execution of Work. A complete set of order-cards for
recording and transmitting orders is in ifee. The worker receives
a written order for the work he is to do. This seldom takes the
form of an instruction card giving him complete information for
every move and every tool. It is apt to say what the work is,
assuming that he will do it in a satisfactory manner. Workers
almost always record their time for each job on a card, which
registers the labor cost accurately. They do not always register
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
113
the time lost in securing tools, materials and further instructions.
The planning of a job, except in plants where the work is very
largely repetition, is likely to be done as the work proceeds.
Piece work is used wherever possible, and is considered the most
economical way of performing a given operation. It is the aim
of most systematized plants to secure as much piece work as
possible. This may be unfair for different kinds of work to both
employees and employer.
Under systematized management the system keeps things
running smoothly, avoids most of the mistakes due to the lax
methods of the first kind of management and turns out a good
product. But a lack of centralized planning and centralized
control of the workers causes loss of efficiency.
E. Efficiency of the Worker. The emphasis of systematized
management is laid on costs, freedom from errors and bad work,
and the greatest output per man and per machine that can be
secured. The standard for this output is generally established
by the opinions or experience of the bosses, who have neither the
time nor the training to ascertain it by exact methods. Great
emphasis is put upon the installation of new and modern machin¬
ery, but there is not very much analytical work done by the
management to ascertain whether the worker is working in the
very best possible way, or whether he is adapted to the particular
job he is given. The person who has charge of the employment
considers that there are four classes of people, — men, women,
boys and girls. If the foreman wants a girl, that is sufficient
information for the one in charge of the employment, and a girl
is hired and assigned. Little or no thought is given to the
question whether that particular girl is the right one for the
task.
For instance, in bookbinding there are different kinds of work.
Laying gold leaf calls for a girl with small fingers and a delicate
touch. Strength is not required. Another operation calls for
a large, strong girl, who can easily handle bundles of work weigh¬
ing seven or eight pounds. In proofreading the time reaction of
seeing a word and grasping its meaning is a very important
feature. Other girls doing inspection must have the ability to
114
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
concentrate their minds on one particular operation. The
different kinds of work demand girls selected with special
reference to their aptitude for their particular work. In every
factory will be found workers in one department who cannot
successfully do their work, but who could successfully do work
of another kind. The scientific selection of the worker is almost
unknown in the systematized plant, and this fact alone makes
impossible the highest efficiency.
When I think over the psychology of industrial workers, I
am reminded of my own experience in college. In the psy¬
chological laboratory tests were made on all my class. I had
the quickest time reaction from seeing a fiash of light to mus¬
cular action in pressing a button; I had the slowest time reaction
in the class to seeing a word, comprehending its meaning, and
then pressing a button which registered the time it had taken
me to see and comprehend its meaning. This experiment
showed the reason why I was the slowest reader in my class and
why on a given task in reading, in literature or any other subject,
I took longer than any one else. While not a sprinter, my record
for the fifteen-yard dash has never been beaten, — not because
I was a fast runner, but simply because the time reaction to
muscular effort enabled me to get off more quickly after the
pistol shot than any one else. I never could have made a proof¬
reader, or earned my salt as a bookkeeper, but I think I should
have made a tolerably good motorman.
The step from unsystematized management to systematized is
a difficult one because it generally means a more radical change
in the personnel of the supervisory force than does the other
step. The unsystematic manager is likely to associate with
him men of a similar type. To do one's work in a systematic
way is not wholly a matter of training, and the foremen and
superintendents in a thoroughly unsystematized plant cannot
always develop the habit of working by means of system. The
unsystematized plant still remains, either because its competitors
are in the same condition or because there is a large difference
between costs and selling price, or because the business is domi¬
nated by one or more strong characters whose ability in other
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT II5
phases of their work more than makes up for their lack in organiz¬
ing ability. Sooner or later, however, this class of industries
will be forced to change or be eliminated. This has already
taken place in a number of industries, as for example, the manu¬
facture of shoes.
Twenty-five or thirty years ago there were more shoe shops
than there are today. The competition in manufacturing
shoes and the intricacy of the detail have made it impossible
for the unsystematized plant to grow beyond the Hmit of the
single foremanship plan, with the result that only the systema¬
tized plants could increase. The others were absorbed or ceased
to be, and today there is probably not an unsystematized plant
engaged in the manufacture of shoes. Indeed, some few shoe
manufacturing concerns are developing Scientific Management
very rapidly in all their departments. And what has happened
to the shoe industry is now happening to other industries which
are in the transitional period through which the shoe manufactur¬
ing industry passed twenty or twenty-five years ago.
III. Scientific Management
A. Accounting. The accounting under Scientific Management
shows the manufacturing and expense accounts for the year by
thirteen periods of four weeks each, instead of twelve monthly
periods, and at the expiration of each of these periods ^ it shows
the profit and loss and assets and liabilities. These in the unsyste¬
matized plant are shown yearly, and not always in the systema¬
tized plant are they shown even monthly. Further, the group
and unit costs of the various products, the cost and output of
each department and all expenses which might be applied directly
to the product are shown in full, and the " comparative "
features are much more useful because four-week periods give
a more equal basis for comparison. A monthly statement as
shown by the books in the systematized accounting does not give
an accurate comparison because, for instance, some months
* It must be understood, of course, that this feature of four-week periods is not
essential to scientific management, and may in fact, in some instances, be less
convenient than the usual monthly periods. — Ed.
ii6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
will have five pay-rolls where others have four, and the number
of working days varies by quite a per cent because there may
be five Sundays or five Saturday half-days.
In substance, the general accounts of the company are shown
in more complete form every four-week period than is shown by
the yearly accounting in the systematized class. The ledger
accounts have absolute control over the stores department,
over the quantity and values of stores, work and materials in
process, and manufactured goods; and as every department
and function of the manufacturing coordinates with every other,
the accounting becomes a part of the very bone and fiber of the
manufacturing.
One radical difference in point of view is that the ascertaining
of costs does not have a special system installed for just that
purpose, and the ascertaining of costs is not the end sought.
Under Scientific Management costs come as a by-product of
the means used for increasing efficiency. For instance, a ticket
«
made up in the central planning department, when combined
with the instruction card, serves to plan the work in advance;
then it is used to control the order of work by being placed on a
bulletin board; then it gives the workman his particular piece
of work to do with the instructions how to do it.^ On this ticket
is stamped the time at which the work is begun and when it ends.
This same ticket then serves to check off the progress of the work
on the route-sheet. Then it goes to the accounting department
from which the man's pay is made up. It is then redistributed
and furnishes the labor cost of the particular operation on the
cost-sheet of the job. From cost-sheets similar to this are
summarized not only the cost on all jobs, but department ex¬
penses and charges which appear in each four-week period
statement.
In other words, the mechanism used under systematized man¬
agement for ascertaining costs performs little other work; under
Scientific Management it has performed its part in producing
work, and from it, as a by-product, so to speak, come the costs.
^ The card referred to is the job card, for which see page 427 in this volume.
— Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
117
The ascertaining of costs by this method is dene with but
little more expense than is necessary for handling the regular
work of operation. Too much emphasis cannot be placed on
the value of the comparative feature in accounting. Compari¬
sons are a great spur to increased efficiency, and this fact is
recognized as well in the systematized management. For ex¬
ample: a certain group of department stores, each doing a
business in a different city and non-competitive, have found
such good results from uniform accounting methods and the
information that comes from comparison, that they jointly
employ an accountant who collects the monthly reports in
detail from those stores so as to make a comparison by items,
and then prints these data for the use of the management of each
store.
For instance, one manager finds that Department A in his store
did $50,000 worth of business the preceding month, had $35,000
worth of stock on hand, and is shown in detail what the labor
* *
and other expense items of that department were. He sees that
another store did $55,000 worth of business in Department A
and had a stock of but $20,000. He immediately summons his
buyer and informs him of the result of this comparison, and asks
why he cannot do as well as the buyer in the other store and
release $15,000 of capital now tied up in stock. The knowledge
of what can be done and is done by the other store is often suffi¬
cient stimulus in itself to cause to be accomplished what other¬
wise would not be considered possible.
The expense and frequently the shutdowns for the purpose of
the annual stock-taking are eliminated under Scientific Manage¬
ment, because the accounting absolutely controls the movement
of materials in and out of the stores department, so its records
show at all times the amount in stores and this value can be
ascertained when desired. The work of proving the items of
stores is done continuously, and the days, which often become
weeks and months, that elapse before even large and well-
organized concerns get the results of their stock-taking become
a thing of the past. One large concern which is a customer in
a business in which I am interested finished its year of stock-
ii8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
taking January i, and it was early in August of this year before
it got the results and knew how much stock it had on hand
January i. The same will apply to the amount of materials
and labor in process, which the systematized management finds
even a harder problem to handle, and also to the value of manu¬
factured goods.
B. Purchasing. Scientific Management is not satisfied
merely to have plenty of materials on hand when wanted, to
roughly standardize the principal items of stock used and to buy
at the market rate, but demands that all materials be carefully
studied with reference to —
First. The greatest adaptability to the work»
Second. Quality and uniformity.
Third. Price.
Fourth. Determination of the proper maximum and minimum
that shall be carried, so that the stores department may auto¬
matically govern materials and supplies which should always be
on hand.
When this has been done, care is taken to make all purchases
on detailed specifications. The importance of using materials
best suited to the work and which are uniform in quality and by
standardization reduced to the smallest variety, is not sufficiently
appreciated by the buyer in even the systematized plant.
For example, a manufacturer of razors using a thin blade could
not secure a steel which would always act alike and produce a
uniform result with uniform treatment. He employed a steel
expert of reputation to assist him. This expert purchased the
best razors that different barbers had, analyzed them chemically
and microscopically and, as every man who uses a razor might
guess, found very great variation even in the same makes. In
fact, he satisfied himself that no razor manufacturer, however
well-systematized his plant was, had ever scientifically deter¬
mined the best steel, or had purchased it on a formula that would
standardize this material. As a result, all these years the buying
of a razor had been a lottery.
After many tests this expert secured from various steel manu¬
facturers samples of steel on their formulae and his own, and he
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
119
finally developed a formula that would give the best razor steel
known and maintain it uniform. As a result of this method of
buying this manufacturer stood alone among the razor producers
of the country in ability to produce razor blades of standard
quality. If all his methods are as scientific as this, it is doubtful
whether his competitors will ever overtake the lead he has se¬
cured. This is not an extreme example by any means.
Another illustration of the standardizing of materials. In
studying the supplies of a business it was found that there were
twelve kinds of wrapping paper regularly used and an investment
of $2,500 was needed to carry a sufficient amount. This was
standardized and now the twelve kinds of paper have been re¬
duced to four, with a saving of $1,000 in the stock, 60 per cent in
the storage space occupied, and the available worth of this paper
for the demands that may be made on it is 20 per cent more than
what it was formerly. This illustrates the saving made on but
one class of material used in a factory where standardization is
being worked out.
Such methods of purchasing compel the purchasing depart¬
ment to be intimately associated with the working of the mate¬
rials through manufacture, and result in the following: —
First. Uniform material best adapted to the work saves labor
and delay in workrooms.
Second. Minimum of kinds and sizes necessary to be carried.
Third. Storage space saved.
Fourth. Lower costs through buying in larger lots.
C. Storage of Materials. The physical aspects of a storeroom
under Scientific Management do not differ greatly from those in
the systematized. A proper means of holding or piling the stores,
laid out in an orderly fashion, is provided. To avoid confusion
in a varied terminology, mnemonic symbols are used to designate
the different kinds of stores. The maximum and minimum
mentioned above are determined for each kind, and kept on the
ledger sheets in the central planning room. The bookkeeping
for the stores is not carried on in the storeroom, the storeroom
force simply acting on orders. The location of the materials is
120
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
also indicated on the ledger sheets, or, as they are known, the
balance of stores sheets.^
The storeroom in the systematized plant is not likely to carry
all the materials and supplies used in the entire plant. The
engine-room, plumbing and construction supplies may be carried
in places provided for them, but not controlled as other materials
are. Stationery and office forms and supplies may be carried
somewhere else under a different system. Even in well-sys¬
tematized plants such items as are not considered a part of the
general stores system cause more or less trouble by being used up
unexpectedly.
Under Scientific Management it is not sufficient, when mate¬
rials are required, to send a requisition to the stores department,
but all orders or work which require material have the items
looked up and assigned to the specific orders by the balance of
stores clerks, and this material when assigned to a given order is
not available for another order which may follow. This is done
before the materials are required for use, and this method serves
as advance warning to the stores clerks if an unexpected demand
for a particular material is likely to occur. Quick action is then
possible in purchasing more.
The work of moving materials into the stores department and
moving them from the stores department to the particular place
where they are to be used becomes a function of the planning of
the work, and of the routing of the work, and the workman who-
is to use them should not be delayed or have to give a thought to
the materials which he needs for his next job. They are moved
in the right condition for his use to the point where he can use
them to the best advantage. The time which the workman
spends looking for or waiting for his niaterials can be better spent
in effective work. The proper working of the stores department
in many industries, and especially in mercantile establishments,
is a very important one.
D. Execution of Work. The theory of the proper execution
of work is that it should be planned completely before a singln
^ Gf. F. W. Sterling's " The Successful'Operation o£ a ^stem of Scientific-
Management," p. 296. — Ed.
SCIÉmiFÏC MANAGEMENT
121
move is made, — that a route-sheet which will show the names
and order of all the operations which are to be performed should
be made out and that instruction cards should be clearly written
for each operation. Requisitions on the stores department
showing the kind and quality of the materials and where they
should be moved, and lists of proper tools for doing the work in
the best way should be made up for each operation, and then by
time study the very best method and apparatus for performing
each operation is determined in advance, and becomes a part of
the instruction.
By this means the order and assignment of all work, or routing
as it is called, should be conducted by the central planning or
routing department. This brings the control of all operations
in the plant, the progress and order of the work, back to the cen¬
tral point. Information which even in the systematized plant is
supposed to be furnished by the knowledge of the workman or
the gang-boss or foreman, is brought back to the planning room
and becomes a part of the instruction card.
In many unsystematized plants no attempt is made to change
the method by which the workman performs his operations.
Plenty of time and money may be spent on special machinery,
but when that is installed very little time is spent in a close
analytical study of the time elements and motions involved in
operating, in order to make it possible for the workman to work
in the easiest and best way and to furnish a fair basis of remun¬
eration.
When the analytical study has been made, the probable time
of operation determined, and a sufficient incentive has been
added in the shape of a bonus for performing the work in the
given time and in the way specified, then work can be much more
accurately controlled from the central planning room because it is
likely to be done in approximately the time determined and with¬
out lagging.
By functional foremanshipf which has been described by pre¬
vious speakers, the management brings to bear on each phase of
* Cf. H. K. Hathaway's " The Planning Department, Its Organization and
Function," p. 366, and " Thé Foreman's Place in Scientific Management,"
P- 395' —ED.
122
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the work a man particularly fitted by selection, training and ex¬
perience to assist in performing that part of the work. His
function is to assist the worker and cooperate with him to enable
him to increase his earning capacity by eliminating trouble or
delays or wrong methods. Even in the well-managed systema¬
tized plant the manager will tell you that the weak point in his
business is the inability to secure good foremen, or good super¬
intendents. He demands: —
First. That a foreman shall know all about the work which
is done in his department.
Second. That he be a good disciplinarian.
Third. That he have the ability to crowd work through and
get it out quickly.
Fourth. That he be cautious and accurate.
Fifth. That he be able to keep account of innumerable details.
To find all these qualities combined successfully in one man
is exceedingly difficult, to train such men is also difficult, and
to secure them by natural selection and " survival of the fittest "
takes too long; but to train men for functional foremanship by
selecting the best man fitted to do the particular function and
then training him in that, is simply one kind of division of labor
which has marked the progress of civilization.
The execution of work which is largely repetition, where the
individual processes are simple, reaches a very high efficiency
in many systematized plants. The difficulties in securing effi¬
ciency increase as the work becomes more varied and with less
proportion of it repeat-work, and in proportion as these difficul¬
ties increase ordinary systems fail to produce results in more
intricate work. This can be attained, however, by the central
planning room from the analysis and time study which is put
into all operations of work and reduced to instruction cards.
E. Efficiency of the Worker. On many simple operations in
manufacturing, piece work has always been considered the most
efficient method of securing output and low costs, and it is true
that where the remuneration is a just one and when the employee
is supplied with proper materials and works to the best advan¬
tage, this method of performing work approaches very close to
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 123
that of Scientific Management; but such conditions of piece
work are the ideal rather than the usual. As stated above and
emphasized by previous speakers, piece work with prices based
on the snap judgment of a foreman or by an imperfect test of a
single worker, is not the correct method to secure the greatest
efficiency. Besides this, there are many kinds of work which
are not adapted to piece work. Under Scientific Management
the efficiency of the worker and machine depends on five other
conditions, after assuming that the parts of the management
which have to do with purchasing, storage of materials, etc., are
well performed. These conditions are: —
First. Analysis and synthesis of the elements of operation.
Second. Scientific selection of the worker.
Third. Training of the worker.
Fourth. Proper tools and equipment.
Fifth. Proper incentive.
First. The first condition on which the efficiency of the worker
depends is that the management shall analyze carefully and thor¬
oughly every operation into its ultimate elements; shall then recon¬
struct those elements in their proper sequence, eliminating those
which are unnecessary or those which are bad, and reducing the
form to a written instruction card for him to follow; the time
elements having been determined and becoming a part of the
instruction card. It is interesting to see what develops when
one really begins to study a seemingly simple operation. The
motion study alone of bricklaying makes possible the elimination
of sixteen unnecessary motions. The change in location of a
machine which was operated by a girl who sat with her back to
an aisle where heavy trucking was done caused an increase of
25 per cent in her work. Every time she heard a truck approach¬
ing she involuntarily shuddered, probably wondering if the truck
would strike her. Removing this operator to a quiet corner
caused the increase.
One factory doing light manufacturing has lately put some
time into studying what have always been considered simple
operations. In certain places a differently shaped receptacle
was made for the articles on which work was being done, bring-
124
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ing the pieces within six inches of the left hand, whereás for years;
before the worker had had to reach for these and occasionally
stop work to bring the articles farthest away within reach with
a sort of hoe. Other operations in this plant have been simplified
by changing the position of some workers so that the porter who
supplies materials can do so without interrupting and causing
a stop in the work several times a day. A study of extra steps
and little delays by an intelhgent observer is a necessary work
before the greatest efficiency can be secured. When all these
analyses have been reduced to writing, a study of the type best
fitted to do this work is made.
Second. Scientific Selection of the Worker. The type of worker
who physically and mentally is best fitted to do a kind of work
must be selected after a careful analysis of that class of operations
made with reference to the physiological and mental differences
in human beings. The difference in output and quality of work
has been found to vary as much as 40 per cent or 50 per cent in a
group of men or women engaged on the same kind of work.
As they were of apparently equal intelligence and education, this
could be explained only by the physiological and mental differ¬
ences. As a result of time study and motion study of various
groups of operations in one large manufacturing plant, it has
been found that there are so many workers performing a kind of
work to which they are not suited, but who might excel in an¬
other kind of work, that the management has laid plans to es¬
tablish classes to instruct workers to do another kind of work
better adapted to their capacities.
Of two different departments, A and B, for instance — A
containing thirty girls and B twenty — it has been found that
over 20 per cent in A are unfitted for that kind of work, but
would be fitted for work in B, and vice versa. A scientific
selection of the workers is possible only from the analysis of
operations. The effectiveness of this will be greater when the
principles of the psychology of working and kinds of work are
better understood by industrial managers.
The psychology of advertising has lately been coming to the
front. Thé psychology of industrial workers is still a great field
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
I2S
for réseaírch. The vocational schools will not perform their true
function properly until they come to a better knowledge psycho¬
logically of the mental and physical requirements for different
kinds of work, and are able by tests to determine in which their
pupils are likely to be successes or failures.
Scientific selection of the workmen is but a part; the scientific
selection of joremen^ of superintendents and managers is just as
important. How frequently one sees a man struggling with the
details of an office or with the wear and tear of executive work,
on the verge of nervous prostration, when that man is wholly
unfitted for that kind of work and his attempts successfully to
perform it result in his imdoing. If managers themselves knew
how to judge a man's fitness for his work and were more observ¬
ing, there would be many less breakdowns and physical wrecks
than there are now.
Third. Training of the Worker. Having first carried out the
study of the operation which has pointed the way to the proper
selection of the worker, it becomes the duty of the management
to train the worker to do the work in the way which the result
of the analysis has shown to be the best way. This will be
accomplished by a functional foreman whose duty it is to train
the workmen and help them on each job to get started right. If
they fail to do the task in the time fixed it is the duty of the func¬
tional foreman to find out why they have failed, and to help
them do the work as it should have been done. This is a wide
departure from the old school, which assumes that the journey¬
man has sufficient knowledge to do his own work in the most
efficient manner. In the training of workmen it is interesting
to see how they develop through an aroused interest and coop¬
eration of those over them.
Fourth. Proper Tools and Equipment. The fourth condition
is that the worker be supplied with the best tools and just the
ones needed for the particular operation, and supplied when
needed; that he be given the best machine, maintained in first
class condition, so that machine, belt and tool failures will be
reduced to the minimum. To maintain the machinery, etc., in
120
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
this condition is a duty of the management, and Scientific Man¬
agement provides the means with which to do this.
Fifth. Proper Incentive. Sufficient incentive should be given
the worker to perform the operation or the task that has been set
in the given time. To make this possible for the worker, func¬
tional foremanship is necessary and the principal object of such
functional foreman is to assist the worker and eliminate trouble
or delay. The functional foreman trained to his specialty will
do this more effectively than the old-fashioned all-around fore¬
man. Examples have been given by previous speakers of relative
increase in efficiency of the worker as a result of Scientific Man¬
agement. Of course such relative increases in output cannot be
considered universal. Certain machines are not mechanically
able to run at double or triple their former speeds, but Scientific
Management tends to lessen the numberless little delays which
the condition of the machine, of the material to be worked
upon, or the instructions to the worker may have been respon¬
sible for.
It must be to the financial interest of the worker to be indus¬
trious, and it has been shown to be for the interest of the man¬
agement to do everything to make possible and profitable this
increased industry of the worker, thereby gaining a more uniform
output, and an output per man or machine which is maintained
more uniformly in dull or busy times.
There is another feature which is of interest; that is, if the
worker engaged on the task and bonus does not receive his mate¬
rials promptly and on time, if his machine is not in the condition
it should be, or there are other avoidable delays, the worker has
sufficient interest in the probable loss of his bonus to make a
serious kick, and it is the duty of the gang-boss to immediately
right this trouble. Therefore, the workman and the boss are
together demanding of the management that as nearly as possible
perfect working conditions be maintained.
Conclusion. The central planning and control of work which
is such a vital part in Scientific Management is not developed
to the same degree in the systematized. In systematized plants
where complete planning is attempted, however, the instructions
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
127
and orders particularize what is to be done rather than how it is
to be done.
In the systematized plant the system in one department has
been planned especially for that department, and is not a part
of the system framework which pervades the whole, as in Scien¬
tific Management, and it is a constant fight to maintain such
independent systems and especially to change and modify them
with changed conditions or the increased growth of the business.
In closing let us see the effects of this type of management in
general on the plant, the product, the worker and the manage¬
ment.
Plant. Scientific Management furnishes the machinery for
maintaining the plant in better condition by centralizing the
control, by the use of such devices as the standing order file in
which are collected and reduced to writing and properly indexed
the practices and rules of the company. From it, by listing and
making a certain program of things to be done, — the depart¬
ments, machinery, shafting, drains, gutters, etc., to be inspected,
— this program can be handled month after month by routine
in a manner which the management has carefully predetermined.
To attend to the maintenance of a plant in this way is working
to prevent delay and expense rather than cure it afterwards.
For instance, eliminating delays due to belt failures, shaft-boxes
which have been overlooked and run dry, and indefinite inspec¬
tion of premises, pipe lines, traps, etc., tends to save expense by
preventing trouble.
Product. The product of such a plant should be more uni¬
formly even, and there should be fewer mistakes and less inferior
work. Once a standard is set for each operation, that standard
can be maintained. It costs little more to maintain a high stand¬
ard under these conditions than a low one under old conditions.
The Worker. The condition of a worker's mind has a very
large effect on his physical being. There is a psychological effect
on a worker in having the work divided into definite tasks, each
one having its goal in sight and sustaining effort to that time.
The piece workers in one plant in which I am interested were
interviewed by a woman journalist at the time so much publicity
12?
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
was given to Scientific Management by the hearings before the
Interstate Commerce Commission, and she asked them how they
liked the task and bonus. They said they did n't know why it
was, but they liked it; they were earning more. But that wa$
not all: the piece work flowing to them in an unending stream
had been discouraging; there was something they could not
understand, but when it was broken up into definite lots they
liked it much better. You can discourage any man by setting
him to work with a pick and shovel and telling him to shovel away
a hill. He knows he can never get it done, but if you say; " Here,
you shovel so many tip-carts full in a day, or in a given time,
and you will have a certain percentage of increase of pay for
that time," you have changed the point of view, and that man
every time he finishes a tip-cart full has accomplished a definite
task. His effort is sustained for that time, and he is going to be
able to sustain that effort in the future. That is one reason why
profit sharing among the working classes is almost an absolute
failure so far as increased efficiency is concerned; the time of
sustained effort for a year or six months is too long. Neither can
a worker do his best work who is nagged by a foreman, who has
been given insufficient instructions and is fearful lest he is doing
his work wrong, and who, having made a mistake, is jumped on,
oftentimes perhaps unjustly. He is not in a frame of mind to
do his best work if he wishes to.
In one factory there was great difficulty in keeping the women
workers in a certain department. They were either imwilling
to continue to work or frequently gave out, and it was a puzzle
for some time to find out what the trouble was. When the
analysis and time study were put into this department, it was
found that part of the trouble was due to the fact that they were
not earning so much as workers in adjacent departments, that
they were nagged by the foreman who did not understand how
to handle help, and that they were working at a disadvantage
in the arrangement of their work places. The first step was to
fit up their places so they could work to the best advantage. A
time study then showed that by working according to instruc¬
tions they could easily do 50 per cent more work. To insure
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 129
the work being well done, one of the best girls was selected as an
inspector and given charge of their work, the.foreman having
ïiothing to do with them. A few of the girls were tried on the
extra work, — working under the constant instruction of the
time study man and being paid an additional amount.
All the girls who were physically fitted for this kind of work
tried the extra amount, which they did easily. The result of the
extra pay, freedom from the nagging of the foreman, and easier
working conditions, immediately stopped the difficulty in keep¬
ing workers in this department. One or two of these workers,
according to the report of the factory nurse, have gained weight
since this change was made.
After this had been in effect for a while, the Constant request
of one girl that she be allowed to undertake one-third more work,
or double the original amount, was granted with the approval
of the factory nurse, who watched her closely. This was à task
not set by time study, but one which the girl herself thought she
could undertake. She found, however, that it was too much
and gave it up voluntarily, but she is still doing 50 per cent more
work than she was originally. She is a girl well fitted for the kind
of work and for her a larger task could be given, but tasks are
set with the idea of the average worker who is first selected for
the particular kind of work. It must be considered that the
effect of task and bonus work under the proper conditions tends
to greater industry, better discipline, a happier disposition and
greater interest in work on the part of the workers. Greater
regularity, greater accuracy and neatness must and do have an
influence on health and character.
Management. It is probable that the point of view of heads
of departments and those responsible for the management be¬
comes quite as much changed as that of the workers. When
mistakes are made the responsibility is fixed and the management
cannot dodge the fact. A manager also realizes as never before
the value that must be placed on analysis. As Mr. Taylor once
said: " Thought under Scientific Management is 75 per cent
analysis and 25 per cent common sense."
I30
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
When a seemingly difficult operation has been analyzed to its
last detail, it is not so difficult to reconstruct it on the proper
lines. There is, too, an added interest to the management in
the feeling that it is working on a plan, the underlying principles
of which are already determined, and the details of which are to
be developed in accordance with those principles more and more
finely as years go by.
It has been my pleasure to have employed a number of young
college men. Before they start to work, while they are in the
only impressionable period that exists after they leave college —
that is, when they first come under the eye of the manager —
I tell them that had I known or realized the comprehensive
plan of work under which I am working now, an equivalent
of three years of the hardest work I have ever done could
have been saved. The hard work would not have been saved,
but I should have been saved three years because I should
have been working on a plan rather than groping around
in the dark and formulating plans many of which have had
to be abandoned.
Probably many of you will say, " That sounds all right, but
is not fitted for my business." I was very much interested to
talk with a man who is the editor of one of the most progressive
magazines, who told me today that he had been using some of
the apparatus which he had seen in use under Scientific Manage¬
ment. His work is editing. Editors have always said that their
work is not subject to Scientific Management because their work
does not deal with systems, — their work deals with brains. I
was much pleased to have him tell me that he has constructed a
bulletin board in his office with which he is planning his editorial
work, so that already he has done four months' work in one month
and is up here for a two weeks' vacation, or somewhere for a two
weeks' vacation, because he has that time which he never had
had before under the old working conditions. Besides this
saving in his own time he has reduced the amount of money
invested in a mass of paid articles, and now buys such only as
are required for a given edition.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Beneath all this there is a good deal of philosophy. It seems
to me that this is the best solution of a fair compensation for
labor because it puts a premium on the efficiency of both em¬
ployees and employer, and the success of Scientific Management
depends upon this close cooperation of employer and employee.
Along some such line it seems to me will sooner or later be worked
out the great problems of labor and capital.
THE SCIENCE OF MANAGEMENT
By Lieutenant G. J. MEYERS, U. S. N.
Reprinted by permission of the' American Society of Naval Engineers
When we consider any activity in life which has something
definite for an object we call the direction of the process through
which we accomplish that object, management. Management
is the application of skill or care in the conduct of an enterprise
or operation. Most people have considered that there are vari¬
ous kinds of management — poor, indifferent, fair, good or excel¬
lent. But it has never been considered that these various qualities
of management depend upon the violation or non-violation of
certain laws that belong to management and make it a science.
The quality of management is usually measured by the results
accomplished and by its cost in time and money. Since it is
possible to manage any activity and to obtain the most successful
result, some laws must govern this successful management.
The laws of any science are based upon experiments to determine
relations between certain phenomena. This is so in the science
of management as well as in the sciences of chemistry, physics,
engineering. Theories are not being considered, but laws based
on experiment, practice and common sense, and accepted as laws
because of their success when applied to the subject they cover.
To show that management has its laws and that the observance
of them will bring about the most successful results and reduce
to a minimum losses of time and money is the object of this
paper.
Success cannot be obtained in management any more than in
other sciences if the laws that govern it are violated. The
quality of the management depends, then, on the extent to which
its laws are observed.
The laws as here recorded are not the result of an arbitrary
summing up of how an activity should be managed, but are
deduced from a careful analysis of the management of several
successful manufacturing companies. After applying them
carefully to these companies they have been applied to activities
13a
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
133
ranging from the cooking of a meal to the conduct of a war.
And it is necessary to emphasize the fact that these laws when
applied give most successful results; and, vice where
successful results are obtained it will be found that these laws are
applied.
Some objection has been made to treating the laws in the fol¬
lowing form, omitting methods. To any one who has had any
experience in management it is perfectly obvious that to record
methods or procedure would be more than a life work. Every
industry has its own methods, and in every branch of every
industry different methods are required. In three successful
machine shops visited by the author each had different methods
of carrying out the laws, though each was engaged in machine
metal work, manufacturing different lines of machines, and all
three were equally successful.
What has been attempted is to put the subject of management
in a form such that it can readily be understood by any one
engaged in managing without hiring an " expert " or spending
most of his time in reading what has been written on " Scientific
Management," and to show that there is a wide difference be¬
tween the laws and principles of management and the method of
carrying out these laws. The methods are very often stated as
fundamental principles when they are not. It is hoped that
any one who is managing may, by carefully observing the laws
in his business, soon evolve or find the methods that are best
suited to his business.
It must be remembered that there are cases where not all the
laws can be applied in all their details, but that in these cases.
Were it possible to apply them in detail, a nearer approach could
be made to perfection of results than if the laws were neglected.
Synopsis of Laws
I. What to do.
II. Instructions before work
starts.
V. Insure instructions
are carried out.
VI. Costs.
III. Machines and tools.
IV. Workmen.
VII. Study for improve¬
ments.
134
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Law I
It is necessary in any activity to have a complete knowledge of
what is to be done and to prepare instructions as to what is to he done
before the work is started.
It must always be known what object is desired to be accom¬
plished before starting work. For example: i. In constructive
manufacturing it is necessary first to design the finished product
and to issue drawings of the design. 2. In the manufacture of
chemicals or compounds it is necessary to state what the finished
product is to be and to write down the specifications of the
finished product. 3. In the case of professional work it is neces¬
sary to designate the object; for example, in medicine, a patient
is to be cured of disease or sickness, and it is necessary to record
either on paper or on the brain what the cure is to be. 4. In any
one-man activity it is necessary to state the object that it is
desired to accomplish; for example, in inventive or experimental
work the ultimate purpose should be known as nearly as possible
before work starts. Very often it will be found that the stating
of the object is the same as writing the instructions as to what
is to be done.
Whenever the first law of management is applied loss of time
and money is eliminated as follows:
What is to be done is planned before the work starts and the
laborer has only to follow directions. He need not stop to think
what his past experience in similar cases has been, nor need he
consult with a foreman and lose time in that way, but his instruc¬
tions what to do are definite. The management is not paying a
man to do a certain kind of mechanical work and requiring him
to occupy his time in designing something he is not fitted to do.
If the workman is losing his time in thinking about what should
be thought out for him, and not accomplishing what he is hired
to do, he is increasing the time he gives to producing his work and
thereby increasing costs and reducing output.
If we do not know what we want to do or if we do not tell the
workman what to do there is a vast amount of misapplied effort,
there is a groping for something, which means that no effort is
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
135
applied through a space of time; there is the idle workman we
are paying who is waiting to be told what to do, and wasting
time in studying the poor instructions he often does receive even
after he thinks he has started on the work. All of this means
waste of time and waste of money.
As this law demands that the object of any activity should be
stated and instructions covering what to do should be written,
it is obvious almost without explanation how this law is applied.
As an example: A company manufacturing machines wishes to
make one for a certain purpose. The order goes to the drawing
room to design this machine; in issuing this order the object is
stated. The drawing room then designs the machine and com¬
mits the design to paper in the form of general plans and detail
plans; thus the instructions what to do are written.
Law II
It is necessary in any activity to prepare detailed instructions for
each operation that goes to make up the whole as to how, when, where,
and in what time each should he performed, what tools, and what
materials to provide before work starts, and to transmit these instruc¬
tions with the necessary tools and materials to the workman before
the work starts. The stock of material on hand should not be allowed
to fall below a certain minimum determined by the rate of output.
This law covers the planning of each operation and routing
it through the shop. It simply means that the determination
of how, when and where the work is to be performed, and what
materials and tools to provide, is taken out of the hands of the
workman and foreman and put into the hands of the planning
department, where all the data as to the date of delivery, past
methods, etc., can be drawn on to make accurate and definite
instructions. The work is planned and instructions are given
after a careful study from past experiment and practice as to the
best way in which to do that work. Here the judgment of the
laborer is eliminated. The amount of time and money saved in
this can be judged by considering that every workman if left to
himself will do the work according to his judgment, and it will be
found that there are as many ways of doing a piece of work as
136
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
there are workmen to do it. The chances, then, are that a large
majority of the workmen are not doing the work in the best way.
The application of the second law of management will tend to
improve the methods of the workman and to reduce loss of time
in the following ways:
1. The time the work is to be started is planned before the
work starts, so that in producing a complicated machine the parts
are finished as they are needed to make up the whole. The
workman who is fitting the parts or whose work depends upon the
finishing of some part by others need not remain idle while he is
waiting for the others to finish a needed part. Thus erecting
work or work depending on other workmen will not be interrupted
by allowing guess work to determine when the work is to be
started, and, consequently, the calculations as to when the
finished product is to be delivered to the purchaser will not be
guess work. The instructions as to when the work is to be started
are definite and exact, and are made with due regard to the work
as a whole and to keeping all machines equally busy, and they
eliminate losses in time due to delays and confusion.
2. The machine at which the work is to be done is indicated
in the instructions after careful study before the work is started,
having regard for the suitability of the machine and for the even
distribution of work among the machines. This results in
eliminating loss of time due to confusion and idleness at any
one machine, and the instructions covering it are made definite
and exact before the work is started; none of this is left to the
judgment of the foreman or the workman.
3. The time which it should take to do any piece of work is
transmitted to the workman before the work starts. This time
is based upon careful time study of previous operations where all
unnecessary motions have been eliminated. It should be a rea¬
sonable time in which the work can be completed over and over
again for a year, if necessary, without spurting but with the man
working at his normal or rational capacity. It is fixed also with
regard to the quality of the work desired.
4. By having the tools and materials for each job provided at
the place the work is to be done before the work starts the loss
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
137
due to idleness of machine and of workman while the tools are
being brought is eliminated. The tools and materials are defi¬
nitely stated in the instructions for each job, and the tools and
materials for one or two subsequent jobs should be ready for the
workman to proceed promptly on those jobs.
5. All instructions are made concise, exact and easily under¬
stood, and are at the place at which the work is to be done, so
that before a workman is through with one job he has on hand,
in addition to his tools and materials for the next job, the written
instructions as to what he is to do, how, when, where and in what
time he is to do it.
The elimination of losses of time explained in the last five
paragraphs may be said to be the result of planning and issuing
of instructions for any job before that job is started and are
covered by Law II.
On the other hand, if Law II is not observed losses are increased
as follows:
1. If the workman does not know how he is going to do a
certain thing he is going to waste considerable time finding out,
and is going to take up a great deal of his own time and of the
time of some one else who should be otherwise engaged, and,
finally, if he thinks he can do it without definite instructions, we
are relying on his judgment as to how it should be done, which
may be wrong.
2. If the workman has no instructions as to when to start a
piece of work he is likely to let the most important piece go and
take up any other at hand, or he may rely upon the judgment of
the foreman as to when it should be started. In either case if we
are, for example, constructing a machine, one part of the machine
may be néglected until all others are ready for assembling. Then
the unfinished part must be rushed through to the neglect of
other work, and in the meantime our erectors are waiting, and
the customer is not getting his machine when it was promised
him. A little thought will show what confusion and loss of time
will result from this practice.
3. If the workman has no instructions as to where the work
is to be done, work is likely to crowd one machine and be slack at
138
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
another, much to the neglect of the work at the crowded machine
and to the increase of confusion in the shop. Machines are idle
and men are idle, and, as in the last paragraph, the finished prod¬
uct is delayed in leaving the shop.
4. If the workman does not know what time he is to consume
on a given piece of work he will probably increase the number of
unnecessary motions for that work and thus increase the amount
of time it takes to do it. This results in loss of time and money.
And there may be further loss due to the workman loafing at his
work. This is perhaps one of the greatest losses in modern
manufacture, though other factors, as is readily seen, help to
increase the total loss.
5. If the workman does not have his tools and materials ready
to start on his next job before he is ready to proceed with it, there
will be delay incident to obtaining the tools and materials. This
also increases labor losses.
6. If the workman has not his instructions as to what to do,
how, when, where and in what time to do it, before he is ready
to start his next job, there is another delay incident to his getting
these instructions either from the foreman or from the office.
This again increases labor losses.
The application of Law II may be said to cover all the planning
before the work in the shop is started. The planning is based
upon the written instructions as to what is to be done which are
made out under Law I. The functions of Law II will be as
follows:
1. Write instructions as to where the work is to be done.
This should be done by analyzing the instructions as to what is
to be done and dividing each complete job into groups and deter¬
mining in what machine the operations in each group should
take place and the order in which they shoidd take place in rela¬
tion to one another. This is done by the route clerk.
2. Write instructions as to what materials and tools should be
issued for each operation covered in (i). This is done by the
material and tool clerk.
3. Write instructions as to how each operation is to be per¬
formed. This is based on previous data properly classified for
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
139
ready use. These instructions are written by the instruction
card clerk.
4. Write instructions as to the time in which work should be
done with regard to standard quality. This information is based
on previous data and time studies properly classified for ready
use. These instructions are written by the instruction card
clerk. Data is obtained by the time study clerk, if there is one,
under Law VII.
5. The instructions are next collected and placed in a route
file. This is the duty of the route file clerk, who places the
instructions in the route file, arranging all operations for one com¬
plete job in an indexed file book and giving the instructions for
each operation one page in this book. These instructions are
now arranged ready for the work to progress through the shop.
6. Give instructions as to when work is to be done. This is
done by the production clerk, who is over the other clerks in the
planning department.
7. Instructions in one, two, three, four, five and six are finally
transmitted to the shop by the order of work clerk (of which
there may be several in a large shop) from the route files covering
each complete job divided into various operations. The order
of work clerk must necessarily be familiar with the machines and
men in the shop and with information as to when the finished
product is to be delivered.
8. The order of work clerk may have an assistant, whose duty
it is to issue and receive operation cards to and from the workmen,
and to record in the route file on the route sheet for each opera¬
tion when the instructions for each operation are completed.
9. The tools are provided by a boy in the shop after the tool
list is sent to the machine.
10. The materials are gotten ready for issue by the store¬
keeper before the instructions for work are sent into the shop.
As soon as the materials are ready and the instructions sent into
the shop an instruction card is sent to a move man in the shop to
niove the material to the place at which the work is to be done.
This applies also to work done at a machine by one man, which
must go to another machine and man for another operation.
140
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
II. The materials are checked as soon as the issue order is
given to the storeroom keeper, by the balance of stores clerk,
who never allows material on hand to get below a Certain mini¬
mum fixed by the demand for each material.
In this way, then, the workman has instructions, tools and
materials, at the place at which the work is to be done before the
work starts and there remains only the operation order for the
work to start, which is issued by the order of work clerk. When
one operation is finished the next operation order is issued by the
workman, and the work continues.
In considering the application of this law most manufacturers
think that it requires too much clerical work for the object. It
is not meant that one man is always necessary for each function
under this law, but that each of these functions must be per¬
formed. For instance: the route clerk can write instructions for
routing out material and can also issue orders and tool lists; the
instruction card clerk can write instructions as to how to do work
and act as time study clerk. The division of labor depends
entirely on the nature of the activity and the size of the shop,
having due regard to giving no man more work than he can
expeditiously and efficiently handle.
Law III
It is necessary to provide for any given purpose before the work
starts: {a) The best tools and machines for that purpose; {b) the
best arrangement of machines in their relative positions; (c) ma¬
chines and tools in the best possible condition.
Through experiment and practice in almost all industries
machines and tools have been found that do better and quicker
work than other machines and tools, and, in order to obtain
maximum speed and highest quality of output, it is necessary
that the best machines and tools should be provided and kept
in the best possible condition at all times. It is evident that
this requires that the machines and tools provided be of one
standard — the highest.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
141
It is desirable to arrange machines with regard to the work
they perform, in order to reduce time and labor cost of moving
work from one machine to another.
By applying this law losses are reduced as follows:
1. The best machines and tools are provided for doing any job.
This means, for example, that a machine that will do two opera¬
tions at once is better than the machine that does them in succes¬
sion, and that automatic machines are better in a great many
classes of repeat work than hand-tended machines. And it means
that there are tools that are best fitted for any particular class of
work, and even of these there are some that have been found by
experiment and practice to be the best tools. The best tools,
then, should be the only ones kept in stock. It is evident, then,
by having the best tools and machines, loss of time is eliminated
by reducing the time of each operation or series of operations,
and by improving the quality of the finished product and thus
decreasing waste due to defects in the finished product.
2. Arranging machines in relation to one another so that time
is not lost and labor is not increased by transferring work from
one machine to another further eliminates loss of time and money.
. 3. By keeping the tools and machines in the best possible
condition loss of time is eliminated; since the machine is able at
all times to deliver its maximum power at its maximum speed,
there is no necessity of changing the tool because it is not sharp
or is soft, or is not the standard of the best, and the possibility of
a machine breaking down in the middle of work and delaying
that work and keeping the workman idle is minimized.
The application of Law III is as follows:
' This law should be carried out partly before any work is done;
that is, the best tools and best machines should be provided before
the work is undertaken, by studying machines already in opera¬
tion and seeking machines with the latest improvements. They
^ould be arranged in the shop in relation to one another to make
the. progress of work from one machine to another as nearly
continuous as possible.
, While work is in progress the tools should be kept shaped and
ground, the machines should be kept clean and in good worldng
142
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
condition, and belts should be kept at a tension such that the
machines will deliver maximum power at maximum speed.
A record of overhaul and repairs to belts and machines, and a
routine for overhauling and testing will be found to greatly reduce
breakdowns and consequent delays.
For testing, inspecting and overhauling belting there should
be enough men to completely carry out the routine, but they
should be kept busy during working hours on idle machines.
When necessary, they should work during the noon hour and
for an hour after work stops in the afternoon, they being paid
extra for this time.
The general repairs, including care of belting, are carried out
by a regular gang under the charge of a repair boss. Those
repairs that are urgent are, of course, effected first, and a complete
record of all repairs is kept in a place available to the production
clerk.
Law IV
It is necessary in any productive work to (a) select the best laborer
for the work demanded, (b) to keep the laborer so selected at his work
and at no other.
Men should be selected for particular work who have abilities
for that work; as a rule, they can perform that work better than
any other. Where a man persistently falls down in the quantity
and quality of his output he should be either discharged or
transferred to work that he is better qualified to perform.
After a man is selected for and proved at any particular work
he should not be required to do any other class of work. For
instance, a machinist should be kept at machinist's work and
not be required to do blacksmith's, messenger boy's or tool
grinder's work.
Losses are eliminated by applying Law IV as follows: The
man best qualified should be selected for the work, having due
regard to the cost of his labor. It is evident that it would be
poor policy, and would result in poor workmanship and loss of
time, to employ a blacksmith for a machinist's job, or to employ
a machinist at machinist's wages to do the work of a messenger
boy. It is important to keep a workman at the work he is
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
143
required to do. It is evident that money and time are saved by
employing a low-priced boy to carry the tools and materials to a
high-priced machinist, and by keeping that high-priced machinist
employed at machinist's work every minute that his labor is
being paid for.
Law IV may be applied as follows:
The selection of the best man for work must be based on a
consideration of the man's trade, the kind and class of skill
required for the work, and, above all, the physical fitness of the
man for the work.
Law V
It is necessary in any activity to assure that instructions are carried
out as work progresses as to {a) what is to be done^ {h) how, {c) when^
{d) where^ {e) in what time work is done, (/) whether tools are pro-
vided, (g) whether materials are provided, Qi) whether tools and
machines are kept in best possible condition.
It is as necessary for the management to know whether the
instructions it issues are carried out as it is to issue instructions.
Each function of this law may be carried out by a man detailed
for the purpose, or two or more functions may be performed by
one man. The methods may be selected, depending on the
industry, and on the decision of the improvement expert, after a
careful study of the men, the functions and the methods.
By applying Law V losses are reduced as follows:
1. Having bosses in the shop. If the workman is slow in
setting up his work the gang boss should instruct him to improve
his time; if a workman does not follow the instructions for speed
the speed boss should show him how the instructions should be
carried out and the work done faster.
2. As a further incentive to having instructions carried out,
particularly as to the mannner and time in which work is to be
done, a bonus is offered to the workman to do the work in the
time allotted and to produce a standard quality of work. This
incentive tends to reduce the time in which to do any job, and
results directly in a high bonus to the owners as well as better
wages for the laborer.
Ï44
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
3. In order to prevent waste due to poor workmanship an
inspector examines the finished product and requires it to be of
standard quality. If it is not, the workman loses part of his
bonus for fast work; this reduces loss due to poor workman¬
ship.
4. Finally, a routine for overhauling machines and for reshap¬
ing and grinding tools will insure that the machine and tools are
kept in the best possible condition ; records are kept as to whether
or not this routine is being carried out, and in all cases where
breakdowns occur immediate repairs are made and rèported;
Usually the repair and upkeep of tools and machines would be
performed by men who do nothing else. This eliminates loss due
to breakdowns and failure of machines to delivér their maximum
power at maximum speed.
In its application this law bring us back to the work in progress
in the shop and is a connecting link between the shop and the
production clerk. It requires reliable men in the shop to see
that work progresses according to the instructions and to report
on this work, and will include the following functions:
1. Proper tools and materials supplied.
2. Work is set up properly.
3. Instructions as to speeds, depths of cut, speed of cut, etc.,
are observed.
4. The work is done in specified time.
5. That machines and tools are kept in best condition.
6. That finished product is of a standard quality.
These functions are performed by —
1. Gang bosses, who inspect and report on the functions
(1), (2) and (5).
2. Speed bosses, who inspect and report on the functions (3)
and (4).
3. Inspectors, who inspect and report on (6).
The same rule applies here as under Law II, that the functions
that are performed must be regarded, and that it is not necessary
to have a man for each different function. That will depend on
thé class of work being done and the rize of the plant. For
example: the gang boss and speed boss are One and the same in
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 145
some machine shops where WOrk is just sufficient to keep one man
busy, but not so busy that part of his duties are neglected.
Under this law comes also the question of a bonus which, as
previously stated, is given to workmen to insure that instructions
are carried out and the quality of the finished product is up to the
standard, or, in other words, that the workman is delivering the
amount and quality of labor that the management is paying for.
Bonuses will not be here discussed, as any one desiring informa¬
tion on the subject can easily consult Emerson, Gantt, Taylor or
Day.
Law VI
It is necessary in any activity to keep definite, reliable records
of costs, and to be able frequently to summarize costs.
This law hardly needs an explanation, as it is self evident.
In order to simplify the cost-keeping, reports should be con¬
stantly going to the cost department as material for each opera¬
tion is issued and as each operation is finished, so that on any
day the cost data on work going through the shop are complete.
The only way in which the management can form an idea of the
business is by summarizing cost frequently.
If we neglect to keep a definite and reliable record of costs
we will have no knowledge of how we can sell, or if we are turning
out work at the maximum efficiency.
As the application of this law covers cost, which is a separate
subject in itself, it will not be gone into further than to state that
the cost clerk should constantly receive information as to the
apportionment of material to a given job, and the labor reduced
to cost performed on each operation of a given job, when the
operation is completed. His data should be so complete that at
the end of each month he can apportion costs to each job and
determine the cost of manufacture of all finished products.
His notice that a job is to be done may be the receiving of the
manufacturing order, and that the job has been started in the
shop, the receipt of the " tickler " (carbon copy of manufacturing
order) from the production clerk. From this time until the order
is shipped he receives records of all costs covering that order, as
material is issued for each operation and as work is finished on
146
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
each operation. The method of giving him this notice need not
necessarily be the one here suggested.
A further application of complete costs records is in the esti¬
mating of new work, or work that is not standard. The opera¬
tion of this law should make it possible to reduce the difference
between estimated and actual costs of work to 2 per cent.
Law VII
It is necessary in any form of activity for those directing the work
to study for improvements of {a) costs, (b) methods, (c) machines and
tools, (d) product, {e) labor.
In order to improve conditions as given under this law it is
best to have an expert with assistants to study each detail.
While improvements will often come from men who are carrying
on the planning of the work and the work itself, it is better to
have some one who devotes his entire time to the subject of
improvements and who will examine into and act on any recom¬
mendations that come from the men either in the management
or in the shop.
In studying labor the aim is to so treat the workman that he
is satisfied and knows he is getting a square deal at all times.
This is one of the most important functions of Law VII, and
will result in decreasing the losses due to men quitting work or
striking or loafing because they are disgruntled with the manage¬
ment.
Not to study improvements in costs, methods, machines, tools
and product will result in so antiquating any business as to place
it at the mercy of its competitors, due to loss of time in manu¬
facture, loss of business through inability to reduce costs to meet
competition, and loss due to decreased sales resulting from the
poor quality of the finished product.
To ignore the study of labor and to disregard all its demands,
almost its existence, except in so far as it helps to make money,
is almost the same as business suicide. The concern that does
this or allows it to be done will have strikes, discontented work¬
men and poor workmen, with large losses due to idleness of the
machines.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT I47
The application of Law VII should be as follows: The improve¬
ment department will be directly under the general manager or
general superintendent. Although the last law, it is one of the
most important in that it deals with labor. Before discussing
this function it must be stated that methods in the planning
department and in the shop should be constantly studied for
improvement. One method of doing this in some industries
would be to make time studies. The machines and tools should
be studied, and where changes can be made for improvement
they should be made, having regard to interruption of the work.
Finally the finished product should be studied in order to improve
it; for example: by cutting out or simplifying parts, by improv¬
ing the usefulness of the machine in performing its function, and,
finally, by increasing the field of usefulness for the machine.
This law will cover, for further example in some branches of
industry, studying methods for utilizing waste products, as by
treating them so that they can be cheaply turned into saleable
products, and to find uses for these products.
Finally, labor should be studied to prevent antagonism of
labor to capital by giving labor fair and square treatment. This
object should be carried out by a department in charge of a man
of greatest tact and diplomacy which should have charge of :
1. Employing and discharging labor.
2. Distributing labor throughout the plant.
3. Disciplining men for violations of rules and regulations.
Rules and regulations should include punishments for various
standard offences, such as loafing, drunkenness, insubordination,
etc. The punishments should be uniformly enforced. In a
large plant this will necessitate maintaining a police depart¬
ment.
4. Keeping records of all labor employed, with the past history
of each man, if it is possible to obtain it.
5. Paying labor.
6. The benefit fund.
7. Washrooms, lunch rooms, etc.
8. Library and any other " uplift " ideas that are in opera-'
tion.
148
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
9. Rècoirimendîng devices arid methods for preventing loss
of life and property. This would necessitate in a large plant a
fire department.
10. Intercourse with the men through their representatives
to discuss questions concerning labor at certain stated times.
11. Adjusting differences between workmen, or between
workmen and bosses.
12. Distributing men to reduce friction between them and to
reduce as much as possible partiality on the part of the bosses.
13. Medical attendance on men who receive injuries in the
shops. In a large plant this would necessitate a hospital.
14. Improving conditions in the shops so as to reduce strain
on the workmen, such as ventilation, heating and lighting.
The Illinois Steel Company at South Chicago has a labor
department that is a model of its kind, and should be copied by
every large industrial concern in the country. Its adoption will
undoubtedly result in the elimination of friction between capital
and labor. The author has talked with managers of concerns
where labor troubles are practically unknown, and in every case
this last law was found to be carefully observed. On the other
hand, where there is a total disregard of conditions from the
standpoint of labor — in other words, where labor is not studied
— strikes are frequent and, strange to say, are looked upon as
necessary evils. In these shops, also, it will generally be found
that the average quality of labor is very low, good men leave such
places to go where they are better treated and where they are not
thrown out of work through strikes and walkouts. These are
usually caused by a blind desire on the part of the management
to make money at any cost, in many cases on a highly watered
capital, the dollar sign being the only thing on the horizon of the
board of directors and the management.
There is one point in management that is very often lost sight
of; that it, that two objects should not be stated as one in apply¬
ing the laws of management. For example: If we stated the
object as being the manufacture and sale of certain machines,
'confusion would immediately result. The manufacture of ma¬
chines is a distinct and separate operation from the selling qf
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
149
machines, and each should be treated separately in applying the
laws of management. Due regard should be given to the fact
that the connecting link between the two is the exchange of
information between them as to costs, rate of output, capacity
of the manufacturing department, the number of sales, dates of
delivery, capacity and size and character of the finished product,
and new contracts as they are made.
To illustrate this more concretely, the company supplying
electric current and gas to a large city performs several functions.
Taking only the electric part of it, there are the manufacture of
current, the selling of it, the buying and installing of motors,
wires, lights, etc. These functions are so confused that it is often
difficult for the manufacturing department to know exactly on
what days the installing department will finish its work, conse¬
quently the selling department has difficulty in promising the
delivery of the current. The proper way under the laws of
management to conduct this business is to separate each function
from the other and to apply all the laws of management to each,
providing means for exchanging necessary information between
the departments. Thus the functions would be separated into
(i) manufacture, (2) selling, (3) installing; each being conducted
separately from the other except in the exchange of necessary
information.
The criticism has been made that Law VII conflicts with
Laws III and IV in that the last two laws require that the best
tools, machines and men have been selected for the purpose and
eliminates the necessity for studying for improvements. There
is no question that the best tools, machines and men may be
selected this year, yet five years from now such improvements
may have been made as would put a company out of business if
it had not constantly studied for improvements and applied
them as they are discovered. If the men are not improved by
constant study and instruction, then human nature is not what
it is accepted as being. The mere fact, though, that the most
successful manufacturers are studing for improvement in ma¬
chines and tools, and in labor, is proof of the existence of this
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
seventh law of management, and that it does not conflict with
Laws III and IV.
It has been said that it is time to stop talking of principles
and to begin to show the application of them and the flnal out¬
come. The author claims that principles and laws have not
been discussed before, but that methods, under guise of prin¬
ciples, fundamental principles, laws, and other names not belong¬
ing to them have been discussed. This paper for the first time
records the laws of the science of management and gives a start¬
ing point to those who wish to discuss methods. As to the results
obtained by this application, it can be said that to record them
would be as big an undertaking as to record the methods of carry¬
ing out the laws. If the laws of management are carefully
observed the results will be success — success as nearly perfect
as can be obtained by human methods working with human
beings.
Again the criticism is made that Law II will not apply to the
inventor, or to the man engaged in scientific research; that the
very fact that a purpose is formed to make a discovery, inven¬
tion, or improvement presupposes that what is to be done and
final results are unknown. The mere stating of the purpose,
recording it on the brain or on paper, forms instructions as to
what is to be done. Whether the invention is a mechanical one,
or whether the discovery is a chemical one, in either case the
inventor or discoverer must know the laws of mechanics or the
laws of chemistry in order to obtain the most successful results.
That the final result is known approximately must be granted,
or the discoverer or inventor is working without a purpose.
That the laws do apply to accidental discovery is not contended,
but it is contended that, whether in invention or in scientific
research, the greatest degree of success will be obtained by the
person who applies the laws of management.
That Law II is too broadly stated in that it does away with
all initiative on the part of the individual workman is another
criticism that is made. The answer to this is left to the large
number of successful employers engaged in productive work who
require that the laborer carry out orders, and who do not give
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Tn'm a wide latitude in which to experiment on his employer's
material and probably ruin it. It must be granted that the
management knows what it wants done and how it wants it done,
and that the work should be done according to its orders.
A reduction of the seven laws of management to diagrammatic
form is shown in Fig. i. This shows the simplest form of their
General Manager
Figure 1
application to any activity. The work progresses from the
general manager to the estimating and drawing room (covered
by Law I), to the planning department (covered by Law II),
to the shop (covered by Laws III and IV). Law V is a con¬
necting link between shop and planning department. Costs
and improvements keep in touch with all (covered by Laws VI
and VII).
152
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In Fig. 2 the different elements are given their proper names.
The planning department is placed within the shop, as it is in
reality a part of the shop. In large plants such as the Allis-
Chalmers Co., for example, each shop has its own planning
department, while in a smaller shop such as the Tabor Manu-
Figure JL
facturing Co., there is one planning department for a shop
employing about ninety men. The number of men requiring a
separate planning department can only be determined by the
size and nature of the industry and the arrangement of the plant.
The Bement-Niles Works of the Niles-Bement Pond Co., for
instance, has one planning department for about fifteen hundred
men, and successful results are obtained.
THE PRESENT STATE OF THE ART OF
INDUSTRIAL MANAGEMENT
Majority Report of Sub-Committee on Administration
of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers, 1912
Reprinted by permission
During the past few years a number of striking phenomena,
in connection with industrial management, must have become
evident even to the most superficial observer. The more impor¬
tant are:
(a) The widespread, popular interest in the subject which had
its rise in a statement made before the Interstate Commerce Com¬
mission, in a hearing on the matter of proposed advances in
freight rates by carriers. An attorney for the shippers stated on
November 21, 1910, that it was estimated that by the application
of newly discovered principles of management " in the railroad
operation of this country an economy of $1,000,000 a day is
possible," and further that these principles can be applied with
equal success " in every form of business activity." This popular
interest is shown by the great number of articles published in the
daily papers and popular magazines, mediums that give but scant
attention to technical subjects, except of the most striking nature.
(b) The suddenly intensified interest in the subject on the part
of employers and business executives in many lines of activity,
shown by lectures, addresses, professional papers and reports
presented to their associations.
(c) The opposition of labor unions to the newer methods of
management, shown by statements of labor leaders, in a few
instances by strikes and by an attempt to prohibit by law the use
of some of these methods in Government shops.
(d) Governmental recognition of the matter shown by the
appointment of a special committee of the House of Representa¬
tives to investigate systems of management in Government
IS3
154 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
arsenals and shops, which reported in March, 1912; by the
appointment of a civilian board by the Secretary of the Navy to
investigate management in the navy yards, which reported in
July, 1911 ; and by Senate bill 5 61^2, now in committee, which is
intended to prohibit time study and the payment of premiums
or bonus on Government work.
(e) The rapidity with which literature on the subject has
accumulated. One directory of books on business management
lists 500 titles, and states that 75 per cent of them have been
written within five years.
(J) The formation of two societies having as an aim the fur¬
therance of the application of the principles of management.
(g) The separation of persons interested in the matter into
two camps, one of enthusiastic advocates, the other of vigorous
opponents of what is called the new element in management.
(h) The unquestionable proof of the advance that can be made
in unskilled work, as shoveling material, and in ancient trades, as
bricklaying, by the application of the principles of management.
This is the most striking phenomenon of all.
The Principles of Manufacture
2. Before defining the element in the art of management that
has given rise to these phenomena, it is necessary to review briefly
the beginnings of modern industry. This gives a historical set¬
ting from which the present can be more truly judged.
3. Modern industry is stated by some writers to have begun
in 1738 when John Wyatt brought out a spinning machine.
Others place the period as between 1750 and 1800, when the
power loom and steam engine came into being. It was marked
by the development of labor-saving machinery. It was brought
about by the change from handicraft to manufacture.
4. Early British economists held that the application of the
principle of division of labor was the basis of manufacture.
From Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations, 1776, we quote:
This great increase of the quantity of work which, in consequence of
the division of labor, the same number of people are capable of performing,
is owing to three different circmnstances; first, to the increase of dexterity
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
155
in every particular workman; secondly, to the saving of the time which is
commonly lost in passing from one species of work to another; and lastly,
to the invention of a great number of machines which facilitate and abridge
labor, and enable one man to do the work of many.
5. Charles Babbage, the great British mathematician and
mechanician, believed that from the above-quoted statement the
most important principle was omitted. This omission he sup¬
plied as follows in his Economy of Machinery and Manufacture,
1832:
That the master manufacturer, by dividing the work to be executed into
different processes, each requiring different degrees of skill and force, can
purchase exactly that precise quantity of both which is necessary for each
process; whereas, if the whole work were executed by one workman, that
person must possess sufficient skill to perform the most difficult, and suffi¬
cient strength to execute the most laborious, of the operations into which
the art is divided.
6. It appears, however, that another principle is the basic
one in the rise of industry. It is the transference of skill. The
transference of skill from the inventor or designer to the power-
driven mechanism brought about the industrial revolution from
handicraft to manufacture. It will be necessary to refer to this
principle frequently throughout this report, in showing the
meaning and position of management in industry.
7. No better single illustration of the application of this
principle can be found than in the invention of the lathe slide
rest by Henry Maudsley in 1794. This has been ranked as
second only to the steam engine in its influence on machinery
building, and thus on industrial development. The simple,
easily controlled mechanical movements of the slide rest were
substituted for the skilful human control of hand tools. So
complete has been this transference of skill that today hand tool¬
ing is a vanished art in American machine shops. Very few lathe
hands can chase a thread with hand tools, yet all can cut good
threads on an engine lathe, thanks to the slide rest. After the
traditional skill of a trade, or the special, peculiar skill of a
designer or inventor, has been transferred to a machine, an
operator with little or no previously acquired skill can learn to
handle it and turn off the product.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
8. An example of the extent to which this transference of skill
is carried today is presented by the shoemaking industry. The
United Shoe Machinery Company builds some 400 machines
used in shoe manufacture. These are so highly organized that
the greater part of shoe shop operatives are unskilled except
in a single readily mastered detail of the work. The skill in shoe-
making is now in the mechanical equipment of the shops. This
transference is a development of the past 50 years.
9. James Nasmyth, a British engineer, inventor of the steam
hammer, has this to say in 1851 of the application of this prin¬
ciple in his own works: " The characteristic feature of our
modern mechanical improvements is the introduction of self-
acting tool machinery. What every mechanical workman has
now to do, and what every boy can do, is not to work himself,
but to superintend the beautiful labor of the machine. The
whole class of workmen that depend exclusively on their skill
is now done away with."
10. Methods of analyzing and recording operations were early
developed. Adam Smith records the divisions of the work of
manufacturing pins, listing 11 operations. Charles Babbage
gives a table (see Appendix No. i. Table i) from a French investi¬
gator, showing the number of operations, time for each, cost of
each, and expense of tools and material for making pins in France
in 1760. He gives a similar table for English manufacture in his
day (see Appendix No. i. Table 2, from Economy of Machinery
and Manufacture, 1832).
11. He further comments on the use of the watch to time
operations. We quote from his instructions to one making such
observations and using a skeleton form that he recommends:
In filling up the answers which require numbers, some care
should be taken: for instance, if the observer stands with his
watch in his hand before a person heading a pin, the workman
will almost certainly increase his speed, and the estimate will be
too large. . . . The number of operations performed in a given
time may be frequently ascertained when the workman is quite
unconscious that any person is observing him. Thus the sound
made by the motion of a loom may enable the observer to count
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
157
the number of strokes per minute, even though he is outside the
building in which it is contained."
12. M. Coulomb, the noted French physicist (1736-1806), who
had great experience in making such observations, cautions those
who may repeat his experiments against being deceived by such
circumstances. We translate a single quotation: " I pray (says
he) those who wish to repeat them (the experiments) if they hâve
not time to measure the results after several days of work, to
observe the workmen at various times during the day without
their knowing that they are being watched. We cannot be too
weU warned of the danger of self-deception in computing either
the speed or the effective time of work through an observation of
a few minutes."
13. Thus we see the application of the principle of transference
of skill at the basis of the development of the industry, and an
early appreciation of the value of the detailed study of operations
in making that transference more complete. But the machine
was the viewpoint. It was looked upon as the producing unit.
Combined and contrasted with this was a lack of knowledge of
scientific principles and their sure application. Charles Babbage
treats of this forcefully. We quote:
There is perhaps no trade or profession existing in which there is so much
quackery, so much ignorance of the scientific principles, and of the history
of their own art, with respect to its resources and extent, as is to be met with
amongst mechanical projectors.
14. In the same vein he emphasizes the need of accurate draw¬
ings as if having in mind the poor quality of the work from the
average draftsman of his day: " It can never be too strongly
impressed upon the minds of those who are devising new machines
(says he) that to make the most perfect drawings of every part
tends essentially both to success of the trial, and to economy in
arriving at the result."
15. He further points out that there is another important
factor in successful industry, in addition to machinery. We
read that " in order to succeed in a manufacture, it is necessary
not merely to possess good machinery, but that the domestic
economy of the factory should be most carefully regulated."
158 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
16. These quotations foreshadow modern methods of think¬
ing out the work in advance and transferring this thought to
the workmen. The subsequent development has had the effect
of advancing still further the division of labor, and beginning
the division of thought. The drafting room presents the first
example of the trend, in its collection of engineering data, in its
prediction of results and the formation of staff organization.
17. But from the period of the last quotation almost to the
present there has been no change in the basic principles discovered
and applied in industry. There has been nothing but an exten¬
sion of those already known. The place of greatest advance has
been in the drawing room. The art of machine design has been
greatly developed. The last half of the last century saw a tre¬
mendous increase in inventions, a tremendous furtherance of the
application of transference of skill to machines and tools. The
skeleton of an industrial organization of this period, one that was
too large for a single executive to manage, consisted of a designing
department and a production department, each with a head
responsible to the manager.
18. The first of these, the one that was the means of embody^
ing skill in the machinery and tools of production, was highly
developed and organized. Experiment, research and detailed
study were constantly resorted to, to aid in reaching the desired
result. The work was highly specialized and the employees
highly paid. Not infrequently the manager or chief executive
devoted much of his own time to this part of the business.
19. The production department presented a contrasting condi¬
tion. The workmen were given the tools and machines designed
in the drawing room and using their own imaided skill were
expected to produce work of the desired quality and quantity.
Except in rare instances no effort was made to transfer the skill
of the management to the production department and the em¬
ployees, or to undertake the division of executive thought. Very
little consideration was given to the workmen as a producing
unit.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
159
Features of the Change
20. Within the past 20 or 25 years certain changes have taken
place in the attitude of many production managers toward the
problems that they face and the forces and means that they con¬
trol. An increasing amount of attention is being given to the
worker. An early evidence was the development of profit
sharing, premium and bonus systems to reward increased effort
and output. There followed welfare work, industrial betterment
movements, the adoption of safeguards and regulations to mini¬
mize industrial accidents, the substitution of the principle of
accident compensation for employers' liability and an improve¬
ment in the physical surroundings and conditions of factories.
All of these tendencies have been fostered and to a great extent
initiated by employers. But even today these are by no means
generally adopted.
21. Another tendency, less pronounced in character, has as
its object the improvement of the personal relations between
employee and employee and between employee and employer.
It is an effort to establish the best of factory working conditions
in those things not physical in nature, to develop and maintain a
shop atmosphere free from all harassing and hindering infiuences.
It is an attempt to make use of the results of experimental psy¬
chology in improving working conditions.
22. But the most important change, and one that comprehends
the others, is in the mental attitude toward the problems of pro¬
duction. The tendency is toward an attitute of questioning, of
research, of careful investigation of everything affecting the
problems in hand, of seeking for exact knowledge and then shap¬
ing action on the discovered facts. It has developed the use of
time study and motion study as instruments for investigation,
the planning department as an agency to put into practice the
conclusions drawn from the results of research, and methods
of wage payment which stimulate cooperation.
23. All of these changes have affected the production depart¬
ment much more than the designing department. The effect is
to extend the principle of transference of skill to production, so
i6o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
that it completely embraces every activity in manufacture. The
skill of the management is consciously transferred to all of the
operations of the factory. This extension is expressed by these
phrases: the drawing room is the planning department of design,
and the planning department is the drawing room of production.
Nature of the Committee's Investigation
24. To obtain information on present conditions your com¬
mittee wrote to the recognized experts, to executives of plants in
many lines of industry, to students of industrial problems, and
has had many interviews with men in these various fields. The
response to our requests has been in the main most generous. We
are deeply indebted to the information thus received for a large
portion of the following sections of this report. We are glad to
take advantage of this opportunity to express our gratitude to all
those who have given aid.
25. Throughout the following pages there is a plentiful use
of illustrative quotations. Many of these are taken from cor¬
respondence resulting from our investigations. Others are from
the mass of literature mentioned in Paragraph le.
26. On some points diametrically opposed views have been
expressed. In such cases we have presented both. In no case
has credit been given for these views or quotations, as the infor¬
mation was solicited in confidence.
Definition of the New Element in the Art of
Management
27. Requests for a definition of the new element in the art of
management brought forth a difference of opinion as to its exis¬
tence. The opposed view is given in the following quotations:
I am not aware that a new element in the art of management has been
discovered .
There have been no new discoveries in scientific management of indus¬
trial institutions. Common-sense men have used common-sense methods
always. The term " scientific management " is a catch-word which assumes
that industrial institutions have not been scientifically managed — which is
not the case. My experience and the experience of my friends has been
that there has been no new element injected into thé art of management.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
l6l
In the writer's opinion there is very little that is new about it (the art of
management). There is hardly any part of it that has not been practised
by managers for the past loo years. The trouble is there are not enough
managers with sufficient initiative to set the system moving properly.
—— the problem presented is not the adoption of something entirely
new; but rather the extension to every detail of our work of something
which we have already tried.
28. Turning now to the other side of the question, from a
large number of definitions of this new element we select the
following as very nearly conveying, taken together, the com¬
plete conception as our investigation has disclosed it:
, The best designation of the new elen^ent I believe to be " scientific man¬
agement." This term already has been adopted quite generally and although
frequently misused, carries with it the fundamental idea that the manage¬
ment of labor is a process requiring thorough analytical treatment and
involving scientific as opposed to " rule-of-thumb " methods.
The writer ventures to define the pew element briefly, but broadly, as:
The critical observation, accurate description, analysis and classification of
all industrial and business phenomena of a recurring nature, including all
forms of cooperative human effort and the systematic application of the
resulting records to secure the most economical and efficient production and
regulation of future phenomena.
Stripped of technicalities the method of the modern efficiency engineer
is simply this: First, to analyze and study each piece of work before it is
performed; second, to decide how it can be done with a minimum of wasted
motion and energy; third, to instruct the workman so that he may do the
work in the manner selected as most efficient.
The Taylor System is not a method of pay, a specific ruling of account
books, not the use of high-speed steel. It is simply an honest, intelligent
effort to arrive at the absolute control in every department, to let tabulated
and unimpeachable fact take the place of individual opinion; to develop
" team play " to its highest possibility.
As we conceive it, scientific management consists in the conscious appli¬
cation of the laws inherent in the practice of successful managers and the
laws of science in general. It has been called management engineering,
which seems more fully to cover its general scope than a science.
29. These quotations convey the ideas of a conscious effort to
ascertain and study facts and systematically to apply them in
iijstructing the workmen and in controlling every department of
industry. Setting these against the imderlying principle of the
transference of skill we conceive the prominent element in près-
102
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ent-day industrial management to be : The mental attitude that
consciously applies the transference of skill to all the activities of
industry.
30. Here emphasis is placed upon the word all for, as shown
in Paragraphs 17 and 18, the restricted application of this prin¬
ciple to machines and tools has been highly developed for a long
period. But its conscious application in a broad way to the pro¬
duction departments, and particularly to the workmen, we
believe has been made during the last quarter century.
Rise or this Mental Attitude
31. The rise of this change of attitude in regard to industrial
management is shown in the papers on the subject in the Trans¬
actions of this Society. These are 16 in number and are listed
in Appendix No. 2 of this report. The period covered is from
1886 to 1908. The practice upon which several were based
extended over a number of years before the paper was presented.
Papers on accounting have been excluded.
32. The first. No. 207, classifies management of works as a
modern art having a vast amount of accumulated experience,
points out that the executives must have " a practical knowledge
of how to observe, record, analyze and compare essential facts in
relation to . . . all . . . that enters into or affects the economy
of production and the cost of the product," and makes a plea for
the interchange of management data.
33. Eight following papers. Nos. 256, 341, 449, 596, 647, 928,
965 and ICI 2, deal with methods of wage payment, showing the
increasing attention given to the workmen during this period.
Of these methods the " premium plan " described in paper No.
449 has an extensive use today in machine shops. It probably
ranks third, in extent of use, being exceeded by day work and
piece work in the order named. Paper No. 647 outlines elemen¬
tary rate fixing; that is, the minute study of each detail of each
operation. From this, motion study and time study have grown.
The " bonus system " of paper No. 928 also has an extensive use,
probably ranking fourth.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 163
34. Paper No. 1003, " Shop Management," is the first com¬
plete presentation of the subject. This paper with the subsequent
writings of its author, stands today as the only comprehensive
outline of industrial management. Papers Nos. looi, 1002, loio,
ion and 1115, are amplifications of certain features of No. 1003
and are based on the same practice.
35. Paper No. 1221 deals with the training of workmen, and
outlines practical, tested methods of bringing about the all-im¬
portant transference of skill.
Labor-Saving Management
36. Since these papers were presented, and during the develop¬
ment of popular interest in the subject, the term " scientific
management " has been generally and loosely applied to the new
system and methods. This is commonly taken to mean that
there is a science rather than an art of management. A truer
interpretation is that it means management using scientific
methods, these being taken largely from the sciences of physics
and psychology.
37. The expression " labor-saving management " better con¬
veys the meaning of the movement. It has the further advan¬
tage of being easily and surely understood because of its strict
analogy with the term " labor-saving machinery." It is no
chance that puts these two terms labor-saving machinery and
labor-saving management, in conjunction, for the first is the past
development and the second the present trend of industry, and
they will be closely and inevitably associated in the successful
manufacturing of the future. Throughout the following pages
of this report the terms " industrial management " and " labor-
saving management " are used, the first to denote the subject
broadly, the second the newer attitude.
The Regulative Principles of Industrial Management
38. The lack of accurate thinking and clear expression in
regard to management are nowhere better shown than in many
of the statements of the so-called principles. These can be
divided into two classes, personal characteristics of managers
164
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and mechanical means of applying. It is evident that neither
can show us the way in which the activities of industry are to
be regulated.
39. In our investigation preparing for this report, one corre¬
spondent writes as follows:
The regulative principles of management along scientific lines include
four important elements:
(a) Planning of the processes and operations in detail by a special depart¬
ment organized for this purpose.
{b) Functional organization by which each man superintending the work¬
man is responsible for a single line of effort. This is distinctly
opposed to the older t3T3e of military organization, where every man
in the management is given a combination of executive, legislative
and judicial functions.
(c) Training the worker so as to require him to do each job in what has
been found to be the best method of operation.
(d) Equable payment of the workers based on quantity and quality of
output of each individual. This involves scientific analysis of each
operation to determine the proper time that should be required for
its accomplishment and also high payment for the worker who obtains
the object sought.
40. Another correspondent finds the solution of problems of
management in the observing and regulating of three classes of
industrial phenomena:
(o) The economic results of different arrangements and forms of materials
and operations upon them, either to produce equipment or product,
This covers the whole field of recorded experience from invention and
design of product and tools down through the successive shop proc¬
esses to ultimate finished product and its tests in service. It is the
object of the scientific method to make the best of this experience, in
its essential details, readily available for all concerned, and to see
that it is actually absorbed and put in practice.
(b) The economic results of vaiying executive methods for effectively
directing human efforts as a whole in the use of the above experience.
This covers the entire field of building up, coordinating and control¬
ling the supervising organization of a plant with its statistical and
recording systems.
(c) The economic results of steps taken to raise the industrial efficiency
of the individual worker in every grade of service. This covers the
whole problem of labor reward, intensified ability, conserved energy
and the general relations of employer and employee.
41. We have pointed out that the underlying principle, that
is, cause in the widest sense, the application of which has built
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
165
up modern industry, is the transference of skill. This basic
principle is put into effect on the management side of all indus¬
trial activities, through three regulative principles which sum up
the ideas in the above quotations. Paragraphs 39 and 40. These
have been concisely stated as: ^ (a) the systematic use of experi¬
ence; (b) the economic control of effort; (c) The promotion of
personal effectiveness.
42. The first includes the use, in all essential detail, of tradi¬
tional knowledge, personal experience and the results of scien¬
tific study on the part of the executive force. It implies the
accumulation and use of records and the setting up of standards.
43. The second includes the division and subsequent coordina¬
tion of both executive and productive labor; the planning of
single lines of effort, the setting of definite tasks and the com¬
parison of results; and the effective training of the workers.
It implies the previous acquisition of skill by the executives.
44. The third includes a definite allotment of responsibility
and the adequate, stimulative encouragement and reward of both
executive and productive labor; the development of contented
workers, and the promotion of their physical and mental health.
It implies the most thorough comprehension of the human being.
The Practice of Management
45. As labor-saving management springs from a change in
mental attitude, the beginning of its practice should be with the
persons having the final responsibility, the proprietors of closely-
owned businesses, the directors of larger establishments, or the
officials having charge of Government works. Before any changes
are made, such men should clearly understand the viewpoint
from which all of the managerial work is to be done, the principles
that are to be applied, the general method of their application and
the results expected.
46. A similar mental attitude must be fostered among all
the members of the executive force and a period of training for
them begun. This may include a redistribution of function and
^ American Machinist, vol. 36, p. 857, " The Principles of Management," by
Church and AHord.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
responsibility, and will include a detailed study of production by
scientific methods. This is the period of division of thought,
training of the management staff and setting up standards of
performance. This must be carefully performed before there can
be effective transference of skill to the workers in the production
departments.
47. The usual conception of modern management is that it
affects the workmen most of all, tending to stimulate them to
turn out increased production to their possible hurt. This is
wrong. If the principles outlined are followed, the executive,
or non-producing labor is the most affected. Its individuals
are compelled to study, plan and direct. They must acquire
knowledge and skill in order to transfer it. It is a system of
management that forces the executives to manage.
48. This being so, the introduction of modern management in
a plant must be made slowly. The causes of most so-called
failures are principally two: a failure of the executives to acquire
the vital mental attitude and too great haste in application.
The latter seems to be the dominant one. Your committee feels
compelled to emphasize the danger of attempting to hurry any
change in methods of management. Each step of the work
should be made permanent before the next is begun.
49. We have examined records of production which clearly
show a lessening of individual output among workers who had
been trained for some time and had achieved good results as
soon as untrained workers were put with them, thus lessening
their share of personal supervision. Later the original standard
of production was again reached, but the results seemed to be
directly proportional to the amount of skilful supervision, during
a lengthy period of training.
50. After those who are to operate the new methods have
acquired the necessary knowledge and established sufficient
standards, the work of putting these into effect can be begun.
This means the fixing of the best attainable working conditions
and giving each worker definite tasks with an adequate reward
to each one who attains to the standard set. This part of install¬
ing the methods must be accomplished with tact and patience.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
167
remembering that leadership and example are powerful aids in
bringing about enthusiastic cooperation.
51. The training of the workers is essential in this part of
the application. This must be far more than mere demonstra¬
tion, the mere showing that a thing can be done. It must be
patient teaching and help until the required degree of dexterity
or skill is acquired, that is, up to the habit stage. It is evident
that such work cannot be hurried.
52. Such, broadly, are the three steps in the practice of man¬
agement. It is now necessary to investigate the internal ele¬
ments of permanence in such methods. If the proper mental
attitude is once taken, we believe it will never be given up. This
is substantiated by a few cases when early attempts to improve
management were failures and the methods abandoned. Later,
however, other attempts were made with substantial success.
The mental attitude outlived the failure. Thus in a given
industrial organization this feature would not be lost except by
a loss of the executive staff.
53. The permanence of records of performance and stand¬
ards needs only to be mentioned to be appreciated. Once set
up in an industry, disaster is invited if they are disregarded.
54. To these is added a third in the nature of a spur from the
working forces to the managing force. An adequate reward
is one of the essentials. Whatever disturbs the mechanism of
production interferes with the earning of the rewards. The
workers at once object, pointing out the trouble and insisting
that it be rectified. The management is spurred to keep all
cbnditions up to the fixed standard. Examples of this action
bave been brought to the attention of your committee.
55. The practice as outlined, while built upon fixed standards
and procedure, is by no means rigid and inflexible as has been
alleged. The design and construction of labor-saving machin¬
ery is carried on with a multiplicity of different details. Labor-
saving management should likewise use a variety of details
suited to the requirements of different industries and plants.
There can be nothing fixed in such human endeavor except the
underlying principle. As a simple matter of fact we have found
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
different methods, details and nomenclature in use in different
plants. Many efforts have undergone marked change and
development since first installed. Further, this idea of rigidity
is repudiated by some of the foremost management experts.
56. In Paragraph 39 is emphasized the need of a scientific study
of everything connected with production. The methods used
are adapted from the research laboratory. But the purpose of
their use is changed. The scientific investigator uses his labora¬
tory to discover facts. Their discovery and declaration is his
end and aim. The management investigator uses laboratory
methods to discover facts for immediate use. The end and aim
is utility. This is the test of industry. It is therefore unwise
and in fact detrimental to carry investigations to an extreme.
Enough facts must be observed to shape intelligent action. Per¬
sons having time study and motion study in charge should
possess that rare, intuitive, human quality that causes its pos¬
sessor to know when enough observations have been collected
to form a sound working conclusion.
57. The position of the expert in the practice of management
is more clearly seen as experience increases. The element of
mystery has already departed. This is to be welcomed for it
means the downfall of mere " systematizers." One of the un¬
fortunate features of this great movement has been the rise of
alleged experts who have been ready to promise extravagant
results if they were allowed to systematize an industrial plant.
The test which their work cannot meet is the one of permanence.
58. An industrial manager who has had signal success in
directing large enterprises sums up the more undesirable char¬
acteristics of systematizing practice as:
(а) The publication and quotation of statistics regarding gains made
through the use of particular systems, without a frank statement of
the degree of inefficiency of the plants before reorganization.
(б) The failure to view the plant from the investor's standpoint rather
than as a laboratory offering opportunities for interesting and expen¬
sive experience.
(c) The failure to admit that every application of past solutions to
unstudied new and different conditions is an experiment.
(d) The waste of time and money on problems that will yield to scien¬
tific treatment, but which do not recur often enough to justify such
a solution.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
169
(e) The undervaluing of effective leadership in management and con¬
sequent lack of permanency in results.
(/) The overvalue of emasculated " system " leading to a curious non-
responsibility on thé part of any person for thé total result.
(g) The frequent assumption that the treatment of the problems of
similar plants should be identical.
(Ä) The failure to properly appraise in a growing concern the value of
its internal asset of " good-will."
(i) The imperfect analysis and appreciation of the human factor in
industry, with a consequent failure to reckon patiently with " habit "
and "inertia" and a tendency to hasty "substitution," bringing about
the breaking up of valuable organization.
59. The real expert concentrates on the facts of a given prob¬
lem, and from a wide experience in analysis, coordination and
practical responsibility works out a solution by scientific methods,
suited to the material and human factors involved. The ten¬
dency is for him to do less of the detail work of installation, but
to train and direct the persons who are permanently to manage.
This is a true process of transference of skill.
Statistical Data
60. Your committee hoped to present statistics on the extent
to which labor-saving management is in use. This could not be
realized. Many industrial managers whom we have addressed
have not honored us with their confidence in this direction. In
fact, it seems as if a secretive stage is now with us. There are
two reasons for withholding such information. The first is
identical with the one that has developed " trade secrets " and
secretiveness in regard to machines, tools and processes, the
desire to keep things of value away from competitors. The
second is a belief that in the minds of some persons a reflection
is cast upon the ability of the executives of an industrial estab¬
lishment if outside experts are employed. Frequently a system
of management is referred to as the development of some one in
the organization, although it was installed by a management
expert, employed for the purpose.
61. Some idea of the variety of the industries in which labor-
saving management is in use can be gained from Appendix No. 3,
which lists a total of 52.
I yo
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Broad Results or Labor-Saving Management
62. In cases where the use of labor-saving management can be
considered a success, the broad results have been: a reduced cost
of product; greater promptness in delivery with the ability to set
and meet dates of shipment; a greater output per worker per day
with increased wages; and an improvement in the contentment
of the workers. This last item is shown by the fewness of strikes
under the new management, and in the refusal of those working
under the changed conditions to join in a strike of their fellows in
the same plant who were not working under the new methods.
This last-mentioned situation has arisen a number of times. In
one case an attempt was made to strike a room where about one-
half of the operators were under the new conditions. These
refused to go out; the rest went.
63. These results indicate certain advantages to both em¬
ployer and employee. But it is charged that the movement has
not yet entirely justified itself from the economic viewpoint, for
it has not reduced the cost of product to the consumer. The
implication is that its possibilities will not be realized until
employers, employees and the public are alike benefited. With
this view we are in most hearty accord. Labor-saving machinery
has brought the comforts that we all enjoy today. Labor-saving
management promises to extend those comforts. Where prop¬
erly administered it is conserving labor and is thus contributing
to the good of society at large, and although the benefit to the
consumer may not yet be generally felt, it has already developed
to a certain extent and will continue to develop as the natural
result of increased production.
'J. M. Dodge, Chairman,
L. P. Aleord, Secretary,
Members
Sub-Committee on *
A dministration
D. M. Bates,
H. A. Evans,
Wilfred Lewis,
W. L. Lyall,
W. B. Tardy,
H. R. Towne.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
171
APPENDIXES
Appendix No. I
64. The following tables are taken from a book published in 1832,
Economy of Machinery and Manufacture, by Charles Babbage.
Table i gives the cost and operations in detail in manufacturing
12,000 No. 6 pins in France in 1760. The observations were made by
M. Perronet.
65. Table 2 gives similar data for manufacturing pins in England
in the time of the author. The size is " eleven " of which there are
5546 to the pound.
Table I. Operations in Pin Manufacture in France in 1760
Name of the Process
Time of
Making
12,000
Pins, Hr.
Cost of
Making
12,000
Pins, Pence
Workman
usually Earns
per Day,
Pence
Expense of
Tools and
Materials,
Pence
i
Wire
24-75
2
Straightening and Cutting.
1.2
O-S
4-S
Coarse Pointing
1.2
0.625
lo.o
Turning Wheel ^
1.2
0.87s
7.0
3
■
Fine Pointing
0.8
0-5
9-375
Turning Wheel
1.2
0.5
4-75
. Cutting off Pointed Ends..
0.6
0-37S
7-5
4
r Turning Spiral
o-S
0.125
3-0
L Cutting off Heads
0.8
0-37S
5-625
Fuel to Anneal Heads
....
....
0.125
S
Heading
12.0
0.333
4-25
....
6
(■ Tartar for Cleaning
....
....
....
O-S
. Tartar for Whitening
....
....
....
0-5
r Papering
4.8
o-S
2.0
....
7
Papering
• • • .
. . .
....
i.o
^Wear of Tools
....
....
....
2.0
24-3
4.708
1 The expense of turning the wheel appears to have arisen from the person so occupied being un¬
employed d\iring half his time, whilst the pointer went to another manufactory.
172 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Table II. Operations in Pm Manupacture in England about 1830
Name of the Process
Workmen '
Time of
Making
i Lb.
of Pins,
Hr.
Cost of
Making
i Lb.
of Pins,
Pence
Workman
Earns
Per Day
•
Price of
Making
Each Part
of a Single
Pin in
Millionths
of a Penny
s. d.
i
Drawing Wire
Man
0.3636
1.2500
3 3
225
2
Straightening the Wire..
f Girl
0.3000
0.1420
0 6
26
1 Woman
0.3000
0.284b
i 0
51
3
Pointing
Man
0.3000
I-77SO
5 3
319
4
Twisting and Cutting the
f Boy
0.0400
0.0147
0 4^
3
Heads
1 Man
0.0400
0.2103
S 4i
38
5
Heading
Woman
4.0000
5.0000
I 3
901
6
Tinning, or Whitening. .
f Man
o.i071
0.6666
6 0
121
1 Woman
0.1071
0.3333
3 0
60
7
Papering
Woman
2.1314
3-1973
i 6
576
7.6892
12.8732
2320
1 Number oí Persons Employed: Men, 4; Women, 4; Children, 2. Total, 10.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
173
Appendix No. II
66. Following is a complete list of papers published in the Trans¬
actions of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers dealing with
industrial management: —
No.
207
The Engineer as an Economist
Henry R. Towne..
1886
256
A Problem in Profit Sharing
Wm. Kent
1887
341
Gain Sharing
Henry R. Towne..
1889
449
The Premium Plan of Paying for Labor
F. A. Halsey
1891
596
The Relation of the Drawing Office to the
Shop in Manufacturing
A. W. Robinson...
1894
647
A Piece Rate System
Fred. W. Taylor...
1895
928
A Bonus System for Rewarding Labor
H. L. Gantt
1902
965
Gift Propositions for Paying Workmen
Frank Richards. ..
1903
1001
The Machine Shop Problem
Charles Day
1903
1002
A Graphical Daily Balance in Manufacture..
H. L. Gantt
1903
1003
Shop Management
Fred. W. Taylor...
1903
lOIO
Slide Rules for the Machine Shop as a Part of
the Taylor System of Management
Carl G. Barth. . . .
1904
lOII
Modifying Systems of Management
H. L. Gantt
1904
IOI2
Is Anything the Matter with Piece Work . .
Frank Richards.,.
1904
III5
A History of the Introduction of a System of
Shop Management
James M. Dodge..
1906
I22I
Training Workmen in Habits of Industry and
Cooperation
H. L. Gantt
1908
174
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Appendix No. Ill
67. Following is a list of the industries in which some form of labor-
saving management has been installed: —
Book binding
Building construction
Carriage and wagon bxxilding
Construction and repair of vessels
(navy yards)
Fire-arms and ordnance
Rifles
Gun carriages
Machinery building
Automobiles
Agricultural implements
Coal-handling machinery
Electrical machinery
Founding, iron and brass
General machine work
Gas engines
Locomotives
Machine tools
Molding machines
Pumps
Pneumatic tools
Sewing machines
Typewriters
Wood-working machinery
Metal and coal mining
Metal working
Bolts and nuts
Chains
Hardware
Tanks
Tin cans
Valves and pipe fittings
Miscellaneous manufacturing
Beer
Beet sugar
Boxes (wood and paper)
Buttons
Clothing
Cordage
Food products
Furniture
Flour
Glass
Lumber products
Pianos
Paper and paper pulp
Rubber goods
Soaps
Shoes
Slate products
Printing and lithographing
Railroad maintenance of motive power
Steel manufacture
Textile manufacture
Bleaching and dyeing
Cottons
Velvets
Woolens
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
175
Discussion
A. Hamilton Church. Turning to the majority report, we
find that the prime underlying principle of management engi¬
neering is the transference of skill. This is an illuminative
statement, and I venture to think, of great practical value.
It is put very tersely in the sentence in Paragraph 8, " the
skill in shoemaking is now in the mechanical equipment of
the shop." That is a clear-cut picture of a change that is
already complete, and it helps us to realize exactly what is
meant by the transference of skill. It also helps us to un¬
derstand why, in the engineering trades, there are such wide
discrepancies in the amount of work turned out by individual
operators. It is because, in these trades, the transference of
skill is by no means so complete. For one thing, the capacity
and range of the average machine tool is large, and to some extent
indefinite. A considerable amount of skill is still vested in the
worker. Still more, a remarkable amount of ignorance as to
what the machine will or will not do is shared by the employer
and the workman.
The report shows why this is bound to be so at the present
stage. In the process of transferring hand skill to the mechanical
fingers of the machine, the report emphasizes the fact that more
attention has been devoted to designing it than to the problem
of using it afterwards. It has been overlooked by the masters
of industry that most machine tools are not specific but general
machines, and that therefore a continuous study of the capacity
and use of the machine is necessary to give effect to the skill
stored up in it.
The more I think over this problem, the more I am convinced
that the true line of progress is the exhaustive study of machines,
their capacities and limitations. I have held this opinion for
many years, and the system of industrial accounting I have been
advocating for the past decade was, I believe, the first step made
towards bringing forward the machine to its true place as a factor
of production. But I must confess that until this principle of the
transference of skill was brought out so clearly by this report, I
176
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
did not realize exactly why the machine tool was frequently so
surprisingly ineffective under indifferent handling.
I will pass over the acceptance by the committee of the three
regulative principles of management, viz: {a) the systematic
use of experience, {h) the economical control of effort, and (c)
the promotion of personal effectiveness, which were worked out
by Mr. Alford and myself, except to say that the credit for the
formulation of these principles belongs in a larger degree to Mr.
Alford than to me, and I will conclude my remarks by calling
attention to a phrase used in Paragraph 51 of the report, viz:
" the habit stage."
All the mechanism of organization in the world is valueless
beside the steadiness of production that comes from the estab¬
lishment of good habit throughout a plant. I will go further,
and say that the whole object and end of organization should be
to create the right kind and degree of habit in every one of the
persons engaged in production, from the president down to the
shop sweeper.
It is not enough for the workman to be so instructed that he
forms good habit. Every living link in the chain of production
requires equally to be so trained that his acquired habit is har¬
monious with all the rest. The report has mentioned this aspect
of the question where it insists that the executives and not the
workman are the persons most important to be reached. Few
people understand that the principal work of an expert organizer
is not the designing of elaborate blanks and cards, but the foster¬
ing, with tireless patience, of correctly adjusted habit in each,
member of the staff .
As the new ideals of management engineering appear to me,
and this view seems confirmed by the committee's report, they
may be summed up in three sentences:
Take nothing for granted.
See that every effort is adapted to its purpose.
Cultivate habit.
These sentences are, of course, merely practical derivatives from
the three regulative principles referred to in the report. Each of
them in turn implies other things which will readily suggest
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
177
themselves. Thus, the possibility of cultivating correctly
adjusted habit depends obviously upon proper mental and physi¬
cal conditions for the living forces. It implies " lead " and not
" drive."
It is an interesting question where the new spirit that we find
abroad in industrial management has come from. To some
extent, I think, it is part of a larger movement, the realization
of a sense of social solidarity, of social responsibility of each for
all, that is so marked a feature of the times. But it also arises, in
part, from another cause. Scientific men tell us that the great
difference between a savage race "and a highly civilized one is that
the dormer remains in a condition of natural innocence, and the
latter has arrived at self-consciousness. This, I think, is the real
state of affairs in regard to management engineering. We are
passing from a stage at which there was a simple and unconscious
following of tradition, into a stage of self-consciousness in which
we are moved to subject our habits and our motives to severe
self-scrutiny, and examine afresh every item of our daily practice.
It is a very painful stage to have arrived at. Most of us are so
content with our comfortable natural innocence that we do not
like to part with it, but it is a process that, once commenced, must
continue.
The examination into new methods of remunerating labor, the
adoption, with caution, of searching instruments of analysis, such
as time study, the use of precise methods of accounting — these
are not causes, but consequences, of this newly awakened self-
consciousness. It is beginning to be recognized that production
is an aggregate of infinitesimal separate acts, in each of which
there are three main components. First, experience must be
drawn on; secondly, the resulting effort must be intelligently
adapted to the end in view; thirdly, this intelligent effort must
become habitual. And to secure the successful performance of
these acts, the living forces concerned must be maintained in the
pink of condition, both mental and physical.
C. B. Thompson. A fact not to be ignored is that labor,
organized and unorganized, has taken its stand, at least tempo¬
rarily, in opposition to the development of scientific management.
178
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
While many of the objections raised have been so unreasonable
as to be abandoned almost from the start, there are three criti¬
cisms made by working men which persist in spite of explanation:
In the first place, they seem to cherish an innate resentment
against time study — " putting the stop watch on them," as
they express it. It " makes them nervous," " makes them speed
up unduly while under inspection," " is simply another means of
slave driving," is used unfairly," " is un-American." They say
also that the method of minute planning in advance and of specific
instructions as to details, is destructive of the initiative which has
been the backbone of American industrial progress. Further,
they assert that the enhanced product due to these methods is not
fairly divided between the management and the men; that an
increase of 400 per cent in production, as in the classic case of
Schmidt, the pig-iron handler, has been accompanied by an in¬
crease of only 60 per cent in wages.
It is neither wise nor expedient to pass by these criticisms
without comment. That they are all unmerited may perhaps
be shown: for instance, it has been demonstrated that time study,
carried on by one who is trained in the subject (and whose train¬
ing is ethical as well as intellectual), is not unfair, nor is it used as
a new method of driving, nor is it in any sense un-American.
Time study has been carried on for decades in psychological
laboratories for purely scientific purposes and with instruments
even more refined than the despised stop watch, but no one sugr
gests that this use is open to criticism. When it is once clearly
understood that time study in an industrial establishment, made
under the proper conditions and by the proper persons, is aimed
at similar scientific results, and that these results are then to be
applied to work, subject to the mutual consent of employer and
men, based on a conviction of their reliability and essential justice,
these objections will disappear. But on the other hand, there is
no doubt that time study can be and has been abused, and the
working man has a right to be " shown."
Similarly in regard to the alleged destruction oî initiative.
Here the facts are clear. The machinist does not consider his
initiative restrained when he is asked to do his work in accords
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
179
anee with the drawings supplied him by the drafting department.
Systematic routing and planning of work and the development of
a science by which it shall be done are, as the committee points
out, analogous, for the production department, with the working
drawing. We all believe in liberty, but we recognize, or are
capable of being shown, that true liberty is liberty under law;
that the artist is not in the least trammelled in his genius because
he has been taught the laws under which he must use his ma¬
terials; nor is the citizen any the less free because he, in common
with all others, must conduct himself in accordance with the
law of the land.
The problem of just distribution of the increased product is not
capable of easy solution and demonstration, and much yet
remains to be done in this field. No one has yet solved the prob¬
lem of justice in distribution, and it does seem somewhat hyper¬
critical to allege against scientific management that it has not
done what any other movement or individual thus far has not
been able to do. Rather it should be given credit for having
pointed out the industrial necessity of justice in distribution, and
of having proposed steps in that direction. The solution of this
problem is not to be looked for from engineers. When an en¬
gineer wanders into the field of economics, he is apt to make about
the same diverting spectacle that the economist would who would
undertake to expound the principles of machine design. Prob¬
ably the wages question will be worked out in the future as it
has been in the past by neither the engineer nor the economist,
but by the daily struggle and adjustment known as the " higgling
of the market." In this struggle the rights of the working men
will have to be conserved and enforced by organization. Only
by pooling their strength can they meet the superior strategic
position of the employers.
The report of such a committee as this should not have over¬
looked the opportunity to begin or extend the campaign of edu¬
cation in these particulars. Something more than education is
necessary, however. Labor miions are a potent and active force
in present-day industry, and we should get their enthusiastic
cooperation. They are the culmination of decades or centuries
i8o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of development. In spite of their numerous mistakes and injus¬
tices they have, on the whole, justified their existence; and
whether you agree that they have or not, they are a condition
and not a theory that confronts us. It would seem to be the part
of wisdom, therefore, not to take the tack of ignoring or combat¬
ting the doubts and questionings and opposition of the labor
unions, but rather to persuade them of the advisability of ac¬
quainting themselves with the facts, of recognizing the inevita¬
bility of the march of labor-saving management, and to secure
their active cooperation in its development. A proposal at this
time to retain their positive help in the extension of scientific
management may seem Utopian, but it is warranted by certain
facts and precedents in the history of trade unions. They have
already established their right to determine the lighting, heating
and ventilating facilities of establishments in which their members
work. There are cases on record in which they have required
owners of old plants to scrap their obsolete machinery and install
new and modern devices, in order that the owners themselves
may make sufficient profit to pay adequate wages to their
employees. It is but one step, and a short one, in the extension
of this principle to say to the owner that he must modernize his
establishment in every detail, not because the working man is
interested in the owner's personal profits, but because only such
an establishment can pay the working man the wages which his
standard of living demands.
The objections of the working men are naturally grounded in
their personal experience and interest. The criticisms of the
" friends of labor," however, are in most cases disinterested;
though it must be said that in too many cases they are based
upon a faint acquaintance with the facts. So far as they are
disinterested, they must be recognized and met. It is sheer foUy
to adopt the attitude of the " hard-headed business man " and
display a lofty contempt for the increasing interest in the wel¬
fare of the working men, which has been developing into a power¬
ful force during the last century. " Hard-headed " is too often
a mere euphemism for hard-hearted. Intelligent humanitarian-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
l8l
ism is not only legitimate but is one evidence of upward progress,
and is neither to be ignored nor treated with contempt.
But business men have a right to ask the humanitarians that
they be intelligent and informed. It is the business of business
men to supply the information needed from the data which are
usually at their exclusive disposal. When, for instance, it is
alleged that scientific management is " dehumanizing," the
charge should be met with the actual histories of men who have
worked under this system. Many plants where it has been de¬
veloped can show, on the part of their employees, an increase
of leisure, of interest in their work, of knowledge and improve¬
ment in general character, and an enhancement of all-round wel¬
fare. Mr. Taylor, and especially Mr. Gantt, have not ignored
this side of the subject; but, in proportion to the mass of data
in their hands, their contributions have not been full enough.
This committee must have had an opportunity to look into this
side of the case; and it is to be regretted that they have not
improved it more fully.
In a remarkable book. Fatigue and Efficiency, by Josephine
Goldmark, published by the Russell Sage Foundation, a chapter
is devoted to The New Science of Management: Its Relation to
Human Energies. In this chapter are pointed out the advan¬
tages of the new methods from the point of view of the working
man. After enumerating the perversions to which scientific
management may possibly be put, the author says: " If the
unscrupulous use of scientific management were all that could be
charged against it, the system could defend itself easily enough.
. . . More serious is the contention that the efficiency engineers
themselves have failed to gauge fairly the tax of increased pro¬
ductivity upon the workers. . . . What we need as regards
both men and women (and the only answer which will allay the
suspicions aroused by scientific management) is more knowl¬
edge as to the ultimate physical adjustment of the workers to the
heightened intensity of their tasks." And lest this seem to have
too philanthropic ä sound, I hasten to add the word of a prom¬
inent manufacturer, William C. Redfield, of Brooklyn. He
i82
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
says: " Once for all, let it be said that no management is scien¬
tific or permanently profitable which either promotes or permits
human overstrain, or which taxes the future of women and child¬
ren." This reflects, I think accurately, the judgment of many
thinking people. The problem of the health of employees is one
which demands and must have adequate consideration. No one
who knows scientific management at first hand can deny that it
has been given such consideration by those who are entitled to
class themselves as scientific managers. Miss Edith Wyatt's
investigation of the subject with reference to women workers, the
results of which are described in Chapter 7 of the book by Clark
and Wyatt, Making Both Ends Meet, is conclusive on this
score (and incidentally is somewhat misrepresented in Miss
Goldmark's discussion). Numerous instances of the effect of
this work on the health of employees might have been collected
by the committee and should be given.
I know of a case of a girl who asked to be put on a task 50
per cent greater than what she had theretofore performed. At
the time she appeared to be in a sickly condition. The factory
nurse was consulted as to the advisability of allowing her to
undertake the task and gave her consent on the condition that
the girl be allowed to go back to her ordinary work if at the
end of a fair period it was evident that the task was too severe
for her. After the expiration of four weeks the nurse reported
(and it was already evident to the manager) that the girl was not
only doing the task easily but had greatly improved in health.
This, in the nurse's opinion, was due partly to the improved con¬
dition under which the girl worked, to the better method she had
been taught, to the higher wages she received and to her increased
contentment. This same girl shortly afterward asked for an
increase of 33^ per cent more in her task, but this was refused.
In this report the committee emphasize the " transference of
skill " as the basic feature of the new labor-saving management.
Unfortunately, however, it appears that this term is used with
two meanings. Throughout most of the report it seems to mean
the accumulation of skill by the planning department and its
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
183
transference from this department by actual instruction to the
workmen just as machinery is said to be the transference of skill,
according to the report, from the designer and draftsman to the
machine. The idea intended to be conveyed is undoubtedly
right, but the illustration chosen is unfortunate.
Transference of skill, when considered with reference to the
industrial revolution and the introduction of machinery, might
easily be interpreted to mean the transference of skill from the
workman to the machine. What actually happened was that
the machine brought to the aid of the workmen some of the vast
forces of nature; and in addition it superseded the skill of the
hand worker. That this was a distinct loss to the hand worker
who was unable to adjust himself to the new conditions is incon¬
testable in the face of economic history; and the sad record of
the change is a solemn warning to present day managers to take
every step possible to make the adjustment to new methods of
management as easy and gradual as possible. The machine
developed a new kind of skill on the part of the operator; but
now it is a minute skill easily acquired and subject to sudden loss
with the change in the design of the machine.
The old-fashioned, all-round workman has disappeared or is
rapidly disappearing; and though his replacement by the mod¬
ern, keen-eyed, high-strung, quick-moving specialist is not to be
altogether deplored, it has had certain serious consequences.
It has made the present day operator narrower in his knowledge
of industry and his skill less adaptable and elastic. It has also
rendered obsolete the old methods of apprenticeship, and the
present chaotic condition of this subject presents a striking illus¬
tration of the failure of managerial thought to bring about the
necessary readjustments.
It seems to me important that the committee's meaning on this
subject be made unmistakable. No one can reasonably and seri¬
ously object to the transference of skill to the workers by the
" systematic development of a science " and " systematic train¬
ing."
H. L. Gantt. The difficulty of making a satisfactory report
on the present state of the art of industrial management can be
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
thoroughly understood only by those engaged in the installatiori
of the new methods. The committee have caught fully the pres¬
ent spirit of the movement now in progress, and Paragraphs 45 to
58 of their report seem to me to be an excellent résumé of the
subject.
In Paragraph 21, however, we find the following statement:
" Another tendency, less pronounced in character, has as its
object the improvement of the personal relations between
employee and employee, and between employee and employer."
This tendency which is described as being less pronounced, I
believe to be the most important part of the whole subject, for
until proper relations are established between employer and
employee, no system of management or training can be perma¬
nently successful.
When the methods described by the committee were first pre¬
sented, many people thought that they were simply new schemes
for exploiting the employee for the benefit of the employer. How¬
ever false this impression may have been, it was undoubtedly
widespread, and formed a serious obstacle to their introduction.
How deeply rooted this idea was in the public mind can best be
appreciated by reading the discussions of my paper on "The
Training of Workmen." ^
Since that time the prominent writers on the subject of man¬
agement have emphasized the necessity of establishing proper
relations between employer and employee, realizing that no
scheme that does not recognize this as an integral part can be
permanent. Unfortunately this has not yet been acknowledged
by everybody to be a fact. Many people value these methods-
only as new ways of controlling workmen for their exclusive
benefit, and become interested in them only in times of trouble.
Financiers seem particularly prone to take this view.
To illustrate this point, about a year ago I was consulted by
a large corporation, which, however, took no further steps.
Recently the same corporation was much interested in the sub¬
ject of management, and I found that its employees were on the
verge of a strike. The strike, however, did not come off, and the-
* Trans. Am. Soc. M. E., vol. 30, p. 1053.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
interest of the management apparently died out when the dan¬
ger disappeared.
While the idea of exploiting workmen for some one's benefit is
obnoxious to most people engaged directly in industrial pursuits,
this is not the case with those farther removed from the workmen.
If I am to judge from the letters I received after the hearing
before the Interstate Commerce Commission in Washington in
November, 1910, many people thought they saw in this move¬
ment a chance to get something for nothing. So strongly was
I impressed with the extent of this attitude that I felt impelled
to condemn it most strongly in my address at Dartmouth a year
ago. When I was leaving the hall after that address, a benevo¬
lent looking old gentleman came up and said: " Of course you
will modify that before it is published ? " and I did, but not just
as he meant.
I regret that the committee did not include in their bibliog¬
raphy of this subject, books and papers published elsewhere than
in the annals of the Society, for some of the very best work on
this subject has been done in the last three years, during which
time the Society has nothing to show. I wish to call especial
attention to the work of Major Hine on Modern Organization
and to that of Hon. William C. Redfield on The New Industrial
Day. Both of those books, just published, will well repay care¬
ful study, as they are in accord with the democratic as opposed
to the autocratic spirit in industry.
With regard to the minority report, a careful reading seems
to indicate that the writer of it is practically in accord with the
majority, except that he wishes to take a shot at the statement
made before the Interstate Commerce Commission that the rail¬
roads were losing one million dollars per day. I must confess
that when this statement was made it seemed to me rather extrav¬
agant, but a careful study of conditions for the past two years
has convinced me that the statement was conservative rather
than otherwise if all preventable losses are included.
The writer of the minority report is connected with what I
believe to be one of the most progressive and best managed rail¬
roads on this continent. I did a little work for him a few years
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ago, first, having in conjunction with Messrs. Dodge and Day of
Philadelphia, made a report on the conditions in his shops. Our
report expressed the opinion that his method of operating these
shops was at least as good as that of the best railroad shops we
knew anything about, and we visited several representative
shops in this connection.
The real inefi&ciencies with which I came in contact on this
road, however, were not in the shops. They lay in antique time¬
keeping, record-keeping, cost-keeping, and purchasing systems,
which were run, not for the benefit of the maintenance and oper¬
ating departments, but apparently to hamper these departments
to the greatest possible extent. Inasmuch as most roads handle
these functions in substantially the same manner, I believe that
the inefficiencies of railroad operation, due to the lack of appre¬
ciation by the financial end of the needs of the operating end,
are far greater than those over which the operating end has
absolute control.
Railroads are built nominally to earn money for their stock¬
holders by the sale of transportation. If this were the only way
they could be used to get money, all activities connected with a
railroad would be so run as to assist in the economical production
of transportation, just as all the activities of a well run foundry
are harmonized for the production of castings at low cost.
As a matter of fact, the financial end, including the purchas¬
ing, store-keeping, time, cost, and record keeping, does not as a
rule consider economical operation as any of its affair, but puts
this responsibility entirely up to the operating force. The best
railroad managers of today, however, see that real economical
operation cannot be had unless all functions contribute to that
end, just as they do in the best managed factories.
Unfortunately this is a view that the average financier finds
difficulty in accepting, especially if he has always been a finan¬
cier. A proper comprehension of this subject, however, is the
best way to head off the growing sentiment for the government
ownership of railroads.
Turning again to Paragraph 21, concerning the relations
between employer and employee, any scheme for the training of
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 187
Workmen, or promoting the transference of skill, if that term is
preferred, to be ultimately successful must carry with it a guaran¬
tee on the part of the management that the employee shall receive
his share of the product of his increased efficiency or skill. In¬
creasing the efficiency of a workman thus differs radically from
increasing that of a machine, which claims no share of the results.
If, however, the attempt to increase the efficiency of the work¬
man is made in such a manner as to lead both employer and
employee to feel that he is getting what he should from their
mutual efforts, the promotion of efficiency is sure to follow, and
we have a working basis on which to attempt the solution of
some of our industrial problems. As long, however, as such
prominent men as Mr. Parry and Mr. Kirby of the National
Association of Manufacturers continue to use such language as
they have in the past in speaking of workmen, just so long will the
workmen continue to use brute force in dealing with employers,
and a satisfactory solution of the labor problem be delayed.
The implication in the report of the committee that the devel¬
opment of methods and the training of workmen are functions
of the management has to my mind not been sufficiently empha¬
sized. The piece work system as usually operated, and most of
the premium and bonus systems in general use do not recognize
training as a function of management, and may be classed as
individual effort systems. They have undoubtedly accomplished
some results in the past, but we have now reached the stage in
our complicated industries where more than individual effort is
required. Individual effort may be so hampered by environment
as to make progress impossible, and to cause the workman to
become so discouraged as to give up whatever effort he may be
making. On the other hand, if the management determines that
a certain degree of efficiency is attainable, accepts the responsi¬
bility of training workmen up to the point necessary to obtain
that efficiency, and provides means for obtaining it, we have an
entirely different condition.
This view of the subject is so opposed to that held by most
managers, superintendents and foremen that it is with great
difficulty that we can get them to accept it, and the time needed
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
to bring them around to this viewpoint is far greater than most
realize. There are many reasons for this, and the fact that a
man does not instantly accept a new proposition, which is to
his mind revolutionary, should not for one minute be held up
against him, for a strong man who has been successful in follow¬
ing one line of action, justly regards an entirely different line as
being inferior to one which has brought him his success.
John G. Aldrich. I believe that the report of this Committee
is right. Scientific or labor-saving management is scientific
measurement and every one will agree that this is desirable. The
importance has been pointed out in this report of the study of
production by scientific methods and of setting up standards.
It is impossible to make up standards without first making a
careful study of the correct motions and of the times required to
make them.
The New England Butt Company, of which I am manager,
is doing some work along this line to which I would like to call
attention. This company builds largely machinery for making
braids, such as trimmings for ladies' dresses, shoe strings, cover¬
ings for insulated wires, etc. The machines are made up mostly
of small light castings which are machined but little, but which
must be well made so that the parts will fit together without
filing or other hand work.
Within the last few years with the help of various experts we
have continually made improvements in our manufacturing
departments. Time study was made of different operations and
of different methods and proper times were set on those methods
upon which to base the various systems of payments for work
performed. We are now using a method of time and motion
study which has not been used before, and which not only gives
more accurate results than have been heretofore possible, but also
enables us to discover methods that are much more economical.
This method consists of taking motion pictures of the various
operations with a special moving picture camera, and photo¬
graphing in each picture a clock of special design showing minute
divisions of time. The hand of this clock revolves once in six
seconds so that the divisions represent thousandths of a minute
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
189
and are easily read to half thousandths. The continuous motion
picture film furnishes permanent record of times and motions.
To develop improved methods this film is afterwards studied
with a magnifying glass and it is not necessary to project the
pictures on a screen.
Before taking these pictures considerable study was given
toward eliminating waste motions and otherwise improving the
conditions under which the work was done. In assembling
machines, instead of picking up the pieces to be assembled from
various boxes, packets were arranged with the parts placed in
convenient positions, and also placed in the proper sequence, so
that no mental process was required of the workman to determine
or select the parts to come next.
Since using this method, which we have designated micro¬
motion study, previous times have been reduced over two-thirds.
Its records have suggested to us methods that now permit in one
case doing work in 8^ minutes that before using micro-motion
study took 37Í minutes.
Paragraph 6 of the report calls attention to a most important
principle, " the transference of skill." Micro-motion study fur¬
nishes a means for the transference of skill from man to machine.
More important than this it furnishes a means for the transference
of experience from a man who has had it to one who has never had
it. We have used micro-motion study for determining the cor¬
rect times of the best motions in many different kinds of work.
It is the least expensive as well as the only accurate method of
recording motion and time study data.
Micro-motion study enables us
{a) To capture the experience of the most skilled workman
and record it for the benefit of all.
(5) To determine the motions of least waste.
{c) To teach the best known methods only.
(d) To analyze, measure and compare new data so that im¬
proved methods may be constantly standardized as fast
as discovered.
I believe that the time will soon come when we will have a
national bureau of standards of best methods, and micro-motion
IÇO SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
study will provide a means that the government can use for col¬
lecting and recording the best practice of the workmen in our
industries.
Fred. W. Taylor. The preparation of this report has evi¬
dently involved careful research, followed by a close analysis
of the materials gathered in. The viewpoint from which the
whole subject is examined is new and original. Most writers
upon this subject have emphasized the necessity of reducing to
a science the knowledge which in the past has been in the heads
of the workmen. The change from rule-of-thumb to scientific
knowledge has been largely dwelt upon, and its importance
pointed out. The thought of the committee, however, centers
mainly about transferring this knowledge to the workman after
it has been acquired by the management; and from this view¬
point scientific management is very properly summarized as " the
mental attitude that consciously applies the transference of skill
to all of the activities of the industry."
The Committee very properly calls attention to the signifi¬
cance of the change in the mental attitude of both sides which
takes place under scientific management. This would seem to
be the most vital element in scientific management. It was,
indeed, looked upon as of such importance that, during the
hearings before the House Committee " to Investigate the Taylor
and other systems of management," man after man came from
the shops which are being run under scientific management, to
testify that the very essence of this system lies in the great
mental change which comes both to the management and to the
workmen. In fact, with but few exceptions, these men testified
that without this complete mental revolution, scientific manage¬
ment could not exist.
This mental change is great and far-reaching. It means essen¬
tially a change from suspicious watchfulness and antagonism and
frequently open enmity, between the two sides, to that of friend¬
ship, hearty good-will and cooperation. It means a change from
the old belief that the interests of employer and employee are in
many respects necessarily antagonistic, to the firm conviction
that the true interests of the two are mutual.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
191
This feature of scientific management is of such importance
that it seems desirable to make one of the causes for the change
in mental attitude a little more clear. The following illustration
may help to do this:
Into the manufacture of any article there enter two items of
expense, the cost of the materials of which it is composed, and
the cost of what are commonly called " overhead expenses " or
general expenses, such as the proper share of power, light, heat,
salaries of officers, etc.
Now, if these two items of expense, cost of materials and gen¬
eral expense, be added together and their sum subtracted from
the selling price of the article, we have what is called the " sur¬
plus." And it is over the division of this surplus between the
company and the men that most of the labor troubles and dis¬
putes have come in the past. The men want as large a part of
this surplus as possible in the form of wages, and the company
as large a share as possible in the form of profits. And in the
division of the surplus, under the older systems of management,
both sides have come in many cases to look upon their interests
as truly antagonistic.
A part of the great mental revolution that occurs under scien¬
tific management is the complete change in viewpoint of both
sides as to this surplus; from looking upon the division of the
surplus as the important question, they both come to realize that
if, instead of pulling apart and quarreling over it, they join
together and both push hard in the same direction, they can
make this surplus so large that there is no need to quarrel over
its division, because each side can get a far larger sum than they
had ever hoped to get in the past. And each side realizes that
this result would have been entirely impossible without the
hearty cooperation of the other. The workmen see clearly that
without the constant help and guidance of those on the manage¬
ment side, they could not possibly earn their extra high wages,
and the management see that without the true friendship of the
workmen their efforts would be futile, and they are glad to have
their workmen earn much higher wages than they can get else¬
where.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The introduction of scientific management is, so far as I know,
the first large movement in industrial history in which a great
increase in the output of the workmen has been at once accom¬
panied by a large increase in the earnings of the workmen. The
great increase in output resulting from the introduction of labor-
saving machinery was not at once accompanied by much if any
increase in the wages of operatives, and in many instances the
introduction of labor-saving machinery resulted in paying lower
wages to the operatives of these machines than had been received
by similar hand workers before the introduction of machinery.
The main profit was absorbed at first in almost all cases by the
manufacturers, who introduced the new labor-saving machinery.
In the end, of course, the operatives, along with all the rest of
the world, have profited immensely through the introduction
of labor-saving machinery.
One of the most notable features of scientific management,
however, is that the group of men who have introduced it have
insisted that the workmen coming under its principles should at
once be paid from 30 per cent to 100 per cent higher wages than
they could get elsewhere. This fact is not appreciated by the
general public, and largely because the labor leaders, consistent
in their fight against the introduction of any labor-saving device,
have seen fit to misrepresent far and wide almost all of the good
features of this system; and in doing this they have strenuously
denied that the workmen coming under scientific management
are paid higher wages than heretofore. Quotations such as the
following, taken from the famous circular distributed by Presi¬
dent O'Connell throughout the Machinists' Union, are typical of
this misrepresentation by labor leaders:
Wherever this system has been tried it has resulted either in labor trouble
and failure to install the system, or it has destroyed the labor organization
and reduced the men to virtual slavery and low wages, and has engendered
such an air of suspicion among the men that each man regards every other
man as a possible traitor and spy.
The installation of the Taylor system throughout the country means one of
two things — i, e., either the machinists will succeed in destroying the use¬
fulness of this system through resistance, or it wiU mean the wiping out of
our trade and organization ivith thè accompanying'low wages, life-destroy¬
ing hard work, long hours, and intolerable conditions generally.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
193
Iii answer to this statement of Ö'Connell's, however, in the
sworn testimony given before the House Committee to investi¬
gate the Taylor and other Systems of Management there was
presented a schedule of the present wages in comparison with
the past wages of all of the workmen who had been more than
12 months in the employ of a company which was using scientific
management. This statement showed that the workmen were
then receiving on an average 73 per cent higher wages than when
they first came under scientific management. The list of em¬
ployees included all kinds, even the colored men who helped
move the materials around the floor of the shop, and the sweep¬
ers, etc.
The testimony also showed that the company, after pa3dng
this 73 per cent increase in wages, found itself better off than it
was under the older type of management. That fewer workmen
were turning out three times the output formerly obtained and
that the selling price of machines manufactured had been reduced
25 per cent.
It is object lessons of this sort which are rapidly convincing
those who investigate scientific management that the interests
of both sides are mutual instead of antagonistic.
The historical portion of the report shows careful study, and
is evidently the result of much research. In certain particulars,
however, it is somewhat misleading; that portion of it, at least,
which includes the quotations from Adam Smith, etc., and par¬
ticularly Tables i and 2, given in the Appendix.
Although the fact is not specifically stated, still the general
impression from reading this part of the report is that " time
study," which is the foundation for " the transference of skill
from the management to the men," was practically carried on
in 1760 and in 1830, as it is now under scientific management.
This is, however, far from the truth, and in the interest of his¬
torical accuracy it may be desirable to make a statement as to the
beginning of " time study," although I realize that questions as
to who started time study, and when it was started, are of very
little consequence, the important questions being, what is time
study ? and, how shall we make it more useful ?
194
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Time study was begun in the machine shop of the Midvale
Steel Company in 1881, and was used during the next two years
sufficiently to prove its success. In 1883, Mr. Emlen Hare Miller
was employed to devote his whole time to " time study," and he
worked steadily at this job for two years, using blanks similar to
that shown in Paragraph 367 of " Shop Management." ^ He
was the first man to make " time study " his profession.
It is true that the form of Tables i and 2, given in the Appen¬
dix to the Committee's report, is similar to that of the blanks
recording time study, but here the resemblance ceases. Each
line in Table 2, for instance, gives statistics regarding the aver¬
age of the entire work of an operative who works day in and day
out, in running a machine engaged in the manufacture of pins.
This table involves no study whatever of the movements of a
man, nor of the time in which his movements should have been
made. Mere statistics as to the time which a man takes to do a
given piece of work do not constitute " time study." " Time
study," as its name implies, involves a careful study of the time
in which work ought to be done. In but very few cases is it the
time in which the work actually was done.
Previous to the development of " time study " in the Midvale
Steel Works, there have in all probability been many instances
in which men have carefully studied and analyzed the move¬
ments of other men, and have timed them with watches. (No
such instances have, however, come to my personal attention.)
Any such former work was without doubt confined to isolated
cases, and was of short duration; and (most important from the
historical point of view) it did not lead to the development of
a new trade, or, more properly, to a new scientific occupation,.
" the profession of time study."
Any former efforts of this kind would bear the same general
relation to the time study done in the Midvale Steel Works that
the many early attempts at flying bear to the work of the Wright
brothers.
The Wright brothers started " man flying."
* F. W. Taylor, Trans. Amer. Soc. M. E., vol. 24, p. 1436.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
195
The Midvale Steel Works started the " profession of time
study."
(I do not of course intimate that the two developments are
of equal importance.)
Time study is the one element in scientific management beyond
all others making possible the " transfer of skill from manage¬
ment to men." The nature of time study, however, is but imper¬
fectly understood and it is therefore important to define it clearly.
" Time study " consists of two broad divisions, first, analytical
work, and second, constructive work.
The analytical work of time study is as follows:
{a) Divide the work of a man performing any job into simple
elementary movements.
(Ô) Pick out all useless movements and discard them.
(c) Study, one after another, just how each of several skilled
workmen makes each elementary movement, and with
the aid of a stop-watch select the quickest and best
method of making each elementary movement known in
the trade.
(d) Describe, record and index each elementary movement,
with its proper time, so that it can be quickly found.^
{e) Study and record the percentage which must be added
to the actual working time of a good workman to cover
unavoidable delays, interruptions, and minor accidents,
etc.
(J) Study and record the percentage which must be added
to cover the newness of a good workman to a job, the first
few times that he does it. (This percentage is quite
large on jobs made up of a large number of different
elements composing a long sequence infrequently repeated.
This factor grows smaller, however, as the work consists
of a smaller nmnber of different elements in a sequence
that is more frequently repeated.)
* Recording these movements so that they can be readily found is the most
difficult element of time study. The writer threw away his first two years of time
study because it was so poorly indexed that he was unable to find the elements
when he needed them.
196
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
(g) Study and record the percentage of time that must be
allowed for rest, and the intervals at which the rëst must
be taken, in order to offset physical fatigue.
The constructive work of time study is as follows:
(h) Add together into various groups such combinations of
elementary movements as are frequently used in the
same sequence in the trade, and record and index these
groups so that they can be readily found.
(i) From these several records, it is comparatively easy to
select the proper series of motions which should be used
by a workman in making any particular article, and by
summing the times of these movements, and adding
proper percentage allowances, to find the proper time for
doing almost any class of work.
(k) The analysis of a piece of work into its elements almost
always reveals the fact that many of the conditions sur¬
rounding and accompanying the work are defective; for
instance, that improper tools are used, that the machines
used in connection with it need perfecting, that the sani¬
tary conditions are bad, etc. And knowledge so obtained
leads frequently to constructive work of a high order, to
the standardization of tools and conditions, to the inven¬
tion of superior methods and machines.
It is unusual to make a study such as this of the elementary
movements of the workmen in a trade. The instances in which
this has been done are still rare: ^ And it would seem that this
must be due to a lack of appreciation of the great power which
is given to the man who possesses a knowledge of the time value
of these elements, and also to a lack of appreciation of the large
variety of work to which these elements apply. How many men,
for instance, know that a man who has received his education in
" time study " through analyzing the elements of the move¬
ments of machinists engaged in manufacturing conveying and
1 Most of the men who have made what they call " time study " have been
contented with getting the gross time of a whole cycle of operations necessary
to do a particular piece of work, and at best they have thrown out the time when
the workman was idle, or evidently purposely going slowly.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT I97
hoisting machinery, can go with this knowledge into another
establishment manufacturing machinery not in the most remote
degree resembling hoisting machinery, and there use this knowl¬
edge to fix accurate daily tasks for the machinists ? Yet during
the past year and more, a young man trained in time study in
the Link-Belt Works in Philadelphia, has been setting the daily
tasks in one of our arsenals manufacturing a large variety of war
materials, including the great disappearing gun carriages used
in our coast defence.
Surely, when the significance of such a fact as this is appre¬
ciated, companies employing machinists, even though they may
be manufacturing radically different kinds of work, will join
together in studying the rudimentary elements of the machin¬
ists' trade and then in pubhshing this knowledge so that it may
be available for hundreds of companies, where now it is the
private property of the few concerns who have had the patience
and the courage to be pioneers in this field. It is the lack of
pubhshed data regarding the time required to perform each one
of the elementary operations in our various trades (more than
any other element) that makes the introduction of scientific
management such a slow process.
If we accept the committee's definition of the new management
as the " transference of skill from the management to the men,"
it is evident that the management cannot transfer knowledge
and skill until they themselves possess this knowledge, and up
to this time each new company introducing scientific manage¬
ment has been obliged to obtain this rudimentary knowledge
through its own analysis and study, a very slow and tedious
process.
Seventeen years ago, I predicted, in a paper read before this
Society,^ that books would be published similar to our engineer¬
ing handbooks, embodying a time study of all of the elementary
operations occurring in our various trades; and was then greatly
laughed and sneered at for making this statement. Only one
such book has as yet appeared, but I wish to repeat my prophecy
with more emphasis even than before — that hundreds of books
^ "a Piece Rate System," Trans. Am. Soc. M. E., vol, 17, p. 856.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of this sort will be published in the future, and in the not far dis¬
tant future. These books will make possible " the transference
of knowledge and skill from the management to the workman "
on a large scale throughout the country, and the introduction of
scientific management will then indeed proceed at a rapid pace.
Henry P. Kendall outlined the experiments which have been
worked out by the company with which he is connected, in the
purchasing of labor, and spoke of the work of the employment
man as a particular function in scientific management.
In this establishment this man engages the employees and tries
to apply to them whatever physiological test he can to determine
the kind of work each is best fitted for, or whether any particu¬
lar one is fitted for the position for which he applies.
In employing women and girls, all are hired subject to the
approval of the factory nurse, and if there is any question as to
the health of men applicants, they are likewise passed upon.
So far as any person can judge, employees are given the kind
of work for which they are best fitted.
The employment man's responsibility does not cease when he
has hired the man. He has to follow his record in his work, and
adopting a suggestion that came from James M. Dodge, cards
are used to preserve the record of each employee. Four times a
year information on each employee is added to these cards, as to
how he is performing his work, his aptitude for it, his skill and
earning power, and general deportment. He keeps in touch
with each foreman or gang boss, and gets a signed report on each
employee for these card entries.
The hiring and discharging and matters of discipline of the fac¬
tory are all concentrated in the employment man, which prevents
the injustice that comes from a gang boss or foreman discharging
a man in a moment of anger and saying that he is no good.
Should he say that a man was no good, and recommend his dis¬
charge, a written report from several quarters might contradict
the statement, if it were unjustly made.
The training of young workers is especially important. There
is nothing so discouraging to a boy as to be set to work at the
end of school by an average foreman and forgotten. He may be
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
199
in the wrong place and not fitted for that kind of work. He has,
in the employment man, one to whom he can go for advice in
regard to his present employment, for suggestions in regard to
outside education or instruction, one who is in sympathy with
him, and with whom he can rest his grievances and feel secure
that he will not get in wrong with the boss.
The foremen at first thought they would lose their authority
when they could no longer hire and discharge, but now they feel
that it rather helps their authority to have the employment man
to send to in cases of discipline. When a man is discharged by
a foreman, although perhaps for cause, this may be done in an
angry manner, and he may leave defiant, and with a determina¬
tion to " get even." If instead, he is called to the office of the
employment man and an explanation is given him as to why his
services have not been satisfactory, and he is made to see that
he is at fault, and if this is done in a quiet frank way, he leaves
with an entirely different feeling. Under this present scheme,
the employee is given an opportunity to register just complaints
against a foreman, if he has any.
The purchase of machines and equipment has been strongly
emphasized. The purchase of labor is more important, but is
given less attention. Then, too, the main functions of scientific
management can be used only in combination with other func¬
tions. This function can be adopted in any concern with equal
advantage.
H. K. Hathaway wrote that the essence of this report lay in
the phrase (Paragraph 29), " The mental attitude that con¬
sciously applies the transference of skill to all the activities of
industry," further qualified by the statement, " the novelty of
the new management lies in this transference of skill from the
management to the workman."
This viewpoint is so novel that one is led to question whether
the older descriptions of the essence of scientific management
may not have been wrong. The committee, however, are merely
la5dng emphasis upon one of the elements which has heretofore
been looked upon as rather of secondary importance.
200
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Before skill can be transferred, the management must gather
in and record the knowledge and skill which were formerly
widely diffused in the possession of a great number of workmen,
and much of which was an almost unconscious inheritance.
Gathering in and systematizing this knowledge ready for use,
constitutes the development of a science to replace the old rule-
of-thumb knowledge : this is what has been called by other writers
the first of the four principles of scientific management, and this
point the committee recognizes in Paragraph 47.
The writer's experience leads him to feel that the committee
has not given suf&cient prominence to the element of acquisition
of skill or " the development of a science " as it has been termed.
Such development goes farther than the acquisition of existing
skill and results in additions thereto as well as improvement in
methods and machinery, and the establishment and maintenance
of standards.
It is impossible to transfer skill from the management to the
workman first without choosing carefully the workman who is
fit to do a particular kind of work, and then training him until
he acquires skill: the second of the principles of scientific man¬
agement. It is not only a transference of skill, but in one sense
the creation of skill as well; perhaps a better expression would
be the development of latent skill.
The third principle of scientific management has been called
" bringing the science and the scientifically selected and trained
workman together," which is merely another name for the com¬
mittee's statement, " the mental attitude that consciously applies
the transference of skill to all the activities of industry."
The fourth principle of scientific management has been defined
as "an almost equal division of the work and responsibility
between the management and the workmen. The management
takes over all work for which they are better fitted than the work¬
man, while in the past almost all of the work and the greater
part of the responsibility were thrown upon the men." This
principle also follows directly the moment the management
accept as their duty the first, second and third principles of scien¬
tific management. The burden of developing a science where
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
20I
only rule-of-thumb knowledge existed in the past, and the burden
of training, teaching and transferring skill from the management
to each workman in the place, of necessity calls for an almost
equal division of the work between the two sides. So that in the
one definition of the new science by the committee are implied
all of the four principles of scientific management.
It might be proper to point out, in order to avoid misunder^
standing, that specialization of workmen on one comparatively
simple operation is not necessarily in accord with the best and
most economic practice in management. It is a serious mistake
and a disadvantage to have operators " unskilled except in a
single readily mastered operation " as in the instance cited in
Paragraph 8 of the committee's report. The writer's experience
has been that it is not only generally desirable, but in many cases
necessary to economy in manufacture, that each operative
become skilled in at least two and generally more of the opera¬
tions making up a process of manufacture. This is an objection
to over-specialization purely from the standpoint of production.
Sanford E. Thompson. Criticism is frequently made of the
amount of mechanism required to handle the work of modem
management, the number of clerks needed, and the consequent
increase in overhead charges, and to a visitor this increase in
office is indeed more noticeable than the decrease in number of
workmen or the increase in production.
If it were possible in a given establishment simply to make
a few time studies and set scientifically accurate rates or tasks
so as to obtain maximum production, no objection would be
raised to the installation of scientific management, although it
is obvious that if such a plan could be arranged, it would have
long ago been adopted without resort to laborious study. Yet
the criticism is heard so frequently from men of intelligence that
it is worth careful consideration.
If we refer to the list of papers selected from the Transac¬
tions, and given in the Appendix to the report, it will be seen
that those presented earliest discussed methods of setting rates
for paying men. Following a short general paper by Mr. Towne
in i886, there are two papers on profit sharing, the least intri^
202
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
cate form of incentive to the workmen; then from 1890 to 1903,
the question of payment is discussed more in detail, the premium
plan, piece rate and bonus systems; then come subjects relating
more specifically to the more general problem, the management
of the plant. It is evident from these papers that this sequence
is not chance, but represents a development, not of theory but of
absolute necessity in shop management.
A man who has made studies of workmen and introduced piece
rates or tasks on accurate detail time study instead of by the
usual " fix and cut " methods, finds that the very requirements
of accuracy lead necessarily to standardization of methods.
It is necessary to plan out the work of each man, to instruct him
in the method so that he may use the least material and accom¬
plish his work in the smallest practicable time, and to install a
system of cards and records specially adapted for keeping track
of the materials and the time of the men.
The development of what Mr. Taylor terms the mechanism
of scientific management is thus seen. This development indi¬
cates that the broad general principles of planning, routing,
instruction, scientific analysis, time study and standardization
do not represent a mere system for which some other system may
be substituted with equally good results, but a plan which is
of broad application in management. These things appear to be
fundamentally necessary for any organization which proposes
to set rates and tasks which will give the men payments based
strictly on the actual work which they accomplish, and which
will enable them to do the work with the minimum waste of
material.
The practical necessity for the introduction of these individual
features is very plain to any one who makes a scientific study of
any operation for the purpose of setting tasks.
These statements may be illustrated by one or two examples
from actual practice :
Take the trimming of large sheets of paper to make ready
for the press. The machine consists simply of a bed plate about
5 ft. sq. at a convenient level above the floor and an adjustable
knife running across this bed plate and operated by power. The
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
203
operator takes the paper, places it on the bed plate, makes the
cuts and transfers the paper back to a truck: a very simple
operation, lifting paper, cutting, lifting off.
When the work is studied with a view to putting it on the
task basis, the following facts are discovered: the cutter is
capable of going through a thickness of about 5^ ins. of paper.
The size of the paper on the particular machine referred to is
large, running up to 40 in. by 60 in. On account of the weight,
therefore, the operator has to put it on in several lifts. Since
the lift off is easier he is able to take it off in a fewer number of
lifts. The number of lifts in both cases is not directly propor¬
tional to the weight. It is dependent also on the size, the stiff¬
ness, the thickness and the surface finish of the individual sheets
of paper. It is readily to be seen, if a man takes six Hfts where
he should take four, as he naturally will do if he wishes to shirk,
the time of lifting and therefore the cost of this part of the work
will be 50 per cent too great. It is necessary, therefore, before
establishing a task to standardize the plan of furnishing the
paper. The paper was always counted, but instead of the usual
plan of counting by hundreds, it is now arranged to divide the
piles by slips of paper into individual lifts which a man shoxild
take.
For determination of the amount of lift and the other vari¬
ables, special studies were required. These studies took rather
more time and skill than the actual setting of the tasks when
this preliminary work was accomplished. After the tasks were
finally set and put into operation, it was necessary to throw out
of commission the other cutter, which had been working on part
time, and the only difficulty experienced was in finding work
enough for this one cutter to do. As a result, the cost of the
work was reduced 30 per cent with, at the same time, an increase
of 40 per cent in the pay of the workman.
This is by no means an exceptional case. It is always neces¬
sary first to standardize the machine and the methods. It is
this as much as anything else that differentiates scientific from
rule-of-thumb methods. Usually the direct results of standard¬
ization produced even a greater saving than the actual task and
bonus.
204
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Another illustration may be taken from a shoe shop. In the
cutting of leather, or in cutting linings from cloth, it is a simple
matter to make time studies and determine the time required
by the men to pick up the die and make the individual cuts.
Piece rates may be easily set, based on the output of each cutter.
Suppose, then, that this is done and such rates are set. The men
immediately begin to " speed up," but in doing this without any
restraint they naturally use more material than is necessary.
Now, in the case that the writer has in mind, the raw material
used in a certain shop during a week averaged $50,000 in value.
The labor cost of cutting this material averaged $280. A 10
per cent reduction in the labor cost amounted to $28, while a
I per cent reduction in material cost amounted to $50. Instead
of gaining money by the setting of rates, the plant would actually
lose money, because the men would waste more material. It was
necessary, therefore, at the start, before setting any rates to
attack the quantity side of the problem, investigate the best plan
for layout of dies on the machine and establish some method
for fixing the amount of material used by each man. This
involved eventually a definite planning of each man's work, so as
to show him how to use the minimum amount of material; a
routing system, as an absolute requirement, which would prop¬
erly deliver the materials to him and take away his product; and
a system of instruction and time cards, so as to handle the work
in the smoothest manner possible.
It may be claimed that these are special instances which do
not often occur, but experience shows them to be very simple
cases. Wherever a machine or an operation on construction work
is studied thoroughly in order to eliminate unnecessary opera¬
tions and the waste of materials so far as possible, similar meth¬
ods must be gone through and a more or less compHcated system
adopted for the proper handling of the work. Only by such
thorough study and investigation can the operation be reduced
to a routine which will be essentially automatic.
MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES AND THE CONSULTING
ENGINEER
By CHARLES DAY
Reprinted by permission of the Engineering Magazine
Recently much attention has been directed to certain prin¬
ciples of management heretofore recognized by only a compara¬
tively few as forming a distinct type of administration, wherein,
to the greatest possible extent, scientifically ascertained fact
replaces conclusions arising through inaccurate methods of
deduction, and a liberal utilitarianism is the basis of all dealings
with the workers.
Various papers presented before the American Society of
Mechanical Engineers by F. W. Taylor, H. L. Gantt and others
have kept engineers generally informed as to certain phases of
this type of management, but the hearing before the Interstate
Commerce Commission gave the country at large the opportu¬
nity for enlightenment through Louis D. Brandeis' able presenta¬
tion of the subject, as well as the testimony of a number of those
most capable of testifying to the efficacy of these principles.
The word " management " is capable of very broad interpreta¬
tion, and the term " Scientific Management," which has been
used so much of late, also covers a greater range in the application
to which it has been put than appears to be generally recognized.
Possibly it is on this account that I have been prompted to call
attention to what I believe to be an intimate relationship between
management work in the sense we are considering it and the
diversified service performed by consulting engineers. The
term " management " might not ordinarily be considered as
appropriate to a kind of work that is closely allied to the service
defined in the accepted sense by the word " Engineering."
Nevertheless, the kind of management Mr. Brandeis defined is
based not only upon the management of people, but the manage¬
ment of every important circumstance with which these people
20S
2o6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
deal, and it happens that these circumstances are usually, in
essence, of a strictly engineering nature.
'The major part of the consideration so far accorded the subject
has dealt with the principles themselves, and the mechanism or
system necessary to carry them into effect when introduced into
industrial companies by trained experts. These experts are
consulting engineers whose work is highly specialized in charac¬
ter, and I desire to consider briefly the relations of their work, or
more properly, the bearing that the principles advocated by them
may have, upon the work of consulting engineers generally.
This is a field well worthy of attention because of the broad
educational influence which can be exerted by consulting en¬
gineers on account of the very nature of the service rendered by
them.
The successful introduction of the managerial methods in
question by any kind of manufacturing business should prove
of very great benefit to the owners of the business, to the em¬
ployees, and to those who consume the product; but the custo¬
mers are to no appreciable extent enlightened as to the methods
to which they owe the advantages that accrue to them. On the
other hand, every client of the consulting engineer or architect,
will, to some extent, become familiar with correct principles of
management if these men have a proper realization of their
bearing upon the work they are engaged to perform. The
product of the industrial company may be almost identical, in
so far as its usefulness is concerned, whether made under what we
may term the old or the new systems of management, although,
of course, in the latter instance it should be procurable for less
money. On the other hand, the product in the sense of large and
complex operations, resulting from the work of the consulting
engineer, is likely to be quite different in character if it is worked
up with a full recognition of the principles with which we are
dealing (although not necessarily the ability to introduce these
principles) rather than in the face of the serious lack of knowl¬
edge in this regard, now so general.
There are at least two distinct policies, either one of which
can be selected hy the consulting engineer, with, of course, many
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
207
gradations between. He can confine his services either to work
that he can personally direct in detail, which of necessity must be
limited in its scope, or he can aim to build up an organization
capable of handling, through its various members, a wide diver¬
sity of work, encompassing complete undertakings. The latter
type of organization has had its principal development within
the past ten years, being the logical result of the complex condi¬
tions with which the consulting engineer is confronted. Pos¬
sibly the points I desire to bring out can be illustrated more
clearly by dealing with the engineering organization rather than
the engineer who works independently. As a matter of fact,
what is said in regard to the organization applies, although in a
lesser degree, to the individual, for the organization is but an
aggregation of individuals. But for just this reason it presents
within its own business the very problems that require, for their
correct solution, these principles of management, an understand¬
ing of which becomes such a potent factor when handling clients'
work.
There are in the United States today a large number of such
organizations, several of which have attained enviable reputa¬
tions at home and abroad. Their work can be broadly classified
as dealing with industrial or public-service properties, and in some
cases the same organization handles both of these classes of work.
Industrial-engineering work in its broadest sense comprises the
following divisions, based upon the assumption that it has its
. origin, in all cases, in the desire to offer for sale a product for
which there is believed to be a demand: First, thorough investiga¬
tion as to the merits of the product from a commercial standpoint,
taking into consideration every collateral factor such as the ability
to finance the business, etc. Second, the performance of the
detail engineering work incident to the provision of the physical
accessories, such as buildings and equipment, needed in connec¬
tion with the conduct of the business. Third, the actual provi¬
sion of these facilities. Fourth, the organization of the working
force, including the introduction of the mechanism required to
assure the fulfilment of the principles of management which are
necessary for the most successful conduct of the business.
208 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Public-service engineering work differs but little from indus^
trial work when each is considered in its broadest sense, for here
we also find a demand for: First, the initial investigation as to the
merits and feasibihty of the project. Second, provision of the
necessary capital in cases where conditions warrant the develop¬
ment. Third, performance of the detail engineering work.
Fourth, building the property in all of its physical aspects.
Fifth, organization of the working force, including the intro¬
duction of a system required to assure the fulfilment of the
correct principles of administration. Sixth, the actual manage¬
ment of such properties during their routine operation.
Taking the first division cited in connection with industrial-
engineering work, namely, an investigation as to the merits of a
proposed business, we find that the qualifications required, in
part at least, are in no wise different from those which are neces¬
sary as a part of the correct system of managing industrial
plants; and in fact, in certain fields of activity which have long
been open to the consulting engineer, they have been highly
perfected and utilized. I refer to the faculty for absolutely
thorough study of conditions accomplished through an analysis
of all factors involved. It must be evident that the important
thing is not the particular nature of the conditions that are to be
investigated, but rather the manner in which the investigations
are undertaken. This is amply illustrated by the ability of cer¬
tain men, who thoroughly understand the method of introducing
correct principles of management, to perform this work success¬
fully in a diversity of industries in which they could not possibly
possess a personal knowledge of all the individual factors in¬
volved. This knowledge they can easily secure through others
who in many cases are unable to use it to marked advantage.
The consulting engineer who advises correctly in regard to the
feasibility of undertaking a given fine of industrial work or con^
sidering a pubhc-service work, passes judgment upon the merits
of a proposed railway, electric-light and power or other property,
must conduct his work with all the comprehensive thoroughness
that characterizes the work of the efficient " time study expert
who sets tasks in a machine shop. The two problenis differ in
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
209
degree and scopé, but in each case the object is to anticipate the
result which will follow if certain conditions capable of establish¬
ment are fulfilled. In either case, thoroughness in every partic¬
ular is imperative, for by no other means can the element of
faulty judgment be reduced below the danger point.
Only too often the statement is made " after all it is a matter of
judgment," when in reality an adequate study would reveal the
fact that at least certain results can be positively assured. In
the final analysis this entire question of successful management,
even in its most subtle aspects, is based upon a full recognition
of the fundamental and all-pervading law of cause and effect.
In many directions our knowledge of causes is woefully limited,
and effects can be accurately foretold only in the very occasional
instance when, because of their extreme simplicity, we can grasp
the bearing of the elements or causes. The meteorologist
knows the result that will follow if certain definite atmospheric
conditions prevail. He can predict with very great accuracy
the condition that will exist during the ensuing forty-eight hours,
and he could predict exactly the weather condition a year hence
if he could comprehend all the factors existing and the influences
that these would have (all being the resultant of fixed laws)
prior to the date in question. It is on this account that in the
field of science, which in its full truth is absolute, are found the
real elements of management; and this applies quite as much to
the human element as to the material, for the acts of men are
just as surely the results of cause and effect. Even now scientific
study of heredity and environment is resulting in wonderful
insight into human actions.
The sales problem into which the human element enters so
largely, and which confronts all industrial properties, is beyond
the range of exact definition. It is on this account principally
that engineers have not been consulted more generally in regard
to proposed industrial businesses. Conditions in the public-
service field are, however, quite different in this regard, it being
possible to anticipate with a very reasonable degree of accuracy
the amount of business which should be secured under different
conditions. HenCç, the practice of engaging consulting engineers
2IO
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
to report upon proposed public-service undertakings has become
practically universal, and where the work is properly done the
same principles are applied as are now being generally recognized
as a necessary part of the efficient system of management.
Possibly the greatest opportunity open to the consulting
engineer is in connection with the preliminary or investigating
work which we have been considering, and it is in this direction
that an understanding of the principles of management will be
of the most assistance. These principles as applied to industrial-
plant operation prohibit the performance of any kind of work
whatsoever that has not for its purpose the accomplishment of an
absolutely definite end. The individual workers may not be
cognizant of this ultimate purpose, but the entire performance of
the shop is based upon its accomplishment. The time is not far
distant when the consulting engineer will assume just as much
responsibility for the ultimate appropriateness of his work as
does the manager of the industrial plant. This responsibility
he has assumed in certain particulars as, for example, in the design
of bridges, and in fact in connection with nearly all machinery
which he designs; but I have in mind the broader usefulness of
large undertakings considered as a whole. As long as engineers
practised individually, this result could not be expected because
of the difficulty of coordinating the work of independent special¬
ists, but through present-day engineering organizations it can be
attained in connection with both public-service and industrial
properties.
The members of such an organization can profit greatly through
a study of the methods of management introduced by leading
specialists for the routine operation of industrial properties, for
they have properly fitted together the various links of the chain
and have given it a complete identity which it did not heretofore
possess. As I see it, every one who is engaged in active work is
performing some function which is or should be a link in this
chain. Considered in a comparatively narrow sense, we have the
" time study " expert who is fulfilling the dictates of certain
principles of the system of management needed within the
comparatively limited confines of, let us say, a small machine
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
211
shop. Considered in a much broader sense, we have the consult¬
ing engineer investigating the feasibility of building an extensive
public-service property, and we find, if his work is done properly,
that he is working in accordance with all the principles that
should be recognized by the " time study " expert, and possibly
certain other and broader principles as well.
The engineering company, if handling a large amount of busi¬
ness, is confronted with a very difficult managerial situation
within its own organization, for in addition to the direction of the
experts who are called upon to make the various investigations
already referred to, it must maintain a considerable force of en¬
gineers, draftsmen, accountants, and clerks who are engaged upon
work which cannot be defined, in so far as its performance is
concerned, with the nicety that is possible in the manufacturing
business. The function of preparing detail plans and specifica¬
tions is one that has long been established upon a scientific basis
in so far as the purely technical work is concerned, and in fact the
advocates of the managerial methods with which we are dealing
have often pointed to such work as illustrative of the perfection
which should be attained in other fields of activity. Hence, in
regard to this detail engineering work, the engineering organiza¬
tion will find that an intimate acquaintance with the proper
principles of management will be of the most benefit in connec¬
tion with its actual accomplishment and will not affect materially
the character of the finished work.
In many respects we find that the conditions imposed by a
large amount of detail engineering work call for almost exactly
the same system of management which is suited to manufactur¬
ing work. We will assume that an engineering organization is
about to undertake the design of a large industrial plant compris¬
ing a number of buildings of different types and the installation
of a great variety of machinery. Here we find a problem that
is much more complex than is usually encountered in the manu¬
facturing plant, and one that is totally different from the problems
presented in the designing rooms of industrials. If the work
is to be done efficiently and economically (and it must be so done,
for it is the main business of the company, not a department
212
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
incurring a minor part of the total expense of operation) it must be
scheduled with just as much fore-thought as the materials going
through a machine shop. This is no simple matter, however, as
the work in considerable measure consists in creating something
new through the function of designing, so that the definition of
many details must be deferred until they are reached. How¬
ever, the same type of routine diagram that is used in the indus¬
trial plant, indicating when the different features of the work
should be undertaken, the same kind of schedule sheet, instruc¬
tion cards and time cards, apply; and often the results that
follow their use will be found to be quite as profitable in time and
money as has been shown to be the case in manufacturing
businesses.
The need of functional management is just as great within the
type of engineering organization which we are considering as in
any other business, for the integrity of its performance is depend¬
ent upon the superlative ability of its individual members, and
this can be attained only through specialization. It is especially
important, however, that the organization should not be lacking
in that type of administration which makes for control, for work
performed by a large number of engineering experts is not easily
coordinated. A large drafting organization should be served
by one or more men who prepare in advance, in so far as possible,
all work that will go to the individual draftsman, which includes
the segregation of all reference data; another man with his
assistants will see that the work is carried out in accordance with
instructions and by expeditious methods, and other men who are
specialists in certain comparatively narrow lines of work will keep
in touch with its progress, supplementing where necessary the
instructions formerly prepared by them, and finally they will
check the work in all particulars. Consequently, there is needed
the equivalent of the " gang boss," " speed boss," and " inspec¬
tor " who form a part of the functional organization in plants
administered in accordance with the principles with which I am
dealing. The clerical force needed in conjunction with the con¬
duct of a large engineering business is also engaged upon func¬
tions which are practically identical with the functions perfonned
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 213
în an industrial plant. They issue time and instruction cards in
accordance with the schedule, receiving them again after the
work is finished or at the close of day, make the entries upon the
schedules, cost sheets, etc.
It will not be necessary to consider this application of manage¬
ment work at greater length, although I could show not only
that in many particulars other than those just mentioned the
principles of management are identical with those pertaining to
manufacturing companies, but that essentially the same methods
for carrying out these principles are applicable.
The relation of the engineering organization to construction
work of all kinds is usually one of direction and supervision only,
although a number of the larger companies handle the construc¬
tion work through their own organizations. Companies of the
latter type have before them one of the most fruitful fields for
the introduction of correct managerial methods. Although excep¬
tionally efficient construction work is being done in many cases,
when judged from the basis of averaged past performance, a
realization of the possibility of materially raising the standard
must be evident to the reader of Mr. Gilbreth's books. Although
construction work is in many particulars quite different from most
manufacturing work, yet we find that not only do exactly the
same principles apply, but in their principal characteristics the
systems needed for the fulfilment of these principles are alike.
The fact that no two construction jobs are identical and that the
work must be performed properly the first time (for a second
opportunity cannot be had), and that it is widely scattered
geographically, makes particularly necessary a control of all
materials, routing and scheduling of work, standardizing of
methods of doing work, the prompt securing of accurate returns,
and equitable compensation for work done.
The engineering-construction organization is particularly well
suited to reap the full advantage of the methods of administra¬
tion in question, owing to the fact that it has full control of both
the engineering and construction work and so can start schedules
and other features as soon as the work goes into the drafting
room. Of course a complete accomplishment of this result
214
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
cannot be brought about in a short space of time, even in indi¬
vidual cases, and must to a certain extent be a matter of evolu¬
tion. A recognition of the integrity of the principles involved is
the first step, and then the actual introduction of the required
methods must be entrusted to men who have established their
positions as being qualified in this regard.
When the relation of the engineer to construction work is one of
direction and supervision, a thorough understanding of the princi¬
ples which underlie scientific management results in the more
efficient handling of the construction work, because he will be
better able to determine, when letting the contracts, as to the
bidders' respective ability to prosecute it properly; and when it
is in progress, he will be a judge as to ways and means as well as
to the character of the work done. This is a particularly im¬
portant matter in connection with percentage contracts. It
may be said that the only responsibility of the contractor is to
complete the work in accordance with the plans and specifica¬
tions, but if engineers generally become critics of the administra¬
tive methods employed, even though in an unofficial capacity,
the standard in this regard is bound to improve. I do not mean
that engineers should be better able than contractors to prosecute
the detail work, but rather that they should be able to determine
quite promptly as to whether or not a serious effort is being made
to direct the work in accordance with correct principles. As
already stated, comparatively little progress has been made in
applying scientific management to construction work, and what
has just been said has been prompted by the conviction that
a proper understanding of the kind of management in question
upon the part of consulting engineers will prove to be a material
factor in hastening more efficient performance of construction
work, through st'mulating the interest of those who handle it. ;
The fourth division of industrial engineering and the fifth
division of public-service engineering, referred to above, pertain
to the introduction of correct methods for handling the routine
work which constitutes the businesses of the respective classes of
properties. As this is the particular service in connection with
which a great deal more has been accomplished than in the fielcfe
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
215
of activity to which I have referred, and about which so much has
been written, I will not discuss it in this paper. This introduc¬
tion of these methods constitutes a service which is so complete
in itself and so personal in its character that it is not likely to
become a part of the work done by large engineering organiza¬
tions, except possibly in isolated cases. However, I have pointed
out that the principles should be understood by the members of
such an organization in order that their work may result in at
least broad conditions which will be substantially those desired
by the capable managerial expert whose service may be subse¬
quently secured.
The management of public-service properties by engineering
organizations has become an established department of engineer¬
ing work and affords exceptionally favorable opportunities for
the full utilization of correct managerial methods. It must be
evident that this work has been vested in the engineer on account
of his ability to deal efficiently with the problems presented. As
a matter of fact, while it is conceded that the engineer is needed
to look after the maintenance and operation of the physical
equipment, the owners of public-service properties have not,
in all cases, been as ready to acknowledge that the scope of his
work covers their proper administration in the broadest sense.
This conclusion applies correctly to the engineer who interprets
the word engineering in the narrow technical sense, which was,
in fact, the usual interpretation prior to a comparatively recent
date. The moment, however, that the engineer acquires an
adequate grasp of the subject of management and properly
qualifies for the application of the necessary methods, he be¬
comes fit for the entire service.
Of course only a comparatively few engineers are fitted for the
conduct of engineering work in the comprehensive conception
just defined, but this does not contradict the above statement as
to the full scope of engineering service. As a matter of fact, the
purpose of the engineering organization is to meet this very
obstacle, through combining under one administration a number
of engineers possessing the various qualifications needed to cover
the entire field. However, the service rendered by the members
2i6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of such an organization cannot be wholly successful unless they
are accorded, on certain classes of work, the fullest cooperation
by the men who are active in the client's company.
It is interesting to note that the judgment of engineers whose
work for many years has been based in large measure upon highly
scientific methods has been more and more sought, until they
have reached a position where they are looked to as the final
authority upon matters which, until recently, would have been
considered as remote from their legitimate field of activity. In
fact, scientific management is but management in accordance
with true engineering methods; for these now include, and in
certain directions have included, the human element as well as the
mere materials of construction, and it is acknowledged that we
must seek our managers from the same ranks that have supplied
the men who have been the builders of the very properties that
now need more efficient direction.
"SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT" IN BUSINESS
By A. W. SHAW
EDITOR AND PUBLISHER OF System
Reprinted by permission of Review of Reviews
The much-discussed " Scientific Management," reduced to
simple terms, is a particular form of industrial management that
develops the individual worker to the highest state of efficiency
and of prosperity and at the same time secures greater prosperity
for the factory owner by getting his product made at the lowest
possible cost.
Its principles have been slowly but accurately formulated by
Frederick W. Taylor, the first investigator in the field of indus¬
trial management whose work may rightly be termed scientific.
Literally, with a stop watch, scales, and a tape, Mr. Taylor
timed the various routine operations of the workmen in the great
steel plants of Pennsylvania, in one of which he was successively
laborer, foreman, chief engineer, general manager. He meas¬
ured distances that men and materials traversed, and gradually
evolved the theory that a large percentage of both labor and
material was needlessly wasted, — often as high as 60 or 80 per
cent in a single department, — through improper supervision
and direction. Through changes which he effected he materially
reduced the time in which these operations were done. By a
comparison of figures he expressed the economies which his
methods effected in specific terms of minutes, cents, and ounces.
Upon these terms as a basis, he constructed a plan of scientific
shop management that he described in a paper which he read
before the American Society of Mechanical Engineers at the
June meeting of 1903.^ That date properly marks the beginning
of the present movement to establish industrial management as
a profession subject to scientific laws.
[Here follows an explanation of the Taylor System as practised at the
Tabor Manufacturing Co., Philadelphia, and a suggestion that some of its
principles had been applied to sales organizations in other plants.]
^ Refers to Taylor, Shop Management. — Ed.
217
2I8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Similar Principles Applied to Salesmanship
The National Cash Register Company, for instance, had re¬
duced its selling methods to the point that it had analyzed,
classified, and embodied in text-book form the theory and prac¬
tice of salesmanship as applied to its particular product—the
first, perh ips still the most complete codification of rules that has
ever been formulated for the guidance of salesmen. Every
detail of the demonstration of the company's product has been
analyzed and expressed in the order and even in the phraseology
that experience has proved to be the most effective. Every
salesman is obliged to memorize this " selling talk," and to con¬
duct a demonstration throughout in exactly the same words and
manner as is prescribed for every other salesman; the entire
process, in brief, has been standardized.
In another volume have been collected, from the practical
experience of its salesmen, every objection that had been made
by a prospective customer against the purchase of the product,
together with the approved arguments in refutation. These
arguments are studied and in many cases memorized by the
salesmen.
The same methods have been employed to standardize the
work of the sales department as a whole. The salesmen are
divided into grades, according to their abilities. As soon as a
salesman attains a specified ability as expressed in " points " (a
" point " is the standard sales unit, and represents a sale of $25
in value, with additional values for the sale of special grades of
goods) he is admitted to the school for salesmen, conducted by
experienced instructors. Here he attends courses of lectures,
recitations, and selHng demonstrations extending over a period
of six weeks, at the end of which oral and written examinations
determine whether he is qualified for a certificate. Prizes are
given for excellence in these courses, and the classes are organized
and " graduated " similar to the classes in ordinary educational
institutions. At stated intervals these classes are called in to
pursue " post-graduate " courses of instruction, as the changes in
the policies of the company and in its products demand.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
2Î9
The entire globe is divided into sales territory under district
managers and their subordinates; for each district and sub-
district a sales " quota " is established each month. A " quota "
is the volume of sales (as expressed in points) which, in view of
the season, local conditions, and other considerations, may be
reasonably expected. Thus a standard of proficiency is estab¬
lished for every man in the selling organization — a " bogie
score " that must be equaled to maintain the record and that
must be excelled in order to qualify for the numerous bonuses
and prizes that are constantly held out as incentives.
So completely has this selling organization been standardized
in its details and so successful has it been in maintaining an estab¬
lished ratio of growth, that its methods have been adopted by
other organizations that are using them with equal proficiency.
And when the United Cigar Stores selects locations for its shops
by stationing a representative of the company on the spot for
specified periods, to make an actual count of the number of
people who pass that spot in the course of the day, and when in
another concern an office manager, with a stop watch, times the
work of every stenographer and posts each week, as a stimulus
to effort, a comparative record that shows the speed, accuracy,
and volume of work performed and on this record, as a basis,
establishes a scale of wages, both are taking long, long steps
toward Scientific Management.
Application to Business Problems in General
For these, broadly, are the steps toward Scientific Manage¬
ment: —
1. To separate from the " line organization " or to add to the
line organization a staff officer or " staff organization."
2. To set up tentative standards of performance.
3. To correct these standards by working out scientifically
the best methods of performance.
4. To determine the best inducement to the employee to attain
these standards.
5. To equip the employee with clear, complete, and exact
knowledge of the best way of doing the work.
220
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
This is not, perhaps, as Mr. Taylor would designate them,
but as they might be taken by a business man who, having
studied the literature of Scientific Management, would apply
its principles to an individual business problem.
For Mr. Taylor's studies have been of industrial workers.
And the exact systems he has devised and installed have been
applications of the principles or laws that he has discovered to
industrial organization. They should be introduced, in their
entirety, in no factory except under the direct supervision of Mr.
Taylor or of men trained by him or trained directly under his
influence.
But many a false prophet will come to the business men bring¬
ing only the shell of Mr. Taylor's methods and not the principles,
just as when the first general introduction of business system
brought in its trail heterogeneous assortments of cards, filing
cabinets, and record sheets that involved endless clerical labor
to operate and which in many cases constituted useless red tape.
For a period business men mistook the form for the substance;
they believed that in the filling and filing of blanks they had
system," and ignored the real system of which these forms were
merely the mechanical tools. The result was that this mechani¬
cal routine was either stripped of its non-essentials until it be¬
came a serviceable implement or was discarded entirely for the
old-fashioned inaccurate rule-of-thumb method. A system is
not a card or a filing cabinet; it is the right way of doing a thing.
Similarly, Mr. Taylor's method of Scientific Management does
not consist of forms or charts or of sets of rules and regulations.
It is a big policy of establishing after scientific study and research
a standard way of performing each industrial operation with the
best possible expenditure of material, capital, and labor. The
forms and rules are merely the machinery by which the policy is
applied.
What is a Full Day's Work ?
Back of the Taylor principles and back of his particular
method of applying them to actual workshop conditions, is this
aflirmation of the psychologists, — that all of us, employers and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
221
employees, have but a vague conception of what constitutes a
full day's work for a first class man.
Many of us confuse overwork with what is really underwork
and it is only under a compelling incentive that we discover that
like the runner we have a second wind.
And the problem is not merely to ascertain what is a full day's
work for the workman but to ascertain what is a full day's work
for the works manager, and for the ofiice boy and the ofiice
manager, for the salesman and the sales manager, and how to
induce the performance of that full day's work.
Therefore, the precise principles Mr. Taylor has formulated
for industrial operations have been applied, in most cases per¬
haps unconsciously, to almost all forms of commercial activity.
Establishing Standards of Sales Costs
Perhaps this is best illustrated by the experience of a Chicago
house whose products are sold at retail by a staff of traveling
salesmen who come into personal contact with their customers.
The sales manager was additionally compensated over and
above a certain salary by a percentage of the value of the sales
made under his direction. His major effort, therefore, was
directed to the increase in the gross amount of the sales, uncon¬
sciously irrespective of the profits to the house. That he event¬
ually used in the conduct of his department methods that were
expensive and extravagant in order to secure a large volume of
sales was due to a gross but common error in the policy of the
concern, — compensation based only on volume of sales. The
monthly statement showed such a constantly increasing average
of sales expense that finally the management issued an order
that every expense requisition of the manager should be approved
by an official in the financial department. Friction resulted
and with it the diminution of this sales manager's most valuable
characteristic, — enthusiasm. The percentage of the sales
expense promptly decreased and so did the volume of the sales.
To meet this situation the management with the sales manager
and a few executives of the company who were temporarily re¬
called from the " line " organization and placed on the " staff "
222
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
for advisory purposes, went into a careful analysis of each phase
of the work of that department. Assuming for the time the
viewpoint of the outsider, the committee divided each operation
into its details and regarded each in its relation to the whole.
Gradually it established standards for practically each operation
of the department. It placed a tentative standard for the gross
annual sales, based on past records and on present conditions.
It established a standard percentage for the cost of making these
sales. It analyzed the various expenses into their several
factors. It prepared from the books of account a printed sheet,
ruled and tabulated to record the daily and monthly statements
in such form that they would acquaint the sales manager with
the expenses that he was incurring, both in percentages and units,
and in relation to the sales. It studied the methods of the indi¬
vidual salesmen and sales managers and prepared suggestions
and directions as to the best methods to be used by both. It
corrected the original tentative standards, and pointed out
wasteful methods in the daily work of the salesmen and in the
daily work of the sales manager.
Then the management said to that sales manager: —
Here is a codification of the methods under which our product is to be sold.
Here are the exact percentages that we can afford to pay to make these sales.
And here is our proposition to you. Your salary will remain as it is. On
the gross amount of the sales you make we wül pay you a certain percen¬
tage. If you can attain in sales that standard which we will set up and
can attain the standard at a less percentage of expense than we have desig¬
nated as a standard percentage, one-half of what you save will be yours to.
keep. You will approve your own requisitions for expense.
In seven months the sales doubled in volume and the expense
had averaged below the predetermined standard and below any
past record of performance.
The True Science of Business
But out of all the reverberant publicity given " Scientific
Management " — the term itself has almost become standard¬
ized — what is to be gained by the average business man ?
For the science of business itself, when carefully formulated,
will be, after all, as Dr. Scott says, merely common sense, the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
223
wisdom of experience analyzed, formulated, codified, and all in
respect to certain data.
But the data are being accumulated now. That is what
business men individually and through their organizations, and
business publications and educational institutions, notably the
Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration, are doing
to-day. Analyzing business the world over, picking out details,
matters of routine, specific methods of management, individual
plans of organization which under certain conditions have pro¬
duced certain proven results — picking out, in other words, the
right way of doing things, or as Mr. Taylor has expressed it, the
only right way of doing things — the system.
The principles of this science of business have only just begun
to be formulated. But from a study of the principles of " Scien¬
tific Management " the business man can get a new business
viewpoint — a new mental attitude toward his specific business
problems.
That is important. For success or failure in business depends
as much upon mental attitude as upon mental aptitude. And
the mental attitude that prompts one business man to make a
scientific study of his own peculiar requirements and by experi¬
ment determine the most effective ways of getting the thing done
— whether the task is carrying a pig of iron or selling a carload
of canned corn — is the mental attitude that makes for business
success.
If production costs have been high, the manager's method of
attacking the problem in the past has been simply to try to lower
wages or to add machinery. If selling costs have increased, he
has tenaciously tried to increase selling prices. And in all of his
movements he has usually been guided by accounting that was
merely historic — not prophetic; by standards based on past
performances — not carefully analyzing possible performances.
But a changed mental attitude suggests a new approach. If
costs of production are high the business man will study the
equipment that he already has. He will study workmen and
ascertain scientifically just what is a full day's work for these
workmen and what will help and will induce them to perform
224
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
this full day's work. When selling expenses rise he will look
first to the men who by words of mouth or by written words sell
his product. And he will examine the standards against which
these men are working and the exact methods that-they use.
Result: Lower Prices
The effect upon the purchasing public of the introduction of
Scientific Management will in the beginning be negligible. As
long as its application is confined to occasional individual busi¬
nesses, the economies that it will effect will be internal and the
profit will be restricted largely to the local management. But
as a scientifically managed plant, because of its lower costs of
production, can eventually undersell its competitors, the same
methods of management will eventually become universal and
the economies will be shared by the industry generally and thus
become external. The inevitable result will be a lowering of
prices to the customer.
Increasing the Workman's Value to Himself
Because of the fact that scientific direction of labor is an
increase in the production of the worker as a unit and of the
organization as a whole, its principles have at times been opposed
by various bodies of workmen who, through a misconception of
their real purpose and with the knowledge of the universally
recognized defects of the ordinary piece work system, have
branded Scientific Management offhand as merely another
effort to " speed up " the workmen. In reality the new manage¬
ment aims primarily not to increase the strain on the worker by
forcing him into redoubled effort, but to apply his effort to
greater advantage. It places at his disposal methods and
machinery that have proven, by actual test, to be the most
economical of his time and strength. It furnishes him with
instructors (known as " functional foremen ") who are more
experienced in certain phases of his task than he himself, through
whose supervision he is enabled to use these methods and ma¬
chinery to best advantage. By a system of records, it deter¬
mines the workmen's special capacities that permit him to be set
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
225
at the work at which' he is most proficient. And by means of a
bonus system It provides for the adequate remuneration of the
worker not on the basis of effort expended, but upon the more
modern basis of effort practically applied and expressed in units
of production. As a consequence, the workman's value to
himself and to the organization is increased, as rapidly and as
highly as his capabilities permit.
A HISTORY OF THE INTRODUCTION OF A SYSTEM
OF SHOP MANAGEMENT
BY JAMES M. DODGE
CHAIRMAN OF THE LINK-BELT COMPANY, PHILADELPHIA, PA.
Reprinted by permission of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
1. After nearly three years' experience introducing into the
establishment with which I am connected the system of shop
management, identified with the name of Mr. Fred W. Taylor
of this Society, I feel that a brief recital of the moving causes
which influenced our Company to take up this work would be
of interest. I think also it will form a historical recital of the
steps and results on broad lines.
2. The works consist of a machine shop, with its usual ac¬
companiment of storeroom, tool-room, pattern shop and power
plant, together with the required shop, offices, accounting de¬
partments, drawing-room and engineering forces and the selling
organization. There is also quite an extensive department
devoted to construction and erection in iron and steel. There
is no duplicate work done and no package article made or sold
as would be the case in large duplicated lots.
3. At the time we first considered the Taylor System, we
prided ourselves on having a thoroughly equipped shop, operated
by the best methods known to us as respects general manage¬
ment, general accounting and shop accounting. We thought
we were decidedly in advance of others in our particular line of
business and even of other machine shops. While we felt that
we were not intensely progressive, we were also in a satisfied
mood, feeling that it would be rather presumptuous for any one
to suggest that our method and general way of doing things-
could be improved.
4. It was in this frame of mind that we received word of tho
surprising work done at the shop of the Bethlehem Steel Company^
with a grade of tool steel to which the names of Taylor-White:
326
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
227
were attached. I myself made the trip personally to the shop
where it was in use and saw tools of this material ripping heavy
nickel steel faster than we were in the habit of turning off brass.
I also saw under the shadow of a screen over the point of the
cutting tool that it cut with a dull red heat. I found on
computation it was turning off a good big chip at a rate of 140
feet a minute and after twenty minutes there was no let up.
It was something of a shock to me to discover that the wonder¬
fully valuable mechanical training I had had and my twenty
years of experience would have to be regarded as obsolete from
that moment onward.
5. An inspection of my own shop the following day made it
apparent that we were hopelessly behind and that it would be
necessary for us to rearrange our whole establishment if we were
to keep up with the standards that my previous day's experience
had forced upon me. This carried with it the sickening feeling
that I was going to spend a fortune, was to reduce dividends for
several years, was to make an expenditure of a large amount
which would give no result in anything to be properly inventoried
as an asset, and one-hundred-and-one other financial and me¬
chanical obstacles. To convince my own tool-maker, who like
so many other tool-makers was the best in the country, we took
down some of his best achievements in tool-making to the
Bethlehem shops and the instant failure of our samples alongside
of the Taylor-White product resulted in our negotiating a
few days later for a shop right.
6. Considerable time was spent in getting tools of the right
sort for working on cast iron, with the result that we had one
lathe and a few tools to fit it which would do from three to four
times as much work on cast iron as we had ever been able to do
before. This, however, was only the beginning. When we went
further the old machine tools had to be either discarded or new
ones of special design substituted, or the old tools rebuilt. Elec¬
tric driving became necessary and finally our machine shop,
which had been run most successfully with a 50 horse-power
engine, was absorbing over 150 horse-power and calling for
more.
228
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Then it became quite evident that the piece rate would have
to be revised. For instance, if 50 pieces could be made per day
on a tool, an error in rate either for or against us would be mul¬
tiplied by fifty, whereas if the same tool could turn out 200
pieces a day our error in rate fixing would be multiplied by 200.
Mr. Taylor's answer to our question was that a scientific time
study would be necessary. We were loth to accept this because
we were following what we regarded as a much quicker and
better method which was that of " guess," and we had in our
business a number of men who could guess perfectly. Time
soon began to show that these wonderful but unscientific guessers
were far from infallible, and the guessing was decidedly inaccu¬
rate. We were shocked that our perfectly appointed and well-
managed tool-room was becoming nervously prostrated and
needed " jacking up."
What looks Hke a simply jacking up process took eighteen
months of hard work, but when we were through we were more
than satisfied with the expenditure. Increased output reflected
glaringly upon the heretofore considered perfect system of store-
keeping and accounting. The receiving-room had to be reor¬
ganized to fit the storeroom. The routing of material through
the shop which had been very satisfactory and simple — we
were having from six to twenty men remembering hundreds of
details — came also to show signs of mental decay. The in¬
struction of our men, the strain of having their lathes speeded,
the changes in personnel were all consequences of our first step.
7. The final result was that we called in the man who had
been instrumental in getting us into our difficulties and asked
him to get us out. The more we worked under the able direction
of Mr. Taylor and the assistance of his Mr. Carl G. Barth, also
a member of the Society, the more we were impressed with the
fact that Mr. Taylor in formulating his system had taken good
points of management from various sources and had skilfully
combined them in a harmonized whole. It took over two years
for our organization to surrender fully, and so change our mental
attitude that we became really receptive. I mean by this that
I found no difficulty at all in having the heads of various depart-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
229
ments agree that the introduction of the Taylor System would
be most desirable, but in every case it was for everybody else in
the establishment but entirely unnecessary for him.
8. I might illustrate a cardinal feature of Mr. Taylor's System
by asking you to consider the policy of operating a Fall River
steamer with a crew of 200 men, all of whom were in such au¬
thority that they were entitled to make suggestions, raise objec¬
tions and insist on the whole group proceeding with great caution.
Obviously the vessel would be in the greatest peril all the time.
The one method is to have this entire crew of 200 all functional-
ized, each man doing his own work under general and specific
directions, with a trained pilot steering the boat. If the pilot,
for his own glory, insisted upon being illumined so that every
one could see him, his usefulness would immediately become
impaired. I am fully convinced that the successful perpetuation
of a business becomes the more certain the further away we get
from the old military idea of having all the brains owned and con¬
trolled by one man. We have all seen prosperous concerns come
to grief because the person who had the brains and ability to
build it up had not been broad-minded enough to see that brains
and ability were left behind when he died to conduct the business
successfully. In an epigram: " Under the old military system
every one was supposed to help the boss. Under the Taylor
System the boss is obliged to help and assist the others who are
under him." Under this each individual is unconsciously
training his successor and working himself out of a job! This
" working ourselves out of a job " by the ability and training of
a successor makes it possible to promote any one of the works
without a loss of efficiency to the whole. The boss is promoted
just as much as any one else, and his promotion comes to him in
the form of perfected organization, releasing him from detail
and giving him a greater opportunity to devote his brains and
his experience to the development and extension of his business.
9. I have endeavored to make plain that my individual mental
attitude and that of my associates was and is in no way unusual.
The whole question resolves itself to this. The high-speed steel
called for and made necessary a better system than existed in its
230
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
entirety in any one machine shop. One shop might have a
splendid store system, another an unimpeachable accounting
system, another a perfect shipping system, and another a super¬
lative system for routing work. Mr. Taylor's endeavor has been
to harmonize the good points of management so as to avoid
variations in efficiency with high-grade products and compute
valuations in the curve in which we illustrate it. The horizontal
line, practically straight, would represent uniform harmony.
10. That improvements will be made in the Taylor System
no one can gainsay, so that modifications fitting it to various
lines of manufacture may be made. But its underlying princi¬
ples of efficient planning, task-setting, functional foremanship,
which shall not make laborers out of machinists and errand boys
of foremen, with a full use of the slide rule in computations, the
proper routing of materials through the works, correct record
keeping, pre-determined shipping dates and other features of the
system will have to stand until better means have been tried out.
I am convinced that the systematic study of conditions in a
manufacturing plant can best be done by the enthusiastic and
intelligent outsider. It it absolutely impossible for any man to
be thoroughly posted in every detail of the works with which he
is connected.
11. The Taylor System is not a method of pay, a specific
ruling of account books, nor the use of high-speed steel. It is
simply an honest, intelligent effort to arrive at the absolute con¬
trol in every department, to let tabulated and unimpeachable
fact take the place of individual opinion, to develop " team
play " to its highest possibility.
In past years numerous instances have come to my notice of
machine work having been done more quickly than formerly, but
such achievement was rather like the high speed of a hundred-
yard dash, or the lowering of a record on the track, interesting,
but bringing about no broad spirit of emulation. Under the
system to the actual observer, the trained workman with his
vastly increased output is working no harder than when his out¬
put was much smaller. He is simply working to his best advan-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
231
tage without distraction and with every possible aid that can be
rendered him.
The work for him to do is conveniently placed without his
knowing how it got there; the tools with which he is to work are
brought to his hands. Finished pieces are removed promptly.
By simply following his instructions he finds his pay very much
increased and does not suffer undue fatigue, and is relieved of all
mental strain and worry. In other words, the man who is the
most wonderful and complex machine in the shop is treated with
every possible consideration from the viewpoint of increasing his
efficiency without harm to himself. Good management without
high-speed steel will show handsome returns, but the combina¬
tion of high-speed steel and the Taylor System, or its equivalent
in management, will show the highest possible gain, because of
the scientific combination of brain and brawn, which in a shop,
as in an individual, represents the highest commercial develop¬
ment.
AN OBJECT LESSON IN EFFICIENCY
bY wilfred lewis
PRESIDENT, THE TABOR MFG. CO., PHILADELPHIA, PA.
Reprinted by permission of the McGraw-Hill Book Co.
Public attention has recently been drawn very pointedly to
the subject of scientific management, and the Tabor Manufac¬
turing Company, of which the writer is president, has frequently
been cited as an illustation of what has already been accom¬
plished along the lines laid down by Frederick W. Taylor.
Prior to my connection with the Tabor Manufacturing Com¬
pany, in 1900, the whole of my active business life had been
devoted to the cause of efficiency in machines, and I believe with
some measure of success, but I had yet to learn the value of good
management in the development of men, and the greater impor¬
tance in business life of efficiency in men as against efficiency in
machines.
As then organized and conducted in 1900, the business was
rather commercial in character. The machines were built on
contract to our designs and the activity of the company was
directed chiefly toward their sale and demonstration. I soon
found a number of details in which the designs could be im¬
proved, but as a promoter of sales, I was entirely out of my
element. I proposed, therefore, that we should have a shop of
our own, and begin to realize whatever profit there might be in
manufacturing.
At this time I was advised by my well-wishers to maintain an
open shop and keep down the number of clerks or non-producers.
Success, I was told, depended upon the ratio of producers to non-
producers in any well managed concern. Draftsmen were
recognized as a necessary evil, the fewer of whom the better, and
one good superintendent to lay out the work and keep it moving
through the shop was considered quite enough. In fact, to the
casual observer, we had hardly enough work to keep a good man
333
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
233
busy and we did not appreciate the need of better shop manage¬
ment until our growing business began to show increasing losses.
Before we were aware of any dissatisfaction, also, and within a
year of the opening of our shop, we were surprised by a general
strike for higher wages and shorter hours. Our unguardedness
or lack of management had encouraged our men to combine
against us and make unreasonable demands. We were then
paying them more than they earned and they insisted upon
having still more, which simply meant ruin to the company in a
shorter time. Our strike was compromised by the concession
of shorter hours at the same pay, the men agreeing to turn out
the same amount of work per day. There was no difficulty
about their doing this, and for a time, I believe they kept their
promise, but a day's work was then with us, as it is now with
nearly the whole world of industry, a very variable and indefmite
result for a given expenditure of time or money. We had no
standard by which a proper day's work could be fixed except the
very shaky and misleading one of the best that had been done
before, and having, as we were now well aware, an organized
resistance against any increase in output or efficiency to meet,
the outlook for the company was not encouraging.
At the same time we knew that machines had been built by
others for less than they were costing us, and we felt confident
that a way could be found out of our difficulties. But we were
obliged to sell stock and borrow money for several years, until
it seemed unreasonable to expect any further financial aid. For¬
tunately my good friend, Taylor, who was then writing his
remarkable essay on " Shop Management," came again to our
assistance and offered to loan us more money if we would agree
to put in his system of management. We were only too glad to
do this, without having any conception of what it really was or
would finally mean to us. Accordingly, the money was advanced
and in due time the installation of the Taylor system was begun.
Advance sheets from " Shop Management," which was read
before the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in 1903,
were sent to me as they were written and Mr. Taylor himself
gave some personal attention to the introduction of his system.
234
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The enormous amount of detail involved required, however, the
constant attention of a trained expert and we were fortunate at
the outset in securing the services of Mr. Barth, one of Mr.
Taylor's assistants in the reorganization of the Bethlehem Steel
Company. We had nothing in the nature of system that fitted
in or was worth preserving, and Mr. Barth was obliged in the
first place to lay the foundation for the structure he proposed to
rear. This meant a lot of preparatory work for which there
was no immediate use and from which no return could be ex¬
pected until other features were introduced.
In the meantime, the business had to go on, while those en¬
gaged in running it were subjected to more or less inconvenience
by the changes proposed, and these led to a good deal of irritation
and dissatisfaction in certain quarters. In fact, it was not long
before a revolt began to be felt which was not confined entirely
to the shop. At this crisis Mr. Taylor recognized the futility of
attempting to reorganize a house divided against itself and in¬
sisted upon his right to direct the introduction of his system
according to agreement without obstruction or interference in
the shape of adverse criticism, and for a time the good work went
on without active opposition, perhaps, but certainly without the
hearty good wül most needed from within. Mr. Barth was
obliged, as he proceeded in his work, to call for more and more
assistance, and as new men were added to our planning depart¬
ment, the cost of the new system began to draw so heavily upon
our resources that for a year or two we seemed to be actually
losing groxmd, and we certainly would have been obliged to sus¬
pend but for the grit and determination of Mr. Taylor, who had
the courage of his convictions and carried us through the storm
which culminated in the resignation and withdrawal of the op¬
posing forces.
From this time forward conditions began to improve, and the
work began to bear fruit. It was not long before we ceased to
lose money, broke even and began to gain. A better spirit pre¬
vailed, better wages were earned, and production increased so
rapidly that I was lost in astonishment at the potency of the
engine gratuitously placed in our hands. We had in effect been
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
235
installing at great expense a new and wonderful means for in¬
creasing the efficiency of labor, in the benefits of which the work¬
man himself shared, and we have to-day an organization second
I believe to none in its loyalty, efficiency and steadfastness of
purpose. Its loyalty was tested a year ago ^ at the time of the
general strike when the streets of Philadelphia were filled with
thousands of idle men bent upon inducing others to join them.
Out of the 150 then employed, but one man failed to resist the
pressure, and he was paid off without regret as one of our least
efficient workers.
I have given the above brief history of my experience to em¬
phasize the adverse conditions under which the Taylor system
was installed and carried on to a successful conclusion. I do not
believe so much opposition will ever be encountered by others,
because carping criticism has been subdued, if not yet silenced,
and successful methods are sure to be emulated; but more or
less resistance is always to be anticipated, because any change,
however slight, in management may be taken as a reflection
upon previous methods of reaching the desired end, and there¬
fore as personal to the advocate of discarded ways and means.
The suppression of personal pride and prejudice, with the dis¬
position to seize and adopt the best ideas to be found anywhere,
has been a great help to the scientific habit of thought under
which the Taylor system of scientific management has been built
up and will continue to grow. Differences of opinion may arise
and different conclusions may be drawn from the same evidence,
but a body of fundamental principles has already been estab¬
lished by Mr. Taylor which may safely be taken as the nucleus
for a new science of management. As in any other science these
fundamental principles must be subjected to rigid analysis and
demonstrated in a practical way by successful performances,
seeking always " truth for authority and not authority for
truth."
The advice given me eleven years ago about keeping an open
shop and weeding out the non-producers was good orthodox
^ This refers to the great street railway strike and the many sympathetic strikes
that accompanied it. — Ed.
236
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
business gospel at that time, and it would no doubt still be en¬
dorsed to-day by 95 per cent of the manufacturers in this coun¬
try, who would also subscribe to the principle of one supreme
authority delegated and subdivided among subordinates on the
military plan, as the only practical type of management for any
business.
But who knows, when -he has an open shop, to what extent it
may be filled by conspirators ready to take advantage of the
first opportunity to make unreasonable demands, and how can
loyalty be fostered and encouraged throughout all departments
of a diversified business ? How comes it also that a large in¬
crease in the force of non-producers can be made to effect such
an enormous increase in output ?
In 1910 the Tabor Manufacturing Company turned out two
and one-half times as much value in finished product as it ever
did under the old régime with the same force. Formerly for
every ten men engaged as producers, or " chip-makers," as Mr.
J. M. Dodge defines them, we had not more than one man con¬
nected with the shop as a non-producer. Now we have fewer
men at machines with three times as many non-producers turning
out practically three times as much work, because prices are
lower to-day than they were five or six years ago and two and
one-half times the value means about three times the product.
To explain in detail these anomalous results would carry me
far beyond the limits of this paper and call for the elucidation
of a system which had better be studied at first hand in Mr.
Taylor's Principles of Scientific Management. At the same
time the type of management under which we are working
should be seen in operation to be fully appreciated, and I must
confess that in the beginning, eight years ago, I gathered very
little about it from my perusal of the advance sheets on " Shop
Management." The fact is that the system is so engrossing and
calls for so much undivided attention that it is almost futile for
any one actively engaged in meeting customers, providing for
their wants and collecting accounts, to undertake its installation
single-handed. The reorganization should therefore be left to
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
237
an expert who is not hampered by the necessity of running the
business.
It is not an easy matter to start any innovation in an open shop
full of union men, and, as might be anticipated, the appearance
of a man with a stop watch and tally sheet was at first very irri¬
tating and strenuously opposed by the workmen. So also was
the suggestion of a bonus for the successful performance of an
allotted task. But the kickers were gradually converted or dis¬
couraged, better discipline was established and a few of the men
were soon earning 30 per cent more wages than they could com¬
mand elsewhere.
In the beginning the men were suspicious and disinclined to
believe that a good performance was not to be the signal for a cut
in price, but they have since learned by experience that prices
are fixed by the management upon definite knowledge of all the
time elements involved in any piece of work and that the time
allowed will not be changed so long as the method employed
remains the same. In this way the management demonstrates
its loyalty to the workmen and they in turn are glad of an oppor¬
tunity to demonstrate their loyalty to the management, as they
did last year.
We pay better wages for fuller and better results performed in
a definite way, and yet there is no driving in the ordinary sense
of the word. The tasks assigned to the workmen are easily
within their ability to perform and when new work is given out,
as occasionally happens, at day rates, before the time on the job
has been set, nobody wants to take it because there is no bonus
attached for its quick and accurate performance.
But our wonderful increase in production is not due entirely
to rapidity of performance, for in some instances very little gain
in that direction has been made. A great deal is due to the
functional foreman whose duty it is to prepare and guide the way
of every piece of work going through the shop. The old notion
that a man cannot serve two masters or take orders from more
than one superior is denied by the new philosophy which makes
it possible for the workman to have as many bosses as there are
functions to be performed. There is no conflict of authority
238
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
unless the functions overlap, and even there such conflict as may
arise is salutary and to the interest of the company. A gang
boss, for instance, covers one class of machines or work, and it's
his business to see that every man is provided with at least one
new job with all the tools and fixtures ready for its immediate
performance as soon as the job upon which he is engaged has been
completed. He also gives the necessary instructions about set¬
ting the work, explains the drawings and teaches the workman
how to set his work when necessary. This man has nothing to
do with the running of machines and does not interfere at all
with the speed boss who also has supervision in his function over
the same men as the gang boss and sees that each machine is run
at its proper speed with feed and cut as per written instructions.
He also teaches the workman and gives him such practical
assistance as may be needed. An inspector also helps the same
set of men and sees that the work done is of the right quality and
that the first piece made is up to the standard in all dimensions,
fit and finish. He also makes further inspection from time to
time to see that the standard is maintained. An over-zealous
speed boss in his desire for a large output may impair the quality
of the work done by exceeding the speed limit, and there is there¬
fore the possibility of a conflict between the speed boss and the
inspector, but the inspector's requirements must be fulfilled and
such a conflict cannot fail to be salutary, because rapidity of
production when accompanied by inferior results is never to be
desired, and in almost all cases some method is found by which
high speed can be maintained and the best quality preserved.
It rarely happens that the superintendent or manager is called
upon to adjust a difficulty between the two functional foremen.
In assembling the various parts required to make a complete
machine the stockkeeper sees that all the parts for a group of
machines are in hand ready to go together before work is begun
upon any one of them and the whole group is finished at the same
time.
To avoid delays incident to materials which should be ordered
in advance, the storeroom must carry a sufficient amount of
stock to cover the time required for replacements, and this is
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 239
cared for by a storekeeper and his clerical assistants in an auto¬
matic way. Formerly it was necessary for the superintendent
to bear in mind or to look ahead to see what was wanted in ad¬
vance, but with many thousand parts going through the shop at
once, important details, sometimes few and sometimes many,
were invariably overlooked, which meant delay and disappoint¬
ment to the customer and very often the cancellation of orders.
Now a balance of stores is kept in the planning department by
which new orders are placed as soon as the stock on hand falls
below a certain established minimum kept plainly in view against
every detail. This minimum may vary as conditions change
and it is fixed by the discretion of the manager of the planning
department in consultation with the sales department.
In the planning department, which is to the shop what the
drawing room has been for many years to the superintendent,
every new machine is charted to show the progress of the work
through the shop and every piece is provided with an instruction
card for its proper manipulation, showing the machine upon
which it is to be made, the tools and fixtures required, the feeds
and speeds to be used, the sequence of operations and the time
allowed in detail for each and every elementary movement. As
these operations are performed they are checked off in a route
file from which can be seen at any time the exact condition of the
work and the time remaining for its completion.
An order-of-work-clerk directs the progress of the orders to be
filled in accordance with a schedule prepared by the manager in
consultation with the sales department and he has before him
in miniature a view of the whole shop, showing every machine
or vise, the work being done on each, the work ready to be done
and the work ahead in the shop, but which has not yet arrived
at the machine. This is a large board or wall plate, which shows
also what machines are manned and where a man can be con¬
veniently shifted when there is no work ahead at his particular
machine. By this means all of the work in the shop is kept
moving in proper balance at a normal rate of speed, men are
taken on or laid off as the exigencies of business may require,
and no loss is sustained by the usual tendency of wqrkmen to
240
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
relax when orders are falling off and work ahead is hard to find.
At such times we are, of course, obliged to curtail production,
and the situation being apparent to all, no complaint is made
against a reduction in time, which we always prefer to a loss of
well-trained men.
A well-equipped tool room in charge of a competent man is a
sine qua non in any machine shop, and here also one of our great¬
est improvements has been made.^ Formerly each workman was
inclined to accumulate his own assortment of tools and fixtures
which were stowed away in dark corners and kept in disorder and
confusion. Now everything comes in perfect order (and the
best of its kind) from the tool room as required and goes back
again when the job for which it was taken out is finished. Tools
are ground to standard forms and not to suit the whims of in¬
dividual workmen and the tool room is responsible for the con¬
dition of all tools sent out.
The drawing room is perhaps of all departments less affected
by the new order of things than any other, and yet there is an
indirect effect due to the atmosphere of activity which pervades
the whole plant. Here the work is by its very nature more or
less original and, of course, no time can be set for the completion
of that which is not definitely known, and which grows into
shape by a process of trial and error, until something satisfactory
is attained. Designing is not therefore amenable to time study,
and, depending largely as it does upon inspiration, there is no
superior intelligence to direct its progress. It is in the nature
of original research which fiourishes and bears its best fruit under
adverse criticism. A good designer is like a good composer, his
work is creative and full of harmonies, and being an artist in his
line he cannot be held to a time schedule. In original work, the
incentive, therefore, must come from within rather than from
without, and this is generally inborn with the ability to create.
Copyists, on the other hand, who always need direction, might
be brought under the domination of time study and in many
clerical operations this has been done, but we have not yet at¬
tempted to fix tasks in tracing or bookkeeping, and we do not
1 SeeR. T. Kent's " TheToolRoom under Scientific Management," p. 4.^4-— Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
241
pretend to say that our development is by any means complete.
We have progressed, however, to a point which makes further
progress comparatively easy, and in the face of stubborn opposi¬
tion we have firmly established a successful business upon the
principles of scientific management as laid down by Mr. Taylor.
This means increased production and higher wages at a lower
cost, and contains the key to the solution of the labor problem.
Labor is made to share in the increased production realized, and
the reward of labor is made to depend upon the individual effort
put forth in production. The Taylor system makes more room
on top and gives a better chance to rise. Men thus schooled in
efficiency are qualified for better service and learn to measure
more accurately the value of time.
The scientific habit of thought, as applied by Mr. Taylor to the
production of high-speed steel, has resulted in speeding up ma¬
chine shops about three to one, and I think it is not unreasonable
to expect that the same habit of thought as applied by him to
the every-day hand work of men will eventually result in doubling
the average output of labor with comparatively little increase
in the physical effort required. The margin for improvement
varies, however, so greatly in different trades and countries that
an accurate estimate cannot well be made.
ON THE ART OF CUTTING METALS
BY FREDERICK W. TAYLOR
INTRODUCTION BY THE AUTHOR
Reprinted by permission of American Society of Mechanical Engineers
Presented at the New York Meeting (December, 1906) of The American
Society of Mechanical Engineers, being the President's Annual Address.
The experiments described in this paper were undertaken to
obtain a part of the information necessary to establish in a
machine shop our system of management, the central idea of
which is :
To give each workman each day in advance a definite task,
with detailed written instructions, and an exact time allowance
for each element of the work.
To pay extraordinarily high wages to those who perform their
tasks in the allotted time, and ordinary wages to those who take
more than their time allowance.
There are three questions which must be answered each day in
every machine shop by every machinist who is running a metal-
cutting machine, such as a lathe, planer, drill press, milling
machine, etc., namely:
(a) What Tool shall I use ?
(b) What Cutting Speed shall I use ?
(c) What Feed shall I use ?
Our investigations, which were started 26 years ago with the
definite purpose of finding the true answer to these questions
under all the varying conditions of machine shop practice have
been carried on up to the present time with this as the main object
still in view.
The writer will confine himself almost exclusively to an attemp¬
ted solution of this problem as it affects " roughing work i. e.y
the preparation of the forgings or casting for the final finishing cut,
which is taken only in those cases where great accuracy or high
24.3
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
243
finish is called for. Fine finishing cuts will not be dealt with.
Our principal object will be to describe the fundamental laws and
principles which will enable us to do " roughing work " in the
shortest time, whether the cuts are light or heavy, whether the
work is rigid or elastic, and whether the machine tools are light
and of small driving power or heavy and rigid with ample driving
power.
In other words, our problem is to take the work and machines
as we find them in a machine shop, and by properly changing the
countershaft speeds, equipping the shop with tools of the best
quality and shapes, and then making a slide rule for each machine
to enable an intelligent mechanic with the aid of these slide rules
to tell each workman how to do each piece of work in the qmckest
time.
It is to be distinctly understood that this is not a vague,
Utopian result, to be hoped for in the future, but that it is an
accomplished fact, and has been the daily practice in our machine
shops for several years; and that the three great questions, as to
shape of tools, speed, and feed, above referred to, are daily
answered for all of the men in each shop far better by our one
trained mechanic with the aid of his slide rule than they were
formerly by the many machinists, each one of whom ran his own
machine, etc., to suit his foreman or himself.
It may seem strange to say that a slide rule enables a good
mechanic to double the output of a machine which has been run,
for example, for ten years by a first class machinist having excep¬
tional knowledge of and experience with his machine, and who has
been using his best judgment. Yet, our observation shows that,
on the average, this understates the fact.
To make the reason for this more clear it should be imderstood
that the man with the aid of his slide rule is called upon to deter¬
mine the effect which each of the twelve elements or variables
given below has upon the choice of cutting speed and feed; and
it will be evident that the mechanic, expert or mathematician
does not live who, without the aid of a slide rule or its equivalent,
can hold in his head these twelve variables and measure their
joint effect upon the problem.
244
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
These twelve elements or variables are as follows:
{a) the quality of the metal which is to be cut;
(¿>) the diameter of the work;
(c) the depth of the cut;
{d) the thickness of the shaving;
{e) the elasticity of the work and of the tool;
(/) the shape or contour of the cutting edge of the tool,
together with its clearance and lip angles;
(¿) the chemical composition of the steel from which the
tool is made, and the heat treatment of the tool;
(Ji) whether a copious stream of water, or other cooling
medium, is used on the tool;
(y) the duration of the cut; i. e., the time which a tool
must last under pressure of the shaving without being
reground;
{k) the pressure of the chip or shaving upon the tool;
(/) the changes of speed and feed possible in the lathe;
(w) the pulling and feeding power of the lathe.
Broadly speaking, the problem of studying the effect of each of
the above variables upon the cutting speed and of making this
study practically useful, may be divided into four sections as
follows :
{a) The determination by a series of experiments of the im¬
portant facts or laws connected with the art of cutting metals.
(6) The finding of mathematical expressions for these laws
which are so simple as to be suited to daily use.
(c) The investigation of the limitations and possibilities of
metal cutting machines.
id) The development of an instrument (a slide rule) which
embodies, on the one hand, the laws of cutting metals, and on the
other, the possibilities and limitations of the particular lathe or
planer, etc., to which it applies and which can be used by a
machinist without mathematical training to quickly indicate in
each case the speed and feed which will do the work quickest
and best.
In the fall of 1880, the machinists in the small machine shop of
the Midvale Steel Company, Philadelphia, most of whom were
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
24s
working on piece work in machining locomotive tires, car axles,
and miscellaneous forgings, had combined to d© only a certain
nxunber of pieces per day on each type of work. The writer, who
was the newly appointed foreman of the shop, realized that it was
possible for the men to do in all cases much more work per day
than they were accomplishing. He found, however, that his
efforts to get the men to increase their output were blocked by
the fact that his knowledge of just what combination of depth
of cut, feed and cutting speed would in each case do the work in
the shortest time was much less accurate than that of the
machinists who were combined against him. His conviction
that the men were not doing half as much as they should do,
however, was so strong that he obtained the permission of the
management to make a series of experiments to investigate the
laws of cutting metals with a view to obtaining a knowledge at
least equal to that of the combined machinists who were under
him. He expected that these experiments would last not longer
than six months.
With the exception of a few comparatively short periods, how¬
ever, these experiments have continued until the present time,
through a term of about 26 years.
The writer wishes to call attention to the fact that in these first
experiments he was far more fortimate than almost all of the
experimenters who have investigated the subject since then, in
having at his disposal a comparatively large mass of uniform
metal to work upon, and a comparatively large and powerful
machine to work with, a 66 inch diameter boring mill and large
locomotive tires made of hard tire steel of uniform quality having
been used. He was also especially fortunate in having over him
as president of the company, Mr. William Sellers, who, as is well
known, was one of the most patient and broad-minded experi¬
menters of his day. Mr. Sellers, in spite of the protests which
were made against the continuation of this work, allowed the
experiments to proceed; even, at first, at a very considerable
inconvenience and loss to the shop. The extent of this incon¬
venience will be appreciated when it is understood that we were
using a 66 inch diameter vertical boring mill, belt-driven by the
246
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
usual cone pulleys, and that in order to regulate the exact cutting
speed of the tool it was necessary to slow down the speed of the
engine that drove all of the shafting in the shop; a special adjust¬
able engine governor having been bought for this purpose. For
over two years the whole shop was inconvenienced in this way,
by having the speed of its main line of shafting greatly varied, not
only from day to day but from hour to hour. Before the two
years had elapsed, however, the writer had obtained such valu¬
able and unexpected results from the experiments as to much
more than justify all of the annoyance and expenditure, and soon
after that he readily obtained permission to employ a young
technical graduate to devote his whole time to the continuation of
this work.
Mr. G. M. Sinclair, a graduate of Stevens Institute of Technol¬
ogy, devoted his entire time to this work from 1884 to 1887, when
he left the employ of the company.
Mr. H. L. Gantt, also a graduate of Stevens Institute suc¬
ceeded Mr. Sinclair in July, 1887, and has been interested with us
in carrying on these experiments throughout their whole period.
In 1898 Mr. Maunsel White, of Bethlehem, another graduate
of Stevens Institute, joined us and has been actively interested in
our work up to this time.
Mr. Carl G. Barth, a graduate of The Technical School of
Horten, Norway, joined us in 1899, and is still actively working
on our investigations.
During these years we have consulted so freely together in all
matters relating to these experiments that with few exceptions
hardly a step has been taken which can be said to have originated
with any one man. Therefore, whatever credit or blame may
come to this work should be impartially divided among us. In
writing this paper, then, no effort will be made to discriminate,
as to the results which have been obtained in our investigations,
between the work of one man and another.
Mr. White is undoubtedly a much more accomplished metallur¬
gist than any of the rest of us; Mr. Gantt is a better all-round
manager, and the writer of this paper has perhaps the faculty of
holding on tighter with his teeth than any of the others. It
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
247
should be said, however, that Mr. Barth, who is a very much
better mathematician than any of the rest of us, has devoted a
large part of his time during the last years of these experiments to
carrying on the mathematical work along the lines laid out, and
that without his special ability and untiring energy our progress
would have been much slower, indeed it is doubtful whether we
should have ever reached the present solution of the problem
without his aid.
In addition to the five men who have mainly directed and car¬
ried on this work, the writer wishes to acknowledge the most loyal
and efficient aid and cooperation of many others who have assisted
in the actual running of the machines and in recording or tabulat¬
ing the data. Among these, he would particularly mention Mr.
Dwight V. Merrick, Mr. D. C. Fenner, Mr. James Kellogg, Mr.
Sidney Newbold, Mr. Joseph Weiden, Mr. N. W. Wickersham,
Mr. Edward Kneisley, and Mr. Leonard G. Backstrom.
Our experiments were continued in the works of the Midvale
Steel Company until 1889, when the writer left their employ.
Since then, these investigations have been carried on in various
shops and at the expense of different companies. Among these,
we would especially acknowledge our indebtedness to the
Cramp's Shipbuilding Company, Messrs. Wm. Sellers & Co., the
Link-Belt Engineering Company, Messrs. Dodge & Day, and,
more than all, to the Bethlehem Steel Company.
In carrying on this work more than ten machines have been
fitted up at various times with special driving apparatus and the
other needed appliances, all machines used since 1894 having been
equipped with electric drives, so as to obtain any desired cutting
speed. The thoroughness with which the work has been done
may perhaps be better appreciated when it is understood that we
have made between thirty and fifty thousand recorded experi¬
ments, and mañ^others"orwEch noTecord was kept. In study-
ing these laws we nave cut up into chips with our experimental
tools more tfiaiT ^oqlooo^pou^^^ "of steel and iron. More than
Sixteen thousand experiments were recorded in the Bethlehem
Steel Company. We estimate that up to date between $150,000
and $200,000 have been spent upon this work, and it is a very
248
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
great satisfaction to feel that those whose generosity has enabled
us to carry on the experiments have received ample return for
their money through the increased output and the economy in
running their shops which have resulted from our experiments.
Throughout the whole 26 years we have succeeded in keeping
almost all of these laws secret, and in fact since 1889 this has been
our means of obtaining the money needed to carry on the work.
We have never sold any information connected with this art for
cash, but we have given to one company after another all of
the data and conclusions arrived at through our experiments in
consideration for the opportunity of still further continuing our
work. In one shop after another machines have been fitted up
for our use, workmen furnished us to nm them, and especially
prepared tools, forgings and castings supplied in exchange for the
data which we had obtained to date; and we have the best indica¬
tion that they received full value for the money spent from the
fact that the same company fitted up for us at intervals of several
years three sets of apparatus, the additional knowledge obtained
each time evidently warranting them in making the added
outlay.
During this period all of the companies who were given this
information, and all of the men who worked upon the experi¬
ments, were bound by promises to the writer not to give any of
this information away nor to allow it to be published. Most of
these promises were verbal; and in this day when there is so
much talk about dishonesty and graft in connection with some of
our corporations and prominent business men, it is a notable fact
that through a period of 26 years it has not come to our knowl¬
edge that any one of the many men or companies connected with
this work has broken a promise. The writer has his doubts
whether any other country can produce a parallel record of such
widespread good faith among its engineers and mechanics.
It seems to us that the time has now come for the engineering
fraternity to have the results of our work, in spite of the fact that
this will cut off our former means of financing the experiments.
However, we are in hopes that the money required to complete
this work may be obtained from some other source.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
249
The writer has no doubt that many of the discoveries and con¬
clusions which mark the progress of this work have been and are
well known to other engineers, and we do not record them with
any certainty that we were the first to discover or formulate them,
but merely to indicate some of the landmarks in the develop¬
ment of our own experiments, which to us were new and of
value. The following is a record of some of our more important
steps:
{a) In 1881, the discovery that a round-nosed tool could be run
under given conditions at a much higher cutting speed and there¬
fore turn out much more work than the old-fashioned diamond-
pointed tool.
ih) In 1881, the demonstration that, broadly speaking, the
use of coarse feeds accompanied by their necessarily slow cutting
speeds would do more work than fine feeds with their accom¬
panying high speeds.
(c) In 1883, the discovery that a heavy stream of water poured
directly upon the chip at the point where it is being removed from
the steel forging by the tool, would permit an increase in cutting
speed, and, therefore, in the amount of work done of from 30 to
40 per cent. In 1884, a new machine shop was built for the Mid-
vale Steel Works, in the construction of which this discovery
played a most important part; each machine being set in a
wrought iron pan in which was collected the water (supersatu¬
rated with carbonate of soda to prevent rusting), which was
thrown in a heavy stream upon the tool for the purpose of cooling
it. The water from each of these pans was carried through suit¬
able drain pipes beneath the floor to a central well from which it
was pumped to an overhead tank from which a system of supply
pipes led to each machine. Up to that time, so far as the writer
knows, the use of water for cooling tools was confined to small
cans or tanks from which only a minute stream was allowed to
trickle upon the tool and the work, more for the purpose of obtain¬
ing a water finish on the work than with the object of cooling the
tool; and, in fact, these small streams of water are utterly inade¬
quate for the latter purpose. So far as the writer knows, in spite
of the fact that the shops of the Midvale Steel Works until
250
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
recently have been open to the public since 1884 no other shop in
this country was similarly fitted up until that of the Bethlehem
Steel Company in 1899, with the one exception of a small steel
works which was an offshoot in personnel from the Midvale Steel
Company.
{d) In 1883, the completion of a set of experiments with round
nosed tools; first, with varying thicknesses of feed when the
depth of the cut was maintained constant; and, second, with
varying depths of cut while the feed remained constant, to
determine the effect of these two elements on the cutting
speed.
(e) In 1883, the demonstration of the fact that the longer a
tool is called upon to work continuously under pressure of a
shaving, the slower must be the cutting speed, and the exact de¬
termination of the effect of the duration of the cut upon the
cutting speed.
(/) In 1883, the development of formulae which gavemathemat-
ical expression to the two broad laws above referred to. Fortu¬
nately these formulae were of the type capable of logarithmic
expression and therefore suited to the gradual mathematical
development extending through a long period of years, which
resulted in making our slide rules, and solved the whole problem in
1901.
(g) In 1883, the experimental determination of the pressure
upon the tool required on steel tires to remove cuts of varying
depths and thickness of shaving.
(h) In 1883, the starting of a set of experiments on belting
described in a paper published in Transactions, Vol. 15 (1894).
{j) In 1883, the measurement of the power required to feed a
round-nosed tool with varying depths of cut and thickness of
shaving when cutting a steel tire. This experiment showed that
a very dull tool required as much pressure to feed it as to drive the
cut. This was one of the most important discoveries made by us,
and as a result all steel cutting machines purchased since that
time by the Midvale Steel Company have been supplied with
feeding power equal to their driving power and very greatly in
excess of that used on standard machine tools.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 251
(k) In 1884, the design of an automatic grinder for grinding
tools in lots and the construction of a tool room for storing and
issuing tools ready ground to the men.
(/) From 1885 to 1889, the making of a series of practical tables
for a number of machines in the shops of the Mid vale Steel Com¬
pany, by the aid of which it was possible to give definite tasks
each day to the machinists who were running machines, and which
resulted in a great increase in their output.
(m) In 1886, the demonstration that the thickness of the chip or
layer of metal removed by the tool has a much greater effect upon
the cutting speed than any other element, and the practical use
of this knowledge in making and putting into everyday use in our
shops a series of broad-nosed cutting tools which enabled us to
run with a coarse feed at as high a speed as had been before
attained with round-nosed tools when using a fine feed, thus sub¬
stituting, for a considerable portion of the work, coarse feeds
and high speeds for our old maxim of coarse feeds and slow
speeds.
(n) In 1894 and 1895, the discovery that a greater proportional
gain could be made in cutting soft metals through the use of tools
made from self-hardening steels than in cutting hard metals, the
gain made by the use of self-hardening tools over tempered tools
in cutting soft cast iron being almost 90 per cent, whereas the
gain in cutting hard steels or hard cast iron was only about 45 per
cent. Up to this time, the use of Mushet and other self-harden¬
ing tools had been almost exclusively confined to cutting hard
metals, a few tools made of Mushet steel being kept on hand in
every shop for special use on hard castings or forgings which could
not be cut by the tempered tools. This experiment resulted in
substituting self-hardening tools for tempered tools for all " rough¬
ing work " throughout the machine shop.
(j>) In 1894 and 1895, the discovery that in cutting wrought
iron or steel a heavy stream of water thrown upon the shaving
at the nose of the tool produced a gain in cutting speed of self-
hardening tools of about 33 per cent. Up to this time the makers
of self-hardening steel had warned users never to use water on
the tools.
252
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
(q) From 1898 to 1900, the discovery and development of the
Tay lor-White process of treating tools; namely, the discovery
that tools made from chromium-tungsten steels when heated to
the melting point would do from two to four times as much
work as other tools.
(r) In 1899-1902, the development of our slide rules, which
are so simple that they enable an ordinary workman to make
practical and rapid everyday use in the shop of all the laws and
formulae deduced from our experiments.
(5) In 1906, the discovery that a heavy stream of water poured
directly upon the chip at the point where it is being removed
from cast iron by the tool would permit an increase in cutting
speed, and therefore, in the amount of work done, of 16 per
cent.
(/) In 1906, the discovery that by adding a small quantity of
vanadium to tool steel to be used for making modern high speed
chromium-tungsten tools heated to near the melting point, the
hardness and endurance of tools, as well as their cutting speeds,
are materially improved.
While many of the results of these experiments are both inter¬
esting and valuable, we regard as of by far the greatest value that
portion of our experiments and of our mathematical work which
has resulted in the development of the slide rules; i. e., the patient
investigation and mathematical expression of the exact effect
upon the cutting speed of such elements as the shape of the cutting
edge of the tool, the thickness of the shaving, the depth of the cut,
the quality of the metal being cut and the duration of the cut, etc.
This work enables us to fix a daily task with a definite time allow¬
ance for each workman who is running a machine tool, and to pay
the men a bonus for rapid work.
The gain from these slide rules is far greater than that of all the
other improvements combined, because it accomplishes the orig¬
inal object, for which in 1880 the experiments were started; i. e.,
that of taking the control of the machine shop out of the hands of
the many workmen, and placing it completely in the hands of the
management, thus superseding " rule of thumb " by scientific
control.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
253
By far the most difficult and illusive portion of this work has
been the mathematical side: first, finding simple formulae which
expressed with approximate accuracy the effect of each of the
numerous variables upon the cutting speed; and, second, finding
a rapid method of using these formulae in the solution of the daily
machine shop problems. Several times during the progress of
this mathematical work, the writer, feeling himself completely
baffled, has asked the expert assistance of some of the best mathe¬
maticians in the country. They all smiled when told that we
expected to solve mathematically a problem containing twelve
variables, and in each case, after keeping the formulae before them
for a longer or shorter time, returned the problem to the writer
with the statement that it belonged distinctly in the realm of
" rule of thumb " or empiricism, and could be solved only by the
slow method of trial and error.
In the investigation of an art such as that of cutting metals, and
about which at the time our work was started there was so little
scientific knowledge, two types of experiments are possible.
First, the thoroughly scientific type, in which, after an analysis
of all the variable elements which affect the final result, an at¬
tempt is made to hold all of the elements constant and uniform,
except the one variable which is under investigation, and this one
is systematically changed and its effect upon the problem care¬
fully noted.
It is to this t3^e that our experiments belong, thanks mainly to
the fact that Mr. William Sellers (one of the most scientific experi¬
menters of his day) was president of the Midvale Steel Company
when the writer started his work.
Second, the type of experiments in which the effect of two or
more variables upon the problem is investigated at the same time
and in the same experiment.
This method is of course much quicker than the thoroughly
sciéntific t3q)e, and it is largely for this reason, in the opinion of
the writer, that almost all of the other experimenters in this field
have chosen it. Several of the experiments of this type have
proved most valuable and developed much useful information,
and it is with hesitancy that the writer criticises the work of any
254
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of these experimenters, since he appreciates most keenly the
difficulties under which they worked, and is grateful for the infor¬
mation contributed by them to the art. After much considera¬
tion, however, he has decided to point out what he believes to be
a few errors made by these experimenters, with the same object
which he has in indicating our own false steps: namely, that of
warning future investigators against similar errors.
Almost the whole course of our experiments is marked by
imperfections in our methods, which, as we have realized them,
have led us to go again more carefully over the ground previously
traveled. These errors may be divided into three principal
classes :
(a) The adoption of wrong or inadequate standards for measur¬
ing the effect of each of the variables upon the cutting speed.
(b) Failure on our part from various causes to hold all of the
variables constant except the one which was being systematically
changed in order to study the effect of these changes upon the
cutting speed.
(c) The omission either through oversight or carelessness on
our part of some one of the precautions which should be taken
to insure accuracy, or failure to record some of the phenomena
considered unimportant at the time, but which afterward proved
to be essential to a complete understanding of the facts.
In the second portion of this paper will be given in detail a
statement of the appliances, methods and principles which we
believe to be necessary to use in order to obtain reliable results.
For the purpose of a more general discussion of the subject, how¬
ever, it seems important to anticipate this portion of the paper by
describing in detail the standard which we have finally adopted
as a true criterion for determining the effect of each of the vari¬
ables upon the cutting speed.
The effect of each variable upon the problem is best deter¬
mined by finding the exact rate of cutting speed (say, in feet per
minute) which shall cause the tool to be completely ruined after
having been run for 20 minutes under uniform conditions.
For example, if we wish to investigate the effect which a change'
in the thickness of the feed has upon the cutting speed, it is neces-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
255
sary to make a number of tools which are in all respects uniform,
as to the exact shape of their cutting edge, their clearance and lip
angles, their chemical composition and their heat treatment.
These tools must then be run one after another, each for a period
of 20 minutes, throughout which time the cutting speed is main¬
tained exactly uniform. Each tool should be run at a little faster
cutting speed than its predecessor, until that cutting speed has
been found which will cause the tool to be completely ruined at
the end of 20 minutes (with an allowance of a minute or two each
side of the 20 minute mark). In this way that cutting speed is
found which corresponds to the particular thickness of shaving
which is under investigation.
A change is then made in the thickness of the shaving, and
another set of 20 minute runs is made, with a series of similar
uniform tools, until the cutting speed corresponding to the new
thickness of feed has been determined; and by continuing in this
way all of the cutting speeds are found which correspond to the
various changes of feed. In the meantime, every precaution
must be taken to maintain uniform all the other elements or
variables which affect the cutting speed, such as the depth of the
cut and the quality of the metal being cut; and the rate of the
cutting speed must be frequently tested during each 20 minute
run to be sure that it is uniform.
The cutting speeds corresponding to varying feeds are then
plotted as points upon a curve, and a mathematical expression is
found which represents the law of the effect of feed upon cutting
speed. We believe that this standard or method of procedure
constitutes the very foundation of successful investigation in this
art; and it is from this standpoint that we propose to criticise
both our own experiments and those made by other investiga¬
tors.
It was only after about 14 years* work that we found that the
best measure for the value of a tool lay in the exact cutting speed
at which it was completely ruined at the end of 20 minutes. In
the meantime, we had made one set of experiments after another
as we successively found the errors due to our earlier standards,
and realized and remedied the defects in our apparatus and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
methods; and we have now arrived at the interesting though
rather humiliating conclusion that with our present knowledge of
methods and apparatus, it would be entirely practicable to obtain
through four or five years of experimenting all of the information
which we have spent 26 years in getting.
The following are some of the more important errors made by
us:
We wasted much time by testing tools for a shorter cutting
period than 20 minutes, and then having found that tools which
were apparently uniform in all respects gave most erratic results
(particularly in cutting steel) when run for a shorter period than
20 minutes; we erred in the other direction by running our tools
for periods of 30 or 40 minutes each, and in this way used up in
each single experiment so much of the forging that it was impos¬
sible to make enough experiments in cutting metal of uniform
quality to get conclusive results. We finally settled on a run of
20 minutes as being the best all-round criterion, and have seen no
reason for modifying this conclusion up to date.
We next thought a proper criterion for judging the effect of a
given element upon the cutting speed lay in determining the partic¬
ular cutting speed which would just cause a tool to be slightly
discolored below the cutting edge at the end of the 20 minutes.
After wasting six months in experimenting with this as our stand¬
ard, we found that it was not a true measure; and then adopted as
a criterion a certain definite dulling or rubbing away of the cutting
edge. Later it was found, however, that each thickness of feed
had corresponding to it a certain degree of dullness or injury to
the cutting edge at which point regrinding was necessary (the
thicker the shaving the duller the tool should be before grinding) ;
and a third series of experiments was made with this as a standard.
While experimenting on light forging a standard dullness of tool
was used which was just sufficient to push the forging and tool
apart and so slightly alter the diameter of the work. All of these
criterions were discarded, however, when in 1894 we finally hit
upon the true standard, above described, of completely ruining
the tool in 20 minutes.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
257
As will be pointed out later in the paper, this standard demands
both a very large and expensive machine to experiment with, and
also large, heavy masses of metal to work upon, which is unfor¬
tunate; but we believe without apparatus and methods of this
kind it is out of the question to accurately determine the laws
which are sought.
Experiments upon the art of cutting metals (at least those
experiments which have been recorded) have been mainly under¬
taken by scientific men, mostly by professors. It is but natural
that the scientific man should lean toward experiments which
require the use of apparatus and that type of scientific observa¬
tion which is beyond the scope of the ordinary mechanic, or even
of engineers unless they have been especially trained in this kind
of observation. It is perhaps for this reason more than any other
that in this art several of those elements which are of the greatest
importance have received no attention from experimenters, while
far less fruitful although more complicated elements have been
the subject of extended experiments.
As an illustration of this fact we would call attention to two of
the most simple of all of the elements which have been left entirely
untouched by all experimenters, namely:
{a) the effect of cooling the tool through pouring a heavy
stream of water upon it, which results in a gain of
40 per cent in cutting speed;
(h) the effect of the contour or outline of the cutting edge of
the tool upon the cutting speed, which when prop¬
erly designed results in an equally large percentage
of gain.
Both of these elements can be investigated at comparatively
small cost, and with comparatively simple apparatus, while that
element which has received chief attention from experimenters,
namely, the pressure of the chip on the tool, calls for elaborate
and expensive apparatus and is almost barren of useful results.
This should be a warning to all men proposing to make experi¬
ments in any field, first, to look thoroughly over the whole field,
and, at least, carefully consider all of the elements from which any
practical results may be expected; and then to select the more
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
simple and elementary of these and properly investigate them
before engaging in the more complicated work.i
It is a noteworthy fact that when thorough investigations are
attempted by earnest men in new fields, while frequently the
object aimed at is not attained, yet quite often discoveries are
made which are entirely foreign to the purpose for which the
investigation was undertaken. And it may be said that the
indirect results of careful scientific work are, generally speaking,
fully as valuable as the direct. Two interesting illustrations of
this fact have been furnished by our experiments.
The discovery of the Tay lor-White process of treating tools by
heating them almost to the melting point, or, in other words, the
introduction of modern high speed tools the world over, was the
indirect result of one of our lines of investigation.
The demonstration of the fact that the rules for using belting
in common practice furnished belts which were entirely too light
for economy was also one of the indirect results of our experi¬
ments.
The manner of making these discoveries was each time in a
way so typical of what may be expected in similar cases that it
would seem worth while to describe it in some detail.
During the winter of 1894-95, the writer conducted an
investigation in the shop of Wm. Sellers & Co., at the joint
expense of Messrs. William Cramp & Sons, shipbuilders, and
Messrs. Wm. Sellers & Co., to determine which make of self-
hardening tool steel was, on the whole, the best to adopt as stand¬
ard for all of the roughing tools of these two shops.
As a result of this work, the choice was narrowed down at that
time to two makes of tool steel: (i) the celebrated Mushet self-
hardening steel, the chemical composition of the particular bar
analyzed at this time being as follows:
Tungsten
Per Cent
Chromium
Per Cent
Carbon
Per Cent
Manganese
Per Cent
Silicon
Per Cent
Phosphorus
Per Cent
Sulphur
Per Cent
5-441
0.398
2.150
1-578
1.044
1 Here follows a descriotion and criticism of certain experiments made in
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
259
and (2) a self-hardening steel made by the Midvale Steel Com¬
pany of the following chemical composition:
Tungsten
Per Cent
Chromium
Per Cent
Carbon
Per Cent
Manganese
Per Cent
Silicon
Per Cent
Phosphorus
Per Cent
Sulphur
Per Cent
7723
1.830
II43
0.180
0.246
0.023
0.008
Of these two steels, the tools made from the Midvale steel were
shown to be capable of running at rather higher cutting speeds.
The writer himself heated hundreds of tools of these makes in the
course of his experiments in order to accurately determine the
best temperatures for forging and heating them prior to grinding
so as to get the best cutting speeds. In these experiments he
found that the Mushet steel if overheated crumbled badly when
struck even a light blow on the anvil, while the Midvale steel
if overheated showed no tendency to crumble, but, on the other
hand, was apparently permanently injured. In fact, heating
these tools slightly beyond a bright cherry red caused them to
permanently fall down in their cutting speeds; and the writer
was unable at that time to find any subsequent heat treatment
which would restore a tool broken down in this way to its original
good condition. This defect in the Midvale tools left us in doubt
as to whether the Mushet or the Midvale was, on the whole, the
better to adopt as a shop standard.
In the summer of 1898, soon after undertaking the reorganiza¬
tion of the management of the Bethlehem Steel Company, the
writer decided to continue the experiments just referred to with a
view to ascertaining whether in the meanwhile some better tool
steel had not been developed. After testing several additional
makes of tools, our experiments indicated that the Midvale self-
hardening tools could be run if properly heated at slightly higher
speeds than those of any other make.
Upon deciding to adopt this steel as our standard the writer
had a number of tools of each make of steel carefully dressed and
ground to exactly the same shape. He then called the foremen
and superintendents of the machine shops of the Bethlehem Steel
26o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Company to the experimental lathe so that they could be con¬
vinced by seeing an actual trial of all of the tools that the Midvale
steel was, on the whole, the best. In this test, however, the
Midvale tools proved to be worse than those of any other make;
i. e., they ran at slower cutting speeds. This result was rather
humiliating to us as experimenters who had spent several weeks
in the investigation.
It was of course the first impression of the writer that these
tools had been overheated in the smith shop. Upon careful
inquiry among the smiths, however, it seemed as though they had
taken special pains to dress them at a low heat, although the
matter was left in much doubt. The writer, therefore, deter¬
mined to make a thorough investigation before finally adopting
the Midvale steel as our shop standard to discover if possible
some heat treatment which would restore Midvale tools injured
in their heating (whether they had been underheated or over¬
heated) to their original good condition.
For this purpose Mr. White and the writer started a carefully
laid out series of experiments, in which tools were to be heated at
temperatures increasing, say, by about 50 degrees all the way from
a black heat to the melting point. These tools were then to be
ground and run in the experimental lathe upon a uniform forging,
so as to find:
(a) that heat at which the highest cutting speed could be
attained (which our previous experiments had
shown to be a cherry red) ;
(b) to accurately determine the exact danger point at
which if over or underheated these tools were
seriously injured;
(c) to find some heat treatment by which injured tools
could be restored to their former high cutting speeds.
These experiments corroborated our Cramp-Sellers experiments,
showing that the tools were seriously broken down or injured by
overheating, say, somewhere between 1550 degrees F. and 1700
degrees F. ; but to our great surprise, tools heated up to or above
the high heat of 1725 degrees F. proved better than any of those
heated to the best previous temperature, namely, a bright cherry
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 201
red; and from 1725° F. up to the incipient point of fusion of the
tools, the higher they were heated, the higher the cutting speeds
at which they would run.
Thus, the discovery that phenomenal results could be obtained
by heating tools close to the melting point, which was so com¬
pletely revolutionary and directly the opposite of all previous
heat treatment of tools, was the indirect result of an accurate
scientific effort to investigate as to which brand of tool steel was,
on the whole, the best to adopt as a shop standard^ neither Mr.
White nor the writer having the slightest idea that overheating
beyond the bright cherry red would do anything except injure the
tool more and more the higher it was heated.
During our early Midvale Steel Company experiments, extend¬
ing from 1880 to 1883, the writer had so much trouble in maintain¬
ing the tension of the belt used in driving the boring mill upon
which he was experimenting that he concluded: (i) that belting
rules in common use furnished belts entirely too light for economy ;
and (2) that the proper way to take care of belting was to have
each belt in a shop tightened at regular intervals with belt clamps
especially fitted with spring balances, with which the tension of
the belt was accurately weighed every time it was tightened, each
belt being retightened each time to exactly the same tension.
In 1884, the writer designed and superintended the erection of
a new machine shop for the Midvale Steel Company, and this
gave him the opportunity to put these conclusions to a practical
test. About half the belts in the shop were designed according
to the ordinary rules and the other half were made about three
times as heavy as the usual standard. This shop ran day and
night. The belts were in all cases cared for and retightened only
upon written orders sent from the shop ofiice; and an accurate
record was kept through nine years of all items of interest con¬
cerning each belt, namely: the number of hours lost through
interruption to manufacture; the number of times each belt
interrupted manufacture; the original cost of each belt; the
detail costs of tightening, cleaning and repairing each belt; the
fall in the tension before requiring retightening; and the time
each belt would run without being retightened. Thus at the end
202
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of nine years these belts furnished a record which demonstrated
beyond question many important facts connected with the use of
belting, the principal of these being that the ordinary rules gave
belts only about one-half as heavy as should be used for economy.^
This belting experiment illustrates again the good that often
comes indirectly from experiments undertaken in an entirely
different field.
After many years of close personal contact with our mechanics,
I have great confidence in their good judgment and common sense
in the long run, and I am proud to number many of them among
my most intimate friends.
As a class, however, they are extremely conservative, and if
left to themselves their progress from the older toward better
methods will be exceedingly slow. And my experience is that
rapid improvement can only be brought about through constant
and heavy pressure from those who are over them.
It must be said, therefore, that to get any great benefit from
the laws derived from these experiments, our slide rules must be
used, and these slide rules will be of but little, if any, value under
the old style of management, in which the machinist is left with
the final decision as to what shape of tool, depth of cut, speed, and
feed, he will use.
The slide rules cannot be left at the lathe to be banged about
by the machinist. They must be used by a man with reasonably
clean hands, and at a table or desk, and this man must write his
instructions as to speed, feed, depth of cut, etc., and send them
to the machinist well in advance of the time that the work is to be
done. Even if these written instructions are sent to the machinist,
however, little attention will be paid to them unless rigid stand¬
ards have been not only adopted, but enforced, throughout the
shop for every detail, large and small, of the shop eqxiipment, as
1 The writer presented a paper to this Society in 1893 (published in TransaC'
Hons, Vol. 15) upon this series of experiments. He has since found, however, that
in the minds of many readers the value of the conclusions arrived at has been
seriously brought into question largely through the criticism of one man, which at
the time appeared to the writer so ridiculous that he made the mistake of thinking
it not worth answering in detail. This should be a warning to writers to answer
carefully all criticisms, however foolish.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
well as for all shop methods. And, further, but little can be
accomplished with these laws unless the old style foreman and
shop superintendent have been done away with, and functional
foremanship has been substituted, — consisting of speed bosses,
gang bosses, order of work men, inspector, time study men, etc.
In fact, the correct use of slide rules involves the substitution of
our whole task system of management for the old style manage¬
ment, as described in our paper on " Shop Management " {Trans¬
actions, Vol. 24). This involves such radical, one might almost
say, revolutionary, changes in the mental attitude and habits
both of the workmen and of the management, and the danger
from strikes is so great and the chances for failure are so
many, that such a reorganization should only be undertaken
under the direct control (not advice but control) of men who
have had years of experience and training in introducing this
system.
A long time will be required in any shop to bring about this
radically new order of things; but in the end the gain is so great
that I say without hesitation that there is hardly a machine shop
in the country whose output cannot be doubled through the use
of these methods. And this applies not only to large shops, but
also to comparatively small establishments. In a company
whose employees all told, including officers and salesmen, number
about one hundred and fifty men, we have succeeded in more than
doubling the output of the shop, and in converting an annual loss
of 20 per cent upon the old volume of business into an annual
profit of more than 20 per cent upon the new volume of business,
and at the same time rendering a lot of disorganized and dissatis¬
fied workmen contented and hard working, by insuring them an
average increase of about 35 per cent in their wages. And I take
this opportunity of again saying that those companies are indeed
fortunate who can secure the services of men to direct the intro¬
duction of this t)q)e of management who have had sufficient
training and experience to insure success.^
^ The writer feels free to give this advice most emphatically without danger of
having his motives misinterpreted, since he has himself given up accepting profes¬
sional engagements in this held.
264
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Unfortunately those fundamental ideas upon which the new
task management rests mainly for success are directly antago¬
nistic to the fundamental ideas of the old type of management.
To give two out of many examples: Under our system the work¬
man is told minutely just what he is to do and how he is to do it;
and any improvement which he makes upon the orders given him
is fatal to success. While, with the old style, the workman is
expected to constantly improve upon his orders and former
methods. Under our system, any improvement, large or small,
once decided upon goes into immediate use, and is never allowed
to lapse or become obsolete, while under the old system, the
innovation unless it meets with the approval of the mechanic
(which it never does at the start) is generally for a long time, at
least, a positive impediment to success. Thus, many of those
elements which are mainly responsible for the success of our
system are failures and a positive clog when grafted on to the old
system.
For this reason the really great gain which will ultimately come
from the use of these slide rules will be slow in arriving — mainly,
as explained, because of the revolutionary changes needed for
their successful use — but it is sure to come in the end.
Too much emphasis cannot be laid upon the fact that stand¬
ardization really means simplification. It is far simpler to have
in a standardized shop two makes of tool steel than to have 20
makes of tool steel, as wiU be found in shops under the old style of
management. It is far simpler to have all of the tools in a stand¬
ardized shop ground by one man to a few simple but rigidly
maintained shapes than to have, as is usual in the old style shop,
each machinist spend a portion of each day at the grindstone,
grinding his tools with radically wrong curves and cutting
angles, merely because bad shapes are easier to grind than good.
Hundreds of similar illustrations could be given showing the true
simplicity (not complication) which accompanies the new type
of management.
There is, however, one element in which the new type of man¬
agement to all outward appearance is far more complicated than
the old; namely, no standards and no real system of management
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
26s
can be maintained without the supervision and, what is more, the
hard work of men who would be called by the old style of manage¬
ment supernumeraries or non-producers. The man who judges
of the complication of his organization only by looking over the
names of those on the pay-roll and separating the so-called non-
producers from the producers, finds the new style of management
more complicated than the old.
No one doubts for one minute that it is far simpler to run a
shop with a boiler, steam engine, -shafting, pulleys and belts than
it would be to run the same shop with the old fashioned foot
power, yet the boiler, steam engine, shafting, pulleys and belts
require, as supernumeraries or non-producers on the pay-roll, a
fireman, an engineer, an oiler and often a man to look after belts.
The old style manager, however, who judges of complication only
by comparing the number of non-producers with that of the
producers, would find the steam engine merely a complication in
management. The same man, to be logical, would find the whole
drafting force of an engineering establishment merely a complica¬
tion, whereas in fact it is a great simplification over the old
method.
Now our whole system of management is quite accurately
typified by the substitution of an elaborate engine to drive and
control the shop in place of the old-fashioned foot power. There
is no question that our human managing machine, which is
required for the maintenance and the effective use of both stand¬
ard shop details, and standard methods throughout the estab¬
lishment, calls for many more non-producers than are used with
the old style management having its two or three foremen and a
superintendent. The efficiency of our engine of management,
however, compared with the old single foreman is like a shop
engine as compared with foot power or the drafting room as com¬
pared with having the designing done by the pattern maker,
blacksmith and machinist.
A study of the recommendations made throughout this paper
will illustrate the fact that we propose to take all of the important
decisions and planning which vitally affect the output of the shop
out of the hands of the workmen, and centralize them in a few
266
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
men, each of whom is especially trained in the art of making those
decisions and in seeing that they are carried out, each man having
his own particular function in which he is supreme, and not inter¬
fering with the functions of other men. In all this let me say
again that we are aiming at true simplicity, not complication.
There is one recommendation, however, in modern machine
shop practice in making which the writer will probably be accused
of being old-fashioned or ultra-conservative.
Of late years there has been what may be almost termed a
blind rush on the part of those who have wished to increase the
efficiency of their shops toward driving each individual machine
with an independent motor. The writer is firmly convinced
through large personal observation in many shops and through
having himself systematized two electrical works that in perhaps
three cases out of four a properly designed belt drive is preferable
to the individual motor drive for machine tools. There is no
question that through a term of years the total cost, on the one
hand, of individual motors and electrical wiring, coupled with the
maintenance and repairs, of this system will far exceed the first
cost of properly designed shafting and belting plus maintenance
and repairs (in most shops entirely too light belts and counter¬
shafts of inferior design are used, and the belts are not systemat¬
ically cared for by one trained man and this involves a heavy
cost for maintenance). There is no question, therefore, that in
many cases the motor drive means in the end additional compli¬
cation and expense rather than simphcity and economy.
It is at last admitted that there is little, if any, economy in
power obtainable through promiscuous motor driving; and it will
certainly be found to be a safe rule not to adopt an individual
motor for driving any machine tool unless clearly evident and a
large saving can be made by it.
In concluding let me say that we are now but on the threshold
of the coming era of true cooperation. The time is fast going by
for the great personal or individual achievement of any one man
standing alone and without the help of those around him. And
the time is coming when all great things will be done by the co¬
operation of many men in which each man performs that function
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
267
for which he is best suited, each man preserves his own individual¬
ity and is supreme in his particular function, and each man at
the same time loses none of his originality and proper personal
initiative, and yet is controlled by and must work harmoniously
with many other men.
And let me point out that the most important lessons taught
by these experiments, particularly to the younger men, are:
Several men when heartily cooperating, even if of everyday
caliber, can accomplish what would be next to impossible
for any one man even of exceptional ability.
Expensive experiments can be successfully carried on by men
without money, and the most difficult mathematical prob¬
lems can be solved by very ordinary mathematicians;
providing only that they are willing to pay the price in
time, patience and hard work.
The old adage is again made good that all things come to
him who waits, if only he works hard enough in the mean¬
time.
Discussion
Mr. Henry R. Towne. Mr. Taylor's paper on " The Art of
Cutting Metals " is a masterpiece. Based on what is undoubt¬
edly the longest, largest, and most exhaustive series of experi¬
ments ever conducted in this field, its summary of the conclusions
deduced therefrom embodies the most important contribution to
our knowledge of this subject which has ever been made. The
subject itself relates to the foundation on which all of our metal
working industries are built.
2. About 60 years ago, American invention lifted one of the
earliest and most universal of the manual arts from the plane on
which it had stood from the dawn of civilization to the high level
of modern mechanical industry. This was the achievement of
the sewing machine. About 30 years ago, American invention
again took one of the oldest of the manual arts, that of writing,
and brought it fairly within the scope of modern mechanical
development. This was the achievement of the typewriting
machine, The art of forming and tempering metal tools un-
208
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
doubtedly is coeval with the passing of the stone age, and there¬
fore in antiquity is at least as old, if indeed it does not outrank,
the arts of sewing and of writing. Like them, it has remained
almost unchanged from the beginning until nearly the present
time. The work of Mr. Taylor and his associates has lifted it at
once from the plane of empiricism and tradition to the high level
of modern science,, and apparently has gone far to reduce it
almost to an exact science. In no other field of original research,
that I can recall, has investigation, starting from so low a point,
attained so high a level as the result of a single continued
effort.
3. Measured by originality and comprehensiveness Mr.
Taylor's paper undoubtedly is the most important thus far con¬
tributed to the Transactions of this Society. With perfect
modesty it makes no claim to sole credit for the achievements it
records, awarding due praise to all who were associated in the
work, and recognizing that the work itself was made possible by
the rapidly developing opportunities which modern materials,
processes, and machines have made available, but which pre¬
viously had not been fully appreciated or utilized. To Mr.
Taylor is due all credit for being among the first to perceive these
opportunities, to appreciate their possible significance, and, with
endless patience and consummate skill, maintained through 26
years with unfaltering persistence and despite all discourage¬
ments, to carry forward his undertaking to its successful issue.
4. The title of Mr. Taylor's paper does scant justice to the
scope of the work which it records, for incidentally to its main
purpose this work included subordinate investigations hardly
less radical, even if of less importance, than the main issue.
Chief among these was the development of what is now best
known as the " Taylor System " of shop management, itself a
discovery of fundamental importance, the influence of which will
be felt ultimately and permanently, not only in the metal trades
but probably in all organized industry. Less fundamental, but
still of universal interest and value wherever power is transmitted
from a central source to large groups of power-driven machines,
is the determination by Mr. Taylor of more correct and efficient
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
269
rules for the use of leather belting than were previously known.
Another distinctive topic covered by his work is the proper forms
of cutting tools and improved methods of making and main¬
taining such tools. Still another, and in some respects the most
novel and brilliant of these many contributions to technical
knowledge, is his adaptation of the slide rule to the determination
of equations involving twelve variables, by a process so simple
as to bring it within the reach of any skilled mechanic of fair
intelligence.
5. The Society of which Mr. Taylor is the President, the Pro¬
fession of which he is an honored member, and the industrial
world are all to be congratulated on the achievements of which
Mr. Taylor's paper, voluminous and comprehensive as it is, con¬
stitutes but a partial and inadequate record. While probably
that paper is by no means the last word to be spoken on the sub¬
ject to which it relates, certainly it is the most important and
authoritative which has yet been uttered.
Mr. James M. Dodge. I want to just say one word about one
word, and that is the word " task." It is a pity that our lan¬
guage has not another word that is more applicable to the mean¬
ing that Mr. Taylor gives to the word, but Mr. Taylor agrees
with me that our language does not give us the exact word needed.
Now, the " task " set by the Taylor System is n't a club which
makes a man do twice as much as he did in the same way he has
been doing it. The " task " set by Mr. Taylor, by the use of the
prescribed tools and methods lightens the task; it does not add to
the labor performed. It cuts out the unnecessary motions, and
it renders the motions made more useful and more efficient by
something supplemental. These motions are made, if we can
use such an expression, as suiting a man's comfortable position or
accomplishments. The men themselves who are doing these
" tasks," say that they go home less tired than they used to do
when they set their own tasks. So I say again that I regret that
we have not a better word than task which according to our child¬
hood lessons implies bother or burden, something which our
teachers meant as a punishment to us. It is not a task; it is a
help to the employee.
PREREQUISITES TO THE INTRODUCTION
OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
bY h. k. hathaway
GENERAL MANAGER, TABOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY, PHILADELPHIA, PA.
Reprinted by permission of The Engineering Magazine
Many remedies known to the medical world, unless taken in
doses of the proper size and at suitable intervals, would produce
dire results or none at all, whereas, when properly administered
by a competent physician, they are a boon to humanity. " Scien¬
tific Management " may be compared to that class of remedies,
and those who see in it a cure for many industrial ills must bear
in mind that just as in medicine, fully as much depends upon the
course of treatment being suited to the patient's individual
condition and building up his strength to guard against a re¬
lapse, as upon the remedy.
It is not my desire to shake the faith of any convert to this
new industrial teaching, but rather to outline the course that
must be followed if success is to be met with in applying it.
There have been many instances in the past of the hasty
assumption, on the part of managers and owners, of a greater
knowledge of this subject than they really possessed; and even
today, in spite of the wide publicity that it has received, there
are many who, when scientific management is referred to, think
that a wage system or cost system is meant. Too frequently
the " form is mistaken for the substance," and an imdue impor¬
tance is attached to the printed forms and other implements that
constitute the mechanism used in applying the principles.
The most common mistakes to be guarded against are: —
1. Undertaking, without sufficient knowledge and experience,
the change from the old style of management to the new.
2. Under-estimating the magnitude of the task.
3. Lack of preparation.
4. Not taking the various steps in the proper sequence.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
271
5. Going ahead too fast.
6. Lack of determination and perseverance.
7. Short cuts and ill-considered improvements.
The first step toward the adoption of scientific management
should therefore be an educational movement, including in its
scope every one from the directors down to the foremen, all of
whom, .before any start is made, should be thoroughly familiar
with the principles and purposes of the new t3^e of management
and heartily in sympathy with it.
Unless there is a receptive spirit toward the new scheme,
progress will be difficult — time spent in creating the proper
mental attitude will be more than made up later on.
The superintendent and foremen must be made to feel that the
adoption of the new type of management implies no criticism of
nor refiection on their ability or integrity, but that it is rather a
movement to make their efforts more effective through syste¬
matic cooperation, and that the results are to be beneficial to all
concerned.
In his paper on " Shop Management " presented in 1903
before the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Mr.
Taylor lays great stress on the importance of the management
thoroughly acquainting itself with the new scheme before its
installation is undertaken, yet few readers fully appreciate its
importance.
The following quotation from " Shop Management " brings
out this point very clearly: —
Before starting to make any radical changes leading toward an improve¬
ment in the system of management, it is desirable, and for ultimate success
in most cases necessary, that the directors and the important owners of an
enterprise shall be made to understand, at least in a general way, what is
involved in the change. They should be informed of the leading objects
which the new system aims at, such, for instance, as rendering mutual the
interests of employer and employee through " high wages and a low labor
cost," the gradual selection and development of a body of first-class picked
workmen who will work extra hard and receive extra high wages and be
dealt with individually instead of in masses; and that this can only be ac¬
complished through the adoption of precise and exact methods, and having
each smallest detail, both as to methods and appliances, carefully selected
so as to be the best of its kind. They should understand the general phi¬
losophy of the system and should see that, as a whole, it must be in harmony
272
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
with its few leading ideas, and that principles and details which are admira¬
ble in one type of management have no place whatever in another. They
should be shown that it pays to employ an especial corps to introduce a
new system just as it pays to employ especial designers and workmen to
build a new plant; that, while a new system is being introduced, almost
twice the number of foremen are required as are needed to run it after it is
in; that all of this costs money, but that, unlike a new plant, returns begin
to come in almost from the start from improved methods and appliances as
they are introduced, and that in most cases the new system more than pays
for itself as it goes along; that time, and a great deal of time, is involved in a
radical change of management, and that in the case of a large works, if they
are incapable of looking ahead and patiently waiting for from two to four
years, they had better leave things just as they are, since a change of system
involves a change in the ideas, point of view and habits of many men with
strong convictions and prejudices, and that this can only be brought about
slowly and chiefly through a series of object lessons, each of which takes
time, and through continued reasoning; and that for this reason, after
deciding to adopt a given type, the necessary steps should be taken as fast
as possible, one after another, for its introduction. They should be con¬
vinced that an increase in the proportion of non-producers to producers
means increased economy and not red tape, providing the non-producers
are kept busy at their respective functions. They should be prepared to
lose some of their valuable men who cannot stand the change and also for
the continued indignant protest of many of their old and trusted employees
who can see nothing but extravagance in the new ways, and ruin ahead.
It is a matter of the first importance that, in addition to the directors of the
company, all of those connected with the management should be given a
broad and comprehensive view of the general objects to be attained and the
means which will be employed.
It must be realized by the owners and those at the head of a
business that they are undertaking no easy task, nor is it one
that can be accomplished in a few days, weeks, or months. A
foundation must be built before erecting the structure, and it
may be safely stated that no results of any consequence can be
expected for at least a year, and more frequently two years, or
even three. Scientific management is not a miracle worker.
While, as Mr. Taylor points out, the system may in many cases
pay for itself as it progresses, the owner must be prepared if
necessary to spend a considerable sum of money before he gets
any return, and must regard this expenditure in the light of an
investment, just as he would regard, in starting a new business,
the money spent in building and equipping his plant.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
273
The cost of the undertaking is greater or less accordingly as
the ground has been well or poorly prepared.
Any engineer who undertakes to direct the installation, or
rather the development, of this system of scientific management
in the works of a company where the right mental attitude does
not exist courts trouble, failure, and the ultimate enmity of his
clients. There is no use, nor is there any satisfaction, in doing
this work for people unless they are enthusiastic, and their hearty
cooperation is assured.
It is impossible, as those who have tried it know, for a manager
to make much headway with the development of a new scheme
of management, and at the same time carry on his regular work
of running the plant; therefore, the next step after creating the
right atmosphere is to secure the services of a competent man¬
agement specialist to direct the work of reorganization. This
is where many failures in the past have been made. Too fre¬
quently has the head of a concern, after visiting a plant in which
this system is in successful operation, or after having read Mr.
Taylor's paper on Shop Management, employed a bright but
inexperienced young college graduate, given him the most meager
outline of what was expected of him, handed him a few printed
forms, and told him to go ahead and install a system. Without
proper training, experience in handling workmen, or authority,
it is but natural that he made no progress, and that he encoun¬
tered the most active opposition from the superintendent, fore¬
men, and workmen.
The management should beware of the self-styled expert
whose qualifications consist chiefly of a stock of cant phrases
culled from the literature of scientific management, which he
glibly quotes in soliciting clients, who will offer to install a com¬
plete system in as many weeks or months as it would take years
to do it properly. The wave of interest in this subject that has
swept over the country is sure to bring out innumerable such
" experts," some of them fakirs pure and simple, and others
possessing that dangerous thing, a little knowledge, and honestly
believing themselves qualified to systematize any industry under
274
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the sun.^ As many crimes will be committed in the name of
scientific management as have been committed in the name
of liberty.
Assuming that the services of a properly qualified expert can
be secured, he cannot be expected to do more than direct the
work of developing the system, and training the men who are to
do the work of getting it into working order and administering
it when developed. These men should be selected from the
existing force wherever possible, and in case they are not avail¬
able, and it is necessary to bring in new men, they should be
directly in the employ of the company, and not in that of the
systematizer. This is almost imperative if the work done is to
be of a permanent character. If new men must be brought in,
they should be brought some time before the active development
of the system is started, so that they will have ample time to
become familiar with the plant and its output and to get ac¬
quainted with the other employees. These men should be
started as workmen.
In theory it would appear to be desirable to have an expert
with a corps of men trained in the various branches of the system
do the work of installation, as under such a plan it should be
possible to develop the system and get results much more quickly
than by the slower method of training men from the company's
force. The objection to that scheme, however, lies in the fact
that the company's men would not feel the proprietary interest
in the system, nor would they feel responsible for its success as
they would if they had played an active part in its development.
I doubt very much if a system installed in that manner would
work at all, and am quite certain that its installation would
meet with either active opposition or indifference on the part of
the supervisory force, the value of whose interest and cooperation
cannot be over-estimated.
During the period of preparation, many data can be collected
that will be of value when the actual work of developing the
system is started, and many minor improvements may be effected
that will not only result in savings but make the change to the
* Cf. " The Mistakes of the Efficiency Men," p. 615. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
275
new methods less revolutionary, and more evolutionary, in
character.
It is of the greatest importance that the various steps in the
development of the system be made in the proper sequence.
For example, it would be foolish to start taking time study and
instituting task work with a bonus, or differential piece work in
a machine shop, until standard conditions had been established
and the scheme and mechanism for routing work through the
shop developed; yet this is what many owners and managers
want to do. Not only must the various steps be taken in the
proper sequence, but none may be omitted.
The officers and directors of a company are, as a rule, quick
to perceive and to admit the value of setting tasks, paying a
bonus, and doing those things that make it easier for the work¬
man to accomplish a large day's work, — such as keeping ma¬
chines and tools in first class condition, and having the tools and
materials for each man's next job placed at his machine for him
in advance — but yet they think that the clerical work incident
to planning, preparing written instructions and orders covering
each step should be dispensed with. Of course, this would be
fine if it would work — but it won't. There can be no short
cuts. If the system is to be successful and enduring, it must be
adopted in its entirety.
Frequently owners and managers are encountered who say
" there are some features of this system that I think are good;
for instance, I think the laying out of the work on a bulletin
board is excellent, but I don't see the need of making out route
sheets, move orders, and inspection orders for each operation."
Or, " I like the task and bonus scheme but I do not see the neces¬
sity of writing elaborate detailed instruction cards for each
operation."
To explain the reasons and principles back of each of the
elements of scientific management would fill many volumes;
suffice to say that there is a good and sufficient reason for each,
and that all are necessary to make up the complete machine,
which will not run if one is omitted any more than the best
steam engine in the world will run if the piston is dispensed with.
276
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The speed at which the system develops depends very largely
upon existing conditions,* and how well preparations have been
made. In a concern that has been well managed under the old
scheme, it will be much more rapid than in one that has been
badly managed. It is not only impossible, but exceedingly
unwise to expect or attempt to correct, in a few weeks or months,
the evils and faulty practice that have crept in during years of
the old style of management.
Not only must prejudice be overcome by object lessons and
reasoning, but frequently physical changes must be effected;
workmen, foremen, superintendents, and others must be trained
to new habits of thought and action, while at the same time
there must be no falling off in output.
If the work done and the results achieved are to be enduring,
the system can be developed only so fast as the people who are
to use it and live with it can absorb it. One of the most difficult
and trying tasks of the man directing the development of a sys¬
tem of scientific management is to curb the impatience of the
owners at certain stages, and at others to sustain their courage
and faith.
Once it is decided to adopt scientific management, and its
development is started, it must be clearly understood by every¬
body concerned that it is going through. There can be no half¬
way course in this respect, no ifs, no " giving it a fair trial."
More good things fail through being " given a fair trial " than
for any other reason. They are damned from the start. There
must be a determination to make it go, and if at first it does fail
to work at any point, no one must be permitted to say supinely,
" we tried it, but it did not work." Then is the time to go at it
with renewed vigor, backed up by imwavering faith, and keep
at it until it does work. Failures of any sort are not due so
much to the obstacles encountered, as to the lack of determination
to overcome them. Nothing has a more demoralizing effect
than any semblance of wavering on the part of the management,
the slightest evidence of which communicates itself throughout a
working force in a most uncanny way, producing a spirit of in-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
277
difference, incredulity, and often insubordination that increases
the difficulties of the task many-fold.
The tendency to " jump fences " and take short cuts must be
guarded against, especially on the part of the higher officials,
who are more inclined than any one else to make this mistake.
In the change to functional management, it is rather difficult for
a man whose authority and responsibilities have covered every
field, to keep within the lines and to transmit orders through the
proper channels. The natural inclination for these men, when
they desire information or want anything done, is to go directly
to the man in the shop who, under the old order of things, would
be the right person, ignoring the fact that under the new scheme
the function of this man is completely changed, and that the
application should have been made to the planning department.
In such cases the man in the shop should of course refer him
back to the planning department, but his respect for the authority
of the higher official as he knew it under the old scheme is so
deeply rooted, that he instinctively and with the best intentions
proceeds to act on the orders received, which may be directly
at variance with those of the planning department, as well as
outside the range of his duties as defined by his new function,
and conflicting with those of another.
During the early stages of the development there must be
many things done which at that time do not appear to serve any
purpose, but which are the foundation and framework for future
steps, and are for that reason of the greatest importance.
There will be well meant criticism of everything done, and
suggestions galore of better methods than those installed, espe¬
cially in regard to the forms and appliances and their use; but
if progress is to be made, these suggestions and criticisms must
be disregarded. It must be realized that the methods and
mechanism of scientific management are the result of years of
evolution and development, and that they have been adopted as
necessity made itself felt. Many apparently better and quicker
ways that will suggest themselves have been tried, found
impractical, and discarded years ago, and are what is known in
the vocabulary of scientific management as " Damned improve-
278
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ments." I do not mean to imply by this that the methods and
mechanism of scientific management cannot be improved upon,
but they are the best that are known today to those who have
made its study and application a life work. With almost every
instance of its installation some new and better element is foimd
and adopted, but the only safe and economical course is to get
it working in its existing form before undertaking to improve it.
It might be added in conclusion that the undertaking must be
as much for the good of the workmen as for the stockholders>
and that its aim must be to help them, through systematic and
practical cooperation, to produce, in many cases with less effort,
much more work than formerly, rather than to drive them to
unreasonable exertion. Feverish haste, driving, injustice, and
bluff have no place in scientific management, and it must be
recognized from the start that the square deal, and a proper
regard for the workers' welfare, both physical and otherwise, are
essential to success.
ON THE ART OF CUTTING METALS
selections from the discussion of mr. taylor's paper
Reprinted by permission of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
Mr. Calvin W. Rice. As an incident to the introduction of
system in a certain shop it became necessary to conduct the
experiments of which the presidential address is a résumé. I say
an incident, but it would probably be more correct to speak of the
address as a record of many incidents to the introduction of the
Taylor system.
2. The system is universal of application, and the mastery of
the art of cutting metals was simply one of many things to do to
make a success of the system. As the system is applied to other
industrial establishments, we may in turn expect papers on the
arts pertaining to them, such as the art of bleaching cotton
goods, etc.
3. This situation is not peculiar to the Taylor system. Mr.
Edison has been busy the last few years not so much in inventing
a storage battery as in the development of the art of the manu¬
facture of materials that go into the composition of the battery.
Were it not a digression I would like to go into the subject in
detail.
4. Therefore the good from modernizing engineers is far reach¬
ing. This fall I had the opportunity to visit the Sayles Bleach-
eries, located near Pawtucket, R. I., where the Taylor system is
being introduced,^ and with your permission, I will offer as a
discussion on this paper a few remarks on what I saw there,
the object being to show the applicability of scientiffc method
and the benefit derived from such application to any form of
industry.
5. It is well to observe here that one cannot effect these im¬
provements without, first, complete submission of the manage-
^ Under the professional direction of Mr. H. L. Gantt. — Ed.
21Q
28o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ment of affairs to the one introducing the system,^ and, second,
additional people to the regular establishment. There is no
compromise between the old and the new because they are
fundamentally opposed. It is only folly to try it because it is a
physical impossibility for the regular staff both to conduct the
regular business and simultaneously master and apply the new
system.
6. In the Sayles Bleacheries I was permitted to compare the
record of the output of certain rooms before they began to intro¬
duce the system with what is now being done, and even in the
most simple matters, namely, folding cloth, the increase in output
was very great, individual cases fivefold, and the increase of
individual wages 20 to 40 per cent. The cost per piece was of
course reduced.
7. Improvements in other bleacheries, competitors say, have of
course been going on also, so that the Sayles have no monopoly in
this regard, but what they do have over their neighbors is a better
class of employees with higher individual wages, freedom from
labor difficulties, because the Taylor system does not conflict with
the bulls of labor unions, and more than all, an organization
capable of indefinite expansion to meet any emergency.
8. It would be out of place, and perhaps breach of confidence to
go into further details. Suffice it to say, that in this world of
competition intelligent organization based on scientific investiga¬
tion is the sine qua non of success and that no amount of work or
years of investigation necessary to obtain the result should deter
the investigator.
Mr. H. K. Hathaway. It is to be hoped, and is highly prob¬
able, that many superintendents and managers of machine
shops will undertake to make use of the invaluable data that
Mr. Taylor has so generously made available to thousands, who,
through limited facilities and time, would otherwise be imable to
acquire more than an inadequate and superficial knowledge of
1 Since this discussion the practice of the Taylor group has changed, and it is not
now customary for the management expert to take executive control of the business.
His fimction is now that of adviser and instructor with executive power applied only
to the development of his system work. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
281
this vitally important branch of manufacturing, and that as a
result the manufacturing world may be as greatly benefited by
exact knowledge of what can be accomplished in cutting metals,
as it has already been benefited through the invention and general
use of high speed steels.
2. I should like, however, to call attention to a grave danger
that will confront all who undertake to attain the results that
Mr. Taylor has shown to be possible, which, unless properly
guarded against, will cause all such attempts to end in disastrous
failure and disappointment. This danger is, that despite the
fact that Mr. Taylor has clearly stated the necessity for first
establishing such conditions as will make it possible to always and
definitely answer the " questions which must be answered each
day in every machine shop," as to the kind of tool, the feed,
speed and depth of cut to be used, and to make use of the answer
after it is given, many will undertake to apply the knowledge
contained in Mr. Taylor's paper without any preliminary prep¬
aration to insure the successful outcome of such an attempt.
3. In many cases such an effort will cease after the workman
running the machine, when told to use a certain feed, speed, or
depth of cut, replies in a convincing manner that the machine
won't stand it, or that the job he is working on is of such a peculiar
nature that such a heavy cut would spoil it by " springing " it or
making it come " out of round." If the foreman is still unrea¬
sonable enough to insist upon his trying it, he will either quit, or
proceed, more in sorrow than in anger, to prove the truth of his
statements, and the foreman will probably lose heart after the
following things happen: The cone belt will slip and have to be
tightened; next the countershaft belt will slip and have to be
tightened, then if the belts pull the cut without breaking in two
or pulling out at the lacings, it will be found that the carrier,
driver or chuck will not hold the job.
4. After surmounting these difficulties and having the tool
break or fall down through having been improperly treated and
ground, the foreman will find that for about three hours he has
neglected important matters in other parts of the shop and will
conclude in the future to mind his own business and leave such
282
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
matters as feed and speed to the judgment of the man running
the machine, who from his daily experience ought to know
better what the machine and tools will do than any one else in
the shop.
5. Having been through all this myself, I know pretty well the
opposition and difficulties that will be encountered, and feel that
too much stress cannot be laid on the importance of overcoming
them before they have a chance to arise, and I have become a
strong believer in the " ounce of prevention " theory, provided
it is applied, not in a spasmodic manner, but systematically and
continuously.
6. To cite an instance of what may be expected when one
undertakes to speed up the average shop, I should like to mention
an experience of my own that happened a few years ago, when
after having passed through the various stages from apprentice
to foreman, or " overseer," in the machine shops of the Midvale
Steel Company, where I was accustomed to see rapid and heavy
cutting, and also men obe3dng orders as to speeds, feeds, etc., and
to have belts heavy enough and maintained to a tension that
assured their pulling all that the tool would stand, I accepted a
position as superintendent with a small concern, where the work¬
men, under the sole direction of one " overworked foreman,"
ground their tools to suit themselves, repaired and cared for their
own belts, and followed their own judgment or inclinations as to
the feeds, speeds, cuts, and kind of tools to be used.
7. I was amazed at the light cuts and slow speeds I foirnd in
vogue, as well as the many peculiar shapes of tools in use, and
attempted at once to get things up to the speed that I had been
used to at Midvale, with the result that I encountered all the
obstacles previously enumerated and found that the custom in
that shop, when a belt slipped, was to reduce the speed or feed
to a point where it would pull, as the workman reasoned that it
was less trouble to do so than to tighten the belt.
8. Another drawback to using the proper feeds and speeds was
that the tools were of every conceivable shape and kind of steel, a
bar or two having apparently been bought from every tool steel
salesman who came along, and as the workman had no means of
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 283
identifying the tools made of good high speed steel from those
made of old carbon or early self-hardening steels, he ran the speed
suited to the latter, to be sure that his tool would not give out
during a cut.
9. After I had managed to get the belts, tools, and driving
mechanism on a few of the machines in such a condition that
something like the proper speeds and feeds could be used, I
found that it was utterly impossible, with one " overworked
foreman " (who did not take very kindly to my notion of speeding
up, an3rway) to insure such conditions being maintained con¬
tinuously, and that while I might get a workman to run the
proper speed on a certain job today, if left to himself the next
time that job came up he would be running the same old speed
and have the same old reasons for doing so.
10. About this time I learned another fact that has since been
of great value to me, and that is, it is exceedingly unwise to expect
to attempt to correct the evils of years of bad management and
faulty shop practice, or to bring about a change from the mini¬
mum of efficiency to the maximum of efficiency in a few days or
weeks or even months.
11. In the shop referred to, I attempted to install the pre¬
mium plan, based on carefully kept records, which I later found
to be absolutely inaccurate and unfair, and to get the shop up
to the speed that I knew to be possible, in about three months'
time, with the result that at the expiration of that time I had a
strike on my hands which pretty nearly put the company down
and out, and solely because I began at the wrong end, instead of
first taking steps to insure the success of my efforts; first, by
standardizing, and making such improvements in the belting,
tools, and appliances as were necessary in order to make it
possible to get the same results as were being attained at Midvale;
secondly, by providing a system or mechanism for keeping them
up to the standard once attained; thirdly, by replacing the one
" overworked foreman," who was expected to know it all and do
it all, by a planning department which would each day assign for
each workman a definite task to be performed in a definite time,
and prepare instruction cards showing just how each should be
284
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
done and what speeds, feeds, and tools should be used, and by
several functional foremen in the shop, each of whom would have
specific and well-defined duties, for which his temperament and
training fitted him ; who would cooperate in seeing that all work
was done in the manner planned and that the standards were
maintained.
12. It seems to me that my undertaking to apply in this shop
the feeds, speeds, and cuts that I had used, and seen used con¬
tinuously at Midvale, is analogous to undertaking to apply the
information on the " Art of Cutting Metals " contained in Mr.
Taylor's paper, in the average machine shop without any previous
preparation to insure a successful outcome of such an undertaking,
and it is devoutly to be hoped for their own sakes, and in fairness
to Mr. Taylor, that all who do hope to benefit by Mr. Taylor's
vast experience in this line will begin at the right end and in the
right way which Mr. Taylor has pointed out and which I am con¬
vinced, from my experience in the matter, lies in the application
of the principles set forth in his paper on " Shop Management,"
and which can only be successfully applied through a system of
functional management, where every man from the manager
down has a definite task to perform in a definite way and by the
establishment and maintenance of rigid standards.
13. Unfortunately such a system as Mr. Taylor's cannot be
bought and delivered in a box, but must be installed step by step
until the final goal is reached, when a definite task is given each
workman each day in advance with detailed written instructions
and an exact time allowance for each element of the work, and
this installation calls for such an amount of hard work, close and
incessant following up, and minute study of conditions as to
make it impossible for any man who has routine work to do in
connection with the running of a plant, to undertake it with any
hope of success, but will call for the undivided attention of an
experienced man, who must have the heartiest and most sincere
backing and support of the management in the face of the opposi¬
tion and prejudice that is sure to be encountered. Even then,
there will be times during the period of revolution from the old to
the new system of management, when it will appear as though
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
285
the business is going to ruin, when the greatest faith in the sound¬
ness of the principles upon which this system is based will be
required to carry one through them, but the reduced costs,
increased output and harmony that are bound to result in the end
are sure to pay many times over for the labor and expense incur¬
red in making the change.
THE SPIRIT IN WHICH SCIENTIFIC MANAGE¬
MENT SHOULD BE APPROACHED
bY james mapes dodge
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD, THE LINK-BELT COMPANY, PHILADELPHIA, PA.
Reprinted by permission of the Amos Tuck School of Administration and Finance
The old saying that " each one of us endeavors to measure all
things in his own pint pot," I am free to admit, applies very well
to me, for while the title which has been assigned to me assumes
a much broader treatment than a mere recital of personal feelings,
the best I can do is to draw freely on personal experiences, dis¬
guising them by eliminating the personal pronoun and giving
them an air of general apphcation. In this endeavor, therefore,
let us talk of the spirit in which we approach Scientific Manage¬
ment.
The term Scientific Management is possibly not the best;
many establishments that can lay no claim to any comprehen¬
sive scheme of organization contain within them elements of
successful management. Mr. ' Taylor in his treatise on the
subject used the title " The Art of Management," while others
in speaking of Mr. Taylor's work refer to it as a " Conservation
of Human Efforts through the Art of Management." Cer¬
tainly, where human elements are introduced into a problem,
scientific methods alone will hardly achieve a complete solution.
It must be a combination of scientific analysis and methods plus
consideration for the interest and well-being of the workers,
and tact in meeting their inherent resistance to change, or their
natural prejudice against something of which they do not under¬
stand the full import. Many concerns succeed because they
have taken care of this human side of the problem, even though
they lack scientific methods of procedure and exactness of infor¬
mation. Other concerns which expect to reduce management
to an algebraic formula fail in the attempt because they neglect
to foster growth and initiative in the working force. These
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
287
concerns have lost sight of the human side of the problem.
Truly Scientific Management takes account of both sides of the
problem, and the method of approach should lie along both of
these lines.
The most primitive form of management exists in those
establishments in which the owner " carries his office in his
hat." When the establishment grows beyond the capacity of
the contents of one hat, power and responsibility are delegated
to others, until these too become overtaxed. Costs go up,
' deliveries fall off, and the necessity for a further distribution of
authority and responsibility arises. This gradual delegation
and subdivision of authority and responsibility is characteristic
of what Mr. Taylor terms the " Military System of Manage¬
ment." Under it the shops are run almost entirely by the fore¬
men, and the actual work is performed by men working under
constant criticism and goading. The foremen have ideas of
management more or less at variance with each other, but the
proprietors accept the results as the best that can be obtained,
without any proper or regular investigation. The workman
who calls at the gate is supposed and expected to be an expert,
requiring no instruction or help ; the foreman is expected to know
how to perform all the duties of his position, and the superinten¬
dent is assumed by the owner to know how to manage shop
affairs to the practical limit of the possibilities. In such a form
of management, criticism from the head goes completely down
the line, gathering in vehemence and force as it proceeds, while
praise extended from the top usually penetrates only as far as
the superintendent's office.
Despotic authority which manifests itself in harsh criticism
or tyrannical treatment of the men is undoubtedly the charac¬
teristic feature of this form of management. Money returns are
the only gage of success, and that foreman is best who can force
from his men the greatest amount of work with the least possible
compensation. From such methods the men have no redress
except to seek employment elsewhere. The general recognition
of the fact that the workmen have rights and that the remark,
" You don't have to work here unless you want to " is not a
288
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
proper answer to a legitimate complaint, is one of the factors
which is creating a demand for a general change in methods of
management.
It is a serious thing for a worker who has located his home
within reasonable proximity to his place of employment and
with proper regard for the schooling of his children, to have to
seek other employment and readjust his home affairs, with a
loss of time and wages. Proper management takes account not
only of this fact, but also of the fact that there is a distinct loss
to the employer when an old and experienced employee is re¬
placed by a new man who must be educated in the methods of
the establishment. An old employee has, in his experience, a
potential value that should not be lightly disregarded, and there
should be, in case of dismissal, the soundest of reasons, in which
personal prejudice or a temporary mental condition of the fore¬
man should play no part.
Constant changing of employees is not wholesome for any
establishment, and the sudden discovery by a foreman that a
man who has been employed for a year or more is " no good "
is often a reflection on the foreman, and more often still, is wholly
untrue. All workingmen, unless they develop intemperate or
dishonest habits, have value in them, and the conserving and
increasing of this value is a duty which should be assumed by
their superiors. There is humor and sense in the declaration
of the colonel in the Pirates of Penzance, " I lead my regiment
from behind, I find it less exciting " ; for instead of spurring
men on by damning them from the front, it is more profitable
and more effective in the industrial campaign to extend a helping
hand to those in the rear, furnishing them with proper manual
and mental equipment to keep up with their fellows.
Under this method the most successful superintendents and
foremen are those who can best aid and encourage their subor¬
dinates to make the most of themselves and their opportunities,
removing obstacles from their paths and enabling them to earn
greater rewards without overtaxing their mental and physical
abilities. In other words. Scientific Management consists in
the cultivation of the best productive methods. Information
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
289
can much more economically be ascertained by the leaders, and
the knowledge transmitted to the workingmen, than it could be
were each man to endeavor to ascertain it for himself.
Probably with all of us it is more difficult to accept a modi¬
fication of a belief than to absorb a most startling or revolu¬
tionary new idea which does not call for any reversal of a notion
to which we have tenaciously held. So in this matter of manage¬
ment it was, and is, and always will be essential for us to keep
a hopeful equilibrium during transition from our old to our new
love; and this transition period is certain to be a trying one.
In the establishments with which I am connected conversion
came slowly to nearly all, and some of those who, it would seem,
should logically have accepted the innovation with avidity,
seemed temperamentally incapable of such acceptance. Those
who live entirely in the present, without thought of the' future
or of the past, can easily acquire the habit of doing things in a
new way; but those having active minds are apt to waver be¬
tween the necessity of advancing a decision and the fear of error
born of caution and imagination. Even a measure of intelli¬
gence might show that an ardent accepter of Scientific Manage¬
ment and a man unalterably opposed to it in every form, are of
the same brain capacity. There is temperamental sectarianism
in every profession and walk of life, inexplicable because tem¬
perament is inexplicable. We all know men who feel that no
one can do things for them as well as they can do them for
themselves. It is, of course, possible that there are certain
things that the individual can do for himself better than any
one else can do them for him; but there are, undoubtedly,
thousands of things which can be better done for him by others.
Should a man decide that before he looks at an eclipse he must
become a thorough astronomer, he will, of course, eventually
gain more from looking at the eclipse than those who rush out
at first call and are satisfied to wonder at the phenomenon; but
this same temperament might lead a man, if taken sick, to study
the medical art until he had become a graduate physician, or to
decline to deposit his money in a bank until he had mastered the
intricacies of banking, and so on in all the accepted matters of
290
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Our lives. So it is with some in considering the question of
management; instead of investigating in an open-ininded way
the logic and results, they elect to question every minor step and
consider that they must be accorded a complete vindication and
proof of the other man's ideas before they are willing to lessen
their grip on preconceived and opposing convictions^ In other
words, we haven't mental legs enough to permit us to maintain
a position of straddling both sides of every presented question.
It is therefore essential, in order to use the new system of man¬
agement, that a man have within him a desire to travel in that
direction, and that he aid to the best of his ability in the removal
of small, real or imaginary obstructions, rather than hold back
and allow aU his progress to be brought about by the pressure
of the breeching, or the pull at the halter. As a matter of fact,
it seems that all of us need Scientific Management. If we
naturally have it in sufficient quantity we certainly need what
we have, but may not need any more. If we have none at all,
it would be absolutely ridiculous to say that we could not make
good use of some. The degree and quantity are regulated,
possibly, not so much by our thoughts as by the invincible logic
of progress and existing conditions.
It would of course be ridiculous for an employer of one man
to undertake the introduction of Mr. Taylor's " Art of Manage¬
ment," but if he were familiar with some of the underlying prin¬
ciples promulgated by Mr. Taylor, it would undoubtedly be of
value to him. The question of exactly how large an establish¬
ment should be or how small an establishment may be to intro¬
duce Scientific Management in it with profit and success is of
course impossible of numerical answer, because it is dependent
upon so many things. It might be likened to what we call
civilization. There can be no dissent to the general statement
that civilization is beneficial, but, if by civilization we mean
everything in general and in detail that is properly a part of the
system of civilization, it would be very difficult for any one to
say, provided an uninhabited island were discovered in the
Pacific Ocean, that in colonizing it, civilization in its fullest sense
could be applied to five, ten, one hundred or some other definite
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 291
number of people. At the same time, it is quite evident that even
one person on this island would be immensely benefited by some
elements of modern civilization. In fact, so important would
it be to this individual that his very life might depend upon it.
On the other hand, if some overwhelming power should decree
that he must use every bit of civilization, his speedy demise
would be absolutely certain; and so it is in the matter under
discussion. Life is too short, individuals and people too cir¬
cumscribed by their senses and surroundings, to see, feel and
believe that they need Scientific Management in its entirety.
Nevertheless, no establishment is so small, no business so primi¬
tive, but that Scientific Management has details or suggestions
that would be helpful. This would indicate that there is no way
to define exactly the spirit with which each individual or estab¬
lishment should approach this subject. It may for all time be
governed by temperament, training and the necessities of each
individual case. Of course, if an individual has inquired into
Scientific Management with a view to adding to his stock of
ammunition with which to blow it up, and to pose among his
friends as a person of superior intelligence because he says a few
bitter or apparently clever things in opposition to the remarkable
wave of managerial awakening throughout the civilized world,
no good is gained; on the other hand unthinking, untrained
acquiescence is probably equally wide of the mark, and only a
conscientious investigation of the subject will indicate its value
and its best plan of application.
Let us assume that a man having heard of the " Taylor Sys¬
tem " is possessed of the idea that he would like to find out
something about it. It is more than likely that this individual
has been in the commercial rather than in the practical side of
manufacture, and he may be entertained because he has heard
rumors that economy is effected and that profits are augmented
by the system. Should he send for all the papers that have been
published on this subject by the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers and read them, however carefully, I fear he would
become somewhat confused, inasmuch as a great deal that has
been written in these papers, not being directly in line with his
292
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
personal training and experience, would be obscure and difficult
of understanding. He would, however, gather from it that an
effort for economical production had certainly been made, and
that it is on different lines from those efforts which might be
called " of an older school." On the other hand, should the indi¬
vidual be entirely of a mechanical or a manufacturing turn of
mind and of only corresponding experiences, his reading of this
literature would set in motion an entirely different train of
thought. He would find much more in the papers intelligible to
him, but as many of the statements would be apparently at vari¬
ance with his own previous experience, he would be inclined to
be very critical of minor details, although in general acquiescent
with the main ideas of the papers. In both cases, however,
there would be an awakening of interest in the subject which
would not be easily put to rest without further knowledge.
Then would come a period of discussion with those having
interest in the subject and the clarifying of a great deal which
was at first obscure and vague. This result is brought about
by a lapse of time, and time is as necessary an element in making
a proper impression on the human mind as it is in making a
proper actinic impression on a photographic plate. In the latter
case we have slow plates and quick plates, and they are acted
upon by wide angle, telescopic and numerous other lenses; but
human beings have the lenses of their senses sometimes out of
focus, which has a potent inffuence in the registration of impres¬
sions upon their minds. After these impressions are registered,
— some slowly, some quickly, some befogged by over-exposure,
others deficient on account of under-timing — there comes
another necessary and essential lapse of time, and that is in the
development of the impressions, either in our brain or on the
photographic plates, as the case may be. Now, this development
is usually a much greater absorber of time than the mere register¬
ing of the impression; and then after the exposure and develop¬
ment comes another period, much longer still, and which may be
never-ending, and during which proper use is made of the now
developed impressions. Photographic failures are many, but
probably not so numerous, proportionately, as mental failures;
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
293
SO we must-make ample allowance for variations in the impres¬
sions which, apparently, the same exposures may make on dif¬
ferent mentalities.
It is almost needless for me to say that the mentality which
would receive the initial impressions with proper speed and
develop them into their most useful forms is the one that I
must talk about, otherwise my task would be endless and your
interest entirely used. up. We will therefore assume that an
individual has received proper impressions, that they have been
properly developed, and that it has become his earnest desire
properly to introduce Scientific Management into his establish¬
ment. The first step, even though he is the sole proprietor and
theoretically can do exactly as he pleases, must of necessity be
to interest some of his associates. This he will find, as I have
previously stated, is not in every case an easy proposition, for
the reason that temperamental differences in individuals will
require varying degrees and kinds of explanations, and the setting
forth of the reasons in different mentally palatable ways. He
will of course find, when he approaches his subordinates and they
in various degrees accept his views with the feeling that something
can be done of advantage to the establishment, that in no case
will his leading men consider that anything in this new-fangled
management business should be in any way appHed to them,
though they can see with greater or less degree of certainty
that it would be admirable for everybody else in the place. The
problem of overcoming this mental condition is the most difficult
of all. The very fact that the leading men of an establishment
are beholden to their cleverness and independence of thought
for their promotion makes it certain that they will not hesitate
to combat the views of their superior, if in their judgment it
seems best. In other words, they are not disposed to take orders
blindly and do that which they consider ill-advised or unneces¬
sary. Consequently they will ask many questions, and probably
it will be necessary and desirable to send some of the leading
men out as investigators to go through other establishments and
see for themselves what results have ,been obtained from the
innovation. When they return they will not only have seen a
294
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
good deal that will be entertaining to them, but will be in muchj
better shape to discuss the subject further with their employer.
Then comes the period of incubation of the best plan to pursué.
in beginning the actual work of the introduction of Scientific
Management. If the establishment has good use for all of its
leading men and they are properly and rationally busy, it is quite-
obvious that they cannot devote their time to the acquisition
and introduction of all the details of Scientific Management, as
well as keep up with their regular lines of work. Therefore it is
desirable to call in the services of some one who can bring knowl¬
edge and experience to play, to begin the actual introduction.
As soon as this is done two forms of activity manifest themselves;
one, strange to say, not the easiest to regulate, is the well-meaning
unasked-for assistance to the introduction which usually takes
the form of suggestion of improved methods in details that are
clearly improvements in the mind of the suggester, but are impos¬
sible of acceptance on account of a conflict with other portions
of the system to be introduced. This form of activity may be
hkened to a chorus in which many of the individuals decide that
more or less volume of sound, or a change of tone or time, would
be better than to follow the dictates of the leader and to sing the
music as set before them. The other development is one either
of open or sullen opposition. Frequently proper explanation
and patience will overcome this form more easily than the other.
The over-zealous cannot be properly curbed without their feeling
that they have been " sat upon " or harshly dealt with. I am
speaking of these as though they were phases which cropped up
and could be disposed of. They can be disposed of in time, but
again the time element comes in, and courage, patience and per¬
severance are required on the part of those at the head of the
concern to a much greater extent than would be dreamed of
before they had had the experience.
A great deal of care and thought must of course be given to
maintain the business of the establishment in all its details while
changes are being made, and to avoid having clashes and con¬
flicting methods work hardship to the customers or to the profit-
showing of the concern. It is quite obvious that it will be only
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
295
a short time before two systems are being used in the same
establishment, and it will require all the ability available to put
up with this state of affairs until the new displaces the old; and
probably this is the most trying time for the leading men all
through the establishment, because in the stores department,
order department, shipping department, and, in fact, all the
departments, extra work and vigilance are required of every one
in order that the confusion may be reduced to its lowest point.
In spite of everything, however, there will be days when it will
take courage on the part of individuals, and, in fact, courage on
the part of the whole management, to keep moving manfully
ahead and not to be stampeded by the trying conditions. After
a while, however, the benefits of the system will begin to mani¬
fest themselves so strongly and the new methods will reveal
themselves so satisfactorily, that all will become buoyantly
interested and work with redoubled vigor to hasten the entire
consummation of the introduction.
So far as the workmen themselves are concerned very little
difficulty is experienced. It is essential, however, that the
workingman should be told the exact truth, and under no
circumstances should anything be done which has even the
appearance of taking advantage of him. He must appreciate
that his interests and those of his employer are mutual, and that
their happiness and success depend upon mutual trust and con¬
sideration. If employers think that by the introduction of
Scientific Management they can gain an advantage over the
workers, they are making a sarious mistake and wasting their
efforts in what will eventually turn out to their great and lasting
disadvantage. The whole scheme is one of mutual advancement
and the corner-stone of the temple of the " Art of Management "
is truth; the abutments must be truth, and every stone in the
structure must be truth.
Herbert Spencer said that there is a principle which is proof
against all argument, and which cannot fail to keep a man in
everlasting ignorance; this principle is to condemn before
investigating.
THE SUCCESSFUL OPERATION OF A SYSTEM OF
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
By Lieut. FRANK W. STERLING
Reprinted by pennission of The American Society of Naval Engineers
The object of this paper is to present the practical working and
routine of a system of modern management as applied to a plant,
and particularly to describe the planning and production, per¬
sonnel, routine, forms and cost keeping. The system at this
plant has been much simplified since its installation, resulting in a
decrease in the non-productive force, simplification and reduction
in the number of forms used, abandonment of the mnemonic clas¬
sification of stores (in this respect I am firmly convinced that the
mnemonic classification of tools should eventually be abandoned),
and numerous other improvements. The mnemonic classifica¬
tion of stores is impracticable where a large variety is carried.^
In some cases it was found that functions performed by two
men could be done by one, and in addition to reducing the non¬
productive force a move of forms was avoided, thus decreasing
the planning time. All this developed as the planning depart¬
ment force became expert and individually were capable of per¬
forming more varied functions.
In comparison with the other plants I have visited this one
leaves a very strong impression thoroughness, simplicity, econ¬
omy and success. Six weeks' study of the working of their
system confirms my opinion on all the above points.
The system employed was originally installed by Mr. F- W.
Taylor and contains all of the essential elements of Mr. Taylor's
system. It has been modified as experience and necessity have
dictated and has been simplified to such extent as to excite most
favorable comment. All changes have had Mr. Taylor's acquies¬
cence.
1 This conclusion is not home out by experience. On the contrary, the value oi
the mnemonic classification has proven to be greatest where the number and variety
of stores carried is largest. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
297
Distribution of Personnel
Productive force, in % of total of men employed
Planning department
Draftsmen
Clerks, etc., main oflSces
67
S
IS
13
Organization
(Chart I to be read concurrently.)
Superintendent. — Since the position of assistant superinten¬
dent has been abolished the superintendent's functions have
become very comprehensive, combining general management of
planning, shop and production, with general superintendence of
the planning for personnel. His executive power is in proportion
to his functions, being absolute in the planning department,
shops, shipping, employment and to a certain extent in the pay
department.
Planning Department. — The function of the planning depart¬
ment is to aid production by allotting the work, routing and lay¬
ing it out, designating the tools to use, speeds, feeds, cuts, etc.,
to take on the machine, drawing and inspection cards numbers,
and any other data that will facilitate production.
Since the system was installed in this plant the planning de¬
partment has been gradually reduced until no further reduction
is possible. The smallness of this department (7 % of the size of
the productive departments) impresses itself at once. This re¬
duction has been made possible by gradually simplifying the
original system, although the adfvocates of this system consider
it a paragon of simplicity.
Comparing the planning department with one other very suc¬
cessful one in the same city, we find that, whereas this one has
been reduced to 7% the other remains at about 35% of the pro¬
ductive shop force. The fact that both plants have been very
successful induces thought. Even in scientific management
there are, apparently, many ways of arriving at the same result,
and the old arbitrary methods of the foremost teachers must
eventually make way for common-sense methods based on earnest
thought and managerial ability.
298
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Charï i.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
299
The first lecture on scientific management that I attended
taught me that it must be " thus and so," and that only a limited
few, four men, as I recollect, in this whole country, were thor¬
oughly competent properly and successfully to initiate any com¬
pany into the secret rites of this society. This was also impressed
on me at some of the shops this summer. I have learned, how¬
ever, that a real manager at the head of the system is^'the secret
of ultimate success. The form of system, if there is a well-formed
plan behind it, will be a gradual evolution depending upon the
necessities of the plant. The system in itself cannot produce
results with an incompetent personnel, whereas a manager of
very high efficiency assisted by a competent staff will inevitably
develop the most suitable system. This efficiency and compe¬
tency must, however, be of a superlative order.
This is not intended to criticize scientific management or any
particular system, but only to emphasize the point that the
manager is the first requisite, that success is impossible if the
manager is not mentally and temperamentally fitted to the
work.
The Planning Department Personnel. — This consists of —
Planning department foreman.
Piece work and time study clerk.
Route clerk,
Rate setting clerk.
Order of work clerk.
Production and shipping clerk,
Balance of stores clerk,
and a number of clerks and assistants.
Planning Department Foreman. — The head of this planning
department might be called the Planning Department Foreman.
His function is to develop coordination between the different
parts of the planning department, and between this department
as a whole and the shops, in such manner as to facilitate produc¬
tion. He decides all shop and planning department questions
which do not require the superintendent's decision. He is in
effect an assistant superintendent, and general planning room
and shop foreman.
300
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Piece Work and Time Study Clerk. — This clerk does not fit
into the routine of the planning room, as he has nothing to do
with routing or handling orders as they go through. His func¬
tions are solely constructive. His principal duty is to superintend
and extend the piece work system in the plant. To this end he
takes time studies from time to time, is continually tabulating
data to simplify rating, constructs slide rules for new machines,
and any other slide rules from the master slide rules, decides
questions concerning piece work, as for example, failure of a man
to make an established standard time, etc. He is very essential
to the system.
The functions of the remainder of the planning room clerks
will be shown later as an order is followed through the depart¬
ment.
The clerks and assistants mentioned are:
Clerk at issue window, issues the blue prints and instruction
cards.
Assistant to rate setting clerk.
Assistant to order of work clerk.
Assistant to production clerk.
Three stenographers to orders, bills of material,
master time cards, etc.
Two boys to sort cards by operations, make out stores and
worked material issues slips, etc.
Two boys at hectograph.
One boy to assist shipping clerk.
These clerks and assistants are all boys, who receive compara¬
tively low wages.
General
All men in the planning department except stenographers and
boys, that is, all having important duties, have come from the
shops. They are practical shopmen who have developed into
experts at their present positions. The value of their knowledge
of shop methods is obvious, in fact in most instances this knowl¬
edge is imperative. Furthermore these men are expert not only
at their own billets but in all cases are conversant with the work
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
301
of the others. The system provides for progressive promotion
throughout, which produces a versatility among the planning
room force, tending towards coördination-
The Shops
{a) At the head of the machine shop, designated as D. M., is
the machine shop foreman. Under him are the (i) gang bosses,
who supervise groups of men, (2) the tool room, (3) the erecting
and assembling gangs. Under the gang bosses are the workmen
in groups.
(6) The wrought shop, designated as D. W., is under the
wrought shop foreman. He has three separate groups under
him, being, (i) contract work gangs, who require practically no
supervision, (2) piece work gangs, such as riveters, who require
little supervision, and (3) workmen on day work.
(c) The pattern shop, designated as D. P., is under the pattern
shop foreman, who handles the men direct.
The various foremen have supervision over the machine tools
in their shops.
{d) The shop engineer has two different functions:
1. The repair and maintenance of buildings. He performs
any engineering work required about the plant due to alterations
or extensions, and generally is responsible for the condition of the
plant as the civil engineer of the establishment.
2. The repair and care of the machinery of the plant, including
belting and shafts. He issues all specifications for new machin¬
ery, designs jigs and special fixtures, etc.
There is an assistant to the shop engineer.
The wrought shop has its own planning department. This
consists of but three men. Most of the preliminary work pre¬
vious to actual routing is done in the machine shop planning de¬
partment; such preliminary work is copying bills of material,
initial routing of materials from source to shop destination, etc.
The wrought shop routing is much simpler than that of the
machine shop, because a number of items, which may cover pages
of the bill of material, are routed through together, the same
being assembled making one division, such as a hopper, casing, etc.
302
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Operation of the System
It is intended to show the routine from the receipt of an order
until the shipment of the finished material, and later the cost
keeping methods in the same manner. The charts should be
followed closely with the text. The raison d'etre of a compre¬
hensive cost keeping analysis is its close alliance to efiicient and
economical production. Without accurate cost keeping it is
impossible to get a correct analysis of the business.
Without a correct analysis the weak spots cannot be located
with certainty, and we are left groping for our troubles and
applying the remedies much as a horse doctor would treat a child.
Cost keeping on jobs serves as a clinic by which we get informa¬
tion on treatment for future jobs.
Credit and Estimate Departments
An order from a customer may be preceded by a request for
an estimate, in which case it is referred to the estimate depart¬
ment. Copies of estimates furnished to customers are filed in
this department.
The function of the credit department is to investigate the
credit of customers before making contracts.
Classes of Orders
For convenience of handling in the planning department and
shops, job orders are divided into five classes. They are:
1. Engineering orders, which are orders that require new
designing, or engineering work. In this case the order number
is preceded by a " W " to identify it. This class of order is the
closest analogy to those received in a navy yard, so it is treated at
length later.
2. Regular orders, which are orders that do not need new
designs as they are for articles already standardized. These can
be sent through direct from the order department to the planning
department and routed from the original order. These orderá-
include orders for repairs of small parts, arid even small orders'
requiring new designs, where the design can be made by sketch ini
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 303
the order department. The order number in this case is preceded
by an " R."
3. Silent orders, which are orders for silent gears and chain.
These are in effect regular orders in their routine handling. The
order number is preceded by a " C." This class of work is a
Ç ^ 100 I tsrnuTE Mé.
SPECIFICATION FOR ESTIMATE I
FOR.
fMITITT
srcariCATioi
«Dm
«n
STORES 1
MO
«ORUO W
ru
Form i.
NAME.
OeSCRIf»TION
REÓAPITULATIOÑ-Or
SPECIFICATION FOR ESTIMATE
ADDRESS
DATE
OROCA NS.
NCT ITEMS
WORKED MATERtâlS («CUINO CO«T>
STORES SOLO («CtUNO COST»
ORAWmOS («CUINC COST)
tRAVei OF CNCINCERS AND DRAfTSMEN NCT^
RATTERNS («CUINO CO«T>
RACKINO
fRCIGMT
ROVALTT AND COMMISSION
INSURANCE AND RONOS
CONTINGENCIES
CRCCTION
ERECTION EXRCRSC
Form 2.
specialty of the plant and, a separate account being desired for
the class, a separate means of identifying the order is furnished by
the prefixed letter.
4. Worked material orders for stores. These orders are for
the manufacture of standard articles to place in the stock of the
storeroom. They do not emanate from the contract department,
as do the previous three classes of orders, but from the balance
of stores clerk, as a requisition. Approval by the superintendent
makes this requisition an order. The order number is preceded
by a " Y."
304 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The engineering " W " order, being the most comprehensive
in its routine, and being most analogous to navy yard work,
ORDER SHEET
OWi
10
OSLO TO
niOTo
ouoTOMiro
10.
■uiaeH orpwi SUR Ml
10. 111..4 sum.
IMP 1
t OT MMC
1* < m
) SNIPPIIi
MTI TtOlM
TO
QUANTITY 1 DCSCniRTIOffl
I
OHAROK
TO
u
z
J
<0
X
h
0
z
0
>
u
a
u
a
Ï
N
0
z
0
0
ÀPWioVtB.. II. ■ I „I [ ■
Form 3.
will be treated at length and the variations of routine of the other
orders will be pointed out later. The forms used are numbered
BILL OF material
COMPANY.
•MBBT IBBUB»
BRUCK
Meoth
D«}
Vnr
t9
WRITTCN BY
TO OB OMIRRKD
•Mccra*
mm. ■HUTS*
Month
Diy
Year
19
M*, or
FIKCtS
HAHC
Size ANO DINCCnON
AMBR
BMO#
MUMBM«
tRBOTION
DRAWINB
BikTlMUk
11
«NBRB UBBD
«•flMTC*
f»AT. BACH
fttOM
1
^ ' J
1
Forms 4, 5. — Form 4 is a rough form printed on manila paper. Form 5 is a smooth form printed in hectograph ink on white paper.
3O6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
serially. In many cases the functions of any particular clerk or
the data involved in a form will be explained later in the tèxt to
avoid undue digression from the main routine of the order.
In most cases of an engineering order " W " an estimate is
requested. In these cases Forms i and 2 (serial numbers) are
used to make up the estimate, and are filed in the estimate depart-
COPYING ORDER
FHOTOOBAPHIO D£PAETMEBT->ple*se make the following
nu wutee should state if 8lué frints, blue line .prints
or brown prints are required
fbibt0
bill or materul COnEB
quantity
orawino num8er
quantity
drawing number
11
sheet number
shipping number
1 \
eemirxb
total number
total number of
of prints
square feet
i
signeo
Form 6. — For manila paper.
ment. Data for making up the estimate is obtained from parts
of previous similar orders, from stores and worked material cost
prices, and from many other sources. This work is preliminary
to the receipt of an order.
Engineering Order
(Chart II to be read concurrently.)
Upon receipt in the contract department of an order from a
customer, if it cannot be handled as a regular order it is sent to
the engineering department of the contract department. The
customer's order is here transferred to Form 3 (B126) and sent to
the drafting room where necessary drawings are made.
REQUEST rOR ESTIMATE
ESTIMATING DEPARTMENT
ORDER FROM CUSTOMER
CONTRACT DEPARTMENT
Order prepared in duplicaU
One ^Copy
Filed in Controct Department
One Copy
DRAFTING ROOM
prepare e
(1) DRAWINGS
Vault-»—(a) Tracing (b) Blueprint
(2) BILL or MATERIAL
Original B.M. filed
PURCHASE
DEPARTMENT
Makes Necessary
Outside Purchase
Two Copies Purchaee Dreier piled
One Alphabetically
One Numerically
Copiee to
Receiving Room
Bolonce of Store« Clerk
Production Clerk
, Auditor
BALANCE or STORES CLERK
designates source of each item on B.M.
( ROUTE CLERK
Vdcslgnates deetination of each item on B
r COPY BOY
\ Makes copies for
ROUTE CLERK"
DM
Routes each item on
THE ROUTE SHEETS
From copy of
PLANNING
DEPARTMENT
Bill of kjuterial and from Raufe
Sheets GLERV^ prepares MASTER
TIME CARD for »ach item giving
complete de3¿riptiori and routing ^written
in hectograph ink; from the master
card thf mimeograph mokes the following
cards:- ,
r
(a)ROUTE. TAG, for each item
Ibl-STORES föSUE SUPS =
cost department
MACHlKt SHOP inspector
WROUGHT SHOP INSPECTOR
ERECTION ruCOR.
FOUNDRY
DRAWING ROOM
PRODUCTION CLERK
SHIPPING ROOM
PLANNING ROOM, etc.
Copies of B.M
destroyed after
Shipment.
Stttr«» ls>u« f»r D.M.
Merc* ütu« for Ç.W.
TIME CARD for each operation
MOVE CARD for each operation
0OARD COPY for »och operotion
£
Blueprints and
inetruction
carda filed.
Issued to work¬
men, gong
bosses, etc..
on check.
Clipped together in
sets, by operafiotie.
wu«** M • • wr •
all opeiationa Cards, notes
RATE O-ERK. o'Wcd, rat«
I pay, Instruction card
oil «>pe|-ations drawing numbers.
ORDER or VyORt^ CLERK
of
ROUTE ShCElTô FILUD
Progress ofj work checked
by move ca|'d&^ card des¬
troyed. ¡
Receiving Box.
All cards held here
until material is receiv¬
ed in the ehop.
Move Card
^Vork Moved
Time and k
MOVE GANG
1st operation
End,5rd, etc.
Operations.
Dispa-lching Box.
Operations not
underway ^ Material
in shop.
oVft Cords
I
BULLtTIN BOARD
M ove Cand
Operations Complete
TIME
CLOCK
SHOP
BULLETIN BOARD
T
Destroyed when complet¬
ed operation Is checked
by Order of Work Clerk.
Route lag remain» on
Hem until r»a4y
to »hip; then it
1» destroyed.
WIATEHUL from
^Purehae»
%
u
«Ö
Q
O
3
A
j5
«I
«
L
O
(0
T DEPA
Co;^ of BM. filed.
/
Bolanc« of Stores
Clerk
,Hfeirk*dMalfcrid Stereo
Chart II.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
307
Drafting Room. — This department, designated by symbol
D. D. (department drawing) with a personnel of about 15%
of the total, prepares all drawings for this plant. The personnel
^consists of one chief draftsman, with an assistant chief draftsman,
and a number of boss draftsmen. The remaining draftsmen are
REQUISITIONER
REQUISITION
U
TAG NUMBER
No. P.
It
THIt NUMMK MUSTA^PKAN
ON tllL AND ON ALL AACRAOID
CQNtlOMED Ua ON TNM QNOtO»
PLEASE FUANISH MATERIAL PER THIS ORDER SENOINO SMIPPINO RECEIPT TO US
ON DATE OP SHIPMENT.
SHIPPINO DIRECTIONS
MARK EACH PACKAQE . .
UNUSS OTHERWISE NOTED
COMPANY
HtRCMAMM AAIPT
Foku 7. — This form is in quintuplicate on different colored sheets and Tickler Form 7a.
divided up into groups of three draftsmen, one group under each
boss. When an order reaches this department it is turned over
to one or more bosses, depending upon the size of the order.
These bosses with their assistants prepare the necessary drawings.
The chief draftsman or his assistant gives necessary instructions
and from time to time furnishes necessary information or settles
3O8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
any engineering point involved and, in general, supervises the
work.
As the drawings progress, rough bills of material. Form 4
(D. D. 15) are written concurrently. The bills of material con¬
tain full description of every part of the job, with all necessary
REQUISITIONER
REQUISITION
Ho.
TAG NUMBER
PURCHASE TICKkER
No; P.
' TICKLI
eoMTtcTC»-
^LEASE FUi«NISH MATERIAL PER THIS ORDER SSNDINO
ON DATE OF SHIPMENT.
ACR-D.
URStO
PROMIStO
Form ya. — Tickler.
dimensions to manufacture such parts. These parts are num¬
bered consecutively (in column " Mark "), the reason for which
will appear later. All columns of Form 4 except the last three
are filled out in this department. In most cases many sheets of
Form 4 are required for one order.
As the rough bills of material are completed they are type¬
written in hectograph ink on Form 5 (D. D. 14), which is printed
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
309
în the same ink and the smooth copies of bills of material, Form
5, are sent to the planning department, the rough copy, Form 4,
being retained on file in D. D. Tracings and the necessary blue
prints are made from the drawings. The prints are made by the
photographic department on order. Form 6, of the chief drafts¬
man. The tracings are filed in the vaults, the drawings go to the
route clerk to aid routing.
Planning Department
The smooth bill of material is received in this department by
the balance of stores clerk, who fills out the next to last column.
This shows the source of the material to be used for each item,
according to the following symbols:
S — From storeroom.
W — Worked material from storeroom.
F — Foundry, castings.
P — Purchase department, on purchase order.
S° — Stock order.
Y — Made on Y order.
In the last case the serial number of the " Y " order follows the
symbol " Y."
From the balance of stores clerk the bill of material goes to the
route clerk, who fills out the last column, showing destination of
the material to be used for each item by the following symbols:
D. M. — Machine shop.
D.W. — Wrought shop.
D. P. — Pattern shop.
C. W- — Shipping room.
D. — To customer direct.
All the notations are made with copy pencil. The smooth
bill of material is now sent to the purchase department, where
purchase orders. Form 7 (Bi), are made for all articles marked
" P," purchase, in next to last column. This purchase order is
made out in quintuplicate with a tickler for file in the purchase
department. The use of the tickler will be explained later. The
various copies of Form 7 are distributed as follows:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Original — to agent from whom purchase is made.
Two copies — filed in purchase department, one numerically
and one alphabetically.
One copy — to receiving room.
One copy — to balance of stores clerk.
One copy — to auditor.
Tickler — filed in purchase department tickler.
The purchase department enters the purchase order number
in copy pencil on the bill of material opposite the letter signifying
that the material is to be purchased. This is done so that the
various departments can refer to the material by purchase order
number when looking up material due, etc.
The smooth bill of material is now returned to the planning
department, where a number of hectograph copies are made to
be distributed as follows: •
D. M. Route clerk.
D. W. Route clerk.
D. M. Inspector.
D. W. Inspector.
Cost department.
Shipping room, symbol C. W.
Production clerk.
Foundry.
Drawing room.
Main or erection-fioor boss.
Planning room.
Obviously if there is no foundry or wrought shop work indi¬
cated on the bill of material this copy is omitted. The original
bill of material is now returned to file D. D. (drafting room).
Form 8 (copy D. D. 14) shows a copy of the i8th sheet of bill of
material for order # W3248. This is the copy to the D. M.
route clerk.
Items marked in column " to," as D. M. (last column), require
machine shop work, therefore are handled by the D. M. route
clerk.
D. M. Route Clerk. — Items marked A235, A239, A245, A249,
and A250 are routed on route sheet Form 9 (AP109) as follows:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Item A235 calls for (Form 8) one shaft 2 7/16" diameter,
3' 10" long, plain. This shafting is carried in stock in quantity.
It is routed on the route sheet, Form 9 (AP109), in first column
Ground Plan or Planning Dep't.
2
Q
a'
0
1
(0
BuUetin Boord
U I » I
.^p.a
rflfwawh
BséL
rorumm'i
da»k
Window
^cedlvin^ 0«s-
patehing Batea, ate.
TIMC
OtOCK
Pkitahaa
Corda
fiUd
00Í0
Ron t* eWaet
fU 4.
Order otWork Curk's
DedK.
rATE ckcric*3 d*sk.
ffl»4 CAmu WpHi
D.M.
Aadr Rate
Ct-ntR rata»
DtR.
IneiTuc-tton CatA» ftUd per
«erlat number», |00 ncr box.
¿ Heä o^naphs
Store» baucStti»
mode out*. Canta
sorted ónd marked
\o^ oputrtions. etc.
Blue-ipiHifils filed '
^autWindaarthr tnatructian
Carda and BVuarrtrtia.
JO
t-
z
o LI
"z"
£ P <n
0. Z y
TTtr
«oâ
«t
c •«
i «
« O
k A
O "
boon
Drapting Room.
Arrangement op Planning Department.
as follows: operation i, C — cut off, on lathe 14L; operation 2,
I — inspect; operation 3, C. W. — move to shipping room.
Item 239 calls for (Form 8) a sprocket # 103 (# 103 refers to a
standard pattern) having 23^" pitch diameter and 24 teeth.
312
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The casting is made cored to 2" diameter; hub dimensions
5" X 2" X two set screws. It is routed in column 2, Form
t «o
1
lA
Vi vj
vi "ïi
n
S"
CV Vi
U_
U.
~1
«D
rj
rrt
*
<
S
Jr
5!
i!
i.
\
1
U
d
CL
<
V-
J
m
ul
-i
>-
<0
X
CM
X
£
M
tù
M
2
CM
1
N
QO
CO
•cr\
N
«
a
en
M
i
'S
o
ti
.8
s
0
1
o
b
I
9, as follows: G — grind (teeth); B — bore (hub), on lathe 12
(L-12); S. S. — drill and tap for set screws on drill press 17
(D-17) ; I — inspect; G. W. — to shipping room.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 313
Item A245 calls for one shaft 2 7/16" diameter 319K" long,
with two key seats 6" long with location of key seats given. It
is routed as follows: C — cut off, at lathe 14L; M — mill, at
4M, for key seat; A — assemble at key-seat bench; I — inspect;
C. W. — to shipping room. The " assemble " referred to con¬
sists of assembling items 4 and 5 on shaft, item Mark A245.
Item A249 calls for the same as A239 except a key seat is cut
at 2K and the sprocket then goes to key seat bench to be assem¬
bled on A245.
Item A250 (Form 8) calls for one bevel gear, 19.51" pitch diam¬
eter, 49 teeth, hub dimension given; to be bored to 2 7/16" to
fit shaft A249, key seated and two set screws. It is routed, last
item. Form 9, as follows: Bore at 12L; face hub at iiL; key
seat at 2K; drill and tap for set screws at 17D; clean teeth on
main floor (necessary when teeth are cast) ; assemble on A245 at
key seat bench; inspect; shipping room.
Form 9a shows most of the s3anbols used in routing. If blue
prints were used by the route clerk to aid routing, they are now
filed at the issue window for issue to the workmen.
The route sheet is clipped to the copy of bill of material and
sent to a copy boy who prepares master time cards for each item,
A.
Assemble.
SS.
Set screw.
B.
Bore.
SAW.
Saw.
BE.
Babbitt.
M.
Mill.
C.
Cut.
CP.
Chip.
CT.
Cut teeth.
FT.
Fit.
F.
Face.
AD.
Assemble and drill.
P-F.
Pin flanges.
Rm.
Ream.
S-F.
Shrink flanges.
P.
Plane.
T-F.
Turn flanges.
Tp.
Tap.
A-F.
Assemble flanges.
OG.
Oil groove.
T.
Turn.
G.
Grind.
RB.
Rough bore.
I.
Inspect.
FB.
Finish bore.
CB.
Counterbore.
R-T.
Rough turn.
FT-JWS. Fit jaws.
F-T.
Finish turn.
CL.
Clean.
D.
DriU.
Th.
Thread.
L.
Layout.
Cen.
Center.
SP.
Split.
Csk.
Coimtersunk.
K.
Key seat.
• ¥fi»
SKlfl*lNA OATE-
• HIPPINC ordkk no.
Ws*^f
/r
MO. or Pieces r mark
NO. or pieces i mark
/ Wajr/
CHARGE SYMBOL
CHARGE SYMBOL
DESCRIPTION
DESCRIPTION
MATCRIAL
Receiveo
1
MATERIAL
RECEIVED
1
1
1
â-
1
m
1
7î
-
m
.2'
-B
Í
.
//^
2
F
f
ft
3
K
(
ZK
3
K
k
nt
4
SS
\
no
4
5S
î.
ß
K(a.
MF
5
CieoM.
<
6
d
6
%
t
7
cw
7
7
8
8
9
1
9
e.w
10
10
t1
11
■
12
•
12
mo. or Pieces mark
charge symbol
description
MATEMAL |
RECEIVED 1
VU
M
ii
c
f
Yfi
2
r
3
cur
4
•
5
6
7
•
8
9
10
11
^Sf>x2
f
12
1
'XS-i. '
no. or Pieces
X
mark
4
charge symbol
DESCRIPTION
MATERIAL
RECEIVED
1
/M
j.
EBÍ
1
Oâ
3
s s 1
1
1
4
X
5
Ck)
6
7
8
9.
10
11
12
NO. or Pieces
charge symbot.
DESCRIPTION
m yt\ I 1 1
MATMIAL
RCCT
Uél
M
.-ft
6
8
10
12
A
¿.ni
No. op Pieces
MARK
charge symbol
description
MATERIAL
RECEIVED
8
9
10
Form g.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
315
showing ítem No., No. of pieces ordered, description, source of
material and operation to perform. Form 10 (AP148) shows
OROCn No.
• HCET
MARK
DRAWINQ NO.
A2^
P 27532
PyiTTCRN No.
NO. PIECES
ORDERED
I
LOT
SHAFT 2 7/16" X J"? 1/2« KS 6" PL
16 5^" KS 6» PL 16 7/8"
CJD.
l\f IM CASTINGS
WANTED
Form io. — Master Time Card.
the master time card for item A245. This is made of hectograph
ink and a copy boy makes the following copies:
I route tag Form 11 (DM5).
I stores issue Form 12 (CS103).
and for each operation,
{I time card Form 13 (DM148).
I shop card Form 14 (DM148A).
I move card Form 15 (DM 148A).
The required number of cards being made out, the master
time card is destroyed. The cards are sorted and clipped into
groups as above, one group for each operation. The operations
are numbered in pencil. The route tag and stores issue slip are
scientific management
clipped to the cards of the first operation. In the order under
consideration operations i, 2 and 4 do not require shop copies,
as these machines work on summary work, which will be explained
later. Also operations 3 and 4 do not require move cards, because
operations 4 and 5 are performed at the same place as operation 3.
Form ii. — Route Tag.
After the necessary cards are made out the route sheet is filed
at the order of work clerk's desk, where a record of the progress
of work is kept. The copy of biU of material goes to a clerk who
makes out the necessary stores issue and worked material issue
slips for such items as are drawn from storeroom to go to C. W.
(shipping room). Referring to Form 8, items A230, A237 and
A248 are stores issued to C. W., and A236, A238 and A247 are
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
317
worked materials issued to C. W. The former are made out on
Form 12 and the latter on 17.
The forms for stores issue and worked material issue (for arti¬
cles whose destination is C. W.) are sent to the shipping room
«TOAM TAQ,ila.——
CHAROC TO
) K82W
OMTK» NO. '
"BWCfT
,8
MAim
*24$
ORAWINO NO.
»27332
90. tta, Ortftnd
1
LOT
STORES ISSUED
OATC WRITTEN
SHAFT 2 3 '9 1/2" KS 6" PL
16 ye- i© 6» PL 16 7/8"
«9249 CJ>.
*
'*4H * tí '*
ttUANTITV
PRICE PER UNIT
TOTAL VALUE
PICCK*
PICCC
FRKT
FOOT
POUNDS
POUND
TAG
•AL.
epAT
•MKCT
ISSUED BY
e.wiLBEie
Form 12. — Stores Issue Slip.
C. W. ; and when the articles are desired for shipment the forms
are sent to the storeroom, where they are exchanged for the
desired articles.
The storekeeper, after making the necessary memorandum of
issue on his tag (see bottom of Form 12), sends the slips to the
cost department, where the issue is entered on the balance of
stores sheet and cost sheet.
In the case of all shafting items, except plain shaft, a line
sketch. Form 18, showing position and character of key seats,
accompanies the time card for the milling operation.
All time cards, together with shop copy and move cards, which
are clipped to them, go to the rate clerk to be rated. This con-
318
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
sists in posting on the back of the time card the necessary data
re time and pay (explained later), the tools, cuts, feeds, speeds,
etc., instruction card and drawing numbers. Some of these are
shown on the time cards, front and back, of A245 operation i.
The tags are sent to the receiving room and secured to the mate¬
rial called for by the stores issue slip, or if the material is not from
«eturnko
|M 14«
-i
,OR0CR NO.
w
HO.
18 .
MARK
WJTI
DRAWINO NO.
' 27532
rATTKnN NO.
HO. Pieces
OROCHCO
1
LOT
MACH.
HO.
OR'N
1
NO.
opcnATion
ir NOT riNIOH-
KO •OfÍATeM_
F
■IF riNIOHCO
SOAA'TOM
TAIAS^
NF
SHtfT 2 7/»6" X 5«9 i/2" KS 6« PL
16 5^" KS 6" PL 16 7/8"
CJD.
<
« ^ A • • « • . • • A.. » .Ç. ♦.A# • »
MAN'CNO.
DM
NO. RrtC's
FIN. TODAY
TOTAL
ALLOWÁne.*
TIME
TAREN
PREMIUM
OR 0. T.
man-6
RATE
PAN'S
EARNINGS
ROUTE
• HCCT
ROUTE
ROARD
PAY
sheet'
COST
SHEET
MACH.
RATS
MACH.
CHANbE
GARa So..
Machine Shop time Caro
Form 13. — Time Card.
the store then the tag is secured to the material upon receipt. In
the case of A239, A249 and A250, the foundry tag is destroyed
when the casting is received and the route tag is substituted. In
the case of A235 and A245 slips of stores issued. Form 12, are
sent to the storeroom, and tags. Form 11, accompanying them
are attached to shafting as soon as it is cut to length. Theoreti¬
cally the tag is attached before the material leaves the storeroom.
In the meantime the slips for all operations have been placed
in the receiving box. As soon as the material is received in the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 319
storeroom or receiving room and tagged a notification is sent to
the order of work clerk, who posts the time and move cards of
the first operation on the bulletin board, and the shop copy on the
shop bulletin board, if the machine designated for the first opera¬
tion has a shop board.
The cards for all other operations are placed in the despatching
box, in sequence by order numbers.
On the bulletin board are two sets of hooks for each machine.
The cards on the upper hook represent jobs on that machine
PIEC
E WORK
PREMIUM WORK
BASE
BATE
Ato earnarremium
H the hourr work¬
ed must not exceed
D time eas
U figu«ih0
op «rem
is por,
aia't ■
■ um
E premium
hours maoc4
ip Coots not
cxceeo A
oner^lalp 0
«rcraration
ttmc foh
mioh rate
high
rate'
low
rate
prcraiiation
tmie-,
per piece
wiep«
Aratioh
4
time
per piece
total por-mo.
op pcs. pin-d
M»«»ce
.
total ror
number of
pieces
pintsmrn
ctt»c taken
D no. hours
saved B-C
-wetiawk»;
oj>mo è>€ta b*»»
instructions
shape op
tool
cut
peed
speed
tim.*
.
i '■ i. ■ . ——i
Form 13. — Reverse of Time Card.
arranged in the sequence in which they are to be performed.
The top card represents the job that the man is working on.
Cards on the lower hook represent jobs at the machine, but the
sequence in which the jobs are to be performed has not been de¬
termined. The precedence of the slips on the upper hook is
regulated by the order of work clerk to be in accordance with the
order of shipping dates of the various jobs as obtained from the
shipping boards in the planning room.
320
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The material is moved from the receiving room to the machine
shown on the tag under first operation.
The receipt of material in the shop signifies to the order of
work clerk that the material is at the machine, and the order in
which it is to be done is now arranged; when the man has com¬
pleted one job the tool boy goes to the time card window, turns
■CTUNNCO
itauco
• m ima
OnOER NO.
H3249
■ mcct mo.'I' MARK
18 «45 P
orawihó mo.
Î7552
rattern no.
lo. fei. Onitrid
1
waohimk mo.
o^kration
ir not finismco
•oratch outtNIBe^
F
If riNIOHEO
OaRATCM Out tMIBE^
NF
16 5^" I« 6" PL 16 7/8"
*5249
C.P.
O
• • • «5 • ••
• T+t • • 4»^ • ' W"' • 'é • >îkielVôRK
DM
MACH. SHOP DUPLICATE TIME CARD
Form 14.
in the card for the finished job and receives a card for the next
job, posted on the planning room bulletin board, a duplicate of
which shows on the machine bulletin board in the shop.
The boy also goes to the issue window for instruction card and
drawing, if such are designated. Any special tools required are
also drawn for the man by the tool boy on the man's check. When
the time card is issued the time is stamped in hours and hun¬
dredths of hours (upper left corner) " out " The job being com¬
pleted the card is turned in to the order of work clerk and the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
321
time again stamped on the card (upper left corner) " in." The
difference between the two is the time of the job.
The shop bulletin board has a number of hooks in a vertical
row for the jobs ahead of the machine so a man can see all of
them. As soon as the operation is completed the move card is
taken from the planning room bulletin board and given to the
move gang, who move the material to the machine designated
«KTWRNKb
iscOKB
ORDKN NO.
M*. Pci. to-r
I
swr'rz
16 yS"
• M ««OH
«{nTnaR f
•HKKT NO'I MAHH
18 m?
ORAWINO NO.
27532
NAtTKMN NO.
♦ ••JL* •• Ä » «S o ••JQ • • *
• ' * »vi • • •
|- IMAT*!« . AHO NO.
a
m
u
a
•
DM
MACH. SHOP DUPLICATE TIME CARD
Form 15. — Move Card.
on tag for the second operation. At the same time cards for the
second operation are posted, as were the previous ones, and the
same routine followed. When the work is moved the move card
is returned to the order of work clerk, who checks the operation
as completed on the route sheet (see Form 9) by drawing a blue
vertical line opposite the operation concerned and noting the
date. The move card is then destroyed.
When all operations are completed, and after the work is in¬
spected in the shipping room, Form 19 (AP7) is made out and
322
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
sent to the order of work clerk. The blue line on the route sheet
is then extended to the bottom of the sheet and the date of in¬
spection is stamped on the route sheet. The order of work clerk
initials under column " Route Sheet " on Form 19. The route
sheet under consideration shows state of work on sheet to be as
follows: A235 finished and inspected in C. W. 9/12/11; A239
ready for inspection; A245 went to key seating bench 9/12/11,
e* t WOHKÉO MATCniALS TAO NO. CHARGE £YM60L
QUANTITY
UN.IT
TOTAL WEIGHT
TOTAL VALUE
.
t
DESCRIPTION
WORKED MATERIALS ISSUED
STOREKEEPER
^ 00 NOT FIL(U OUT
f FOR ORa-
I ERS ON STORE*
. / KEEPER,
MONTH
OAT
™ — —-T ^
PLEASE ISSUE >^.BOVE |
BCARLR
SIGNEO'BY MAN FOR WNOM W. M. ARE 1SSUÉ0_
VEAN
191
TAG
WORKEP
MATERIALS
^HE-ET
balance
' SHEET
WORKED MATERIALS DESCRIBE ABOVE
HAVE BEEN ISSUED
'BiGÑÉO BySTOAEXEEPER'
'.OR HIS bfpbFRFMTATIW. ■
Form 17. — Worked Material Issue Slip.
being chipped and fitted; A249 went to key seating bench
9/13/11, and is being assembled to A245; A250 went to main
fioor 9/13/11, and teeth are being cleaned.
After the time of finishing the job has been stamped upon the
time card it is filed by the order of work clerk in a box which has
compartments for the different classes of machines. These cards
are turned into the cost department daily, and the man receives
a daily statement of his earnings for the previous day.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
323
Daily all route sheets on which all items have been completed
and inspected are taken from the files and sent to the superinten¬
dent, and a notification of these jobs and sheet numbers is sent
to the production clerk for his information.
When an operation is completed the shop bulletin board copy
is checked and destroyed by the order of work clerk; all other
slips on the board are then moved up a peg.
This is the ordinary procedure for an engineering order as illus¬
trated by Chart II (facing page 306). In case of work in the
Shaft Sketch
NUMBER
OF PIFCES -
CHARGE SYMBOL
»HKT
■«mu /<j
mm ^
.
. é\
r"
l"
/ fry ^
J3-Í"
{»(^.....DIAMET
» ?
ER
<r
I''
l._.LONC:
note-mark OPPOSrTE EACH «cy IF THE WHEEL If a GEAR, PINION, OR
SPROCKET AND GIVE BILL OF MATERIAL MAgR OF SAME.
Form i8.
wrought shop the routing, etc., is handled by the D. W. route
clerk, and a similar procedure takes place. The proposition is
much simpler, due to the nature of the work handled.
Considerable contract work is done in this department, and
the time card and shop copy are Form 20. In cases of piece work,
premium or day work the card is similar to that used in D. M.
Classes of Work according to Pay
1. Piece work, with high and low rate. 3. Day work.
2. Premium work. 4- Contract work.
324
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Piece Work. — The ultimate aim, in order that employer and
employee may profit the maximum, is the piece work system
with high and low rate. When this system is employed the work¬
man benefits in wages by any increase of output and the company
benefits by increase of production per machine. This is the per¬
fection of sliding scale bonus. In order that piece work may be
••••••• *3»
■N / 71
CHARGE SYMBOL
f
W
SHIPPING
NUMBER
1 SHEET
NUMBER /y
*
' * 1 ■■ 1 _ 1
DESpRIPTlbN
•*4
r HAVK inspkctcd au. the articles described above and find
them to be .
ROUTS
PAY
COST
LOT NO.
SHEETS
SHEETS
SHEET
SHEET
1
1 .
signed bv/fn
INSPECTION
Form 19. — Inspector's Slip.
employed the standard piece work time must be absolutely cor¬
rect and fair for the average workman. The piece work rate,
once established, cannot be " cut." This must always be borne
in mind, as cutting of rates is invariably followed by discontent
among the workmen and spells disaster to the success of the sys¬
tem. These standard times are being added to daily; at present
there are more than 10,000 such times established here, and of
course many more can be deduced from parts or combinations of
parts of these. In cases where these times have been established
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
325
the man is paid a certain fixed rate per finished piece, the high
rate if finished under the minimum time allowed, the low rate if
he exceeds this time. These high and low rates are determined
from a base rate as follows :
The base rate = the average pay in the neighborhood for work
on the class of machine to be operated.
High rate = 1.35 of the base rate (35% bonus).
Low rate = 5/6 X high rate {i2}4% bonus); but, if the
man makes low rate, with the increased time the man's output
DEPARTMENT
DW
CHARGE EXCESS TO
PIECE WORK
CONTRACY
JOB NO IN CHARGE OF
NO. DW.
description of work to be done
DATE 6TARTE0
DATE F1NI6HE0
TOTAL
CONTRACT PRICE
DAY WAGES
ADVANCED
EXCESS TO BE
DISTRIBUTED
EXCESS TO BE DISTRIBUTED
DAY WAGES ADVANCED
.EXCESS RATIO
i HAVE INSPECTED THE WO*K DONE ON THIS CONTRACT JOB AND HAVE PASSED ON THE
SAME AS BEING SATISFACTORY
PAY
SHEET
COST
SHEET
F0ÂVD16TRIBUTI0N OP EXCEÇS BEE
\ I
SIGNED BY
INSPECTOR OR
REPRESENTATIVE
. OTHER 6tOe OF CARD
CONTRACT JOB
Form 20. — Time Card for Contract Work. In duplicate — original, white; duplicate, manila.
is lowered, and consequently his total pay is lowered. If he falls
just below the time allowed he would still get a little over what
he could make at straight day rate. If he runs much over the
time allowed he loses considerably. However, it is very rare in
this plant for a man to run over the minimum time without good
reason. In case of unusually hard metal or any valid cause the
man is given high rate, and in case of new men who have been
326
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
employed less than six months, they get a guaranteed day rate if
they fail to make high rate.
In the case of a man working at a machine which has a base
rate higher than his own base rate, determined by his usual ma¬
chine, he would be paid on the higher base rate basis. If a man
DW no.
WORKMAN'S NAME
day wages
advanced
excess
distribution
total day wages
advanced
total excess
distribution
to be charged
Form 20.— Reverse of Duplicate.
work at a machine which has a lower base rate than his own he
would get the base rate of the machine + a retainer fee per hour
of (his rate — the base rate).
Example. — Base rate 20 c.
High " 27c. = 1.35 X .20
Low " 22^C. = 5/6 X .27
If an 18 c. man work on this job he gets paid on the 20 c. base
rate.
If a 22 c. man work on this job he gets paid on the 20 c. base
rate, and in addition there is added to his day's earnings 2 c. per
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
327
hour (called 2 c. retainer) for all his working time. The form for
this will be shown later.
Premium Work. — Where a piece work rate has not been ac¬
curately established the work is placed on the premium basis.
Such work is chipping and fitting, assembling wheels on shafts,
etc. By this system an estimated time allowance is placed on
the job. The pay is at a fixed hourly rate. If the man exceed
the time allowed he is paid his hourly rate for his actual working
time. If he does the job in less than the allowed time he is paid
for his actual working time -f ^ (the difference between the
BALANCE OF STORËS SHEET —
NAME or'fmi ■ ■ 1 . , . ' 1
ONDKRCD
BBCKIVKD
(ksuco
f ALANCK OH HAND
AmJED QH onocj
lO
AVAIiJ
ABLE
•m
wtatifv
—wá
■—
—
—
—•
—
1 »
•OMM*
Form 21. — Balance of Stores Sheet.
time allowed and his actual working time). In other words, he
gets a bonus of the time he saves on an estimated time. This
gives the fast workman a bonus over the average worker, without
doing harm to the slower worker.
Day Work. — Day work is straight pay on a hourly basis.
This is applied to move men, laborers, and for work on which no
time can be estimated.
Contract Work. — Work is paid for under this scale as follows:
A large job in the truss shop, such as assembling and riveting a
tank, is farmed out to a boss workman who will have several men
— say a riveting gang — under him. These men all have estab¬
lished day rates. A contract price is placed on the job. This
price is distributed in proportion to the hourly rates of the several
men. The men are paid daily as follows: Each day the men
receive their daily pay according to their hourly rate until the
total contract price is paid out. Should the contract be com¬
pleted before the total contract price is paid out an excess
remains to be distributed among the men pro rata on their daily
rate.
328
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Example. — Suppose a tank to be assembled and riveted, con¬
tract price $40.00.
Men employed:
Boss at $5.00 day.
Helper at 3.00 day.
Helper at 2.00 day.
If this job were completed in three days the several amounts
paid to date of completion would be:
Boss $15.00
ist helper 9.00
2d helper 6.00
$30.00
Excess to be distributed 10.00
Excess to be distributed 10
Total days' wages paid 30
Excess for each man.
Boss f X $15 = $5
ist helper ^ X $9 = $3
2d helper ^ X $6 = $2
Should the men draw the total contract price before the job is
completed the hourly rate is continued as long as the job is in
hand. It is a rare case in which the job is not finished before this
time. Cases of palpable error in imder-estimating contract price
are subject to readjustment.
Cases of readjustments on pay of men are very rare. Unusu¬
ally hard metal making a large cutting time, clerical errors, and
new men are the only causes that arise. Fairness and content¬
ment mark the working of the system at this plant. During a
seven-week period under observation but one case arose where a
man got low rate on piece work.
The installation of this system was very gradual. A few of
the best workmen were put on piece work, the rate on which had
been very carefully established by time study. As soon as it was
apparent to the other men that those on piece work were con-
- = excess ratio.
3
See Form 20.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
329
sistently making more than they could make at their day rate,
request for piece work came from the men themselves.
Route Clerk. — The route clerk must be a practical shop man,
thoroughly conversant with the capacities of machines and of
men and with general shop practices. A tabulated form showing
the capacities of the machines is originally prepared, but the route
clerk must be conversant with this data to successfully route.
He must place the work at the machine which will handle it most
efficiently and quickly. He must be in touch with the general
condition of work at the different machines so as to distribute the
work to best advantage.
Often two operations can be performed simultaneously, such
as boring a hub and rough turning the ffange of a wheel. He
must decide whether to do these as one or two operations, being
governed by the work at the various machines, etc. The com¬
binations and possible varieties of routing that pass through his
hands are many, and his is a billet that requires knowledge from
experience. Routing of items which are often repeated becomes
almost automatic.
The route clerk keeps a card index in which he makes a memo¬
randum of the route of any new item. This forms a ready refer¬
ence for similar items, until such time as he becomes thoroughly
familiar with their routing.
Many items, such as gears, etc., are standardized. Tables
are prepared for all of these showing the several dimensions. In
this case the item is often identified by a number, thus: 23"
sprocket if 103. From the standard tables all dimensions can
be obtained.
For engineering jobs the blue prints are sent to the route clerk
with the B. M. This is necessary to routing, as the interrelation
of parts,^the dimensions, etc., are thus obtained.
Rate Setting Clerk, Instruction Cards and Drawings. — The
rate setting clerk determines the class pay for a job. He places
the time allowed for preparation, and per piece. Preparation
time is allowed on the first piece only where the piece work is
used. The base, high and low rate are also placed on the card.
An omnimeter having ficxed lines on the marker is employed to
NAME OF ITEM.
BALANCE OF STORES SHEET
IM9
SPECIFiCATIONS.
7a'>Í3"
MINIMUM STOCK
3OOÖ
OUAHTITT TO ONDCil
ORDERED
RECEIVED
ISSUED
BALANCE ON HAND
APPLIED ON ORDERS
AVAILABLE
OATS
*7
/
•UANTI1T-
00 O
PUHCH.
ON OTOCIi
OWPCN WO.
DATC
ii-pi.
HL
l-i;
OOANTITT
S'Poo
1/7
/•/f
J
too
OmONDCNHoJ date
Vff7
-M7f;
.oí
DATE
tt
U
ItJ
ouantitt
I
I
Form 21a. — Method of Keeping Balance of Stores Sheet.
Z90
y 00
$0 o
ONDEA NO. I DATE
ouANtmr
^0 ^ à
'fío o
jf-JOO
/Of;
//f;
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 331
determine various rates and to determine the pay per piece. The
class of pay, allowed times, etc., are found from instruction cards.
REQUISITION NO._.§7753
department.:^.: : MONTK i)AY ia
TO THE PURCríASINQ AOENT;
PLEASE ORDER. THE FOLLOWINO FOR
TAG'NUMBER
DESCRIPTION
NET PWCC pkfl
WANTED. MONTH—: ^^DAY
10
SKjlfiFn
RCQUttlTlOHM
STOREKEEPER'S
ENDORSEMENT:
APPROVED.
NOT IN STORES
OVER
STORBKEMPCR
PURCHASE OP
WANTED
r. 0. B..
to bf shipped. month
day 10 via
SIGNED ;
9WIICNAMM
purchase oboer no WBltTER. *onth -oat 1» __ BY
Foru 22. — Requisition for Stores.
Instruction Cards. — There are two sets of these cards, one
filed by class of work for the rate setting clerk's use, the other
332
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
filed serially for issue to the workmen. The instruction card
numbers and drawing numbers are noted on the time card. When
needed by the workmen they are drawn from an issue window
on workmen's checks. The cut, feed, speed, machine time, etc.,
are placed on the time cards. These are obtained from the in¬
struction cards, or, if unknown, can be computed by sjide rules.
A master slide rule is prepared for each class of machine, and
slides to fit these master rules are prepared for each machine of
the class.
Balance of Stores Clerk. — The principal function of the bal¬
ance of stores clerk, as his name implies, is to keep a balance of
Y- ORDER
Synopsis of Contents.
Form 23.
the stores on hand in the storeroom. This is done on Form 21,
balance of stores sheet, as follows; Each class of stores has its
own sheet showing name of item, minimum stock allowed, quan¬
tity to order at one time, and columns: ordered, received, bal¬
ance on hand, applied on orders, and available.
The sheet. Form 21, is kept as follows:
When stores are ordered they are entered with date, quantity
and purchase order number in the first column. Upon receipt a
vertical line is entered after the quantity ordered and the same
quantity is entered in the second column. Stores are ordered
either on requisition. Form 22, on purchase department, if for
stores, or by " Y " order. Form 23, if for worked material for
store. In either case the requisition or order emanates from the
balance of stores clerk, when the amount available is less than
the minhmun stock per his balance sheet. Its approval by the
superintendent is authority to purchase in the former case and
for manufacture at the plant in the case of . a " Y " order.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
333
Receipts. — In the case of a purchase order, as stated pre¬
viously, the receiving room is furnished with a copy of the pur¬
chase order. When the stores are received in the storeroom, a
c. o
mre wiDBiiDoit
I
MME OF ARTICLE
~ DATE
nSUEO
QUANimr ISSUED
' AND
BAIAHCEON HAND
aURGETO
V
■ fil
N.
J
K/jsf
T
Form 24. — Bin Tag.
notification form is sent to the balance of stores clerk and at the
same time the quantity received is entered, on the bin tag. Form
24, of the receiving bin.
In the case of a " Y " order the same procedure follows, except
that Form 25 is sent by the receiving room to report receipt to
the balance of stores clerk.
Debits. — When a bill of material goes through the balance of
stores clerk's hands and he designates origin of items as " stores "
he debits under column " Applied on Orders," all such stores.
334
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
After the stores are actually drawn, that is, when he receives
slips. Form 12 or 17, he debits column " Issued," enters balance
on hand and draws vertical line opposite stores affected under
column " Applied on Orders." When the quantity " Balance
on Hand " minus quantity " Applied on Orders " but not actu-
W 1
MIE
BSUEV
QUMnm ÉSSUED
AND
BALANCE ON HAND
CMRCETO
ENTtRBAL
MSKME
ANCEONHAND
ROOMtKRE
Form 24. — Reverse.
ally issued, becomes less than quantity " Minimum Stock " a
new requisition must be made out. If stores or worked material
are turned into storeroom from a job, slips. Form 26 or 27, are
sent to balance of stores clerk, who credits under column " Re¬
ceived."
The balance of stores sheet. Form 21a, p. 330, under discussion
reads minimum stock allowed 3000 8/7/11 — 500® ordered on
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
335
purchase order No. 84732. Same received 8/7/11. 9/18/11 —
7500 ordered on " Y " order ^ 3246, not yet received — 8/21/11
— 50 turned in on credit slip. 8/17/11 —3 issued to regular
order 67592 and 8/19/11 — 200 to engineering order # 3094.
Balance on hand 8/21/11, 4847. Quantity applied on orders
•
WORKED MATERJALS RECEIVED IN NTORES
WORKED MATERIALS TAG NO.
PIECES LOST
UNIT
TOTAL VALUE
PIECES SCRAPPED
THE STOREKEEPER WILL NOT ENTER ANY
VALUES. ON WORKED MATERIAL TAGS IK
STORES NOR ON THIS SHEET.
PIECES DAMAGED
PIECES 0. K.
TOTAL GOOD. PIECES
ACCEPTED ffl STORES
W. M.
TOTAL WEIGHT
LBS.
MONTH
DAT
YEAR
191
REMARKS
aiGNATURE Of. INSPECTOR WHO .
DELIVERS GOODS TO STORe-
I HAVE RECEIVED THE ABOVE WORKED MATERIALS
MATERIALS TAG ON THEM AND ENTERED THE
STORES AND HAVE TIED WORKED
ON THAT TAG
BALANCE
SHEET
or STOREKEEPER
OR HIS. REPRESENTATIVE
Form 25. — Storekeeper's Receipt.
in hand in shops 3700. Quantity available for issue 1147. A
new requisition must be made at once, as this quantity is less
than minimum. Obviously the 3700 that are reserved for jobs
under way in the shops cannot be available for future orders.
When performing functions pertaining to stores the balance of
stores clerk is technically in the cost department.
336
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Receiving and Storeroom
Receiving. — Stores may be issued from three sources: (i)
Purchased, (2) Worked material made in plant, (3) Foundry,
which is a form of purchase.
In case (i) the storekeeper is furnished a copy of the purchase
order. Upon receipt of stores he checks up this order and noti¬
fies balance of stores clerk of receipt of stores by form and enters
quantity on receiving bin tag. Form 24, if stores go into bin, or
attaches a bin tag and another tag. Form 28, if the stores are
•• »
CREOn
ORDER NO.
Sheet No.
MARK
DRAWINÖ NO.
PATTERN NO.
No. p'c'» Del-o
STORES CREDIT
DATE WRITTEN
NOTE:
FINISHED PRODUCT OF DM-OC OR DW MUST NOT BE REPORTED
TO STORES UPON THIS FORM
DATE RECEIVED
IN STORES
QUANTITY
PRICE PER UNIT
TOTAL VALUE
pieces
feet
pounds
piece
foot
pound
TAQ
bal.
bheet
Cost
sheet
order
■«wto»
RECEIVED IN- STORES BY
:
Form 26. — Stores Credit Slip.
destined for a particular job. In the latter case the route tag,
when received by the storekeeper, is substituted for the bin tag
which is destroyed, and both tags now on the item remain with
it to completion in the shops.
In case (2) worked material made in plant, the material is
turned into the bin and entered on the bin tag, notification being
sent as stated under " Balance of Stores Clerk," on Form 25.
In case (3) the procedure follows the second variation of case i.
A bin tag and foundry tag. Form 29, are put on the castings. As
in the former case the route tag when received is substituted for
the bin tag. Notification of receipts of castings is made to the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
337
balance of stores clerk, etc., on Form 30, and to the order of
work clerk for his route sheet file on Form 31.
Stores drawn for a job order may be returned to the store, in
which case the storekeeper sends slip, Form 26 or Form 27, to
«• » WORKtO MATtRtALt TAtt N*.
CRKOrr ORDER No.
QUANTITY
UNIT
TOTAL WCMHT
CM.
TOTAL VALUE
WORKED MATERIALS CREDIT
MOMTM
MV
II
1
i
1»
RLEASC CREDIT WORKED WATERIAIS ORDER HO. -
WITH —
ARD CHARCE TO-
DIRECT LABOR |
SHOP EXPENSE
EXPENSE 1
STORES
1
1
1
t
I HAVE RECEIVED THE ABOVE WORKED MATERIALS IH WORKED MATERIAL STORES AND HAVE TIED
WORKED MATERIALS TAO ON THEM AND ENTERED THE QUANTITY RECEIVED ON THAT TAO
iTMCt
iMCir
tALANCI
.•MCCT
COpT
•NtfT
CAKO O.K.
•NOP
orPiCK
•10. pf INMPtCTOM
WNO OCEblVi««
0000« to •TOKCO
•fOMATURf OF •TOKCKÉEFCfl
OK Ml« K€FKCiCNTATIVC
1
Form 27. — Worked Materials Credit Slip.
the balance of stores clerk for his stores sheet, and this also serves
as a notification to the cost department to credit the job order
with stores not used.
Issuing
When Form 12 or 17 is presented to the storekeeper, stores are
issued, the forms being retained. Tags on issuing bins are
debited with stores issued. The forms are sent to the balance
of stores clerk for his records and then go to the cost department
for debit on the job order to which they are applied.
338
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Storekeeping
Articles which are carried in quantity are stored in bins. Each
item has two bins, a receiving and issuing bin, with a bin tag on
each. All receipts go to one bin and all issues come from the
other. In this way a check is obtained on the item account.
e
08 37-aoH U40
ORDER No.
MARK
QUAN.
PATT.
SIZE_
DESCRIPTIOII.
MUST SHIP_
w
SHIPPING ORDER
NUMBER
SHEET
NUMBER
MARK
■Ik OF PIECES
LOTS, LOT HO
FROM
FOUNDRY
mSPICTOR
OBRO ROSS
ROVTI __
SHEEf
ORDER Of
WORK CLERK
Form 28. — Job Order Tag.
Form 29. — Foundry Tag.
When the issuing bin is empty, if the tag does not read o the ac¬
count can be readjusted, the balance of stores clerk being notified.
When the issuing bin is emptied it becomes the new receiving bin
and the old receiving bin becomes the new issuing bin, until it in
turn is emptied.
Articles too bulky for storage in bins are stored with a single
bin tag, and the only check possible with this class of stores is an
inventory.
Receiving Floor
All stores are received on the receiving fioor. They are tagged
immediately upon receipt. The following form is used for con¬
venience in checking in stores:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
339
Memo, of
Order No.
Sheet and Mach.
Quantity and
Description
Bin No. or
Floor
They are then treated as described under receiving. Freight
receipts are reported on Form 32 (see page 340).
Inventory
An inventory is taken annually, but all items are not inven¬
toried simultaneously. An inventory is taken of several classes
r'HAVr náecived the followiña«iitiei.es
ow
a9-part0f PURCHASE ORDER HO
month.
day
year
191
THIU ITIBt BO¬
THO TAOl 0» AU ABTlillit AeCdVED, •HOUIIIO tHBI« COAT, INCIUDHIO PAIiaHT CHABOM OA 0-
ilOTiPl«»
«MTIO «P
•tOUIMTIOn
•iLw or
MATIRlAb
OTOHtO
OHItT
•At.Aiiei
•HUT
ruOCHAMHO
•OUT
•weiToo
1
•toaikiiaa*
Form 30. —Notification of Stores Receipt.
MH. ... ... FH
OHOCRf D mr vou »h REQUIStflOll^llO..
fURCHASE ORDER NQ.— have arrived in.
h'r.rro No.81
«3...» CiaNEO-i - —
Form 31. —Notification of Stores Receipt.
each month so that at the year's end the storeroom has been
entirely covered. This prevents business interruption for this
purpose.
month
oat
vcan
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Production Clerk and Shipping
The production clerk's function is briefly to
get the work out of the shop, cooperating with
and notifying the planning room foreman if
there is any probability of delay in shipment.
He is the head of the shipping department
and keeps the tickler.
He is informed of the progress of an order
at all stages and keeps a record of such prog¬
ress on Form No. 33 (AP35). He is informed
of the receipt of material in the shop by
1. Manifest in the case of castings.
2. Copy of Form 7 in the case of purchased
material.
He keeps a foundry board on which is re¬
corded the dates castings are due, and keeps
a record of their receipt on this according to
the three color scheme explained later in the
« case of D. M. and D. W- shipping boards.
I Silent and regular orders come from the con-
^ tract department to the production clerk to be
checked for rush orders so that the material for
these jobs can be started before the order is
written. In this connection the production
clerk notes the date of shipment and enters it
on the D. M. and D. W. shipping boards for
the planning department foreman's information.
In case of doubt the latter are consulted in
fixing this date.
Engineering order shipping dates are not en¬
tered on the shop shipping boards. Instead, each
department, etc., concerned has a list of same,
called a "Bill of Material Shipping List." This
list shows: Firm, order No., date of shipment,
preferred and penalty orders, etc. Daily at 9
A. M. the production clerk, planning room fore¬
men and shop foremen meet in the superinten¬
dent's office and discuss the progress of this list.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
341
The original and a copy of each order is sent to the shipping
department; the copy goes to the packing room. Goods are
packed and shipped as per route previously designated on the
order by the production clerk.
When the goods are all checked and packed the copy is returned
to the shipping department and the original is sent to the billing
department. The copy is left on file for a couple of months and
then destroyed.
Shipping List
Silent Chain Orders
C. 19393 P- Direct 9-8.
19403 Direct 9-7.
«19408 Cancelled.
19412 Ad. Ex.
19475 Direct 9-7.
19658 P. & R.
19696 P. & R.
19727 Direct 8-31.
19780 Mail Direct 9-6.
19781 -U. S. Ex. Direct 9-8.
19787 Cancelled.
19854 Ad. Ex.
R 67439 Wagon.
67861 P. R. R.
67970 Boat.
67984 U. S. Ex.
67990 Wagon.
67593 Ad. Ex.
67610 "
67567 Direct 9-8.
67704 Boat.
67493 P. & R.
67560
67592 "
Bill of Material Orders
W 2042 X7.
68030 Boat.
68031 P. & R.
68034 U. S. Ex.
68044 Cancelled.
68045 Ad. Ex.
68073 Bearer.
68074 Maü.
2232 X2 Ad. Ex.
3024 X7.
3007 X2 U. S. Ex.
3046 X3.
A/0. 3225 Wagon 3 and 7.
A/0. 3235 Wagon.
68009 Wagon.
Regular Orders
R 66227 P. R. R.
66960 P. R. R.
68076 U. S. Ex.
68077 U. S. Ex.
68075 P'
Form No. 34. — Copy of Hectograph List Sent Out Daily.
342
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Daily a list, Form 34, is made out of all orders shipped and
twelve copies are distributed as follows:
Production clerk 2
Route sheet file i
D. W 2
D. M 2
Cost department i
Purchase department i
Order department i
Chief draftsman i
The shop shipping boards are checked by the three color sys¬
tem.
Copies of B. M., Form 8, are destroyed in all departments on
receipt of shipping lists. Form 33 (AP35) is destroyed by the
production clerk. Goods are shipped on a shipping manifest,
Form 35, the original of which is sent with the bill of lading, dup¬
licate filed in the shipping room, and triplicate goes to the cost
department. A memorandum is kept in a blank book of job,
route, d^te, etc.
Correspondence re jobs late in shipment is sent to the produc¬
tion clerk for comment.
Tickler. — The tickler, which is now a part of any well regu¬
lated shop or office, takes the following form here:
A cabinet with a drawer for each month; in each drawer a
large letter file with space for each day of the month. All tickler
forms (Form 36) of the superintendent, planning department
and shops are sent here for file by dates, and it is the production
clerk's duty to daily distribute such ticklers of the day as are on
file.
Shipping Boards in Planning Department. — These boards
consist of heavy japanned sheet tins on which are pasted forms
having a column for each day of the month. There is one board
for each class of order, " R " and " C." The order numbers are
entered in the column under date shipment is promised or desired.
When order is shipped a colored mark is made at the order num¬
ber as follows:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
343
If shipped ahead of time, a purple star.
If shipped on time, a blue mark.
If shipped one day late, a red mark.
If shipped two days or more late, a yellow mark.
MOQflCSd QF BI1,L OF MAfERIAL ORDÇR
•ow T» , , I . Min éiitiin».
•HIR TO OVOTOMIiro «0 .. TO OB ONI
MVIOION *
•HBBT NOk ..
mUBO Hßß NRt. 0 0.
ROIflW .
Mttiyionr. rhobl euwc
OIUÓUNM IMUID
if. .WORK flNIRHBi
MAtVIAt IWORIYBP
OilWABKOMlNBO
•«r. . • . •,
RBCRIVBO.IflCW,
•HIMIBNT MAOB
mmioN
( mm : ...
IMUfOfKOMilRPr.OBk
fWIOlP . ^ . .
.iROVVtO jy RROPb OWIC
OiRWIItMlNttBO
Oft WORK FIRHWIO..
HATpWAk RiOBlVBO
.00 WORft fINlBHBO
,'R^VBBINPW
•HIHIBNT MAOB .
•
•
n
li^OfROM OBRT. 0 ft
mm- - , -
/ BY RROft OLBRK
PNAWIKM MèUBD
pp. WORK áÜÚtNBO
MATBRIAL RIOBIVRO
DM WPRk PpNlBHBp
PW • •
•BOBIVBOJpeW
•HIPMBNT MAOB
-
'f
OlVlfttftN
PHBBT Nft
mUBO FROM DBFT. D ft
PRINTBp
RBOBIVBO BY FRO& CI.BRK
»•AWINOO IMUBD
V. WORK FIMIOHBO
MATBIML RBOBIVBO
OM WORK FINIBHBO
OW. " •
RBOBIVBO IN OW
•HIFMSNT MAOB
-
-
^ wvmioN
OHBBT Nft
WOUBD FROM DBFT. 0 ft
FRINTBO
RBOBIVBO OV FROft CLBRR
ORAWINOB IMUBO
Oft WORK FINIOHBO
MATBRIAL RiOBIViO
WORK FINIOHbO
RBOBIVBO IN OW
BNIFMBMT MAOB
•
-
'
-
ÏKM
BUTS . .
'
OATBIBOUBO
BXTRA ACCOUNT NO.
OF. WORK FINIBHBO
MATBRIAL RBCBIVBD
OM WORK FINIBNBO
-OW • •,
OHtFHBNT HAOP
-
--
Form 33. — Progress of Work kept by Production Clerk.
344
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Cost Keeping Department
Analysis of a joh order cost
(Chart III to be read concurrently.)
The grand total selling cost of a job order is made up of (a)
total selling cost for this plant and {h) total for other plants.
»MIWNO MAmriT
COMPANY
• L Me..
AD9IIIM—.
VIA-
NO -
..jcaa no.
Tut rmMWIM ITCM HA«! MMmu? ««MUA. AAMW ANA lAAASA lATA TIIC AAAVK AAA.
AkEAAC tSAaiM AAAtfWlAV AAA AAAAAT AAV AIAAACAÂÂMCA. «
VIAA AATTT "
H
i
Form 35. — In Triplicate; Original, Duplicate and Triplicate so Marked.
TICKLER
NAME.
mkaci acroRT ro.
pVAfA TMtA AAA AtKAATTCAAAA Tf.
Form 36. — Tickler.
This second item (b) consists of parts or articles manufactured
for the job or bought but shipped from other plant direct and not
handled at this plant.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 345
(ff) Total selling cost (of this plant) consists of (ai) total selling
cost of worked materials by divisions. (Note: If the job is
large, such as a coal-handling device, it is separated into divisions
such as Hoppers, Springs, Chutes, etc., for convenience of plan¬
ning, manufacture, etc., and each division is given a letter. If,
for instance, the job order were 2035 the divisions would be known
as 203 5A, 203 5B, etc. The accounts of the several divisions are
r^A
B
c
Otfr.
W/
Grand Total
Selling Cost of Job
Total far
ttilo plant
Totol SdUin3 Coat
of Worhod Matenat
by Oivietono.
dtiop Coat * —
MP — 3pecioi Poitterno
MT 3pociolToo\d
9«IUn3 Expanse
Wp9©0
Ekpanaa
McvcHina Cost
Storea
Worhad Matafiai
' G • Drawings.
SS* Stores Sold
U "• Sublet ContpooTs
J ~ Freight Royoittae* eta
f — Erection
Oè
Totol for
other plants
Charta. V
Chart III.
kept separately on all forms until the final cost summary is
reached. This is not only a convenience in cost keeping but is
essential to estimating and replacing; (a2) Drawings, G; (a3)
Stores sold, SS; (a4) Sublet contracts, U; (as) Freight, royalties,
etc., J; and (a6) Erection, F.
(ai) Total Selling Cost of Worked Materials by Divisions. —
Each division is made up of (aia) shop cost of worked material;
(aib) special tools; (aic) special patterns; and (aid) general
expense.
(a2) Drawings, G. — The cost of drawings is made up of (a2a)
wages; (a2b) drawing expense; (a2c) general expense.
Cbort 4.
Oi
4^
OS
5HOPHO.
35?
w.
KIND or
MACHINE
SIZE
MAKER
COST rCR
HOUR
M. caKTB.
ICPMoffial
MXAHNVMUI
lUlNINNtNa
KC4EMRk^S»mj<
smToou
PCWER
REMARKS
HITORM
rtm
im
1A
»
I^K.Bauue Miu.
iZO'
PJHDMUCHIHEC«.
5LÓ
462
2
0
3 61
0
o
U4
4
4
501
ft
O
43
¿5
34
¿B
M
.
flr
•
4.S7
1
0
232
0
0
1 64
4
4
4 17
7
t}
42
25
3-0
dl
.
44"
CßwocrMtcHiHtC»
464
4
214
e
o
144
4
4
271
S
o
,
148
12
t-8
•
4&
A7
VtRlBoRINtHu.
.^r
DuuMloMACHINcTaoi. Co
¿b.à
202
0
Ô
U2
0
o
*»«
6
4
2 os
8
6
74
q
1.5
SB
It
30'
WARHÍRtSWASEY
139
4
0
142
0
p
S6
6
6
20^
6
ft
qq
q
i-fi
&B
tr
Hon* -
A.jsSfr"
MEWTor Machine C».
Soo
\
0
134
0
0
Sf
6
6
I3q
?
fi
4«?
7J
|.0
7B
u
• -
i4*a Ift'.Sb'
BinnscMachine Tóoi-Co
|35
0
o
81
0
0
1í
6
V
A
6
65
1
.7
«B
8|
KM-iVt
S3
0
0
224
0
0
Sí
6
6
ISi
S
■F
i 00
q
14
IC
Itf
GunCwTTcn
64"
GaucdACbenharot
L4.b
36J
4
)
170
0
o
ITS
3
S
278
5
O
14^
lû
2.Ô
te
•
ir«t
Brown(SHAnrt
£44
ns
8
8
iflt
0
f
ftT
la
1-3
sr.
m
» »
40"»j
• «•
175
8
6
• IÄO
o
ns
ft
4
t S3
7
\\
ic
III
•
48"« 4
* •
7^
4
1 OO
o
<7
17S
ft
S
133
7
.
-
i.i
sc
in
3k'*Á
» I*
142
0
ITS
s
123
3
p
-
.
.q
6C
14
•
8ft
\
too
0
ns
3
111
4
0
•
.
•ñ
8C
lÄ
l<S
,
36"tB
&4
0
100
0
0
ITS
q
IM
4
0
•
»
e
4ft'«4
Z 14
4
Í7S
3
q
15ft
0
. 6
i.i
««c
itt
-
4a"*i
• .
2 lo
7
8
100
0
o
174
ft
q
153
0
-
ti
\oc
RF
34'«9
73
4
4
lOO
Û
0
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3
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til
4
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37
18
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4ft'#4
SS
ft
A
loo
o
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ft
123
ft
p
»
rq
Chart IV.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
347
(a3) Stores Sold consist of stores delivered with an order as
part of the order but direct from the storeroom and not made up
as part of any of the worked material divisions. This cost con¬
sists of (a3a) invoice price of stores and (a3b) general expense.
0MI48
D >01 D101
Machín*
Codt
A [Card
DM 148
Dioi DWeA.
for |«aeh | man
C9 10S(Chm>
C3 TeiCreWV
Wagas
DP
AP54
DM
DW
C3 e tetara«)
C3 i7 (Cr«dn
Store*.
\
HMorkact
Mataríais
AP34
Up »y»kly
Wafleq
tfectbcEiycit
Oeiwy
Travelling
Gei^ral
Expense
Data transferred monthly to
Material
MiWflfapOT»«
Erection
AP28
Wagqq
OroMvings
AP28
Csntreet Cost.
Imtmo« PrÍM
SoloijCiomM
u
Sublet
Contracta
S*lw^ tiyCHOO
ss
Stores
Sold
Th«6e Tn n*f«rs on lA id* Monthly
Freight,
Royalties
MP
Special
Patterns
MT
Special
Tools
Shop
Expenee
Apa7
Cost sheets of
>Airked Materials
one tofr each dwition.
DivtsionB
A
B
C
D
SUMMARY or CONTRACT COST AND RILLING TO DATE.
Projreeswe Coet Sheet by ciaesas ae items :
Cost to date — Billed to date ra Balance C an Aseet},
Total Billed — Final Cost ra Profit or Loss.
Transferrsd when j<b completsdi.
CONTRACT COST ÔUMMARY.
By cUiM*» or i-Vsms. Tinal Sh^P Coe^, Ganoral ex¬
pansés« GsHing Cos^, OatoOs, T«i*l SaiUr^ Cost^ Sailing
Pries anci Profit «nofc Uoss#
I CC 59.
Chart V.
(a4) Suhlet Contracts are parts of jobs let out and consist of
(a4a) contract price and (a4b) general expense.
(as) Freight, Royalties, etc., are charged directly against the
order without any change or additions to it for overhead expense.
(a6) Erection selling cost consists of (aóa) wages; (a6b) erec¬
tion expense; (a6c) delivery; (aód) travel; (a6e) materials;
(aóf) rentals; and (a6g) general expense.
aia. Shop Cost of Worked Materials is made up of (aiai)
wages; (aia2) shop expense; (aia3) machine cost; (aia4) store;
(aia5) worked material stores.
348
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
aib. Special Tools. — Tools made for a special job. The
selling cost of these tools is charged to the order. This includes
wages, shop expense, material (stores), and general expense.
" workman's
name.;..
workman's
no. D.
YOUR tiME AND EARNINGS
- WERE AS FOLLOWS ON
day, of week
date
time in tenths op an hour
on STRAIGHT DAY WORK
on PREMIUM WORK
ON -PIECE WORK HIGH RÀTE
on PIECE WORK LOW RATE
on
t)me worked on contracts'
and now Advanced on same
PIECEWORK Retainers
over-time Retainers
balance due on completed contracts,
etc., on which time and money have
been advanced
totals
tiMe
Actually
worked
total
earnings
note report promptly if this
statement does NOT agree with
your own account.
signed.^
Form 37. — Pay Card, in Duplicate; Original White, Duplicate Manila. — Note Label.
RBTURNCO
ISAUCO
*<01
ONOCR NO.
•MOTH«.
MARK
ONAWiNQ NO.
Ro.Pcs.brdered
ir NOT FINISHCO
8CRATCN OUTTNIS^^
F
• r PINISHED
■ CRATCH OUT THI«
NF
WORK TO BC PCRFORMCO
Foru 38. — Old D. M. Time Card.
arc. Special Patterns. — Patterns made for a special job. The
selling cost of these is charged to the order. This includes wages,
shop expense, material (stores), and general expense.
IN
OUT
CHARGE SYMBOL
8HIPPIÑQ
ORDER
NUMBER
SHEET
NUMBER
Mark
OkrAtion
Number
' DEPARTMENT
DAY RATE
DW
total time f«r
high price
no: op Pieck«
ordeked
total price
no. op Pieces
PiNlSHEO
Amount
Earned
man'S
Time
Machine
Time
Machinb
No,
Low
IF JOB IS NOT FINISHED
SCRATCH OUT THIS ■■*9-
IF JOB lä FINISHED
SCRATCH OUT THIS
NF
Drawing No.
Pattern No.
Inctruction Caro
V/orkman's
Name
Workman»« P*^\A/
Number LJ V V
Route
•meet
P*r
Bhcct
cost «keet
GANQ
man's
machine's
TIME
ow IBA CARD
Form 39. — D. W. Time Card for Bonus Work.
BONUS ON
PREPARATION
TOTAL BONUS
BONUS
PER PIECE
BASE RATE
Time for
Preparation
high
rate
low
rate
Time per
Piece
huh
rate
low
rate
REMARKS
GANO BOSS
INSTRUCTIONS
Shape
op
Toot
Cut
Feed
Speed
Time
6K3NEO~.,~,
Form 39. — Reverse.
349
350
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
aid. General Expense. — This is an amount to cover part of
the administrative and selling expenses fixed as explained later
under General Expense.
a2. Drawings, G.
a2a. Wages. Pay actually given to the draftsmen employed
on the drawings of the job.
a2b. Drawing Expense. Part of the overhead charges as
explained under Shop Expense.
MONTH
WEEK
WAGES
STORES
WORKED
MATERIALS
DC
DP
DM
DW
1
•'
2
3
4
5
TOTALS
1
2
3
4
5
TOTALS
1
2
3
4
5
TOTALS
Form 40. — Weekly Summary of Shop Cost.
a2c. General Expense. Same remarks as (aid).
a3. Stores Sold.
aßa. Invoice Price of Stores, actual buying cost of material
to be sold, no shop work to be done on them.
a3b. General Expense. Same remarks as (aid).
a4. Sublet Contracts.
a4a. Selling Cost of Contract is price at which contract is let.
a4b. General Expense.
a6. Erection.
a6a. Wages. Pay to workmen actually in the field.
a6b. Erection Expense. Part of overhead charges, such as
superintendent erection department and necessary men retained
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 351
at all times when not chargeable to any particular order. Re¬
pairs to equipment of departments, etc.
a6c. Delivery. Cost of delivery of material from shop to the
field.
a6d. Travel. Actual traveling expenses of party in the field.
""DETAIL COST SHEET OF WORKED MATERIALS ON WÄ. WT NO.___
DESCRIPTION: L_J
DC
EXPENSE FACTORS USED
DP I DM IDW
DATE STARTED
DATE FINISHED
CHARDE TD
M
ONTH
1
1
1
TOTAL
OC
WAGES
SHOP
EXPENSË
OP
WAGES
EXPENSE
OM
WAGES
EXPENSE
OW
WAGES
EXPENSE
WAGES
EXPENSE
STORES
■ISCCt IHCLUDIH«
WORKED HATERIâlS
1
SHOP COST
rOR MONTH
1
SHOP COST TO DATE
1
1
1 GENERAL EXPENS
E
TOTAL SELLING COST
ESTIMATED SHOP COST
TOTAL QUANTITY
piEces
po?mll PER UNIT
SHOP COST
riECC
fOOT
POURD
SUMNARY
Df
MATERIALS
USED
IRON CASTINGS
STEEL SHAPES j
STEEL PUTES
HI5CEL STORES
WEIGHT
rnci nl
TOUID
WEIGHT
PIIM PCI
' POUil
1 WEIGHT
puec PU
POUiD
WEIGHT
PXICI HM 1
POVIO 1
WEIGHT
PNiec PU
PRUiO
AMOUNT
REMARRS:.
Form 41. — Monthly Cost Sheet of Worked Materials, Accounts of Contract.
a6e. Materials. Anything purchased in the field necessary
for erection, example: bolts.
a6f. Rentals. Rent paid for shacks, derricks, boats, booms,
etc.
a6g. General Expense.
aia. Shop Cost of Worked Materials.
(aiai) Wages. Money actually paid for labor.
352 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
(aia2) Shop Expense. Overhead charges for shop. See
Appendix I.
(aia3). Machine Cost. Every machine is intended to earn at
a certain rate. This actually writes off part of the overhead
4>n
DETAIL COST SHEET OF DRAWINGS, AND DELIVERY AND ERECTION DN CONTRACT No -
DESCRIPTION:-
•— - -
DRAWINGS
DATE STARTED
DATE FINISHED
CHARGE TO
MONTH n
TOTAL
WAGES
DRAW. EXPENSE
mSCELUNEOUS
OUW. ROOM COST
FOR MORTH
'
DRAW. ROOM COST TO DATE
EXPENSE FACTORS USED
DRAWING 1 ERECTION 1 SEUINS 1
GENERAL EXPEF
SE
TOTAL SELLING COST
ESTIMATEI
) DRAW. ROOM (
;osT
DELIVERY AND ERECTION
DAnr
E STARTED
DATE FINISHED
CHARGE
0
MONTH
1
TOTAL
WAGES-FA
ERECTIOI
URERSE
OELIVERY-FF
TRAVELLIN6-FH
HATERÍU-FM
RENTALS,ITC..FS
COST FOR MOMTN
WITROUT SEIL EIF.
COST TO ORTE
WITHOUT SElllHC ORnSI
•
RFMARKS:
I. GENERAL EXPENSE
TOTAL SELLING COST
ESTIMRTEO COST 11
WITHOUT SEUIHO EXREHSE ||
Form 42. — Monthly Cost Sheet for Drawing and Erection Accounts of Contract.
expenses of the shops but is carried as a separate account. The
machines are numbered and a machine hour rate was originally
determined as follows:
[Depreciation (7 % annually) + maintenance (supplies and
repairs) + small tools + power] ^ 2500 = Machine hour cost.
Power is the annual cost of the power actually absorbed by the
machine.
Small tools. Was estimated.
The figures in the numerator are for a year. This sum is
divided by 2500 on the estimate of 2500 machine hours per
year.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
353
The machines are divided into groups, each group containing
machines of approximate similarity and power. The average of
the rates for any group is taken for the rates of all machines in the
group. (Chart IV.)
Obviously for any piece of work machine cost = machine
hours X machine hour cost, machine hours being the actual
running time of the machine on the work in question.
(aia4) Stores. Invoice price of stores drawn from the store¬
room and used on an order.
(aia5) Worked material. A certain class of stores are made
in the shop and a stock kept in the storeroom. This item (aia5)
is the shop cost of this class of stores when drawn for use on an
order.
Method of Cost Keeping for a Job Order
(Chart V to be read concurrently.)
Time cards of work done are turned in to the cost department
from the bulletin board daily. Times of starting and finishing
the work are stamped on the cards, and the rate of pay appears
on the cards. Two boys compute and enter on the card this
elapsed time and the wages due the man. The cards are then
sorted by men's numbers. Daily the pay for each man is com¬
puted and entered on Form 37 (AP54) in duplicate. The man
receives the white copy daily through the time box, showing his
earnings for the previous day, the yellow copy being filed for
computing the weekly wages due the man.
Form 37. — Used to summarize the daily earnings of the
workman. The white copy is placed in the time box daily
showing the man's earnings for the previous day. The time box
referred to is a locked box having a compartment for each man.
This box is opened fifteen minutes before starting time in the
morning, and a boy is stationed at the box while open. It is
closed at starting time. This box is employed in lieu of a
time clock, any men coming after the box is locked have their
time stamped at the Order of Work Clerk's desk. Only the
office use a time clock for arrival and departure. It is worth
noting that everybody from the president of the company
354 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
down stamps the office clock, and the moral effect of this is
keenly felt.
Time cards, Forms 13, 38 or 39 (DM148, Dioi, or DW2A),
are again assorted by divisions of worked material job numbers
•UHHAAT or CMTMer CMT MM MMJII« T» •**« •nmi
•i- "¿i
"SKT
.KS.
— «
•MMM«
fW
•••T va
e**aew
—-
MM
.sss
...
k, ■
-
.
<•
-■
> •
—
_•
Form 43. — New Form.
(charge number) and entered weekly by labor divisions on Form
40 (AP34). Thus the wages entry is charged against each divi¬
sion of the job.
Time cards of the machine shop, DM, Forms 13 or 38, are
again sorted and the machine cost is entered on each card in red
ink, computed as follows: The number of the machine appears
on the card and reference to a table gives the machine hour cost.
The machine hours are the same as the man's time on the card.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
355
Obviously the machine cost equals the machine hours multiplied
by the machine hour coSt.
Machine Hour Cost. — This is computed from Chart number
IV, as follows: (Depreciation + Maintenance + Small tools +
"fvMMIlT or COOTMeT eOOT MO OIUIMO TO 0«T« f
«««oto I I I I I 1 I I ■ «»«WW» ■
&
MUM *•
-|- -Hill
•llffl
laiMi
•m M
•nMiTi
IHM«
III* Tl
Mill II
•IMMI
■Ml II
U III
MMI
••MM
•T
It !
M
j
r
Mm i*ér IM* «ri*«*«
MItm IRMMl
«•miikf MMMn BâvUlUi
■ •
•
1
Willi Ml*
fMMHV. iWiiVt. im
IMItHI -
»
tiTM m mi*
HI
II
1
(
«Mil Tivai*
Form 43. — Old Form.
Power) divided by 2500 equals the machine hour cost, as pre¬
viously explained.
After the machine cost is entered on the cards they are again
assorted by job divisions and the machine cost is entered weekly
on Form 40 (AP34), under column D. C.
The value of stores drawn from the storeroom and applied to
the job is entered weekly on Form 40 from slips. Form 12 (CS103),
and likewise the value of worked materials drawn from the store
3S6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and applied to the job is entered on Form 40 from slips, Form 17
(CS6). Before entering values of stores drawn, any credits
from Forms 26 (CS 16) and 27 (CS8) are deducted.
Monthly the totals of wages, machine cost, stores and worked
materials stores charged to each division are transferred from
Form 40 to Form 41 (AP27) and checked. There is^ne-copy of
Forms 40 and 41 for each division of the order. These are speci¬
fied as lot Nos., thus: W2035A, W2035B, etc.
Under each fine of wages. Form 41, is a line marked expense.
This is determined as follows: The shop expense factor for each
department, shown at the top of the page (how found and func¬
tions shown later), is multiplied into the wages for the month in
the corresponding department and this is entered as expense.
Example. — Wages DP $.45. Factor DP .50.
Expense DP is $.45 X .50 = $.23.
This expense covers what is commonly called overhead or
shop expense (exclusive of machine cost) as shown in accounts
A and D, Appendix i.
Average Shop Expense Factor. — The average shop expense
factor is determined as follows: The total shop expense for a
period of three years is apportioned to the several shops in pro¬
portion to the amount of this expense incurred by each. This
expense in each shop is then divided by the total productive
wages in the shop for the same period. In this way a different
factor for each shop is obtained, for example:
(Note. — These, of course, are not the actual figures at this
plant. These factors are applied as shown on Form AP27, and
when applied in a normal year should cover all expense incurred
under Accounts A and D. (See Appendix i.) These expenses
are such as experiments for the benefits of engineering and manu¬
facturing, heat, light and power, planning connected with ma¬
chines and materials, etc., and in the several departments DD
drawing, DM machine shop, DP pattern shop, and DW wrought
DP
DM
DW
50%
110%
75%
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
357
shop, such expenses as are connected with manufacturing that
cannot be charged to any particular order. A study of this with
table of accounts A and D should make the matter clear.)
The factor as found for the machine shop is not used as it now
stands, but is again modified as iollows : In a certain class of re¬
peat work (gear cutting for silent gears) one man can run a num¬
ber of machines. Now, since the factor is applied to wages and
since in this special case the ratio of wages to output is greatly
reduced, it becomes necessary to increase the factor applied to
this special fine and decrease that used for the remainder of the
shop product in order that this line carry the proportion of shop
expense warranted by the tools used, the floor space occupied,
and all other considerations governing expense. Therefore the
readjustment might be as follows:
DP 50%
DW 75%
DM 100 % Regular
DM 120 % Special
This is so adjusted that 50% wages DP + 75% wages DW
+ 100% wages DM (regular) + 120% wages DM (special)
= total shop expense.
After all wages, expenses, machine cost stores and worked
materials are entered in the monthly column of Form 41 (AP27),
the total of column for the month obviously gives the shop cost
for the month. Theoretically all money spent on the production,
all expenses incidental to production, and the product's share of
the shop expenses inherent to all shop output have been charged.
This sheet is progressive in that monthly costs are carried for¬
ward and totaled to date at the end of every month, resulting in
shop cost to date.
After the total shop cost is arrived at, addition of the general
expense gives the total selling cost. A general expense factor is
used in a manner similar to the shop expense factor. It is deter¬
mined as follows:
General Expense Factor. — This factor is used to cover what
are known as administrative and selling expenses. Account C.
358
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
These include such items as office salaries, wages and watchmen;
repairs and maintenance to all buildings other than shops; plan¬
ning connected mainly with workmen; contract and sales de¬
partment; branch officer; shipping room, etc. (See Account C,
Appendix i.)
General expense is distributed over the following items:
(i) Shop cost of worked materials; (2) Drawings; (3) Erec¬
tion; (4) Stores sold; and (5) Sublet contracts.
A factor was first derived by dividing the average general
expense for a number of years by the average of the total of the
above five items for the same period. For demonstration let us
use 30% as the derived factor. Obviously 30% is an excessive
CONTrtAjCT CO«T SUMMARY ""
Form 44,
amount to saddle on such accounts as erection, stores sold, and
sublet contracts. In the case of erection a general expense factor
was determined from items covered by Account E (Appendix i).
This account in a general way covers all expenses of erection
gangs that cannot be charged to any particular order. This
Account E for a number of successive years divided by the wages
in erection department for the same period gives the erection
expense factor.
In the case of stores and sublet contracts a factor was deter¬
mined from good commercial practice. This is arbitrary and
depends upon what the product will stand without killing orders.
Having reduced the factor over some of the items, it becomes
necessary to increase the factors used in the case of drawings and
shop cost of worked materials enough to equalize the total general
expense of the plant when found by these different factors applied
to the shop cost of the respective items, and the total general
expense as found if the first derived factor were used throughout
all the items.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
359
The factor applied to worked materials is a little larger than
that applied to drawings, for several reasons. Drawings are
not affected by shipping or stores. Also if the machine hours
fall below those used when computing the machine hour cost,
the power that will be written off in machine cost is reduced and
this margin is covered by this factor. Also if several machines
are run by one man in the DM the total shop cost of the products
at these machines is reduced. There is no parallel saving in the
drawing department. The total shop cost being reduced it is
necessary to increase the factor.
Whereas a factor of 30% was first derived, after all these ad¬
justments the factors would look something like the following:
Worked materials 32%
Drawings 28%
Erection 20 %
Stores sold 15%
Sublet contracts 10%
(Note. — These are not in any proportion to the Company's
figures.)
These factors are applied as follows:
1. Shop cost of worked materials X 1.32 = selling cost of
worked materials. Form 41.
2. Shop cost of drawings X 1.28 = selling cost of drawings.
3. 1.20 wages + erection expense -f- deliveries -f traveling -f
material bought in the field -f rentals = selling cost of erection
contract.
(Note. — Factor is applied to wages only. See Form 42
(AP28).
4. 1.15 invoice price of stores sold = selling cost of S. S.,
Form 43 (AP58).
5. 1.1 o contract price of sublet contracts = selling cost of
sublet contracts. Form 34 (AP58).
There is still another correction to be made in the case of this
particular shop before the factors are settled. In the case of a
special line of goods called Silent Orders (silent gears and chain)
it is found that a far greater expense is incurred per dollar of order
to get orders in this special line than is incurred getting the regu-
36o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
lar orders. So the factor on worked materials is again altered,
and since the value of silent orders is but a small proportion of
the whole shop output the factor on this line rises rapidly thus:
All factors, as stated above, were derived from the average of a
number of years. They are seldom changed, and therefore the
general expense for any given period, say one month, as computed
by them will not exactly equal the actual selling expense for that
period, although it is surprising how closely these two figures
agree. The slight difference is taken care of by profit and loss
adjustment.
Monthly all data is transferred from all Form 41 sheets of any
job and from Form 42 onto Form 43 (AP58), and stores sold,
sublet contracts, freight and erection are all entered on Form 43
(AP58). This sheet is a progressive monthly summary of details.
All goods billed to customer during the progress of the work are
charged off this sheet by the pound at a pound price, and the
difference between the selling cost to date and the goods billed to
date = balance, which is an asset.
When a joh is completed. — All items are transferred from Form
43 to Form 44 (CC39), which is a final contract cost summary of
the job by divisions, showing the profit or loss on same.
APPENDIX
Account A. — Auxiliary Departments
AE. — Experiments for the Benefit of Engineering and Manufacturing. —
Includes all labor and material used in the making of experiments for
the benefit of engineering and manufacture, and any other expenses
connected therewith. Experiments for the benefit of sales depart¬
ment, Account C.
AH. — Heat, Light and Power. — Includes the labor and materials used in
making steam, transmitting power, heating, electric and other light,
water, etc., and also all labor and material used in repairing and
maintaining the apparatus, machines, buildings, etc., in this depart¬
ment.
Original factor...
New factors:
Regular DM
32%
30%
45%
Silents
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
361
AP. — Planning Connected Mainly with Machines and Materials. — Includes
all labor and materials used in the planning work connected mainly
with machines and materials, when the same cannot be charged
directly to a particular department. Also the Maintenance of the
Planning Room.
(See detailed subheads AH and AP.)
Heat, Light and Power Department. — AH
AHA. — Engineer, Assistant, Firemen and all Miscellaneous Labor. — Such
as for cleaning, unloading coal, loading ashes, etc., which cannot be
charged to some other expense symbol of this department.
AHB. — Fixture and Furniture. — Includes such items as benches, cup¬
boards, shelving, partitions, desks, clocks, etc., repairs and mainte¬
nance but not new. Charges against new or improvements charged
against Account X.
Stores and supplies, including stationery, which cannot be charged to one
of the other expense items of this department. Also all small tools
used in this department that are not borrowed from the tool room.
Repairs, Maintenance and New.
AHC. — Boilers, Stacks, Flues, and Ashes Elevators. — Includes all labor
and material for overhauhng, scaling, testing, etc., repairs and main¬
tenance but not new. Charges for new and improvements to Account
Y.
AHP. —Power and Transmission of Power. — Includes engines, generators,
motors, compressors, pumps and piping to main distribution valve,
and all wiring to main distributing switch, repairs and maintenance
but not new. New and improvements charged to Account Y.
AHZ. — Buildings, Repairs of. — Includes repairs and maintenance of build¬
ings, floors, steam heat and water-supply system from main valves,
including all alterations and repairs to patterns and drawings required
by this work. Charged for new and improvements charged to
Account Z.
Planning for Machines and Material. — AP
APA. — Shop Engineer, Production Clerk, and also all clerks, messengers,
etc., whose work is mainly connected with planning for machines and
materials, and which is not chargeable to any other department order.
APB. — Fixtures, Furniture and Apparatus, includes such items as benches,
shelving, partitions, desks, tables, stools, chairs, clocks, electric fans
and other electrical apparatus, wiring, etc. Repairs and maintenance
hut not new. New and improvement charged to Account X.
Stores and supplies, including stationery, used in the planning room and
which cannot be charged to a particular manufacturing, equipment,
construction or other department order.
APR. — Reclamation for Errors made in planning for machines and mate¬
rials.
302
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Synopsis of General Expense. — Account C
CA.
— Accounting department.
CB.
— Purchasing department.
CC.
— Sales department.
CD.
— Estimating department.
CE.
— Stenographic department.
CF-
— Photographic department.
CG.
— Order department.
CH.
— Entertainment department.
CJ.
— Replacements and diplomatic extra work.
CK.
— Exchange and collection expense.
CL.
— St. Louis office.
CM.
— Seattle office.
CN.
— New York office.
CO.
— Silent chain sales department.
CP.
— Pittsburgh office.
CR.
— Lunch room.
CS.
— Stores department.
CU.
— Boston office.
CV.
— Buffalo office.
CW.
— Shipping room.
ex.
— Charities and contributions.
CY.
— Telephones and telegraphs.
CZ.
— Repairs to office building.
Manufacturing Department. — Account D
DD. — Drawing room.
DM. — Machine shop.
DP. — Pattern shop.
DW. — Wrought shop.
Machine Shop Department. — DM
Note. — All other shop departments are made up of similar subdivisions,
so only the machine shop is exhibited.
DMA. — All Functional Foremen, their Assistants and all labor that cannot
be charged to a particular manufacturing, construction, equipment,
or other department order, or to one of the other expense items of this
department, including machine shop tool room. Also the rate setters
and route clerks in the planning department that work only for the
benefit of the machine shop.
DMB. — Fixtures and Furniture, Including Tool Room.—Includes such
items as benches, cupboards, shelving, racks, partitions, shop lockers,
desks, tables, stools, clocks, tote-boxes, trucks, scales, bulletin boards,
etc. Repairs and maintenance hut not new. Charge for new to
Accoimt X.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
363
Stores and Supplies, including stationery; such as waste, oil, etc., which
cannot be charged to a particular manufacturing, equipment, con¬
struction or other department order; or to some one of the particular
expense items of this department.
DME.—Small Tools. — Includes the repairing and maintaining of small
tools such as drills, chisels, planer and lathe tools, dies, milling cutters,
etc. Also the making of these tools, including the tool steel used
therein, machining and dressing, and all tools of this kind that are
drawn from stores for the purpose of only maintaining the tool room
stock and not with a view of increasing same. Charges for new tools
increasing the tool room stock charged to Account X.
Large Hand Tools. — Includes those tools which do not depreciate
rapidly by use, and which add to the permanent value of the shop
equipment, such as vises, anvils, pulleys, blocks, jacks, etc. Repairs
and maintenance but not new. New and improvements charged to
Account X.
Grinding and Dressing of Tools. — Includes the grinding and dressing
of old tools, and the treatment of new and old tools. The dressing of
new tools is not included in this item, the work being charged to the
order for the manufacture of tools.
DMH. — Special Tools. — Includes such tools as jigs, gages and templates
which cannot be charged to a particular manufacturing, equipment,
construction or other department order. Repairs and maintenance
and new.
DMK. — Work on Defective Material. —i. e., work done by the shops on
material that has concealed defects, that is, such as disclose them¬
selves only after some work has been done.
Note. — Work done on defective material, the defect in which could
and should have been discovered before any work is done, is to be
charged against CSR, it being due to an error on the part of the stores
inspector.
DMM.—Machines Operated by Hand or Power, Including Cranes.—In¬
cludes all machines with their countershafts or motors and all cranes
operated by hand or power. Repairs and maintenance hut not new,
including any alterations and repairs of patterns and drawings re¬
quired by this work. New and improvements charged to Account
Y. Also,
Power and Transmission of Power. —Includes all compressed air lines
within the buildings (main), line shafting and their motors and all
electrical fixtures and wiring for both power and light. Repairs and
maintenance hut not new. Charges for new and improvements except
electrical fixtures and wiring charged to Y. Fixtures and wiring
charged to Account X. Also,
Belting. — Includes labor "hnd materials used for repairing and main¬
taining all belts in the machine shop. Also the cost of new belting
replacing old, and all belt lacing, glue and small tools used by the
belt fixer. New belts for new machines and for line shafting charged
to different divisions of Account Y.
364
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
DMN.—Retainers. — Both for piece work (DMNP) and overtime
(DMNT) connected with worked materials, and construction and
part construction.
DMR. — Reclamation for Errors made by the machine shop or tool room.
DMV. — Repairs to Patterns. — Includes all labor and materials used in
repairing patterns, and in handling and transporting patterns, in¬
cluding freight and expressage. Also repairs and maintenance of
pattern shed. Charges for new patterns that cannot be made to a
particular manufacturing, equipment, construction or other depart¬
ment order, are to be made to Account X.
DMW. — Painting and Moving, and Other Miscellaneous Labor. — Including
all labor and material used in painting and oiling worked material
produced in the machine shop, and also all labor used in moving
materials in the machine shop. Also, oiling and cleaning of all line
shafting and motors, machines when not in operation, shop floors,
windows, etc.
DMZ. — Buildings. — Includes repairs and maintenance of buildings, wash¬
rooms, washroom fixtures, urinals, waterclosets and soil pipes, inside
of machine building, exclusive of that part occupied by offices. Also,
steam-heat and water-supply system from main valves, including
any alterations or repairs to patterns and drawings required by this
work. Charges for new and improvements are to be charged to
Account Z.
ERECTING EXPENSE
Erection Department. — E
When any of the following symbols are used, they indicate that some
one of the following kinds of expense has been incurred chargeable to the
above department.
EA. — Superintendent of Erection Department, Assistants, Foreman Gang
Bosses, Clerks and Workmen when their work cannot be charged to a
particular delivery or erection order.
EE.—Fixtures, Furniture, etc.—Includes benches, cupboards, shelving,
partitions, desk and office furniture, clocks, tool boxes, etc. Repairs
and maintenance hut not new. Charges for new or improvements are
to be made on proper written authority to (XCB). Also,
Stores and Supplies, Including Stationery, which cannot be charged to a
particular manufacturing, equipment, construction or other depart¬
ment order, or to one of the other expense items of this department.
EE. — Small Tools. — Includes all small tools purchased or manufactured,
which are used by hand and must be replaced frequently on account
of wear, and hence cannot be considejed as adding to the permanent
value of the equipment, such as hammers, wrenches, chisels, rope,
bars, shovels, etc., including repairs and maintenance of same. Also,
Large Hand Tools and Machines. — Includes those tools which do not
depreciate rapidly from use and wear, and which add to the perma-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
36s
nent value of the equipment, such as hoisting engines, winches, etc.
Repairs and maintenance hut not new. Charges for new and improve¬
ments are to be made on proper written authority to (XEF).
EM. — Miscellaneous. — Includes all cost of living, traveling, and stores
and supplies chargeable to this department and which cannot be
charged to a particular delivery and erection order.
ER. —Reclamation for Errors made by this department.
EW. — Starting up. — Includes all extra expense incurred in starting up
machinery, which cannot be charged to any particular delivery and
erection order.
EU. — Unloading and Loading. — Includes that which cannot be charged
to any particular delivery and erection order. This refers especially
to handling of erection tools.
EZ. — Buildings, Repairs of. — Includes repairs and maintenance of any
permanent building that might.be built by this department. Charges
against new or improvements are to be made on proper written au¬
thority to (ZE).
Account X referred to in the foregoing is part construction,
and includes fixtures, apparatus, etc., part of the cost of which
goes to construction and part to shop expense or general expense
and which increases the permanent value of the plant.
Account Y is construction, and consists of machinery, tools
and motive power that adds to the permanent value of the plant.
Account Z is construction, and consists of real estate, buildings,
etc.
THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT, ITS ORGANIZATION
AND FUNCTION
by h. k. hathaway
Reprinted by permission of Industrial Engineering
It has not been such a long time since machinery was con¬
structed without drawings except those of a most primitive and
general sort; and details were almost entirely left to be worked
out during the process of construction by the mechanic who did
the work.
The passing of that type of mechanic who, as it once was
expressed by an engineer of the old school, " was able to not only
construct a fiddle but to play a tune on it as well," has been de¬
plored by those who fail to see that the all round mechanic of
yesterday is the engineer, the draftsman, the chemist, and the
foreman of to-day; and it must be admitted that through the
changes that have taken place, from both social and economic
standpoints, the world has gained far more than it has lost.
The making of complete detail drawings in a drafting depart¬
ment, in place of leaving much, if not all of it, to be done in the
shop by the workman, is nothing more or less than planning —
planning what is to be constructed. No engineer or mechanic
today objects to this; in fact, he objects if drawings are not suf¬
ficiently clear and complete to enable the prosecution of his work
without hesitation or doubt.
Still, we frequently find the strange inconsistency of employers
and managers of the old school, who regard a drafting room and
complete detail drawings as essential to economic manufacture,
as well as workmen who object to working without good drawings,
opposing the carrying of the planning of work one step nearer to
completion. The employer of the old school is prone to regard
the planning department force as " non-producers "; and in his
conception of good management, keeping down the so-called
" non-productive " expense is an essential.
366
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
367
In a properly organized and properly run planning department
there is no such thing as a " non-producer every person in the
planning department is there to perform some specific function,
which assists in making it possible for those in the shop to attain
greater efficiency, and to secure the maximum efficiency of the
equipment and plant as a whole.
The function of a designing or drafting department is planning
what is to be done. The functions of a planning department are
planning how it is to be done, and when it is to be done. Just as
it is now unusual to find an engineering plant in which there is no
drafting room, so in time will it be unusual to find a manufactur¬
ing plant of any sort without an efficiently organized planning
department.
The sort of opposition referred to — usually met with in those
who know little or nothing of Scientific Management, or who have
a mistaken idea of it — is rapidly disappearing as the true doc¬
trine of Scientific Management becomes better understood.
Workmen have opposed Scientific Management as they opposed
machinery, and in doing so commit just as grave an error, failing
to see that it is another means to shorter hours of labor and to
increased material returns. Mr. Taylor has repeatedly made the
statement that the greatest fallacy existing in the minds of the
workingmen of the world is that it is to their interest, in the long
run, to restrict output. Restriction of output by manufacturers,
or proprietors of the means of production, for the purpose of
keeping up prices is equally vicious and short-sighted. We would
most of us like to have better homes, more conveniences and com¬
forts, and after their achievement more time to enjoy them; but
how are we to have these things if we do not produce them ?
Parallel to the workmen's error — belief in curtailment of out¬
put — we find that in the past, very generally, and even now to a
considerable extent, employers have believed it to their interest
to pay the workman as little as possible; and to secure results
through driving him without regard to his welfare, rather than
through affording him such assistance as would enable him,
without over-exertion or detriment to health, to produce an
increased output.
368
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Scientific Management does not stand for either of these fal¬
lacies, of which ignorance is the root, selfishness and short¬
sightedness the branches, and distrust and animosity the fruits.
No individual can hope to derive any permanent benefit from
following a course of action that is detrimental to his fellow men;
and, conversely, the individual is sure to be benefited by following
a course that benefits society.
It has been contended by those opposed to Scientific Manage¬
ment — by employers as well as by workmen — that it deprives
the workman of his individuality; robs his chief assets of their
value — his skill and traditional knowledge. Let us look into
the soundness of this contention.
Manual skill is at least equally valuable and necessary, and
cannot be supplanted. F or example, a skilled machinist running a
lathe can, when taking a finish cut on a piece of work, nine times
out of ten, feed his tool into the work just the right depth to
make the piece the size required, getting it right the first time;
whereas a less skilful man would be afraid of going in too far and
making the piece below size, and consequently would make
several attempts — stopping and calipering after each until he
got it right or spoiled the job. The skilled man will make fewer
mistakes, proceed in his work with confidence, know what to do
in an emergency, will require less supervision, and as a result, will
turn out more work and save expense, consequently being more
valuable under any system than the unskilled.
Under the old type of management skilled men and men pos¬
sessing latent skill are employed frequently in the performance of
work that does not bring skill into use; the result being that they
may be paid less than their services would be worth if they were
employed constantly on work calling for the exercise of skill.
Through proper planning this may be accomplished.
Under Scientific Management there are new positions created,
calling for good men possessing judgment, experience and skill,
such as gang bosses, instructors, planners, time study men, etc.,
offering opportunities for advancement that did not formerly
exist. These positions are filled from the ranks of the work¬
men.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
369
As to the workman's individuality and initiative, Scientific
Management develops them along right lines with demonstrated
facts supplanting rule-of-thumb and tradition as a basis; and it is
a fact that in practice these qualities are stimulated rather than
restricted.
Even though the best men in an establishment may be selected
for the planning of work, they will quite frequently receive sug¬
gestions from workmen who may be much less experienced or
skilful, that result in savings in time and improved methods. The
skilled man possessing initiative contemplates with a critical
mind the methods laid out by his brethren in the planning depart¬
ment, and takes pride in his ability to show them something; at
the same time he is quick to recognize and accept that which is
good.
As to the workman's traditional knowledge, it usually com¬
prises much that is good, indiscriminately mixed with error, both
as to methods and means. It becomes the function of Scientific
Management to bring together, analyze, and prove the vast
amount of knowledge making up the trade, and to add to it.
This must be classified, tabulated, and made available, through
the planning department, to all men; whereas formerly it was
scattered — some in the possession of one man, and some in that
of another, and not always available when most needed. The
first great principle of Scientific Management is the establishment of
a science in place of rule-of-thumb knowledge.
Before entering into a description of the Planning Department's
functions and mechanism, I wish to make one thing very clear:
there is nothing done in the Planning Department that did not
have to be done imder the old scheme of management by some¬
body — usually less efficiently, but still it was done. Some of
this work was done by the foreman, and much of it by the work¬
man. Some men in the shop were good at planning their work,
others were not.
However, even in case all men in a shop were equal to the best
man in this respect — say the one who was selected for that reason
for a position in the Planning Department — it would still be
370
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
more economical to do it in the Planning Department for the
following reasons:
1. The man in the Planning Department has classified data,
aggregating many times the individual knowledge and experience
of any one man, upon which to draw in planning the best method.
2. He does the planning far enough in advance so that if any
special appliances are found to be desirable or necessary, they
may be procured or made by the time they will be needed;
whereas if the planning of what is to be done and how, is left to
the man on the machine, he must frequently use tools and appli¬
ances which he knows are not the most suitable because the right
ones are not available; and in some cases, has to abandon the
job until tools are made or bought.
Finally, he must do most of his planning and making prepara¬
tion, in the case of machine work, while his machine is standing
idle ; whereas, if it is done in advance, in the .planning department,
the workman and his machine will be turning out product.
Indirect expenses, such as taxes, lighting, heating, interest, selling,
etc., go on just the same when a machine is standing idle, and add
to the cost of the product, consequently there is a distinct gain in
having the planning done in advance in a planning department,
while the machines are running on other work.
Mr. Taylor states, in his paper on " Shop Management,"
with reference to the work of the planning department:
The following is an outline of the duties of the four functional bosses who
are a part of the planning department, and who in their various functions
represent this department in its connection with the men. The first three
of these send their directions to and receive their returns from the men,
mainly in writing. These four representatives of the planning room are, the
" order of work clerk," " instruction card men," " time and cost clerk," and
" shop disciplinarian."
Order of Work or Route Clerk} — After the proper man in the planning
department has laid out the exact route which each piece of work is to travel
through the shop from machine to machine in order that it may be finished
at the time it is needed for assembling, and the work done in the most
economical way, the " route clerk " daily writes lists instructing the work¬
men and also all of the executive shop bosses as to the exact order in which
1 As will be noted further along in this paper, the current practice has divided the
functions of order of work and route clerks in a manner slightly different from that
here indicated. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
371
the work is to be done, by each class of machines or men, and these lists con¬
stitute the chief means for directing the workmen in this particular function.
Instruction Card Men. — The " instruction card," as its name indicates, is
the chief means employed by the planning department in instructing both
the executive bosses and the men in all of the details of their work. It tells
them briefly the general and detail drawing to refer to, the piece number and
the cost order number to charge the work to, the special jigs, fixtures, or
tools to use, where to start each cut, the exact depth of each cut, and how
many cuts to take, the speed and feed to be used for each cut, and the time
within which each operation must be finished. It also informs them as to the
piece rate, the differential rate or the premium to be paid for completing the
task within the specified time (according to the system employed); and
further, when necessary, refers them by name to the man who will give them
especial directions. This instruction card is filled in by one or more members
of the planning department, according to the nature and complication of the
instructions, and beam the same relation to the planning room that the
drawing does to the drafting room. The man who sends it into the shop and
who, in case difficulties are met with in carrying out the instructions, sees
that the proper man sweeps these difiSculties away, is called " the instruc¬
tion card foreman."
Time and Cost Clerk. — This man sends to the men through the " instruc¬
tion card " all the information they need for recording their time and the
cost of the work, and secures proper returns from them and refers these for
entry to the cost and time record clerks in the planning room.
This description of the duties of the principal men in the plan¬
ning department is so brief, that one not familiar with the organ¬
ization of an existing planning department does not get a very
clear idea of the subject. Indeed, " Shop Management " is so
condensed, that few people begin to get much out of it until they
have seen actual applications of the things described, and have
re-read it several times. Nevertheless, Mr. Taylor's " Shop
Management " is the most complete treatise on Scientific Man¬
agement that exists today; and there has been practically
nothing written since that has not already been covered in " Shop
Management."
Outside of time keeping and cost keeping, the functions of the
planning department may be classified under two general head¬
ings, namely: {a) Planning how work is to be done; {b) Planning
when work is to be done.
Under the first heading come
The route clerks.
The instruction card men and time study men.
372
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Under the second heading come
The production clerk, and
The order of work clerk.
In addition to the men performing these functions, we have,
acting as auxiliaries to them, recording clerks, balance of stores
clerks, foundry clerks, and clerks who write up the numerous
detail orders, tags, etc., used in directing the work. The duties
of, and impedimenta used by, each of these will be described later
in detail.
The question is frequently asked: How many men should be in
the planning department in proportion to the number of work¬
men ? To this the answer is that it depends entirely upon the
size and nature of each specific business. In some cases two or
more men are required for each of the positions enumerated
while on others two or more of the positions may be combined.
For example, one well-known concern has a shop employing about
four hundred workmen, with a planning department composed
of only four men, while another, employing about one hundred in
its shop, requires a planning force of twenty people. The reason
for this being that the first concern referred to manufactures, in
its shop, a limited variety of products in large quantities, with in¬
frequent changes in design — in most cases each machine running
for months, or at least weeks, on the same job; while the second
concern manufactures a great variety of products in compara¬
tively small quantities — much of their product being special and
subject to frequent changes in design. In the second concern,
each workman, on the average, works on four different jobs per
day.
A description of the planning department of the second plant
referred to will best serve thé purpose of illustration for this
article.
In the planning department of the plant in question, we have
the following functions — in some cases functions being further
sub-divided. They are here given in the sequence that each
takes up, ordinarily, the work of planning for a manufacturing
order that is entered. Ordinarily, an order passes in turn to each
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
373
of these men, who performs his work in connection with planning
for it; there are cases, however, where several of them may be
working on the same order simultaneously — in some plants this
is the rule.
A J Production Clerk. 5,, Route Clerk. C, Foundry Clerk.
(Sometimes called Special Material Clerk.) Z), Balance of Stores
Clerk. Ej Instruction Card Men. (Including Time Study and
Slide Rule Men.) F, Route File Clerk. G, Order of Work
Clerk. H J Recording Clerk.
In addition to these there are: the Mail Carrier (who in this
instance is also the Tickler Clerk), Stenographer, Messengers, and
Time and Cost Clerks.
The Production Clerk is the connecting link between the shop
and the sales department. He is the man who furnishes infor¬
mation upon which the sales department bases its promises of
delivery, and who is responsible to the sales department for
meeting-deliveries promised.
Based upon the information he receives from the sales depart¬
ment as to when orders are to be shipped, and upon information
from the Balance of Stores Clerk as to what manufactured arti¬
cles are required for stock, the Production Clerk prepares a
schedule or Order of Work." This is essentially a list of all
orders in hand for each department, arranging the orders accord¬
ing to their relative importance, taking into consideration the
amount of work to be done in connection with each, and the date
upon which it should be completed. There are a number of ways
of classifying or grouping the various orders — each developed
to suit the needs of different businesses. In the plant being used
for illustration, the classes are practically as follows :
Class i. Emergency Class, made up, as its names implies, of
orders that must take precedence, for one reason or another, over
work in any other class.
Orders in this class should be the exception, and may only be
placed there with the consent of the manager, or some one else
high in authority. In the Emergency Class we would have, for
example : the order for getting out special parts for a break-down
job; or, assuming that a customer ordered a machine on which
374
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
delivery was promised in a comparatively short time, and as it
neared completion, one of the large castings proved defective and
had to be replaced — the work of replacing that casting would
come within the Emergency Class.
Work in the Emergency Class receives special treatment from
each man. In the planning department, if possible, two or more
of the steps of the planning are carried on simultaneously, instead
of in sequence; and in certain cases I have known of work being
started in the shop as soon as the planning had been completed
for the first operation, the planning for the following operations
being done while the first operation was in progress. As soon as
one operation on an emergency job is completed, the next must
be immediately started, even if it is necessary to take some other
job, not in the Emergency Class, off a machine before being
finished; although, in most cases, this can be planned ahead.
While much more might be said of this phase of the Order of
Work, I think the examples given will convey a pretty clear idea
of the " Emergency Class " of orders, and how they are handled.
This is typical of what Mr. Taylor means when referring to
exceptions," and is intended to call attention to the flexibility of
the system. Exceptions of this kind are so frequent in a shop run
under the old type of management, as to be almost the rule.
For the sake of economical manufacture, there should be very
few orders handled in this manner; and the more efficient the
plant is in general, the fewer orders there will be in the " Emer¬
gency Class " of the " Order of Work."
Class 2. Tools or Appliances reqmredioi work under way, ot
for maintenance of the Tool Room stock.
Orders for the making or repairing of tools, etc., comprising
this class are placed virtually at the top of the list, as it is obvious
that unless we have the proper tools we cannot properly prosecute
the work on our products.
Class 3. Manufacturing Orders for products required to fill
shipping orders on hand, including any stock parts required for
these. This class comprises all orders for products not carried
in stock, but which must be made up after receiving the cus¬
tomer's order. This class may be subdivided, if desirable, into
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
375
a — Orders on which definite shipping dates have been promised.
b — Orders for which there is abundant time in which to complete
them.
Class 4. Orders for Stock Parts.
Class 5. Orders for Stock Machines.
Under each of these classes are arranged, in the order of their
relative importance, the manufacturing orders that are in prog¬
ress.
The Production Clerk revises the Order of Work for each depart¬
ment at regular intervals, and more frequently if need arises. It
is not only the Production Clerk's duty to lay out the Order of
Work, but he must see that it is observed in the drafting room, in
the planning department, and in the shop. This he does by daily
checking up. For example, he must fix a date for the completion
of the drawings, of each stage of the planning, for the delivery of
castings, etc., all based upon the date required for the completion
or shipment of the order. He must be constantly looking ahead
to assure himself of the possibility and probability of each stage
of the work being completed in time; and where he sees the work
falling behind, must arrange to have the man who is overloaded
given extra temporary help.
In the plant which I am describing, there are at times sudden
inundations of new and special work, when it is necessary to
augment the planning force by bringing in men from the shop —
sometimes functional foremen, who are temporarily replaced by
men from the machines, and sometimes taking men directly from
the machines — these men returning to the shop when they are
no longer needed in the Planning Department. At other times
the reverse has been true : there has been an abundance of work
in the shop and little in the Planning Department, in which event
some of the regular Planning Department force are temporarily
transferred to the shop.
These shifts from the Planning Department to the shop and
vice versa of course occur only as a result of abnormal conditions,
but every concern should be prepared for them. It is a remark¬
able tribute to the spirit promoted by Scientific Management,
that men can shift from the workman's side to the management's,
376
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and the reverse, without suffering in their own esteem or that of
their associates; and it is pretty good proof that the point of view
of the two sides is coincident. Under Scientific Management,
those composing the management are not regarded as possessing
any superior endowments that set them above the rank and file.
With respect to work in progress in the Shop, the Production
Clerk, in addition to preparing the Schedule or Order of Work,
systematically, through the route sheets, progress sheets, and the
bulletin board, checks up the progress of work ¿o see that the
Order of Work is being followed, and for the purpose of detecting
and straightening out things that may have gone wrong. This
will be touched upon later in the description of the bulletin boards,
route files, etc., and their use.
The practice followed in checking up the progress of orders by
an efficient Production Clerk, and the only one that accomplishes
the desired results — that of fulfilling promises as to delivery, is
the reverse of what the average person would do, viz: he does not
start in his daily checking up of the progress of work by first look¬
ing up the orders due to be shipped today, or those overdue, and
following down his list, but starts at the bottom of his list, with
the orders just received, and makes sure that everything necessary
to the completion of the order on time is being done; the last
order to receive his attention is the one due to be shipped, and as a
matter of fact it should be the one that least needs it.
The principal cause of failure to complete orders on time is that
little or no attention is given them on this score until the date of
shipment approaches. In machine shops a great deal of time is
ordinarily wasted in getting drawings and patterns made, and
getting materials into the shop. This time cannot be made up
after the work is started, and the effort to do so results in confu¬
sion, decreased efficiency of the plant, and more or less friction
among the individuals comprising the organization.
From the foregoing it will be seen that the Production Clerk
need not be a man with technical or practical shop experience;
although he would, all other things being equal, be benefited
thereby. He must, of course, be familiar with the processes of
manufacture. His function is to decide when things are to be
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
377
done throughout the plant, and his authority in this matter
extends to, and must be respected by, every one in the manufac¬
turing plant, from the manager and superintendent down to the
messenger boy and the humblest laborer. He must plan, and
transmit to each through the proper channels, information as to
what each is to do now, what is to be done next, and what is to
follow that; but has no authority to say how things are to be
done.
The Production Clerk's function has been described first
because he is 3ie coordinating factor or connecting link between
the other functions and departments.
The Route Clerk. — The work of the Route Clerk is the first
step in the planning to take place after all information as to what
is to be constructed or manufactured has been procured, and put
in working shape. In an engineering or machinery manufactur¬
ing plant this information is compiled in the form of drawings and
bills of material, and it has been the writer's experience in other
lines of industry that there is always some equivalent of drawings;
sometimes in the form of specifications, and sometimes samples.
The Route Clerk must be a man with practical shop experience.
He must be thoroughly familiar with the shop practice and with
the products, must be capable of readily reading drawings or their
equivalent, and must have the ability to plan and put in writing
— in the form of Route Charts or diagrams — the method to be
followed in the manufacture of the products.
He must have data available pertaining to all machines, giving
their capacities, their location, etc., such as will enable him to
decide which machine is the best for performing any given
operation on the work to be done. He must consult frequently
with various foremen in the shop with reference to the best
methods to be followed in machining various parts and assem¬
bling them into groups and machines. He must also consult with
the Time Study and Instruction Card men so that the machines
to which he assigns work are those that will permit of its being
done in the most economical manner, and so that the Instruction
Card men may avoid having to work up completely new cards
for a job, whereas, if it were assigned perhaps to another machine,
378
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
they could make use, either wholly or in part, of instruction cards
that had previously been prepared for other work of the same
character. He must also consult frequently with the Engineer¬
ing, Drafting, or Designing Department, as well as must the
Instruction Card men, so that machines or other product may be
designed with a view to the greatest facility and economy in their
manufacture.
In a large plant, where more than one Route Clerk is necessary
to handle the work, we would have one or more men who were
-«
expert in assembling to make up the Route Charts, laying out
only the manner in which the parts are to be grouped and the
assembling operations, while one or more others, especially quali¬
fied, would lay out the various machine operations on each of the
parts and compute the quantities of materials required, etc.
Others would perform the purely clerical work attached to this
function.
In other words, the larger the plant and the more varied the
line of work, the more the work is divided up along lines of special¬
ization.
Let us now consider the work of the Route Clerk in a machine
shop, — representing perhaps the most complex problem, from
which the reader who is interested in other lines of manufacture
may also form an idea of the application of this function in his
own business.
It is the duty of the Route Clerk to take the drawings that
have been prepared by the Engineering Department, and, in the
case of a machine, analyze the construction of the machine, first
splitting it up into groups of parts that can be assembled together
independently of the rest of the machine; deciding the relative
order of importance of these groups, taking into account the
length of time it will require to get the castings and other parts
that must be made especially for the order; the amount of work
on the various parts, as well as in assembling them; and the stage
in the final assembling at which each one of them will be required.
This he lays out in the form of a diagram.
He next takes each one of the groups, and lays out a diagram or
route chart showing, in the order of their relative importance, all
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
379
of the parts that are to be made especially for the order, and the
operations to be performed upon each of them; their proper
sequence; and the machines in which the various operations are
to be performed. He also indicates the quantity and kind of
material required for each part, indicating whether it is to be pur¬
chased or made especially for the job, or whether it is to come
from stores. He also indicates what parts, if any, are to be drawn
in a finished condition from worked material stores. These he
shows in the order of their relative importance, and assigns to
each one a mnemonic symbol in accordance with his classification,
which serves the purpose of identifying it as it progresses through
the shop; indicates what part of the machine it goes in; as well
as serving as an operation order number and an index to the
instruction cards for each of the several operations to be per¬
formed. The symbol also is used in connection with the cost
keeping system, and filing any data pertaining to the piece that it
represents. The Route Clerk also has made up by a clerk the
route sheets and progress sheets upon which the progress of work
through the shop is to be recorded, as well as the various Opera¬
tion Orders, Inspection Orders, Stores Issues, etc.
The Route Charts or diagrams described might be called
graphic bills of material, showing as they do not only each part
entering into the construction of the machine or article to be
manufactured, but also which parts go together, and how they
are to be put together and the operations that must be performed
on each preparatory to their being put together, as well as the
number of each part required and the kind and quantity of the
materials from which the parts are to be made. These charts
vary from a very simple one for an article composed of three or
four pieces, to a complicated one, say, for a locomotive, which
would consist of perhaps twenty large sheets. In the case of
single pieces to be manufactured, no route chart is of course
required, a simple route sheet serving the purpose in such
cases.
Foundry Clerk {or Special Materials Clerk). — The man filling
this position need not be a mechanical man, as the position is
purely clerical. He should, however, be a live wire, as it devolves
38o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
upon him not only to order certain materials, but to see that they
are gotten into the shop as required.
In many lines of industry there are certain materials that are
not carried in stock, but are ordered from outside parties specially
for the order on which they are to be used. Castings are typical
of this class of materials in the case of many machine shops which
do not operate their own foundries.
To take care of such materials is the duty of the Foundry Clerk.
He maintains the pattern records showing where each pattern is;
whether in the pattern storage or at a foundry; when sent to the
foundry and when returned, etc. He prepares detail orders on
the foundry for all castings required, giving the foundry all neces¬
sary information, has the patterns delivered, prepares for the
foundry an order of work to guide them in the matter of which
castings are wanted first, etc., and follows them up to see that
the order of work is followed.
Under the old system of management one of the greatest
obstacles to economical manufacture is piece-meal deliveries of
castings called for in a lot. If twenty castings are wanted of a
certain pattern, the foundry makes them as suits its convenience,
and delivers them to the machine shop in driblets — two to-day,
one to-morrow, five a few days later, and so on. This makes it
difficult to keep track of them, and results frequently in the fore¬
man, when he is hard pressed for a job for a workman, letting him
start on the few delivered, making several " bites at the cherry,"
with the resultant loss of time spent in setting up the machine and
tearing it down, where once should suffice. In many shops, as a
result of this, there can be found lying around in corners and under
benches, a lot of castings representing cases in which the foimdry
has delivered in excess of the number required, while in other
instances, part of a lot of machines will stand around unfinished
after the rest of the lot to which they belong has been completed
and shipped, waiting for the foundry to deliver the balance of
certain castings which they have forgotten.
This cannot happen under the Taylor system, as it is the duty
of the Foundry Clerk to specify the quantity of each casting to be
delivered in one lot, when the lot is to be delivered, and to accept
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
381
from the foundry no more and no less than the quantities speci¬
fied. The analogy to the foregoing will be found in almost any
line of industry.
The Balance of Stores Clerks. — Under the Taylor System it is
the practice to keep in the Planning Department, " Balance
Sheets " or running inventory sheets showing for each article
carried in stock: {a) The quantity on hand; that is, actually
carried in stores. (¿>) The quantity on order but not yet received
in stores, (c) The quantity required for orders for shipment or
manufacture to which they have been apportioned, but not yet
issued. {d) The quantity available for future requirements.
This information is constantly needed in connection with the
planning of work.
Orders on the storeroom (stores and worked material issues)
are made out for all of the various materials or parts carried in
stock — as soon as determined by the Route Clerk from the
drawings and bills of material and shown on the route charts and
route sheets — and for articles from stock called for by shipping
orders (customers' orders) immediately upon receipt of the
order.
It is the Balance Clerk's duty to apportion in advance the
materials called for on these issues, and subtract them from the
quantities available.^ After having drawn down his balance
available, he compares it with his minimum quantity shown at
the top of the sheet. If the balance available is in excess of the
minimum quantity, that ends the transaction; but if it is less than
the minimum, he must issue an order for the quantity indicated
for replenishment. This he does, in the case of purchased articles
by a requisition on the Purchasing Agent, or, in the case of worked
materials by issuing a manufacturing order. The quantity to be
ordered is also shown at the head of the Balance Sheet.
When an order has been issued for the replenishment of stock,
he enters the quantity in the column showing materials ordered,
adding it to the previous balance, and similarly adds it in the
column showing the quantity available.
^ It must be clearly understood that " quantities available " means available for
apportionment or reservation only and not for issue. — Ed.
382
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The minimum quantity is so set that materials will be received
before the quantity in stores is exhausted, and hence may be con¬
sidered available as soon as ordered; consequently the balance
ordered, plus the quantity on hand, minus the quantity appor¬
tioned, equals the quantity available. Likewise the sum of the
balance ordered and the balance on hand, as shown in their
respective columns, should equal the sum of the balance available
and the quantity apportioned. This is a check on the accuracy
of the entries.
In arriving at the proper minimum quantity for each article
we must take into account the length of time it takes to get the
articles, and the rate of consumption.
Fixing these minimum quantities properly in the first place, and
their revision to meet changes in conditions is very important,
and changes should not be made without the approval of some one
competent to judge the advisability of the change. It should be
the Balance Clerk's aim to keep his stock down as low as is con¬
sistent with economical purchasing, and at the same time avoid
not having materials on hand when wanted. He must also keep
the designing department and the Route Clerk advised as to any
materials on hand for which the demand seems to have ceased,
so that they may be used up if possible, and he should be con¬
sulted frequently by these parties so as to avoid calling for ma¬
terials that may not be regularly carried in stock where something
equally suitable is on hand.
In the event of materials not being available at the time of
apportionment, the Balance Clerk on their receipt notifies
the proper party in the Planning Department (the Recording
Clerk) that the work in connection with which they are to be used
may be started.
Each day the storeroom sends to the Balance Clerk the stores
issues for materials that have been taken out of stores. These
he sorts by their mnemonic symbols into piles, so that their
arrangement is the same as that of the Balance Sheets on his files,
using for this purpose, where the number of stores issues is suffi¬
cient to warrant it, a special sorting tray commonly called a
" flying machine."
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
383
After having sorted his issues he enters each one on its proper
sheet in the column for materials in stores, subtracting it from
the balance previously on hand, and also enters it in the column
showing materials apportioned, subtracting it from the balance
there shown, and checks off the entry made at the time the ma¬
terials were apportioned. The total or balance in this column
should be the sum of the unchecked items.
There are some exceptions to the rule of apportionment in
advance — in general things to be secured from stores imme¬
diately after the issue is written — and in such cases the quantity
issued must be subtracted from the quantity available. In the
case of most office supplies and some shop supplies, it is the rule
not to apportion materials, and in such cases only the columns for
materials on hand and materials ordered are used.
Upon receipt of materials in stores the Storekeeper notifies the
Balance Clerk on forms provided for the purpose, and entries are
made in the columns showing materials ordered and materials on
hand, subtracting the quantity received from the balance
ordered, and adding it to the balance on hand.
The Balance Clerk is responsible for keeping the Production
Clerk advised as to stock parts that are running low, and for the
accuracy of his sheets; in this connection he must devote a cer¬
tain amount of time each day to checking up his balance with the
quantities shown on the bin tags and the quantities actually in the
bin.
The foregoing is, of course, only a general outline of the Balance
Clerk's duties, intended to give a good general idea of them.
The imique features of this element of the System are : keeping
the stores balance sheets in the Planning Department instead of
in the store room, as is customary under the old style of manage¬
ment, and the apportionment in advance and subtracting the
quantity apportioned from the quantity available, issuing as a
result, orders for the replenishment of stock when the quantity
thus shown to be available for future orders falls to the estab¬
lished minimum instead of when the quantity actually in stock is
drawn down to a minimum without regard to the requirements
for other orders under way in the shop which do not happen to
384
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
have been called for, but which may be called for at any minute.
As a preventive against awkward and costly delays, the value of
apportionment in advance will be obvious to the reader.
The writer recalls, some years ago, when he was the superin¬
tendent of a plant manufacturing steam engines, after several
experiences of not having on hand certain fittings when they were
wanted, making a practice each time an order was received to
build an engine, of going to the storeroom with a list of all the
parts to be drawn from stock for the order in question, finding
out how many of each there were in stock, and then going abound
the shop to each engine being erected and finding out which ones
had their parts issued to them, and which had not, subtracting the
quantities required by those for which the parts had not been
drawn from stock from the quantities in stock, thus finding out
laboriously, at the expense of time that could have been more
profitably employed, whether or not the parts required were
available for the new order. With the system of apportionment
that has been described, in connection with a routing system,
this is automatically done by a clerk, leaving the superintendent
and foreman free to devote their time to more important matters.
The question of material being on hand when required should
not concern them at all.
Mnemonic Classifications.— The balance sheets must, of course,
be so arranged and indexed in files as to facilitate finding quickly
the sheet for any article when information is desired, or when
entries are to be made thereon. This is accomplished with the
aid of mnemonic classifications for " stores " or purchased articles,
and for " worked materials " or manufactured articles.
As has already been pointed out in discussing the duties of the
route clerk, these classifications serve also certain purposes in
connection with that function, and in directing and keeping
track of work in progress in the shop. They likewise are fol¬
lowed in arranging the bins in the storeroom — the symbol not
only indicating the article but its location in the storeroom as
well — and offer a means of indexing the route sheets on which
the progress of work in process is recorded, so that when informa¬
tion is desired of any particular piece in any particular lot of a
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
385
given kind of machine in progress, the sheet on which such infor¬
mation will be found may be turned to and the information
obtained without delay. The same thing is true of recording the
progress of work at each stage, and ascertaining the next step to
be taken and issuing the necessary orders for it.
The same classifications afford a means for sorting time cards,
" stores issues," etc., for entry on cost sheets, and for bringing
together under various headings information, expenses, and
data of various sorts pertaining to the product, methods of manu¬
facture, and accounting. The " mnemonic symbol " system is,
in fact, an important element in the mechanism for the applica¬
tion of the principles of Scientific Management, and one without
which any system developed for that purpose would be greatly
handicapped.
This subject: classification, its basic principles, and the ends it
serves, is so large that a book might well be written on it, and it
cannot be entered into at any great length here, but a few brief
remarks may serve to give the reader a fairly clear general idea of
how such classifications are made up.
The first principle of this system of classification is, as in the
Dewey decimal system, so generally used in Hbraries, the group¬
ing of the things to be classified first into broad generic classes.
A letter is selected, one that is mnemonic if possible, to designate
each class. Next, each of these classes is divided into smaller
classes, each of which is designated by an additional letter that is
suggestive of the thing it represents, and these sub-classes are still
further divided and designated by an additional letter, and so on
down to the smallest unit in a class, each letter quahfying or
indicating a subdivision of the class or thing indicated by the
letter preceding it. Figures are introduced into the symbols in
various ways to serve certain purposes, as will be indicated by
illustrations which follow.
Let us consider that we are working up a classification for a
large manufacturing concern whose product covers a wide range
of machinery, including machinery for the generation and trans¬
mission of power, metal-working machinery, wood-working ma¬
chinery, road making machinery, and certain other miscellaneous
386
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
products. The classification in question is intended to be used
in connection with the company's accounting and cost keeping,
its routing system, its stores system, and certain other purposes.
We shall, as is customary, reserve the letters A to F inclusive to
designate the several broad classes of indirect expenses, and the
letters X, Y, and Z to designate the company's building, machin¬
ery and other equipment accounts, leaving the letters G to V
inclusive (omitting S, which is to be used for stores or purchased
articles, and I, J, O, and Q on account of their resemblance to
figures and the consequence of their being confused with figures
that may be introduced into our symbols) to be used in designat¬
ing the several broad classes of the company's products which we
would classify as follows:
A —
B —
C —
D —
F —
G —
H —
K —
L —
M — Machine Tools (Metal-working)
N —
P
Indirect Expenses
R
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Power-Generating and Trans¬
mission Machinery
Road-Making Machinery
Various Miscellaneous Products
not otherwise Classified
Wood-Working Machinery
Product
Plant and
Equipment
Direct Expenses
Each of these classes of machinery would then be subdivided
into the various kinds of machines of which it is composed. For
the purpose of illustration it will suffice to carry out the subdivi¬
sion for one of them. Let us take Class M — Metal-working
Machinery.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
387
M
A —
M N
M
B — Boring mills
M P
— Planers
M
C —
M R
—
M
D —
M S
— Shapers
M
E —
M T
—
M
F —
M U
—
M
G —
M V
—
M
H —
M X
—
M
K —
M Y
—
M
L —Lathes
M Z
—
M
M— Milling machines
Each of these would again be subdivided into the various
groups of parts making up the machine. Thus, in the case of
lathes, MLB might indicate the bed group, M L C the carriage
group, M L H the head stock group, etc.
The Carriage Group might be split up into M L C A indicating
the Apron division of the carriage group, M L C C the Cross
Slide division of the carriage group, and M L C i C would
indicate the first piece in that division of the carriage group.
The size of the lathe would be inserted in the symbol between the
first and second letters, thus: M 20-72 L would indicate a 20 in.
lathe with a 72 in. bed. Figures to indicate operations to be per¬
formed are prefixed to the symbol, thus: 5 M 20-72 L C 2 C
would indicate the fifth operation to be performed in machining
the second piece in the cross slide division of the carriage group
of a 20 in. lathe with a 72 in. bed. At the end of the symbol we
would add a number to indicate the particular lot to which this
part belonged.
It will be seen that neither figures alone nor letters alone could
be made to adequately serve the several purposes for which the
symbol is designed.
In developing this system of classification, which in its present
form represents a long process of evolution, as indeed does the
entire Taylor System, Dr. Taylor tried first using figures alone,
then letters only, neither of which completely met all require¬
ments, and finally settled upon the combination of the two such
as has been briefly described above.
Time Study and Instruction Card Man. — The man filling this
function must also be a practical shop man, and one who appre-
388
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
dates the importance of minute details. It is his duty to:
I. Make such elementary time studies as may be necessary in
order to ascertain the best method to be followed in the per¬
formance of each class of work. 2. To prepare instruction cards
indicating the method to be followed in performing each opera¬
tion, what tools to use, etc.
This function was described at considerable length by the
writer in an article entitled " Elementary Time Stùdy as a Part
of the Taylor System of Management," published in the Feb.,
1912, issue of Industrial Engineering, to which the reader is
respectfully referred.
The Route File Clerk. — In connection with the route sheets
for each article to be made and each operation on each route
sheet, there are several pieces of paper to be filled out: an order
on the storeroom for the materials from which the article is to be
made; a tag to be attached to the lot of parts; an order for each
operation, for the inspection that takes place at the start of each
operation as an insurance that the operator understands the
requirements and gets started right, for the inspection of the work
done on the lot of parts at the completion of each operation, for
moving the material from the storeroom to the machine that is
to perform the first operation, and for moving the parts from a
machine where an operation has been completed to the machine
in which the next operation is to be performed.
If the writing of these operation orders, etc., was left until
they are needed, it would result in such delay and confusion that
the whole scheme would fail to work, and even if it could be
made to work, the expense of doing it that way would be pro¬
hibitive.
All of these pieces of paper for a given article or unit contain,
with the exception of the operation number, the number of the
machine or work-place where the operation is to be performed,
the time the operation should take, and exactly the same items
of information, consisting of the order number or symbol to which
the article belongs, the piece symbol, the number of pieces in the
lot, the drawing number, etc. ; and consequently a duplicating
machine, either of the " hectograph type " or the multigraph can
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
389
be used to good advantage. Which type of duplicator should be
used depends upon how many copies are required from the same
writing; this varies in different t3q)es of industries.
It is the duty of the route file clerk, or operation order clerk, as
he is sometimes called, to prepare all of these written orders
required by the route sheets. In a sense this might be regarded
as a subdivision of the route clerk's function. The operation
orders, etc., are placed by the route file clerk in a receptacle
known as an " envelope sheet " or an equivalent of the same, and
placed in the route file, where they will be conveniently at hand
when wanted.
To most people it would perhaps seem unlikely that there
should be any science in the performance of this function, and yet
it is surprising to find how much there is in so apparently simple
a thing as the use of a duplicator of the " hectograph " type
for making up operation orders. A careful study of this proved
that under properly standardized conditions, with standardized
implements and appliances, and following the method developed
as a result of the study, a clerk could handle more than twice the
amount of work that he could when left to follow the course indi¬
cated by his " initiative." This is true of almost all clerical work.
The Order of Work Clerk. — The man performing this function
need not be a shop man, that is, he need not be a mechanic,
although he should be familiar with the work and the plant.
His function is to administer the " Order of Work " for the shop
through the medium of the " bulletin board."
He must see that the various jobs (operation orders) ahead of
each machine are taken up and performed in accordance with
their relative importance, deciding, as each new job arrives at a
machine, whether it is to be done next after the job under way,
or whether it is to be the third, fourth, or fifth job. In deciding
this he is guided by the " Order of Work " or schedule furnished
him by the production clerk.
Where there is not enough work to keep certain machines
running steadily, he decides when to transfer men to them as
work accumulates. To do this intelligently, he must know what
kind of machines each workman can operate, and the grades of
390
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
work each is capable of doing. This information he must secure
from the various foremen and inspectors.
It is his duty to see that each man has at all times laid out
ahead of him a proper amount of work (usually at least ten hours
of work), and to notify the proper person (usually the superin¬
tendent) in case he cannot get work enough for the men, or in
case there are not enough men to handle the work so that orders
will be completed when due.
The " bulletin board " referred to is a most important piece of
Planning Department machinery, of which there are a number
of forms. A description of one of these forms will, however,
suffice, as the differences are merely of construction and not of
principle.
On the bulletin board under discussion there is a set of three
hooks, one under the other, for each machine or work-place in the
shop. On the first of the hooks is hung the operation order for
the job in progress on the machine, and a tag showing the name
of the workman on the machine. On the second hook are the
operation orders for the various jobs that are at the machine
waiting to be done; these are arranged in the order in which they
are to be taken up by the operator. Duplicates of these orders
are also shown on a bulletin board in the shop conveniently
located to the machines, to which the gang boss and the workmen
refer for information concerning their work. On the third hook
are hung the operation orders for jobs ahead for the machine
which are in progress in the shop, but which have not yet pro¬
gressed to the machine in question; that is, they are at some
other machine to have operations performed that precede the
one represented by the order on the third hook.
From this it will be seen that the order of work clerk has a
" bird's-eye view " of what is going on in the shop, what work is
ahead of each machine, and is able to plan the work much more
intelligently than can the foreman under the old style of manage¬
ment, who depends upon his memory and upon observation for
keeping track of and laying out his work. Any one who has
worked as a foreman under the old style of management will
realize how difficult it is to keep a gang of men supplied with
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
391
work and to be sure that each man is working on the job that is of
the greatest importance.
The order of work clerk is constantly and systematically
going over the bulletin board, seeing which machines on which
workmen are working are running short of work, which machines
to which no men have been assigned have work ahead that should
be started, what men will be available by reason of all the work
ahead of them being finished and how soon, that an important
job is not waiting while one that is less important is being worked
on, etc.
Lost time between the completion of one job and starting the
next is thus avoided, the rule being to have preparations made in
advance for two or more jobs (at least ten hours' work) ahead for
each workman. If the order of work clerk finds that there is
less than this amount of work ahead of a workman on the ma¬
chine he is at the time operating, he first sees whether there is
any more work that can be gotten to the machine in question in
time to keep it going. If not, he next ascertains to what other
machine, idle at the time, but at which there is work waiting to
be done, the workman may be most advantageously transferred,
and arranges for doing so, indicating the same by a notification
slip, similar to an operation order on the hooks for the machine
from which the man is to be transferred and the machine to which
he is assigned. Duplicates of these slips are, of course, placed on
the shop bulletin boards for the guidance of the workman and the
gang boss.
The bulletin board is also used as a guide in sending out to the
machines the drawings, instruction cards, and tool lists in advance
of the time jobs are to be started, so that preparation for each job
may be made. When a workman finishes his last job on a given
machine, or is for any other reason transferred to another, when
he goes to the machine to which he has been assigned he will find
everything ready for him to start work without loss of time; his
drawing, instruction card, etc., having been delivered and his
tools procured from the tool room.
The Recording Clerk. — As has been already explained, route
sheets, one for each lot of parts or unit composing an order, are
392
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
made out by the route clerk. These indicate the symbol of the
part or unit, the quantity in the lot, the drawing number, and
such other general information or description as may be necessary,
and specify the operations to be performed in their proper se¬
quence and the machines in which each operation is to be per¬
formed. These sheets are placed in files which are also receptacles
for the instruction cards, tool lists, operation, inspection, and
move orders pertaining to the operations indicated on the route
sheets, all of which are written up in advance so that there will be
no delay at the time they are required. On the route sheet each
step in the progress of the work to be done on a lot of parts is
indicated, so that what has been done and what remains to be
done is always evident. Its function is not, however, merely to
record history, but to indicate what each succeeding step is to be,
and when it is to be taken. They are the recording clerk's guide
in performing his function, which is to record the progress of the
work, to issue and receive operation orders, inspection orders,
move orders, etc., at each stage in the progress of the work.
To illustrate: A workman finishes a job and hands in to the
recording clerk a finished time card, and the recording clerk does
the following things:
{a) Takes from the bulletin board the operation order for the
job just finished, and turns it over to the order of work clerk to
have the shop copy recalled from the shop bulletin board.
(Ô) Ascertains what the workman's next job is (from the next
operation order on the bulletin board), and gets the time card and
first inspection order for it from the route file, checking the route
sheet to show that the operation has been started, and that the
inspector has been notified.
{c) Stamps the time on card just received and the one being
issued, and delivers the time card for the new job to the workman.
{d) Sends inspection order (for first inspection on job being
started) to inspector.
(e) Opens route file for job reported finished, and checks it to
show that such is the case. Takes out " final inspection " order,
checks route sheet to show inspection ordered, and sends the
inspection order to inspector.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
393
(/) Has the " drawing boy " take out to the machine the
drawing, instruction card, and tool list for the next job following
the last one for which they have been issued, and bring back
those for the job just finished.
When inspection orders are received showing the final inspec¬
tion made, he issues a move order for moving the job to its next
destination, and checks the route sheet to show that it has been
done.
When a " move order " is returned showing that work has been
moved, he issues the operation order (through the order of work
clerk) for performing the next operation on the job in question.
The functions of the time and cost clerks have not, owing to the
magnitude of the subject, been taken up. The accounting system
developed by Dr. Taylor and those who have been associated
with him is, perhaps, at the same time the most complete and
the most simple that has ever been devised, giving all essential
information accurately and in the most useful form with a mini¬
mum of labor. This feature of the Taylor System fits in with the
other elements making use of the mechanism used and work done
in connection with planning the work and running the plant. A
book could well be written on this interesting and important
phase of the system.
Many people have, in the past, made the mistake of over¬
estimating the importance of cost systems, and without first
laying the foundation for them, and at the same time doing those
things necessary to economical manufacture, have undertaken
their installation. In such cases the result is returns so inaccu¬
rate as to be not only valueless, but misleading, or at best indi¬
cating what might be taken for granted, that things cost too
much. Accurate means of measuring work done are, of course, a
prime essential to any cost system, as well as for measuring the
efficiency of the work, and yet frequently manufacturers will
spend good money in attempts at cost keeping with such slipshod
methods for securing returns as to render the results worthless.
By a measuring of work the writer means determining definitely,
as is done in the routing system described, the point at which one
operation ends and another starts, providing reliable means for
394
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the recording of the time of starting and of completion and checks
against time that has been spent on one job being charged to
another. The chief value of a cost system is a check upon
results. As a means of lowering costs or increasing output it is,
to a great extent, similar to the practice of " locking the barn door
after the horse is stolen." For these and certain other reasons
the cost system is usually the last thing taken up in installing the
Taylor System, although the way is paved for it incidentally
almost from the start.
In conclusion the writer wishes to emphasize certain points:
1. That in writing this article it has been his object to amplify
certain things in connection with the practical application of the
principles of Scientific Management that have already been
covered in a less detailed manner by Dr. Taylor in his books
The Principles of Scientific Management and Shop Manage¬
ment, and that unless the reader has already read and studied
them — acquiring thereby a knowledge and understanding of
the basic principles of the science of management — he will
derive little good from reading this article, which is merely
intended to give a better idea of the mechanism for the applica¬
tion of the principles and its working. Again, it may not be out
of place to warn the reader against the danger of mistaking the
" form for the substance."
2. That in describing the various mechanisms of the system —
the functions of the Planning Department, etc. — it has not been
possible to go into sufficient detail to cover every feature or every^
element of the features described, but merely to afford the reader
such a bird's-eye view as one would get as a result of a day's
visit to a plant in which the Taylor System is in operation, and
having it explained by some one conversant with it.
3. The mechanism described must not be regarded as being
universally applicable. Every industry and every shop presents
different conditions and different requirements, to meet which
variations in some or all of the elements must be worked out by
the engineer directing the development of the system. The
principles remain the same, but the method of application differs.
THE FOREMAN'S PLACE IN SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
Reprinted by permission of Industrial Engineering
What is " functional foremanship " ? This expression has
appeared much of late in the various articles on Scientific Manage¬
ment, and as it apparently plays an important part in discussions
of that subject, a detailed explanation is in order. The institu¬
tion of functional foremen, as opposed to the usual single individ¬
ual commonly known as " the boss " in industrial plants, is
probably the most radical change that Scientific Management
makes when it undertakes the reorganization of an industry.
For, with the installation of functional foremen, a planning
department automatically comes into existence, and the separa¬
tion of the planning of methods of doing work from the doing of
the work itself is immediately accomphshed.
Functional foremanship means the splitting up among several
individuals of the duties usually discharged by a single foreman.
Each of these individuals is a speciahst in the particular hne to
which he is assigned, and is trained to the highest efficiency in
discharging the particular duties of that line. The work of each
specialist, or functional foreman, supplements that of the others,
and their duties are so clearly defined that none ever interferes
with the other foremen.
In order to more clearly understand the difference between the
operation of a plant imder functional foremen and one run on the
older plan of having a single foreman with a multitude of duties,
let us imagine a case in a plant making a general line of machinery,
where usually every job is different from every other one. We
choose a case of this character because it has often been argued by
uninformed persons that Scientific Management, as it is generally
understood, might easily be applied to a manufacturing plant
where processes were repetitive, and thousands of duplicate
parts are made, but that it would be a very different proposition
395
396
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
in a shop doing a variety of work and where no two operations
are the same.
Consider then a room in a shop, equipped with lathes, planers,
drills and other machine tools, and presided over by a single fore¬
man, responsible for the work of say 30 men. Among these
men are half a dozen, Morgan, Brooks, Smith, Johnson, Sweet
and Flannery. The foreman is at Johnson's lathe, supervising
the production of a rather difhcult and important piece of work,
which has to be made very accurately, and on which the foreman
must see that no mistakes are made. While he is so engaged,
Brooks approaches him, and informs him that he has finished the
job he was on and that he wants another. The foreman, being
much engaged with Johnson, tells Brooks that he will see to bim
in a minute or two, and continues what he is doing. Brooks
stands around or goes over and talks to Sweet until the foreman
finishes with Johnson. The foreman then examines the orders
which have been assigned to him by the office for the production
of work, and gives a job to Brooks. It is a rather complicated
job, and requires some explanation. While explaining the work,
and discussing the best method of doing it with Brooks, Smith
comes up and demands a job. With a hurried " Well, you see
how it is to be done," the foreman leaves Brooks, to get a job for
Smith. Brooks is not altogether sure that he does see, but
rather than say so and further detain his boss, proceeds on his
own responsibility, makes a mistake and spoils the piece. It is
not evident to him, however, and he continues work; and the
foreman, being concerned with Smith and worried over the fine
job in Johnson's lathe, does not get to Brooks for a long time.
Consequently Brooks' work is not inspected and the error is not
discovered until a lot of time and money have been wasted, which
would have been saved had the foreman not been so busy.
Meanwhile the foreman has found a job for Smith. It is the
machining of half a dozen large castings, and the office has indi¬
cated that it expects these to be done on piece work. It is a new
job in the shop, and the foreman and Smith haggle a while over
what is a fair rate. Neither one knows just how long it should
take to finish one casting and a considerable discussion ensues,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
397
but finally a compromise is reached, although each thinks he has
been " stung." The foreman then tells Smith that Flannery had
brought the first casting in the day before and put it at the big
planer where it was to be machined, and goes back to Johnson.
Smith fails to find the casting, and once more goes to the boss.
He assures himself that the casting is not at the planer, and, not
seeing Flannery around, the two spend a lot of time hunting until
they find the casting at one of the milling machines where Flan¬
nery had put it by mistake.
And so it goes on all day. The foreman is at the beck and call
of all the men, showing them how to do their work, discussing
methods with them, assigning work, fixing piece rates, pushing
rush orders through, hiring men, firing or disciplining others,
keeping the men busy all the time as far as possible, seeing that
they do not soldier, keeping track of new work, and attending
to a multitude of other duties too numerous to mention.
To perform all these duties completely and well, and not to
neglect a single one, he must possess about ten qualifications
which are seldom or never combined in one man. He must have
brains, education, technical knowledge, patience, tact, nerve,
energy, honesty, judgment and good health. A man with all
these characteristics would be too valuable to be a foreman, and
if he could be found would probably occupy the position of works
manager or general superintendent. The picture outlined above
is one that can be seen at any time in hundreds of shops on a busy
day, and the various incidents related not only cut down produc¬
tion, but run up charges due not only to the wages paid idle men,
men who are waiting for the boss, but also to the much heavier
overhead charges on machinery and plant, which go on all the
time, whether tools are working or idle.
Let us now see how the sarne plant would be run under func¬
tional foremen. We will assume that the full number — eight —
recommended by the best authorities on management, are
employed, that each one is thoroughly instructed in his duties,
and that there are available for those that need them, records and
time studies of at least, all the important jobs and operations in
the shop.
398
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The various functional foremen are known as Route Clerk,
Instruction Card Man, Cost and Time Clerk, Gang Boss, Speed
Boss, Repair Boss, Inspector, and Disciplinarian. Of these, the
first three are in the office or planning room. The next four are
in the shop, while the disciplinarian may spend his time regularly
in either shop or office.
In its course through the shop a given job will pass through the
hands of these men in the following order: route clerk, instruc¬
tion card man, gang boss, speed boss, inspector, time and cost
clerk. The repair boss and disciplinarian are not directly con¬
cerned with production and their functions are indicated by their
titles. Their duties will be discussed in detail later on.
The order, drawings and bill of materials for every job that is
to be done in the shop come first to the planning room. The
necessary castings, forgings and other parts are ordered by a
stock clerk either from stores or other departments of the plant
or are ordered purchased from outside. The raw material being
provided for, the job is placed in the hands of the first of the
functional foremen — the route clerk. This man should have a
knowledge of machine work sufficient to enable him to devise
promptly from the drawing the best method of doing a given piece
of work, as whether a surface had best be milled or planed, or
whether a cylinder could best be bored in a lathe or a boring mill.
He also must be able to read drawings clearly, and have sufficient
imagination to make from the drawing a mental picture of the
finished work.
To this man first, then, comes the drawing and bill of materials
or other specifications according to the custom of the plant. He
makes a study of the job and decides on the best methods to
follow in doing it. He not only decides on the operations neces¬
sary but the exact sequence in which these operations should be
performed. Furthermore, the route clerk should be armed with
such information in regard to the equipment of tools in the shop
that he can indicate on his route sheet the particular tool or group
of tools in which each operation is to be performed. After having
determined these things, the route clerk will make a list showing
the course of the piece through the shop, the machines at which it
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
399
stops, and the sequence of operations at these machines. In
addition to routing the individual piece, as above described, the
route clerk daily issues a list of work to the shop showing the
order in which the various jobs are to be performed by every
class of machine or men.
After the route sheet on a piece is prepared, it goes to the in¬
struction card man. This man should be an expert in machine
work, and should be able to devise methods of doing new jobs
which are quick, accurate and economical. He should also have
at his command time studies of fundamental operations, such as
the length of time required to turn the face of a cylindrical sur¬
face of a given length, using a particular feed and speed, the
length of time to face a hub of a certain diameter, the time
required to plane a flat surface of a given area, etc. The instruc¬
tion card man will study the drawing and route sheet, and from
these studies will prepare detailed directions for the performance
of each operation. He will write the directions in language that
cannot be misunderstood, on a card, adding, if necessary, sketches
to make his meaning clearer. He will detail on the card the tools
to use, how they are to be set, the feed to use, the speed of the
machine, the depth of cut, the method of setting and clamping
the work in the machine, the sequence of minor operations at
each tool, etc. In fact, he will tell in advance the story of doing
the work. If such records are at his disposal, the instruction
card man will prepare these instructions from standards already
established, or from records of previous similar jobs. Also, if
time studies have been made in the shop, the instruction card
man will indicate opposite each operation the length of time which
a good workman should not exceed in doing that operation. But
even if time studies have not been made, and there are no records
of unit times available, the institution of an instruction card
man to devise methods of doing work is a long step in advance of
doing work by the usual scheme of having a single foreman to
supervise and instruct all the men at the same time. After
instruction cards are prepared, the order is transmitted to the
shop. The method of transmission is immaterial to the purpose
of this article.
400 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The job in the shop comes under the direction of the gang boss,
the speed boss and the inspector, each having a distinct function
or set of duties to perform, and each carrying out these functions
independently of the other men. Probably their duties can best
be explained by taking a hypothetical case and following the job
through the hands of the three foremen. Let us assume the job
to be done is the planing of a milling machine table.
The gang boss will know in advance, by means of the order of
work sent him by the planning department, on which planer the
table is to be machined, and in just what order, in reference to the
other work of the shop, it is to be done. Before the previous
job in the planer is finished, the gang boss will ascertain from the
route sheet of the milling machine table, the location of the cast¬
ing, and he causes it to be moved to the planer by a laborer in
advance of the time it is needed.
He also learns from a tool list furnished him by the planning
room the planing tools needed, the number, size and shape of
straps required to hold the table on the planer bed, the number
and size of bolts required for the straps, the number and size of
blocks for the outer ends of the straps, the pins and wedges and
other fastening appliances which will be needed, and also all of
the gages which will be required in the measuring and setting
of the bed. The gang boss will have the tool room get these tools
together, and before the man at the planer is ready for them will
have them sent to his machine. The machinist, finishing the
work in hand, will learn from a bulletin board or other source of
information that the milling machine table is his next job, and
alongside of the planer he will find the casting and also the
necessary tools. He will immediately proceed to place the work
in the machine, following the directions on the instruction card
which meanwhile has been given to him by the gang boss. This
official will oversee the putting in the planer of the milling ma¬
chine table, and will see that it is set up correctly and fastened in
accordance with the directions of the instruction card. When
he has satisfied himself in regard to these points, the gang boss
is done with this particular job until the inspector passes it, when
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
401
it will once more come under his jurisdiction for movement to the
next machine.
The work once in the machine, the speed boss takes charge of it,
and sees that the piece is machined in the way laid out by the
planning department. He will assure himself that the cutting
tools are set correctly, that the feeds, speeds and cuts specified
are being taken, and that the workman is proceeding in such a
manner that there will be no mistakes made, and therefore no
spoiled work. If necessary, the speed boss, who should be an
expert machinist, will instruct the workman in the manipulation
of his machine, although this should not be necessary on any but
new or difiicult jobs outside the regular run of work. However,
he should be prepared at any time to instruct any workman in
methods of machining and to see that they accomplish each
operation in the time specified on the instruction card. If the
job consists of a number of similar pieces, the speed boss usually
remains with the workman until he completes the first one, to
assure himself that no mistakes are made and that the man has
comprehended the correct methods of doing the job. In case
the man fails to complete the work in the time laid down on the
instruction card, it is the duty of the speed boss to investigate
and ascertain the reasons for this failure, and to remove the
causes. If the workman claims that it is impossible to accom¬
plish the job as outlined by the planning room, the speed boss
must be prepared to undertake and accomplish the work in the
manner and in the time the instruction card calls for.
The milHng machine table, after being finished in the planer,
would be turned over to the inspector. This ofiicial would care¬
fully examine and measure it, to ascertain that it was free from
defects, planed to size, and made according to specifications.
This man must be honest, and possessed of judgment to know
when to reject and when to pass work without insisting on un¬
necessary refinements. The piece, after being passed by the
inspector, once more comes into the domain of the gang boss for
removal to the next machine, or to the assembly floor or shipping
room, if the last operation has been completed.
402
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The time cards from the men performing the various operations
are turned in to the planning room, where they are taken charge
of by the time and cost clerk, who computes from them the
earnings of the men, ascertains if a bonus has been made or not,
providing the shop is on a bonus plan of wage payment, and then
distributes the cost of the work to the proper accounts of the cost
department. These six men, whose work we have described, are
the only functional foremen who are directly concerned with the
production of the regular work of the shop. The two remaining
functional foremen, while not directly concerned with production,
affect it in certain cases to a greater or less degree.
For instance, the repair boss, as his name indicates, is required
to keep all the machinery in the shop, including the transmission
machinery, in ñrst class condition. He must see that the work¬
men keep their machines cleaned and well lubricated, that the
belts from the countershafts to the machines and from the main
line shafts to the countershafts are kept at the proper tension, so
that they can always pull the loads imposed by the speeds and
feeds required by the planning department. If the shop is run
properly, each belt will be taken down at regular intervals, and
tested by means of spring balances, to see that it is within the
limits of tension required for the best results in power transmis¬
sion; and, if not, be lengthened or shortened, as the case requires.
The whole idea is to anticipate breakdowns and to make repairs
before the shop or a machine is shut down by the failure of some
part. The repair boss should keep a record of all repairs and
tests, such as those of belts, in order that too long an interval may
not elapse before that particular piece of apparatus is examined
again.
The shop disciplinarian is a man who takes all cases of disci¬
pline out of the hands of the other functional foremen. He should
be a combination of firmness, tact, and good nature, and be a keen
judge of men. He should be a man who understands when the
best results will be accomplished by means of a " jolly," or when
sternness is a necessity. The functions of this man in relation
to the other foremen can be best understood by imagining what
might happen with a new workman who had never worked under
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
403
functional foremen previously. The workman would be assigned
to his first job by the gang boss and would be provided with his
rough casting and his tools by the same man. In this respect he
would not notice anything particularly different from the pro¬
ceedings in the shop from which he came and which had been
under a single general foreman. He would be provided with an
instruction card, but might choose to ignore this and to carry out
the work according to his own ideas. The speed boss, coming
along at this moment, would notice the discrepancy between the
instructions and the way the workman is doing the job. He
would immediately call the workman's attention to the fact that
he was not following instructions and would proceed to show him
the correct way of working. It is easily imagined that a work¬
man might resent this interference from one of whom he had no
knowledge and who apparently had no particular authority over
him. He might partially accede to the speed boss's request or
might flatly refuse to follow directions. There would be no
argument on this score. The speed boss might, as man to man,
inform the workman that it would be to his advantage to follow
directions, but, if he did not do so, the speed boss would not
attempt to discharge him, dock his pay, or enforce other dis¬
ciplinary measures. He would simply report the matter to the
shop disciplinarian, who would take up the case of the workman,
and apply whatever remedial measures might be required. All
discharges of men are made by this official, and in many cases the
men are also hired by him.
The value of the disciplinarian as a separate official will be
evident on a little consideration. The function of the other
bosses is to get the maximum amount of work out of the shop.
Arguments and the enforcement of discipline may, and often do,
engender hard feelings between foreman and workman and reduce
the efficiency of both. When these arguments are transferred to
a man who has no direct connection with the production of work,
the relations of the other men to the bosses are left undisturbed
by any discipline that may be visited on any person in the shop;
consequently, the working force is maintained at its highest
404 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
efficiency, regardless of any personal feeling that may exist
between the men and the disciplinarian.
We thus see how the characteristics required by an ideal fore¬
man, controlling all the functions of management in a single
department of a works, are divided up among a number of men,
each of whom possesses certain ones which especially fit bim to
discharge certain functions but who lacks other characteristics
which would enable him to take care of other equally important
functions in the management of the department. Thus the
route clerk must be a man of foresight, with a general knowledge
of the workings of machine tools. He need not, however, be an
expert machinist. The instruction card man, on the other hand,
must be highly skilled in all the devices of his trade and must also
possess ingenuity and have some inventive ability. He need not,
however, necessarily be a good executive. The gang boss should
have considerable executive ability and should be able to set
work in machines to good advantage, although it is not necessary
that he be expert in the manipulation of the machine. He should
be painstaking, a hustler and have a mind for detail. The speed
boss must be an expert machine operator and need not have many
of the other qualities. The inspector should be able to read
drawings and possess keen judgment as to the quality of work.
He should be of sterling honesty and should be of such force of
character that he would be unmoved by forceful protests of work¬
men and bosses over rejected work. The repair boss should be
painstaking and neat. The quality of the disciplinarian we have
discussed above.
It is thus evident that, although it is almost impossible to
obtain in one man all those qualities which go to make up the
ideal foreman, it is possible to obtain them in a shop by the system
of functional foremanship. Furthermore, even were it possible
to obtain a man who would be the ideal foreman, the quality and
quantity of work turned out by the shop would be lower than
under functional foremen, simply for the reason that one man
would not have the time to look after more than a very few
workmen.
SLIDE RULES FOR THE MACHINE SHOP AS A PART
OF THE TAYLOR SYSTEM OF MANAGEMENT
By CARL G. BARTH
Reprinted by permission of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
1. In his paper on " Shop Management," read at the Saratoga
meeting of the Society in June last, Mr. Fred W. Taylor referred
to certain slide rules that had been invented and developed under
his supervision and general guidance, by means of which it be¬
comes a comparatively simple matter to determine that feed and
speed at which a lathe or kindred machine tool must be run in
order to do a certain piece of work in a minimum of time.
2. These slide rules were also mentioned by Mr. H. L. Gantt
in his paper " A Bonus System of Rewarding Labor " (New York
Meeting, December, 1901), as being at that time in successful use
in the large machine shop of the Bethlehem Steel Company, and
reproductions of a number of instruction cards were therein pre¬
sented, the dictated feeds and speeds of which had been deter¬
mined by means of these slide rules.
3. Mr. Taylor early set about making experiments with a view
to obtaining information in regard to resistances in cutting steel
with edged tools, and also the relations that exist between the
depth of cut and feed taken to the cutting speed and time that a
tool will endure; and he advanced far enough along these lines
in his early position as engineer for the Midvale Steel Company
to make systematic and successful use of the information ob¬
tained; but as this, of course, was confined to tempered carbon
tools only, it was not applicable to the modern high-speed steel,
so that the invention and introduction of this steel called for new
experiments to be made.
4. These were first undertaken under Mr. Taylor's direction
at Bethlehem, so far as the cutting of steel alone was concerned;
and later on at the works of William Sellers & Co., Inc., of Phil¬
adelphia, at which place the writer spent fifteen months in going
40s
4o6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
over these experiments again, on both steel and cast iron, and
with tools of a variety of shapes and sizes, and for which nearly
25 tons of material were required.
5. However, it is not the writer's intention at this time, to give
an account of these experiments, or of the results obtained and
conclusions drawn from them, but merely to give some idea of
the slide rules on which these have been incorporated, and by
means of which a most complex mathematical problem may be
solved in less than a minute.
6. He will also confine his attention to the most generally in¬
teresting of these slide rules; that is, the slide rules for lathes,
and he will take for an example an old style belt-driven lathe,
with cone pulley and back gearing.
7. Considering the number of variables that enter into the
problem of determining the most economical way in which to
remove a required amount of stock from a piece of lathe work,
they may be enumerated as follows : —
I. The size and shape of the tools to be used.
II. The use or not of a cooling agent on the tool.
HI. The number of tools to be used at the same time.
IV. The length of time the tools are required to stand up to
the work (Life of Tool).
V. The hardness of the material to be turned (Class Num¬
ber).
VI. The diameter of this material or work.
VII. The depth of the cut to be taken.
VIH. The feed to be used.
IX. The cutting speed.
X. The cutting pressure on the tool.
XI. The speed combination to be used to give at the same
time the proper cutting speed and the pressure re¬
quired to take the cut.
XII. The stiffness of the work.
8. All of these variables, except the last one, are incorporated
in the slide rule, which, when the work is stiff enough to permit of
any cut being taken that is within both the pulling power of the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
407
lathe and strength of the tool, may be manipulated by a person
who has not the slightest practical judgment to bear on the
matter; but which as yet, whenever the work is not stiff enough
to permit of this, does require to be handled by a person of a
good deal of practical experience and judgment.
9. However, we expect some day to accumulate enough data
in regard to the relations between the stiffness of the work and
the cuts and speeds that will not produce detrimental chatter,
to do without personal judgment in this matter also, and we will
at present take no notice of the twelfth one of the above variables
but confine ourselves to a consideration of the first eleven only.
10. Of these eleven, all except the third and tenth enter into
relations with each other that depend only on the cutting prop¬
erties of the tools, while all except the second, fourth and ninth
also enter into another set of relations that depends on the pulling
power of the lathe, and the problem primarily solved by the slide
rule is the determination of that speed-combination which will at
the same time most nearly utilize all the pulling power of the
lathe on the one hand, and the full cutting efficiency of the tools
used on the other hand, when in any particular case under con¬
sideration values have been assigned to all the other nine
variables.
11. If our lathe were capable of making any number of revolu¬
tions per minute between certain limits, and the possible torque
corresponding to this number of revolutions could be algebrai¬
cally expressed in terms of such revolutions, then the problem
might possibly be reduced to a solution, by ordinary algebraic
methods, of two simultaneous equations containing two unknown
quantities; but as yet no such driving mechanism has been in¬
vented, or is ever likely to be invented, so that, while the problem
is always essentially the solution of two simultaneous equations,
or sets of relations between a number of variables, its solution
becomes necessarily a tentative one; or, in other words, one of
trial and error, and involving an endless amount of labor, if
attempted by ordinary mathematical methods; while it is a per-
fectly direct and remarkably simple one when performed on the
slide rule.
4o8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
12. The slide rule method of solution may, however, also be
employed for the solution of numerous similar problems that are
Fig. 3.
capable of a direct and perfect algebraic solution; and it will, in
fact, be best first to exhibit the same in connection with the sim¬
plest imaginable problem of this kind.
13. In the first place, the solution of two simultaneous equa¬
tions may be graphically effected by representing each of them
by a curve whose coordinates represent possible values of the two
Unknown quantities or variables, for then the coordinates of the
point of intersection of these curves will represent values of the
unknown quantities that satisfy both equations at the same
time.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
409
14. Example i. Thus, if we have y x = 12 and y — x = T),
these equations are respectively represented by the two straight
lines AB and CD in fig. 3; and as these intersect at a point (i)
whose coordinates are a; = 4^ and y = 7I, these values will
satisfy both equations at the same time.
15. Example 2. Suppose again that we have
x.y = 18 and - = 3,
X
and these equations are respectively represented by the equilat¬
eral hyperbola EF and the straight line GH; and the coordinates
to the point of intersection of these (2) being respectively ¿i; = 2.45
and y = 7.35, these values will satisfy both equations at the same
time.
16. Example 3. Similarly, if we have y — a; = 3 and y.x = 18,
these equations are respectively represented by the straight lines
CD and the equilateral hyperbola EF; and the coordinates to
the point of intersection of these (3) being x = 3 and y = 6,
these values will satisfy both equations at the same time.
17. The slide rule method of effecting these solutions — to the
consideration of which we will now pass — will readily be seen
to be very similar in its essential nature to this graphical method,
though quite different in form.
18. In fig. 4 is shown a slide rule by means of which may be
solved any problem within the range of the rule of the general
form: The sum and difference of two numbers being given, what
are the numbers ? "
19. The rule is set for the solution of the case in which the sum
of the numbers is 12 and their difference 3, so that we may write
y X = 12 and y — x = 3,
which are the same as the equations in Ex. i above.
20. In the rule, the upper fixed scale represents possible values
of the sum of the two numbers to be found, for which the example
under consideration gives y + x = 12, opposite which number is
therefore placed the arrow on the upper slide.
21. The scale on this slide represents possible values of the
lesser of the two numbers (designated by x) and the double scale
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
on the middle fixed portion of the rule represents possible values
of the greater of the two numbers (designated by y) ; and these
various scales are so laid out relatively to each other, and to the
arrow referred to, that any two coincident numbers on these latter
scales have for their sum the number to which this arrow is set;
in this case accordingly 12.
22. The bottom fixed scale on the rule represents possible val¬
ues of the difference of the two numbers, in this case 3, opposite
which number is therefore placed the arrow on the bottom slide
of the rule, the scale on which also represents possible values of
the lesser of the two numbers, x; and the double fixed scale in
the middle of the rule representing, as already pointed out, pos¬
sible values of y, the whole is so laid out that any two coincident
numbers on these latter scales have for their difference the num¬
ber to which this arrow is set; in this case accordingly 3.
23. Fixing now our attention on any number on the double y
scale in the middle of the rule, we first note the values coincident
to it in the two x scales on the slides; and this done, we readily
discover in which direction we must move along the first scale in
order to pick out that value of y which has the same value of x
coincident with it in both x scales. For the case under consid¬
eration this value of y is 7^, and the coincident value in both
scales is 4I. Evidently, therefore, y = 7I and x = 4I are the
numbers sought. (See fig. 4.)
24. In the same manner we may make a slide rule for the solu¬
tion of the general problem: The product and quotient of two
numbers being given, what are the numbers ? "
Such a rule would differ from the above described rule merely
in having logarithmic scales instead of plain arithmetic scales.
25. By the combined use of both arithmetical and logarith¬
mic scales we may even construct rules for a similar solution
of the general problems: The sum and product, or the sum and
quotient, or the difference and product, or the difference and quotient
of two numbers being given, what are the numbers ? " and a mul¬
tiplicity of others; and the writer ventures to suggest that slide
rules of this kind, and some even simpler ones, might be made
excellent use of in teaching the first elements of algebra, as they
-18-17-16-15-14-13>1S-Ix-10-9 -
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JBarth, C, a Am-Hank JiaU
Fig. 4.
412
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
would offer splendid opportunities for illustrating the rules for
the operations with negative numbers, which are such a stumbling
block to the average young student.
26. We now have sufficient idea of the mathematical princi¬
ples involved, for a complete understanding of the working of the
slide rule whose representation forms the main purpose of this
paper.
27. This slide rule, in a somewhat ideal form in so far as it is
made out for neither steel nor cast iron, but for an ideal metal of
properties between these two, is illustrated in fig. 5. It will be
seen to have two slides in its upper section and three in its lower
section, and it is in so far identical with the rules made for the
Bethlehem Steel Company, while in the rules more recently made
it has been found possible and convenient to construct it with only
two slides in the lower section also.
28. It is shown arranged for a belt-driven lathe (No. 43 with
five cone steps, which are designated respectively by the numbers
i, 2, 3, 4, 5, from the largest to the smallest on the machine.
This lathe has a back gear only, and the back gear in use is desig¬
nated by the letter A, the back gear out by the letter B. It also
has two countershaft speeds, designated respectively by S and
F, such that S stands for the slower, F for the faster of these
speeds.
29. The Speed Combination 3-4-6" thus designates — to
choose an example — the belt on the middle cone step, the back
gear in, and the slow speed of the countershaft; and similarly,
the combination i-B-F designates the belt on the largest cone
step on the machine, the back gear out, and the fast speed of the
countershaft; and so on.
30. The double, fixed scale in the middle of the rule (marked
Feed) is equivalent to the y scale of the rule in fig. 4, and the
scales nearest to this on the slides on each side of it (marked
Speed Combination for Power, and for Speed, respectively)
are equivalent to the x scales on the rule in fig. 4. The rest
1 The main frame of the rule is used for a number of lathes, and is arranged
to receive interchangeable specific scales for any lathe wanted, as may be seen in
the illustration.
Depth of Cut f
3'»
í i ij
i" i''.
Number of
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3."
4
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1 for Power.
Patent Applied for.
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Tools.
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Diameter for Power, co" so" 40' so
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Speed Combination
jlxajl a
sfsfsfs fs f
i
a.
for Power.
Feed.
I I I i—I I I I r I I I I—TT
¿i' 5" jj* v' a" -l" jlü H' m JL" _l" 1!'" j." jt
5 h 4 5 33 8 la 61 16 30 138 32 40 256 64
0 n m I k j i h g f e d c b a
1 0.313"i 0.1' i 0.125"! 0.078"! 0.05" ! 0.0313"! 0.0195"!
sfsfs f8^f^f
ihll ii ii i
b.
T
0.4"
J.
0.25"
UTHE
No. 43.
T
0.15G"| 0.1
T
0.06-25"
0.030"! 0.025"
0.0156'
T
T
UTHE
No. 43.
r' Round-Nosed Tool.
Speed \\ 1-á-s 2-à-s s-á-s 4-à-s 5-à-s 1-à-f 2-à-p s-à-f 4-â-f 5-á-f l^b-s 2-b-s 3-b-s 4-b-s 5-b-s
Rev. of Spindle \\ 2.47 3.08 3.82 4.77 5.03 7.40, n.is 11.47 14.3 17.8 22.2 27.54 34.4
í-¿-f
42.9
■n r-
2-b-f s-b-f
53.4
66.6
\\ Diameter for 60" 50" 40"
A Cutting Speed. I i i ijJiji
30"
20"
\\ Cutting Speed. | | | | | | | | i i | i , ! i } i | 11 | | || Í i | || i i | | ! | i | i ! i i l I i I I i i I I I 1.M I HC. WO. // j
^ I I I I ! M I I I I M I I 1 ! 1 I I I I I I 1 I I I 1 I I I I I I I I I I I I ! e..
Cuss Number o i 2 s 4 5 c 7 8 9 10 1112 1311 15 le 17 is 10 20 21 22 23 24 25 20 27 23 29 so si 32 33 34 35 so 37 sa so 40 ¡ for Speed.
" i
10" 0" 8"
7" 6" 5'
I I I I
LATHE No. 43.
Combination.
per Min.
i i l'
Depth of Cut i" iê
It
2." 1 tt 3."
8 Î 4
for Cutting Speed.
Dry. With Water.
1
Life of Tool. 20m. in. 2hours.
Jtmrlh, C.Q,
Ant-Conk Sot* Co-rS. ¥,
Fig. 5.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
413
of the scales represent the various other variables that enter into
the problem of determining the proper feed and speed combina¬
tion to be used, fixed values being either directly given or as¬
signed to these other variables, in any particular case under
consideration.
31. The upper section of the rule embodies all the variables
that enter into the question of available cutting pressure at the
tool, while the lower section embodies all the variables that enter
into the question of cutting speed; or, in other words, the upper
section deals with the pulling power of the lathe, the lower section
with the cutting properties of the tool; and our aim is primarily
to utilize, in every case, both of these to the fullest extent
possible.
32. The example for which the rule has been set in the illustra¬
tion is : —
A \ inch depth of cut to be taken with each of two tools on a
material of class 14 for hardness, and of 20 inches diameter, and
the tools to last i hour and 45 minutes under a good stream of
water.
33. The steps taken in setting the rule were: —
1. The first scale in the upper or Power section of the rule,
from above, was first set so that 2 in the scale marked Number
of Tools became coincident with | inch in the fixed scale marked
Depth of Cut for Power.
2. The second sHde in this section of the rule was* so set that
20 inches in the scale marked Diameter of Work for Power
became coincident with 14 in the scale marked Class Number
for Power.
3. The first slide from below, in the lower or Speed section
of the rule, was so set that the arrow marked With Water be¬
came coincident with i hour 45 minutes in the fixed scale marked
Life of Tool.
4. The arrow on the lower side of the second slide in this
section of the rule was set to coincide with \ inch in the scale
marked Depth of Cut for Cutting Speed.
5. The third and last slide in this section was so set that 20
inches in the scale marked Diameter of Work for Cutting
414
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Speed became coincident with 14 in the scale marked Class
Number for Cutting Speed.
Let us now separately direct our attention to each of the two
sections of the rule.
34. In the Power section we find that all the speed combina¬
tions marked B (back gear out) lie entirely beyond the scale of
feeds, which means that the estimated effective pull of the cone
belt reduced down to the diameter of the work, does not represent
enough available cutting pressure at each of the tools to enable a
depth of cut of | inch to be taken with even the finest feed of the
lathe. Turning, however, to the speed combinations marked Ä
(back gear in), we find that with the least powerful of them
(5-^-F) the e feed, which amounts to 5/128 inch = 0.039
inch, may be taken; while the / feed, which amounts to
1/20 inch = 0.05 inch, is a Httle too much for it, though it is
within the power of the next combination (5-^-5), and so on
until we finally find that the most powerful combination
(i-T-5) is nearly capable of pulling the i feed, which amounts
to i/io inch = 0.1 inch.
35. In the Speed section of the rule we Hkewise find that all the
B combinations lie beyond the scale of feeds, while we find that
the combination 5-21-i^ (which corresponds to a spindle speed
of 11.47 revolutions per minute), can be used in connection with
the finest feed (a) only, if we are to five up to the requirements
set for the life of the tool; while the next combination (4-^4-^)
will allow of the e feed being taken, the combination $-A-F of
the / feed, and so on until we finally find that the combination
2)-A-S is but a little too fast for the coarsest (o) feed, and that
both of the slowest combinations (i-.4-5 and 2-A-S) would
permit of even coarser feeds being taken, so far as only the lasting
quahties of the tools are concerned.
36. We thus see that there is a vast difference between what
the Power section of the rule gives as possible combinations of
feeds and speeds for the utilization of the full pulhng power of
the lathe, and what the Speed section of the rule gives for such
combinations for the utilization of the tools up to the full limit
set. However, by again running down the scale of feeds we find
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
415
that, in both sections of the rule, the i feed (1/10 inch = 0.1 inch),
is but a trifle too coarse for the combination i-A-F, while the h
feed (5/64 inch = 0.078 inch) is somewhat too flne in connection
with this speed combination i-A-F, both for the full utilization
of the pulling power of the belt on the one hand, and for the full
utilization of the cutting efficiency of the tools on the other hand.
37. In this case, accordingly, the rule does not leave a shadow
of doubt as to which speed combination should be used, while it
leaves us to choose between two feeds, the finer of which does not
allow us to work up to the full limit of either the belt or the tools,
and the coarser of which will both overload the belt a trifle and
ruin the tools a trifle sooner than we first intended to have them
give out.
38. The final choice becomes a question of judgment on the
part of the Slide Rule and Instruction Card Man, and will depend
upon how sure he is of having assigned the correct Class Number
to the material or not; and this latter consideration opens up a
number of questions in regard to the practical utilization of the
rule, which for the lack of time cannot be taken up in the body of
this paper, but which will be fully answered by the writer in any
discussion on the subject that may arise.
39. Having decided upon the speed and feed to use, the In¬
struction Card Man now turns to the Time slide rule illustrated
in fig. 6, and by means of this determines the time it will take the
tools to traverse the work to the extent wanted, and making a
fair allowance for the additional time consumed in setting the
tools and calipering the work, he puts this down on the instruction
card as the time the operation should take.
40. For finishing work the pulling power cuts no figure, so that
this resolves itself into a question of feed and speed only; and
for the selection of the speed combination that on any particular
lathe will give the nearest to a desired cutting speed, the Speed
slide rule ^ illustrated in fig. 7 is used.
41. It will readily be realized that a great deal of preliminary
work has to be done before a lathe or other machine tool can be
successfully put on a slide rule of the kind described above. The
^ Described in American Machinist of November 20, 1902.
4i6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
feeds and speeds and pulling power must be studied and tabulated
for handy reference, and the driving belts must not be allowed
to fall below a certain tension, and must, in every way, be kept
in first class condition.
42. In some cases it also becomes necessary to limit the work
to be done, not by the pull that the belt can be counted on to
exert, but by the strength of the gears, and in order to quickly
figure this matter over the writer also designed the Gear slide
rule ^ illustrated in fig. 8, which is an incorporation of the for¬
mulae established several years ago by Mr. Wilfred Lewis.
1 Described in American Machinist of July 31, 1902.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
417
43. For the pulling power of a belt at different speeds, the
writer has established new formulae, which take account of the
increasing sum of the tensions in the two sides of a belt with in¬
creasing effective pull, and which at the same time are based on
the tensions recommended by Mr. Taylor in his paper entitled
" Notes on Belting," which was presented at the Meeting of the
Society in December, 1893.^
44. These formulae have also been incorporated on a slide rule,
but as the writer hopes at some future time to prepare a separate
paper on this subject, he will not go into this matter any further
at the present time.
^ See Transactions of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Vol. 15,
p. 204. — Ed.
4I8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
45. Having thus given an outline of the use of the slide rule
system of predetermining the feeds and speeds, etc., at which a
machine tool ought to be run to do a piece of work in the shortest
possible time, the writer, who has made this matter an almost
exclusive study during the last four years, and who is at present
Fig. 8.
engaged in introducing the Instruction Card and Functional
Foremanship System into two well-known Philadelphia machine
shops, which do a great variety of work in both steel and cast
iron, will merely add that, in view of the results he has already
obtained, in connection with the results obtained at Bethlehem,
the usual way of running a machine shop appears little less than
absurd.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
419
46. Thus already during the first three weeks of the applica¬
tion of the slide rules to two lathes, the one a 27 inch, the other
a 24 inch, in the larger of these shops, the output of these was
increased to such an extent that they quite unexpectedly ran out
of work on two different occasions, the consequence being that
the superintendent, who had previously worried a good deal
about how to get the great amount of work on hand for these
lathes out of the way, suddenly found himself confronted with
a real difiiculty in keeping them supplied with work. But while
the truth of this statement may appear quite incredible to a great
many persons, to the writer himself, familiar and impressed as
he has become with the great intricacy involved in the problem
of determining the most economical way of running a machine
tool, the application of a rigid mathematical solution to this
problem as against the leaving it to the so-called practical judg¬
ment and experience of the operator, cannot otherwise result
than in the exposure of the perfect folly of the latter method.
A GRAPHICAL DAILY BALANCE IN MANUFACTURE
By H. L, GANTT
Reprinted by permission of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
i. At the December meeting in 1901 the writer presented a
paper entitled " A Bonus System of Rewarding Labor," ^ in which
was given an account of the results gotten under that system at
the works of the Bethlehem Steel Company, and a description
of the method employed.
The paper dealt particularly with the method of setting a task
and with the reward for its accomplishment. It consisted
briefly in setting as a task for a day's work the amount that a
good man could reasonably be expected to accomplish, and pay¬
ing the man a substantial amount in addition to his day's wages
if the whole amount was done. If less than that amount was
done he simply got his day's wages.
The result of this system, when the task was set in an intelli¬
gent manner and accompanied by a suitable compensation, was
an efhciency of operation so far beyond that obtained by the
ordinary day or piece work method that it attracted a great deal
of attention.
This centering of the attention on the result had, however, a
serious disadvantage, for it withdrew the attention from the
most important parts of the paper — namely, that descri¬
bing the method of setting the task, and that referring to the
method of operating the system by which an exact-record was
kept.
The method of setting the task is substantially that developed
by Mr. Fred W. Taylor for setting piece rates, and was described
at some length. His paper before the present meeting further
elucidates that part.^
1 Incorporated in substance in H. L. Gantt's " Work, Wages and Profits."—Ed.
2 Referring to F. W. Taylor's " Shop Management." — Ed.
420
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
421
The routine operation of the system, which involves keeping
an exact daily record of the work done, was not, however, so
clearly explained, and it is to that subject that this paper is
devoted.
2. Man's Record. — In order to operate such a system we
must not only have an exact record of what each workman does
every day in order to find out whether he has earned his bonus
or not, but must have beforehand an exact knowledge of the
work to be done and how it is to be done. This amounts to
keeping two se\s of balances : one, of what each workman should
do and did do; the other, of the amount of work to be done and
that is done. The former, or man's record, is concerned with the
payment of the bonus, and consists in an exact comparison of
what should be done as determined by our investigations, and
what has been done as shown by the daily reports.
3. Daily Balance of Work. — The latter is a balance of work
on each order, and should show at a glance each day just what
has been done and what remains to be done, in order to enable
us to lay out the work for the next day in the most economical
manner. The importance of such a balance has been long
recognized, but the difficulty of getting it is such that it has
seldom been attempted. Many concerns get a weekly or monthly
balance; but in both of these cases the information is usually
obtained too late to prevent delays in work. Again the value
of a balance is dependent largely upon its availability; in other
words, upon the ease with which the desired information can be
obtained from it. With this idea in mind the writer devised a
combined schedule for work and a balance sheet that is largely
graphical in its nature. On it dates are represented by posi¬
tions, and when work is not done on consecutive days, there are
no entries in consecutive positions. This practice enables the
foreman or superintendent to see at a glance what work is going
along properly. Such schedules can be made out for all classes
of work, and a description of one or two will amply illustrate
the principle.
4. A Foundry Balance. — Fig. 289 represents such a balance
sheet and schedule for a foundry. At the heads of the various
422
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
vertical columns are the names of the pieces to be cast, under
each is its pattern number; then, in order, when the pattern is
due at the foundry, when it is received, the number wanted per
day, and the total number wanted. Below, each column is
divided into two columns headed daily and total. These are
crossed by horizontal lines representing consecutive working
days, on each of which is entered in the proper column the num¬
ber of pieces made that day and the total number made to that
date. Each column is crossed by two heavy horizontal lines,
the upper one opposite the date at which the work should be
begun, and the lower one opposite the date at which the work
should be completed. These lines are usually red, and have been
very appropriately named danger lines. The position of the
entries with reference to these danger lines and the amounts of
those entries show to what extent the schedule is being lived up
to. If the schedule is being well followed the entries are always
in the neighborhood of the red lines, or above them.
Fig. 289 represents a portion of an actual order showing how it
was filled in the foundry of the Schenectady works. If there is
no graphical check on the operations of the foundry, the work
that is wanted during a certain week may be spread over three
or four.
It is an extremely difiicult matter for a foreman to get the
work done exactly in the order it is wanted. For instance, if
we are building two locomotives per day, each requiring four
driving boxes, it seems an extremely difficult thing for him to
get every day, without fail, at least eight driving boxes. There
is a constant tendency when he is rushed with work to drop to
seven or six with a corresponding decrease in output of locomo¬
tives. This tendency to give about what is wanted, rather than
exactly what is wanted, is the most common obstacle to getting
the full output of a plant.
5. A Daily Balance as a Permanent Record. — This balance
sheet shows not only how much work was done each day, but is a
permanent record of exactly how the order was filled, which can
be compared with the record of the previous and subsequent
orders. This is best illustrated by a study of fig. 289, which
FOÜNDEY PEODUOTION^ SHEET.
A. L. CO. SCHENECTADY WOEKS.
ORDER NO. 83
8 ENGINES D. L. & W.
PART.
Bell
Stand.
Exhaust
Pipe.
Tender
Frame
Center
Pin.
Engine
Truck
Swing
Bolster.
Grate
Bar.
Grate
Side.
Grate
Side.
Ash Pan
End.
Ash Pan
Side.
Grate
Frame Sup¬
port.
Grate
Bar.
PATTERN NO.
17,212
17,939
16,927
16,907
19,458
18,953
18,954
21,343
21,341
18,959
18,961
PATTERN DUE.
2-
-2
2—2
0.
/w
0
— 1^
0
-2
2-
-2
2-
0
—/V
2-
-2
2-
-2
2-
-2
2-
-2
2-
-2
PATTERN REC'D.
1-
-22
1-
-22
0
-6
2-
-4
2-
-9
2—10
2—10
2-
-10
2-
-10
2-
-14
2-
-14
NO. WANTED PER DAY.
1
1
1
1
8
0
2
1
1
1
1
TOTAL NO. WANTED.
8
8
8
8
64
16
16
8
8
8
8
NUMBER MOULDED.
Daily
Total
Dally
Total
Daily
Total
Daily
Total
Daily
Total
Daily
Total
Daily
Total
Dally
Total
Daily
Total
Daily
Total
Daily
Total
ó
c '
1903
Feb.
2
-
i-
3
1
1 1
1
1 4
2
1 3
1 ■
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
5
2
1 ^
1
1
1
1^1
tt
1 6 1 1 1 1 1 { 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
7
7
1 1
1 ^
1
♦
1
1 t
•rH
CC
9 1 1
2
7
2
2
1
2
P
1
S-
10
1
3
3
3
1 P 1
1 P 1
P
P
M4
0
11
4
4
1
4
1 8
10
2
3
2
3
1
1
v
"ss i
12
1 2
5
1
l__8 _
3
4
1
5
7 2
5
X
4
1
4
2
1 3
1
'd
13
3
7
1
6
2
6
2
6
i
2
3
3
1
14
1
6
1
7
8
13
1
7
1
7
P
P
M
16
2
8 1
1
8
1
8
1 5
17
1
8
1
8
2
4
1
4
3
3
2
2
0)
as
17
1 8
24
1
9
1
9
2
6
4
7
2
4
-Í-3
18
^ 8
30
1
10
1
10
2
8
2
6
1
8
1 2
5
® ::
ö-*
19
1 8
37
2
12
2
12
1 2
8
1 11 1 5
to
p
20 1 1 1 1 !
8
45
2
14
2
14
1 1 1
21
1
1
8
53
2
16
2
16
1
1
1
p
0
23
1 7
59
1
1
6
24
1
1
1
5
64
1
1
1
1 1
1 7
M CO
25
1
1
8
to
nße,
1 26
1
1
1
1
1
This ib ▲ Portion of án Ordbr Showino how the Records were Actually Kept. The Figures in Italics Represent Condemnations.
They are Usually Entered in Red Ink.
Fig. 289.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
423
shows exactly where failure to comply with the schedule occurred.
The letter P entered in some of the columns shows graphically
the reason for the castings being behind. The pattern was not
received until the date indicated. Similar sheets might show that
it was the draftsman and not the pattern-maker who was to
blame.
6. A Machine Shop Balance and Routing Sheet. — Fig. 290 is a
similar balance sheet for work done in a machine shop on a series
of locomotive frames and rails. The order in which the various
operations are to be performed has been determined, and the
consecutive columns devoted to the operations in their proper
order. You will note that on this sheet, which is an actual rec¬
ord of work, the consecutive operations were performed promptly,
and that there was no serious delay.
Fig. 291 represents a record of the same work as it would appear
if the works were short of frame-drilling capacity, and the drill¬
ing of frames were not done promptly. If it is impossible to
make up the delay thus caused, the output is limited by it. Such
sheets show at a glance where the delays occur, and indicate
what must have our attention in order to keep up the proper out¬
put. If the delay is always on the same operation we know that
we must either get more output from the machines doing that
work, or get more machines. Lines representing when work
should be begun and when it should be finished are used on the
machine shop sheets as well as on the foundry sheet, but have
been left off to avoid confusion.
7. A Graphical Balance as a History. — A complete set of such
sheets for all the work being done in a plant gives a complete
schedule and a daily record of what is being done, and is of the
greatest possible advantage if an attempt is to be made to im¬
prove the conditions or increase the output of the plant. In
fact, if the improvement in the operation of a plant is to be
made in a scientific manner, exact knowledge of what is taking
place each day is absolutely necessary. Without it money is
often spent wastefully, and but a small proportion of the desired
results obtained. In large plants run without such a system of
balances it is frequently impossible to tell just what is holding
4H SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
back the output, añd then the value of such a balance is out of
all proportion to the cost of obtaining it. By using the graphi¬
cal form its value is very much increased, for the general appear¬
ance of the sheet is sufficient to tell how closely the schedule is
being Hved up to; in other words, whether the plant is being
run efficiently or not. Moreover, such a balance is a history of
the way the work went through the shop and is readily compar¬
able with similar work done previously or subsequently, thus
enabling us to form a definite idea as to whether the plant is
being run more or less efficiently. The balance of work sheet
then gives us a daily analysis of how the work is progressing,
and in its graphical form is so easily read that both foreman and
superintendents find it of great value. The man's record shows
the efficiency of each man, and the two taken together give us
the knowledge, in the clearest way, of what should be done to
increase our output.
8. Value of Balance not Dependent upon Method of Compensa¬
tion. — It is not the intention of this paper to discuss the making
of schedules for doing work, or instruction cards for the work¬
men to follow, or indeed the subject of compensation for work
done, for the keeping of a daily balance of work done and a
record of the men doing it are invaluable, no matter what the
method of compensation. In fact, the writer has found the
man's record when work was done by the day to be of the high¬
est value, for when the men realize that not only their chance
for increase of wages, but that of holding their positions depends
upon the amount and quality of their work, they become very
much more efficient. Add to this the fact that efficient men
paid in proportion to their efficiency are invariably better satis¬
fied than less efficient, cheaper men, and we have an added
reason for keeping the man's record. Again a workman easily
forgets how many days he has been absent, and how much poor
work he has done, and an occasional glance at his record often
does him a great deal of good. The writer first kept such a
record in the foundry of the Midvale Steel Company thirteen
years ago, and found it so valuable that he has always done it
since when possible. Such record sheets are so easily gotten up
A. L. CO. PEODUCTIOISr SHEET ORDER No. vr
15 ENGINES N. Y.C.
SCHENECTADY WORKS MACHINE SHOP No. 1.
PART
fkames
rails.
pur ord; sketch;
pat. or card dr. no.
operation
rec'd
planed
slotted
drilled
assem'd
rec'd
planed
slotted
re-pl-top
re-pl-bot
drilled
70 be begun
1
to be finished
■
number wanted
15
15
15
15
15
1 30
30
30
15
15
30
number finished
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
total
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
DAILY
TOTAL
jan
20
2
2
2
2
6
6
21
2
4
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 '
22
1
2
4
6
12
6
6
23
1
5 1
4
10
;
24
2
7 1
1
5
3
3
2
12
4
4
'
26
4
11 1
2
7 1
1
4
6
18
4
16
1
1
1
1
1
1 27 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
4
8
3
4
3
4
i
28
1
12 1
2
9
3
7
2
2
4
22
4
20
2
10
29
2
14 1
1
10 1
1
8
1
3
26
4
24
4
14
2
6
2
6
4
4
30
1
n 1
1
11
2
10
1
4
1
7
1
7
4
8
31
1
3
14 1
1
11
1
5
4
30
2
26
4
18
2
9
2
9
2
1
1
1
12
1
6
2
2
2
28
4
22
1
10
1
10
3
1
1
15 1
1
13
3
9
1
3
2
30
0
28
3
13
3
13
2
10
4
1
1
0
11
2
5
1 1 ^ 1 2
30
0
15
2
15
4
14
ô
1
1
2
13
1
6
1 1 1 1
4
18
1 6 1 1 1 1
0
15
2
8
6
24
17 1 1 1 1 1
2
15
1
9
4
, 28
9
1
1
2
11
10
1
1
1
11
1 1 i i 1 1 1 1 1 12
^ 30
11
1
1
1
13
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 l~1
12
1
1
1
11
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
13
1
1
1
15
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 14 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
iii 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 16 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 17 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 18 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 19 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 20 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 21 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 23 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 24 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1:
1 25 1 1 1 t 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ii
1 26 1 1 1 1 1 1
Record as Actually Kept.
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 i;
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 » 1 1 I I
FIG. 290.
I
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
425
and of so many kinds that the writer has not considered it nec¬
essary to illustrate them.
9. The Graphical Balance and the Foreman. — Next to the
superintendent the most overworked people in the ordinary
manufacturing plant are the foremen. Their duties may be
summed up as follows, in the order of their importance: to get
their work out on time; to get it out economically; to improve
their methods. Add to their primary duties a multitude of
others depending upon them, and but httle time is left for
thought, or investigation, on which depends improvement.
When they are rushed, therefore, improvement is naturally the
first thing to suffer. Further pushing causes economy to be
sacrificed, for the work must get out, and the foreman has not
time to go over and over his orders to see just what is the most
economical arrangement of his work. Here is where the graphi¬
cal schedule comes to his assistance, for he can see at a glance
just what is behind or what should be done next. There has
been but little difficulty in getting foremen to recognize the value
of such a balance, and I have yet to learn of one, who, having
gotten such a sheet in full operation, was willing to give it up.
10. Cost of Keeping Balances. — The question is frequently
asked as to the cost of keeping these records and balances. In
reply I have to say that if such cost were ten times what it is, it
would cut no figure.
In day work we buy a man's time, and he frequently gives
but httle else. Our storekeeper checks exactly the materials
we buy, but nobody knows exactly what the day workman has
done in his ten hours; although we know labor to be the most
difficult commodity we have to buy, we give it the least syste¬
matic study, and my effort to get an exact record of what we
get for our money is the first step toward purchasing it in an
intelhgent manner. With regard to the balance of work, I can
only say that it is hard to estimate the cost of lack of harmony
in a plant, and the increase in efficiency produced by getting
materials in their proper order rather than according to the
judgment of the various foremen is greater than is usually real¬
ized.
426
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The fact that, as far as the writer's experience goes, the fore¬
men are not only willing to use these graphical sheets, but are
glad to do so in order to make their work harmonize with that
of other departments, is the strongest proof of the value of the
graphical over the other forms of balance.
The value of a balance of some sort is too well understood to
need discussion, and the only reason that it has not been adopted
is often the fancied cost of getting it. As a matter of fact, all
I have suggested can usually be gotten by the ordinary time and
cost keeping force with but little help, and frequently without
any. It is so closely allied to the time and cost keeping that
when all are done together by the best modern method, the
reduction of labor in getting the time and cost often more than
offsets the increase due to keeping the men's records and the
balance of work. The method referred to is the time and pro¬
duction card system, of which the following is a description.
There are conditions under which the system to be described
here may be modified; in fact, it is not always found possible
to introduce it exactly as described, which, however, is the ideal
method of operating it and should be approximated as nearly as
possible. It was first introduced substantially in this form by
Mr. Fred W. Taylor at the works of the Bethlehem Steel Com¬
pany.
II. Time and Production Card System. — In its best develop¬
ment, a card is assigned the day previous to every man who is
expected in at 7 a.m. the next day. Each of these cards is
stamped with a rubber stamp 7 a.m. and the date. These cards
are placed in a rack, which has a properly numbered space for
each man, who takes from it his own card and no other.
Any men coming in after 7 a.m. are not allowed access to the
rack, but must get their cards from the office, where the cards
are marked properly by a time stamp with the exact time each
man comes in.
Without any delay each man goes directly to the work that
has been assigned to him, and while his machine is running, fills
in on the card his name, his number, the order number, the
machine number and the kind of work he is doing. At the end
A. L. CO. PRODUCTION SHEET. ORDER No. rt
15 ENGINES N.T C.
SCHENECTADY WORKS, MACHINE SHOP NO. 1.
PART
FRAMES.
RAILS.
PUR CRD; SKETCH;
PAT. or CARD Dr. NO.
OPERATION
Rec'd
Planed
Slotted
Drilled
Assbm'd
Rec'd
Planed
Slotted
Re-pl-top
Re-pl-bot
Drilled
TO BE BEGUN
TO BE FINISHED
NUMBER WANTED
15
15
15
15
15
30
30
30
15
15
30
NUMBER FINISHED
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
daily
total
1903
Jan
20
2
2
2
2
6
6
21
2
4
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
22
2
4
1
6
12
6
6
23
1
5
1
4
10
24
2
7
1
5
3
3
1
2
12
4
4
26
4
11
2
7
1
4
1
6
18
4
16
1
1
1
1
27
1
12
•
1
4
8
3
4
3
4
28
2
14
2
9
3
7
1
4
22
4
20
2
10
1 29
1
15
1
10
1
8
1
4
26
4
24
4
14
2
6
2
6
4
4
1 30
1
11
2
10
1
1
7
1
7
4
8
31
3
14
1
11
1
4
30
2
26
4
18
2
9
2
9
Feb
2
1
12
1
2
28
4
22
1
10
1
10
3
1
15
1
13
1
1 1 2
30
6
28
3
13
3
13
2
10
4
1 1 1 1 1 i
1 "I
2
30
2
15
2
15
4
14
5
2
' 1 1
1 1 1
4
18
6
1 1 1
6
24
1 7 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
4
28
1
9
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
r
10
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2
30
I
11
2
2
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
12
1
3
i
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
13
1
4
1 1
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
14
1
5
1 1
2
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1
16
1
6
1 !
3
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1
t
17
2
8
1 1
4
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
18
1
9
1 1
5
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
19
1
10
a 1
7
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
20
2
12
1 1
8
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
21
1
13
1 1
9
23
2
15 1
1 1
10
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
24
1
2 1
12
1 25 1 1
1 111
' 13
This Table shows the way Fig. 290 would look
if the Works
26
1
1
I
-2-1.
15
were short of
Frame Drilling Capacity.
I
1
1
(
1
Fig. 291.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
427
of the day he enters on his card the number of pieces that have
been correctly finished, and the card is signed by the foreman or
inspector, certifying that all of the entries are correct. If there
have been errors in the work the foreman or inspector does not
Issued
Returned,
MAN'S NO.
ORDFR NO,
MACHINE
SHOP .
HOURS WORKED
MACHINE NO.
WORKMAN'S NAME
no. pieces
finished.
SYMBOL.
OPERATION NO.
hours.
rate.
wac
ies.
CONTRACTOR'S NO.
1 HAVE INSPECTED THE ABOVE WORK AND ENTRIES
AND BELIEVE THEM TO BE CORRECT.
ENTERED IN
pay
sheet
cost
sheet
record
sheet
SIGNED BY THE FOREMAN
OR HIS REPRESENTATIVE.
A. L CO.
ENTER ONE ITEM ONLY ON A CARO.
Fig, 292.
sign the time card, but makes out a supplementary card stating
the exact nature of the errors, etc., and pins this card to the
time card.
Fig. 292 represents a suitable form of day work card for use in
some of the machine shops of the American Locomotive Com¬
pany in connection with this system.
At the end of the day, or at noon the men are allowed access
to the card racks as soon as the whistle has blown, and each
man deposits his card in the proper pocket, an observer noting
that a man deposits one card only.
428
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Men coming in after noon get their cards in the same manner
as in the morning; the cards being previously stamped with the
hour work begins, and placed in the rack. Men who do not go
out at noon do not need to change their cards.
When the men have gone out at the end of the day or at noon,
the cards in the rack are stamped by means of a rubber stamp
with the time the work ends.
The preferable form of card is a square one on paper stout
enough to be shufñed. In the upper right-hand corner of the
card should be placed the man's number, the order number and
the machine number.
As there is room for one order number and one machine num¬
ber only on one card, the workman must give in his card at the
office and get a new one whenever he goes either on a new order
or another machine.
12. Time and Man's Record. — In order to get a record of the
man's time and work for the day, all the cards bearing his num¬
ber must be gotten together. If these do not give a total of the
full number of working hours, the first card of the day must
show that he was late, or there must be a pass stating what
time he went out. These passes should be of the same size as
the cards, and be put in with the time cards and sorted out by
the man's number, so that when the clerk begins to enter the
time and record he will have all the information at hand. The
men's record may serve as a pay sheet, thus involving only one
set of entries. When the time is entered up, the clerk doing it
enters his initial in the lower left-hand corner in the space
marked " pay-sheet."
13. Cost. — To get the cost on an order the cards are then
sorted by " order number," and when the clerk begins to enter
up the time or wages against any order, he should have before
him all the cards representing work on that order. He is thus
enabled to make the final entry directly from the cards, thus
doing the work with a minimum of clerical labor. The clerk
enters his initial in the space designated for such entry on " cost
sheet."
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
429
14. Progress or Production. — To get a record of the work on
any order, the cards which have been sorted by order number
are further sorted by name of part and operation. We thus get
together the cards showing on an order the number of pieces on
which a certain operation has been finished that day. These
are added up and entered directly on the Production or Progress
sheet. By this method we can keep an intelligible record of all
the work done with a minimum of clerical labor.
15. Difficulty of Getting a Daily Balance. —■ It is not necessary
for the purpose I have in mind to dwell further on the details,
my object being only to show that the difficulty of getting this
daily record of our men and a balance of work done is not so
great as to be prohibitory. In other words, it is an entirely
feasible thing to know exactly all that has been done in a large plant
one day before noon of the next, and to get a complete balance of
work in order to lay out that afternoon in a logical manner the
work for the next day.
16. Value of such a Balance. — The value of such a balance
consists in the fact that it makes clear details that no observer,
however keen he may be, can see by inspection. It shows us
what work is behind and how much, and enables us to trace to
its source the cause of any delay. The superintendent sees at a
glance what he never could find out by observation or by asking
questions. It shows him how efficiently a plant is being run and
where the defects in operation are. In connection with the
man's record, it is the most complete analysis we can make of
the working of a plant, and the one that will help us most
quickly to bring into their proper channels things that have
been going haphazard. Such an analysis is far more important
than an improved tool steel or a new set of piece rates. It
should be established before the introduction of either of these
in order that we may have some means of measuring the gain
made by their introduction, and it should remain after they are
introduced to show that a forward step once taken is never
retraced.
17. Accounting and Operating. — In conclusion the writer
wishes to say that it is his opinion that we can do nothing in a
430
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
manufacturing plant that will go so far toward increasing the
output or the economy of operation as obtaining this exact
knowledge of what is being done. The cost of getting it is
almost nothing, and the methods of operation need not be dis¬
turbed in the least until an accumulation of knowledge points
out the best course to pursue.
By the adoption of the methods outlined the accounting de¬
partment ceases to be simply a critic of the manufacturing, and
becomes an active assistant to every foreman and to the super¬
intendent. In other words, the accounts cease to be simply
records of production, and become potent factors in helping the
producing departments.
18. The Bonus System a Form of Profit Sharing.—Having
established these combined order, schedule, and production
sheets, the next step is to pay a bonus to the head of each shop
based on the extent to which he adheres to the schedule as laid
out. These sheets thus do for the foreman what the Instruction
Card does for the individual, and the final result of the system
is harmonious working and a high degree of efficiency, a portion
of the profits of which goes directly to the individual in propor¬
tion as his efforts tend to maintain that efficiency. Carried out
to its logical end, therefore, the Bonus System as described in my
previous paper becomes practically one of profit sharing, in which
each man gets his portion of the profits as soon as he earns it.
In this paper I have confined myself as nearly as possible to
general principles, using specific cases simply as illustrations.
These principles are capable of further development and may be
worked out in detail to suit the needs of many forms of manu¬
facture.
Mr. McGeorge. — Mr. Gantt in his paper spoke of not requiring
any further clerical help. I would like to inquire how he man¬
ages that ? Does he appoint special corps of clerks for this pur¬
pose, or has each foreman a clerk ? Then again, who settles
when these various parts shall be assembled ? In other words,
who fills out the sheets to begin with ? Then he also spoke of a
danger signal — a red line. I would like to ask who puts that
red line on ?
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
431
Mr. Gantt. — In answer to Mr. McGeorge's question I may
say that the whole schedule, red hnes and all, should originate
in a planning department such as is advocated by Mr. Taylor,
but as few plants have such a department, it is usually impossible
at first to do this work as it should be done, and the schedules
have to be made out by those most available for the purpose.
Comparing the manufacture of locomotives with that of any
other large machines, a very casual investigation will be sufficient
to show that the art of building locomotives is by far ,the most
fully developed, and that the harmony between the different
portions of a locomotive plant is much more perfect than that in
any other plant of the same size building large machinery. This
is so because locomotives are always built according to a schedule,
which is the evolution of more than half a century's work in the
same line.
What time and evolution have done for the building of the
locomotive, Mr. Taylor does for the building of machinery in
general by means of his planning department. What I have done
is to put in a graphical form not only the schedule for building
the locomotive, but to show graphically how that schedule is
carried out. At the locomotive works we made no attempt to
modify or criticize the existing schedule, but simply recorded
how the schedule was lived up to.
These combined schedules and records become a history of
how the work went through the shop and will ultimately supply
the information needed in modifying the schedules so as to get
still greater harmony between the different departments and
greater economy of manufacture.
Where pretty complete schedules exist, as in most locomotive
plants, anybody in authority can see that they are made out in a
graphical form and lived up to. Three examples given below
will show how this work can be started under these conditions.
Even where there are no well defined schedules there is always a
certain amount of knowledge that takes their place, and the col¬
lection of this knowledge and the putting of it in a graphical
form can always be done. Such schedules are necessarily im¬
perfect at first, but are far better than nothing, and, if the rec-
432
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ords are properly kept, may be rapidly improved, especially if a
planning or production department is organized to develop
them as rapidly as possible.
The three examples referred to above are as follows:
At the Manchester Works of the American Locomotive Com¬
pany, Mr. Ayres, the superintendent, gave his personal attention
to having them started in the foundry.
At the Schenectady Works Mr. Peck, foreman of number one
machine shop, personally looked after their introduction in his
shop.
At the Brooks Works Mr. Reid, the assistant superintendent
started them in the foundry. He is not here, so I shall tell you of
his results. He personally put the red lines on to start with, and
had the sheets sent to his office every morning at ten o'clock with
the previous day's work written up to see how the schedule was
being Hved up to. They were sent back with his written com¬
ments to the foreman in time for him to arrange his work for the
next day. The result of this was a prompt improvement in the
output of the foundry. The best illustration I can give you of
his success is to show you these order sheets for thirty-five loco¬
motives filled by that foundry about eight months after the sys¬
tem was started. (Here were shown several actual schedule
sheets of this order with the red lines and entries exactly as kept
in the foundry office as reproduced in figs. 289, 290 and 291.)
If you can see the red lines and the entries, you can see how
the schedule was lived up to. Suffice it to say that out of a total
of over nine thousand castings, none were more than five days
behind schedule time, and only two, which were replacements,
more than four days. This is a record that any foundry might
be proud of. Don't imagine, however, that the system alone did
it. The system simply supplied the means by which it could be
done, and the man trained to use the system and to know its
value got the results. The fact that a man capable' of using the
system must be found or developed is one reason why it takes so
long to get it properly started.
There is one other thing which I did not quite get to in present¬
ing my paper — the difficulty of getting this daily balance - " It is
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
433
not necessary for the purpose I have in mind to dwell further on
the details, my object being only to show that the difficulty of
getting this daily record of our men and the balance of work done
is not so great as to be prohibitory." If it cost fifty times what it
does J it would pay. To know exactly all that was done in a large
plant one day before noon of the next, and to get a complete bal¬
ance of work in order to lay out that afternoon in a logical manner
the work for the next day, enables us to manage a large plant as
intelligently as a small one.
THE TOOL ROOM UNDER SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
A Description of what is required of a Tool Room in
a Modernized Shop — A Tool Classification, Notes
on Storage, Maintenance, Checking and Inventory
Systems drawn from Practice
bY robert thurston kent
EDITOR OF INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING
Reprinted by permission of Industrial Engineering
One of the fundamental conditions required by scientific
management is that the skilled worker be provided with the best
appliances and tools required for his work. In the machine
shop these include not only the cutting tools and jigs, in addition
to the machine tools, but also every fixture required to hold the
work in the machine and to measure it while in process and on
its completion. These appliances comprise among others clamps,
bolts, dogs, blocks, gages, etc. Scientific management also
requires that tools and fixtures such as enumerated above be
always kept in first class condition. The reason for this is
that the time of performing an operation, which is determined
beforehand, is based on the time required only with appliances
in the best working order. As an illustration we may cite the
case of a dog used to drive work held on centers in a lathe. It
often happens that the thread of the clamping screw in the dog
becomes damaged and, therefore, requires the application of a
wrench to run it down to the work. The time predetermined
for this operation is based on the machinist being able to run the
screw down to the work quickly with his fingers and only applying
a wrench to give the last one-eighth of a turn to tighten the screw
on the work. Should it be necessary for the machinist to run the
screw all the way down with a wrench, obviously he will exceed
the length of time allowed for placing the dog in position and
434
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
435
thus be in danger of losing his bonus for that particular piece of
work.
In order to insure that all these various appliances be main¬
tained in good order it is essential that they be kept in the tool
room and in charge of a person competent to inspect and repair
them or to issue instructions for their repair should it be neces¬
sary to do this work outside in the shop. Under the usual system
of tool rooms, only the highest priced and finer tools are found in
the tool room. Thus we find drills, taps, reamers, gages, jigs,
and such fixtures in the tool room, while lathe tools are kept at
each machine, milling cutters at the various milling machines, a
complete set of planer tools at each planer, while blocks, bolts and
clamps of various kinds are obtained wherever the machinist can
find them. They are supposed to be in the shop, but no one in
particular is responsible for their being there, for seeing that they
are supplied in sufficient quantity or in the proper variety of
sizes to take care of the different kinds of work done in the shop.
The consequence is that the machinist given a certain piece of
work to do often wastes much time hunting for the correct sizes
of blocks, bolts and clamps, and when he finds these loses more
time because they are not in the best of condition and require the
application of a wrench to nuts and screws which should run
down with the fingers, or in matching up two or three sizes of
blocks to form blocking of the requisite height. After having
the work mounted in the machine he will use a cutting tool more
or less well adapted to the work in hand and often ground to suit
his own peculiar ideas.
Now there is a certain shape of tool best adapted to each
individual kind of work and this tool should be ground at certain
definite angles which have been found the best by a long series of
experiments. Records of these shapes and angles are available
for any one who cares to make use of them.^ It is obvious that
if all tools are to be ground to these correct angles, that the grind¬
ing of them should be taken from the men in the shops and placed
in the hands of the man in the tool room. He should be provided
^ These shapes and angles are given in the Art of Cutting Metals, by Frederick
W. Taylor.
436
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
with a universal tool grinding machine which will grind the tools
to predetermined angles and shapes, and grind every tool to the
same shape at one setting of the machine.
It is evident, therefore, that a tool room adapted for the needs
of scientific management is a very different sort of a place from
the ordinary topi room. We are enabled to present here, through
the courtesy of the Tabor Manufacturing Company, Philadel¬
phia, illustrations of a tool room planned and constructed in
accordance with the principles of scientific management. Cer¬
tain fundamentals must be constantly kept in mind when laying
out a tool room. It should provide storage places for the tools
which are economical of space, which permit of easy rearrange¬
ment and extension as the tool room grows, and which are so
arranged that the distribution of light is the best possible. A
certain definite and fixed place must be provided for every tool
that is stored in the tool room, and this place must be easily
ascertained even by a newcomer into the tool room, who is
unfamihar with its arrangement. A checking system must be
provided which will account for and locate every tool for whkh
the tool room is responsible, whether the tool has been issued to
a workman in the shop, sent to the blacksmith for reforging, or to
the grinding room for grinding. A stock of tools of ample
quantity for all the shop requirements must constantly be kept
on hand, and these must be maintained in the best condition at all
times, means for such maintenance being provided. These
various points will be taken up and discussed in order.
Classification
Every tool, jig, fixture, block, clamp, etc., should be classified
according to the use to which it is to be put. The classification
is just as important, perhaps more so, as the provision of the
standard storage racks, described later. The classification is
what determines the location of the tools in the tool room and
also what enables the attendant, however unfamiliar he may be
with its arrangement, to find a given tool almost instantly. In
view of its importance we will discuss it in some detail.
438
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The general scheme of classification recommended is that
devised by Mr. F. W. Taylor and shown in Table I. Every tool
used in a machine shop falls within one or another of the general
classes there given.
TABLE I — CLASSIFICATION OF TOOLS
class
A — Miscellaneous Tools, not elsewhere classified.
B — Bending Tools. — All tools for producing changes in shape by bending,
folding, spinning, etc.
C — Clamps and Holding Devices of all kinds, including bolts and screws.
D — Drilling and Boring Tools. — Tools that remove metal from the
interior, such as drills, boring bars, cutters and all appliances relating to
them, and lathe boring tools.
F — Edge Tools. — Edge tools for working wood, and tools for working
plastic materials, such as clay, molding sand, putty, etc.
F — Heating Tools. — All kind of tools used for heating, lighting, melting,
molding, oil tempering, annealing, drying, cooking, etc.
H — Hammers and all Tools that work by striking or being struck, such as
sledges, tups, etc., chisels, sets, flatters, etc.
L — Transportation Tools. — All tools used in moving materials from one
place to another, such as buckets, boxes, etc., trucks, shovels, wheelbarrows,
bogies, brooms, riggers' tools, slings, chains, etc.
M — Measuring Tools. — All instruments of precision, weights, measures,
gages, etc., electrical instruments, etc.
P — Paring Tools. — AU tools that remove metal from the surface by cutting,
except slotter and milling tools. (See class D for lathe boring tools.)
R —• Milling Tools. — All tools for miUing or sawing metal.
S •— Slicing Tools. — All parting tools and slotter tools.
T — Templates and all Instruments for duplicating work, including jigs
and fixtures.
U — Abrading Tools. — All tools for rubbing, scraping, filing, grinding,
shearing, punching, breaking, etc.
W — Wrenches and all Tools used for causing rotation.
X — Painting Tools. — AU tools used for covering a surface with an adhesive
foreign material, and any for removing same.
These general classes can be divided into subclasses and the sub¬
classes can be further subdivided and re-subdivided down to the
individual tool, as the requirements of the shop dictate. A single
instance will suffice for illustration. Lathe tools are evidently
tools for removing metal from the surface of a piece by cutting.
From Table I such a tool is in class P. The tool might have
either a square or a round nose, and if the latter it might be of
several different shapes. Assume it is blunt. Furthermore,
Fig. 2. — Rack with boxes, drawers and trays for boring and drilling tools.
440
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the nose might be in a straight line with the shank, or it might be
offset to the right or left. The cutting edge also might be either
on the right or left. Assume that the tool is straight and that
the cutting edge is to the left. The first letter of the tool symbol
is evidently P. The second letter denotes the shape of the tool,
and being a round nose the symbol from the Taylor classification
will be R. The third letter will designate the shape of the nose
and the symbol for a blunt nose happens to be B. To show that
the blunt, round-nose, lathe tool is straight with the cutting edge
to the left, the letter C from the Taylor classification is added.
The complete symbol for the tool which clearly identifies it,
excepting with regard to its size, is therefore PRBC. The size
of the tool, meaning the width of the bar stock from which it is
forged, is then prefixed to the symbol in the shape of a numeral,
and the entire description of the tool is comprised in five char¬
acters, viz., 2PRBC for a 2 in. tool.
The symbol for each tool is stamped on it in large, legible
figures, and the tools are stored in racks, trays, boxes, drawers,
etc., labeled with the corresponding symbol. The tools are also
called for by the men by symbol, the planning department
issuing its instructions to them in symbolical form as far as
possible.
In connection with the classification of the tools, a classifica¬
tion book or sheet should be prepared, which serves two purposes.
It locates a tool whose name and size are given but whose symbol
is unknown, and it indicates the symbol for a new tool which has
not as yet been classified. The classification book is a loose-leaf
affair, or a series of blue-print sheets bound together in such
fashion as to permit the insertion of an additional sheet at any
point. The first sheet of the book carries the general classifica¬
tion shown in Table I. Reference to this sheet will indicate at
once under which class a given tool will be found. Probably the
system of locating a tool by means of the classification book can
be best understood if we consider an actual case — the tool
2PRBC mentioned above, for instance. Assume that we are
required to symbolize this tool, which is described as a 2 in.,
Fig. 3. — Rack for tools of various classes, having drawers for stocking milling cutters,
442
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
blunt, round-nose, straight lathe tool, with the cutting edge to
the left.
Running down the list of classifications given on the first sneet
of the classification, it is evident that this tool will fall only under
the head of paring tools, symbol P. Another sheet indexed P
will have a hst of the various possible shapes of paring tools such
as PS, for square-nose tools, PR for round-nose tools, etc. Turn¬
ing then to this sheet P and running down the list of subclasses
there listed, we find that the only symbol which will fit the tool
in hand is PR. For each symbol on this sheet P there is another
sheet in the book, indexed with that symbol, as PS, PR, etc.
Turning then to sheet PR, we find the paring round-nose tools-
still further subdivided, according to the particular shape of nose,
and among other subdivisions we find one for a blunt-nose tool,
the symbol being PRE. In like manner on sheet PRE, a set of
symbols indicating the offset and the position of the cutting edge
is exhibited and the symbol PREC is found to be that of the tool
in question. Examination of the book shows that there is no
sheet PREC in the book, and therefore the symbol is complete,
except for the size which is prefixed to the part of the symbol
already found. The process of locating a tool known only by
name and size is the same. As the arrangement of the tool racks-
and cabinets is made in accordance with the classification, it .is.
comparatively simple to find a tool once the symbol is known.
The main racks are conspicuously labeled with the general classi¬
fication letter, as E, F, P, M, etc., and each rack is subdivided
and re-subdivided according to the second, third and fourth
letters of the symbols, the subdivisions being in alphabetical
order. The final subdivision is according to tool sizes.
To show the facility with which tools can be located by means
of this classification, the writer, after having been given an expla¬
nation of the system, requiring about five minutes, located
within 45 seconds a tool which was designated to him only by its-
name and size, although this involved discovering the symbol
from the classification book and finding the particular draWer^
from among several hundred, containing the tool, in a tool room
he had never before entered, and although he had no previous
knowledge of this system of classification.
Fig. 4. Rack showing adaptation of standard boxes for stocking holding-down bolt% etc.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
445
Tool Cabinets and Racks
The illustrations, figs. 1-5, show a form of main rack, with
various possible subdivisions by means of standard size boxes,
trays and drawers for the storage of tools. The racks, figs. 1-5,
are built on the unit system and by means of the standard
boxes listed in Table II, and, by means of standard trays,
present an almost unlimited number of combinations adapted
to the needs of any character of estabhshment. Furthermore,
they are sufficiently elastic to permit of any desired rearrange¬
ment and extension to provide for the growth of the shop;
The racks are built of sound lumber, planed on both sides, the
various parts being mortised into one another. They should be
heavily built to withstand the strain due to the weight of the
large quantity of heavy tools carried by them. The compart¬
ments of the racks are made 24! in. square, inside measurements,
and they are 17 in. deep. These main compartments are clearly
shown in all the illustrations, and fig. 3 shows clearly the various
types of boxes, trays, drawers, etc., all adapted to one rack. For
standard sizes of boxes, see Table II.
TABLE II — Standard Boxes pgr Subdividing Tool Racks
(All dimensions in inches, and are outside dimensions)
Box No.
Width
Height Depth
Box No.
Width
Height
Depth
i
24
24 17
9
12
4
17
2
24
12 17
10
8
8
17
3
24
8 17
ii
8
6
17
4
24
6 17
12
8
4
17
S
24
4 17
13
6
6
17
6
12
12 17
14
6
4
17
7
12
8 17
15
4
4
17
8
12
6 17
The trays shown in fig. i are respectively 24 X 4 in., 24 X 6 in.,
and 4X4 in. Each tray is complete in itself and is labeled with
a brass plate giving the symbol and size of the tool contained in
it. But one size and shape of tool should be contained in a single
tray, smaller trays being used for smaller quantities of tools.
The lower front edge of each tray is beveled, and on it are placed
pegs for the workman's checks which act as receipts when the tools
446
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
are issued. The pegs have large heads to prevent the checks
from being easily knocked off. These trays are best adapted to
accommodate tools of class P.
Fig. 2 shows a rack, subdivided by boxes, trays and drawers, to
accommodate boring and drilling tools, class D. The lathe
boring tools are stored on trays like the class P tools in fig. i,
while the larger drills are stored in boxes and the smaller ones
kept in drawers, each compartment holding two rows of drawers,
which are subdivided into small compartments for the drills and
which have places on the interior for the workmen's checks.
Fig. 3 is a rack subdivided to take care of tools of various classes,
and drawers for stocking milling cutters, these latter drawers
being of the full width of the compartment and mounted on
rollers. Each box and each drawer carries the customary brass
label with the symbol of the contained tools thereon, and pegs
or hooks for the checks which show the location of issued tools.
Fig. 4 shows a unique adaptation of the standard boxes and also
illustrates in a measure the difference between a tool room under
scientific management and the ordinary tool room. Holding-
down bolts are usually kept at the machines in the shop, and are
moved from one machine to another as they are needed. Fre¬
quently much time is lost by the machinist in hunting for bolts
and frequently he cannot find bolts of exactly the required length.
It is then necessary for him to find washers and packing pieces
to fill up the extra length between the surface of his strap and the
bottom of the thread on the bolt, this consuming more time.
Scientific management regards the bolts needed to hold a piece of
work in the machine as much a necessary part of the tools required
as it does the lathe or planer tool which actually removes the
metal. Therefore these should be cared for in the tool room and
kept in just as good order as the other tools, and issued with them.
Each bolt is complete with its nut and washer; and each bolt is
inspected when it is returned to the tool room to see that the
thread is in good condition so that the nut can be run down by
hand, and that the nut is square so that the wrench will not sKp
on it. Defects of this character are repaired before the bolt is
issued again. Should the requirement of a job call for say a
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 447
6 in. bolt and these happened all to have been issued, the next
longest size in stock, say 6^ in., would be given out with a washer
I in. thick, so that the workman would not have to waste time in
finding washers, or in running the nut down the necessary dis¬
tance. The bolts are suspended from T-slots at the top of the
box, the symbol label being placed over the T-slot and the peg
for the check directly underneath. Fig. 5 shows how the com-
Fig. 7. — Approved plan of tool room for a shop having, say, loo machinists.
partments can be subdivided for the storage of jigs and tem¬
plates. The locations of the symbol labels and of the hook and
pegs for checks are clearly shown.
... a large number of flat tools can be stored in a small space
by means of swinging-door racks. Six of these doors are swung
on one spindle, folding up against one another, as shown in
the plan, fig. 7, at CC and W. The tools are carried on sub¬
stantial hooks, and below each is the symbol label and a hook
for the check.
The above illustrations show the extreme flexibility of the
system of storage. It is evident that the system can be adapted
to any type of manufacturing establishment according to its
needs. In adapting it, however, stress must be laid on the impor¬
tance of first classifying the tools and distinctly labeling each and
every division in the storage racks with the symbol of the tools
it contains, if the full benefits of the system are to be obtained.
448
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Checking and Inventory System
The tools are issued to the workman only on the presentation
of checks bearing his number and which act as a receipt for the
tool. The man gives his check, which is hung on the peg or
hook provided for that particular tool, or is placed in the drawer
or compartment, before the tool is removed therefrom. This
determines the exact location of the tool in the shop. On return¬
ing the tool, the man gives his number, which must correspond
^ grinder
platen
Fig. 8. — Recommended Arrangement of Tool Grinder.
with that of the check on the hook or in the drawer. If it does
not, the check is withheld and an investigation is made. This
eliminates the stealing of tools by one workman from another, to
receive credit for them on their return to the tool room. When¬
ever a check is removed from its peg, the tool it represents must
be replaced, or another tool room check, showing that the tool
has been sent to the grinding department, the forge shop, or to
some other department, must be hung in its place. When the
tool comes back from such department, it is replaced and the
tool room check is taken up. Thus every tool must be accounted
for, either by the tool itself, a workman's check, or a tool room
check.
The check system is somewhat simpHfied by the issuance of
denominational checks, that is, checks which bear on the reverse
side a numeral, as 2, 3, 5, etc. These are used when a quantity
of tools of the same size and symbol are issued to one workman.
Take, for instance, bolts. If four bolts of a size are withdrawn,
the workman will present a check, bearing on one side his number
and on the other the numeral ^ showing that he has taken four
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
449
bolts from the particular section where the check is hung. These
checks are of a different size and shape from those usually issued,
to insure that attention will be directed to the numeral which
shows the number of pieces that must be returned.
Inasmuch as every tool can be accounted for, by either checks
or tools, the keeping of inventory is rendered a rather simple
matter. A perpetual inventory is kept of all tools in the tool
room, showing the number and value of each kind of tool in
stock. Damaged tools or defective ones are either replaced or
written off the inventory. Obsolete tools are written off, while
additions are entered in the inventory. The perpetual inventory
is indexed according to the classiñcation. It is checked by refer¬
ring to the classiñcation to find the symbol, and then examining
the compartment bearing this symbol. The sum of the number
of tools in the tool room and the number of checks in the compart¬
ment should equal the number of tools called for by the inventory.
Constant checking of this character is carried on from day to day
to insure against loss through misplacement or other cause. With
this system a detailed examination of the tool room for inventory
purposes is unnecessary.
Issuing Tools to the Shop
Under the system of management in use at the Tabor Mfg. Co.,
which is regarded as one of the best examples of a scientifically
managed shop in existence, a tool list is issued to the tool room by
the planning department for every job assigned to the shop, so
that the tool room may have the tools in readiness for the job in
advance of the time they are needed. The tool list has printed
on it in permanent form a list of the more commonly used tools,
such as paring tools, lathe dogs, arbors, bolts, etc., with blank
spaces in which can be written tools not printed in. A column is
provided for the number required and another for the symbol.
These columns are filled in by the planning department, the job
number is added together with the workman's name or number
and the list sent to the tool room. The tools are gathered to¬
gether and placed in a tool box and are ready for the tool mes¬
senger when he calls for them, thus eliminating all waste of time
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
while waiting for tools. The workmen do not go to the tool
room, but are waited upon by messengers.
Tool Room Arrangement
Fig. 7 is an approved plan of a tool room for a shop employing,
say, ICQ machinists. It can be enlarged by adding additional
racks so that it will accommodate the tools for three times that
number, without disturbing to any extent the arrangement
shown. The floor space required by the plan shown is 50 x 25 ft.,
including that allotted to the grinding department, which is a
necessary part of the scientifically managed tool room. It will be
evident from a study of this plan, coupled with a reference to the
general classification in Table I, that those sections are placed
nearest the issuing and receiving windows which contain the tools
in greatest demand. This reduces the number of steps of the
tool room attendants and makes for greater efficiency in accord¬
ance with the principles of motion study. Modifications of this
arrangement will of course suggest themselves in accordance with
the needs of the particular plant involved.
Maintenance of Tools
As indicated in the introduction to this article, an important
function of the tool room is the keeping of the tools in first class
repair, and the grinding of them to standard shapes and angles.
This is because the unit times on which the total time of each job
is figured are based on tools in this condition. Therefore, an
inspection bench and a repair bench are necessary parts of the
tool room equipment, as are the various grinding machines
shown in the plan, fig. 7. Drill and cutter grinders are well
known, and have been used for a considerable period in many
shops, which, however, still permit their men to grind their own
lathe and planer tools. Only about one man in ten knows how
to grind tools properly, and only about one-tenth of these men
care to bother to do it. The loss in production due to machines
standing idle while the machinist is grinding tools or awaiting
his turn at the grindstone or emery wheel is much larger than is
usually supposed. It probably is at least 5 per cent, if not more,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
451
and the overhead charges on the work go on while the machinist
is thus idle. The heavy cuts required by scientific management
can only be made with tools ground to the correct angles. This
involves the use of a universal tool grinder and it is shown as part
of the necessary equipment. Fig. 8 shows the recommended
arrangement of the tool grinder in its relation to the light and to
the receiving table and rack for finished tools. Formers for each
shape of tool used in the shop should be provided as part of the
grinder equipment.
The tools reaching the grinding department should be assorted
on the receiving bench in accordance with their size and height,
grouping similar tools together to save time in setting the grinder.
It is uneconomical to grind tools singly or in small lots, and there¬
fore the tool room stock of each shape and size of tool should be
sufficiently large to permit the tool room to issue tools for a
couple of days before the stock is exhausted, while tools are
accumulating in the grinding department in sufficient quantity
to warrant setting the machine for them.
The writer must again express his indebtedness to the Tabor
Mfg. Co., the well-known manufacturers of molding machines,
metal saws and tool grinders for the information and illustrations
of this article, which are drawn from the practice in that com¬
pany's shops.
NOMENCLATURE OF MACHINE DETAILS
BY OBERLIN SMITH
PRESIDENT, PERRACUTE MACHINE CO., BRIDGETON, N. J.
Reprinted by permission of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
That the nomenclature of machinery, and of the tools and
apparatus with which it is constructed, is, in this country, in a
state of considerable confusion, scarcely needs demonstrating.
If we look from an international point of view, and include the
other English-speaking countries. Great Britain and her colonies,
the confusion becomes worse confounded. A reform is destined,
in due time, to come, doubtless to be promoted in great degree
by such societies as ours. This reform movement cannot be
begun too soon, and should aim at giving brief and suggestive
names to all objects dealt with — each object to have but one
name, and each name to belong to but one object. A simple
method of beginning such a reform would be a common agree¬
ment among all our engineering schools to use each technical
word in but one sense, and with no synonyms.
A lesser field of reform, and one which lies more particularly
within the jurisdiction of individual manufacturers, is the com¬
parative designation of a number of sizes or kinds of the same
machine. There is now no common understanding whether a
series of sizes shall be numbered or lettered from the largest down,
or from the smallest up. The latter is undoubtedly the most
natural and suggestive method, but usually becomes confused by
want of careful forethought (when starting a series) in providing
" gaps " for the insertion of future sizes. If a numerical series
has been already started, and becomes commercially established,
the only systematic way to insert new sizes (either at the begin¬
ning or through the middle of the series) is to use fractional
numbers. This, though awkward in sound and appearance,
seems to be the only means of suggesting the comparative size
of the article by its name. The use of arbitrary higher numbers
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
453
between the others is, of course, worse than no numbers at all.
The use of a series of letters does not supply this fractional loop¬
hole of escape — the euphony of A-and-a-half, K-and-three-
quarters, etc., being somewhat doubtful. Another method in
much favor is the use of " fancy " names, such as " diminutive
giant," " eureka," " firefly," etc. These are far preferable to
confused numbers, as they are not intended to convey any ideas
between manufacturer and customer, and admirably succeed in
their purpose. All this is a very difficult subject to deal with,
and one in regard to which we can scarcely hope for any exact
system. We can but point out to manufacturers two general
principles to be followed: ist, of leaving abundant gaps — that
is, let a regular series run lo, 20, 30, 40, etc., instead of i, 2, 3, 4,
etc.; and 2d, of using the smaller numbers for the smaller
objects. The first is similar in idea to the well-known Phila¬
delphia house-numbering system, which has worked so admirably
in practice, and which has been copied by numerous other cities.
The two foregoing paragraphs are intended respectively as but
casual allusions to the technical and commercial nomenclature of
machinery in general. The subject is too elaborate to be treated
at length in this paper, the main purpose of which is to set forth
the results of the writer's experience in establishing a system of
names and symbols for all the component parts, commonly called
" details " of machines, or, in fact, of any manufactured articles.
That some such system is necessary, no engineer who has at¬
tempted to manufacture machinery by the modern system of
duplicate (or approximately duplicate) parts, will, for a moment,
question. The necessity for a specific name for each piece, which
name is not, never has been, and never will be, used for any dif¬
ferent piece of the same or any other machine, is evident, simply
for purposes of identification. This identification is required
mechanically at almost every stage of production. The name,
or a symbol representing it, should be marked upon the drawings,
the patterns, and the special tools pertaining to each piece, and,
when convenient, upon the piece itself. Commercially, it is
required on time cards and in indexes and pattern lists and cost
books, as pertaining to production. Pertaining to sales these
454 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
names or symbols must appear in illustrated price lists, and in
orders by and charges to customers. This our modern method
of repairs, by selling duplicate parts, renders imperatively
necessary.
The requisites for a good system of names and symbols are:
(i) Isolation of each from all others that did, do, or may exist in
the same establishment. (2) Suggestiveness of what machine,
what part of it, and if possible, the use of said part — conform¬
ing, of course, to established conventional names, as far as
practicable. (3) Brevity, combined with simplicity. Of the
importance of isolation to prevent mistakes and confusion; of
suggestiveness to aid the memory; of brevity to save time and
trouble, it is hardly necessary to speak.
Regarding the systems now in use in our best shops, this paper
will not attempt detailed information. It is understood that the
names are more or less scientifically arranged; depending, of
course, upon the amount of study and the quality of the brains
that have been expended upon them. In cases where symbols
are used, supplementary to the names, they usually consist of
letters or numbers, or (oftener) a combination of both. Many of
them (both names and symbols) fail in symmetry and suggestive¬
ness, because little attention has been paid to the names of the
machines themselves, as regards the serial consecutiveness, hinted
at in paragraph 2d. The quality of brevity often suffers severely,
because the name and symbol must, in most cases, each have the
machine name prefixed, to secure their perfect isolation. The
latter quality is rarely dispensed with, simply because the manu¬
facturer's pocket would be too directly touched by the expensive
resulting mistakes. A perusal of some machinery catalogues
which give detailed lists of parts is very harassing to a syste¬
matic mind. They are apt to derive one part name from another,
prefixing the latter as an adjective each time, xmtil some such
pleasant title as " lower-left-hand-cutting-blade-set-screw lock-
nut " is evolved. If there are symbols provided, they consist of
some unknown combinations of letters part way down the list,
and then change to arbitrary numbers, or perhaps to nothing
at all. It will often be noticed also that no particular order
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
455
appears to be followed in numerical arrangement, similar parts
being scattered at random through the list.
The scheme to be described further on has been evolved grad¬
ually from the experience gained in managing a growing machine
business. This scheme is far from perfect, and is probably
inferior to others which have not been made public; but it seems
to answer the purpose aimed at, viz., a comprehensive and elastic
system which will accommodate itself to an unlimited growth and
any variation in quantity or kind of goods manufactured. This
the methods we first tried would not do, being too Hmited in their
scope.
It should be here explained that the word " we," as just used,
refers to the above-mentioned machine works, with which the
writer has long been connected ; and the scheme in question will
be spoken of as " our symbol system." To further define terms:
" machine name " and " machine symbol " refer respectively to
the name and symbol of the whole machine, or other article of
manufacture, for it will be noticed that the system is applicable
to almost any products, except those of a textile or chemical
nature.^ " Piece name " and " piece symbol," in like manner,
refer to the separate pieces of which the whole is composed. The
terms " detail," " part," and " piece " have so far been used
synonymously. It is doubtful which is really the best to estab¬
lish as a standard, but we have adopted " piece," as best express¬
ing the idea of one piece of material, reduced to the last condition
of subdivision. In our practice exceptions are made to this
requirement of homogeneousness in such cases as chains, ropes,
belts, etc., — also material glued or welded together, — in short,
anything which may (hke a man) be called one piece, because
it is not intended ever to be taken apart. The character for
equality ( = ) will be used to show connection between a name
and its symbol. A brief glance at the history of our system
shows that at first we (like many others) hit upon the plausible
idea of using numbers for machine symbols and letters for piece
symbols. The numbers were somewhat gapped," but not to
^ There is no necessity for this exception, if the system is developed as illustrated
in C. B. Thompson's " Classification," p. 461. — Ed.
4S6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
such an extent as we now should practise. Examples: If four
sizes of pumps were symboUed i, 2, 3, and 4, their barrels might
= i-A, 2-A, etc., and their handles = i-B, 2-B, etc. If the
next product made was a series of lathe dogs, they would prob¬
ably be symbolled 11, 12, 13, etc. Their frames would =
ii-A, 12-A, etc., and their screws = ii-B, etc. This all worked
beautifully until the products became so complicated as to con¬
tain more than twenty-six pieces ! After tampering a little with
the Greek alphabet (which seemed calculated to scare our new
workmen), and trying to use a mixture of small and capital
letters (which looked too near ahke), we fell back upon the
clumsy device of repeating the alphabet, with letters doubled
or tripled.
When we finally abandoned the above plan, several methods
were carefully studied. The next most obvious was to use let¬
ters for machines and numbers for pieces. This allowed any
quantity of the latter, but limited the machines to twenty-six,
even with no gaps provided. A certain modification of this
method is, perhaps, more in use than any other system. In it
letters are used for different sizes or styles of a certain kind of
machine, and used over again for some other kind, ad infinitum.
This answers the purpose, because there are not likely to be more
than twenty-six varieties of one machine. It has, however, the
fatal objection of requiring the whole machine name prefixed to
each symbol, in all cases where the symbol stands alone, and does
not happen to be written with the others of the set in tabular
form. As the general name of a machine usually consists of at
least two words, a complete piece symbol becomes too long for
convenience In labelling. Examples: Force pump, K-26;
lathe dog, H-2.
Another system consists in using numbers for the machines and
numbers for the pieces. This gives isolation and brevity, but no
suggestiveness. A serious objection to it is the danger of blurring
the numbers together or of transposition in writing or reading
them; also in the fact that either number cannot be used alone,
as it can in the case of letters and numbers.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
457
A similar system to the above consists in the use of letters for
both symbols. It has the same disadvantages, and the addi¬
tional one of a limitation in the quantity of letters at disposal.
Our system, as finally decided upon, is as follows: Machine
names and piece names are determined by the designer, in general
accordance with the principles already pointed out, being, of
course, made as brief and suggestive as possible, with no two
machine names alike and no two piece names alike in the same
machine. In this nomenclature no positive laws can be followed
but those of common-sense and good English. A machine
symbol consists of a group of three arbitrary letters — capitals.
A piece symbol consists of an arbitrary number, and follows the
machine symbol, connected by a hyphen; thus FPA-2 might
symbolize the force-pump handle before alluded to — smallest
size. The machine symbol may be used alone when required,
as FPA.
As thus described, these symbols fully possess the qualities of
isolation and brevity. To make them also suggestive, some atten¬
tion must be paid to what letters to use. In practice, we aim to
make the first two letters the initials of the general name of the
machine, and the last letter one of an alphabetical series which
will represent the sizes of the machine. An example of this is
shown in the symbol for the smallest sized force-pump, FPA. If
there is any chance of a future smaller or intermediate size, gaps
should be left in the alphabetical order. This " initial " method
cannot always be strictly followed, because of such duplicates as
FPA for force-pump and foot-press. The remedy would be to
change one initial for one beginning some synonymous adjec¬
tive; that is, foot-presses might be symbolized TPA, assuming
that it stands for treadle-press. Usually the least important
machine should be thus changed. From this it will be seen
that, in defining the theory of this scheme, the words " arbitrary
letters " were purposely used. The idea is to make the system
thoroughly comprehensive. There might be such a number of
machines having identical initials that the letters would be
almost arbitrary. In practice, the designer can usually succeed
in making the symbols sufficiently suggestive.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In considering how many letters to use in a symbol, considera¬
tions of brevity advised two; suggestiveness, three or four. Two
letters did not allow of enough permutations nor indicate well
enough the kind and size of machine. Three seemed amply
sufficient in the first respect, as it provided over 17,000 symbols.
If, for any reason in the future, four letters should seem desir¬
able, the addition of another would not materially change the
system. If three letters, hyphened to a number of one, two or
three digits, should seem bulky, remember that this symbol can
stand by itself anywhere and express positively the identity of
the piece. Its comparative brevity is shown by comparing the
second and third columns of the following table (A). In the
different lines an idea is given of the application of the system
to a variety of products not usually made in any one shop.
TABLE A
Col. ist
Full name of machine and piece
2d
Our symbol
for it
3d
Symbolic name as often
used
4th
Sth
6 th
Characters in
col. 2
Characters in
col. 3
Excess of col.
S over 4 ....
6" X 4' engine lathe, spindle head
EL A-4
Engine lathe, A-4
4
13
9
No. 4 power press, frame
P P D-i
Power press, D-i
4
12
8
7" X 14" steam engine, crank shaft
S E G-si
Steam engine, G-si
S
14
9
Buckeye mow'g mch. left axle nut.
M M D-81
Mowing machine, D-81...
S
16
II
No. 3 glass clock, main spring ...
GC C-ios
Glass mantel clock, C-ios.
6
20
14
One-hole mouse trap, choker wire.
M T A-3
Wooden mouse trap, A-3..
4
17
13
Table B is a specimen of part of a page of our " Symbol Book,'^
in which are recorded any machines which have arrived at such a
state of perfection and salability as to be marked " Standard
on our drawings.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
459
TABLE B
FPL
No. 3 Foot Press
Weight
482
Piece
number
Same
as
Piece name
Material
Quantity
Rough
weight
Finished
weight
Aggre¬
gate
finished
weight
I
Frame
Cast iron
I
220
200
200
2
Gib
U
I
10
9
9
3
Slide bar
u
I
45
40
40
4
Front leg
a
2
30
30
60
s
Back leg
u
I
40
40
40
6
Treadle
u
I
17
is
15
7
Lever
u
I
8s
80
80
8
FPH- 8
Lever weight
u
4
s
s
20
9
Pitman
u
I
12
10
10
lO
FPH-io
Clamp sleeve
<<
2
3
2Í
21
Lever pin
Steel
I
2
2
26
FPJ-26
Treadle and Pitman bolt
Iron
3
i
i
li
This table almost explains itself. The piece numbers in first
column do not have the letters prefixed because the latter stand
at the top of the column. " Same as " means that the piece is
identical with a piece belonging to some other machine, and can
be manufactured with it. If it is common to several machines in
a set, the smallest of the set in which it occurs is given. The
" quantity " column tells the number of pieces of a kind required.
The last " weight " column, added upward, shows total weight
of machine. The piece numbers are " gapped " after each kind
of material, and also at the ends of " groups," as described
further on. This is to allow for future changes and additional
pieces; also that other nearly similar machines, having more
pieces, may, in general, have the same piece numbers.
The order in which the pieces are numerically arranged cannot
follow positive rules in all cases. In our list of instructions (too
long to be here quoted)^ we direct a classification by materials.
In each class we group pieces of the same general character, in
regard to the prevailing work to be done upon them, and in nat¬
ural " machine-shop " order; i. e., first planning, then drilling or
^ See F. W. Parkhurst's " Applied Methods of Scientific Management," which
is based on the practice of the Ferracute Machine Co. — Ed.
460
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
boring, then turning. We also aim to place the heaviest and
most important pieces first. Between each group we " gap " the
numbers.
Regarding position in naming pieces, we assume a front to the
machine (where the operator is most likely to be placed), and
define direction tersely as " forward," back," " right," " left,"
"down," "up." The adjectives of position prefixed to piece
names are, of course, derived from these words, as " upper,"
" lower," etc. A perpendicular row of similar pieces, say five,
would be rated upper, second, third, fourth, and lower. A
number of different sized pieces of similar name may, in like
manner, be prefixed smallest, second, third, etc.
Before closing, a brief reference to certain (two) supplementary
symbols may not be out of place. One is a small letter after a
piece symbol (as FPL-2 i-a), signifying that the piece is obsolete,
the standard, FPL-21, having been altered. After a second alter¬
ation, the last obsolete piece would be suffixed " b," and so on.
Thus dupHcate pieces of old-style machines can be identified and
supphed to customers. The other symbol referred to is to indi¬
cate the number of the operation in the construction of a piece,
and is written thus: FPL-2i-ist, FPL-2i-2d, etc. Its use is of
great value on detail drawings, time-cards, and cost records. It
enables any operation (no matter how trivial), on any piece of
any machine to be identified by a symbol alone. An operation
we define as any work which is done by one person at one time,
before passing the piece along and commencing upon another.^
^ This article has been reprinted largely for its historical interest and the part
it has played in stimulating an important development of the Taylor System:
to wit, the classification and symbolization of all functions, costs, materials, and
operations involved in industry. See C. B. Thompson's " Classification," p. 461.
— Ed.
CLASSIFICATION AND SYMBOLIZATION
by c. bertrand thompson
Reprinted by permission of System
I
Giving a Business a Memory; How Materials, Processes
and the Functions of an Organization are
Given Places and Identities
It is astonishing that in all the discussion of scientific manage¬
ment that has been going on for so many years, and with such
intensity in recent times, there has been practically no attention
paid to the fundamental subject of classification. In the books
on factory management, industrial engineering, cost accounting,
and scientific methods of selling and production, you will find
very little on classification. They give you classifications of their
own; but the samples they give are good as suggestions and
illustrations only. They will not bear transplanting. What
they tell you is neither how they made them, or why they made
them as they did. Especially do they fail to tell you how to go
to work to make one for your own plant. To the busy, practical
man this is the important and essential thing — how to do it
himself.
The making of a classification is the beginning of wisdom.
Without it accurate records are impossible; and where there are
no records the business perishes. A distinguished professor of
idealistic tendencies recently suggested to me what he thought
was a new theory; that business ought to dispense with all
records. Too much time is wasted, he said, in mere clerical work,
and not enough spent on actual production. He thought it
would be safe to get along without all this mere writing of history,
and that society would benefit greatly from the increased pro¬
duction.
The only trouble with this theory is that it has been tried for
centuries and found wanting. Business men are today being
461
462
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
forced into more and more recording, because they have found
that records are an indispensable insurance against mistakes,
failure of memory, and against general human fallibility. Neglect
of them means failure to get and to hold business. It means
failure to work economically, and failure to deliver on time. It
means inability to finance the business, because no bank will
trust a concern which does not keep records. It often means
failure to recover a just amount of insurance in case of fire. In a
business of any size it means ultimate bankruptcy.
To get accurate records you must have classification for two
reasons. In the first place, to introduce order and comparative
simplicity into what is otherwise disorder and complexity. And
in the second place, to identify all the elements of industrial
activity.
Business activity is made up of three elements — materials,
processes, and relations between individuals, the latter usually
called organization. If you want to know what you are doing
in your business — and if you don't the sheriff will certainly get
you — you must reduce to order and identify every element of
labor, every bit of material, and every detail of organization about
your place, together with every relation between your business
and the financial world and the market. And you can get
neither order nor identification without classifying.
Consider how the natural sciences are built up on a foundation
of classification. Biology has kingdoms, branches, classes,
orders, genera, species and varieties. Each individual must fit
in, as an individual belonging to a certain variety of a certain
species of a certain genus, order, class, branch and kingdom.
Every little insect has a location all its own. This is the only
scientific way through the vast complexities of living matter.
There is no other way to traverse the complexities of business.
Take for example a simple business like the cigar factory you
can find in every town. The manager, who is also the selling
force and one of the rollers, sits at a bench with the stripper and
another roller. Their materials consist of tobacco of two or
three kinds, cement, bands and boxes; their tools are boards,
knives and baskets. Equipment is summarized in chairs and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
463
a table; perhaps a counter. The process consists in removing
stalks, arranging filler and wrapper in parallel lines, rolling,
cementing the tip, cutting off, packing, delivering. Selling is
direct, to a few retailers. There is no advertising. The costs
are not very complicated: wages, materials, and perhaps rent.
Light, heat, and ventilation are such as a more or less benevolent
nature provides. Efficiency is easily measured by output, so
many boxes of cigars a day made and sold.
A small business like this, you would think, could be carried
in the owner's head. But even this miniature manager feels
that the small amount of record keeping necessary is justified by
the risks he runs if those records are lacking. He has the rudi¬
ments of a bookkeeping system, therefore ; he has a record of his
customers, as well as of output. The risk is small; but so is the
cost of keeping these memoranda. And even these few statistics
require an elementary classification.
But to go from one extreme to the other, consider, for instance,
an automobile plant. Here order becomes imperative. The mass
of detail is overwhelming, until controlled by classification.
Here you have engineers, draftsmen, designers, machinists,
electricians, assemblers, testers, polishers, upholsterers, painters,
chemists, besides large administrative and selling forces. Each
department is made up of groups and individuals, each with its
own separate and distinctive job. For materials — to mention
only classes — you have iron, steel, brass, copper, nickel, wood,
leather, rubber, paint, varnish, and numerous other minor
groups.
Many types of buildings are required for different purposes:
machine shops, woodworking shops, storerooms, stockrooms,
offices. Your equipment must include machine tools of all kinds,
a store full of small tools, and equipment for carpentering, uphol¬
stering and painting. The routing system must be efficient and
therefore elaborate; for success depends on getting parts through
in proper time and sequence for assembling, and the completed
product out on schedule time.
Costs are enormously complex, and can be handled only by
classification. Efficiency records must be kept, though the diffi-
464
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
culty of recording efficiency is great because the elements are so
numerous and varied, for without efficiency records it is impos¬
sible for a firm to compete successfully. The selling organization
is for the time being the backbone of the automobile business,
and selling cost is a large element in the price to the consumer.
Failure to develop a highly efficient selling organization enabling
him to sell at or above the market would mean ruin. In the
up-to-the-minute sales department records are the breath of life.
Without classification, there can be no records worthy the name.
Another interesting type of business, even more complex, is
the construction and management company, which designs,
finances, builds and operates public service corporations, power
plants and factories. There are managers, engineers, draftsmen,
carpenters, masons, concrete men, plumbers, electricians, techni¬
cal experts, accountants, statisticians, stenographers, filing
force, librarian, editor, financiers, bankers, bond sellers, agents,
advertisers. There is every kind of material that can be used
for office equipment, or on construction or field work. The
routing is a large and important problem, first through the office
and then in the field or the factory, and on all kinds of jobs.
Costs are extremely complex, and they must be kept with the
utmost accuracy; for it is getting to be more and more the rule
with concerns of this sort to take contracts on a cost percentage
basis. When the contractus of this nature the customer must
have all the cost records submitted to him regularly and promptly;
they must be detailed, up to date, and instantly accessible. He
must also be shown that the costs are being kept down : efficiency
records must be maintained. Both parties must know exactly
what the total costs are, in order to fix the proper compensation
when the final bills are rendered.
In such businesses as these — the automobile industry and
the construction and management company — the risks of igno¬
rance are simply enormous. An ounce of knowledge is worth
a pound of guesses; a stitch in time saves nine law suits. Insur¬
ance at any price is cheap.
This is one of the necessary costs of doing business on a large
scale, and society must submit to pay for it if it wants the advan-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
465
tages (probably compensating) of large scale production. It
is also a necessary cost of any complex business, whether on a
large or a small scale. In any concern that has passed beyond
the one-man stage there must be plenty of records; to have them
properly kept, classification is absolutely indispensable.
Classification and order mean, in the first place, definiteness
of function. Every body knows exactly what he has to do, and
how he has to do it: there is definite organization. It means
definiteness of operation: everything is done at the time it should
be done, in the order in which it should be done, and in proper
relation to other things. It means convenience in locating the
materials used and the records compiled. It makes possible
accurate knowledge of costs. The disadvantages of doing
without this classified knowledge are so great, and the advantages
of having it are so many and important, that the question of
expense sinks into the background. It is a necessary cost, like
the cost of labor and materials and machines. One must expect
to meet it when one undertakes any kind of business that is too
big for one man's head. It goes without saying that this cost,
like all others, must be kept as low as is consistent with real
efficiency.
After the introduction of order the second function of classi¬
fication is the identification of the elements and the combinations
of labor, materials and organization. It is a curious fact that
mere names are not sufficient for definite identification. Lan¬
guage has not grown so fast as the facts with which humanity has
to deal. Consequently names are considerably overworked.
They are ambiguous; they may at once mean two or three or a
dozen or twenty different things.
The fact is that names get a definite meaning only from their
context. The context is itself a part of the name; it is the signif¬
icant, defining part. The usual way to get sharpness and defi-
' nition is by a long, roundabout qualification and description.
The short, direct way to provide a context which will make
names significant, definite, unmistakable and intelligible, is
classification.
466
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Suppose you are doing business with twenty thousand custo¬
mers. There are perhaps two hundred Smiths among them.
You classify them first by their initials. But there are probably
a number with the same initials, and some perhaps with even the
same full name. You do not depend on their names alone; you
have their addresses, and by supplying your customers with a
context by their location, the state, city, street, and house
number, you can ship and bill them without mistake. You
identify them by this system of classification.
Your foreman sends in a requisition for five hundred feet of
" tubing." This does not mean anything until you know what
it is for. If you are in the automobile business, and the tubing
is for coat rails, it may be brass; if for acetylene feed pipes it will
be rubber. You must classify.
You want some one to "go to the bank and get some money."
To finance a new departure in your business, your president or
manager needs to make the trip. To get a check cashed for the
week's payroll, however, a messenger will serve. Classification
by function tells you which to send. You may call this common
sense; but when you have ordered and classified all your common
sense of small things you have the foundation for a science of
business.
What classifications are of practical use to you in your busi¬
ness ? There is apparently no end to the groupings which can
logically be made. Out of these we must select those which
show promise of practical usefulness. The chart on page 469
includes those which every establishment hoping to succeed
must develop to some extent, consciously or otherwise. Many
of them have already been reduced to writing in your factory or
store perhaps; you have at least a system of classified commercial
accounts.
Classified cost accounts are generally acknowledged to be
useful; wise men know they are indispensable; and in many
factories they are complete and adequate. Stores and stock
accounts, under the guise of " perpetual inventories," have been
injected into many stores and factories. Filing systems for
records, at least for letters and orders, are quite common. They
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
467
may be crude and incomplete, and only slightly related to other
classifications and records; but the beginning is there. Draw¬
ings, blueprints, photographs, patterns, samples and catalogues
still present a problem in too many shops; but they are filed in
some way. The trouble does not come until some one tries to
find where they were filed. Progressive managers, in order to
collect statistics covering the vital phases of production, advertis¬
ing, sales, employment and efficiency, have made the classifi¬
cations necessary for these.
Routing, including the naming and location of all stores, parts
in process (worked materials), tools, machines and work places,
ought to be classified wherever assembling is a process; but
there are few factories which do it thoroughly. Selling depart¬
ments have done better. Their statistics of agents, territories,
branches, and other methods of selling correspond to the routing
which ought to be done in factories.
Classification of duties and functions has not been carried so
far. The duties of every one, from the messenger boy to the
president, are included in functional classification. Carried to
completeness, it includes also processes and methods in current
use. The functional classification is in fact the all-inclusive
classification. It unifies them all; and, as will be shown later,
it is the basis of a system which is an extraordinary saver of time
and energy. The chart illustrates how all the other classifica¬
tions are included under it.
How much classification should you do in your own business,
and how can you do it ? This section will attempt to answer
only the first question; succeeding sections will set forth several
answers to the second.
The extent to which you will make definite classifications on
paper depends first on the nature of your business. For instance,
it would be almost a waste of time to develop an elaborate routing
system in many cases. This is true of those industries which are
mainly analytical or continuous in their nature, handling a
single material such as cotton, from start to finish, and modifying
it in process. On the other hand, an assembling industry, like
468
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
an engine works or a furniture factory, is utterly at sea without
a good routing classification.
The probability of growth must also be considered. If your
business is constitutionally stagnant, it makes no material dif¬
ference what classifications you have or whether you have any.
If you want to get it on the road again by heroic efforts, you will
probably need them all. If your business is growing at a normal
rate, you will need properly arranged records of many kinds, and
your classification should be so comprehensive from the start
that there is opportunity for unlimited expansion. A functional
classification like that illustrated in the chart on page 469 should
be the basis, as this unifies all the classifications, and is easily
developed as the business demands additions.
The type of management also cuts a figure. Under the ordi¬
nary rough-and-tumble organization almost any classification
will do. If such a management had a good system it might not
know how to use it. As the management improves, the best
methods become more worth while. Only the best type of man¬
agement makes the most of the best system. It takes a high
grade of ability to develop and to use a complete, logical and
practical classification. Unless the management has that ability,
or can hire it, it would do better to be modest and take its chances
with a less elaborate scheme of classification. This is a hard
saying; but business is frequently hard.
The two controlling considerations, however, are the necessity
of insurance against error, which has already been discussed;
and the incentive to standardization which invariably accom¬
panies the effort to classify details. Standization is here used in
the special sense of the determination of the best method or the best
material to use for any given purpose, and strict adherence to that
best as the standard until a better is found. You do not want to
classify things and put them down in permanent records until
you are satisfied that they are the best known for the purpose.
You begin to standardize at the same time that you begin to
classify and record.
This by-product of classification is of the utmost importance,
and it is a safe prophecy that it alone, in the hands of a compe-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
469
tent and wide-awake management, more than pays for the cost
of even the most elaborate system. A functional classification of
one office revealed that any one of four stenographers might
' Charging
FUNCTIONS
' Production
' Operations
. Materials
Routing
' Operations
Materials
Tools
. Machines and Workplaces
Productive
" Non-Productive "
Raw Stores
Worked
Finished Stock
r Raw
1 Worked
. Filing
Correspondence
Information
' Charging |
. Selling
f Administrative
Sales
Methods
FiUng
' Purchases
Employment
Customers
. Miscellaneous
' Processes
Classifications
Materials
Accounts
Customers
Stocks
' Agents
Territories
Branches
Mail Sales
Advertising
Packing
Correspondence
Accounts
Data
answer the telephone, with consequent interruption of all of them
whenever the bell rang.
When you start to list and group materials, you usually find
that the kinds and quantities of materials used are subject to the
whims of the requisitioner or purchasing agent, or the state of
470
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the market. Yet you know that, ordinarily, for any given pur¬
pose, one material is better than another, and should be consis¬
tently used. When you must classify, you put down the one
best material, and strike the others off the list, thus establishing
a standard. This process saved a great university $7,000 a year
on the cost of its stationery and office supplies alone.
As to methods, you will not take the trouble to study a process
and reduce it to writing for the guidance of your present and
future force, unless you are reasonably sure it is the best one you
can get. Similarly with equipment. One of the Government
departments at Washington was once subjected to a classiñcation
of the pens it used, and seventy-six varieties were found. There
was no necessity, from any point of view, for using more than
seven or eight kinds ; and in the meantime the economy of larger
purchases was sacrificed.
It were useless to inquire into the reasons for the neglect of
classification, a neglect all the more surprising in view of its vast
importance. As we have seen it lies at the foundation of modern
business practice. Without classification, there can be no order,
no definite identification and, therefore, no accurate records.
Without records, business has no insurance against mistakes and
forgetfulness, and it misses the opportunity and the incentive
to adopt the best methods which come with the mere act of
recording.
II
Memory Tags for Business Facts; What a Right
Classification System Does for a Factory
or Store and How to Make One
The correct method of classification is summed up in two
words: analysis, the enumeration of elements; and synthesis,
the regrouping of details.
To begin, you list all the facts of your business, every detail
and element, down to the last paper of pins and the last stamped
envelope. Each bit of material in stores, in process or in stock,
each machine, tool, work-place and operation, each bit of income
and expenditure, and the duty of each oflScial and workman. At
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 471
least this much must be definitely on paper and in your mind's
eye before you can begin a comprehensive classification.
In practice you will not actually classify all these at once, of
course. But to be in position to make ultimately a complete
and unified classification you must see that the field is staked
out from the beginning, even if it is only in outline. You are
really writing your own insurance policy; and it is up to you to
see that nothing of value is left off the list. It is the things you
forget that always make the trouble.
Next comes the regrouping of all these elements into the classes
to which they logically belong. Each element must find its
appropriate place, according to the purpose of the classification.
If, for instance, you are dealing with functions, you will group
the duties of the directors in one place, those of the executives
in another, those of the workmen in another, dividing the latter
up by departments or by the kind of work they do. In handling
charges, you will start with the old favorite division into direct
and overhead expenses, and then subdivide these into labor and
materials, and shop and general expense, subdividing the last
group to suit your taste. Your routing classification will include
operations, materials, parts in process, machines and work¬
places, and tools. When these are done the filing classification,
as will be shown later, will take care of itself, for it is nearly
identical with those already suggested.
Certain items will appear in more than one classification; but
there is no cause for alarm in this. Instructions for the operation
of a monotype keyboard may be in the functional classification
for details of method; in the routing classification for checking
progress of work; in the charging classification for proper alloca¬
tion of expenditure; and in the filing classification for reference
to data. The same facts are differently classified for different
purposes. They appear under the same name or symbol in all
the lists; no confusion, therefore, results.
Everything will go well if you are logical and accurate from the
start. The basis of classification is the similarity of certain
elements in the things grouped together as " alike," and dis¬
similarity between certain other elements which distinguish one
472
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
class from another as " different." Men are classified as animals,
like the apes, on account of numerous similarities of structure;
but they are distinguished as men by the few points of difference.
Men are classified into races by including all with the same color
of skin or the same shape of the head together in the same race,
and all of different colors of skin or shapes of head in other races.
The elements of similarity or of difference chosen for industrial
classification must be significant and essential; significant with
reference to the purpose of the classification, and essential in the
nature of the object classified. If you are classifying pencils
with reference to charging them as direct or indirect expense, it-
is immaterial whether they are blue or not. If they are classified
functionally, with reference to the purpose for which they are
used, it makes considerable difference whether they are blue or
black. The blueness is accidental in the first case, significant
in the second.
Now that, with the aid of these few simple principles, you have
corralled all the elements, and have rounded them up in logical
and accurate pens to suit your needs, you must brand them with
marks which will make them capable of easy identification. A
classification is no good unless you use it, and use it constantly.
To use it conveniently, some system of naming the elements
must be provided.
These tabloid names are called symbols. A name is itself a
symbol: " desk " is the symbol for this thing I am now writing
on. When I want to designate a detail, such as the lever in the
lock in the upper left-hand drawer of this desk, ordinarily I must
use just this set of words. But this is too long for practical pur¬
poses, especially if I had to designate it very often, as I might
in the manufacture of locks. This name must be shortened into
a symbol, which will mean exactly the same thing at all times and
in all places and never anything else. . This symbol, since it is a
short-cut, must be easily handled and, if possible, easily remem¬
bered.
A good system of symbols must have four qualities: First,
simplicity combined with efficiency, with the emphasis on the
efficiency. Simplicity in itself is no virtue; in the attempt to
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
473
handle complex conditions it may be a vice. You are a canny
manager, and you demand simplicity; when you go to the office in
the morning you use the simplest vehicle you can find, to wit, a
wheelbarrow, with your janitor or gardener for motive power.
Or perhaps I am mistaken : you really prefer efficiency to simplic¬
ity, and go in an automobile, the height of complexity. In the
same fashion, a system of symbols should be as simple as is con¬
sistent with efficiency. Many concerns still use a simple number
system, running consecutively from one to a million — as simple
as a wheelbarrow.
The second requirement is définiteness. There must be just
one symbol to one thing, and one thing to one symbol, and the
twain must be one. It ought not to be necessary to put your
finger on a thing in order to identify it. That is, of course, the
time-honored way, still used. Men will say: " Order a desk
like this " or " a ream of stationery like that," notwithstanding
that in nearly all other relations of life language has carried us
beyond the pantomime stage. Classification has given the name
perfect défini teness of identification; the symbol should have
this same definiteness.
Third, the symbol should have a mnemonic quality; that is,
it should be capable of being easily remembered. This is of the
greatest importance. It makes symbols convenient and easy to
handle without constant reference to a key. It serves as a check
on accuracy; if a symbol is incorrectly made, the next person
reading it will notice that it means nothing. A mnemonic sym¬
bol which follows the classification of the thing symbolized, sums
up that classification in itself, as will be shown in a moment, and
is, therefore, a perfectly definite and logical means of identifica¬
tion.
Finally, it must be brief. Practically this offers no difficulty;
for any symbol is certain to be briefer than the name for which it
stands, to the extent of from one-third to one-twentieth the
number of letters. Here is a choice specimen from a catalogue:
" Lower-left-hand-cutting-blade-set-screw-lock-nut " — a full-
blooded linguistic dachshund. A perfect symbol for that could
not consist of more than eight or ten letters.
474
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The system which seems to me to meet all the tests laid down,
yet comprehend the whole scope of industrial activity, is a com¬
bination of letters and numbers, predominantly mnemonic, which
has been worked out mainly by Frederick W. Taylor and his
group of associates, especially Carl G. Barth, together with some
extensions (in the domain of selling organization) by the writer.
This system is based on a complete and exhaustive analysis
of every detail of labor, materials and organization involved in a
business, as previously explained. The resulting list of elements
is then regrouped in a logical classification; first into broad
general divisions, then each division into its subdivision, and each
subdivision into as many groups and sections and subsections as
the nature of the business requires. Letters are used for each
division, subdivision, and so on. Wherever possible they are
made suggestive, either by the use of the initial letter of the name
or some other significant letter, or by being always used for the
same thing.
Numbers are used for dimensions or for job or lot numbers,
depending for their meaning on their special position in the sym¬
bol. Numbers are also sometimes used for the individuals in a
class, as these ultimate elements are often so numerous as to go
beyond the possibilities of the alphabet. They are also used at
the beginning of symbols for operations, to indicate the first,
second and succeeding operations on the piece symbolized.
Obviously the same letter will often be used for different things,
according to whether the thing is a division, a group or a section.
Its particular meaning, therefore, depends upon its position in
the symbol. In the symbol AS AMP the first A has a meaning
as part of a division, the second A another significance as part
of a group. It is just as it is with digits, which in the decimal
system get their significance from their position in the group.
Thus 333 means 3 hundreds, 3 tens and 3 units. There is no
reason for confusion in one system more than in the other; and
no one would read this combination of digits other than as three
hundred and thirty-three.
To make all this clear, suppose we construct a functional classL
fication, taking for our example a small printing plant. This
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
475
classification will include all the activities of the plant, productive,
administrative, and selling, and will be broad enough to use for
all purposes: costing, routing, control of materials, duties of offi¬
cials, methods of work, sales organization, and filing. We shall
select one item to classify and symbolize: the instructions for
the operation of a monotype keyboard.
It is clear that in the broadest view, our business consists of
manufacturing, selling, and the administrative and auxiliary
activities connected with these. Auxiliary activities are those
which are directly connected with production, such as power and
light; administrative are those which are necessary to the con¬
duct of the business, but do not enter directly into the product,
such as accounting.
For convenience we shall break up manufacturing, for our
general classification, according to classes of product, and will
also segregate stores and materials and the operations and ac¬
counts connected with the purchase of land, buildings, new
equipment and tools. This utilizes more letters for broad classes,
shortens the symbol, and is an aid to accounting. Then we set
down the letters of the alphabet in column, omitting the I and the
0 on account of their similarity to the figures representing one and
zero, and fit our classes in. To continue the classification of
manufacturing, D, by departments:
DC Composing Room DP Press Room
Analyzing the composing room, DC, with reference to various
features, we get:
DCA Composing room functions DCM Machines and work-places
not elsewhere classified DCR Reclamation of errors
DCB Miscellaneous labor DCS Stores
DCC Fixtures, furniture and appa- DCT Tools
ratus DCZ Buildings
The next step is easy: DCM, machines and work-places,
includes:
DCMF Proofreaders' tables DCMS Imposing stones
DCMM Monotype machines DCMT Type stands
DCMP Proof presses
476
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Monot37pe machines, DCMM, divide naturally into
DCMMC Monotype casting ma- DCMMK Monotype keyboards
chines
Operation is obviously P, so the symbol we are seeking is
DCMMKP Operation of monot3T3e keyboard.
We can go on as far as we like in the analysis of keyboard
operation, for tabular work, straight composition, justification,
and so on.
This symbol is a complete classification and identification in
itself. The instructions in question are evidently for the opera¬
tion, P, of the keyboard, K, of the monotype, M, which is a
machine, M, in the composing room, C, which is part of the
manufacturing, D, end of the business. The symbol identifies
the machine for the routing department, indexes the instructions
in the methods of work, shows the accounting department that
any charge in connection with these instructions is a manufactur¬
ing indirect expense, and provides the filing department with a
self-indexing system for filing all data on the subject.
Almost every manager has been driven at times to some variety
of symbolizing. It is usually some expedient gotten up on the
spur of the moment for some special purpose, such as identifying ^
costs or salaries, or shortening names of frequently used items.
There are, however, a few serious attempts at system^atic sym-
bolization, besides the one just described, which it is worth our
while to consider and to test by the qualifications laid down.
There are several arbitrary systems, some of them made up
entirely of numbers. One manager symbolizes the parts of a
machine by dividing it first into groups and numbering them
consecutively, and then dividing each group into its elements,
also numbered consecutively. In the wheel group, which is the
fourth, there are front hubs, front fianges, and so on. These are
symbolized thus: 4/1, 4/2, and so on. The classification here
appears to be practicable, and it is easier to write " 4/1 " than
" front hubs."
Brevity, however, is the only advantage this method of naming
has. It is not definite, for it does not, without further descrip-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
477
tíon, indicate what type of machine the hubs are for. It is there¬
fore not really simple, and it not mnemonic. A similar system
has been proposed for identifying costs: (i) Annealing; (2) As¬
sembling; (3) Babbitting; (4) Bending; (5) Blowing; (6)
Boring, and so on. This is subject to the same adverse criticism,
besides being based on no logical classification at all.
Many managers use a system which is an arbitrary combination
of numbers and letters. For instance, one symbolizes depart¬
ments thus: A, Administrative; B, Legal; C, Business, general
office; D, Sales; E, Accounting; F, Purchases; G, Engineering;
H, Drawing; I, Planning, and so on. This is used to identify
workmen, and departmental expenses. Thus 4G is workman
Number 4 in the engineering department; G4 is a subdivision of
engineering expense. A well-known accountant symbolizes
private ledger accounts by the same method. A to D is assets;
E to H, liabilities. Cash is Ai ; Notes Payable, lE. These are
all short, definite, and comparatively simple; but they lose all the
advantages that would accrue if they were suggestive.
Sometimes you find a combination of arbitrary and mnemonic
characters in a symbol. Sometimes an effort is made to give
mnemonic quality to numbers alone by grouping them. This
has been applied especially to the classification of expenses.
Thus one man gives this for a foundry: Direct labor, 150 and 151 ;
various expenses, 152 to 160; Supplies, 165 to 169; Maintenance,
170 to 175; Departmental expense, 180 to 187; Miscellaneous,
190 to 194; Commercial, Administrative, 200 to 207; and Com¬
mercial, Selling, 215 to 220.
Another large establishment groups, somewhat less minutely,
into Administration Expense, loi to 149; Selling Expense, 151
to 179; Distribution Expense, 181 to 199. This system is short,
definite, slightly mnemonic, and simple — too simple, in fact.
Those using it must either memorize the meanings of groups and
of single numbers, or else be constantly referring to a key. It
is therefore inconvenient to handle.
The group idea is carried to its logical conclusion in the Dewey
decimal system, well known from its use in public libraries. This
apparently elaborate system, when applied to a logical classifi-
478 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
cation, is in fact simple; and when frequently used it is highly
mnemonic on account of its strict logical associations. It is
brief and very definite. It can be applied to the filing of any
data in an industrial or commercial establishment, simply by
making a basic classification to fit the case; as for instance for
catalogues, clippings, drawings, memoranda, and so on. Its
great disadvantage is that its use is practically limited to filing.
We saw that by the Taylor system the symbol for the instruc¬
tions for the operation of a monotype keyboard would be DCM-
MKP. Let us compare this with what it might be by some of the
methods just described. By one method it might be 233; by
another, 17/11; by another, J6; by another, 14C (slightly
mnemonic) ; all of them short and fairly definite, but too simple
to be efficient, and in most cases not in the slightest degree sug¬
gestive. Another method might symbolize it MON4, which
would be better than any of the others. The Dewey system
would perhaps call it 677.823.19. Most of these systems could
not classify and symbolize such a detail at all, except in a purely
arbitrary fashion and such a symbol as they could get would
necessarily have an exceedingly restricted use.
The advantages of the Taylor system are first, that it is abso¬
lutely definite; for the moment you introduce a new factor in the
thing you have to change the symbol, hence you can have but
one symbol at any one time for one thing. It is mnemonic, for
the letters remind you of words whenever possible, and the ar¬
rangement in a logical classification indicated by the position of
the letters in the symbol helps out your memory of their signifi¬
cance. That it is brief in comparison with the full name of the
thing symbolized is obvious. It is as simple as is consistent with
efficiency; and in practice is far simpler than other systems, on
account of its qualities of definiteness and suggestiveness.
In addition to these advantages, the classification on which the
system is based includes the entire business, and consequently
the symbols used are applicable in every department and for
every function, including accounting, routing, handling of stores
and stock, checking progress of work, methods and details of
selling, the filing of all records, correspondence and data, and the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
479
arrangement and location of materials, parts in process, stocks of
finished goods, tools, machines and work-places. It is self-
indexing, like a dictionary or a city directory; and this not only
expedites the finding of any material, part, or record wanted, but
greatly facilitates the handling of requisitions, time tickets, bonus
tickets, and so on, for the costs department.
The time must come when a complete classification of all busi¬
ness will be made, similar to the Dewey classification of all
knowledge. This is a task which calls for the resources of a
Government department, or in default of that it should be under¬
taken gradually but with determination by our great universities.
And when it is made, the details should be s3mbolized in accord¬
ance with the system advocated in this article.
Class
Letter
Classification of Accounts
General Grouping
Departmental
Grouping
Detail Grouping
A
Auxiliary —>
AA
AHA Wages of engineer and firemen;
B
Business (Administrative)
AB
other labor connected with run¬
C
Selling
AC
ning of boilers, engines and other
D
Manufacturing departments
AD
machinery in Engine Room,
E
Erecting
AE Experimental work
AHB
F
AF
AHC Fixtures and furniture; tools
G
AG
and minor equipment in Engine
H
AH Heat, light, power
Room. Repairs and mainte¬
J
AJ 1
nance; not new work.
K
► Products
AK •—»
AHD
L
AL
AHE Engines, boilers, other machin¬
M
AM
ery, line shafting, pulleys, belts
N
AN
in the Engine Room. Repairs
P
AP
and maintenance; not new work.
R
AR
AHF Fuel, including freight cartage
S
Stores, Raw Materials, Tools
AS Storeroom
and receiving; also cost of dis¬
T
AT
posing of ashes.
U
1
AU
AHG Gas used throughout building.
V
' Products
AV
AHH To AHP unassigned.
W
AW
AHR Water Rent.
x
Part construction
AX
AHS Stores and supplies including
Y
Machinery, motive power
AY
stationery.
Z
Land and buildings
AZ
AHT to AHV unassigned.
AHW Piping and fixtures for steam.
gas, and water throughout fac¬
tory; also all electric wiring.
Repairs and maintenance; not
new work.
AHX to AHZ unassigned.
48o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
III
Taking Factory Costs Apart; How to Analyze, Classify
and Charge Expenses According to What
They Should Buy
It is probably too much to say that a business cannot exist
without an adequate cost accounting system. Stores and fac¬
tories have struggled along for years without it. There is a shoe
store in a western city which has what some might call a model
accounting system — that is, taking " model " in the sense of
" a miniature imitation of the real thing." The owner, who is
the buyer, chief clerk, accountant, and repair man, has one book
— the ordinary ten-cent Manila-covered butcher-shop memo¬
randum book. On the left-hand page he enters all expenditures,,
dated but unclassified; this includes such things as postage,,
wages, cartage, advertising, insurance, magazines, and also his
personal expenditures. On the right-hand page opposite are
listed all receipts, also unclassified; receipts from sales, repairs,,
interest on money loaned, and so on.
These columns are footed on each page, carried forward to the
next, the grand totals taken at the end of the month, and the
balance indicates to this man his profit or loss for the period.
Depreciation, discount, and such details as that are too fussy for
him to bother with. The store has been run on this basis for
going on ten years; and the fact that, while he is doing a $60,000
business, he has on his shelves about $50,000 worth of shoes aged
one to ten years has not thus far worried the proprietor.
It is too much to say that a man cannot live on one lung, just
as it would be rash to assert that a store can't get along with such
a system as the one just described. A man with one lung can get
along. He lives; but his vitality is low and his life is compara¬
tively short.
Most people, nevertheless, if they have a choice, prefer two
lungs. So the business that wants to be healthy and long-lived
prefers some accounting system which is at least sufficient for its
needs. Our friend's shoe store, for example, can hardly get along
permanently with a system which shows less than these facts t
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
481
Merchandise — gross sales, cost of goods sold, discounts taken
on purchases; Expense — buying expenses, selling expenses,
delivery expenses, management expenses and fixed charges,
losses from bad debts, losses from errors and goods returned.
Buying and selling expenses must include, of course, the salaries
of the buying and selling force, extra premiiuns for selling and an
itemized account for advertising. The wise manager deducts
from gross sales all returns and allowances, unless those are
covered by the factory from which he got his shoes. His cost of
goods sold includes purchases at billed prices, with a separate
account for discounts, and it also includes freight and cartage on
purchases. Above all, the wise man does not neglect the item
of depreciation and shrinkage. An imposing array of boxes of
shoes is not an evidence of prosperity if those shoes really belong
in a museum. Shoe dealers who make a specialty of novelties
are well aware of the fact that 50 per cent is none too much to
allow for depreciation. Some allowance has to be made even
for staples.
Delivery expense must include salaries and wages of delivery
force or the cost of delivery service by an outside company.
Management expenses and fixed charges should include rent,
heat, light, power, repairs and renewals of equipment, deprecia¬
tion of equipment, insurance on stock and equipment, taxes and
licenses, management and office salaries, office supplies and ex¬
penses, and anything else that cannot be charged in the items
already given. And as a kind of symptom chart the losses from
bad debts and cost of errors and goods returned should be kept
separately with the object of forcing them down to a minimum.
You may have noticed that interest is not included in this
analysis of costs. Raising this question will throw any conven¬
tion of accountants into debate in a minute; and this is not the
place to discuss the pros and cons in detail. I feel, however, that
there is no more reason for including interest in cost than for
including profits. If you put your money into business instead
of loaning it out, your interest becomes profit. If you have to
borrow part of the money to carry on your business, the interest
that you pay the other fellow is part of the profits that you lose
482
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
to him. Interest, like profits or dividends on capital stock, is
merely a share of the net surplus after all bills are paid. This
reasoning applies as well to a factory as it does to a store.
In a good many factories, all the costs are carried in the man¬
ager's head. This same manager's head also carries all the in¬
formation in regard to raw materials, ordered, on hand, issued,
needed. He also knows all about the time his orders are to be
delivered, just what stage of development they have reached in
the factory, what goes into them, and when and how. This
wonderful head also knows all about the men employed; how
long they have been there, how good their work is, when they are
deserving of promotion or advancement in wages, and how they
ought to do their jobs. The only thing its owner refuses to take
a chance on is the money due from customers — here, at least,
he is willing to admit that a paper record is better.
An X-ray analysis of the contents of such a head will show that
it is made up of a jumble of general impressions about everything,
with very little definite and accurate information about anything.
The man who knows the facts about his business is one who
records those facts as they arise and classifies the information
thus recorded. This is particularly true of factory costs. For
cost accounting, though in principle comparatively simple, is
in practice necessarily complicated, involving as it does many
little and elusive items. As you have probably read before,
costs like all Gaul are divided into three parts. There is the
material that goes into your product, the labor that goes into
your product, and all other material, labor and expenses that are
necessary to carrying on the business but are not sold directly.
The first two constitute your direct labor and material costs; the
third subdivision is your indirect cost, otherwise known as over¬
head " or " burden."
" Overhead " and " burden," however, are terms that ought
to be discarded, for they suggest something in the nature of a
weight or drag on the business.
These indirect costs in fact are at least as essential to the
maintenance of the business as the direct. Probably your salary,
you who read this, is an indirect expense; but you are not on that
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
483
account any more wilKng to admit that you are not indispensable
to the business. The brains of the manager usually get into the
product only indirectly — if at all. A large ratio of indirect
expense, therefore, may, contrary to the general impression, be
evidence of high efficiency, provided of course the indirect labor
is applied properly and economically with reference to the result
to be obtained.
There is a small plant in Philadelphia which employed six
years ago about a hundred men in the shop and six in the office.
This looked like an ideal situation, so far as the proportion of
overhead " was concerned. The plant, however, was losing
money and borrowing to make up a deficit. It applied for a loan
to one man who named as a condition on which the loan should
be granted, the requirement that the plant should be completely
reorganized. This was accepted and the reorganization effected.
The concern now has about seventy men in the shop and
twenty-five in the office — a proportion of overhead which would
give most managers the nightmare. As a result of this re-ar¬
rangement, however, the company is now, with a smaller force,
turning out three times its former product; and in spite of the
lower market price of the article it manufacturers, its net income
is two and a half times what it was. It has paid its debts and is
now turning over a substantial dividend. So much for the real
nature of " burden."
In analyzing and classifying your costs, the first thing to do is
to find out what they are. You will have to depend on records
and not on any man's head, however capacious. Material costs
should be taken directly from requisitions, without which no
materials should be allowed to go from the storeroom. These
requisitions should give the quantity, value of the material, and
the order number or the indirect expense to which it is to be
charged. All work done in the plant should also be recorded
either on a work ticket, which is the workman's authorization for
expending his labor, or on some other kind of reliable record
which records the amount of labor the workman has performed.
This ticket or record should also indicate the order or the expense
to which the labor cost is to be charged.
484
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
If you want accuracy in the allocation of labor cost, it is highly
important that the time spent on each order shall be recorded by
some one other than the workman, preferably by a clerk with a
a time stamp. With the best intentions in the world, the work¬
men will shuffle and juggle times in order to make a clean record
for the day, and they will also indulge necessarily in a consider¬
able amount of guessing. Workmen's time tickets filled out by
themselves run to round numbers, much as ages do when taken
by the census enumerator. The lady of twenty-nine and three-
quarters finds it most convenient to say " about twenty-five," as
her sister of thirty-seven is apt to put it " about thirty." The
workman who was not rushed and took an hour and fifteen
minutes on a job is very likely to send in a record of an hour and
a half, and away goes the accuracy of your labor cost.
When materials and labor are to be charged to specific products,
there is no great difficulty encountered in allocating the cost.
The trouble comes m connection with the materials and labor and
supervision that are to be charged to indirect expense.
Indirect expenses are so numerous and varied both in factories
and stores that classification becomes absolutely indispensable.
Once made, this classification becomes most easily workable when
reduced to a mnemonic system of symbols. In the rest of this
article, therefore, such a plan and method of classification and
symbolization, applicable with slight modification to practically
any manufacturing plant, will be described.
Your first question is: "Is the product on which work is done
to be sold ?" If the answer is " Yes," then the charge is a direct
one against product or " worked materials," which will ultimately
be sold as merchandise. If the answer is " No," then you must
ask: " Does the work done or the material used increase the per¬
manent value of the plant ?" If it is for land and buildings, or
machinery and motive power, the answer is undoubtedly " Yes,
and you will have two accounts: one for Land and Buildings, and
the other for Construction. If it is for fixtures, apparatus, tools,
and so forth, which depreciate rapidly, and on which it may be
advisable to charge half the cost at once to Shop Expense, and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
485
the other half to Construction, you have an account for Part
Construction.
If the work done or material used does not increase the per¬
manent value of the plant, then it must fall under the head of
General or Department Expense. There are some departments
of your business whose work does not directly affect the product
at all. For example, your accounting department and your sell¬
ing organization; you can manufacture without them if you are
interested only in making a product. You may charge one set
of expenses then directly to the selling department and another
set to what you may call administrative or business departments.
Another class of your expenses is necessary to carry on the work
of manufacturing such, for example, as power, storerooms, and
toolrooms. Without them, the product could not be manufac¬
tured at all. And yet they do not enter visibly into the finished
article to whose production they are so essential. These may be
either general expenses applicable to the whole plant or depart¬
mental shop expenses applicable to one department or another.
Now suppose we lay out a base sheet. First, you arrange the
alphabet in column, omitting I, 0, Q; then you fit in the broad
classifications already given, following so far as possible the
mnemonic method. You may call the general expenses which
are necessary for the manufacture of the product " Auxiliary
administrative expenses may be termed "Business"; selling
expenses may as well keep their own name; shop expenses may be
called " Departmental "; you may also have an item for erecting,
if the nature of your product is such that this is essential. These
can go in at the top of the alphabet; and the last letters, X, Y, Z,
may be for Part Construction, Construction, and Land and
Buildings, as defined above. Your base sheet will then look like
this:
A Auxiliary
S Stores, Raw Materials
C SeUing
D Manufacturing Departments
E Erecting
F to R Products
B Business
T Tools
U to W Products
X Part Construction
Y Machinery and Motive Power
Z Land and Buildings
486
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In order to connect this classification with other purposes
of the factory than cost accounting, it is advisable to use S
invariably as the first letter in the symbol for raw materials,
developing the rest of the symbol in the manner to be indicated
in a succeeding article. Similarly T is reserved for Tools in
the plant, where they are an important factor. The other let¬
ters then may be used for classes of product: such as G for
grinders, K for milling cutters, M for moulding machines, etc.;
or K for coats, T for trousers, U for suits, V for overcoats, etc.
Then you will proceed to subdivide each of these items: for
instance, your auxiliary group of expenses. A, might be further
analyzed like this:
AA to AD Unassigned
AE Experiments for the benefit
of manufacturing
AF
AG
AH Heat, light and power
AI to AR Unassigned
AS Storeroom
AT to AZ Unassigned
Then you will subdivide AH:
AHA Salaries or wages to the en¬
gineer and fireman when
their work cannot be charged
to any other expense item of
this department, and any
other labor connected with
running of boilers, engines,
generators, and other ma¬
chinery in the Engine Room.
AHB
AHC Fixtures and furniture, both
fixed and movable, and tools
and other minor equipment
in the Engine Room. Repairs
and maintenance, but not
new work.
AHD
AHE Engines, boilers, and all
Other machinery, including
fine shafting, pulleys, and
belts, in the Engine Room.
Repairs and maintenance,
but not new work.
AHE Fuel, includes all materials
used in firing boilers, inclu¬
sive of freight and cartage,
receiving and cost of dispos¬
ing of ashes.
AHG Gas used throughout build¬
ing
AHHtoAHP Unassigned
AHR Water Rent
AHS Stores and supplies including
stationery, which cannot be
charged to any other expense
item of this department.
AHTtoAHV Unassigned
AHW Piping and fixtures for steam,
gas and water. Also all elec¬
tric wiring, repairs and main¬
tenance, but not new work.
AHX to AHZ Unassigned
The same kind of analysis should be made of all other items,
including the product, which may be subdivided into the various
kinds of grinders, milling cutters, or suits and overcoats made.
To carry out this plan of classification in detail for a simple
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
487
plant requires a small volume and is a task not lightly to be
undertaken.
Such a classification must be made by each plant in accordance
with its own specific needs, following strictly the funamental
principles of approved cost accounting. When once done, how¬
ever, it is done for good; and until it is done, the management
must wander in outer darkness, so far as its costs are concerned.
If every expenditure of labor or material is made on a written
order or requisition, the symbol of the expense and the order
number should be on each one. When this is done, the cost
department can have no difficulty whatever in properly allocat¬
ing each cost. The allocation of direct labor and materials to the
product made is easy; but the proper distribution of indirect
expense over the product, where it must finally land and be paid
for by the customer, requires experience and careful thought.
Of the various ways of doing this, each has its advantages and
disadvantages. Unfortunately, it is not immaterial which one
is chosen, as the adoption of the wrong method may result in
disaster to the cost finding system. This question, however,
is a matter for separate and extended discussion. Let it suffice
now to call attention to the fact that there are at least a dozen
reliable books on this subject now on the market, to say nothing
of the swarm of " experts " ready at your call.
A cost system may be a thing of beauty in itself, but not neces¬
sarily a joy forever. For practical men, it must pass the test of
usefulness. When an automobile company finds that each car
is taking- $90 worth of brass, where $80 worth will do, the cost
system is worth $10 per car to it. If the costs show that a ma¬
terial costing $160 is used in each car, where another material
costing I30 will do just as well, this system is worth $130 per car
for this service.
A cost system constructed with sufficient minuteness and detail
will call attention to just such facts, provided the management
studies the costs as they come from the accounting department
and reads them intelligently. Two things are here required:
first, that the costs shall be detailed and accurate; second, that
the management shall treat them as an integral part of the busi-
488
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ness and make them serve the purposes of the business as defi¬
nitely as the labor he hires. A perfect cost system in the hands
of an unobservant or unintelligent manager is useless and expen¬
sive.
If your system shows that 30 per cent of your stock is of a kind
which depreciates at the rate of 50 per cent per year and induces
you to clean out that 30 per cent as quickly as possible, it may be
worth to you the difference between prosperity and bankruptcy.
And here again you must get facts that are real facts and act on
them with judgment and decision.
Many managers have found themselves borrowing from Peter
to pay Paul — making up the loss on one product out of the
profits on another. Handling a varied line of articles for each of
which the market is different, there is danger of this. A cost
system which differentiates between the articles sold and follows
each class through from purchase to the settlement of the cus¬
tomers' accounts, can know which are profitable and which are
not, and can cut off the unprofitable members. Failure to attend
to this is the direct cause of the decline and fall of many a com¬
pany.
Some manufacturers and dealers still cling to the old-fashioned
idea that it pays to sell cheap and often, that a quick turnover at
a small profit is better than a slow turnover at a large one. It is
a detail worth mentioning in connection with this that the ulti¬
mate consumer thereby gains. The cost system in one auto¬
mobile factory that enabled the management to cut off an even
$240 from the price of one of its models was a comfort both to the
manager and the consumer, and both had gained.
It takes as much judgment to know when to stop doing a thing
as when to do it. A system of records which is indispensable at
one time and for one purpose may be no longer needed when that
time has passed and its purpose has been fulfilled. In most places
a cost system, once developed, should be maintained; but there
are plants in which it may be discontinued once it has established
the cost of the product made. la a pottery factory, for example,
manufacturing the same line year in and year out, getting its
materials at the same price and able to account easily for varia-
Name of
Classification
General
Grouping
Departmental Grouping
Stores, Raw Materials S
Detail Grouping
Classified Stores, for various
purposes SV
Detail Division
Inks and Inking
Materials SVK
Detail Subdivision
Printing Inks SVKP
Detail Sub-groups
Black Printing Iidts SVKPB
SVKPA
SVKP I B
SVKPB
Black >
SVKP 2B
SVKPC
SVKP 3 B
SVKPD
SVKP 4 B
SVKPE
SVKP s B
SVKPF
SVKP 6 B
SVKPG
Green
SVKP 7 B
SVKPH
SVKPJ
SVKPK
SVKPL
SVKPM
SVKPN
Brown
SVKPP
Pink
SVKPQ
SVKPR
Red
SVKPS
SVKPT
SVKPU
Blue
SVKPV
Various inking
materials (ink-
oleum and
dryer)
SVKPW
White
SVKPX
SVKPY
Yellow
SVKPZ
Auxiliary
Bus. (Admin.)
Selling
Mfg. departmts.
Erecting
> Products
Stores, Raw Ma
terials —>—
Tools
1
Products
Part con¬
struction
Machinery
and motive
power
Land and
buildings
SA
SB
SC
SD
SE
SF
SG
SH
SJ
SK
SL
SM
SN
SP
SQ
SR
SS
ST
SU
SV
sw
SX
SY
Special stores for compos¬
ing room products
Forms, printed, and ruled
matter
Special stores for job
work
Special stores for press
room products
Classified stores used
for various purposes -
SV-A
SV-B
SV-C
SV-D
SV-E
SV-F
SV-G
SV-H
SV-J
SV-K
SV-L
SV-M
SV-N
SV-P
SV-Q
SV-R
sv-s
SV-T
sv-u
sv-v
sv-w
sv-x
SV-Y
sv-z
Hardware and supplies for
maintaining plant (and
equipment)
Inks and inking ma¬
terial —)-
Liquids, semi-liquids
and solids used in solu¬
tion, except inks
Mineral products not
elsewhere classified
Paper, boards, etc.
Office supplies not else¬
where classified
SVKA
SVKB
SVKC
SVKD
SVKE
SVKF
SVKG
SVKH
SVKJ
SVKK
SVKL
SVKM
SVKN
SVKP
SVKQ
SVKR
SVKS
SVKT
SVKU
SVKV
SVKW
SVKX
SVKY
SVKZ
Copying
inks
Lamp
blacks
Printing
inks —>—
Time stamp
ribbon
Writing fluids
Regular Black
Book Black
Catalogue Black
Form letter Black
Magazine Black
Process Black
Tablet Black
O3
i
I
g
S
S3
00
vO
490
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
tions in labor cost, once the cost of a line is determined, the system
may be safely allowed to go into disuse, retaining only so much of
it as might be necessary to ascertain the cost of a new line, if such
should be taken on. The conditions under which such a policy
would be safe are rare, and the best rule, when in doubt, is to
keep your cost system. In any action to abolish it, the burden
of proof is on the alleged exception.
IV
Listing Stock to Index Wastes;* How Classification
of Materials Cuts the Capital Investment
and Insures a Constant Supply
On many subjects of business administration, the recent report
of General William Crozier, Chief of Ordnance, to the Secretary
of War is of commanding interest. There is one paragraph in
this report bearing directly on the subject of this article. After
pointing out the savings from improved shop management and
premium system according to the Taylor methods of $240,461.93.
in the last year at the Water town Arsenal, there follows a para¬
graph on " surplus stock savings " which reads as follows:
" Inasmuch as scientific management more systematically
directs greater attention to all details of manufacturing work than
was previously bestowed, its trial by the department led to a
closer study, among other objects, of the amount and kind of
material that should be kept on hand for manufacturing purposes,
with the object of reducing such_stock to the lowest limit consis¬
tent with efficient and economical operation. The study given
this subject resulted in the adoption during the past year of a.
uniform system for. determining the amount of stock to be carried
and for providing for its replenishment. The over-accumulation
of stock is easily accomplished. Material is prone to be scattered
through a manufacturing establishment in unimpressive lots and
to rest in out of the way places unobserved.
"A careful determination under a scientific method of the
proper quantity of stock to be kept on hand revealed the fact
that in the case, of many items -the quantity had been excessive,
and that the stock of those items could be greatly reduced. The^
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
491
process of realizing upon this surplus by using it in current manu¬
facture was at once begun and will be continued until it is all
absorbed. It will take several years to accomplish this. During
the past year $122,789.61 worth of this surplus has been used.
This means that the manufacture of the articles for which the
surplus material was used was accomplished by the actual dis¬
bursement of $122,789.61 less than would otherwise have been
required, so that that amount of money was available for addi¬
tional work." He adds that " in the Springfield Armory there
is a remaining surplus of $130,313.53 over and above that men¬
tioned above."
Inasmuch as General Crozier's administration of the Ordnance
department has been recognized as one of the ablest feats of
management in the Government service, these figures and com¬
ments are all the more significant.
Statements like the above call to the mind of most managers
lurid visions of invading swarms of experts and miles and miles
of red tape. The longer some managers think of it, the redder
the tape becomes and the paler the $122,000. Many managers
reason thus: a system means overhead; overhead means disas¬
ter. This is the old-school way of thinking, which, it must be
confessed, still predominates.
And yet a little systematizing which will save $122,000 in an
institution doing $940,000 a year would presumably be worth
some attention and might even justify some expense.
Suppose that, in addition to pointing the way to using up sur¬
plus stock, the system under discussion reduces the amount of
stock that it is necessary to carry and thereby frees more capital.
The manager of one of the best known and best managed con¬
cerns in the United States told me not long ago that in a certain
department of his works, before he systematized his stores, he had
tied up in his storeroom the equivalent of the year's output of that
department. Since then the business of the department has
increased fifty per cent, the storerooms have been systematized,
and they now carry the equivalent of one-third of the year's
business.
492
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In another plant three thousand varieties of lace and embroi¬
deries were being carried on the shelves. The mere effort to
classify these led the management to consider how many they
could get along without, with the result that now less than three
hundred are to be carried regularly. Even a little printing plant
with about two hundred items of stores found that eighty-five
of these were superfluous. Another plant which prides itself on
its skepticism in regard to " system " maintains a special store¬
room for " excess and obsolete stores." That is the other way
to handle the problem.
The important point in connection with this is the fact that
these economies came about as a by-product of systematizing the
stores department. Every manager knows or has good reason to
suspect that he is carrying more of some kinds of stock than he
needs and less of others. In the one case he is tying up capital
unnecessarily; in the other he finds himself short of some material
or part just when he needs it for a special order. He knows that
this undesirable condition is due to an absence of system; but
what he does not know is how easy it is to systematize his stores
and how inevitably the mere act of systematizing provides a
remedy for these troubles. The fact of the matter is that the
mere classification of raw, partly manufactured, and finished
materials leads at once to a careful consideration of the real
needs of the business and an immediate adjustment to require¬
ments.
The classification is not the whole of the stores system; it is
merely the beginning. Once materials are classified, they must
be definitely and continuously accounted for; and they must
be kept under strict control and issued on requisition only, as
strictly as a bank controls and issues its cash. But a logical
classification and symbolization is the indispensable prerequisite
to a stores system, and this in itself was responsible for a large
part of the savings just described.
To begin your stores system, you must get your definitions
right. All the material in your place can be divided into two
classes: that which is still in the same condition in which you
purchased it, and that on which you have done some work. The
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
493
first class we will call stores or raw materials. Notwithstanding
the fact that when you purchase them they may be highly finished
products, for the purposes of your plant they are raw materials;
Class
Letter
Name of Classification
General Grouping
Stores, Raw Materials
Classified Stores, Various
Purposes
A
Auxiliary
SA
Stores used for various pur¬
SV-A
Stores not elsewhere
B
Business (Administrative)
poses not elsewhere classi¬
classified
C
Selling
fied
SV-B
Brass and products of
D
Mfg. departments
SB
brass not otherwise classi¬
E
Erecting
SC
Castings for chipping exer¬
fied
F
cises
SV-C
Iron castings and prod¬
G
SD
ucts of iron not else¬
H
SE
Special classification for ex¬
where classified
J
ercises not elsewhere classi¬
SV-D
K
fied
SV-E
L
SF
Castings for face plates
SV-F
M
SG
SV-G
N
SH
SV-H
P
SJ
SV-J
Belting, hangers, pulleys.
R
SK
and transmission devices
S
Stores, Raw Materials—>
SL
Castings used for lathes
not elsewhere classified
T ,
Tools
SM
SV-K
Ü
SN
Castings for engines
SV-L
Lubricants and liquids
V
SP
not elsewhere classified
W
SR
SV-M
Metals ànd their alloys
X
Part construction
ST
not elsewhere classified
Y
Machinery, motive
power
—>
SU
SV
Classified stores used for
various purposes
SV-N
SV-P
Z
Land and buildings
sw
SX
SY
sz
Stores for constructing
clamping or fastening
devices
SV-R
SV-S
SV-T
sv-u
sv-v
sv-w
sv-x
SV-Y
sv-z
Steel and product made
of same not elsewhere
classified
Tools and implements
not elsewhere classified
and for the purposes of cost keeping there is a material cost only
on them, with the exception of some slight indirect expense for
handling.
Of the materials on which you have done some work, some are
finished and in the stockroom. These we will call stock as dis¬
tinguished from stores. Others are partly finished and are either
in process now or are temporarily stored for further processing.
These we will call worked materials as distinguished from stores
494
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and stock. Inasmuch as finished stock is only worked materials
on which no further work is to be done, the classification of worked
materials develops into the classification for stock as will be
shown later.
With these definitions in mind, the first thing for us to do is to
list all the raw materials or stores in the place. We are not
interested in values now. What we want is items and quantities
and we want everything there is whether currently used or not.
It is those things we are tempted to omit which we have been
omitting for several years and which are accumulating and clut¬
tering up the place as well as eating up interest on the investment.
I know one concern which, when it started to list its materials
on hand, got together several carloads and disposed of them at
once rather than burden the classification with them.
A permanent súpply of some of these materials has to be kept.
Unless you change your product, you expect your storekeeper
to have these always on hand. Others, such as a desk or a type¬
writer, you purchase occasionally but do not carry in stores. It
is hardly worth while to do much bookkeeping on the latter class,
while it is highly essential that the former class be properly ac¬
counted for. You must, therefore, next divide your raw materials
into two groups: one the Unclassified, of which you will keep a
very simple record; the other the Classified, of which you wiU
keep a record of materials ordered, on hand, reserved for manu¬
facturing orders, and available. It is the latter group only which
it is worth while to classify minutely and symbolize.
As an ounce of illustration is worth a pound of explanation,
let us get busy on a real example of classification, taking first
the raw materials in a printing plant. After listing all the
materials in the place, we will leave out of consideration for
the present those which are not kept in stores at all, such as the
adding machine and the duplicating machine in the office. Of
the classifiable remainder it is obvious that some of them can be
used for many different purposes about the plant, while others
have one use only. Some, like type metal, can be used only for
composing-room products; others for press-room products or
for job work. There may also be a collection of forms printed
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
495
outside and therefore raw materials for this plant, which can be
used only for special purposes.
You remember that in the base sheet which is the foundation
of our whole mnemonic classification, S was reserved for stores.
Let us fit in our printing plant materials under S as follows: ^
SA SN
SB SP Special stores for press-room
SC Special stores for composing- products
room products SQ
SD SR
SE SS
SF Forms, printed and ruled mat- ST
ter SU
SG SV Classified stores used for a va-
SH riety of purposes
SJ Special stores for job work SW
SK SX
SL SY
SM SZ
Type metal obviously comes under SC, and by all the rules
will be known as SCM. Type metal, however, comes in different
chemical compositions and from different firms. " Type metal "
is a class rather than an individual thing. Our symbol must
finally symbolize the individual, but as the number of individuals
in a given class may and does in many cases exceed the number
of letters in the alphabet, we will drop the mnemonic feature at
this point and use numbers. Then the type metal purchased
from the A Company will be SCiM, that from the B Company,
SC2M, etc. The presence of the numeral before the last letter
of the symbol always shows the man who is dealing with this
classification that he is handling an individual item and not a
class of things; and this is another good reason for departing
from the mnemonic principle at this point.
The greater part of our stores, however, will fall in the SV
class, which will be subdivided thus:
^ In this and succeeding classifications in this article, a double colunm arrange¬
ment is used to save space. In practice this should never be done. A single
coliunn with all the letters allows room for the inevitable expansion.
496
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
SV-A
SV-B
SV-C
SV-D
SV-E
SV-F
SV-G
SV-H Hardware and other supplies
used for maintaining plant
and equipment, principally
metal
SV-J
SV-K Inks and inking material
SV-L Liquids, semi-liquids and sol¬
ids usually used in solution,
inks and inking material ex¬
cepted
SVKPA
SVKPB Black
SVKPC
SVKPD
SVKPE
SVKPF
SVKPG Green
SVKPH
SVKPJ
SVKPK
SVKPL
SVKPM
SVKPN Brown
SV-M Mineral products not élse-
where classified
SV-N
SV-P Papers, boards, etc.
SV-Q
SV-R
SV-S Ofl5ce supplies not elsewhere
classified
SV-T
SV-U
SV-V
SV-W
SV-X
SV-Y
SV-Z
inks
stamp ribbon
fluids
SVKPP Pink
SVKPQ
SVKPR Red
SVKPS
SVKPT
SVKPU Blue
SVKPV Various inking materials
(inkoleum and dryer)
SVKPW White
SVKPX
SVKPY Yellow
SVKPZ
Our inks will be subdivided like this:
SVKA
SVKB
SVKC Copying inks
SVKD
SVKE
SVKF
SVKG
SVKH
SVKJ
SVKK
SVKL Lamp blacks
SVKM
SVKN
SVKP Print!
SVKQ
SVKR
SVKS
SVKT Time-
SVKU
SVKV
SVKW Writir
SVKX
SVKY
SVKZ
Printing inks fall into the following groups:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
497
Finally we get down to each particular brand of ink we will
have:
SVKP I B Regular Black SVKP 5 B Magazine Black
SVKP 2 B Book Black SVKP 6 B Process Black
SVKP 3 B Catalogue Black SVKP 7 B Tablet Black
SVKP 4 B Form letter Black
To introduce another wrinkle, let us classify the paper stock.
Our base sheet for this will be as follows:
SV-PN
Book papers SV-PP
Card stock, including tag SV-PQ
board
Blotting paper
Lining paper
SV-PA
SV-PB
SV-PC
SV-PD
SV-PE
SV-PF
SV-PG
SV-PH
SV-PJ
SV-PK
SV-PL
SV-PM Manila
Book papers classify as follows:
SV-PBA
SV-PBB
SV-PBC Coated
SV-PBD
SV-PBE
SV-PBF
SV-PBG
SV-PBH Hand made
SV-PBJ Japan
SV-PBK
SV-PBL Laid
SV-PB M Machine finish
Tissue
SV-PR
SV-PS
SV-PT
SV-PU
SV-PV Cover
SV-PW Writing
SV-PX
SV-PY
SV-PZ Miscellaneous
SV-PBN English finish
SV-PBP
SV-PBQ
SV-PBR
SV-PB S Super calendered
SV-PBT Toned
SV-PBU Poster
SV-PBV
SV-PBW Wove
SV-PBX
SV-PBY
SV-PBZ Miscellaneous
We are now getting warm on the trail. If we want to classify
an English finish paper, for instance, from the Princeton Paper
Company, our symbol will be SV-PB iN. This paper, however,
has dimensions and the dimensions may be the only distinguish¬
ing features between several items of this particular stock. This
is what that hyphen is for after the V. Here you insert the
dimensions and this item will be symbolized SV 44 48 60 PBiN
which will mean English finish book paper made by the Princeton
SV-P
Papers, Boards, etc.
SV-PB Book Papers
SV-PBN Book Papers, English Finish
Individual Product Group
SV-PBiN English Finish Book Paper
Princeton Paper Co.
SV-PA
SV-PBA
SV-PB
I N
Princeton Paper Co.
SV2436 60PB1N
60 Pound, 24 X 36
SV-PB
Book Papers >
SV-PBB
SV-PB
2 N
SV2538 60PB1N
60 Pound, 25 X 38
SV-PC
Card stock, in¬
SV-PBC
Coated
SV-PB
3N
Hardy & Estes
SV 28 42 80 PBiN
80 Pound, 28 X 42
cluding tag board
SV-PBD
SV-PB
4N
SV 28 42 100 PBTN
100 Pound, 28 X 42
SV-PD
SV-PBE
SV-PB
SN
Walker MiUs Co.
SV 32 44 100 PBiN
100 Pound, 32 X 44
SV-PE
SV-PBF
SV-PB
6 N
Norway Paper Co.
SV 42 56 120 PBiN
120 Pound, 42 X 56
SV-PF
SV-PBG
SV-PB
7 N
SV 41 58 140 PBiN
140 Pound, 41 X 58
SV-PG
Blotting paper
SV-PBH
Hand made
SV-PB
8 N
SV-PH
SV-PBJ
Japan
SV-PB
9 N
SV-PJ
SV-PBK
SV-PB
10 N
SV-PK
SV-PBL
Laid
SV-PB
II N
SV-PL
Lining Paper
SV-PBM
Machine finish
SV-PB
12 N
SV-PM
Manila
SV-PBN
English Finish—^
SV-PB
13 N
SV-PN
SV-PBP
SV-PP
SV-PBQ
SV-PQ
SV-PBR
SV-PR
SV-PBS
Super calendered
SV-PS
SV-PBT
Toned
SV-PT
Tissue
SV-PBU
Poster
SV-PU
SV-PBV
SV-PV
Cover
SV-PBW
Wove
SV-PW
Writing
SV-PBX
SV-PX
SV-PBY
SV-PY
SV-PBZ
Miscellaneous
SV-PZ
Miscellaneous
vO
OQ
C/3
1
i
O
íi^
ä
i
s
fe
►S
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
499
Paper Company, size 44X48, weight 60 pounds to the ream, and
the symbol will tell the cost clerk and the storekeeper that this
is an item of classified stores used in the press department for
various purposes.
Some keen-eyed searcher for the logic of this matter has
undoubtedly observed that the classification of book papers is
not (as he would say) properly coordinated. All book papers
are either laid, wove, or coated, and therefore the other varieties
should be classified under SV-PBC coated, SV-PBL laid, or
SV-PBW wove. Machine finish, for instance, which is a variety
of wove paper, would be SV-PBWM, if this arrangement were
logically accurate. But to do this means making the symbol one
letter longer, whereas a practical classification such as the one
proposed is briefer, just as mnemonic, and just as definite and
accurate. In such instances as this, logic may safely be sacrificed
to expediency.
Perhaps it is worth while to illustrate this method in another
department of work: to wit, a machine shop. In. order not to
betray anybody's trade secrets, suppose we take a classification
of stores for the machine shop in a technical training school. The
base sheet reads like this :
SA Stores used for various pur- SM
poses not elsewhere classified SN Castings for engines
SB SP
SC Castings for chipping exercises SR
SD ST
SE Special classification for exer- SU
cises not elsewhere classified SV Stores for a variety of pur-
SF Castings for face plates poses
SG SW
SH SX
SJ SY
SK SZ Stores for constructing clamp-
SL Castings used for lathes ing or fastening devices
The only item coming under SA is S-AD, drip pans. S-AD is
subdivided thus:
S-AiD Drip pans rectangular
S23>^X6Xi>^ AiD Rectangular drip pans 233^" X 6"
X
2
tt
s 7.yi X 6 X sH AiD Rectangular drip pans X 6
X sH"-
Ln
Class
Letter
General Classification
Molding Machines M
Plain Power
Ramming Machines
MR
Base Group
P.P. Ramming Machines
MRB
Strain Bar Division
Base Group MRBB
R. H. Strain Bars
MRBiB
Factory Order Number
Added
A
Auxiliary
MA
B
Business (Administrative)
C
Selling
MB
D
Mfg. Departments
MC
E
Erecting
MD
F
ME
G
Grinders
MF
H
MG
J
MH
K
Milling Cutters
L
M
Molding Machines—>—
MJ
N
MK
P
ML
R
MM
S
Stores, Raw Materials
MN
T
Tools
MP
U
V
MR
W
X
Part Construction
Y
Machinery, Motive Power
MS
Z
Land and Buildings
MT
MU
MY
MW
MX
MY
MZ
Automatic Stripping
Plate Machines
Core Ramming Machines
Hinged Vibrator Ma¬
chines, Hand Ramming,
Hand Draft
Jarring Machines
Power Ramming,
Power Draft Machines
Plain Power
Ramming Machines—>-
Shockless Jarring Machines
MRA
MRB
MRC
MRD
MRE
MRP
MRG
MRH
MRJ
MRK
MRL
MRM
MRN
MRP
MRR
MRS
MRT
MRU
MRV
MRW
MRX
MRY
MRZ
Base Group-
Hose Group
Miscellaneous
Group
Yoke Group
MRBA
MRBB
MRBC
MRBD
MRBE
MRBF
MRBG
MRBH
MRBJ
MRBK
MRBL
MRBM
MRBN
MRBP
MRBR
MRBS
MRBT
MRBU
MRBV
MRBW
MRBX
MRBY
MRBZ
Strain Bar
Division —
Cylinder
Division
Miscellaneous
Division
Platen Division
MRBiB
MRB2B
MRB3B
MRB4B
Right Hand
Strain Bars
Left Hand Strain
Bars
Trunnions
Trunnion Shafts
MRBiB 68
Right Hand
Strain Bars,
68th Lot
Manu¬
factured
Co
i
I
O
il-
íi-
s
S
Ë
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
You will observe that i is used for rectangular drip pans,
although this place has pans of no other shape. This is to pre¬
serve the principle of always having a numeral before the last
mnemonic letter. You will also observe that the dimensions
are here inserted immediately after the S. This is due to the
fact that the dimensions cannot be placed anywhere else in so
short a symbol without conflicting with the numeral which indi¬
cates the individual.
Here as elsewhere the SV classification is the largest and most
important.
The SV base sheet follows :
SV-A Stores not elsewhere classi¬
fied
SV-B Brass and products of brass
not otherwise classified
SV-C Iron castings and products of
iron not elsewhere classified
SV-D
SV-E
SV-F
SV-G
SV-H
SV-J Belting, hangers, pulleys,
and transmission devices not
elsewhere classified
SV-K
SV-L Lubricants and liquids not
elsewhere classified
Note that SV-T, Tools and implements not elsewhere classified,
refers to the tools while still in stores, and not to those in the tool
room. The subject of tool classification is, as Kipling would say,
another story. It is probably unnecessary to illustrate further
the method of constructing a classification for raw materials.
V
Keeping Tab on Finished Parts; How Mnemonic
Classification of Products Saves Time and
Prevents Error in Factory and Office
In the last section on stores classification, you remember, I
pointed out the advantages to be gained from the standardization
SV-M Metals and their alloys not
elsewhere classified
SV-N
SV-P
SV-R
SV-S Steel and products made of
same not elsewhere classified
SV-T Tools and implements not
elsewhere classified
SV-U
SV-V
SV-W
SV-X
SV-Y
SV-Z
502
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
which always accompanies the mere effort to classify materials.
This benefit comes not only to stores system, but to the cost
system, filing system, and other departments of the business
when classification is undertaken in those departments. The
classification even of parts in process has the same result and has
led to the modification and improvement of design in machines.
For instance, a large concern, manufacturing vehicles of all sorts,
found, when it began to classify parts, that it had slightly dif¬
ferent sized hubs on almost every wheel made — some two hun¬
dred and thirty varieties. The most obvious thing to do was,
of course, to reduce this enormous variety, which was brought
down finally to twenty-two. The economies from this change
are easy for any practical man to calculate.
The classification of stores, as was seen, is an easy and simple
matter, which can be done by almost any one who can tell a B
from a buzzsaw. If you start with your definitions right,
remembering that stores are raw materials — that is, have had
no work done on them in your plant, while worked materials are
all parts which have had some labor expended on them by you,
including finished parts or stock — the rest is easy.
The classification of worked materials, however, is not quite
so simple as that of stores, for it must be based upon a strictly .
logical analysis of the product being made and this analysis can
be made only by one thoroughly familiar with the product and
the details of its design and construction. Inasmuch as the
classification should be made only of those parts which at any
stage of the process may be treated as units, it is necessary for
the classifier to know what these units are. Since, further, the
classification must be so made that it automatically reduces
down to the finished product as the parts become assembled, the
relation of one part to another and to the whole must be clearly
understood.
This information should be gathered from the drawings and
bills of materials for the product. The bill of materials shows
the entire list of raw materials and partly finished parts going
into the machine, together with the dimensions and quantity of
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
503
each. The drawing shows the shape and dimensions of each
part of the finished product and the method of bringing these
parts together.
A very complex product, such as a machine, consists first of
several large groups of parts. Take, for example, a molding
machine, such as is found in up-to-date foundries. This machine
consists of four groups, any one of which may be assembled
independently and put into worked materials stores if neces¬
sary.
These are the base group, the hose group, the yoke group and
the miscellaneous group, the latter consisting mainly of those
parts which are necessary for the assembling of the other three
groups into the completed machine. Again, each of these groups
is made up of divisions which may be made independently: the
base group, for example, consists of a strain bar division, a
cylinder division, a platen division and, again, a miscellaneous
division. These divisions likewise consist of sections, sub¬
sections, elements, and so on, until you get down to the separate
pieces which go into the machine.
In the original base sheet which ties together all classifications
into the cost classification, the letters F to W, with the exceptions
of S and T, were reserved for products. Suppose that you take
M for molding machines. Molding machines are of several
varieties of which the following are a few examples:
MA Automatic Stripping Plate
Machines
MB
MC Core Ramming Machines
MD
ME
MF
MG
MH Hinged Vibrator Machines,
Hand Ramming, Hand Draft
MJ Jarring Machines
MK
ML
MM
MN
MP Power Ramming, Power Draft
Machines
MR Plain Power Ramming Ma¬
chines
MS Shockless Jarring Machines
MT
MU
MV
MW
MX
MY
MZ
504
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
We are dealing with a plain power ramming machine, MR,
Classifying the groups composing this machine we get:
MRA
MRB Base Group
MRC
MRD
MRE
MRF
MRG
MRH Hose Group
MRJ
MRK
MRL
MRM Miscellaneous group
The base group divides into:
MRBA
MRBB Strain bar division
MRBC Cylinder division
MRBD
MRBE
MRBF
MRB G
MRBH
MRBJ
MRBK
MRBL
MRB M Miscellaneous division
MRN
MRP
MRR
MRS
MRT
MRU
MRV
MRW
MRX
MR Y Yoke group
MRZ
MRBN
MRBP Platen division
MRBR
MRBS
MRBT
MRBU
MRBV
MRBW
MRBX
MRBY
MRBZ
And the strain bar division again resolves itself into the final
units or elements as follows:
MRBiB Right hand strain bars MRB3B
MRB2B Left hand strain bars MRB4B
Trunnions
Trunnion shafts
It frequently happens, as in the case of these molding machines,
that several different sizes of the same design are manufactured.
The symbols for all these sizes and their parts are exactly alike,
except that some significant dimension peculiar to each size is
selected and inserted after the first letter of the symbol.
The particular right hand strain bar we have in mind may be
for a machine with a platen 10 X 32 inches; and our symbol for
that piece of metal then will be M 10 32 RBiB. If this strain
bar were for a machine with a platen 16 X 48 inches, its symbol
would be M 16 48 RBiB.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Notice how these s5mibols develop into the symbol for the com¬
plete machine. We start manufacturing on M lo 32 RBiB, the
right hand strain bars; M 10 32 RB2B the left hand strain bars.
When these are made and assembled into the strain bar division,
they become M10 32 RBB. In the meantime the cylinder divi¬
sion, M 10 32 RBC, and the platen division, M 10 32 RBP, have
been made in another part of the shop. These, together with
the miscellaneous division M 10 32 RBM, are brought together
to be assembled into the base group of this machine. When
this is done, B for strain bar division, C for cylinder division, M
for miscellaneous division, and P for platen division, drop out
of the symbol and we have the symbol M 10 32 RB as the symbol
for the base group. While^ this is going on, the hose group,
M 10 32 RH, and the yoke group, M 10 32 RY, have been made
up and assembled and these, together with the miscellaneous
group, go to the final assembling, from which emerges the com¬
pleted machine, M 10 32 R, which means a plain power ramming
machine with a platen 10 X 32 inches.
Obviously, the same set of drawings, route charts, progress
sheets, and so forth, may be used for this machine over and over
again. It is important, however, that we keep track of different
lots going through. It happens that this particular machine is
sent through in lots of fifty and each lot is numbered serially.
The last lot is, perhaps. No. 68. This is indicated by adding
the lot number at the end of the symbol.
If we want to s3nnbolize all the operations on this machine all
we have to do is to prefix a number to the symbol of the piece,
division or group on which the work is to be done. Thus the
first operation on the right hand strain bar may be to lay out, the
second operation to drill. We indicate this simply as i M 10 32
RBiB 68; 2 M 10 32 RBiB 68. Every piece of material used
in this machine and every bit of labor that goes into it, if con¬
sistently symbolized, is charged at once by the cost clerk to this
sixty-eighth lot of M 10 32 R. Progress sheets are easily kept
from operation tickets, which contain the symbol for the opera¬
tion and the piece worked on; and the stage of development of
any job in the plant is easily determined at any time. Each
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
piece and each operation is positively and accurately identified
without the possibility of confusion with any other piece or any
other operation. Instructions, orders, and accounts require less
writing, and are easily checked because an inconsistency or a
mistake in the symbol sticks out like a sore thumb.
If, for example, you saw a symbol 2 M lo 3 RBiB 68, you
would know that something is wrong, because theré is no power
ramming machine with a platen 10 X 3. Or if you saw a symbol
I H 10 32 RBiB 68, you would know that something is wrong
with that, because there is no machine manufactured by this
Company with an H as the first letter of the symbol. On the
other hand, if the machine or part were merely numbered as is
the usual practice, a part whose real number is 273648 might by
the copyist's error be called 276348, and there is nothing in that
symbol to show any one that a mistake has been made. Such an
error can be discovered only when the part is brought out and
shown to be the wrong one.
Symbols developed in this way for stores and worked materials
are self-expanding and self-indexing. It is evident that, once
your base sheets either of stores or of worked materials are prop¬
erly made, it is merely a matter of logical deduction to fit any
article into its appropriate place. In the case of stores this is
done by a clerk. In the case of worked materials on a compli¬
cated machine, it must be done by one familiar with the product.
After the symbols are made they are arranged alphabetically
like the words in a dictionary; and the symbol for any article, or
conversely the name of the article corresponding to any symbol,
is found as easily as you find your name in the directory. If you
start with the symbol you find the corresponding name of the
part exactly as you find the definition of a word in the dictionary.
If you start with the name of a part and want the symbol you
have an approximate idea of its place in the machine and then
follow down through group, division, section, until you find the
unit you are looking for.
It is evident that the use of these symbols for stores, worked
materials, and finished stock is manifold. In the first place,
they identify the items and, as there is but one S3mibol to one
Class
Letter
G
Construction
GR Real estate
GRG Construction
of new buildings
GRGN Interior
appointments
GRGNL Lighting
GRGNLL Oil
A
GA
GRA
GRGA
GRGNA
GRGNLA
GRGNL I L
D & S oil for
B
GB
CRB
CRCB
CRCNB
GRGNLB
lanterns
G
Construction
GG
Circuits, loops,
GRG
Construction of
GRCC
Contracts
GRGNG
GRGNLC
GRGNL 2 L
D & S gasoline
D
phantoms, and
new buildings
CRCND
GRGNLD
for flambeaux
£
Equipment
so on
CRD
GRDC
CRCNE
CRCNLE
Electric
GRGNL 3 L
F
Finance and
GD
GRE
GRCE
CRCNF
Furnishing
wiring
GRGNL 4 L
accounts
GE
GRF
GRCF
CRCNG
CRCNLF
G
General
GF
GRG
CRCG
CRGNH
Heating
CRCNLG
Gas fixtures
H
GG
CRH
CRCH
plant
CRCNLH
J
GH
CRJ
CRCJ
CRCNJ
CRCNLJ
K
CJ
CRK
CRCK
CRCNK
CRCNLK
L
GK
Gables
GRL
CRCL
CRCNL
Lighting
CRCNLL
Oil
M
GL
Pole lines
CRM
Maintenance of
CROM
CRCNM
CRCNLM
N
GM
real estate
CRCN
Interior
CRCNN
CRCNLN
P
Operation
CN
Conduits
CRN
appointments
CRCNP
CRCNLP
R
Rates
CP
Poles, wires,
CRP
Purchase of
CRCP
Plans and
CRCNR
CRCNLR
S
and so on
property
specifications
CRCNS
CRCNLS
T
Real estate
CRR
CRCR
CRCNT
CRCNLT
U
GR
GRS
CRCS
CRCNU
CRCNLU
V
CS
CRT
CRCT
CRCNV
CRCNLV
W
CT
CRU
CRCU
CRCNW
CRCNLW
X
Executive
CU
CRY
CRCV
CRCNX
CRCNLX
Y
GV
Private lines.
CRW
GROW
CRCNY
CRCNLY
Z
wire, and so on
CRX
CRCX
CRCNZ
CRCNLZ
GW
CRY
CRCY
GX
CRZ
CRCZ
GY
GZ
Co
i
s
i
§
fe
Cn
O
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
item, they eliminate the possibility of mistake and accidental
substitution of one article for another. In the second place, they
make it possible for the cost department to trace accurately each
item of labor and material expenditure, since the production
ticket on which the work is done or the requisition on which
materials were issued has the symbol of the product on it. In
the third place, the worked materials symbols provide a basis for
routing the work through the shop and, if properly made, they
show the superintendent what parts of the product can be started
independently and in what order parts can be assembled. In
the fourth place, by reducing the amount of writing required,
they make possible the transmission of all orders in writing and
the consequent fixing of responsibility. Of other advantages
not the least is the by-product pointed out several times in these
articles: the standardization of materials and of methods which,
in practice, invariably accompanies the mere effort to classify
and symbolize.
VI
Right Filing and Easy Finding; How a Logical Mnemonic
Classification Expedites the Handling of
Records and Correspondence
The young lady file clerk happened to remark inadvertently:
" This is my twenty-sixth birthday." Suddenly recovering
herself she said: " For conscience's sake, don't let that get out."
An unfeeling official of the company who was passing through the
file room just then suggested: " Don't worry; just put that in¬
formation in the files and it will never see the light of day again."
This official knew from the depths of bitter experience how easy
it is to file things and how extremely difficult to find them after
they are filed. A filing system often illustrates the proposition
that a thing may be lost though you know where it is, as the
traveler observed when his watch slipped overboard into the
Atlantic.
The experience of this particular concern is typical and worth
narrating. In the expectation of handling a great deal of corre¬
spondence, they started out fully impressed with the importance
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
509
of having this correspondence easily accessible. They engaged a
promising-looking young man, one of those thin-faced blonds
with broad forehead and pointed chin and bright blue eyes behind
a pair of spectacles, who gave the impression of keen intellectual
alertness and analytic power. The material to be handled con¬
sisted of all the usual correspondence of current interest and, in
addition, a large amount of correspondence of permanent interest
which had to be made easily accessible. It was also necessary
to provide for the filing of large quantities of data on a wide
variety of subjects. The young man was told to devise a system
to take care of this.
Being fully imbued with the American spirit of independence
and initiative, he decided to make a classification of knowledge,
at least so much of it as was involved in this particular business,
on his own original lines. The classification naturally included a
great deal that the young man knew and a great deal more that
he did not. It ranged all the way from the design of paper clips,
through the sanitary properties of lace curtains, to the compara¬
tive merits of the American and the British constitutions, with an
annex for the mysteries of theology. Every item was numbered,
a set of vertical files purchased and equipped with folders num¬
bered serially- Every letter and bit of information filed was to
have a number attached to it indicating its subject matter and
put in the folder under that number, and all correspondence was
then to be cross-indexed by name.
This was the system that was turned over to the young lady
file clerk. After spending several weeks trying to get the hang
of the classification, she started in to put away the enormous mass
of literature that had accumulated while she was studying the
system. It took her about one day to discover that most items
could just as well be classified under four or five heads, and that
almost every piece of paper she handled had to be classified under
two or more. She also found it easier in most cases to start a
new subject and give it a new number than to hunt through the
classification and find the one already assigned. And when it
came to cross-indexing, she also used her initiative with reference
to whether she would index by the name of the individual or the
name of the firm, and was quite impartial.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The result of this " system " may easily be imagined. The
writer of this article was one of the officials who suffered by it;
and the only way out that I could find (under all the circum¬
stances) was to run a separate filing system of my own in charge
of my secretary. This meant that every letter I wrote had to
have two carbons: one for myself and the other for the official
file; and that every letter that came in to me was kept in my own
office, instead of in the general file.
After this condition had existed for three or four months, an
organization that makes a business of filing systems was invited
to come in and straighten it out. They installed a different type
of filing cabinet, put a different kind of tab on the folder, arranged
a perfect rainbow of colors in the card-index cross-references (all
of which they carried in stock at reasonable prices), and left a
neatly printed and bound set of instructions. This complica¬
tion was grafted on at once, and our latter state was worse than
our first. By this time the other executives had all been forced
to start their own filing systems, and so it continued until the
firm went out of business — each executive a king in his own
office, and the central files a cemetery.
A good filing system has more than a sentimental value. Along
comes a hurry-up order for an estimate on a special machine. You
remember making one of these three years ago. At that time it
took three weeks to prepare your estimate. You can save that
three weeks' delay now if you can find the former estimate; and
if you cannot find it, you either lose the order or make a wild
guess, on which you will probably lose money. A filing depart¬
ment which provides for the speedy recovery of any document put
away in it has an immediate cash value.
You are perhaps a member of a professional society which asks
you to prepare for their next meeting a paper on the tensile
strength of various grades of yarn. You have been experiment¬
ing on this for many years and your data are filed away some¬
where. Realizing the compliment implied in their request for
your information, you feel under obligation to make your report
as complete and exact as possible. It is worth a great deal to
your professional reputation to have a filing system which is
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
certain to contain all the records you have made on this
subject.
Or it may be that you are in charge of an office that has very
large quantities of incoming mail; you are perhaps maintaining a
force of fifteen file clerks who receive twelve dollars a week. If
one way of filing your mail takes one-half the time that your
present method consumes, the improved method is worth about
ninety dollars a week to you.
The President's Commission on Economy and Efficiency
points out that " the departments in Washington receive an¬
nually 43,000,000 communications and dispatch during a like
period 22,000,000, making a total of 65,000,000 communications
handled each year." Twenty-five million of these are filed at a
cost of $260,000. It is interesting to note in this connection
that the cost per thousand for filing varies between $6.53 in
the Post Office Department and $20.33 Department of the
Interior, the latter being 300 per cent more than the former.
According to the Commission, the essential requirements of a
filing system are the following:
" (a) Certainty of obtaining a particular paper or of obtaining
all the papers relating to a particular subject; and this certainty
to be independent of the time that has elapsed since the filing of
the paper.
" (b) Rapidity of obtaining a particular paper or of obtaining
all papers relating to a particular subject; and this rapidity to be
only slightly affected by the time which has elapsed since filing.
" (c) Rapidity with which documents may be filed.
" (d) Cheapness of operating the system.
" (e) Simplicity.
" (J) Reduction to a minimum of the space required for
documents.
" (g) Miscellaneous minor requirements and desirable features,
such as cross-references, numbering, and so on.
To meet these requirements, it is necessary that every paper
for which it is reasonably certain there will be a demand shall be
filed; that all papers on a given subject shall always be filed in
the same place and so indexed that they can readily be found;
512
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
that the basis for indexing shall be such that the proper identifi¬
cation mark can quickly be placed on each paper preparatory to
filing; that the files be so arranged and indexed that the proper
place for each paper can be readily found; that the system be
simple enough for an average ten-dollar or twelve-dollar clerk to
handle; that such cross-references be maintained as are really
necessary, and no others.
The one absolutely indispensable prerequisite to an efficient
filing system is a logical and complete classification of the material
to be handled. This classification is the basis of the symbol — be
it a number, a letter, a sign, or a combination of these — which is
placed upon each paper and is the guide to be followed in filing
and in finding it. Unless this classification groups the entire
subject matter handled by the concern in a manner so logical
that all intelligent people can easily use it in the same way, and
unless further it provides a place for each and every subject on
which the concern may require information, the filing system is
sure to fail. The first thing to do then in the filing department
as elsewhere in the business, is to make such a classification and
to adopt, a system of symbols by which its use may be facilitated.
The Commission on Economy and Efficiency recommends for
this purpose the Dewey decimal classification, designed to cover
" all knowledge." This classification was described and criti¬
cized in section II of this series. In addition to what was said
there, it may be remarked at this point that very few concerns
are practically interested in a classification which covers all
knowledge. There are of course individuals in most concerns
who carry all knowledge in their heads but, as a rule, the respon¬
sible officials are not deeply interested in that fact. Each office
has its own limited field; and the most that the Dewey system
can do in such a field is to suggest a mode of classification and
of numbering the items. The Commission on Economy and
Efficiency illustrates this by an application to a telephone com¬
pany, as follows:
ooo General 400 Equipment
100 Executive 500 Operation
200 Finance and, accounts 600 Rates
300 Construction
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
513
Each of the above general classes is susceptible of further sub¬
division by the employment of additional digits. For example,
the heading " 300: Construction " is subdivided as follows:
300 Construction 340 Conduits
310 Real Estate 350 Poles, wires, etc.
320 Pole lines 360 Cables
330 Circuits, loops, phantoms, etc. 370 Private lines, wire, etc.
310: Real Estate is subdivided thus :
310 Real Estate 310.2 Construction of new build-
310.1 Purchase of property ings
310.3 Maintenance of real estate
310.2: Construction is subdivided as follows :
310.2 Construction of new buildings 310.22 Contracts for new buildings
310.21 Plans and specifications 310.23 Interior appointments
310.23 : Interior Appointments has these subdivisions :
310.23 Interior appointments 310.232 Heating plant
310.231 Furnishing 310.233 Lighting
310.233: Lighting is subdivided into :
310.233 Lighting 310.233.2 Gas fixtures
310.233.1 Electric wiring 310.233.3 Oil
The method of the Dewey system is in the main correct: to
wit, to enumerate, first, all the kinds of information to be classi¬
fied; second, to group these items into a limited number of classes;
third, to give each of these classes a definite and unchanging
symbol; fourth, to expand the classification under each group and
symbolize each subdivision by an addition to the symbol for the
group; fifth, to file all correspondence, data, and so on, numeri¬
cally or alphabetically in accordance with the symbol.
The two advantages that the mnemonic system of classifica¬
tion and symbolization has over the Dewey system are: first, that
the twenty-three letters of the alphabet used in the mnemonic
system give, the. opportunity for a more rational classification
than the ten possible groups of the decimal system; second, that
a symbol consisting of letters may be made more easily mnemonic,
i. e., each letter being as a rule the initial of the term symbolized,
recalls that term to mind more easily than a number arbitrarily
chosen for that purpose. There is nothing about the expression
" 310.233.3 " to suggest " Oil," as a subdivision of " Lighting "
514
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
under " Interior Appointments " included in the " Construction
of new buildings " under the heading of " Real estate " as a sub¬
division of " Construction," unless you have beaten the meaning
of these numerals into your head by main force. In the preface
to the seventh edition of Decimal Classification, Mr. Dewey
says that " 016.581.974.742 readily translates itself to users of the
system into ' Bibliography of the Flora of Albany Co., N.Y.' "
Without going behind the classification for the correspondence
of the telephone company given by the Commission, suppose we
symbolize it on a mnemonic basis. Our base sheet will be this:
A
B
«
C Construction
D
E
F
G
H
Operation
Rates
Equipment
Finance & accounts
General
J
K
L
M
N
P
R
S
T
U
V
W
X Executive
Y
Z
C: Construction will be subdivided like this:
CA
CE
CC Circuits, loops, phantoms, etc.
CD
CE
CE
CG
CH
CJ
CK Cables
CL Pole lines
CM
CN Conduits
CP Poles, wires, etc.
CR Real estate
CS
CT
CU
CV Private lines, wire, etc.
CW
CX
CY
CZ
CR: Real estate will be taken care of under the following
headings:
CRA CRF
CRB CRG
CRC Construction of new build- CRH
ings CRJ
CRD CRK
CRE CRL
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
515
CRM Maintenance of real estate
CRU
CRN
CRV
CRP Purchase of property
CRW
CRR
CRX
CRS
CRY
CRT
CRZ
Construction of new buildings will involve the following
operations:
CRCA
CRCN Interior appointments
CRCB
CRCP Plans and specifications
CRCC Contracts
CRCR
CRCD
CRCS
CRCE
CRCT
CRCF
CRCU
CRCG
CRCV
CRCH
CRCW
CRCJ
CRCX
CRCK
CRCY
CRCL
CRCZ
CRCM
Interior appointments are thus subdivided:
CRCNA
CRCNN
CRCNB
CRCNP
CRCNC
CRCNR
CRCND
CRCNS
CRCNE
CRCNT
CRCNF Furnishing
CRCNU
CRCNG
CRCNV
CRCNH Heating plant
CRCNW
CRCNJ
CRCNX
CRCNK
CRCNY
CRCNL Lighting
CRCNZ
CRCNM
Classification of lighting is further carried out as follows:
CRCNLA
CRCNLN
CRCNLB
CRCNLP
CRCNLC
CRCNLR
CRCNLD
CRCNLS
CRCNLE Electric wiring
CRCNLT
CRCNLF
CRCNLU
CRCNLG Gas fixtures
CRCNLV
CRCNLH
CRCNLW
CRCNLJ
CRCNLX
CRCNLK
CRCNLY
CRCNLL OU
CRCNLZ
CRCNLM
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
If two or three kinds of oil are used, they will be designated as
CRCNLiL, CRCNL2L, etc., as already explained. I think it
may fairly be claimed that this symbol is at least more intelligible
than 310.233.3," and it has the further advantage of automati¬
cally checking itself. If, for instance, some one ordered oil and
gave the symbol CRPNL2L, the purchase agent would know at
once that there was something the matter with it because " P "
in that particular location refers to the purchase of real estate
and could not possibly mean " Construction of new buildings."
But, if the order came for 310.133.3, the " i " might stand for
construction " as well as for " purchasing," and nobody off¬
hand would know the difference without consulting the key to
the classification.
The classification given by the Commission is used here simply
as an illustration and not as an example of a good classification.
If it were to be used for correspondence alone, it might do; but
if, as was pointed out in section I, one classification can be
made to do service for purchasing, costs, operation, filing, selling,
and any other functions deemed advisable to perform, such a
classification is in the end simpler and more economical.
Suppose, for example, we are running a store and we want to
file copies of dodgers we have sent out advertising special sales.
If we have to symbolize these dodgers for filing purposes, we may
as well, if possible, use the same symbol for the dodgers as an
expense item and for instructions and orders as to their prepara¬
tion. If we are following the method described in these articles,
we will first analyze the functions of a store and, in most cases,
advertising will be one of our main headings. From the cost
accounting point of view, advertising is obviously not a direct
expense. It is merely an aid to the sale of merchandise. It is
therefore an auxiliary expense and will fall under the broad group
A in the cost classification. We will also use A specifically for
advertising, and then we can get up a cost sheet like this:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
517
AA — Advertising
AAA Salaries and wages, except
AAN
Newspapers
window-dressers
AAP
Programs
AAB Billboards
AAR
Reclamation of errors
AAC Contributions
AAS
Supplies and stationery, ex¬
AAD Dodgers
cept for window-dressing
AAE
AAT
AAF
AAU
AAG Catalogues
AAV
Advertising mediums not
AAH
elsewhere classified
AAJ
AAW
Window-dressing
AAK
AAX
AAL Circular letters
AAY
AAM Magazines
AAZ
Obviously we will symbolize
dodgers AAD, and we will file
them in the folder under that symbol. If our files are alphabeti¬
cally arranged as they should be, all advertising matter will be
together under AA. We can have there not only our own adver¬
tisements, but similar advertisements we have gathered in other
places as suggestions. We can have in the same place a record
of the cost of each type of advertising and we can have there
records of all instructions and orders issued at any time for the
preparation of dodgers. We can keep these all in the same file if
we like; or, as will in most cases be preferable, we can have sepa¬
rate files for costs, for instructions, and for samples; but all
symbolized in the same way.
Of course the minuteness of the subdivision will vary with the
size and demands of the business. For a small concern, a few
groups will be sufficient, and it is always possible, by the method
here described, to subdivide a group at any time when it gets to
the point of unwieldiness. It is often advisable also to use tem¬
porary groupings. If you are engaged in construction work you
will want all the correspondence and data on a live job together
under the job number where it is easily accessible. When a job
is finished, you will dispose of a good deal of the papers in your
files, and what is left of permanent value may be re-filed with
safety under the general subject classification.
Again, for the purposes of an advertising campaign in a certain
section of the country, you may want to group geographically all
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the data bearing on that section until the campaign is over.
Whenever such a reclassification is made, a note must invariably
be left in the files from which papers are taken indicating thè new
classification to which these have been removed and in which, of
course, they are to be found.
If it is found desirable to carry the classification to great
minuteness, it will often be necessary to classify letters and other
papers under several heads. The usual way is to file the docu¬
ment under its most important heading and put a note under the
other headings referring to the place where it is filed. It is some¬
times better to brief other headings and file them where they
belong. Where the files are constantly used, the latter method
in the long run saves time. Letters sent from your office should
deal with but one subject at a time. If they cover several subjects,
separate letters should be written for each and filed accordingly.
This is also in many cases a time and money saver and a strong
preventive of error.
Most concerns using this system find cross-indexes in the card
form unnecessary. One is not usually interested in finding a
letter from a particular person except on account of the subject
matter of the letter; and if the subject matter is known, it can
be found without reference to the name of the writer. If, how¬
ever, it is desirable to keep track of the name, this can easily be
done with a simple card index, care being taken to index each
paper under the name both of the writer and of the firm, as one
or the other is easily (and usually) forgotten after the lapse of a
few months.
Every paper should have stamped on it a blank in which the
mail clerk or other responsible individual may write the symbol
under which it is to be filed. In case of incoming mail, the sym¬
bol should be attached when the mail is opened. In case of out¬
going mail, it should be attached by the dictator. As a rule, the
symbols for all other papers should be affixed by the file clerk.
When the proper classification cannot be determined by the file
clerk, the people with whom the papers originated should be
consulted.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
519
This system of filing is of course not limited to correspondence
and technical data. It can and should be used for filing all cost
data, purchase orders, contracts, proposals, reports, price lists,
estimates, catalogues, books and periodicals, blue-prints, trac¬
ings, photographs, maps — in short, anything and everything of
which permanent record is to be kept, and which should be easily
and quickly accessible when called for.
The original classification should be made so as to cover every¬
thing intended to be kept in the files. If something comes in
later or was inadvertently omitted, there are always a few letters
left under which to include the new items. When properly done,
the classification and index is elastic, self-expanding, and un¬
limited in its scope; and when it is applied to every record
handled in connection with the business, its significance soon
becomes known to every one concerned, and the ability to use it
quickly and accurately grows rapidly into an individual and an
organization habit.
ELEMENTARY TIME STUDY AS A PART OF THE
TAYLOR SYSTEM OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
AN EXPOSITION OF THE PRINCIPLES AND METHODS
OF THE ART WHICH IS THE FOUNDATION
OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
by h. k. hathaway
Reprinted by permission of Industrial Engineering
Elementary time study is in many respects the most interest¬
ing phase of scientific management, and plays a most important
part in the application of the principles upon which the science
of management is based, as well as in the development of the
science itself. Indeed, it would be almost as difficult for the
science of chemistry to exist if there were no such thing as quanti¬
tative analysis, as for scientific management to exist Yvithout
elementary time study.
In 1893 Frederick W. Taylor, in a paper describing his differen¬
tial piece work system, developed at the Midvale Steel Works,
called attention to the method originated by him for arriving at
the time required to perform any given piece of work, namely,
the study of unit times, or what is now generally known as
elementary time study. He stated, however, in his paper on
Shop Management, several years later, that he was disappointed
in the interest aroused being chiefly in the piece work system
rather than in the substitution of a fair and accurate method for
setting rates in place of the guess-work methods generally in
vogue. This, however, was but natural, as at that time ordinary
or straight " piece work " was well known as a means of increas¬
ing output; and Mr. Taylor's difierentiaUrate, offering as it did
not only the incentive of a reward for greater production, but the
added feature of a more severe penalty in case of failure, appealed
to managers generally as a good thing; while elementary time
study being something entirely new and beyond their ken, as well
as calling for considerable work, was shied away from; especially
as every foreman and many superintendents and managers felt
520
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
521
that, either by reason of their experience, or through some super-
naturally endowed intuition, they were able to tell at a glance
how long any job should take.
Indeed, the writer can look back, a few years to the time when
he became a foreman and recollect that, by virtue of several
years'experience, he had considerable confidence in his own ability
to shut one eye, go into a trance, and fix the proper time for a
job.
Another popular method for setting piece rates — on repetition
work especially — has been to put a good man on the job; keep a
record for several days of his production; divide the time by two
or three; and arbitrarily make the result the rate. Many other
methods, equally bad, have from time to time been adopted in
piece work shops, all of them being based on ignorance and
deceit, and lacking a spirit of fairness and mutual confidence
between the employer and employee.
Where piece rates are set by any of the old methods, the
management feels little or no responsibility for the provision
and maintenance of proper facilities and good working conditions;
such as make it possible for the worker to perform, without undue
exertion or worry, a relatively large day's work; and as a result,
instead of true cooperation we see the management on one hand
putting a task up to the worker that is either ridiculously easy,
or on the other hand impossible or extremely difficult; without,
in many of the latter cases, knowing how he is to accomplish it,
and making little or no effort to help him solve the problem.
Ultimately, even where the task is unreasonably hard, the work¬
man, by the exercise of ingenuity and perseverance, may bring
about conditions that enable him to first accomplish the task, and
gradually to exceed it, until, unless he adopts the expedient of
systematically loafing as a means of self-protection, his earnings
become, in the eyes of his employers, excessive. He is then
rewarded by having the piece rate arbitrarily cut to a point where
he has difficulty again in earning a fair day's pay.
Improper piece rate setting, or, to put it in another way,
ignorance of their own business on the part of the management,
and a disregard of their responsibility for the maintenance of
522
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
proper working conditions, has been, and still is, one of the
chief causes of distrust and antagonism between employer and
employee. In this connection it may be well to point out that
while the employer has been quick to see the iniquity of " soldier¬
ing " on the part of the workman, he is inclined to overlook the
fact that at least half the responsibility for its existence lies at
his own door.
While this article is intended to treat of but one element of
Scientific Management, it is of the utmost importance that we
do not lose sight of its relation to the subject as a whole; and
while not minimizing its individual importance, the writer
wishes to emphasize the fact that it is, after all, but one part of
the management machine. Take it away, and the machine runs
imperfectly; and alone it is practically useless.
It will be wise, even at the risk of covering ground gone over
before, to show just where the part of Scientific Management
fits in. Mr. Taylor states the four basic principles in his
book The Principles of Scientific Management, in such a concise
manner that it is not until he has studied the subject exhaustively
and become quite familiar with it through intimate contact that
the average person grasps their full meaning and importance.
These basic principles are as follows :
1. The development of a science in place of " rule-of-thumb "
knowledge. This means scientific investigation and study; the
collection and codification of data and their reduction to laws.
In this " time study " plays an obviously important part.
2. The scientific selection and training of the workman in
place of workmen being employed as a result of expediency,
necessity, or mistaken personal preference on work for which
they may be physically, temperamentally, or mentally unsuited;
or, as Mr. Taylor expresses it, " in the past he (the workman)
chose his own work, and trained himself as best he could." Im¬
proper selection of the workman has resulted in many " square
pegs in round holes."
3. Hearty cooperation between the management and the men,
so as to insure all work being done in accordance with the prin¬
ciples of the science which has been developed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 523
4. An almost equal division of the work and responsibility
for results between the management and the workmen, thé
management taking over all of the work for which they are better
fitted than the workmen; in the past almost all of the work, and
the greater part of the responsibility were thrown upon the men.
If these principles are kept in mind, it will be seen that time
study is only a means to their proper application, and that it
must not be considered apart from its relation to Scientific
Management as a whole.
Misunderstanding of the purpose of time study is common
alike to management and workmen, the management on one hand
thinking that their task and responsibility end when they have
found how long it takes to do things, and have put it up to the
workman. On the other hand, the workman is apt to regard
time study as spying upon him, and a reflection upon his integrity.
Indeed, time study has been characterized by some men in the
ranks of labor as un-American; but such an opinion can only be
regarded as being based on ignorance of the subject, or on bias.
If to seek the truth were un-American, then time study might
be.
The workman's suspicion and opposition may be justified
where time study is grafted onto the old type of management, as
has frequently been attempted by the manager, who, having
heard enthusiastic accounts of what has been accomplished under
Scientific Management, with a " little knowledge " (proverbially
a dangerous thing), concludes that while he cannot see the
advantage of all the features of the " System," time study is
a good thing, and that he will adopt it. It is apparently as a
result of " setting rates " for piece work or bonus work that
increased output is achieved; so he calls into his office a bright
but inexperienced young man, and tells him to start making
time study and setting rates. Just as likely as not the "bright
young man " intuitively realizes that may be the workman will
not like it, and may gently, but firmly impress his objection upon
him with a monkey wrench or hammer, so he tactfully concludes
that it will be best not to annoy the men by letting them know
what he ia doing. Therefore he hides back of a post while mak-
524
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ing his " time study," or else, keeping his watch and his hands in
his pockets, affably endeavors to persuade the workman that he
is not at all interested in anything that is going on within a radius
of many miles.
It is this kind of " time study " that arouses the workman's
ire, and which has brought forth from those who have encoun¬
tered it and-know not the right kind, the contention that it is
un-American in spirit. In this view the man is amply justified,
for not only is such " time study " worthless, but positively
vicious and an insult to the workman's intelligence. Just the
minute the time study man undertakes to deceive, he gives the
workman license to deceive him. The workman may then loaf
and make as many false moves as he pleases, but the time study
man, if such-he may be called, has put himself in a position where
he cannot object. Instead of two men cooperating in a quest
of truth, such misguided attempts at time study become a covert
battle of one man's wits against another's, resulting in mutual
distrust where confidence should exist.
There are two classes of time study:
1. That which is made for the purpose of ascertaining what is
wrong with a process as it exists.
2. That which is made after conditions have been standardized,
and the best method established.
The first is more correctly motion study, as its prime object is
to discover delays, false or unnecessary motions, and their causes,
and this is the sort of time study that should be first undertaken.
It should result in the improvement of conditions, and the estab-
hshment of standards. It is the first step in the development of
a science.
A simple illustration or two may help to make this clear. In
one of the plants in which the writer took a part in the installa¬
tion of the Taylor System, we selected a simple operation on
which to make our first time study. Briefly, this operation con¬
sisted of putting a roll of cloth into a machine, which, when prop¬
erly set, automatically cut it up into pieces of the required size.
In making a study of this operation, the following things came
to light:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
525
1. The operator had to walk a distance of about twelve feet to
secure the roll of cloth required. To remedy this, a suitable
rack was provided, close to the machine, on which a laborer kept
supplied the cloth for three jobs ahead-
2. It was necessary for the operator to set, for each new job
(so as to cut the cloth to the required width), eight to sixteen
circular knives, loosening a screw in each, sliding it along a shaft,
measuring the distance between the knives and tightening the
screws. The operator was expected to provide his own screw¬
driver and rule, and, as a matter of fact, any other tools he might
need. From the time study of this part of the operation it was
found that the screwdriver used by the operator was too long
for the job, resulting in fumbling; that it was of an inferior
quality of steel, so soft that after being used for several jobs the
end became twisted, and the operator had to leave his work to
grind or file it to shape. Some of the knives fitted their shaft so
tightly that it was quite a difficult matter to move them along
the shaft; and measuring the distance from one knife to another
with an ordinary foot-rule was slow, awkward and uncertain.
To remedy these difficulties, the management took it upon them¬
selves to provide screwdrivers of the right length, and of good
steel; to have the knives made to properly fit the shaft; and to
provide a gage which could be readily and accurately set to the
width of cloth to be cut, and so constructed that it was only
necessary for the operator to place one end against the first knife
set, and move the next up until it touched the other end of the
gage.
3. It was found in setting the shear for cutting the strips of
cloth to length, that it was necessary to loosen a nut. To do this
the operator used a monkey wrench, which incidentally he pro¬
vided himself, and which he had to adjust to the size of the nut.
This wasted time, so the management did the obvious thing and
replaced the ordinary hexagon nut with a wing nut which could
be loosened and tightened with the hand without the need of a
wrench.
4. It was found that the rolls of cloth supplied by the mill
contained, instead of one continuous length, several pieces to a
S26.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
roll, making it necessary to re-thread the cloth into the machine
every time an end was reached. To remedy this, the mill was
told that only one-piece rolls would be accepted, with the result
that they furnished one-piece rolls.
This illustration embodies all of the principles of Scientific
Management. As a result, the operator turned out twice as
much work under the improved conditions as formerly, and with
less worry, and little, if any, greater effort.
It may be well, however, to point out that it would have been
futile to have made this time study until a routing system had
been developed that would insure the workman being kept
constantly supplied with materials, so that he would not have to
waste time between jobs. This operator worked upon from ten
to twenty different jobs a day.
Let us take another case in a totally different line of business —
that of winding magnet coils for small electrical apparatus —
resulting in almost as great an increase in output as the case just
cited. A study of this operation showed that one-third of the
operator's time was wasted, and through no fault of the operator.
Twenty-one per cent of the operator's time was found to be
wasted on account of defective material, and as this was scattered
through the day's work, no one realized, until it was shown up
by time study, how great the loss in output from this cause was.
In fact, it was regarded as one of the minor troubles. It was
found that operators had to leave their machines to procure
materials that should have been brought to them; that many of
the spools of wire would not fit the machines; that the operators^
were handicapped through having no convenient place for their
materials, for their finished products,^ or for their tools. Their
tools and machines were found to be in bad condition, and some
of the tools provided were found to be unsuitable for the work.
In both of the cases just cited, the conditions found had existed
for a long time, and, without making a minute time study, it is
doubtful if the management would have ever realized the neces¬
sity for correcting them. With definite and reliable information
to work upon, however, it was possible to almost entirely elimi¬
nate the difficulties.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
S^7
These two illustrations are but one step beyond Mr. Taylor's
illustrations of handling pig-iron and shoveling.
After making time studies of the class just described, the next
step is to correct the faults in materials, methods and implements
that have been brought to light, and establish standards and
provide means for keeping up the standards. Then assuming
that a routing system has been developed to the stage that will
insure the workman's work being planned ahead, materials,
information and proper tools always being at hand when wanted,
time study may be undertaken for the purpose of setting tasks,
and the payment of a reward for the task's accomplishment
may be started.
Many people have misunderstood time study to mean ascer¬
taining and recording the time required to perform any given job.
This is not at all what we mean by elementary time study. In
describing just what is meant by elementary time study, the
writer will draw upon the machine shop for his illustrations, and
leave it to the reader to draw his own analogies with regard to
the lines of industry in which he may be interested.
All machine work may be divided into the following classes :
(a) Work done by a machine.
{b) Work done by the workman.
The time that machine work should take, or the actual cutting
time, may be easily calculated, and, where tools, materials and
machines are standardized, may be reduced to slide rules. The
work done by the workman, or the handling time, must be
arrived at in another and more difficult manner.
Handling time in machine shop work, and in most other
manufacturing processes, may be classified under three heads:
1. The handling of tools used in connection with the work.
2. The handling of the machine.
3. The handling of the material being worked on.
The first, handling of tools, is the greatest of the three, and
may be roughly said, in general machine shop work, to represent
75 per cent of all handling time.
The second, handling of the machine, will represent about 15
per cent, and handling of materials about 10 per cent. These
528
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
percentages, of course, will vary in different classes of work, and
are given only for the purpose of illustration.
Handling of tools consists of such things as putting bolts,
clamps, etc., on work; putting tools such as drills, reamers,
turning tools, etc., into the machine; measuring with calipers,
gages, scales, or dividers.
Handling of machines consists of such things as stopping and
starting machines; changing the speed or feed; adjusting or
setting various parts of the machine to suit the work to be done.
All of these elementary operations are done repeatedly on a
great variety of jobs, and in many cases are the same for work
done on totally different machines. These are what we make a
time study of, and not any one job as a whole, which is simply a
combination of a number of different elements. For instance,
we must start and stop the machine several times in doing any
job ; consequently, we should study the starting and stopping of
each machine on each of its various speeds, and record the time
under that heading for each machine.
For any drill press job we must put drills of one or more sizes
into the spindle, and remove them after the holes are drilled;
consequently, we should study the time required to put in and
take out drills of each size. This will apply on a great variety
of jobs done in various drill presses, and in any shop, that is,
provided proper standards have been established.
The greatest difficulty encountered in connection with this
branch of Scientific Management in the past was the classification
and tabulation of the data accumulated in such a manner as to
make it readily available for use on future jobs, differing as a
whole, or in part, from those upon which the observations had
been made. In plants having a standard line of product, doing
the same kind of work year after year, this was a comparatively
simple matter, as there the data could be classified and filed
according to the product; and in such a plant changes are
infrequent and usually affect only certain details, necessitating
only a study of the parts of the work affected.
Likewise, in industries where each machine performs only one
simple operation which is essentially the same on all work —
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
529
although the job itself may be different in many respects, this
problem is comparatively simple, and the elementary data may
be classified and filed under the headings of the different machines.
A good example of this type of work is stamping or punching
sheet metal parts, which might be analyzed into the following
elements, which, for a given size and type of machine, would be
common to all work done in the machine:
Putting in dies;
Adjusting stops, guides, and stroke of machine;
Feeding materials into machine;
Working time of machine.
Of course, each of these might be further sub-divided.
It is m general machine shop work, however, that the problem
of classifying and tabulating data becomes especially difficult,
and the greater the variety of the product the greater the diffi¬
culty. This is due to the comparatively large number of dif¬
ferent elements that may be involved, and the almost infinite
number of combinations of these elements. For example, on a
drill press, one job may be the drilling of a single hole in a block
of iron, consisting of a very simple adjustment of the machine,
clamping the work with a single bolt and clamp, putting one
drill into the spindle, starting the machine, letting the drill run
through the piece, stopping the machine, removing the piece
and the drill. The next job may include the drilling, tapping,
and reaming of a number of holes of several different sizes (coun¬
ter-boring some of them) on different surfaces of a complicated
piece of work, necessitating several elaborate settings, and many
careful measurements. This job would include all of the ele¬
ments entering into the first, and many more in addition. There
is one saving grace, however, due to the fact that in spite of its
complication there are a number of elements that repeat them¬
selves a number of times in almost every job.
To give a more definite idea of the nature of elementary time
units and their use, the author will show a few examples of
instruction cards, outlining in detail the method to be followed
in performing certain jobs and giving the time for each ele¬
ment.
530
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
These cards are not the result of a time study of the specific
jobs, but were made up from the drawings of the parts on which
the work was to be done before any of the parts were made.
The elementary time units were previously studied in connection
with previous jobs, or individually, some of them in shops other
than the one in which the work in question was done.
This represents planning of an advanced type, and cannot be
done, as has been already pointed out, until conditions have been
standardized, so that the machine in which the work is to be
done may be depended upon to be in first class condition (as it
was at the time the study of the elementary time units was made),
that all tools are in first class condition and are supplied to the
operator in advance, ready for use; that materials are always at
hand, and placed conveniently for the operator, etc.
This is one instance of the assumption of responsibility by the
management, and of the management's cooperation with the
workman.
Under the old type of management, the workman was respon¬
sible for having at his machine, or securing as required, such tools
as he needed for each job, and was expected to have them kept
in good condition. The difficulties in the way of the workman's
meeting these responsibilities were tremendous, and little or no
help did he receive from the management as represented by the
foreman, who was so harassed with details, and generally over¬
loaded with work, that it was a physical impossibility for him to
do much for the workman, even though he recognized the im¬
portance and necessity for doing so.
Under such conditions, it was difficult and annoying for the
workman to keep his machine and tools in good condition, as he
could only call attention to the need of repairs or new tools, and
was dependent upon others taking enough interest and taking
the trouble to have them attended to; and as many of the things
he endeavored to have done were inevitably neglected or lost
sight of, he frequently became hopelessly discouraged and lost
interest in attempting to have things right. Such effort as might
be made by the workman to maintain conditions was, in any
event, at the expense of output from that unit of the plant
CLASSIFIED ELEMENTARY TIME UNITS FOR FITTING DRILLS WITH OR WITHOUT SLEEVES
USED EITHER IN SPINDLE OR IN SOCKET ALREADY IN SPINDLE
Drill without Sleeve
Shank of drill, Morse taper i
Time for putting drill in, in minutes 0.26
Select drill from tray or table o.io
Put drill into spindle 0.04
Put wood block under drill either on work or
table 0.02
Force drill up hard into spindle by pulling
down on lever 0.08
Remove block 0.02
Time for removing drill, in minutes o.io
Pick up hammer and drift 0.04
Knock out drill from spindle 0.04
Replace tools on table or in tray 0.02
Drill and One Sleeve (already assembled)
Outside taper of sleeve i
Time for putting drill and sleeve into spindle, in
minutes
Select drill from tray or table
Put drill and sleeve into spindle
Put wood block under drill either on work or
table
Force drill and sleeve up hard into spindle by
pulling down on lever
Remove Mock
Time for removing drill and sleeve, in minutes
Pick up hammer and drift
Knock out drill and sleeve
Replace tools on table or in tray
2
0.26
O.IO
0.04
0.02
0.08
0.02
3
0.26
O.IO
0.04
0.02
0.08
0.02
4
0.27
O.IO
0.05
0.02
0.08
0.02
s
0.30
O.IO
0.07
0.02
0.09
0.02
Put into spindle or into
socket already in spindle —
no sleeve used.
Time given in this section to
be used when drill is put into
spindle or socket.
DSSS already in spindle
where no sleeve is necessary to
make shank fit bore.
O.IO
0.04
0.04
0.02
O.IO
0.04
0.04
0.02
O.IO
0.04
0.04
0.02
0.14
0.04
0.08
0.02
Remove from spindle
or from
socket in spindle
2
3
4
5
0.26
0.26
0.27
0.30
O.IO
O.IO
O.IO
O.IO
0.04
0.04
0.05
0.07
0.02
0.02
0.02
0.02
0.08
0.08
0.08
0.09
0.02
0.02
0.02
0.02
O.IO
O.IO
O.IO
0.14
0.04
0.04
0.04
0.04
0.04
0.04
0.04
0.08
0.02
0.02
0.02
0.02
Put into spindle drill and
one sleeve already assem¬
bled.
(For time to put sleeves on
drills see Sheet DSSC)
All sleeves to be put on drills
before starting job.
General Note.— Socket DSSS
should be used where several
drills with same size shank are
to be used in succession.
Remove from spindle drill
and sleeve not separated
(For time to separate drill and
socket see Sheet DSSC)
All sleeves are to be removed
from drills after job is finished.
Co
S
§
a
§
O
§
Ln
532
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
represented by the workman and the machine he was employed
to operate.
With the proper cooperation and assumption of responsibility
by the management, however, the workman is relieved of all
this, and can devote his undivided attention to the work for which
he is employed.
Under Scientific Management the machines are periodically
inspected, repaired, and adjusted before they have had time to
get into a condition that prevents their efficient operation.
Instead of the foreman looking after this important matter —
as an incidental that may be disregarded if other things appear
to be of greater immediate importance — it is made the sole
function of a repair boss.
All tools are kept in a tool room, from which they are issued
for each job, and returned after being used. The tool room
foreman is responsible for seeing that no tools are issued that are
not up to the standard, and in place of the responsibility for
the maintenance of standards being widely scattered among the
entire working force, who lack the means, and in some cases the
incentive, for its enforcement, we have this responsibility con¬
centrated in one man, who represents the management.
The author trusts that he has made clear the necessity for
standardized conditions and functional foremanship being
established before any attempt is made to inaugurate any system
of task work based on elementary time study. To make this
still more emphatic, let us see what would happen if this were
ignored.
Suppose we were, in a shop run the old way, to make a study
of drill press work, and after our preliminary investigation had
the machine, tools, etc., put into first class condition, and then
made a careful study of the time the various elementary opera¬
tions should consume under proper conditions. A certain amount
of time passes before we make use of the data collected, and we
then set tasks, based on the result of our observations, for
various jobs to be done on the drill press in question, and one of
these tasks is assigned to the workman.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
533
The first thing he is required to do may be to adjust the
height of the arm of his machine. We have allowed the proper
time for picking up a wrench of the right size from a tool stand,
and loosening the bolts that secure the arm; but since we made
TOOL LIST
FOR
MACHINE NO. D
OPERATION SYMBOL
2 N 2 C 2 r
DRAWING NOS. 6-28-2
Tools called for on this tool list must be issued in a tote box. The list should be
placed in the tag pocket on the box and accompany the tools to and from machine.
Pieces
4
4
2
8
Name
Bolts
Vise
Chuck
Carrier
Clamps
Mandrel
Blocks
Boring Cutters
DriUs
CoUet
Counter Bores
Reamers
Arbors
Die Head
Boring Bars
Sleeves
Sockets
Driver
Tap Holder
Taps
Gages
Dies
Cutting Tools
Milling Cutters
Jig
Wrench
Size
1X4
fXs
lï
11X3X29^
17/32
1-4
3-4
5
8
#i
U
Tool Symbol
C B L
C C F K
C
C
S N
S P
D D T T
D
D
S S c
s s c
D STH
D T S
HHM
H JD
H JD
H JD
5
8
Month
10
WFHH
Day
6
Year
j-
Signed
R.
Man's No. Hour
Checks required 10 0 11
When the tool list is not correct the gang boss must at once report the error to
the man who signed this list.
ôur observations the wrench has disappeared, having been bor¬
rowed by a fellow workman, or mislaid. Our workman then
falls back upon his trusty monkey wrench, which is his own
property, and which he has therefore guarded with caire, and
CLASSIFIED ELEMENTARY TIME UNITS FOR CLAMPING WORK TO DRILL PRESS TABLES
Ln
4^
ccrx
Medium Size C C F K
Diam.
Length
Thickness
of bolt,
of clamp,
of clamp,
in.
in.
in.
D
L
T
5
8
lO
li
3
4
II
Ú
7
8
12
lï
I
13
Weight
of
clamp,
lb. oz.
3
6
7
lO
II
8
8
1
i
O
g
fe
fe
Diameter of bolt, inches
5
8
and Ï
1 and :
[
Length of bolt, inches
6
12
14
18
6
12
18
24
30
36
Time for clamping, minutes
0.42
0.45
0.4S
0.51
0.48
0-S3
0-57
0.69
0.78
0.92
Clamping.
— Bolt to be
Lift bolt, clamp and block to table..
0.07
0.08
0.08
0.09
0.09
O.IO
O.IO
0.13
0.14
0.17
put in slot.
(bolt remaining in hand)
The time
given in this
Put bolt in slot
0.04
0.04
0.04
0.05
0.04
0.04
0.05
0.05
0.06
0.07
section to be used only for
Slip clamp on bolt and on work....
o.oS
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.06
0.07
0.08
first piece in !
lot or on other
Put block under clamp
0.04
0.05
0.05
0.05
O.C4
0.05
0.05
0.07
0.08
O.IO
pieces when
bolt has to he
Screw nut down with fingers
0.05
0.06
0.06
0.07
0.06
0.07
0.08
O.IO
O.II
0.14
put in slot.
Tighten nut lightly with wrench....
0.08
0.08
0.08
O.IO
0.11
0.12
0.13
o.is
0.17
0.19
Draw down nut tight with wrench..
0.09
0.09
0.09
O.IO
0.09
O.IO
O.II
0.13
O.IS
0.17
Time for removing, minutes 0.16 0.17 0.17 0.18
Loosen nut with wrench o.ii 0.12 0.12 0.13
Remove clamp from bolt 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05
0.22 0.22 0.24 0.26 0.29 0.33
0.17 0.17 0.19 0.20 0.22 0.25
0.05 0.05 0.05 0.06 0.07 0.08
Removing. — Bolt not to
be taken from slot.
The time given in this
section to be used for all
pieces in lot excepting the
last piece.
Timé for clámpiníg, minutes
Slip clamp on bolt and on work.
Put block under clamp
Screw nut down with fingers....
Tighten nut lightly with wrench.
Draw nut down tight with wrench
0.30 0.33 0.34 0.37 0.35 0.39 0.42 0.51 0.58 0.68 Clamping.— Bolt already
0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.06 0.07 0.08 in slot.
0.04 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.04 0.05 0.05 0,07 0.08 o.io The time given in this
0.05 0.06 0.06 0.07 0.06 0.07 0.08 0.10 o.ii 0,14 section to be used for all
0.08 0.08 0.08 o.io O.II 0.12 0.13 0.15 0.17 0.19 pieces in the lot after the
0.08 0.09 O.IO O.IO 0.09 O.IO O.II 0.13 0.15 0.17 first piece when bolt has
not been removed.
Time for removing, minutes 0.24 0.25 0.25 0.27
Loosen nut with wrench o.ii 0.12 0.12 0.13
Remove clamp from bolt 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05
Remove bolt from slot 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.04
Put clamp, bolt, and block in tote
box on floor.. 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05
0.30 0.30
0.17 0.17
0.05 0.05
0.03 0.03
0-33
0.19
0.05
0.04
0-37
0.20
0.05
0.04
0.41 0.47
0.22 0.26
0.06 0.07
0.05 0.05
0.05 0.05 0.05 0.08 0.08 O.IO
Removing. — Bolt to be
taken from slot.
The time given in this
section to be used only for
last piece in lot, or on other
pieces when bolt has to he
taken from slot.
C/3
S
§
i
o
5
g
fe
Ln
Cn
536
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
consumes as much time adjusting it as should have been con¬
sumed in the entire job of loosening the bolts had a wrench of
the right kind been available; this alone might be enough to
prevent his accomplishing the task in the time allowed.
Next, he places the piece to be drilled on the table of his ma¬
chine, and selects a clamp and bolt of the proper length from the
box or rack in which he keeps them. The bolt selected has no
nut on it, so he takes one off another bolt and, after placing his
bolt and clamp in position, starts to screw the nut on. He finds
that it sticks, due to the thread on the bolt having been damaged,
and instead of being able to screw it on rapidly with his fingers,
he is obliged to take a wrench and laboriously work it down the
entire way. It is also probable that the trusty monkey wrench
has to again be called into action, by reason of the absence of
one of the right kind and size. When our time study was made,
we found that under proper conditions 0.71 minute was to be the
proper time for putting on this bolt and clamp, but owing to
those conditions not being maintained, the best the workman
could do took anywhere from tWo to ten times as long. It is no
exaggeration to say that we have seen a workman spend fifteen
minutes in trying to screw a nut onto a clamping bolt.
Our observations of this one item showed as follows:
Minute
To lift the bolt, block and clamp to the table of the ma¬
chine took 0.07
To put the bolt in slot of table 0.04
To remove the nut from bolt by unscrewing with the
fingers took 0.13
To put clamp over bolt and on work 0.05
To put block under clamp 0.05
To put washer on bolt 0.07
To screw nut on bolt with fingers. 0.13
To tighten nut lightly with wrench 0.07
To draw nut down tight with wrench o.io
Total time required 0.71
To follow through each step of the operation in this manner
would take too long, and the two points cited are typical of what
might be expected at almost every stage of the work. The
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
537
picture is in no sense overdrawn; if anything, the reverse is
true.
Instruction cards such as those used for illustrations are the
second step in the planning of the work. Before they are made
up, the work as a whole has been laid out or routed; the various
operations to be performed on each piece of work have been
determined, as well as their sequence, and also the machines in
which they are to be performed.
The method followed in making up instruction cards for new
work, then, is as follows (assuming, of course, that all elementary
time study data are available, and properly classified and tabu¬
lated) :
The man in charge of this part of the planning — who must,
of course, be an experienced and practical man, selected by rea¬
son of his qualifications for the work — has before him the
drawing of the part to be machined. His first step is to decide
upon the general method to be followed in the operation being
planned. In doing this, two or more methods may suggest
themselves, bringing up a question as to which is the best. In
this event, he will add up the time for each of the elements
entering into the different methods, and select the one that gives
the smallest total time.
He next sets down on the instruction card a description of the
job, element by element, in their proper sequence, going through
the operation just as he would at the machine itself. As he does
so, he draws off a list of the tools required, which will be sent to
the tool room before the job is to be done, and the tools delivered
to the workman. After having put down on the instruction
card all of the elements to be done, he turns to his data file, and
indexed under the machine number he finds the time for each
of the adjustments or manipulations of the machine. Under
the tool symbol he finds the time for each of the elements invol¬
ving the use of a tool, while under the classification of material
shapes, he finds the time for handling pieces of the same approxi¬
mate shape and weight as the one under consideration.
MACHINE HANDLING TIME FOR BETTS HORIZONTAL BORING MILL
Elementary Unit Time
Total Handling Time for Turning Table End for End 2.41
Take off two bolts IX4 38
Walk six feet 05
Take off other two bolts f X4 .38
Take out key 04
Turn table end for end 38
Put in key 04
Put on two 1X4 bolts and tighten 52
Walk six feet 05
Put on Other two bolts |X4 and tighten 52
Walk six feet 05
Lri
00
Time in this space is for
turning table end for end,
which is done only when
work is to be bored on
each end that cannot be
bored without clamping
ends.
C/3
i
I
O
s
§
fe
•-5
Changing Speeds
From
iB to 2B
.21
2B to iB
.22
3B
to iB
.22
4B
to iB
.22
iB « 3B
.42
2B "
3B
•36
3B
ÍÍ
2B
.22
4B
" 2B
.26
iB « 4B
•30
2B "
4B
.28
3B
a
4B
•25
4B
" 3B
.42
iB " lA
.41
2B «
lA
•55
3B
u
lA
•57
4B
« lA
.62
iB " 2A
•54
2B "
2A
.41
3B
u
2A
.60
4B
« 2A
.64
iB " 3A
•59
2B "
3A
•57
3B
a
3A
.41
4B
" 3A
•63
iB " 4A
.70
2B «
4A
.67
3B
u
4A
•63
4B
« 4A
.40
lA " 2A
•13
2A «
lA
.14
3A
a
lA
.16
4A
" lA
.22
lA " 3A
.18
2A «
3A
.16
3A
u
2A
.19
4A
« 2A
.20
lA " 4A
.29
2A «
4A
.26
3A
ÍÍ
4A
.24
4A
" 3A
.10
lA « iB
.48
2A "
iB
.62
3A
a
iB
.64
4A
« iB
.70
lA « 2B
•63
2A "
2B
.48
3A
u
2B
.67
4A
« 2B
•74
lA « 3B
lA " 4B
.68
2A "
3B
.64
3A
u
3B
.48
4A
« 3B
.90
•77
2A "
4B
•74
3A
(Í
4B
•72
4A
« 4B
.48
Time in this space is to
be taken when changing of
belt is necessary.
Put on facing attachment and set
Take off facing attachment
4.60
2.39
Time in this space is to
be taken when facing at¬
tachment is used.
MACHINE HANDLING TIME FOR BETTS HORIZONTAL BORING MILL
Total Handling Time for
Elementary Unit Time
2 in.
Moving spindle forward 08
Moving spindle back 08
This time includes going after helper.
Move and support back 2 ft. Helper
not at machine
Move end support forward and tighten
(2 ft.). Helper at machine
Distance Traveled
4 in. 6 in. ,8 in.
.12 .21 .26
.12 .20 .25
10 in.
•31
.28
14 m.
•43
.40
Move auxiliary table back
Raise table, includes loosen four 4fX4
bolts, start machine, raise and tighten..
Lower table, includes loosen four 4^X4
bolts, start machine, lower and tighten
.26
.42
•58
•74
.90
.29
•45
.61
•77
•93
1.60
1.90
2.20
2.50
3.00
1.60
1.90
2.20
2.50
3.00
Time in this space is to
2.35 be taken when preparing
for a job or in course of
.80 operation where any of
these operations are taken.
Put one bushing in end support
Put two bushings in end support
Put three bushings in end support
09
Time in this space is to
be taken when putting
bushings in tail support.
Take one bushing out of end support
Take two bushings out of end support
Take three bushings out of end support
Start machine
Stop machine
06
07
10
03
10
Time in this space is to
be taken when taking bush¬
ings out of tail support.
03
1
i
0
S
5
1
S
fe
Changing Feeds
Change from A feed to C feed.
U U A " " B "
u « B " "A "
u u B " " C "
a u C " "A "
« « C " " B "
.06
•03
•03
.03
.06
•03
Time in this space is to
be taken when changing of
feeds is necessary.
Ln
vO
INSTRUCTION CARD FÜR OPERATION
i Sheets, Sheet No. i Drawing No. 6601.105
Material, Steel
Class No.
Symbol 1PLV3P
Machine No. Lio Order No. PLVP
Pieces in Lot, 400 Time for Lot, 393.61 Bonus.
Item
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
-ii
12
^3
14
15
16
17
Description of Operation: Drill and Cut Off
Detailed Instructions Feed
Change card
Learn what is to be done
Change jaws to ^
Put collar on stock
Put stock in spindle and adjust collets
Set stop for length
Put CCCE f in turret head
Put DDTS 3/16 in CCCE f
Set stop for DDTS 3/16
Put in PATL tool and set
Set stock to stop
Turn turret and start machine
DriU 3/16 hole, 3/16 run HE
Turn turret
Cut off piece and round comers with file HE
Put piece in tote can
Count every 100 pieces. Time per piece =
90% on handling time .35
10% on machine time .26
Disassemble 2.00
Time for lot = (number of pieces X .96) + 2.00 + 7-61
Time for 400 pieces = 393.61 or 66 tenths + 2.00 -j- 7.61.
Speed
Element
time per
piece
•IS
.08
5-36
•14
lE
.08
lE
.12
.02
.02'
.61
•32
•03
.96
Time
for entire
lot
2.00
2.00
.91
.19
•59
•31
•31
.22
•31
.77
7.61
Cn
O
Continuous
or running
time
C<5
1
1
s
s
CTi
s
fe
H
Rev. Per Min.
When machine cannot be run as ordered, machine boss must at once
report to man who signed this card
i
Month
' 9
Day
II
Year
Signed R.
Checked
INSTRUCTION
i Sheets, Sheet No. i
Material, C I.
CARD FOR OPERATION
Drawing No. 6-28-2 Machine No.
Class No Pieces in Lot, 200
Symbol 2 N 2 C 2 C
Di Order No. N 2 C C
Time for Lot, 302.62 Bonus.
Description of Operation; Drill and Tap
Item Detailed Instructions Feed Speed
1 Change card
2 Learn what is to be done
3 Assemble drills and sleeves
4 Clamp 2CSP 11X3X291 across table 2I in. apart equidistant to center
hole of table
6 Put 17/32 drill and sleeve in spindle
7 Raise or lower head
8 Change speed and feed start machine
9 Pick up piece and put on table over centre hole
10 Spot 17/32 hole iF iB
11 Drill 17/32 hole I in. run B iB
12 Put piece on floor
13 Repeat Items #12 to 15 on each piece in lot
14 Take out driU and sleeve and put in DSTH # i and sleeve
15 Pick up piece and put on table over center hole
16 Put tap in fixture and set
17 Start machine
18 Tap with second tap iF iB
Note: — Allow tap to go all the way through.
19 Put piece in tote box
20 Stop machine and pick up tap
21 Stop machine, change drills and start machine every 20 pes. time per
piece
40% on handling time .31
10% on machine time .92
Disassemble 3.00.
Time for lot = (# of pes. X 144) + (s-oo + 45 + II.I7)•
Time for 200 pes. = 302.62 or 50 tenths.
Element
time per
piece
•03
.10
.48
.02
•03
.09
•03
•34
.02
.06
•03
1.23
.12
•09
1.44
Time
for entire
lot
2.50
6.00
.48
.81
.27
•71
.40
ii.17
•45
•45
Continuous
or running
time
When machine cannot be run as ordered, machine boss must at once
10
8
ii
report to man who signed this card
Month
Day
Year
Signed R.
Checked ....
Co
i
0
5
5
1
S
fe
Cn
542
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Making Time Studies
The writer has, as yet, said very little with reference to the
actual making of time studies. In general, it may be said that
the man undertaking this work should be as familiar as possible
with the work being studied, and if he has actually worked on
the jobs being studied, so much the better. All other things
being equal, a man who has worked at, and is skilled in the trade
under consideration, makes the best time study man.
Next to the skilled workman, the best time study man is a
chemist, whose training has impressed upon him the importance
of exactness, and of little and apparently insignificant points.
The chemist has also learned how to analyze things into their
elements. The best possible time study man would, in the
writer's estimation, be a chemist possessing practical experience
in the work being studied.
The equipment required is very simple, consisting of a decimal
stop watch that can be stopped at any point, started from the
same point, or snapped back to zero at will. We have found it
necessary to have these watches made especially, and Mr. San-
ford E. Thompson, whom we of the Taylor Group regard as
the foremost time study man in the country, has, for a number of
years, taken upon himself, as a matter of accommodation to the
rest of us, to keep a supply of these watches on hand, from which
he has supplied our needs, and those of our clients; and I take
this opportunity to publicly acknowledge the debt we owe him
for doing so.
In addition to a watch, the only other equipment required is
a board for holding the watch and the sheet of paper on which
the observations are recorded. Several different forms of time
study observation sheets have been developed, but essentially
they are all the same, providing first a column in which are entered
the various elements to be observed in the order of their occur¬
rence, and then a series of columns in which are entered the time
consumed by each in each series of observations.
If an operation is one that is repeated over and over again, the
way to study it is to first list the elements entering into it, and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
543
then take the time on each with the watch running, stopping it
in case of false movements, or anything going wrong, and starting
it again when the actual work is resumed. When the obser¬
vations have been completed, the time for each element is com¬
puted by subtraction, and the time for each element ascertained.
Wherever possible, a number of observations should be made on
each sequence of operations, and in determining the elementary
time unit, we eliminate the times that are too high and too low —
usually as a result of error in observation — and follow the general
rule of selecting the time unit that occurs most frequently for
each element.
An expert time study man can observe a sequence of elements
totally new, and put down a description of the element and its
time as the operation progresses; but this is no task for the
beginner.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT IN RETAILING
By C. BERTRAND THOMPSON
Reprinted by permission of System
Introduction
Running a retail store by scientific management is an idea
quite new to store managers. They have heard of scientific
management and the possibility of its application to railroads,
and they know that factories and a few government establish¬
ments are being operated under scientific management. The
popular idea of this particular development is that it consists in
the application of stop watches and motion study to the work of
operatives and the administration of a factory with an excessive
amount of red tape.
One would not have to reflect long, however, to arrive at the
conclusion that, if this is all scientific management consisted of,
it would have died a natural death long ago, instead of being, as
it is, the livest issue in modern industrial developments. Scienti¬
fic management includes time study and motion study and an
elaborateness of forms and records which to the uninitiated bears
naturally the appearance of red tape. But these things do not
constitute the system; they are merely parts of the mechanism.
The system itself consists of a series of principles whose applica¬
tion, as made by Fred W. Taylor and his group of engineers, is
but one particular form. The mechanism is in many cases not
adaptable to retailing, but the principles are.
Any one familiar with the fine arts is thoroughly used to the
idea of transferring the principles of one art to another. Take
the principle of contrast, for example, originating probably in
dramatic literature, where the interplay of opposing characters
stimulated a pleasurable interest. This same principle of con¬
trast was soon extended to architecture and sculpture and later
to painting, and in modern times to music. The fact that the
aim sought in any fine art is the same in all of them: to wit, an
aesthetic pleasure, suggests that the means successful in one
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
545
would probably be successful in another; and experience has
justified this supposition. It is reasonable to suppose that the
same principle would apply to the art of management, whether
it is management of a factory or a store. In both cases the end
sought is the same: to wit, the production of a utility at the
lowest cost. In the case of a factory the utility takes the form
of a change in the shape and condition of the materials handled ;
they go in, for instance, as bales of cotton and come out as bolts
of cloth. The thing produced is the change in form. In a store
the product is also a utility, but a utility of location. The goods
arrive in packages at the store, where they are wanted only for
distribution, and are sold in units to the customer who wants
them for use. The only change they have experienced is the
change in location; but as this is a useful change, it is a utility,
exactly as the change in form made by the factory.
Besides producing the same thing: to wit, utilities, both fac¬
tory and store make use of the same producing factors — men,
materials, equipment, and buildings. Instead, therefore, of its
being difficult to seè how the principles of factory management
can apply to store management, it is rather more difficult to see
how they can fail to apply.
The fundamental principles of scientific management as prac¬
tised in industrial establishments are: first, the organization of
the present scattered knowledge in regard to the business into a
coherent science; and, second, the organization of the human and
material factors involved to secure the most efiicient application
of the science.
That there is a science of production has been known to engi¬
neers and factory managers for decades; and that this science
includes not merely the chemistry and physics of engineering, but
the technique of machine operation and hand work has been
demonstrated for years under scientific management. As Mr.
Taylor has shown, there is a science of shovelling as well as a
science of bridge building — simpler, of course, but none the less
ascertainable and definite. There is a science of selling, too, and
many people are trying to find out what it is, thus recognizing
the application of this manufacturing principle to marketing.
546
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The principal methods in a scientifically managed factory for
securing proper organization of the human and material factors
include: first, the selection of the right men for the job; second,
the systematic training of each man for his job and for transfer
to other jobs when needed; third, an accurate determination of
a definite quantity and quality of work which each man may
reasonably be expected to produce, day in and day out, without
inconvenience; fourth, the establishment of such conditions as
will in every way facilitate the work of the operator, such as
careful planning of all work in advance and having on hand at
the machine or work place all the materials, tools, and instruc¬
tions necessary for the workman to proceed; fifth, the payment
of a wage sufficiently above the ordinary to be an inducement to
the workman to accept the instruction and other facilities offered
him.
Some of these methods are already familiar to store and sales
managers and have been consciously developed, in some cases to
a high degree of perfection.
Though it cannot be said that the selection of sales people,
buyers, and the force of help about a store, is done on any notice¬
ably scientific basis, it is evident that considerable- thought has
been given to the training of such people as are actually employed.
Classes in salesmanship are quite common. Committee meetings
of buyers, etc., practically amount to the same thing; and fre¬
quent conferences between the heads of a concern and their sub¬
ordinates are in many stores the occasion of definite instruction.
Conventions of salesmen are utilized for the same purpose. Thus
the second method has secured considerable recognition.
The establishment of a quota of sales, whether as the basis for
the tenure of a job or the fixing of a salary, is a recognition of the
third method: the establishment of a definite task.
Fixing the salary proportionally to the sales made, whether in
the form of commission, bonus, premium, or what not, is in a
degree a recognition of the fifth method — I say " in a degree "
because the increased compensation in selling is usually paid
sirriply for the product: to wit, the quantity of sales and not, as
in factories operating under scientific management, for the accep-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
547
tance of instruction and increased facilities provided by the
management, bringing with it as a by-product an increase in out¬
put. Commission and premium schemes as applied to sales are
more like the old piece rate system in factories. In the piece
rate system some one sets a rate according to his judgment, and
the worker is paid exactly in proportion to the number of pieces
produced. The management does nothing in particular to assist
him in production, but depends on the operator's initiative and
ability to devise improvements and increase his output. This is
evidently entirely different from the method of scientific manage¬
ment, which has standardized so far as possible all the conditions
under which the operator works, trains him thoroughly to the
best use of the conditions provided, sets a task based upon the
continuance of such conditions, and pays a high rate for their
acceptance.
It should be clear from this comparison that the feature in'
which sales management is most undeveloped in comparison with
factory management is in the organization of the conditions
in which the work is done. In other words, in the adequate
performance of the duties which should devolve upon the man¬
agement and which affect sales only indirectly. Take the stock-
handling system of any large department store as an example.
The store gives the best of its attention and ability to advertis¬
ing, to the selection of buyers and the training of sales people;
but its store and stockrooms are usually inadequate, poorly
lighted, poorly located, poorly accounted for, and in general, in
comparison with the factory storeroom, quite inefficiently man¬
aged. The expense connected with the management of a store¬
room is charged as " non-productive " or " burden " and the
idea, now becoming obsolete in factory management, that over¬
head or indirect expense is a burden and therefore to be reduced
to a minimum, still prevails largely in marketing.
The same observations apply to the usual retail accounting
systems. They are looked upon as a necessary evil. As much
attention as is necessary is given to the commercial accounts —
those by which the manager keeps posted on how much he owes
and how much is owing to him. But of cost accoimting, as that
548
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
term is known to the factory manager, there is little or nothing;
and yet it is reasonable to suppose that the same methods of cost
accounting which have fully demonstrated their value in manu¬
facturing might be at least equally useful if applied to selling.
It is the object of the articles in this series to point out how
these two features of management work: to wit, cost accounting
and the accounting for materials received, handled, and delivered,
may be successfully transplanted from factories to stores; and
it may not be superfluous to add that they are really an account
of what the writer has already successfully accomplished.
I
Cost Classification for Retail Stores
Most department stores and large retail establishments have
developed certain parts of their system to a high degree of per¬
fection. The most immediate and important problem that they
have is to buy the right goods at the right time, to get them
before the customer and sell them as quickly as possible at a
profit. The very life of the organization depends on the satis¬
factory solution of this problem; consequently, it has received
the greatest share of attention and has been in many cases satis¬
factorily worked out. The buyers are carefully selected, well
trained, closely checked, and highly rewarded. Dealings with
manufacturers and sources of supply have been reduced to a
science, until the manufacturers, especially the smaller ones, have
become almost universally at the mercy of the large retailer,
especially in respect to the making and storage of goods until
called for, so that the manufacturer bears the burden of invest¬
ment in stock which a few years ago was borne by the retailer.
Advertising and display have similarly been highly developed,
until the appeal of " special bargains," " quality," and " service "
has become wellnigh irresistible. Schools have been installed
and instructors retained to teach the sales-people the best method
of closing with the customer. In short, some of the fundamental
principles of what is known among manufacturers äs scientific
management have for some time been applied — more or less
unconsciously and haphazard, to be sure — to retailing.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
549
This situation is analogous to that which existed in industrial
activities several years ago when the technique of production
was receiving the lion's share of attention. The manufacturer
considered that he existed to make the product and that his chief
problem was to make it as quickly and as cheaply as possible.
The product was apparently made " at the point of the tool " and
it was therefore the technique of machinery, equipment and
material that got his attention. It was at least twenty years
ago, however, that manufacturers discovered that there was more
involved in the economical making of a product than merely the
machinery and the material. The propaganda of " costs " called
his attention to the fact that the indirect expenses of his business
constituted a large element in their real cost; and with this
discovery came the resolution first to find out exactly what these
indirect expenses were, and then to take the necessary steps to
reduce them to the minimum consistent with efficient operation.
This determination to eliminate wastes of equipment, materials,
and later of effort is behind the whole modern movement of
scientific management.
The time seems to be ripe for retailers to pursue the same
course. Nothing is more striking to the student of industrial
methods than the co-existence in the same store of the most
refined methods of buying, advertising, and selling, with the very
crudest methods of receiving, storing, handling, and delivery of
goods, and the most cumbersome methods of accounting. The
relatively greater profits in retailing — or perhaps the ignorance
of the retailer as to the real extent of his profits — have suc¬
ceeded in covering up the necessity for close supervision and the
importance of detail. Retailers, however, are already bitten
with the cost germ and are discovering that their profits are not
quite what they thought they were. Or else they have begun
to take pride in the efficient management of their business for the
sheer artistic satisfaction that comes from doing a thing exactly
right, and they appear to be at least in a receptive attitude toward
scientific management.
As the store manager reads this and reflects on the great mass
of printed forms, running into the hundreds, which he uses, he
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
may wonder what these statements mean. It looks to him as
though, if his store has anything, it certainly has system. It
undoubtedly does have system of the type familiar to manu¬
facturers fifteen years ago; that is, numerous and variegated
cards and sheets, expensively ruled and highly colored. It is the
very quantity and complexity of these forms and the clumsiness
of their use which open him to the charge of wastefulness. Re¬
tailers should see what manufacturers have long since discovered;
to wit, that efficient system does not consist in a multiplicity of
forms, but in the quick, accurate, and economic securing of
valuable results in the way of useful information in regard to the
business, and more particularly in the reduction of wasted effort.
The extent of antiquated methods in the administration of
retail establishments as revealed by recent investigations would
almost lead one to question whether store managers are anywhere
near ready for any form of scientific management. One gains
reassurance, however, from the readiness with which shoe retailers
are accepting and installing the uniform cost accounting system
developed and provided for them by the Harvard University
Bureau of Business Research. Reports from all over the country
indicate that this system is not only being adopted bodily by
leading shoe retailers but is also influencing the accounting
system and business methods of many more. This cost system
should lead retailers, as similar systems led manufacturers, to
take the next step, which is to reduce the costs of doing business
as soon as those costs are accurately ascertained.
As I have pointed out in former articles, the beginning of
wisdom is analysis and classification. A classification once made
is exceedingly useful and pays for itself many times over, as will
be shown later. But even more valuable than the classification
is the detailed analysis of the business which is necessary before
classification can be begun. Before you can classify your costs,
you must know exactly, exhaustively, and in minute detail what
you are spending your money for; and the mere gathering of this
information and putting it down on paper is in itself a startling
eye-opener. Probably the first thing it will show is that from
twice to five times more blanks and forms are being used than are
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
551
necessary, and that, with proper management, the clerical force
can be cut in half and quicker and more accurate results secured.
It will also undoubtedly show, in a fairly large store, that the
stock of supplies of various sorts, such as wrapping paper, twine,
elevator supplies, janitor's supplies, etc., is a considerable but
indefinite quantity, scattered all over the place, and subject to
no control whatever. If the store runs a soda fountain or a
restaurant, an analysis of costs will probably show first that they
(or at least the restaurant) do not pay; and an analysis of sup¬
plies will probably show a variety of brands and of prices and a
laxity of control which may account largely for the deficit.
You undoubtedly have, or can easily get, a sufficiently good
system of accounting for your merchandise. You know from
your inventory the billed prices of your purchases, the freight
and cartage on them, and the discounts. It is not so safe to
wager that you know or can get easily the depreciation on your
stock or the cost of returned goods in the course of a year; but
even this you may have. If you are right up to the minute, you
know the cost of heat, light, power, repairs and renewals of equip¬
ment, depreciation of equipment, office supplies and expenses;
and of course it is easy to get your rent, insurance, taxes, and
licenses, and management and office salaries. If you are running
a small store as a unit, you can know, with this information in
hand, whether you are making a profit. But if your store is
departmentalized even to the slightest extent, it is reasonably
certain that the indirect expenses are not being apportioned
properly over your departments and, consequently, that you
cannot tell which departments are running at a profit or at a loss
and how much the profit or loss is per department. For you
must remember that the mere accounting for merchandise does
not give you this information. Your merchandise accounts may
show a profit for a department which is in fact entirely wiped
out by a proper apportionment of your indirect expenses; and it
is precisely this indirect expense which store managers as a rule
know little or nothing about.
The analysis and classification of costs which I am about to
describe is intended to make it easy to determine the exact
552
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
amount of indirect as well as direct cost and to provide a quick
and easy method of apportionment of the indirect over the
direct cost. It is not an easy and simple matter to make the
analysis and classification. On the contrary, it calls for a great
deal of thought and painstaking care. But as usual thorough¬
going planning means easy application; and that such is the case
with this analysis and classification has been demonstrated.
Applied to an up-to-date department store in which the manager
got each month, from twenty to thirty days after the end of the
month, an accurate distribution sheet, its first result was to get
the distribution sheet five days after the end of the first month,
and three days after the end of the second. It is now used to get
a weekly distribution sheet laid on the manager's desk the first
thing Monday morning.
For what kind of things does a store pay out its cash ? In the
first place, of course, it pays salaries and its bills for merchandise,
and in most cases rent, and interest on borrowed money. In
addition it has many bills for freight, express and cartage, adver¬
tising, office supplies, wrapping and delivery expense, insurance
and taxes, repairs and renewals of equipment. In addition to
these actual expenditures, the store should have a proper charge
for depreciation on stock and on fixtures. There will be many
other tems of expense such as telephone and telegraph, eleva¬
tors, janitor service, stockhandling, etc., and in some large stores,
there may be such adjuncts as an employment department, an
information bureau, waiting rooms, and perhaps even a bank.
This does not exhaust the list by any means. Every store has an
accounting department more or less developed, and occasionally
has to meet legal expenses and to pay for protection against theft.
One of its largest items is likely to be for advertising, including
primarily newspapers, window-dressing, catalogues, and bill
boards, and extending into a wide variety of special advertising
accounts, such as contributions to charities, fairs, etc., dodgers,
circular letters, programs, magazines, and gifts, such as playing-
cards, fans, rulers, pencils, etc., inscribed with the name of the
concern. To illustrate in further detail, the advertising depart¬
ment may employ special men of its own, requiring salaries and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
wages; there will be certain telephone and telegraph charges
against this department alone; it will consume a considerable
quantity of Supplies and stationery, and in some cases may even
maintain a small printing plant to set up large newspaper adver¬
tisements in advance.
The first principle of scientific management, you remember, is
the organization of scattered knowledge into a systematized
whole. Suppose we apply this principle to our accounts. For¬
tunately we can do this easily by the application of precisely the
method which is used in developing a complete system of accounts
for a factory, making of course such changes in the terminology
as are obviously necessary.
The first thing to do is to list every item of expenditure that
there is a record of — and there should be a record of every expen¬
diture made. When this is accomplished, the next thing to do
is to classify these items into a few very broad groups. This
classification may be made by the aid of the questions on the
chart. See page 554.
First question: Is the expenditure for materials or work to be
sold ? If the answer is Yes, it may be classified as an expenditure
for merchandise or products to be sold as merchandise, such as
the meals served in a restaurant. Such expenditure is direct
expense; and as all other expenditures (except capital expendi¬
tures, such as permanent additions to land and buildings and
equipment) are to be reckoned as a percentage of the selling price
of the merchandise, all others are indirect.
If the expenditure is for materials or work not to be sold
directly, a second question is in order: Does the material or work
increase the permanent value of the store ?
If the expenditure is for fixtures, machinery and equipment
(except for that which is to be written off immediately when
purchased) or for land and buildings, it should be classified as a
capital account. If it is not for such items, nor for material
or work to be sold, it is chargeable to some kind of indirect
expense.
In the latter case there should be asked the third question:
Can the expenditure be charged directly to a department ? All
554
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
expenditures which can be, maybe classified at once as depart¬
mental expenses.
And in regard to those which cannot be charged directly to a
department, the fourth question is in order: Is the expense for
A Auxiliary Expense
B Administrative Expense
D Departmental Expense
E
F
G
H
J
K
L
(M
N
P
R
(S
T
U
V
W
Merchandise)
Stores and Supplies)
X
Y Fixtures, Machinery, and
Equipment, except that
which is written off when
purchased
Z Land and Buildings
»Fourth Question
Is the expense for direct dealing
with merchandise or customers ?
< < < Yes"
^No +-
L-^Third Question
Can the expenditure be charged
directly to a department ?
< < < No <
-Yes<-
First Question
Is the expenditure for ma-
»Merchandise terials or work to be sold ?
or products to
be sold as No t
merchandise
—«—<—<—Y es <r-
->—>—>-
'—»Second Question
Does the material or work
increase the permanent
value of the store?
Not;—
-<—«—Yes<-
direct handhng of merchandise or dealing with customers ? If
it is, it may be classified as an auxiliary expense; and if it is not,
then as an administrative expense.
The dividing line between auxiliary and administrative expense
is somewhat shadowy; and in some cases it is immaterial which
way the expense is classified, provided the classification, once
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
555
made, is consistently adhered to. It has a certain usefulness,
however, inasmuch as auxiliary expenses are by definition those
which are necessary for the proper handling of goods and custom¬
ers, and in case of retrenchment, therefore, these should be the
last to be attacked. Administrative expenses, on the other hand,
though necessary to the successful management of the business,
may in many cases be cut down, at least temporarily, without
serious harm.
An intelligent answering of these questions would result in a
workable classification of every item of expenditure.
Adhering to the mnemonic system of symbols used in the
Taylor system of scientific management and illustrated in former
articles in this magazine, suppose that we make a base sheet for
our major classification which will read as follows:
N
P
Q
R
Auxiliary
Administrative
A
B
C
D Departmental
E
F
G
H
J
K
L
M Merchandise
(S Stores and supplies)
T
U
V
W
X
Y Fixtures and sprinkler system
Z Land and buildings
Subdividing now our main base sheet, let us see what the classi¬
fication will be in a typical, moderate-sized department store.
The auxiliary expenses will be listed and symbolized as follows:
AA^ Advertising
AC Cash System
AE Elevators
AF Telephone and Telegraph
AH Heat, light, and power not else¬
where classified
AJ Janitor service
AK Stockroom
AL Alterations and repairs
AM Employment
AN Information bureau and Post
Office
AP Shipping department
AR Receiving department
AS Supply department
AT Transportation
AW Waiting room
AZ Land and buildings: repairs,
maintenance and rent.
^ In practice in making up a classification, it is desirable invariably to put down
all the letters of the alphabet, omitting " I " and " O." Letters not used are
omitted here and elsewhere in this article from considerations of space.
5S6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The base sheet for administrative expense will be this:
BA Accounting department
BE Educational department
BN Insurance
BP Protection
BF Floor-walkers
BG General ofíices
BH Shopping
BS Statistical department
BV Inventories
BX Taxes
BL Legal expenses
BY System expenses
BM Mail order department
D is the general symbol for departmental expense and, where
there are but few departments, a letter may be added after the D
to symbolize the department: for instance, in a shoe store that is
divided into men's, women's, infants', and hosiery departments,
these will be designated as DM, DW, DN (I and 0 are omitted
from this symbolic system on account of their resemblance to the
figures I and o), and DH, respectively. In a department store
this is not practicable without classifying and symbolizing the
departments with a resultant symbol of two or three letters for
each one. In order, therefore, to keep the symbols short, it is
better to number the departments; and this number should be
inserted immediately after the D. In the following base sheet
for departmental expenses, the dash after the D is for the symbol
or number of the department:
D-A Advertising for special de- D-H Handling cash and goods
partments D-K Marking
D-B Buying D-L Alterations
D-C Repairs and maintenance D-S Selling
D-E Equipment D-T Transportation
It will be noted that in the original base sheet, S is included in
parentheses, as is also M ; this is for the purpose of reserving these
symbols for materials constituting stores and supplies and for
merchandise.
The classifications of fixtures and of land and buildings are
simple and obvious and, as they do not enter into our expense-
account, except as to depreciation which is otherwise charged,
their base sheets are not given here.
A few typical base sheets for detailed classes of expenditure
may be given as guides to the development of a complete classifi¬
cation — for instance:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
SS7
AA — Advertising
AAA Salaries and wages, except
window-dressers
AAB Bill-boards
AAC Contributions
AAF Telephone (toll) and tele¬
graph
AAG Catalogues
AAJ Dodgers
AAL Circular letters
AAM Magazines
AAN Newspapers
AAP
AAR
AAS
AAV
AAW
AAiN
AA2N
AA3N
Programs
Reclamation of errors
Supplies and stationery, ex¬
cept for window-dressing
Advertising mediums not
elsewhere classified
Window-dressing
Under AAN, you will notice AAiN, AA2N, etc. These are the
symbols for the specific newspapers advertised in.
You will also notice an account, AAR, reclamation of errors.
This is for such charges as arise out of mistakes made by the
advertising department of which it is desirable to keep a separate
account. The same application should be made to the work of
evéry department.
AAW, Window-dressing, may be subdivided thus:
AAWA Salaries and wages AAWR
AAWC Repairs and maintenance AAWS
AAWE Equipment
Reclamation of errors
Supplies and stationery
An important classification in some stores will be that of AH,
heat, light and power not elsewhere classified. It will cover the
following items :
AHA
AHB
AHC
Salaries and wages AHE
Repairs and maintenance for AHF
boilers, engines, and other AHL
machinery, not elsewhere AHP
classified
Repairs and maintenance for AHS
fixtures and furniture, not
elsewhere classified
Equipment
Fuel
Electricity
Repairs and maintenance for
piping, fixtures, and wiring
Stores and supplies and sta¬
tionery
Alterations and repairs should have an account of their own,
for which we would use this base sheet :
ALA Salaries and wages
ALC Repairs and maintenance
ALE Equipment
ALM Materials
ALR Reclamation of errors
ALS Supplies and stationery not
elsewhere classified
5S8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Alterations and repairs and rent for land and buildings are
symbolized respectively AZC and AZR.
General office expenses, which may amount to a considerable
item, may be grouped in this way:
BGA
Salaries and wages
BGE
Telephone (tolls) and tele¬
BGB
Books and periodicals
grams
BGC
Repairs and maintenance
BGN
Entertainment
BGD
Dues and assessments in
BGS
Supplies and stationery
associations
BGT
Traveling
BGE
Equipment
Insurance is taken care of as follows:
BNB
Bonds
BNL
Liability
BNC
Repairs and maintenance of
BNS
Stock and fixtures
sprinkler system
Buying expenses are sometimes important and heavy. They
should be grouped in accordance with the following base sheet:
D-BA Salaries and wages D-BN Entertainment
D-BB Bonuses D-BR Reclamation of errors
D-BC Commissions D-BS Supplies and stationery
D-BE Extra premiums D-BT Traveling
D-BF Telephone tolls and tele- D-BX Loss on sales (markdowns)
grams
This buying expense classification is based upon a fairly highly
developed organization in which it is possible easily to segregate
most of the expenses. It can be applied to smaller organizations,
however, by a reasonable apportionment of expenses between the
classifications concerned. For instance, if the same individual is
engaged in both buying and selling, it ought not to be difficult to
charge part of his salary to one, and part to the other. Do not
be misled into thinking there are no buying expenses because you
may not happen to have buyers so-called; nor, on the other
hand, into thinking that all the expenses of a buyer, and especially
in a department store, are buying expenses. If a manager in a
small store sells goods, keeps the accounts, and does the buying,
part of his salary should be charged to buying, even though he
performs that function nights and Sundays. On the other hand,
in a department store wherè the buyer is the head of the depart-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ment and may also do some selling, care should be taken to charge
to buying expenses only that part of his time which is actually
occupied in buying. This calls for the exercise of judgment and
cannot be absolutely accurate, but it can easily be made accurate
enough for ordinary purposes.
The degree of minuteness to which this classification will be
carried will vary of course with the relative importance of the
department or function under consideration. For instance, if
the mail order department is a considerable part of the business,
it will have a complete classification of expenses of its own; while
if it is distinctly subsidiary, a much rougher and less complete
classification will serve.
In the apportionment to each function of a business of such
items as supplies, it becomes necessary to organize a supply
department, from which supplies are issued to other departments
on requisition, which may be charged directly against the depart¬
ment receiving them. Here again successful factory experience
has been easily transplanted to department store w«rk. The
best way of handling this is to gather the supplies and stationery
into a storeroom, make it some one's business to act as store¬
keeper, and classify and otherwise handle the supplies as de¬
scribed in my former article, " Listing Stock to Index Wastes,"
on page 490.
If the store under consideration is a one department or unit
concern, there is no problem of apportionment of indirect expense,
and the items of expenditure may be grouped easily in accordance
with the symbol to get any totals desired. If you want to know,
for instance, your total expenditures for freight, express and
cartage, all you have to do is to total all the AT items. If you
want to segregate the expense of delivery companies, freight,
messengers, and parcels post, simply re-divide into ATD, ATF,
ATM, and ATP, respectively. If, on the other hand, you want
to get the total cost of handling goods and customers, that is, the
auxiliary expenses, total all the A's; or if you want your total
administrative expenses, take the sum of all the B's. The entire
indirect cost of your alterations and repairs is simply the total
of the AL items. Your buying expense is the sum of DB for all
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
departments, that is, it wfll include DBA, DBB, DBG, DBE,
DBF, DBN, DBR, DBS, DBT, and DBX (if the loss on sales is
charged against buying). Similarly, all your advertising expense
is easily closed into a control account AA, composed of all those
items the symbol for which includes AA as its first two letters.
All this means that every expense should have a voucher, to
which the proper symbol is affixed; but if this is done, the resul¬
tant ease of handling is what makes the system worth while.
If, however, the store in question is organized in two or more
departments, it becomes highly desirable to apportion the indirect
expense in some fair way over departments. Such an apportion¬
ment properly made often shows wide variations in the profits
from different departments, and máy even reverse the current
opinion of the management as to their relative money-making
capacity. This becomes a highly important practical question
as it is nothing unusual to find the profits of one department
eaten up by the losses of another. This may sometimes be tole¬
rated as a permanent condition where the maintenance of the
loss-producing department is desired as an advertising feature
or as a convenience to customers; but even in that case the
management should be in a position to know what this advertising
and convenience are costing it.
The problem of apportioning indirect expenses over depart¬
ments is not difficult if sufficient thought is given it in advance,
and the method of apportionment indicated in the s3mbol for the
expense. This is another story, however, and will be discussed
fully in the next section.
II
Making Departments Pay Their Share
The first and great commandment in scientific management is
accurate determination of facts. In its application to cost
accounting this means that all the items of expense shall be care¬
fully analyzed and re-grouped, so that each separate item may be
charged to its appropriate group and thus the management
kept informed as to the general tendency and location of its
expenditures. For the business to succeed the management must
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 561
get back all that it puts in, plus a profit. If it is at all depart¬
mentalized, the management must see that each department or
group of products gets back all that goes into it. There is no way
of being sure of this unless all the costs, indirect as well as direct,
are properly charged against each department or group of prod¬
ucts, and unless returns from sales are so analyzed as to show
the returns of each department or group. The problem of allo¬
cating every item of expense to the group or department to which
it belongs is by no means a simple one, and in current factory
practice it has called for and secured the highest grade of ability
and attention. Every up-to-date factory has a cost accounting
system which in practically every case is admittedly complex and
elaborate. Many factories, however, have progressed to the
point where complexity and elaborateness are no longer adverse
criticisms, provided they are no greater than is necessary to
secure the accurate information demanded.
That the science of management of retail stores, as compared
with that of scientifically managed factories, is still a mere infant
hardly able to walk is nowhere more strikingly shown than in
the current methods of charging departments with their share
of the indirect expenses of the store. In factories the subject of
costs has long since been worked out to a high degree of refine¬
ment. Every factory cost accountant is familiar with at least
half a dozen methods of distributing indirect expenses, and every
expert can say with confidence which method should be used in
particular instances and for particular departments. There are
several books on factory costing which are really scientific pieces
of werk; but for department stores there is nothing. In the
struggle to develop advertising and merchandising always a step
beyond what the competitor is doing, the details of store admin¬
istration have had but scant attention. It is as though the
army spent all its time at rifle practice and never considered the
commissary, transportation and sanitary provisions without
which, with all its fighting efficiency, it would be utterly useless
in time of war.
As pointed out in the last section in this series, it is highly
important that a department store should know what share of
502
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
its indirect expenses should be charged against each department.
In the absence of such information it is not at all unusual to find
a department, supposed to be making a profit, actually running
at a loss. In fact, instances have been known where the manager
would relieve a weak department of any proper share of expense
in order to have that department show a profit, with the explana¬
tion that he was n't going to have a department that didn't
show a profit. That is the policy of our old friend, the ostrich.
This policy is not altogether unknown even now in factories, but
the factory in which it is found is sure to be spoken of as old-
fashioned.
The modern policy is to find out exactly what each department
really costs, not only in the amount of merchandise handled
through it, but in supervision, accounting, fioor-walking, elevator
service, general advertising, and the other innumerable features
which go to make up the entire expense of a store but which
cannot be charged directly against a department. This is the
problem of apportionment — to take all those costs which are
incurred by the store as a whole and distribute them over the
store components as justly as possible.
Some of the more progressive stores have already accepted the
principle of the apportionment of expenses over departments;
but as a rule their methods of apportionment are, to say the least,
crude. It is quite usual to find all the expenses apportioned by
the amount of sales. That this is not at all accurate should be
evident on brief consideration. A department selling notions,
for instance, may have three times the number of employees,
making its cost of supervision greater, and twenty times asTnuch
clerical work as the rug and carpet department or the musical
instrument department, while its total volume of sales may be
less. In this case the rug department would be charged with
considerably more than its proper share of the clerical expense
and supervision. On the other hand, the rug and carpet depart¬
ment may occupy three times the space of a jewelry department
doing as much business. If, as has happened, rent is distributed
on the basis of total volume of sales, the jewelry department will
be paying a large part of the rent which the rug department ought
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
563
to be charged with. The condition is just as bad when indirect
expenses are apportioned entirely on the basis of floor space
occupied. When this is done, the rug department bears part of
the burden which ought to be carried by those departments
occupying a small floor space.
There is in fact no one method of apportionment which is
either logical or even approximately accurate. If accuracy is
essential — and as competition becomes keener, reasonable
accuracy becomes indispensable — the apportionment of indirect
expenses should be on the basis of the actual facts; and on this
basis there will be at least ten or fifteen different methods of
apportionment for different items of expense.
There are certain items of expense for which it is easy to find
the proper method of distribution. Take the cash system, for
example, consisting of a number of stations of carriers, a group of
cash girls, and the necessary printed forms. The expenses in¬
volved are wages, repairs and mai,ntenance, small equipment,
power, rent (unless the system is owned by the concern), and
incidental supplies. According to the cost classification illus¬
trated in the last section, this will be symbolized as follows:
When these systems are rented, it is at a charge of so much per
station. It is fairly obvious, therefore, that the rent should be
distributed over departments in proportion to the number of
stations in departments. It is clear also that the cost of repairs
and maintenance, equipment, supplies, and power is proportion¬
ate to the number of stations and should, therefore, be distributed
in the same way. On the other hand, wages of girls in the central
station are not necessarily proportionate to the number of stations
in departments, but rather to the number of sales in departments,
and should therefore be distributed on the basis of the number of
sales slips. In any case these items are in no way proportional
to the total volume of sales or the amount of floor space occupied.
AC — Cas^ System
ACA Wages and salaries
ACC Repairs and maintenance
ACE Equipment
ACP Power
ACR Rent
ACS Supplies
564 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
That part of the work of the accounting department which does
not deal with purchasing or stockhandling of merchandise, is
concerned in the main with daily sales, credits, and monthly bills.
The expense of those clerks dealing with sales, and credits should
most reasonably be distributed over departments in proportion
to the number of sales slips as representing most accurately the
number of sales, while that of the billing clerks should, of course,
be distributed in proportion to the number of bills entered.
There are facilities provided by a store, such as the information
bureau, post-ofñce, and waiting-room, the expense of which should
be apportioned according to the number of people using them.
In other words, they should be distributed over the departments
in proportion to the number of people making purchases in the
department; and this is evidenced by the number of sales slips.
The benefit that the firm derives from an education department
if it maintains one, is also proportional to the number of sales
made; and this expense should therefore be apportioned on the
basis of sales slips.
Take such an item as telephone and telegraph expense. When
this is incurred in connection with buying for a department,
obviously it should be charged directly against the department
buying. There are many telephone and telegraph charges, how¬
ever, which are not incurred directly by a department but should
in some way be distributed. Evidently there is no connection
between the telephone calls and the volume of business or the
fioor space occupied by departments. An easy and sufficiently
accurate method is to distribute them in proportion to the average
number of calls directly charged against departments.
There are many kinds of expense which should be distributed
on the basis of the number of square feet occupied by depart¬
ments. Rent, for instance, is clearly on this basis. Heat, light,
ventilation and power, not already charged directly to a depart¬
ment, should be apportioned on the same basis. Janitor service
also is generally in proportion to square feet of floor space. The
same is true of the repairs and maintenance of sprinkler system.
Where floor-walkers have a round that includes more than one
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 565
department, their cost should be distributed also on the number
of square feet.
There are many other bases of apportionment, each of which
has its own particular application. If a stockroom for supplies
is maintained, the expense of this stockroom should be dis¬
tributed in proportion to the value of supplies used by each de¬
partment. Insurance on stock should be spread over the average
stock carried by departments. The cost of window-dressing
should be charged in proportion to window space occupied by
each department. Advertising is usually to be charged directly
against the department advertised; but in all advertising there
is a large element which is general: that is, which advertises the
store as a whole and from which each department gets some inde¬
terminate share of benefit. Bill-boards, contributions to charity,
etc., fall into this class. General advertising in newspapers
should be distributed over departments in proportion to the total
advertising space taken by the department during the year.
This applies only to such general advertising as appears in news¬
papers. Other general advertising cannot be distributed in any
way proportionately to the benefit derived by a department, for
the reason that such proportionate benefit cannot be ascertained.
The disposition of this expense will be discussed later in this
article. DeHvery expenses, to be accurate, should be distributed
in accordance with the number of parcels shipped from each
department. The expense of an employment bureau and liability
insurance should be charged on the basis of the department
payroll, as these obviously vary with the number of persons
employed and their wages or salaries.
The elevator expense offers a special problem. It is not exactly
fair to distribute it over the entire store in proportion to the
number of people using a department, nor on the basis of fioor
space, for departments on the street floor have no use for the
elevator at all, and, therefore, should not be charged with any
part of tiie elevator expense. The best plan seems to be to dis¬
tribute it in proportion to the number of sales in the basement
and second and upper fioor departments.
5^6 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
If the concern does a small mail order business, not sufficient to
warrant a separate mail order department to which the cost may
be charged directly, the expense of its mail orders should, of
course, be distributed in proportion to the mail orders filled by
departments.
There remain quite a number of expenses which cannot be
allocated logically on any of the bases stated. For instance,
general advertising not in newspapers, general office expenses,
stockroom expense, shipping and receiving department cost,
general transportation charges, legal, protective, statistical,
" shopping," and system expenses, — this means of course all
expenses falling in these groups which cannot be charged at once
and directly against departments. Something might be said
for distributing these in proportion to the total sales of a depart¬
ment but, as the total sales basis is such an easy one to abuse, it
is preferable to eliminate it altogether. These general expenses
might with at least equal justice be distributed equally to depart¬
ments and, as they are the only ones that can be so distributed
with any logic whatever, that method is to be preferred as the
danger of abuse is less.
We thus have fourteen bases of distribution of expenses:
1. [Number of square feet.
2. Advertising space taken by department.
3. Window space occupied.
4. Number of sales slips.
5. Number of bills entered for departments.
6. Number of sales in basement, second and upper floors.
7. Number of parcels delivered.
8. Number of mail orders filled by departments.
9. Average stock.
10. Number of carrier stations.
11. Value of supplies used by department.
12. Average number of calls for departments.
13. Payroll.
14. Equally to departments.
The administration of this system is not so difficult as might
appear on the surface, if it is thoroughly and carefully worked
out in advance. Distribution by departments calls, of course, for
a defijiite determination of the number oí departments involved.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 567
Distribution by number of sales slips involves totalling the num¬
ber of sales slips from each department each day for each week,
if the distribution is to be made weekly. Apportionment by
number of square feet means measuring the area of each depart¬
ment and getting its proportion to the total " productive " area
of the store (meaning by " productive " such space as is actually
used by selling departments).^ Bookkeepers' expense to be
determined according to the number of bills entered for the
departments, requires a weekly total of this number; similarly
with distribution by number of mail orders and average number
of telephone calls. Apportionment by value of supplies used
requires that supplies issued to the department shall be issued on
requisition, with the values noted on requisition and totalled
at the end of the week. Advertising space and window space
occupied must be measured. Payroll and average stock are
already available for the management. The number of stations
of the carrier system is easily ascertained. The number of parcels
delivered must be kept track of by departments.
With these data once secured, any good clerk with the aid of a
calculating machine or a slide rule can make the necessary dis¬
tribution very quickly, if only she knows how each item is to be
distributed. That is taken care of very simply by numbering
the methods of distribution, as in the list above, and inserting the
number in the cost symbol on each voucher, the symbol being
determined as described in the previous article.
For this purpose the cost symbols for specific items should be
written with a space between the first and second letters, this
space being filled in with the number of the distribution method,
On this basis the cost symbols for the accounting department will
be as follows:
B-A — Accounting Department
B-AA Salaries and wages B4AR Reclamation of errors
B4AC Repairs and maintenance B4AS Supplies and stationery
B4AE Equipment
^ It should be distinctly understood that productive and unproductive in this
sense are accounting terms and do not mean at all that space used for a stockroom,
for example, is unproductive, but merely that this expense cannot be charged
directly against a department but must be distributed on some basis over all
departments.
568
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Salaries and wages distributed differently must have a different
base sheet:
B-AA — Salaries and Wages
B4AAA Auditors
B5AAB Bookkeepers
B4AAC Cashiers
If every payroll voucher in the accounting department has the
symbol stamped on it, every oiie marked " B4AA " will be dis¬
tributed on the basis of the number of sales slips; while "B5AAB"
will be on the basis of the number of bills entered. The applica¬
tion of this to the rest of the system can be easily made.
It would be vain to pretend that this system of apportionment
is a family necessity. It is not intended for the small, single-line
store. It is meant only for department stores or for stores
organized departmentally. For them some system of apportion¬
ment is a necessity, and the justification of this particular One
is that it comes considerably closer to accuracy than any of the
methods now in common use in department stores. It is for
them a necessity because, without it, they cannot know accurately
the percentage of profit or loss they are making on departments;
without it they have no accurate guide to changes in buying,
selling and advertising policy; without it they cannot make an
intelHgent mark-up, nor can they know accurately the cost of
markdown; and it is daily becoming more and more true that,
without such a system, they cannot meet permanently the
increasing competition of ambitious newcomers in retailing.
With such a system intelligently administered they can do all
these things.
Ill
A Stockhandling System eor Merchandise
A scientifically managed factory operates on the basis of defi¬
nite and accurate knowledge of every detail necessary to the
successful prosecution of its business. It makes its product out
of raw materials. It knows what raw materials it has ordered,
from whom, and when they are to be delivered; it knows the
quantity on hand in its storerooms and its cost. It knows how
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 569
much its current manufacturing orders call for and, therefore,
how much of the quantity on hand or on order is reserved for
specific orders. It has determined on the basis of current and
prospective use just how low it can allow its stock to fall without
interfering with production, and how high it can allow it to go
without tying up too much capital; and it provides for automati¬
cally ordering within these limits.
The factory is so careful about its stores system because the
productive process originates there. The product cannot be
made or even started in the works unless the raw materials are
on hand. The scientifically managed factory is equally careful
of the material after it has started on its course. In the first
place it charts that course in advance; then it sees that material
is guided through it without deviation; and it keeps track all
the time of the location of the partly finished product on its
course, until it arrives finally in the stockroom, and is shipped
to the customer. This constant keeping tabs on the material
is not an easy thing to do and has had to justify itself by its
results. What it accomplishes is this; first, standardization of
materials by elimination of those not necessary or not best
adapted; second, reduction of the amount of capital tied up in
raw materials; third, a guarantee that raw materials are on hand
when needed; fourth, accurate knowledge of the progress of the
product through the shop, enabling reasonable promise dates to
be given; fifth, control of the finished stock, making prompter
shipments possible. This last result, delivery to the customer,
is the end and aim of the manufacturing process.
Delivery to the customer is also the end and sum of the retail¬
ing process. In order to insure it, the goods to be delivered must
have been ordered, received, transferred to the shelves, and
finally delivered. They must be on hand when the customer
wants to see them; there must not be so much stock that capital
is unnecessarily tied up. The chief and practically the only
difference between the requirements for the proper accounting
of materials in a factory and in a store lies in the fact that the.
interval between the receipt of raw materials and the delivery of
the product in the factory is longer and includes manufacturing
570
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
processes, whereas in the store it consists merely in the transfer
from the storeroom to the shelves and, in some cases, even that
is lacking. The methods of accounting, therefore, which have
been found successful in factories should be even more successful
and simpler in stores; and this article describes an application of
a factory system to merchandising.
Every properly-managed store gets frequent reports of the
total sales of merchandise each day. These reports are usually
in the form of totals for departments in a department store or for
entire lines of goods in other stores, such as men's shoes, women's
shoes, or cloaks, dresses, and piece goods. The report usually
shows also the value of goods unsold and such incidentals as
discounts, returns, and repairs and alterations. On the basis of
these detailed reports it is possible for the manager to check up
the condition of store or department and to keep in constant
touch with its needs. If the department is doing well, no action
is necessary; if it is not keeping up to the standard set, the buyer
is jacked up and the necessary steps taken. These daily records
extended over a period of years are sometimes charted by weeks
or months, or even daily, and the resultant graphs are used to
predict the probable demand.
Such information when secured for the store or the department
as a whole has some value, but its usefulness is slight compared
with that to be derived from similar information by lines or
classes of goods. The most up-to-date stores are using the latter
method, and still further subdivide their information by prices;
and the result of this analysis is to show what priced goods sell
best. Some curious information has been derived by this means.
It has been shown pretty conclusively, for instance, that a glove
will sell for $1.25 more quickly than if it is marked $1.15; and
that a $2.00 glove sells better than one at $1.75, although the
quality is the same or inferior.
The greatly increased value of the result when the analysis is
by lines and prices raises the presumption that a still more minute
analysis will be even more worth while.
No up-to-date factory follows the current methods of stores in
the handling of its stock. The reports of a factory on raw ma-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
571
tenais and stock on hand are totaled only when an inventory is
wanted. Each article carried has its own stock ledger or balance
sheet, and the management may know at any moment precisely
the quantity and value of each item in stores, in process, or in
stock; and with such detailed information before it, it can control
its purchases, the routing of its materials, and its investment of
capital with the utmost effectiveness.
There is apparently no reason other than custom why retail
stores should not follow the same procedure. There should be
no more excuse for over-time work or even closing down for stock
taking in a store than in a factory; and the most progressive
factories have ceased to interrupt their business for inventory.
The value of a perpetual inventory is so well known and so gener¬
ally acknowledged that no argument should be needed in its
support.
And there is a far stronger reason why a store should know
exactly and in detail how each item it carries is selling than that a
factory should know how its raw materials are going. In general
the success of a store depends upon the rapidity of its turn-over,
assuming of course that each turn-over is at a profit. Rapid
turn-over means a comparatively small investment of capital and
great elasticity in stock. In stores carrying seasonable goods
or goods strongly affected by changes in fashion, frequent turn¬
over is absolutely necessary to keep the stock up to date and pre¬
vent loss through rapid obsolescence.
It usually happens that the advantages of rapid turn-over vary
with different items. In the first place where the profit is large,
the turn-over need not be so rapid as in those cases where the
margin is small. In the second place, in any given line of goods,
such as dress goods for example, certain materials are staple and
the fashion in them does not change frequently; while others are
in to-day and out to-morrow. Here a quick turn-over is essential.
Obviously a report which totals results from all these types of
merchandise gives a mere average composite picture which is
true neither of the staples nor the novelties, nor of the big profit
and small profit items.
572
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In this matter, as so frequently in business, ultimate success
depends upon attention to detail, which means again analysis and
classification.
Frequently the steps necessary to be taken to secure such
detailed analysis are not difficult. The totals now given the
manager presuppose items from which the totals are built up.
In order to make the system complete, all that is necessary is
that each of these items shall be carried on a merchandise ledger
or balance sheet of its own. This does not involve much more
clerical work than is now already undertaken. When this is
done, the balances shown for each item can be easily combined by
classes in such groups as are similar from any point of view in
which the management is interested: for instance, by price
ranges, by rate of depreciation, as staples, novelties, etc. With
such detailed reports before them, the manager and the buyer
cannot help but be more intelligently guided in their decisions.
In addition such an accounting provides a perpetual inventory
of the store.
The detail of the method to be followed is illustrated in the
forms reproduced herewith. These forms may be combined on
one sheet and kept by merchandise clerks in the accounting de¬
partment; this takes away practically all clerical work from stock
keepers, salespeople, and buyers, and concentrates it in the clerical
department where it belongs. Experience has shown this to be
the best method in factories where the system is working most
successfully. If for any reason, however, this arrangement is
not desirable, the forms may be separated and columns i and 4
kept in the accounting department and columns 2 and 3 in the
stockroom. The description of their use will assume that they
are kept together in the accounting department, and will be
based on the practice of a department store. Modifications to
meet other conditions may readily be made.
Each sheet is the account for each item carried in stock; for
example, boy's 'two-piece suit, blue. No. 531 — the sheet may be
subdivided by ruling clear across it horizontally to provide a
section for each size.
/
(
Kind of unit Mark-up.
BALANCE OF MERCHANDISE
When quantity on hand in stockroom falls to
issue order for
Description When quantity on hand on floor falls to
issue requisition for
Location in stockroom
Location on floor
Symbol.
Instructions A. When merchandise is ordered, add quantity to column i.
for Posting. ß When merchandise arrives, subtract the quantity received
from column i and add to column 2.
I. — Merchandise Ordered, but not yet received
Date
Ordered
Date
Received
Purchase
Order No.
Quantity
Billed
Cost
Discount
Net Cost
C. If quantity received is a partial shipment, bring down balance due on
same purchase order in column 2.
2. — Merchandise Received in Stock Room
Date
Received
Quantity
Received
Purchase
Order No.
Delivery
Charges
Total
Cost
Cost
Per Unit
Quantity Due
on Order
D. When merchandise is issued to department, strike balance and
enter in column 3.
E. When merchandise is receipted for by department, enter in
column 4.
3. — Merchandise on Hand in Stockroom
Date Issued
to Dept.
Quantity
Issued
Issued for
Requis. No.
Price
Per Unit
Total
Price
Balance
on Hand
F. Daily totals of merchandise sold shou
]Vo¿e — In all cases set down at once b
Id be entered in column 4, and balance left on hand in department entered,
lance on hand in each column affected.
Merchandise on Floor
Date
Received
Quantity
Received
Requisi¬
tion No.
Date
Sold
Duantity
pold Net
1
Price
Quantity
Sold at Disc.
Discount
Net Price
Total Sales
Quantity
on Hand
n
1
i—
1
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
573
Column I shows the materials ordered but not yet received.
It is made up from a copy of the purchase order which comes from
the buyer, after being O. K.'d or confirmed by the proper au¬
thority, and shows the date ordered, date received, purchase order
number, quantity ordered, billed cost, discount, and net cost.
It is not necessary to enter on this sheet the name of the source of
supply as that is not essential to the account. If for any reason
it is wanted, it can easily be found by reference to the copy of the
purchase order filed numerically. It may be desirable to know
whether the order is placed with a jobber or a manufacturer.
For this purpose a J or an M may be entered after the order
number.
Column 2 shows the quantity and total cost of the item received
in the stockroom (which in the case of a small store is the store
itself). Its sub-columns have date received, quantity, purchase
order number, delivery charges, total cost (which is the net cost
plus the delivery charges), by simple division the cost per unit,
and the quantity still due upon order in case of partial shipment.
By comparing columns i and 2, it is easy to see which orders
are delayed in shipment and need tickling, and the balance still
to be delivered. Column 2 shows the cost per unit, which is the
basis of the mark-up.
Column 3 is intended to show mainly the merchandise on hand
in the stockroom and its price. This column is obviously not
needed in a store where goods are placed directly on the shelves
without going through a stockroom. It is got simply by deduct¬
ing the quantity issued to the department or to the shelves from
the total quantity received in column 2 and entering the balance
in the column, " Balance on hand," in column 3. Column 3 pro¬
vides for the date of issue from the department to the shelves,
the quantity issued, the requisition number on which the issue is
made, the price per unit (which is the total cost from column 2
plus the mark-up), the total price of the issue to the department,
and the balance on hand secured as just described. It is the
business of the stock-keeper to call the attention of the buyer
whenever the balance on hand falls to a predetermined mim'rmnn.
The buyer will then decide whether to re-order. The minimum
574
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
limit should be so set that, if it is desired to re-order, there will be
enough goods still on hand to meet customers' requirements until
the new shipment is received. This depends therefore upon the
rapidity with which goods are being sold and upon the probable
length of time between order and shipment. To set this mini¬
mum limit calls for the exercise of considerable judgment; and
in general it should err on the side of too much rather than too
little, if it is the policy of the store always to meet its customers'
needs.
Column 4 is the account of actual sales in the department. It
shows first the date received from the stockroom, the quantity,
requisition number; and these three sub-columns should check
with similar sub-columns in column 3. Column 4 shows daily
the quantity sold net, the total price of this quantity, the quan¬
tity sold at a discount, the rate of discount, and the total net
price of such discount sales, together with the total of all sales.
Finally, by deducting the sum of the quantity sold net and the
quantity sold at a discount from the total quantity received,
column 4 shows the quantity still on hand in the department.
When the quantity on hand falls to a predetermined minimum,
the responsible person in the department requisitions the stock¬
room for more goods. This requisition must of course go first
through the balance clerk in the accounting department to see
that the goods are in stock, and if they are, to make the necessary
entries debiting the requisitioning department.
The items in column i are made up from a copy of the purchase
order, those in column 2 from the stock-keeper's report of quan¬
tity received and the vouchers for delivery charges, column 3 is
derived from the department requisitions, and column 4 from the
daily sales slips. The system is thus very simple and easy to
administer. In case more checks are desired on the quantity
and quality of goods received, further detail may be developed
for the purpose. The extent to which this is done will depend
upon the size and other conditions of each individual concern.
At the head of each balance sheet must be entered the following
items of information: a description of the article, the kind of
unit, the of merchandise in the stockroom at which
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
575
point the balance derk is to notify the buyer, the minimum of
merchandise in the department or on the shelves at which point
the department head is to notify the stock-keeper, and the
location of the item in the stockroom and on the floor. The
minimum on hand in the department at which point a further
requisition is to be issued is kept by the balance clerk as a check
on the department head. The latter must, of course, be supplied
also with the same minimum.
It is advisable to print at the head of the sheet a summary of
the instructions for posting, as it will be found in practice that it
takes balance clerks of average intelligence a month or more to
get the balances in shape and keep them there. It must also be
remembered that no balance sheet can remain accurate very long
without frequent checking, at flrst by actual count of the quan¬
tities on hand in the stockroom and in the department. For
a while it will be advisable to check every sheet as often as pos¬
sible, even if this necessitates double the force of clerks for a
month or two. After that the sheets may be divided into groups
in such quantities that the entire stock will be covered say once in
three months, by checking one group each day.
For convenience of filing, brevity in writing, and definite
identification of each item (which in practice often goes by a
variety of names), it is usually desirable to s3rmbolize each
item. The method of mnemonic symbolization, which I believe
to be the best for general purposes, was described fully in a
section on " Listing Stock to Index Wastes " on page 490. It
may be interesting to illustrate how this works out in practice.
" M " is the first letter in the symbol for " Merchandise." In a
department store this would be followed by a " D " for depart¬
ment, with the number of the department between the " M " and
the " D." It is advisable to number departments where there
are many of them rather than attempt to give them mnemonic
symbols. In a one-line store the hyphen and the " D " are
omitted and the symbol for the class of articles to be symbolized
falls immediately after the " M " unless there are several items
of the same article but with different dimensions, in which case
the distinguishing dimensions are included after the " M."
576
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Suppose we start with our original cost base sheet (see page
485)-
Auxiliary expense
Administrative expense
Departmental expense
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
J
K
L
(M Merchandise)
N
P
R
(S Stores and supplies)
T
U
V
W
X
Y Fixtures, machinery and equip¬
ment, except that which is writ¬
ten off when purchased.
Z Land and buildings
Suppose the kitchen ware department is No. 2. The base
sheet for it will be somewhat as follows:
M2DA
Aluminum
M2DN
Nickel ware
M2DC
Chinaware
M2DP
Copper ware
M2DD
Seeds, bulbs, shrubbery
M2DR
Rubber goods
M2DE
Earthernware
M2DS
Steel and iron ware
M2DF
Filbrous ware
M2DT
Tinware
M2DG
Glassware
M2DV
Stoves
M2DH
Hardware
M2DW
Wooden ware
M2DK
Crockery
M2DX
Miscellaneous, not else¬
M2DL
Lighting fixtures
where classified
M2DM Enamel and agate ware
The base sheet for chinaware will be this:
M2D-CA Plates M2D-CP Pitchers
M2D-CB Bowls M2D-CS Saucers
M2D-CC Cups M2D-CT Platters
M2D-CD Sauce dishes
Plates, bowls, etc., will have their dimensions inserted where the
hypen appears after the " D."
For a grocery store or grocery department, the following base
sheet will usually be found sufficient:
M7DB Beverages M7DD Dairy products, not else-
M7DC Cereals and cereal prod- where classified
ucts , M7DE Extracts, syrups and color¬
ings
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 577
M7DG Gelatine, baking powder, M7DM Meats and fish, not perish-
and other cooking com- able
pounds, not elsewhere M7DP Pickles, olives, olive oil
classified M7DS Soaps, cleansers, polishers
M7DH Herbs, seasonings, condi- M7DU Fruits and nuts, not per-
ments, and spices, not else- ishable
where classified M7DV Vegetables, not perishable
M7DX Miscellaneous
If this department carries fresh vegetables, they might be put
down under M7DF; fresh meats under M7DT.
The following subdivisions will illustrate the subject further:
M7DBD Dry Beverages
M7DBW Wet, except milk and cream (for which see dairy products)
Dry beverages will be further subdivided, as for example:
M7DBDB Bouillon cubes M7DBDK Cocoa
M7DBDC Coffee M7DBDM Malted milk
M7DBDD Drugs M7DBDT Tea
M7DBDH Chocolate
And the different brands of cocoa, for instance, may be desig¬
nated thus:
M7DBD1K Baker's cocoa M7DBD4K Trinity cocoa
M7DBD2K Downey's cocoa M7DBD5K Runkel's cocoa
M7DBD3K Van Houten's cocoa
Where there are different sizes or weights for the same article,
they may be indicated as follows :
M7DïBiW Grape juice, 4 oz. M7D1B1W Grape juice, i pt.
M7DèBiW " è pt. M7D2B1W " " I qt.
Department No. 8, handling supplies and stationery, would
have its goods classified in this way:
M8DA Blank cards M8DP Pens, penholders, and pen-
M8DB Blotting papers cils
M8DÇ Chairs M8DR Ribbons, typewriter, and
M8DD Desks adding machine
M8DE Erasers M8DS Paste
M8DF Files and filing cabinets M8DT Tables
M8DH Card holders M8DU Rubber bands
M8DK Inks M8DW Writing paper, unprinted
M8DN Blank books
578
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
It may be interesting to set out in detail the classification of
stock for a shoe department, which for convenience we will call
Department lo. The base sheet will be :
MioD-A Athletic MioD-S Special
MioD-M Men's MioD-W Women's
MioD-N Infants'
MioD-M, Men's Shoes, is subdivided:
MioD-M-H High MioD-M-L Low
Further subdividing Men's High Shoes, we have the following:
MioD-M-HC Cloth MioD-M-HR Rubber
MioD-M-HF Calf MioD-M-HS Substitutes
MioD-M-HK Kid MioD-M-HV Vici
MioD-M-HP Patent
Men's High, Calf Shoes would be subdivided as follows:
MioD-M-HFB Blucher MioD-M-HFS Straight lace
MioD-M-HFC Congress MioD-M-HFT Button
Each shoe is built on a last peculiar to itself and has a size,
width, and color. The last number should be filled in where the
h37phen appears after the " D the size and width after the
M," and the color should come last. If the last number in¬
cludes a letter, the combination should be put entirely in paren¬
theses, in order not to confuse the letter with the rest of the
symbol, as should also the size and width. If, for instance, the
shoe to be symbolized is a Kelwain, last No. 297, size 9, width B,
and light tan, in a men's calf blucher, the symbol would be:
MioD(K297)M(9B)HFBiT
T meaning tan, and i light tan; medium tan will be 2T; dark
tan 3T, etc.
Any system of stockhandling which is more complex and cum¬
bersome than those now in use would hardly be justified, unless
there is a great deal to commend it. Fortunately the system
described in this article is far less complicated and cumbersome
than the usual methods, except in those stores which have no
method at all. The number of forms required for its efficient
operation is small. The amount of clerical, work involved is not
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
579
as great as is usually found in the ordinary systems. The result,
when this system is properly administered, is a complete, accu¬
rate and up-to-date account of the precise condition of the stock
on hand, from which it is easy to deduce the present and probable
future demand for each item carried. When the salesman comes
in and you want to know what to re-order, and in what quantities,
you can get your answer at once from an inspection of the mer¬
chandise sheet for your department or store, without going out¬
side the office for it. When you want to know the total value of
all stock on hand all you have to do is to total the values given on
these sheets, and there is no necessity for losing three days'
trade to take an inventory.
In view of the fact that this entire system is administered more
cheaply and easily than any other system that comes even any¬
where near giving the same results, the apparent complexity of the
balance sheet itself should not be allowed to have any deterrent
effect on the manager who wants to be in a position to meet
competition by knowing exactly what he is doing, rather than by
guessing at it.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT IN THE OPERATION OF
RAILROADS
By WILLIAM J. CUNNINGHAM
Reprinted by permission of the Quarterly Journal of Economics
The most striking feature of the recent public hearings before
the Interstate Commerce Commission, in the matter of proposed'
increases in freight rates, was the charge of railroad inefhciency.
Mr. Brandeis's clever turn in attacking the railroads in the
quarter where attack was least expected called sharp attention
to the subject of railroad management. The pubhc was caught
instantly by the dramatic statement that the railroads could save
a million dollars a day through the adoption of a new system of
scientific management, and their lively interest in it was kept
up by newspaper and magazine discussion. In getting at the
truth, the public had little constructive assistance from the rail¬
roads, and their disdainful attitude added to the first effect of the
charges. The general impression, therefore, was that the railroads
were needlessly deficient.
It is advisable to examine the charge of inefficiency apart from
the rate question, which is now settled.^ It is, perhaps, com¬
prehensible that the railroads, already harried by public attack
1 In its decision of February 22, 1911, on proposed advances of rates by carriers
on official classification territory, the Commission says: " It is difficult to see exactly
what application the Commission can make in this case of this testimony [on scien¬
tific management]. The witness who apparently had most to do with originating
and applying these methods testified that they were in actual operation in not over
one-tenth of one per cent of all the manufacturing establishments of this country.
The system is everywhere in an experimental stage. To some extent it has been
tried and is now being tried by our railways. The representatives of railway labor
who appeared before us stated that these methods could not and should not be
introduced into railway work. Upon this record, we can hardly find that these
methods could be introduced into railroad operations to any considerable extent,
much less can we determine the definite amount of saving which could be rriade.
We cannot therefore find that these defendants could make good any part of these
actual advances in wages by the introduction of scientific management."
s8o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and suspicion, and now reproached unjustifiably, ás they think,
should be indignant at being presented with a new pill to swallow.
Perhaps they may be pardoned for looking on it as a quack
remedy. But it behooves the student of railway problems to
examine the new prescription carefully and, so far as may be,
impartially to inquire whether the railroads have some justifica¬
tion for distrust, to ascertain if the extent of waste is as great
as suggested, to indicate some of the limitations on the adoption
of any system of scientific management, and to suggest what
may be learned with profit from its advocates.
It is necessary at the outset that we have a clear understanding
as to what is meant by scientific management. To obtain it,
we will go at once to headquarters. Mr. Frederick W. Taylor,
consulting engineer, Philadelphia, is acknowledged as the dean
of the efficiency experts and the originator of the new system.
Mr. Taylor was conspicuously successful in his management of
the Midvale Steel Company, where he was successively laborer,
foreman, superintendent, and general manager. There his
system was first worked out. In addition, he has also made an
international reputation as the inventor of high-speed steel for
metal-cutting tools and drills, an achievement in itself sufficient
to stamp him as a man of remarkable scientific attainments.
The history of the gradual evolution of his system of shop man¬
agement, his successful efforts to systematize and conserve labor,
and the experiments in evolving high speed steel, reads like a
romance.^
The fundamental principles of Mr. Taylor's system are definite,
and are set forth by him as follows: ^ —
1 The writer attended Mr. Taylor's several lectures before students in the Gradu¬
ate School of Business Administration, Harvard University. He has also seen the
practical application of the new system in the plant of the Tabor Manufacturing
Company of Philadelphia, where Mr. H. K. Hathaway, vice-president of the com¬
pany, took considerable time and pains to explain it thoroughly. Scientific manage¬
ment has practically revolutionized the work of the establishment. Before its
introduction there were more than loo workmen at the machines and less than 6 men
in the ofi&ce; now there are 70 workmen in the shop and 30 men in the office and
planning department and the output has been increased over 300 %.
^ From a paper read by Mr. Taylor before the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers, June, 1903. Mr. Taylor is a former president of the society.
582
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
First. Each man in the establishment, high or low, should
daily have a clearly defined task laid out before him. This task
should not in the least degree be vague or indefinite, but should
be circumscribed carefully and completely, and should not be
easy to accomplish.
Second. Each man's task should call for a full day's work,
and, at the same time, the workman should be given such condi¬
tions and such appliances as will enable him to accomplish his
task with certainty.
Third. He should be sure of large pay when he accomplishes
his task.
Fourth. When he fails he should be sure that sooner or later
he will be the loser by it.
t When an establishment has reached an advanced state of
organization, in many cases a fifth element should be added,
namely, the task should be made so difficult that it can only be
accomplished by a first class man.
Under the first principle, the difference between the Taylor
plan and ordinary practice lies in the very careful study (by
experts with stop watches) of each element in each task, so that
definite information is available as to how long it should take.
In ordinary practice, the fixing of piece work rates is left to the
judgment of the foreman or piece work specialist, and the rates
are often changed. Under Mr. Taylor's plan rates are inflexible
unless conditions change.
In the application of the second principle, Mr. Taylor goes
much further than is customary in standardizing tools and
machine accessories, and systematizing the storing and distribut¬
ing of materials, sharpening of tools, and the like. Two unique
features are the planning department and functional foremanship,
the latter calling for a corps of specialists, each with a single
function, instead of the military type of organization, under which
the foreman is responsible for the work and discipline of all the
men under him and all the machines which they use. The plan¬
ning department is designed to take out of the hands of foreman
and men all the planning of work and how it is to be done. The
workman is merely to act upon written instructions. To make
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
583
sure that the work is properly performed, the supervision formerly
divided between the superintendent and foremen is assigned to a
number of persons: (i) the gang boss, who has charge of the prep¬
aration of all work up to the time it is set in the machine; (2)
the speed boss, who sees that proper cutting tools are provided
and machines properly operated; (3) the inspector, who is re¬
sponsible for the quality of the work; (4) the repair boss, who
sees that the workmen keep their machines clean and properly
oiled; (5) the route clerk, who lays out the exact route by which
each piece of work must travel from machine to machine; (6)
the instruction card man, who has charge of making up writ¬
ten instructions for each job; (7) the time and cost clerk, who
prepares accurate cost data; and (8) the shop disciplinarian,
who handles all matters of discipline and adjustment of dis¬
putes.
The foregoing briefly describes what is meant by scientific
management in shops. As a system, its details have been well
developed and it is in successful operation in a number of impor¬
tant manufacturing establishments. For branches of railroad
work outside the shops, however, no definite plan has been worked
out, nor have any experiments been made to determine whether
the principles or details of shop scientific management are superior
to the best practice of well-managed roads in activities outside
of the shops.
Mr. Brandeis, in his brief in the rate controversy, is not so
definite. He describes scientific management as involving a
careful analysis of each unit, and a comparison of each of the
smallest steps in the process with an ideal of perfect conditions.
The system means, he says, that before anything is done, it must
be determined what shall be done, how it shall be done, and what
it shall cost. Planning in advance, he explains, is the essence of
the new system. It affords a stimulus to workmen in the form of
a higher rate for greater output. It shifts the burdens of man¬
agement from employee to the management, where they belong.
It demands universal preparedness, full and complete records, and
the ascertainment and application of the best attainable methods,
practices, tools, and machines; and it means further that all
584
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
tools, machines, and appliances shall be properly standardized
and in perfect condition.
This summation is admirable so far as it goes, but it is incom¬
plete. The features which fail to get mention are very important
and probably are those upon which Mr. Taylor would place
strong emphasis. Nothing is said about the long time required
for patient and careful study in the introduction of the Taylor
system, nor its delicacy of adjustment, calling for thorough and
painstaking effort. There is no reference to the difficulty of
finding exceptionally skilled experts to specialize in the new field
of transportation. The number of such experts is exceedingly
small. These omissions in setting forth the scope and plan of
scientific management are of serious consequence, since the public
is only too ready to believe in new treatments, and as a result a
swarm of unqualified or imperfectly qualified " physicians "
is already appearing. The railroads are continually importuned
to adopt schemes or devices which their originators believe will
bring large returns, but which are obviously impractical or are
likely to be vitiated in experience by some fatal defect. After
many experiments of this kind, the railroads are naturally wary
or skeptical. It is of the greatest importance, both for the rail¬
roads and the system of scientific management, that a clear dis¬
tinction be made between the genuine thing and the poor copy.
Amidst diversity and disagreement of doctors, railroad men,
with large responsibilities, may well hesitate and insist upon
proof before accepting the new doctrine.
To what sources may they turn for this proof ? Unfortunately,
a convincing demonstration, either affirmatively or negatively,
is yet to be made in railroad operation. Only in textile mills,
printing and binding concerns, and other manufacturing estab¬
lishments is there ample proof that scientific management is both
practicable and profitable, that it has increased output and at the
same time decreased cost. The testimony before the Interstate
Commerce Commission is replete with concrete illustrations of
substantially increased net returns, notably in the cases of the
Yale & Towne Company, The Link Belt Company, Tabor
Manufacturing Company, Brighton Mills, and Plimpton Press.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The only instance of the application of something similar to the
Taylor system in railroad operation is the experiment made on the
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway in 1904-07 by Mr. Har¬
rington Emerson, president of the Emerson Company of New
York, who are standard practice and efficiency engineers. Mr.
Emerson is the author of the inspiring book. Efficiency, and an
earnest advocate of advanced methods of securing efficiency.
He has had a wide experience in installing his system in industrial
establishments and has devoted much time to developing a plan
particularly adapted to railroad shops. The results, as described
in articles by the editor of the Engineering Magazine and by Mr.
Emerson himself in several articles and lectures, indicate on their
face that the workings of the new system were remarkably suc¬
cessful. In selected items of expense and unusual units of cost,
large savings are shown. In one minor item, the maintenance of
belts, astonishing result-s were achieved by more scientific treat¬
ment from workman to purchasing agent.
It will be remembered that Mr. Emerson was the authority for
the statement that the railroads, by the adoption of scientific
management, could save a million dollars a day. While it is not
clear from his testimony before the commission, Mr. Emerson has
stated elsewhere how he arrived at his estimate of a million a day.^
He took the last statistical report of the Interstate Commerce
Commission and applied to each grade or class of employee and
cost of materials the percentage of efficiency obtaining in railroad
operation at this time, according to his observation and judgment.
Thus he ascertained what it would have cost to run all the rail¬
roads at 100% efficiency. He believes, for instance, that shops
are but 60% efficient; section forces, less than 50%; stationmen,
60% to 80%. Applying the same process and reasoning to the
cost of materials, he estimates, for example, that fuel consump¬
tion is but 50% efficient. It requires an average saving of
approximately 23 % in all items of expense to reach a million per
day. If the saving applied only to the accounts specifically
referred to, namely, section forces, shops, fuel, and freight sta-
^ The writer had the pleasure of discussing this subject personally with Mr. Emer¬
son.
586
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
tions, it would be necessary to reduce each of these by 50%. In
either case, the operating ratio must be cut down from 66% to
51 %. The result would be also that 310,000 workmen out of a
total of 1,500,000 would be dispensed with.
Since this one example of efficiency methods is held up to the
railroads for emulation, it is advisable to call attention to certain
conditions, not emphasized in the descriptions of accomplish¬
ments; not with any thought of minimizing the good that was
accomplished while Mr. Emerson was with the Santa Fe, but to
explain why the results of the experiment are not convincing.
In the first place, the new system was introduced in the Santa
Fe shops just after the collapse of a lengthy strike of machinists.
Shop forces were demoralized and maintenance costs abnormally
high, because of the inevitable employment of incompetent men
to take the place of the strikers. A return to normal conditions,
under any system, would have shown a marked improvement
when results were compared with the former abnormal period.
In the second place, the introduction of high-speed steel for tools
for cutting and drilling was coincident with the installation of
Mr. Emerson's system, although not one of its distinct or unique
features. High-speed steel was in general use before that time
in other railroad shops; in fact, railroads were among the first
extensive users of Mr. Taylor's invention. It is certain that the
Santa Fe would have adopted the new tool steel, as other roads
had already done, even had Mr. Emerson's system not been
adopted. Mr. Taylor's new steel revolutionized the art of cutting
metals and very much reduced shop costs. A large part of the
Santa Fe saving, therefore, was due as much to high-speed steel
as to the new system of management.
In the third place, Mr. Emerson's usual method of expressing
the expense of locomotive maintenance is in cost per " road
unit." This is an unusual and misleading average because it
includes the weight of the locomotive as a factor and assumes
that the repair cost varies directly with the weight. It assumes
that an engine weighing one hundred tons will cost twice as much
to repair as one weighing fifty tons. This assumption is not
entirely incorrect; it is true that a heavy engine costs somewhat
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
587
more to maintain than a light one. But the cost of repairs does
not vary directly with weight. In this case, Mr. Emerson's unit
gave a favorable showing to the new system, because of the pur¬
chase of a large number of new and heavy locomotives during the
first two years under his régime. Naturally, the new engines did
not call for the same measure of repair work as the older ones,
which had kept up the cost in the previous period with which the
comparison was made.
The unsatisfactory character of the ordinary accounting unit,
" cost of repairs per locomotive mile," is recognized. Yet, with
a knowledge of conditions, it is a better index than the Emerson
unit, which assumes that cost varies directly with weight. The
most reliable indication of cost of maintenance is afforded after
all by the " per mile " and " per year " figures in the annual
reports. In the figures tabulated below, comparison is made
between the Santa Fe and the Union Pacific, running through
similar territory to the north, and also the Southern Pacific,
running through similar territory to the south. It will be noted
that the Santa Fe costs have been steadily higher since 1903 than
those of either of the Harriman lines. Taking the average of the
seven-year period following the introduction of the new system
on the Santa Fe (1904-10), its " per mile " costs are 20% higher
than the Union Pacific and 14% higher than the Southern Pacific.
COST OF LOCOMOTIVE REPAIRS AND RENEWALS
per mile
per locomotive
Year
Santa Fe
Union
Southern
Santa Fe
Union
Southern
Pacific
Pacific
Pacific
Pacific
1903
9.97c.
10.39c.
8.62c.
$3,042
13,590
$3,289
1904
13.42
11.23
10-33
3,772
3,565
3,588
1905
14.87
11.56
11.23
4,165
3,791
3,473
1906
11.08
8.61
11.26
3,101
3,068
3,531
1907
10.50
8.66
10.48
3,037
2,933
3,563
1908
13-74
10.70
10.79
3,714
3,108
3,234
1909
11-95
11.50
11.85
3,133
3,149
3,182
1910
12.87
11.72
11.63
3,832
3,656
3,551
588
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In his testimony before the Interstate Commerce Commission
Mr. Emerson referred to the time taken to give a locomotive
shop repairs. By his system the time was reduced from sixty
to thirty days. To the uninformed public this would seem a
gratifying accomplishment. But even thirty days is too long.
Many of the railroads do better. On the Chicago & North
Western, for instance, the average is fifteen days. In this case
again the improvement is relative only. The final results are no
better than the average of other roads, nor as good as those of
roads which are very well managed.
Since the Santa Fe experiment lacks convincing proof, the
railroad manager must turn to the records of the manufacturing
establishments where scientific management is known to be
eminently successful. The impulse of the railroad man, as well
as of the manufacturer, is to acknowledge the benefits of the
system elsewhere, but to doubt that it can be successfully applied
to the complex details and difficulties of his business with which
the efficiency experts cannot be intimately acquainted. His
first answer usually is, " This may work elsewhere, but not in my
plant." But open-minded railroad men, while admitting that
they may be giving a stereotyped objection, and that in the course
of years some roads may find features of value in the system of
management thus rudely brought to their attention, may never¬
theless urge with good reason that especial difficulties stand in the
way. The success of scientific management in commercial under¬
takings does not in itself prove that the new system would be
equally effective in railroad work. The essential differences
between railroads and manufacturing establishments must be
borne in mind. These differences may be summarized under
four headings: (i) area and extent of activity; (2) nature of
product or output; (3) relations with the public and the govern¬
ment; (4) relations with labor unions.
(i) The differences in area and extent of activity are obvious:
the manufacturing establishment with its concentrated forces
and intensive activity; the railroad with its long lines of com¬
munication, scattered units of organization, and extensive range
of action. Railroad forces, spread out thinly over the line,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
necessarily work under scant supervision. Section forces, sta-
tionmen, signal and repair men, car inspectors and oilers, work-
train and way-freight crews, and many other employees located
in small groups at intervals of two or three miles, must be
left largely to themselves, and their work checked chiefly by
inspection. It is obviously impracticable to afford the constant
supervision which is such a vital part of the new system. In a
manufacturing plant thousands of men may work in one group of
buildings, subject to the supervision not only of gang bosses and
foremen, but also of all officers and owners of the establishment.
In contrast, compare the one item of section forces. Gangs of six
to ten men are scattered over every section of three to ten miles,
the average being one man per track mile. This attenuated line
of two or three thousand laborers on a double-track road, say,
from Boston to Chicago, a distance of more than a thousand
miles, could be concentrated on one acre in a textile mill.
(2) With respect to the nature of product or output, there are
also distinct differences between an industrial establishment
(such as the Tabor Manufacturing Company), with a uniform
output, and a railroad repair shop, where there is little uniformity
in the work. The cost of the work in a railroad shop is a small
part of total operating expenses.^ Shop and repair work is
incidental to the main function of producing transportation. The
value or efficiency of railroad shop work depends upon how well it
assists in the safe and expeditious movement of passengers and
freight. It cannot be systematized to the same degree as in
manufacturing shops, where the character of the work varies but
slightly. Oftentimes, too, it is much more important that rail¬
road repair work be done quickly than at the lowest possible cost.
This feature applies particularly to repairs made at the engine
houses and outlying car inspection points.
In railroad shops which carry on the manufacture (as well as
the repair) of locomotives and cars, it would be practicable to
adopt a large part of Mr. Taylor's system. But such shops are
relatively few in number. The great majority of the railroads
^ The cost of maintaining locomotives and cars averages about 18 % of operating
expenses.
590
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
find it cheaper to purchase their rolling stock, because the best
use of the railroad shops and the mechanical department organi¬
zation is to maintain, not to manufacture. It has been found
that they cannot compete on even terms with an industrial con¬
cern which specializes in manufacture.
(3) Quite apparent, also, are the dissimilarities between rail¬
roads and private concerns in their relations to the public and
governmental regulating bodies. A railroad is a public service
corporation. The public rightfully demands that adequacy of
service shall outrank the pa3nnent of dividends. A manufactur¬
ing establishment exists solely for profits. If it ceases to be profit¬
able, it may close its doors or change the nature of its business.
The operation of an unprofitable road must continue. It has two
functions, public service and profit making; it may not neglect
service to favor profits. Necessarily, therefore, methods are
employed in the interest of public service even though they in¬
volve economic loss, and would not be resorted to if railroads
were operated as private industries.
For example, paralleling lines, trolley competition, or other
changed conditions may make certain divisions, branches, or
trains unprofitable; yet satisfactory service must be continued,
with little thought of returns. The losses from such divisions,
branches, or trains are perforce absorbed in the earnings of the
trains which are better patronized. Again, the demand for
prompt and regular movement of freight often results in cars
being moved with a light load. If they were held for a full load,
the regularity of the service would suffer. As a result only one-
third of the capacity of freight cars is utilized.^ In other ways
economies in railroad operation could be brought about at the
expense of the service; but these are desired neither by the rail¬
roads nor the shippers.
The effect of governmental regulation is much more apparent
in railroad operation than in private industries, and, while both
proper and desirable, it adds to the cost of operation. Mr.
Howard Elliott, president of the Northern Pacific Railway,
1 The average capacity of freight cars in the United States is 35 tons. The aver¬
age ton miles per loaded car mile is 19.3.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
591
recently ^ stated that the cost to the railroads of the United
States for board and commission control amounts to $85 per mile
of road per annum, an aggregate of $20,000,000. This regulation
affects nearly every detail of operation. Though justified by
public policy, and apparently necessary to keep all the railroads
up to a standard which the well managed might adopt without
governmental requirement, it has an important bearing on any
comparison which may be made between railroads and manu¬
facturing estabhshments not so circumscribed.
For the safety of trains, again, every precaution must be taken
to avoid accident. Methods which might reduce costs but which
would also add to the element of risk are necessarily barred. For
that reason certain classes of work are performed under day
rates rather than by piece work. It is more important to have
the task well done than to make a slight saving in cost. One
accident as the result of such apparent economy would offset the
savings of a long time.
(4) Perhaps the greatest barrier to the introduction of any
system designed to accomplish savings which will diminish the
number of employees is the labor organization. Practically
every branch of the railroad service is strongly organized and
militant. The manufacturer has his labor problem also ; but he
can close down his plant or lock out his men if he sees fit. With
railroads, resistance to demands considered by them as unreason¬
able must not be allowed unduly to affect service. Trains must
be kept moving at any cost, and if men cannot be had to take the
place of striking employees, or if, before a strike is declared, it
is plain that resistance is useless,^ the company must make the
best terms it can, and maintain peace.
Any system or contrivance which has for its object the creation
of competition among workmen, or which will cause them to
exert themselves, is repugnant in principle to labor leaders. Its
direct result, as they see it, is to " speed up," and to lessen the
^ Address before the Minnesota Federation of Commercial Clubs, January
26, 1911.
® This was the situation a year ago on the Baltimore & Ohio, Lackawanna, and
New York Central roads.
592
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
number of workmen. Their attitude is indicated by the strong
opposition of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers to the
introduction of the Mallet compound locomotive. This type of
machine is capable of handling very much heavier trains, but calls
for no more effort and very little additional skill on the part of
the engineman. The organization held out strongly for double
pay, on the theory that the Mallet engine does twice the work of
an ordinary engine and, if ordinary engines were used instead,
double the number of enginemen would be necessary. The issue
came near precipitating a strike on all the western lines last fall,
but was finally settled by mediation under the Erdman Act, the
enginemen receiving a bonus of $i per day over the highest
existing rate, instead of double pay as demanded. This settle¬
ment, however, will hardly be permanent. Opposition will
probably continue and the question will undoubtedly cause
friction in future negotiations between the railroads and their
enginemen.
Of similar significance are the organized efforts of conductors
and trainmen to prohibit double-heading. By this is meant the
practice of running two engines on a freight train so as to increase
its length. The resulting decrease in the number of trains and
the consequent smaller number of train crews are opposed by the
men.
The year 1910 saw the successful culmination of an ambitious
plan to " standardize " the wages of conductors, trainmen, and
yardmen in the eastern states, that is, to set a uniform rate per
day, per hour, or per mile for each class of service, regardless of
local conditions.^ The road with the highest wage scale (the
Baltimore & Ohio) was selected as the battle ground, and the
entire forces of the train-service brotherhoods focussed upon it
in a demand for new and unreasonably high rates. To prevent
a strike, the railroad invoked the aid of the Board of Mediation
(under the Erdman Act), and the award, while not granting the
rates demanded, carried with it substantial increases over rates
already considerably higher than those of other roads in the East
1 See a paper by the present writer on " Standardizing the Wages of Railroad
Trainmen," Quarterly Journal of Economics, November, 1910.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
593
with distinctly different operating characteristics. The new basis
was then in turn forced upon practically every road in eastern
territory. The increases in New England averaged between
20% and 30% and in some cases exceeded 50%. At the same
time long-standing differentials between dift'erent grades of
employees were seriously disturbed. Throughout, the new wage
basis and working rules (prescribed partly by governmental
mediation) are far from scientific or equitable.
At this writing (April, 1911) the boiler makers of the New York
Central lines have been on strike for ten weeks because of the
introduction of piece work rates at Collinwood, Ohio, on the Lake
Shore Railway. Undoubtedly, former abuses of the piece work
basis have much to do with the determined opposition to its
introduction in this case. Yet the same opposition would prob¬
ably have occurred if it had been the Emerson bonus plan used
on the Santa Fe. In fact, the head of the strongest organization
in railroad service is reported as having said that the bonus system
and his organization could not exist together on any railroad.^
These difficulties, serious as they are, may be met by experts.
But the railroad man sees no definite plan for the application of
the new " principles and he has a fondness for the concrete.
After studying scientific management as applied to shops he
realizes that when similar efforts are made to extend it to the
whole line of railroad operation, long and expert study will be
needed, and new and unsuspected modifications of the system
must be made to meet the exacting conditions of railroading.
The technical record of railroads in the United States is credit¬
able. They have had to meet exceptional difficulties. In their
effort to keep pace with the commercial development of the
country, a policy of expediency has in many cases justified
standards of construction, maintenance, and operation which
would have been considered faulty in an older country, like Eng¬
land, whose railroads came after, not before, her industrial growth
and dense population. But in the past two or three decades
many deficiencies have been corrected and the work of eliminat¬
ing other imperfections is progressing.
^ Warren S. Stone before the National Civic Federation, January 12, 1911.
594
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In the interest of a clearer understanding of the situation by the
public, it would have been worth while for the railroads to offer
more of constructive evidence to show that although scientific
management, as a system, has not been adopted by them, yet the
principles of sound business management have free play in a
large number of shops and other railroad operating activities.
So far from being ignorant as to costs, many roads have statistical
departments which compile and disseminate information upon
every detail of operation, so that each unit of efficiency may be
compared with other units, or with the same unit of another divi¬
sion, another railroad, or another period. Instead of being out
of date in shop equipment, or behind the time in shop practice,
they are, on the average, in advance of manufacturing establish¬
ments. They might have shown further that railroads, while far
from perfect, are constantly improving in efficiency; that rail¬
road officers, both of the so-called " practical " school and those
who are graduates of colleges and technical schools, are earnest
in their effort and have ample incentive to operate economically.
Railroads believe in and practise the free and frequent exchange
of ideas by associations and clubs which include every branch of
the service. In fact, they are unique in having so few secrets
concerning operating methods, and in their willingness to tell of,
hear about, and profit by their mutual experiences.
As an illustration of the work of one association, witness the
monthly reports of the Car Efficiency Committee of the American
Railway Association. The statistical exhibit, showing every
detail of operation and revenue connected with freight movement
on every railroad in the country, is a convincing example of the
scientific thoroughness with which such information is compiled
and distributed for mutual benefit. Every department has its
association doing similarly scientific work. As other instances,
take the Railway Engineering Association and its careful studies
and experiments in perfecting rail design and cross-tie preser¬
vation; the Master Car Builders' Association and its exhaustive
tests of air-brake apparatus; the Master Mechanics' Association
and its painstaking efforts to evolve a perfect super-heater and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
595
mechanical stoker; and the Railway Signal Association and its
thoroughgoing work of standardizing the art of signaling.
There may be ground for the impression that railroads are in a
class by themselves in an attitude of self-sufficiency, that is, a
belief that they can learn little from the experience or ideas of
those outside the railroad circle. Yet that this is not altogether
true, and that the railroads not only welcome but seek assistance
from outside experts, is shown by the establishment of the
Bureau of Explosives. This bureau was organized under the
auspices of the American Railway Association about five years
ago by Colonel Dunn of the ordnance department of the United
States army, working closely in conjunction with the late Dr.
Dudley (then chief chemist of the Pennsylvania Railroad) and a
committee of other railroad officers from different sections of the
country. The American Railway Association realized that they
did not have a man within their ranks with the same wide knowl¬
edge of the characteristics of explosives and the best manner of
handling them, and were glad to secure Colonel Dunn's valuable
services. He has accomplished much in organizing a system and
formulating rules of inspection which have reduced to a very
large extent the accidents formerly frequent in the transportation
of this dangerous class of freight.
In the committee work of the Railway Engineering Association,
Master Car Builders, Master Mechanics, Signal Engineers, and
other railroad technical associations, the cooperation and active
assistance of outside experts is sought. There are eleven uni¬
versity professors on the various committees of the Railway
Engineering Association. In the active work of the railroad
mechanical associations there are as many more, notably Dean
Goss of the University of Illinois, Professor Hibbard of the Uni¬
versity of Missouri, and Professor Benjamin of Purdue Univer¬
sity.
The railroad man, knowing how keen is the anxiety of his pro¬
fession for improvement and vigilance, has been and is proud of
the achievements of American railroads. He believes that rail¬
road efficiency is higher than the average in manufacturing
establishments, and can hold its own with any line of enterprise
596
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
in the United States. He thinks, too, that in the recent rate
hearings the railroads should have been measured not with the
exceptional industrial establishment, but with the average. He
recognizes, none better than he, the existing deficiencies in rail¬
road management; but that they are greater or more flagrant
than those in other large undertakings he will not admit. The
extended area of railroad activity and the problem of adequate
supervision make it difficult to secure high efficiency and use of
materials. The tendency of labor union policy is increasingly
to trammel the manager. He is also hampered by the difiiculty
of securing competent men in supervisory positions. Expert
knowledge is not required to point out losses and inefficiencies.
They are apparent. But criticism should be accompanied by
practical remedial suggestions.
The history of American railways shows that their progress
has been steady and substantial. A comparison of any two
periods ten years apart will reveal impressive increases in effi¬
ciency. The net train load, for example, has increased nearly
fifty per cent in the last ten years. Such advances in nearly
every case have been the result of development and improvement
of existing methods and facilities. The new and improved have
been the adaptation of the old. And judging by this steady
improvement in the past, it may be expected to continue in the
future.
The solution of the problem of how to effect further economies
and yet maintain good service seems to lie in a more rigid applica¬
tion of the railroad's own kind of scientific management and a
continuation and enlargement of the best practices of the best
railroads, so that the operating results of the least economical
may approach those whose efficiency is marked, and these in turn
set new and higher standards. A new system is riot needed so
much as a more determined, and a more general application of the
sound and business-like methods which have already been found
effective in railroad work.
After all, there is little essential difference between the aims
and accomplishments of scientific management as advocated by
the new experts and scientific management as practised by thç
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
597
exceptionally well-managed railroads. As a system, it means a
careful study and analysis of each element of operation, and the
application of the methods hest adapted to bring about the best
results under the given conditions. Many railroads are doing
this successfully; others are doing it in part. In the nature of
things, however, their efforts have been directed more to the
" high spots " or to those features of operation which are most
in need of correction or which promise the largest or quickest
returns. Scientific management, as a system, takes a broader
view and requires that the same careful study and treatment be
given to every detail of operation as is given, say, to the subject
of train loading. Obviously, there is a point where this would be
unprofitable, — where the cost of the system would exceed the
saving.
The real difference, then, between the efiiciency experts and
the railroads in their conception of scientific management is not
in kind but in degree. To find a common ground means mutual
concessions. On the part of the efficiency expert it will require
less stress upon " system," " principles," " dependent sequences "
it will require more knowledge of the practical problems of rail¬
roads, more respect for what the railroads have accomplished, and
less exaggeration and generalization concerning waste and possible
savings. On the part of the railroad a more receptive attitude is
needed for suggestions from the outside and a recognition of the
fact that, notwithstanding commendable progress in operating
economies, much yet remains to be accomplished.
Among the important features of Mr. Taylor's system of shop
management, the principle of time study might well become a
part of the practice of any railroad shop with a piece work basis.
The piece work schedules of today are generally an evolution
from " cut and try " methods. Their defects are recognized.
Mr. Taylor's second principle, of standardized conditions, is
equally important, and many railroad shops come reasonably
close to standard practice.
But apart from shop operation, other and greater avenues of
economy are being earnestly studied. The delays and red-tape
598
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
obstructive to local initiative,^ will yield to some plan of decen¬
tralizing authority, such as is now being tried on the Harriman
lines. There are undoubted economies in further standardizing
of equipment and materials, as well as in improved methods of
storing and distributing supplies. There is promise of economy
in the experiments now being made by the American Railway
Association in clearing-house accounting for joint use of cars. A
substantial saving in fuel may be made by a more general adop¬
tion of the methods of the roads having the best fuel records.
And throughout the service there is crying need for more and
better supervision.
Better supervision calls for better men, and to that end the
educational activities of the railroads should have wider scope and
more effective organization.^ A system of management is not
needed so much as managers. The system is not as important
as the man. A good system will not altogether save a poor
manager, nor will an imperfect system altogether hold back one
who is ambitious and able. Mr. Taylor himself recognizes this
in his statement, " the first object of any good system must be
that of developing first class men." ^
Except in the important particulars of time study and func¬
tional foremanship, the system advocated by the experts and the
^ Mentioned by W. M. Acworth, the English economist, as a defect in American
railroad organization. In the same statement, made on the eve of his departure
February ist last, he expressed surprise that the newspapers should give so much
space to criticism of railroad efficiency. In his opinion American railroads are the
most efficient in the world. He believes that the skeletons in the railroad cupboards
have all been buried and that now the roads " would do well to open their cupboards
and let the public see how sweet and clean they are."
' J. Shirley Eaton, in Education for Efficiency in Railroad Service (1909),
says: " In the course of railroad development, there was a first era, which was thé
era of railroad building. Any railroad was better than a wagon road. There was
next an era of coordination of the railroad service and finance to the commercial and
financial conditions as a whole with which the railroads were called upon to deal.
This was the time of the traffic organization and railroad consolidation. Next came
the era of internal adjustment on the physical and mechanical side — perfection of
machinery, cutting down grades, strengthening bridges, increasing the train unit.
And now has come the sociological adjustment. The human part of the machine
is quite as vital as the steel and wooden part in producing efficiency, and so in in¬
creasing the income."
® American Magazine, March, 1911, p. 570.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
599
system practised by the railroads are not very far apart. Both
have for their object that which is desired by the railroads and
the public, — ability to give good, safe, and economical service.
And if achieved either by an improvement of present methods,
or by an adaptation of the new system, private management of
railways will have strengthened its claim to continuance.
THE APPLICATION OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
TO A RAILWAY SHOP
By H. F. STIMPSON
Reprinted by permission of the Railway Age Gazette
The object of any legitimate organized enterprise is to serve
beneficially the entire community. A railway company is an
instance of such an effort. In order that the effort may be suc¬
cessful the efforts of all its constituent parts, of which the shop
is but one, must be intelligently coordinated and directed toward
the common end. This is scientific management. To this end
it is necessary:
{a) To determine the present and estimate the future oppor¬
tunities for service.
(J)) To determine the material, equipment, energy and admin¬
istrative methods which are necessary for the performance of the
service.
(c) To procure the requisite capital.
(d) To make proper records of the ensuing operations and
transactions.
The immediate duty of that part of the railway organization
which operates its shops is to fabricate or keep in repair that
portion of the equipment by which the service to the community
is directly rendered. The shop organization is, therefore, neither
a beginning nor an ending; it is but a portion of one of the
principal intermediaries — the operating department. The
volume of the shop operations is dependent on the volume of
the business developed by the traf&c department, and is largely
affected by the efficiency with which the train crews, etc., handle
the equipment with which they are entrusted. The resources at
the command of the shop organization are derived from the
financial department and are also largely affected by the efficiency
with which the operating equipment is handled.
The shop organization, therefore, is not and cannot be con¬
sidered as a separate entity. This must be taken into account
600
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
6oi
in considering any question of shop management. In any line
of reasoning we must have a starting point. The position which
the community, through its Interstate Commerce Commission,
has recently assumed regarding an increase of rates, goes to
show that the present, or lower, instead of the higher rates must
be taken as being such a point. While the charge against new
construction is a charge against capital account, the interest on
this as well as the cost of repairs on both transportation and
shop equipment becomes an overhead charge on the direct cost of
transportation. If then the rates are fixed, it is desirable that
both the amount and cost of all shop operations be reduced to the
lowest possible terms in order to reduce the overhead charge on
the direct cost of transportation.
Any waste here or in any other contingent operations will
either increase the cost or decrease the quantity or quality of
the service rendered to the community, of which each of the
workers is a part, whereas the attainment of a high state of
efficiency should result in a decrease in cost or an increase of
the quantity or quality of the service, thus benefiting the com¬
munity. The interests of the community as a whole, of the
stockholders as such, and of the workers as such are, therefore,
identical. If the operation of the railway results in over or under
protection to any of these interests, it will be because either the
industrial or commercial management has been inadequate.
If the industrial management has failed, the actual cost of pro¬
duction will be found to have been unduly increased. If the
commercial management has failed, the profits will be found to
have been improperly divided between worker, stockholder and
community.
Because the shop organization is, as has been said, neither a
beginning nor an ending, but simply a part of an intermediary,
it is as unwise to attempt the immediate and exclusive applica¬
tion of the principles of scientific management to such organiza¬
tion as it would be to develop one leg of a horse. We must
consider both the things which precede and the things which
follow its operations. For instance; I was told, with much
pride, by a shop manager of the number of locomotives which
6o2
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
came out of his shop each month. This was not of much impor¬
tance. The important thing was the time which each locomotive
had been withdrawn from service. I was perfectly convinced
from what I saw, being accustomed to observe such things and
to draw correct deductions therefrom, that, if a chart had been
made showing the chronological durations and relations of the
actual operations performed, it would have been found that not
only were there large wastes of time in the performance of the
individual operations, but between them. Not the least evi¬
dence of this condition was the difficulty the executives had in
comprehending the possibility of such a thing. They were not
interested in searching for a remedy for a disease which they
did not believe existed. Here we have a diminution of earning
power co-existent with the increased cost of repairs, both of
which add to the overhead charge, thus burning the candle at
both ends.
To arrive at correct conclusions, we must first have complete
and accurate statements as to what should have and could have
taken place (standards), as well as of what has taken place
(records). Liberal expenditures of both time and money are
necessary in order to obtain these, but these expenditures are
insignificant when compared with the savings which should
result from their use.
Taking the maintenance side of the question, the first step
should be to separate the process of deterioration of the direct
operating equipment into the preventable and the unpreventable
factors; second, to determine the actual and necessary rate of
each; third, the causes of each; fourth, the remedies for each
so far as possible. We have now determined the necessary gross
rate and volume of repair work which should come into the
shop. From an analysis of this we can determine the unit
operations together with the material, equipment and energy
and administrative methods which are necessary for their per¬
formance. Scientific management, so far as the shop is con¬
cerned, is the process of properly supplying these essentials and
of directing their use.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
603
The first essential is material. Certain material is fairly-
standard as to quality and the rate of consumption. Other
material is more irregular in both- respects. In either case, as
the result of the above analysis, the exact date of delivery to the
shop can be and should be fixed both specifically and in detail by
a person -who is in a position to grasp the entire chain of opera¬
tions in which the one involving the use of any bit of material is
but a link. While this work is often delegated to or attempted
by a foreman or other person immediately engaged in the per¬
formance of manual operations, it is evident that such a course
is illogical. Not only is the foreman unable to grasp correctly
the entire situation, but the ill effects of any erroneous sequence
which he establishes will be felt throughout the entire organ¬
ization.
Having been given the desired date of delivery to the shop, the
storekeeper should set a date for delivery to himself which is
sufiiciently in advance to admit of the necessary examination,
checking up and redelivery. The order should then go to the
purchasing agent. Having been instructed as to the quality of
the commodities and the date at which they must be delivered to
the storekeeper, the only variables in the operations of the pur¬
chasing agent are price and time. It should be possible to
establish his efficiency upon the basis of a compound unit com¬
posed of dollars and days. Thus a high price would be com¬
pensated for by the saving in the productive time of the operating
unit, which could be effected by a quick repair resulting from a
quick delivery.
The next essential is the equipment by which the material is
fashioned, or the work performed. Equipment represents a
capital investment upon which interest and depreciation must be
earned. It is therefore desirable to use the smallest possible
quantity by which, when operated to its fullest legitimate capa¬
city, the desired amount of work can be produced. This condi¬
tion is not often as closely approached as should be the case.
Here again we must use compound units to measure results. The
cost of interest and depreciation on the machine, the time of
operation and the cost of power must all be taken into account.
6o4 scientific management
It is conceivable that a quick acting machine might be so costly
to maintain and to drive as to be far excelled by a slower machine
which besides being far cheaper took less power to drive. Details
of past accomplishments and the opinions of men and foremen
in such matters are extremely unsafe and unsatisfactory as
guides when contrasted with the cool scientific analysis of the
efficiency engineer of the results which it is mechanically possible
to achieve. There is, furthermore, a curious tendency to do
things by halves, to utilize highly developed mechanical energy
and appliances for a part of an operation and the crudest kind
of methods for the rest. I have seen, in a railway shop, a highly
developed press for forming boiler heads, operated by hydraulic
pressure. The controlling valves, instead of being operated by
mechanical energy through a secondary system of cylinders and
pistons, were operated by human physical energy, applied slowly
and painfully through levers. The same thing was true of the
work of prying the heads from the dies where they often stuck.
Boiler sheets were lifted and lowered over the jaw of a riveter
by an expensive crane which was needlessly tied up on the job.
The crane should have transferred its burden to a stationary
hoist. Man, at a slow rate of speed, rotated the shell when
rivetting the transverse seams. A vertical, power driven drum,
cable-connected to the shell, should have done the trick more
cheaply and quickly. These wastes clearly demonstrate the
fallacy of depending on men immediately engaged in the direction
of manual or mechanical operations for the evolution of operative
methods.
The third essential is energy, of which there are two types —
physical, which may be either of mechanical, animal or human
origin; and mental, which is of both superhuman and human
origin, the latter variety alone being under consideration at
present. Human physical energy is essential to the control of
either mechanical or animal energy. Human mental energy is
essential to the direction of all types of physical energy.
Working back from the equipment, on one side we find in
series, the tool, the generator, the engine, the boiler and the coal,
which is one of the chief sources, terrestrially speaking, of me-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
chanical energy. The boiler, engine, generator and motor are
only the means whereby the latent energy in the coal is trans¬
formed, transmitted and applied to the tool. ControlUng the
tool we find the body of the man actuated by his mind which is
his motor. Working back from the mind of the man, we find
that it is at the end of a series composed of the minds of the fore¬
men, superintendents, general manager, president, executive com¬
mittee, board of directors and stockholders. The wish in the
minds of the stockholders that a railway shall be operated for the
purpose of making money is the real latent energy which, trans¬
formed and transmitted through the whole human organization
finally reaches and is applied to the mind of the worker and causes
him, by means of his physical energy, to put the mechanical
energy into operation. If the various apphances by which the
energy in the coal is transmitted to the tool are not suited to the
end in view or are not properly connected, the result will be dis¬
appointing. It is even more true in the human machine or
organization that there must be a sufficiency of adequate mind
units, properly connected, to insure satisfactory results. A
motor cannot be energized through a lightning rod by occasional
flashes of lightning. It must receive a continuous supply through
proper connections from an adequate generator backed by coal
of high thermal qualities. Similarly a man must receive a con¬
tinuous supply of mental energy through a proper organization
from a competent executive backed by energetic stockholders.
As we have seen, the railway shop is but a part of one of the
principal divisions of a railway organization. In a well-designed
power plant there must be a principal steam drum main into
which all the boilers discharge and from which all engines draw
the necessary steam. This steam drum may be compared to the
chief executive ofl&cer. The title of president, usually employed,
is incorrect, being purely parliamentary and not executive in its
nature. A better term would be general manager, as expressing
universal control of the operating organization. The depart¬
mental managers, which are the heads of the principal divisions,
may be compared to the generating sets by which the energy.
6o6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
focused in the general manager, is applied to the various phases
of the business.
In a power plant, however, but little in the nature of a refining
operation, except a certain amount of drying, is applied to the
steam in the drum. In the case of the human steam it is different.
The increase in the volume of ascertained fact, in recent years
especially, has been so rapid that it is physically and mentally
impossible for the general manager of a great railway or other
industrial enterprise to acquire a complete acquaintance with
that which pertains to his line of work. To overcome this
difficulty, two general methods have been pursued, sometimes
separately and sometimes in combination. The first method is
to require each member of the organization to absorb such new
information as pertains to his particular work. This is not
advisable because it requires a man to carry on, simultaneously,
two radically different lines of thought which require different
conditions and equipment for their operation. Productive and
investigative operations cannot be conducted at one and the same
time with mutual advantage. The second method is to attach
certain specialists, or energizers, to various parts of the organ¬
ization to perform the investigative portion of the work. This is
an improvement, but it fails of entire success because the effect
of this disjointed advice on the other divisions of the organiza¬
tion has not and cannot be properly digested in advance of its
application. It is only when these specialists are entirely with¬
drawn from the operating organization and separated into sec¬
tions corresponding to the divisions above alluded to, and put
directly under the control of the general manager that success
will attend their efforts.
When, therefore, mental energy in the form of a direction or
standard practice instruction is to be applied, it will have been
considered from every possible standpoint; it will have received
the final consideration of the chief executive, as to generalities,
and may be fairly depended upon to produce the desired results.
In applying this theory the result would be the gradual with¬
drawal of the more able men from the directly operative work
to the advisory work, their abilities being replaced by carefully
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
607
prepared instructions. This would open up a line of promotion
to the operating men which does not now exist. The result
would be a development of workers, first into the administrative
positions under carefully formulated instructions, and finally into
positions on the staff which formulates these instructions. The
expense of maintaining this staff would not be by any means an
entire addition to the present operating cost, for most of the
men are, at present, doing such work, but in the wrong place and
under the wrong directions. Any additional cost which ought
to eventuate would be many times regained from the increased
efficiency of the great army of workers.
The fourth essential is the administrative methods by which
proper directions for the utilization of material, equipment and
energy are transmitted to the various units of which the organ¬
ization is composed, and proper records are secured as to the
results obtained. Both of these things are equally necessary for
the comparisons which are essential to the successful control of
any business.
The line of the outward fiow of the directions must be care¬
fully determined, in great detail, so that all units will receive their
proper share of the directions in the proper sequence. The
experience necessary to lay down these lines is, contrary to the
common belief, quite distinct from that necessary to pass upon
the subject matter of the directions. The phases of all such
directions are much alike, as are the principal phases of all
organizations. This is almost incomprehensible to those whose
chief study has been that of the subject matter, but it is never¬
theless true. The specialist in this work, therefore, finds much
less difficulty in devising a proper routine for almost any business
than the speciahst in any one line would find in devising a routine
for the business with which he is most familiar. The two lines
of work are separate. The machinist can make a better t3q)e-
writing machine than can the stenographer; though, being unable
to compose the letters which are to be written upon it, he is
unable to operate the machine to advantage after its completion.
This the stenographer can do even though he is unable to con¬
struct the machine itself.
6o8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The line of inward flow of the records must carefully parallel
that of the outward flow of the standards. The maxim should
be a standard for and a record of every operation. Because
frantic attempts have been made to deduce information from
records alone, which it is impossible to get except from a com¬
parison of records with standards, most concerns are loaded up
with a vast amount of unproductive bookkeeping. It is quite
possible to gather, at a large expense, masses of flgures which
never become of the slightest use, and to leave ungathered much
data which is of extreme value. Hence the correct correlation
of standards and records is of the highest importance.
Both standards and records, however, fail to be of use unless
dihgently studied by the various members of the organization,
especially the chief executives. Of what use would be the most
careful observations and plotting by the navigators of a ship if
the captain did not digest the information and act accordingly ?
When the information has been put into proper form, the work
of using it has not been even begun. For this reason the data
should reach each administrator in such shape that only the
problems suited to his rank will be presented to him for his solu¬
tion, thus economizing his energy.
In closing this very brief discussion of the principles which
should guide the application of scientific management to the rail¬
way shop and also, as is absolutely essential, to the entire organi¬
zation, a word may be in order as to the characteristics of the
efficiency engineer and the part which he should play. Such an
engineer should be a corporation, or other aggregation of in¬
dividuals, coordinated under a competent head and having
among its members individuals able to advise in every form of
administrative detail, both commercial, disciplinary and techni¬
cal. No single individual can possibly have acquired the neces¬
sary breadth of experience which is necessary in order to properly
handle directly all the detail of this work. Such an engineer
should not under any consideration, attempt to do constructive
work with his own men. He may and should employ such men
for his investigations, which should be impartial and unprej¬
udiced. He should lay down the entire form of the organization
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
609
by offices, leaving the railway officials to fill them. He should
revise the present routine and the forms which insure its opera¬
tion, and make such specific recommendations as are necessary
to bring about the desired condition. He should suggest the
order of changes and promotions, but not pass upon the ability
of the individuals to be affected by them. He should, directly
or through trusted subordinates, give such explanations of new
methods as are necessary for the proper understanding thereof,
to any individual needing them. He should conduct such a
process of friendly inspection, from the president down, as will
determine, until the natural checks get into full operation, that
the administrative operations are being properly performed.
This work will take several years in any railway for its accom¬
plishment. Large results will not be seen immediately. Only
patient and persistent effort and honest cooperation from all
concerned will eventually produce them. Given these things,
the results are sure to follow.
THE RAILWAYS AND SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Reprinted by permission of Engineering and Contraciing
Engineers and the public in general have become reasonably
familiar through the daily papers with the novel line of reasoning
offered by Mr. Louis D. Brandeis against the proposed increase
in railway freight rates, permission for which was recently refused
by the Interstate Commerce, Commission. Mr. Brandeis con¬
tended that by applying the principle of scientific management it
would be possible for American railways to save a million dollars
a day in operating expense, and he produced expert witnesses to
show the possibility of such a saving. While the Interstate
Commerce Commission has decided adversely to the railways,
the commission was not influenced by the testimony and argu¬
ments offered by Mr. Brandeis, nor is this to be wondered at.
We quote from the text of the commission's ruling:
It was, however, earnestly insisted by the shippers that the railroad might
and should find other kinds of economies with which to make good this
increase in wages. Several prominent manufacturers testified that in their
business in recent years wages had been advanced, but they had not been
able to make corresponding advances in the price of their product, and were
therefore forced to look about for other ways in which to take up the increase
in the cost of production.
It was claimed that by the introduction of what was termed " scientific
management," the purpose of which was in various ways to make labor more
efficient, at the same time increasing the wage paid the laborer himself,
much more than the amount of these advances could be saved.
One gentleman who described these methods testified that they had been
introduced to some extent into the operations of railways with remarkable
results, and that from a careful analysis and computation he was satisfied
that not less than $300,000,000 annually could be saved by the proper
application of these methods to the business of railroading in the United
States.
It is difficult to see exactly what application the commission can make in
this case of this testimony. The witness who apparently had most to do
with the originating and applying of these methods testified that they were
in actual operation in not over one-tenth of i per cent of all the manufactur¬
ing establishments of this country. The system is everywhere in an experi¬
mental stage. To some extent it has been tried, and is now being tried by
610
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 6ll
our railways. The representative of railway labor who appeared before
us stated that these methods could not and should not be introduced into
railway work.
Upon this record we can hardly find that these methods could be intro¬
duced into railroad operations to any considerable extent, much less can we
determine the definite amount of saving which could be made. We cannot,
therefore, find that these defendants could make good any part of these
actual advances in wages by the introduction of scientific management.
The weakness of the testimony given by the experts whom Mr.
Brandeis had summoned is found mainly in the fact that few of
them had ever done any railway work at all, and the one or two
who had been engaged on efificiency engineering by railways
seemed to be unable to cite many " repeat orders." But our
readers should not let this fact influence their judgment, although
it necessarily had weight with the commission. There are
engineers known to the editors of this journal, and among them
are editors of this journal, who, for years past and right now, are
applying the principles of modern scientific management to rail¬
way operation with success. Obviously certain of these engineers
would not appear as witnesses against the railways in a rate case
if they could, and some of them couldn't if they would. The
latter would lose their positions if they did. The former feel
that, while it is a fact that railway operating costs can be greatly
reduced by scientific management, it is not logical nor fair to
offer that as an argument against the advance of railway rates
now. It would be equally reasonable to demand a lowering of
the price of every manufactured product in the world on the
ground that it is possible to reduce the unit cost of every product.
We who have knowledge of the great, and often astounding,
economies that have been effected by scientific management also
have knowledge of the extreme slowness with which it can be
introduced. Even on a small railway it is a matter of years to
effect changes in methods, so firmly fixed are the prejudices in
favor of " the good old way." It may almost be said to be a law
of human nature that it takes twenty years to introduce and popu¬
larize an entirely novel machine or method for economizing labor.
First, there is the resistence of owners and managers to be over¬
come. They are quite certain that they cannot be taught more
6i2
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
economic ways of production. Second, there is the resistance of
foremen. They are absolutely certain that the innovation will be
fruitless. Finally there is the rock-founded resistance of the
workmen to any device or method that seems likely to effect a
saving of labor. We have seen all three of these elements at
work in this particular case before the Interstate Commerce Com¬
mission. From railway presidents down the line to superin¬
tendents have issued derisive statements as to the possibility of
any radical reduction in operating costs by application of scien¬
tific management. And even the labor unions sent their repre¬
sentatives to testify that " these methods could not and should
not be introduced into railway work."
As to the latter, we may reply that " these methods " have been
and should be introduced into railway work. Moreover, the
workmen have been the greatest gainers where " these methods "
have been introduced.
While we do not believe that the railways should be denied
increased rates because of economies in operation that may be
effected in the future, we do contend that it is a false position for
railway managers to take when they scout the possibility of
greatly reducing operating costs. Most of them know that de¬
cided reductions in cost are not only possible but are actually
being affected. If they will study the laws of scientific manage¬
ment, they will find that the principles they have been deriding
are the very ones they have been applying, at least in part. They
will see that true scientific management is not a few special
methods of timing and scheduling work, but that it embraces a
system of laws that are founded on experience, and many of
which are as old as industrialism itself. They will also learn that
there is fundamental difference between following a law uncon¬
sciously, by intuition, and following consciously; for in the latter
case management becomes truly scientific, while in the former
case it is merely an art. Science can be taught. Art is mainly
acquired by practice, and then only by those naturally gifted.
One of our engineering contemporaries. Engineering News, has
also upheld the contention that Mr. Brandeis is ludicrously
wrong in asserting that scientific management can be applied in
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
613
railroading. The News holds that the management of a railway
is quite unlike the management of a factory, and resembles
closely the management of a household. It asks the exponents
of scientific management to apply their theories to their own
house servants, and then report results. It avers that the number
of railway station agents and the like is fixed by conditions, and
cannot be reduced, and that the same holds true of trainmen and
most other employees.
Our contemporary may be interested in knowing that the
writer is now writing in a hotel that has reduced its expenses and
increased its net income remarkably within a year by applying
the principles of scientific management. In fact the hotel under
its previous management had gone into the hands of a receiver.
Whereas now it is highly profitable. So even a large household
such as a hotel is can be reorganized and made profitable by
scientific management.
With regard to railways, however, there is vastly more of the
factory than there is of the household; and this is best seen by
studying the percentages of the different operating cost items.
Wellington has well said that a railway is a factory for manu¬
facturing transportation. The maintenance items alone total
more than 40 per cent of all the operating expense; and main¬
tenance is nearly all analogous to factory production in so far as
the principles of scientific management are concerned.
Fuel for locomotives is another big expense that (may be called
a factory item. So, too, are train crew expenses. While the
number of men on each train may not be decreased by scientific
management, the number of daily train miles per crew can cer¬
tainly be increased by improved management.
Train loads have been increased remarkably by reducing
grades. Yet the man who is father of the principles that en¬
gineers apply in determining the justifiable expenditures for
grade reduction, the late A. M. Wellington, may well be called
an exponent of scientific management in certain phases of its
application. Let it not be supposed that scientific management
is a thing entirely new, or that it relates wholly to factory work,
or that it involves nothing but handling men, or that any single
6I4
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
engineer originated all its principles. As we conceive it, scientific
management consists in the conscious application of the laws
inherent in the practice of successful managers and the laws of
science in general. It has been called management engineering,
which seems more fully to cover its general scope of the science.
It is self-evident that no business man has ever honestly built
up a large enterprise without applying some of the laws of scienti¬
fic management. Such success is not a matter of chance, al¬
though chance may have furnished the opportunities that led to
it. If it is not a matter of chance it must be a matter of scientific
law, even though the man who has succeeded may not himself
have seen a formulated statement of the particular laws that he
intuitively applied. Generally, however, successful business
men have had pretty clear conceptions of some of the laws of
management.
The science of management has now developed sufficiently to
have reached the stage when ridicule is heaped upon it. In this
it repeats the history of all sciences. Fifteen years ago American
farmers were laughing at professors of agriculture. It was a great
joke to them to hear it gravely asserted that they did not under¬
stand the most important principles of scientific farming. Indeed
it was laughable enough in itself, this new linking of the words
science and farming. The laughter has ceased.
The Interstate Commerce Commission may wisely refuse to
consider scientific management as a factor in rate making. Rail¬
way presidents may unwisely ridicule the claims made for the
new science. The facts are that some civil engineers are applying
the principles of scientific management in railway operation and
construction with the same measure of success that has been
secured in factories and in contract work. A knowledge of the
success of these management engineers will spread slowly at
first, but it will spread and the result will be the inevitable recog¬
nition of management engineering as a scientific profession of
great importance.
THE MISTAKES OF THE EFFICIENCY MEN
Reprinted by permission of the Railway Age Gazette
I
Extravagant Statements and Claims
Extravagant claims are of two kinds: (i) misrepresentation,
either wilful or through ignorance, and, (2) extravagant in the
sense that, even though possible of proof, their mere assertion
creates a prejudice against them and thus prevents a fair trial of
proof. And of the two, the second is the more insidious. A
claim based upon misrepresentation or ignorance is proved to be
untrue when the facts are known; and the discovery of the facts
is in itself a most important step in an investigation into high
costs or low efficiency. But a claim that, because of its extrava¬
gance, immediately calls for a flat denial, even though having
foundation in fact, is usually thrown out without a hearing. To
such claims on the part of efficiency men is due the apparent
absence of agreement between them and those whom they would
enlighten. The astonishing thing is that the efficiency men
continue to make the same fatal mistake; and it is unjustifiable
because it is so unnecessary. Examples of failure of efficiency
schemes are legion.
An efficiency expert in the employ of a large concern had not
been long on the job when he informed the manager in no uncer¬
tain terms what could be saved and how it could be done.^ There
was no doubt either as to the amount or the method. As action
did not immediately follow, the efficiency man telegraphed the
^ It is the practice of the Taylor group to make a preliminary survey at the
request of the management interested in the application of the Taylor system, and
to estimate as carefully and closely as the conditions permit the direction in which
savings can be made and their probable extent. A study of their reports shows
that this estimate is in all cases most conservative, that it is always given as an
approximation, and that the expense to the management in time and money is at
the same time carefully estimated. — Ed.
61S
6i6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
manager of the company urging him not to delay because every
hour's delay meant an actual loss of one hundred dollars. Per¬
haps there was a leak somewhere in the plant; the management
may not have been all that it should; and it is not unlikely that
the amount named might have been saved thpugh efficiency
methods. But why was it necessary to invite criticism by making
the bold claim and thus create a prejudice at a time when co¬
operation was the one important thing ?
Another extravagant claim is that used to illustrate the alleged,
enormous waste in railway operation. It has done yeoman
service on various occasions. It runs something like this: A
locomotive in first class condition is but 50 per cent efficient if
the track and road-bed have been allowed to deteriorate 50 per
cent. If, in addition, the engineman has an efficiency of but
50 per cent, the result is to reduce the efficiency of the locomotive
to 25 per cent. If, further, the fuel used has but half the heat
units it should have, the combination of poor track, engineer and
fuel results in an efficiency of but 12I per cent, or a waste, or
inefficiency, of 871 per cent. The argument appears logical
enough, but however compelling it may be to the layman, the
railway manager knows that such conditions do not exist. Except
in extreme cases no road-bed is allowed to deteriorate to such
an extent as to carry but half the traffic it should. There cannot
be such a combination of poor road-bed, locomotives and cars,
men, fuel, etc., for the reason that long before these factors are
allowed to deteriorate sufficiently to affect the net results mate¬
rially, the remedy is discovered and applied. Locomotives are
taken out of service and shopped before their condition has any
appreciably damaging effect upon traffic. Engineers who are
unable to meet their schedules must promptly give way to those
who can.
It must be admitted that not unusually there is a basis in fact
for many of the extravagant assertions of the efficiency men. It
is because this is true that their claims not only do not accom¬
plish what they are intended to, but, on the contrary, have the
effect of obscuring actual conditions. That machine tools in
most manufacturing and railway shops are not operated as effi-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
617
ciently as they should be, that the cost of maintenance is high,
that the efficiency of the average workman is low, that fuel and
supplies are being wasted, that locomotives and cars are not
always repaired economically is unquestionably true. And it is
important that the truth in this respect should be told. The
plain truth, however, is sufficient; and although it requires fre¬
quent repetition, it needs no embellishment.
II
Neglect of the Human Element
Criticism of the theories of the efficiency men may be more
or less a matter of opinion, but criticism of methods and prac¬
tices, based on actual results, and backed up by the evidence
of practical men who have intimate knowledge of the working
of the so-called efficiency systems, ought to bear weight. And
it is not to their credit that the efficiency men dismiss such evi¬
dence with scant consideration. Of the mistakes that have been
made some are recognized so universally that it is to be wondered
at that the efficiency men themselves fail to appreciate and cor¬
rect them — so far reaching are they in their effects. Among
these mistakes, perhaps none has been more apparent or more
surely fatal than their failure to recognize the human element,
in other words, their ignorance, at least in practice, of human
nature. The millennium has been a long time coming, but most
of us are willing to accept a little less than perfection, as we
understand it, because we have learned by experience that per¬
fection is an ideal to be striven for — seldom to be reached.
There are practical and visionary idealists; the one appreciates
the limitations of men and the frailties of human nature without
sacrificing his ideals, the other, living apart in a world of fancy,
can be satisfied only by perfection — and therefore forever
remains unsatisfied.
This fundamental mistake is not confined to the relations of
efficiency men to the rank and file of workmen; it extends alike
to foremen, superintendents, managers and those in executive
authority. How the efficiency men can expect to receive a
favorable audience for presenting their cause after following the
6i8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
course they usually pursue is hard to imagine. What has been
their general attitude toward these various classes ? They have
criticized railway executives because their philosophical discus¬
sions have not been taken seriously, forgetting that they are men
of action rather than of words. They have charged railway and
industrial managers with incapacity in dealing with intricate
problems that have resulted from the growth and consequent
complexity of their business, ignoring the power that comes only
from intelligent and intimate knowledge of actual conditions.
They have referred to superintendents, foremen and others in
direct charge of operations as "of the old school," and to their
management as " rutty," because they have depended on a
practical experience and an ability to handle men rather than on *
artificial systems, to secure permanently good results, forgetting
that the standards attained by such men have not been generally
improved upon under so-called efficiency system. They have
substituted for comparatively simple methods of determining
costs and earnings, complicated and theoretical schemes without
preparing the way for a clear understanding of their elements.
In all of this, however worthy their object and however correct
their reasoning, they have depended more on the force of logic
to carry their plans to a successful conclusion than on a reason¬
able attitude which takes into account the elements of human
nature that are common to the large majority of men. They
have talked and written too much, and it is not surprising that
the term " scientific management " has been given little serious
thought in certain quarters.
One of the leading efficiency men has stated that "it is not
men or materials, money, machines and methods that count,
but more potently theories and principles." We shall not quar¬
rel with them regarding the principles that underlie all successful
industrial and railway management. Efficiency men are not
alone in recognizing them. Abstract reasoning has its place,
but in itself cannot make two blades of grass grow where one
grew before, nor turn the wheels of industry. Great as imagina¬
tion is, and however necessary a part it plays in broad and com¬
prehensive plans for the improvement of the humán race, it
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 619
must be translated into the concrete before it is really vital.
And it is not true that what is correct in theory is likewise
always correct in practice. Scientific management of railways
and industrial plants is not a system of philosophy; it is common
sense applied to the working out of the problems that cannot be
solved except through men — practical men, men who know.
A number of years ago one of the now leading efficiency
engineers was engaged in a large industrial plant to introduce a
piece work system. For two years he labored. Stop watch in
hand, he timed the various operations and tabulated the results.
His attitude toward the workmen was impersonal. He was a
scientist ( ?) in his laboratory. He was a man apart. The
men around him recognized him as such. Lacking their con¬
fidence, cooperation was impossible. But from the standpoint
of the efficiency engineer this was unnecessary;^ his faith was
in his theories and principles. Consequently, when he appeared
in the shop and began his observations, machines would often be
slowed down with loss of output or speeded up with damage to
tools. Every device known to the various trades was resorted
to to block him at each turn. The result was that after two
years of effort the establishment of a satisfactory piece work
system was as far from realization as it had been when the task
was started. Then a practical man was called in. He acquainted
himself with the machines and their capacity. He mingled with
the men and gained their confidence. He explained that the
object in view was two-fold, to increase the output at a reduced
cost per unit to the company, and at the same time to enable the
men to earn more. Within six months he had accomplished
results that the efficiency man had spent two years in an effort
to secure. Why ? Because he appreciated the importance of
the man element.
Yet they tell us that practical men follow the rule-of-thumb,
that they have not had the time and do not possess the ability
to analyze closely the successive steps in the almost myriad
1 Even a cursory study of the principles of the Taylor System should make it
clear that cooperation, so far from being imnecessary, is absolutely fundamental
and essential. — Ed.
620
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
operations of a large shop, that because of a lack of scientific
knowledge they are not competent to determine proper methods
of work or secure the best results from operation. It is un¬
doubtedly true that many practical men lack the peculiar quali¬
ties required by the efficiency engineer. Not a few successful
men would be more successful if they possessed more fully the
faculty of analysis and coordination and had a more lively appre¬
ciation of the theory of scientific management. But are the
efficiency men assisting them in this direction ? Rather, are
they not practically ignoring the experience of practical men
in their endeavors to establish the efficiency system, or to clarify
the atmosphere surrounding it ? Do they not give too little
credit to the capacity of such men — inherent in some, acquired
by many — to handle men, to convince them of their mistakes, to
gain their sympathy and to establish that esprit de corps without
which no organization is efficient ? Under these conditions,
efficiency engineers should not be surprised that practical men
view with distrust their efforts in fields in which they have had
no actual training. While there is perhaps no little prejudice
back of such an attitude, it is nevertheless a real situation, and
the success or failure of many an attempt in scientific manage¬
ment, as interpreted by the efficiency men, has been fore-shad¬
owed by the extent to which the confidence has been secured
of the men behind the guns.
An understanding of the psychology of the crowd as repre¬
sented by a shop filled with workmen, possessed in large measure
by most successful factory and railway managers, master me¬
chanics, round house and shop foremen, cannot be replaced by a
theory of management nor ignored with impunity in introducing
efficiency methods. Of two men entering a shop apparently
equally equipped, one was found to be analytical and critical
both in respect to the details of his work and his fellow workmen,
but lacking the magnetism that makes for leadership. The
other, with less analytical ability and often wrong in his theories,
possessed a personality that gave him an influence over the men
around him. Which, naturally, became the leader, afterwards
the foreman, then the superintendent ? Such men, by the law
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
621
of selection, represent the great majority of those who manage
our railways and superintend our industrial and railway shops.
Whatever their failings, they are to be reckoned with.
While many a shop foreman, superintendent or master me¬
chanic may have no proper appreciation of the beauties of the
philosophy of efficiency, may be unable to follow the line of
reasoning of the efficiency men, may be mistaken in his belief
that his men are more efficient than the " assays " have shown,
and may have much to learn, he has usually reached his position
because of certain qualifications possessed in greater measure by
him than by the other men with whom he has been associated.
And in introducing efficiency methods in his department it is a
fatal mistake to omit the first essential, his good will, because al¬
most invariably except through him the good will of the men
cannot be secured. Too often the system is worked out with
insufficient consideration being given to the men most closely
affected; whose suggestions given with the best of intentions are
ignored. Little pains are taken to explain the details of the sys¬
tem to those who must understand and favor it if it is to succeed.
The word has gone out that the old system must give way to
the new, and short shrift is given to the opposition. Thus it
happens, that while this is farthest from their thought, the atti¬
tude of the efficiency man and that of the foreman and workmen
are antagonistic. Lacking the initial meeting of the minds and
agreement on essentials, efficiency plans are foreordained to fail.
The efficiency man is wise who gives greater place in his sys¬
tem to the greatest of all studies — the study of man.
Ill
Unscientific
In what respects are many of the efficiency men unscientific
in their attitude and methods with reference to scientific man¬
agement ?
(1) In basing their conclusions on incorrect, insufficient,
or immaterial data and in applying them to conditions which
were absent in the initial investigation.
(2) In their impatience for results.
022
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
UNSCIENTIFIC METHODS OF DRAWING CONCLUSIONS
What is more common in their utterances than an imposing
array of examples of extremely low efficiency, submitted as evi¬
dence that conditions call for heroic treatment, or of examples
of high efficiency as a proof that their methods can alone bring
order out of the chaos ? A mere citation of disjointed facts,
however, proves nothing. They are at best but half-truths,
and as such are not only out of place in a scientific discussion
of the questions under consideration, but are misleading. A dis¬
interested seeker after the truth asks: " If the unsatisfactory
conditions that have been described actually exist, are they due
to a wrong system or to the absence of system; do they cor¬
rectly represent average conditions, or are they only exceptional
instances due to factors which are but local and transitory ? "
Efficiency men claim to be scientific, as contrasted with practi¬
cal men, who they say, follow the rule-of-thumb. But a scientist
publishes his conclusions only when, after extended experiments
and observations, he has found the evidence sufficient to warrant
giving them publicity. He is no scientist who hastens into the
limelight with evidence based on scattered examples, found
amid varying conditions, and risks the odium of his co-Workers
by announcing premature conclusions.^ Among reputable
physicians, chemists, biologists and other scientists, it is custo¬
mary to delay the announcement of important discoveries even
far beyond the time which would seem under all the laws of
logic to be required. The result is that when such an announce¬
ment is made it is backed up by a series of facts so closely related
and so strongly fortified by innumerable examples bearing dis¬
tinctly upon the question, that it is unusual, indeed, for it to
require alteration.
Is it scientific to use as evidence cases of low efficiency and
consequent high costs and unsatisfactory service, or of improve-
^ Compare with this remark the Introduction to F. W. Taylor's " Art of Cutting
Metals," in this volume, page 242. This paper was not published until twenty-six
years of experiments had been made. Taylor's " Shop Management " was pub¬
lished thirty-three years after the methods described in it had begun to be prac¬
tised. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
623
ments that have followed the introduction of efñciency methods,
without an equally fair statement of all the conditions that sur¬
round the operations ? Or to search through the records for an
especially poor performance to set alongside an especially good
one, irrespective of the causes and the general tendency in
either case ? All thoughtful accountants appreciate how mis¬
leading statistical data may be unless all the concurrent factors
are taken into consideration and proper allowances made for
them. Whatever the unit of measurement, it is unsafe and im¬
proper to draw definite conclusions from too narrow a range of
data.
A good record of one month may really be a poor one when
all the facts are known. For example, in an industry where the
different operations that precede the completion of a certain
unit are scattered over a period of several months, the output
during a particular month may, and usually does, bear no direct
relation to the cost of operations during the month in question.
In a shop building steam engines, machine tools, passenger cars,
or similar equipment, requiring perhaps two months or more to
assemble complete, it is the height of folly to assume that the
cost of the operations in a given month divided by the output
represents the cost per unit, and indicates whether the results
are satisfactory or otherwise.
But the reader, left in such cases to his own resources to sepa¬
rate the real from the unreal, is either the willing and unsuspect¬
ing neophyte, accepting with wonderment the " evidence "
which has no established basis, or is obliged to reject it all as
unreal. It is unfair to those among the efficiency engineers who
are scientists in the true meaning of the term. There is danger
that their reputations will suffer and that their usefulness will
be limited because of the unscientific deductions and absurd
claims of the pseudo-scientists who ransack heaven and earth
for comparisons that only serve to mislead those who are not
in position to answer their arguments.
624
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
IV
Impatience for Results
Perhaps next to the failure of the eíñciency men to appreciate
the importance of the human element, the most certainly fatal
mistake they have made is their impatience for results. This
comes often after many of the obstacles to their success have
been removed. It is not confined alone to them; many practical
managers have failed for the same reason. But in introducing a
system of work that involves features, which while the principles
underlying them may not be new, are strange to the men who are
most vitally affected, impatience can undo in short order what
it has taken much time and expense to build up. If it is true
that man is a suspicious animal, the average workman has his
full share when a new system is introduced. If it has merit,
its success should not be risked by premature announcements or
by assuming an uncompromising attitude toward the men. If
there is great waste in shop operation, and this has been going
on many years, why the impatience to change it all in six months
or a year ?
Instead of establishing the system in one department, and
proving its worth so unequivocally that it is demanded in other
departments, certain efficiency men have urged its speedy exten¬
sion to other departments, for the reason that unless it is intro¬
duced into all and recognized as the established system, there is
danger that it will fail in the department in which it was initially
instituted.^ Such a necessity for its general extension is unworthy
of any system which merits it. One of the most unfortunate
results of the impatience that has caused shipwreck of so many
well intentioned plans is the opportunity that is given to labor
to organize and present a solid front of opposition to their estab¬
lishment. It is both unnecessary and unscientific to demand or
expect permanently satisfactory results in introducing scientific
management without giving it time to grow in favor. If the
1 It is the practice of the Taylor group to develop the system, department by
department, mainly because this process facilitates the training of the permanent
staff which is to extend and maintain the system after the expert is through.—Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 625
efficiency men have profited by this mistake, which has been the
direct cause of many of their failures, they have gained much.
Just now scientific management is receiving consideration,
either favorable or otherwise, in many quarters. There are
those who believe that it offers nothing toward a solution of the
problems that confront the industrial world. There are others
who consider it a panacea for all our economic ills. Perhaps
midway between these classes are those thoughtful men, some
trained in the hard school of practical experience and possessing
that true genius which is " an infinite capacity for taking pains,"
and others, with equal genius and with the instinct and training
of the scientist, who are to be depended upon to extend the es¬
tablishment of its principles. The purpose of scientific manage¬
ment is not to displace existing institutions. It is to perfect
them. It has already been established on a much larger scale,
although it may not bear the name, than many of the efficiency
engineers are willing to admit. It is being further extended
through patient study of existing conditions and a recognition
of those factors which make for permanency. And while it is
to be regretted that it is being retarded through misrepresenta¬
tion and unfair criticism, it is an encouraging sign that there is
a growing number of industrial and railway men of all ranks who
are not blinded to its merits by the fulminations of the school of
philosophers who may for the time being occupy the stage.
V
Neglect of Large Factors
A mistake common to the majority of the leading efficiency
men, due perhaps to their zeal for a perfect control of the most
minute details of every operation, is the neglect of certain large
and important factors. The efficiency system cannot be sepa¬
rated from the other departments of shop activities, for the
reason that it affects them all. It is not a branch grafted on to
the main tree, but when properly introduced is a part of the
body itself. There are many systems of shop management, which
if installed in their entirety and strictly according to the ideas
626
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of their originators, are so complicated that it is manifestly impos¬
sible for a shop manager to familiarize himself with their details
without neglecting many of the larger interests that have pre¬
viously demanded his attention. Efficiency men, when given
the opportunity to introduce scientific methods are often so intent
upon proving the correctness of their theories that they, too,
neglect the large factors. The difference is that they do so from
choice, while the shop manager does so from necessity when he
is required to adopt a system which he knows beforehand to be
inadequate.
One of the most difficult problems confronting the efficiency
engineer when he attempts to establish a new system of shop
management is that of labor. The task of keeping the workmen
contented without sacrificing profits is often the supreme test
of a man responsible for their relations with the company. The
successful manager is usually equal to this test. Efficiency men,
however, are strangely blind to the attitude of labor toward a
system which the men believe can tend only to reduce their earn¬
ings. Whether they are correct in this attitude or not does not
alter the situation; they are a factor that cannot be ignored with
impunity. An eminent efficiency engineer has said that " under
efficiency operation strikes are inconceivable." It is because of
this abounding faith in their theories that they fail to recognize
the rumblings of discontent until the earthquake occurs.
Another factor all too frequently overlooked is the opportu¬
nity for increasing efficiency and reducing costs through simple
expedients. Many a successful superintendent motive power
has accomplished by the exercise of ingenuity and common sense
what efficiency engineers, after exhaustive investigations and the
introduction of theoretical schemes of doubtful value, have failed
to bring about. Instead of following the line of least resistance
they seem to prefer indirect and devious ways. Successful prac¬
tical men know of better methods. If, for example, the cost of
a certain class of locomotive repairs is running at, say, 12 cents
a mile, the superintendent motive power may reach the conclu¬
sion that it is too high. It is not necessary that he should make
an extended investigation in order to determine exactly how
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
627
excessive his costs have been. Comparative figures interpreted
by common sense and good judgment will tell him closely enough
for his present purpose, and he may conclude that the cost should
average not over nine cents. He has thus arrived, through the
expedient of a simple determination of the possibilities, at a
standard which may be termed a practicable ideal cost as dis¬
tinguished from a theoretical ideal cost. Then by another
simple calculation of charges and credits, and through compara¬
tive records by divisions, roundhouses and shops, the percent¬
age of inefficiency may be determined and localized. If traceable
to defective organization this can be corrected; if due to some
inherent weakness in the design of any particular part of the
locomotive, the part can be strengthened. This, of course,
is not the scientific " method, for it does not attempt to deter¬
mine for every separate operation included in the cost of repairs
the actual cost and efficiency. It is enough for all practicable
purposes at this stage to know that the costs are computed on
the same basis as formerly and that the figures for different
periods are properly comparable, so that if costs are reduced
from 12 to 9 cents a mile he is assured that it is not in the book¬
keeping but that a reduction of 25 per cent has actually been
made.
It is a fair statement that if in a certain instance locomotive
or car repairs are excessive by, say, 30 per cent, it will cost less
than half as much to save the first 20 per cent as to save the
last 10 per cent. In fact, it is not unlikely that it would be
practically impossible to secure the last 10 per cent, however
elaborate a system might be installed. When the cost of a sys¬
tem is equivalent to the possible savings, it is, of course, only a
useless burden. Proof that a high efficiency can be reached
without recourse to a highly specialized system is found in the
fact that it is recognized even by the scientific engineers that on
many of the representative railways and in scores of industrial
shops, low costs of operation accompanied by a high standard of
service have been maintained for years. The possible economies
through somewhat unscientific but effective calculations, com¬
parisons and allowances, are enormous.
628
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
VI
Incompetent Counsel
When the efi&ciency men are charged with the mistake of giving
incompetent counsel when their advice is sought, they are taken
to task for ignoring one of the principles upon which their struc¬
ture of shop management is built; for among the principles
enumerated by Mr. Emerson in the series of articles current in
the Engineering Magazine, not the least prominence is given to
competent counsel." We have read these and other similar
effusions written by the chief efficiency men with the hope that
much of what has been termed misunderstanding of their methods
and theories might be cleared away. The particular series
referred to has been hailed as a great work, and should contain
the last word on scientific management. One has a right, there¬
fore, to expect competent counsel at the hands of one speaking
with such authority.
It has been correctly stated in the Railway Age Gazette on
various occasions, that the interest in efficiency methods and
scientific management has been increasing rapidly. It is a ques¬
tion, however, whether this is not in spite of, rather than because
of, their exposition by certain efficiency men who are recognized
as the leaders of the new philosophical school. Railway and
industrial managers have been asking for bread and they have
been given a stone. In the April number of the Engineering
Magazine, is published the eleventh of the series of articles on
" The Twelve Principles of Efficiency," entitled " The Ninth
Principle — Standardized Conditions." Recognizing the impor¬
tance of having conditions standardized and the economic loss
due to the absence of standards, one naturally looks for valuable
suggestions regarding this feature of scientific management. If
there are any such suggestions in the article in question, a second
and a third reading have failed to disclose them. As a philo¬
sophical dissertation, it may have a place, but as a contribution
to the cause of scientific management it is sorely deficient. It
opens with an interesting chapter from the life of the grub,
followed by a comparison of the standards of the spider and the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
629
firefly with those of man, much to the detriment of the latter.
Egypt and her pyramids have a place, then consideration is
given to the evolution of the aeroplane. Efi&ciency principles
are compared to the framework of a dome. The eight-hour train
between New York and Chicago, and the three-day schedule for
general repairs to a locomotive are prophesied, but no hint is
given of the methods that will bring them into being. A large
publishing house (which, if we read correctly between the lines,
paid dearly for the introduction into its plant of a certain system
of shop management) is put on the rack with other business men,
who do not progress because of " imaginary specters that terror¬
ize the soul." The article closes with an appeal for standardizing
conditions in " our lives, our shops and our nation." To what
extent competent counsel is given to those who are interested in
standardizing conditions can be judged from the above summary.
This absence of competent counsel is not peculiar to the article
in question; in a previous instalment of the same series on the
subject of the first principle — " Clearly Defined Ideals," five
pages are given over to a discussion of the seven ancient and the
seven modern wonders of the world, and the seven American
wonders. Nor is it peculiar to this series of articles. Ask one
of the leading efficiency engineers to make a trip over a railway
system, or make a study of a certain manufacturing plant, and to
report upon the existing conditions and the possibilities. The
larger part of such a report is likely to be akin to the conversation
of Polonius, which Hamlet characterized as, " Words, words,
words."
It is not unusual for certain efficiency, men to refer the failure
of their plans to a lack of cooperation on the part of those in
authority. Is it not rather that the counselor has failed to give
sound advice, and that consequently results have not squared
with the promises ? His attitude is too often that of one who
never needs, but always gives counsel. That prejudice some¬
times exists is no doubt true, but this is perhaps no more marked
than that of many of the efficiency men toward the organization
common to nearly all railway and industrial shops.
630
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
CONCLUSION
An effort has been made in these studies to point out for the
advantage both of the efficiency men and of those who are
interested, or should be, in the principles of scientific, or common
sense, management, some of the chief mistakes that have figured
in connection with its exposition and introduction. No riaim
is made to literary excellence in these discussions. They have
been written by one who is himself deeply interested in the vital
issues, and who recognizes and applies in his own field many
of the principles that have been recommended, who is also
familiar with extended efforts on the part of efficiency men to
introduce systems of greater or less excellence. That they have
made mistakes, however, need not be seriously regretted, pro¬
viding profit is secured from them. The important thing is not
to make the same blunders repeatedly. Those mistakes, which
have seemed to the writer to be the most common, are: (i)
Extravagant statements and claims, (2) the neglect of the human
element, (3) the unscientific nature of many of their discussions
and conclusions, (4) impatience for results, (5) neglect of large
factors, (6) incompetent counsel. Of these the most surely fatal
to the success of any advanced system of shop control are the
neglect of the human element and impatience for results.
The nature of these observations has precluded the possibility
of a recognition of the good that has been accomplished by the
efficiency men, either directly or as a result of the publicity that
has followed their utterances. The fact that we have charged
them with many and serious errors has not blinded us to those
features of their systems which have merit. It is not our province
to refer to them here in detail; it would be unfair, however, and
might lead to a misconception of the purpose of these studies
to close them without a word of commendation for those among
the efficiency men who have urged the principles of a common
sense management in the face of almost insurmountable obsta¬
cles. It has been largely a campaign of education, and a call
has gone out to operating men of all classes to seek a more inti¬
mate knowledge of the details of their business. The charge
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
631
of gross inefficiency that has become a popular slogan, while
much exaggerated, has led to systematic plans to reduce waste,
and economies have already resulted, which had not been con¬
sidered within the realm of possibility. From whatever point
of view this science of management may be considered, and in
all the heat of argument, it should be remembered that the law of
the survival of the fittest holds in the economic as in the animal
realm, and that because the principles of scientific management
are vital to our industrial life, they have come to stay.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
By F. LINCOLN HUTCHINS
Reprinted by permission of the Railway Age Gazette
Port Chester, N. Y., February 5, 1911.
To the Editor of the Railway Age Gazette:
It is inconceivable that the writer of " The Mistakes of Effi¬
ciency Men," in your issue of February 3, page 230, could ever
have worked " with them," for he shows such a lamentable ignor¬
ance of their fundamental principles. Ordinarily such writers
may be left to hang themselves, but as scientific management is
now on the tapis and is so imperfectly understood in many quar¬
ters I feel impelled to criticise most of the article. Will the
writer kindly give an instance which justifies his saying, " Failure
of many of their theories when brought to the test of practical
application " ? The principles of scientific management are
based on truisms and must be as true in practice as in theory;
when failure occurs it will inevitably be found that it is caused by
a violation of principle and not through fault of principle.
For a writer who claims to have " worked with them " to ask
how the efficiency of a workman is arrived at, and then to go on
and give an entirely erroneous account of how it is done is to say
the least surprising. Cursory observation readily detects lost
time in any operation; the operator stops to talk, to go on an
errand, to look for material, etc. It is easy to see that waste
motions are being made, that the speed is slow and to locate in¬
numerable causes that restrict output, so that when he says:
" Time studies are made, often with the assistance of a stop
watch, by inexperienced men of little tact — students and others
equally incapable," he writes himself down as one wholly mis¬
conceiving the situation. A trained observer, though he may
know little about the particular operation which he is observing,
can readily detect the wastes and keep account of them, the stop
watch being merely an assistance in fixing the time; when this
632
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
633
is done it is only the beginning of the making of a schedule upon
which the efficiency shall be calculated. The fixing of that
schedule must be the work of a person expert in the particular
line in which the observation has been made and in which every
consideration is given to the conditions surrounding the operation.
He also says that " men cannot be worked like machines," and
this is where efficiency engineers maintain a strong position.
Their object is not to increase the effort of the men, but on the
other hand to decrease it, mixing a little brain with it to pro¬
duce a greater output. The operator who has to run after the
foreman for a job, for material, or for other things, has to work
harder to turn out a satisfactory day's work. It is the object
of the efficiency engineer to make the work easier for the operator.
Take an actual illustration; an observer noticed that a machine
was held up quite a time while two men laboriously put into
place a heavy roll of paper; he studied out a plan whereby a new
roll was ready to drop into the place of the preceding one as soon
as it was empty; this increased the output and diminished the
effort of the employee. It is an inexcusable error to maintain
that efficiency engineers study to drive men to exhaustive effort;
on the contrary they aim at assisting the men to secure greater
output with diminished effort.
The trouble with the present system lies almost wholly with
the management and not with the men; this is why scientific
management is so effective. One of the tenets of scientific man¬
agement is " immediate, reliable and adequate records." These
are almost wholly lacking in railway service. Managers would
be astonished could they but know the true facts as to their
operations, but the reports, not records, which come to them do
not give them. Were such records available it would be found
that the estimates made by the efficiency engineers were much
too low.
Again the writer exhibits his ignorance when he says: " It
is not an unusual occurrence for superintendents and foremen
to be misled by the evidence that John Brown and Tom Jones
have increased their output from 70 to icq per cent, into think¬
ing that such results may be expected of all the men in their
634
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
shop." If he had worked with efficiency engineers he should
know that often a man of exceptional ability, the uncommon
man, will attain an efficiency of 200 per cent ^ and keep it up day
in and day out. When it is said that a concern or any part of it
can be made 100 per cent efficient, it means that the average of
all the men will be that, or in other words, that the output is
equal to that which would be produced if every man worked to an
even 100 per cent efficiency, a condition that will probably never
occur. There will always be men of high and men of low effi¬
ciency. The fault with the present system is that high and low
get the same rewards, which is neither just nor economical. The
schedule always being made for the average man enables the
uncommon man to realize much above the 100 per cent, and he
should receive his reward in way of a bonus.
It would be interesting if the writer would name any efficiency
engineer who ever contended that scientific management could
be had without cost. It is one of their cardinal principles that
to secure efficiency the cost of supervision must be increased and
that the efficient man should receive more money. But the
writer goes on to say that ultimately the men will beat the sys¬
tem; how this can be is past comprehension; if the operative
delivers the output he gets his reward. How he is to get the
reward without delivering the goods is not explained and would
defy explanation.
Again, it is said that railways are different from other estab¬
lishments. This is the old, old story: " That plan is excellent
for so-and-so, but it would not work with me." All enterprises
are alike in their fundamentals and the same underlying principles
apply to all.
The writer refers to testimony taken before the Interstate
Commerce Commission as to costs on some roads, but no effi¬
ciency engineer of any standing would claim that those costs were
schedule costs. It might well be that roads with low costs were
^ Two hundred per cent efficiency is possible by the Emerson method of calcu¬
lating efficiency, but not by the Taylor method. In the Emerson method 100
per cent is a standard set much more roughly and approximately than by the
Taylor method. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
63 s
as inefficient as those with high costs, the low cost being the result
of exceptional favoring conditions. Only an exhaustive study
and trial can determine the schedule in any particular case, for
any particular road or any particular establishment.
The writer ends his article with these excellent sentences:
" Successful railway operation is made up of a multiplicity of
steps each carefully planned and carried out; that the problem
is to control the parts in order that the whole may be controlled.
These sentences are the alpha and omega of scientific manage¬
ment, but no one with a modicum of actual experience in con¬
nection with railway operation will hold for a moment that those
steps are either planned or controlled. The methods in vogue
have grown up like " Topsy," without coordination between parts
and there is constant friction between departments and divisions.
Each road has its heredity, which controls its system; each head
of departments has his idiosyncracies resulting from his environ¬
ment and the experience of the American Railway Association is
sufficient proof that this heredity and environment are the most
serious obstacles to placing the railway business on a scientific
basis.
The writer says: " An efficiency engineer does not hesitate to
promise almost immediate results." This is rank slander of the
profession; perhaps the writer can name a single instance, but
it is greatly to be doubted. It is a fact, however, that in antici¬
pation of the taking hold of an efficiency task the men brace
up and make a spurt to show that they are not so black as
painted, but lacking systematic management it is something that
cannot be continued.
As the real work of the efficiency engineer does not begin until
he comes up against the " rutty " ways of the management, it
follows that no immediate permanent results can be looked for or
promised, and no one knows this better than the efficiency en¬
gineer. I appeal for fair play and the discussion of this question
on fair grounds, with illustrative instances instead of a whole¬
sale denouncement with misleading and erroneous statements
of fact.
A PIECE RATE SYSTEM
BEING A STEP TOWARD PARTIAL SOLUTION OF THE
LABOR PROBLEM
BY FREDERICK W. TAYLOR
GERMANTOWN, PHILADELPHIA, PA.
Reprinted by permission of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
Introduction
The ordinary piece work system involves a permanent antag¬
onism between employers and men, and a certainty of punish¬
ment for each workman who reaches a high rate of efficiency.
The demoralizing effect of this system is most serious. Under
it, even the best workmen are forced continually to act the part
of hypocrites, to hold their own in the struggle against the en¬
croachments of their employers.
The system introduced by the writer, however, is directly
the opposite, both in theory and in its results. It makes each
workman's interests the same as that of his employer, pays a
premium for high efficiency, and soon convinces each man that
it is for his permanent advantage to turn out each day the best
quality and maximum quantity of work.
The writer has endeavored in the following pages to describe
the system of management introduced by him in the works of
the Midvale Steel Company, of Philadelphia, which has been
employed by them during the past ten years with the most
satisfactory results.
The system consists of'three principal elements: —
(1) An elementary rate-fixing department.
(2) The differential rate system of piece work.
(3) What he believes to be the best method of managing men
who work by the day.
Elementary rate-fixing differs from other methods of making
piece work prices in that a careful study is made of the time
required to do each of the many elementary operations into
636
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
637
which the manufacturing of an establishment may be analyzed
or divided. These elementary operations are then classified,
recorded, and indexed, and when a piece work price is wanted
for work, the job is first divided into its elementary operations,
the time required to do each elementary operation is found from
the records, and the total time for the job is summed up from
these data. While this method seems complicated at the first
glance, it is, in fact, far simpler and more effective than the old
method of recording the time required to do whole jobs of work,
and then, after looking over the records of similar jobs, guessing
at the time required for any new piece of work.
The differential rate system of piece work consists briefly in
offering two different rates for the same job; a high price per
piece, in case the work is finished in the shortest possible time
and in perfect condition, and a low price, if it takes a longer
time to do the job, or if there are any imperfections in the work.
(The high rate should be such that the workman can earn more
per day than is usually pfiid in similar establishments.) This is
directly the opposite of the ordinary plan of piece work, in which
the wages of the workmen are reduced when they increase their
productivity.
The system by which the writer proposes managing the men
who are on day work consists in paying men and not positions.
Each man's wages, as far as possible, are fixed according to the
skill and energy with which he performs his work, and not accord¬
ing to the position which he fills. Every endeavor is made to
stimulate each man's personal ambition. This involves keeping
systematic and careful records of the performance of each man,
as to his punctuality, attendance, integrity, rapidity, skill, and
accuracy, and a readjustment from time to time of the wages
paid him, in accordance with this record.
The advantages of this system of management are : —
First. That the manufactures are produced cheaper under it,
while at the same time the workmen earn higher wages than are
usually paid.
Second. Since the rate-fixing is done from accurate knowledge
instead of more or less by guess-work, the motive for holding
638
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
back on work, or " soldiering," and endeavoring to deceive the
employers as to the time required to do work is entirely removed,
and with it the greatest cause for hard feelings and war between
the management and the men.
Third. Since the basis from which piece work as well as day
rates are fixed is that of exact observation, instead of being
founded upon accident or deception, as is too frequently the
case under ordinary systems, the men are treated with greater
uniformity and justice, and respond by doing more and better
work.
Fourth. It is for the common interest of both the management
and the men to cooperate in every way, so as to turn out each
day the maximum quantity and best quality of work.
Fifth. The system is rapid, while other systems are slow, in
attaining the maximum productivity of each machine and man;
and when this maximum is once reached, it is automatically
maintained by the differential rate.
Sixth. It automatically selects and attracts the best men for
each class of work, and it develops many first-class men who
would otherwise remain slow or inaccurate, while at the same
time it discourages and sifts out men who are incurably lazy or
inferior.
Finally. One of the chief advantages derived from the above
effects of the system is that it promotes a most friendly feeling
between the men and their employers, and so renders labor
unions and strikes unnecessary.
There has never been a strike under the differential rate sys¬
tem of piece work, although it has been in operation for the past
ten years in the steel business, which has been during this period
more subject to strikes and labor troubles than almost any other
industry. In describing the above system of management, the
writer has been obliged to refer to other piece work methods, and
to indicate briefly what he believes to be their shortcomings.
As but few will care to read the whole paper, the following
index to its contents is given: —
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
639
INDEX
paragraph
Need of System and Method in Managing Men 1-9
System of Managing Men who are Paid by the Day.
Ordinary system of paying men by the position they occupy instead
of by individual merit 10
Bad effects of this system ix, 12
Proper method of handling men working by the day is to study each
man and fix his rate of pay according to his individual merit,
not to pay them by classes 13-15, 84-87
Necessity for clerk in managing men 14,15
Defects in even the best-managed day work 16,17
Methods of Fixing Piece Work Prices or Rates.
Ordinary Plan of Fixing Rates 41,42
Description of Elementary Rate-Fixing 39-43
Description of the starting and development of the first elementary
rate-fixing department 44-48
Illustration of elementary rate-fixing 48
Size and scope of rate-fixing department 69, 70
Indirect benefits of elementary rate-fixing almost as great as the
direct 74-76
A hand-book on the speed with which different kinds of work can
be done badly needed 67, 68
Systems of Piece Work in Common Use.
Ordinary Piece Work System 19
Defects in this system 20-24
Slight improvement in ordinary piece work system 26
"Gain Sharing" Plan 27,29
" Premium Plan of Paying for Labor " 28, 29
Benefits and defects of these two systems 30
The relation of trades unions to other systems of management 92
Cooperation or Profit Sharing 31-34
Antagonism of interests of employers and workmen in all ordinary
piece work systems 35
Fundamental basis for harmonious cooperation between workmen
and employers 36, 37, 53-55, 59, 61, 65
Obstacles to be overcome before both sides can cooperate harmoni¬
ously 38, 39, 49
And principles underlying true cooperation 53-55, 59, 61, 65
Description of Differential Rate System of Piece Work 50-52
Advantages of this system 53-65
Description of first application of differential rate, with results
attained 71,79-82
Modification of the differential rate 72, 73
Illustrations of the possibility of increasing the daily output of
men and machines 78, 79
Relative importance of elementary rate-fixing department and
differential rate 66
640
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
There have never been any strikes under the differential rate
system of piece work
Moral effect of the various piece work systems on the men 20-24
Ordinary systems, differential rate gg
Probable future development of this system 89-91
1. Capital demands fully twice the return for money placed
in manufacturing enterprises that it does for real estate or trans¬
portation ventures. And this probably represents the difference
in the risk between these classes of investments.
2. Among the risks of a manufacturing business, by far the
greatest is that of bad management; and of the three managing
departments, the commercial, the financiering, and the produc¬
tive, the latter, in most cases, receives the least attention from
those that have invested their money in the business, and con¬
tains the greatest elements of risk. This risk arises not so much
from the evident mismanagement, which plainly discloses itself
through occasional strikes and similar troubles, as from the daily
more insidious and fatal failure on the part of the superintendents
to secure anything even approaching the maximum work from
their men and machines.
3. It is not unusual for the manager of a manufacturing busi¬
ness to go most minutely into every detail of the buying and sell¬
ing and financiering, and arrange every element of these branches
in the most systematic manner, and according to principles that
have been carefully planned to insure the business against almost
any contingency which may arise, while the manufacturing is
turned over to a superintendent or foreman, with little or no
restrictions as to the principles and methods which he is to pur¬
sue, either in the management of his men or the care of the com¬
pany's plant.
4. Such managers belong distinctly to the old school of manu¬
facturers; and among them are to be found, in spite of their lack
of system, many of the best and most successful men of the
country. They believe in men, not in methods, in the manage¬
ment of their shops; and what they would call system in the
office and sales departments, would be called red tape by them
in the factory. Through their keen insight and knowledge of
character they are able to select and train good superintendents,.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
641
who in turn secure good workmen; and frequently the business
prospers under this system (or rather, lack of system) for a term
of years.
5. The modern manufacturer, however, seeks not only to
secure the best superintendents and workmen, but to surround
each department of his manufacture with the most carefully
woven net-work of system and method, which should render the
business, for a considerable period, at least, independent of the
loss of any one man, and frequently of any combination of men.
6. It is the lack of this system and method which, in the judg¬
ment of the writer, constitutes the greatest risk in manufactur¬
ing; placing, as it frequently does, the success of the business at
the hazard of the health or whims of a few employees.
7. Even after fully realizing the importance of adopting the
best possible system and methods of management for securing
a proper return from employees and as an insurance against
strikes and the carelessness and laziness of men, there are dif¬
ficulties in the problem of selecting methods of management
which shall be adequate to the purpose, and yet be free from red
tape, and inexpensive.
8. The literature on the subject is meagre, especially that
,which comes from men of practical experience and observation.
And the problem is usually solved, after but little investigation,
by the adoption of the system with which the managers are most
familiar, or by taking a system which has worked well in similar
lines of manufacture.
9. Now, among the methods of management in common use
there is certainly a great choice; and before describing the
" differential rate " system it is desirable to briefiy consider the
more important of the other methods.
10. The simplest of all systems is the " day work " plan, in
which the employees are divided into certain classes, and a
standard rate of wages is paid to each class of men; the laborers
all receiving one rate of pay, the machinists all another rate, and
the engineers all another, etc. The men are paid according to
the position which they fill, and not according to their individual
character, energy, skill, and reliability.
642
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
11. The effect of this system is distinctly demoralizing and
levelling; even the ambitious men soon conclude that since there
is no profit to them in working hard, the best thing for them to
do is to work just as little as they can and still keep their position.
And under these conditions the invariable tendency is to drag
them all down even below the level of the medium.
12. The proper and legitimate answer to this herding of men
together into classes, regardless of personal character and per¬
formance, is the formation of the labor union, and the strike,
either to increase the rate of pay and improve conditions of
employment, or to resist the lowering of wages and other en¬
croachments on the part of employers.
13. The necessity for the labor union,^ however, disappears
when men are paid, and not positions; that is, when the em¬
ployers take pains to study the character and performance of
each of their employees and pay them accordingly, when accu¬
rate records are kept of each man's attendance, punctuality, the
amount and quality of work done by him, and his attitude
towards his employers and fellow workmen.
As soon as the men recognize that they have free scope for
the exercise of their proper ambition, that as they work harder
and better their wages are from time to time increased, and that
they are given a better class of work to do — when they recognize
this, the best of them have no use for the labor union.
14. Every manufacturer must from necessity employ a certain
amount of day labor which cannot come under the piece work
system; and yet how few employers are willing to go to the
trouble and expense of the slight organization necessary to
handle their men in this way ? How few of them realize that,
by the employment of an extra clerk and foreman, and a simple
system of labor returns, to record the performance and readjust
the wages of their men, so as to stimulate their personal ambi¬
tion, the output of a gang of twenty or thirty men can be readily
^ For another view of the relation of scientific management to the labor unions,
see C. B. Thompson's " The Relation of Scientific Management to the Wage
Problem," p. 706, and F. T. Carlton's " Scientific Management and the Wage-
Earner," p. 721. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
643
doubled in many cases, and at a comparatively slight increase of
wages per capita!
15. The clerk in the factory is the particular horror of the
old-style manufacturer. He realizes the expense each time that
he looks at him, and fails to see any adequate return; yet by
the plan here described the clerk becomes one of the most valua¬
ble agents of the company.
16. If the plan of grading labor and recording each man's
performance is so much superior to the old day work method of
handling men, why is it not all that is required ? Because no
foreman can watch and study all of his men all of the time, and
because any system of laying out and apportioning work, and of
returns and records, which is sufficiently elaborate to keep
proper account of the performance of each workman, is more
complicated than piece work. It is evident that that system is
the best which, in attaining the desired result, presents in the
long run the course of least resistance.
17. The inherent and most serious defect of even the best
managed day work Hes in the fact that there is nothing about
the system that is self-sustaining. When once the men are
working at a rapid pace, there is nothing but the constant, un¬
remitting watchfulness and energy of the management to keep
them there; while with every form of piece work each new rate
that is fixed insures a given speed for another section of work,
and to that extent relieves the foreman from worry.
18. From the best type of day work to ordinary piece work
the step is a short one. With good day work the various oper¬
ations of manufacturing should have been divided into small sec¬
tions or jobs, in order to properly gauge the efficiency of the men;
and the quickest time should have been recorded in which each
operation has been performed. The change from paying by the
hour to paying by the job is then readily accomplished.
19. The theory upon which the ordinary system of piece work
operates to the benefit of the manufacturer is exceedingly simple.
Each workman, with a definite price for each job before him,
contrives a way of doing it in a shorter time, either by working
harder or by improving his method; and he thus makes a larger
644
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
profit. After the job has been repeated a number of times at the
more rapid rate, the manufacturer thinks that he should also
begin to share in the gain, and therefore reduces the price of the
job to a figure at which the workman, although working harder,
earns, perhaps, but little more than he originally did when on
day work.
20. The actual working of the system, however, is far different.
Even the most stupid man, after receiving two or three piece
work " cuts " as a reward for his having worked harder, resents
this treatment and seeks a remedy for it in the future. Thus
begins a war, generally an amicable war, but none the less a war,
between the workmen and the management. The latter endeav¬
ors by every'means to induce the workmen to increase the out¬
put, and the men gauge the rapidity with which they work, so
as never to earn over a certain rate of wages, knowing that if
they exceed this amount the piece work price will surely be cut,
sooner or later.
21. But the war is by no means restricted to piece work.
Every intelligent workman realizes the importance, to his own
interest, of starting in on each new job as slowly as possible.
There are few foremen or superintendents who have anything
but a general idea as to how long it should take to do a piece of
work that is new to them. Therefore, before fixing a piece work
price, they prefer to have the job done for the first time by the
day. They watch the progress of the work as closely as their
other duties will permit, and make up their minds how quickly
it can be done. It becomes the workman's interest then to go
just as slowly as possible, and still convince his foreman that he
is working well.
22. The extent to which, even in our largest and best-managed
establishments, this plan of holding back on the work — " mark¬
ing time," or " soldiering," as it is called — is carried on by the
men, can scarcely be understood by one who has not worked
among them. It is by no means uncommon for men to work at
the rate of one-third, or even one-quarter, their maximum speed,
and still preserve the appearance of working hard. And when
a rate has once been fixed on such a false basis, it is easy for the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
645
men to nurse successfully " a soft snap " of this sort through a
term of years, earning in the meanwhile just as much wages as
they think they can without having the rate cut.
23. Thus arises a system of h3^ocrisy and deceit on the part
of the men which is thoroughly demoralizing, and which has led
many workmen to regard their employers as their natural en¬
emies, to be opposed in whatever they want, believing that what¬
ever is for the interest of the management must necessarily be to
their detriment.
24. The effect of this system of piece work on the character of
the men is, in many cases, so serious as to make it doubtful
whether, on the whole, well-managed day work is not preferable.
25. There are several modifications of the ordinary method
of piece work which tend to lessen the evils of the system, but I
know of none that can eradicate the fundamental causes for war,
and enable the managers and the men to heartily cooperate in
obtaining the maximum product from the establishment. It is
the writer's opinion, however, that the differential rate system
of piece work, which will be described later, in most cases en¬
tirely harmonizes the interests of both parties.
26. One method of temporarily relieving the strain between
workmen and employers consists in reducing the price paid for
work, and at the same time guaranteeing the men against further
reduction for a definite period. If this period be made suffi¬
ciently long, the men are tempted to let themselves out and earn
as much money as they can, thus " spoihng " their own job by
another " cut " in rates when the period has expired.
27. Perhaps the most successful modification of the ordinary
system of piece work is the " gain sharing plan." This was in¬
vented by Mr. Henry R. Towne, in 1886, and has since been
extensively and successfully applied by him in the Yale & Towne
Manufacturing Co., at Stamford, Conn. It was admirably
described in a paper which he read before this Society in 1888.
This system of pa3dng men is, however, subject to the serious,
and I think fatal, defect that it does not recognize the personal
merit of each workman; the tendency being rather to herd men
646
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
together and promote trades unionism, than to develop each
man's individuaUty.
28. A still further improvement of this method was made by
Mr. F. A. Halsey, and described by him in a paper entitled
The Premium Plan of Paying for Labor," and presented to this
Society in 1891.^ Mr. Halsey's plan allows free scope for each
man's personal ambition, which Mr. Towne's does not.
29. Messrs. Towne and Halsey's plans consist briefly in record¬
ing the cost of each job as a starting-point at a certain time;
then, if, through the effort of the workmen in the future, the job
is done in a shorter time and at a lower cost, the gain is divided
among the workmen and the employer in a definite ratio, the
workmen receiving, say, one-half, and the employer one-half.
30. Under this plan, if the employer fives up to his promise,
and the workman has confidence in his integrity, there is the
proper basis for cooperation to secure sooner or later a large
increase in the output of the establishment.
Yet there still remains the temptation for the workman to
" soldier " or hold back while on day work, which is the most
difi&cult thing to overcome. And in this as well as in all the
systems heretofore referred to, there is the common defect:
that the starting-point from which the first rate is fixed is un¬
equal and unjust. Some of the rates may have resulted from
records obtained when a good man was working close to his
maximum speed, while others are based on the performance of
a medium man at one-third or one-quarter speed. From this
follows a great inequality and injustice in the reward even of
the same man when at work on different jobs. The result is
far from a realization of the ideal condition in which the same
return is uniformly received for a given expenditure of brains
and energy. Other defects in the gain sharing plan, and which
are corrected by the differential rate system, are: —
(i) That it is slow and irregular in its operation in reducing
costs, being dependent upon the whims of the men working
under it.
1 See Transactions of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Vol. 12,
p. 755. —Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
647
(2) That it fails to especially attract first class men and dis¬
courage inferior men.
(3) That it does not automatically insure the maximum out¬
put of the estabhshment per man and machine.
31. Cooperation, or profit sharing, has entered the mind of
every student of the subject as one of the possible and most
attractive solutions of the problem; and there have been certain
instances, both in England and France, of at least a partial
success of cooperative experiments.
So far as I know, however, these trials have been made either
in small towns, remote from the manufacturing centres, or in
industries which in many respects are not subject to ordinary
manufacturing conditions.
32. Cooperative experiments have failed, and, I think, are
generally destined to fail, for several reasons, the first and most
important of which is that no form of cooperation has yet been
devised in which each individual is allowed free scope for his
personal ambition. This always has been and will remain a
more powerful incentive to exertion than a desire for the general
welfare. The few misplaced drones, who do the loafing and share
equally in the profits with the rest, under cooperation are sure
to drag the better men down toward their level.
33. The second and almost equally strong reason for failure
lies in the remoteness of the reward. The average workman
(I don't say all men) cannot look forward to a profit which is
six months or a year away. The nice time which they are sure
to have to-day, if they take things easily, proves more attractive
than hard work, with a possible reward to be shared with others
six months later.
34. Other and formidable difficulties in the path of coopera¬
tion are the equitable division of the profits, and the fact that,
while workmen are always ready to share the profits, they are
neither able nor willing to share the losses. Further than this,
in many cases, it is neither right nor just that they should share
either in the profits or the losses, since these may be due in great
part to causes entirely beyond their infiuence or control, and to
which they do not contribute.
648
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
35. When we do recognize the real antagonism that exists
between the interests of the men and their employers, under all
of the systems of piece work in common use; and when we re¬
member the apparently irreconcilable conflict implied in the
fundamental and perfectly legitimate aims of the two: namely,
on the part of the men: —
THE UNIVERSAL DESIRE TO RECEIVE THE LARGEST POSSIBLE
WAGES FOR THEIR TIME.
And on the part of the employers: —
THE DESIRE TO RECEIVE THE LARGEST POSSIBLE RETURN
FOR THE WAGES PAID.
What wonder that most of us arrive at the conclusion that no
system of piece work can be devised which shall enable the two
to cooperate without antagonism, and to their mutual benefit ?
36. Yet it is the opinion of the writer, that even if a system
has not already been found which harmonizes the interests of
the two, still the basis for harmonious cooperation lies in the
two following facts: —
First. That the workmen in nearly ^ every trade can and will
materially increase their present output per day, providing they are
assured of a permanent and larger return for their time than they
have heretofore received.
Second. That the employers can well afford to pay higher wages
per piece even permanently, providing each man and machine in the
establishment turns out a proportionately larger amount of work.
37. The truth of the latter statement arises from the well-
recognized fact that, in most fines of manufacture, the indirect
expenses equal or exceed the wages paid directly to the work¬
men, and that these expenses remain approximately constant,
whether the output of the establishment is great or small.
^ The writer's knowledge of the speed attained in the manufacture of textile
goods is very limited. It is his opinion, however, that owing to the comparative
uniformity of this class of work, and the enormous number of machines and men
engaged on similar operations, the maximum output per man and machine is
more nearly realized in this class of manufactures than in any other. If this is
the case, the opportunity for improvement does not exist to the same extent here
as in other trades. Some illustrations of the possible increase in the daily out¬
put of men and machines are given in paragraphs 78 to 82.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
649
From this it follows that it is always cheaper to pay higher
wages to the workmen when the output is proportionately in¬
creased; the diminution in the indirect portion of the cost per
piece being greater than the increase in wages. Many manu¬
facturers, in considering the cost of production, fail to realize the
effect that the volume of output has on the cost. They lose sight
of the fact that taxes, insurance, depreciation, rent, interest,
salaries, office expenses, miscellaneous labor, sales expenses, and
frequently the cost of power (which in the aggregate amount to
as múch as wages paid to workmen) remain about the same
whether the output of the establishment is great or small.
38. In our endeavor to solve the piece work problem by the
application of the two fundamental facts above referred to, let
us consider the obstacles in the path of harmonious cooperation,
and suggest a method for their removal.
39. The most formidable obstacle is the lack of knowledge
on the part of both the men and the management (but chiefly
the latter) of the quickest time in which each piece of work can
be done; or, briefly, the lack of accurate time-tables for the work
of the place.
40. The remedy for this trouble lies in the establishment in
every factory of a proper rate-fixing department; a department
which shall have equal dignity and command equal respect with
the engineering and managing departments, and which shall be
organized and conducted in an equally scientific and practical
manner.
41. The rate-fixing, as at present conducted, even in our best-
managed establishments, is very similar to the mechanical en¬
gineering of fifty or sixty years ago. Mechanical engineering
at that time consisted in imitating machines which were in more
or less successful use, or in guessing at the dimensions and
strength of the parts of a new machine; and as the parts broke
down or gave out, in replacing them with stronger ones. Thus
each new machine presented a problem almost independent of
former designs, and one which could only be solved by months
or years of practical experience and a series of break-downs.
650
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Modern engineering, however, has become a study, not of
individual machines, but of the resistance of materials, the fun¬
damental principles of mechanics, and of the elements of design.
42. On the other hand, the ordinary rate-fixing (even the
best of it), Hke the old-style engineering, is done by a foreman
or superintendent, who, with the aid of a clerk, looks over the
record of the time in which a whole job was done as nearly Hke
the new one as can be found, and then guesses at the time re¬
quired to do the new job. No attempt is made to analyze and
time each of the classes of work, or elements of which a job is
composed; although it is a far simpler task to resolve each job
into its elements, to make a careful study of the quickest time
in which each of the elementary operations can be done, and
then to properly classify, tabulate, and index this information,
and use it when required for rate-fixing, than it is to fix rates,
with even an approximation to justice, under the common sys¬
tem of guessing.
43. In fact, it has never occurred to most superintendents that
the work of their establishments consists of various combinations
of elementary operations which can be timed in this way; and a
suggestion that this is a practical way of dealing with the piece
work problem usually meets with derision, or, at the best, with
the answer that " It might do for some simple business, but my
work is entirely too complicated."
44. Yet this elementary system of fixing rates has been in suc¬
cessful operation for the past ten years, on work complicated in
its nature, and covering almost as wide a range of variety as any
manufacturing that the writer knows of. In 1883, while fore¬
man of the machine shop of the Midvale Steel Company of Phil¬
adelphia, it occurred to the writer that it was simpler to time
each of the elements of the various kinds of work done in the
place, and then find the quickest time in which each job could
be done, by summing up the total times of its component parts,,
than it was to search through the records of former jobs, and
guess at the proper price. After practising this method of rate-
fixing himself for about a year, as well as circumstances would
permit, it became evident that the system was a success. The.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
651
writer then established the rate-fixing department, which has
given out piece work prices in the place ever since.
45. This department far more than paid for itself from the
very start; but it was several years before the fuU benefits of
the system were felt, owing to the fact that the best methods of
making and recording time observations of work done by the
men, as well as of determining the maximum capacity of each of
the machines in the place, and of making working-tables and
time-tables were not at first adopted.
46. Before the best results were finally attained in the case of
work done by metal-cutting tools, such as lathes, planers, boring
mills, etc., a long and expensive series of experiments was made,
to determine, formulate, and finally practically apply to each
machine the law governing the proper cutting speed of tools;
namely, the effect on the cutting speed of altering any one of the
following variables: the shape of the tool (¿. e., lip angle, clear¬
ance angle, and the line of the cutting edge), the duration of the
cut, the quality or hardness of the metal being cut, the depth of
the cut, and the thickness of the feed or shaving.^
47. It is the writer's opinion that a more complicated and
difficult piece of rate-fixing could not be found than that of de¬
termining the proper price for doing all kinds of machine work
on miscellaneous steel and iron castings and forgings, which vary
in their chemical'composition from the softest iron to the hardest
tool steel. Yet this problem was solved through the rate-fixing
department and the " differential rate," with the final result of
completely harmonizing the men and the management, in place
of the constant war that existed under the old system. At the
same time the quality of the work was improved, and the output
of the machinery and the men was doubled, and, in many cases,
trebled. At the start there was naturally great opposition to
the rate-fixing department, particularly to the man who was
taking time observations of the various elements of the work;
but when the men found that rates were fixed without regard to
^ See F. W. Taylor's " The Art of Cutting Metals," in Transactions of The
American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Vol. 28, p. 31. Published by same
Society in book form, 1907. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the records of the quickest time in which they had actually done
each job, and that the knowledge of the department was more
accurate than their own, the motive for hanging back or " sol¬
diering " on this work ceased, and with it the greatest cause for
antagonism and war between the men and the management.
48. As an illustration of the great variety of work to which
elementary rate-fixing has already been successfully applied
the writer would state that, while acting as general manager of
two large sulphite pulp mills, he directed the application of
piece work to all of the complicated operations of manufacturing,
throughout one of these mills, by means of elementary rate-fixing,
with the result, within eighteen months, of more than doubling
the output of the mill.
The difference between elementary rate-fixing and the ordinary
plan can perhaps be best explained by a simple illustration.
Suppose the work to be planing a surface on a piece of cast iron.
In the ordinary system the rate-fixer would look through his
records of work done by the planing machine, until he found a
piece of work as nearly as possible similar to the proposed job,
and then guess at the time required to do the new piece of work.
Under the elementary system, however, some such analysis as
the following would be made : —
Work done by man Minutes
Time to lift piece from floor to planer table
Time to level and set work true on table
Time to put on stops and bolts
Time to remove stops and bolts
Time to remove piece to floor
Time to clean machine
Work done by machine Minutes
Time to rough off cut J in. thick, 4 feet long, 25 ins. wide.
Time to rough off cut i in. thick, 3 feet long, 12 ins. wide, etc.
Time to finish cut 4 feet long, 2^ ins. wide
Time to finish cut 3 feet long, 12 ins. wide, etc
Total
Add per cent for unavoidable delays
It is evident that this job consists of a combination of ele¬
mentary operations, the time required to do each of which can
be readily determined by observation.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
This exact combination of operations may never occur again,
but elementary operations similar to these will be performed in
differing combinations almost every day in the same shop.
A man whose business it is to fix rates soon becomes so familiar
with the time required to do each kind of elementary work per¬
formed by the men that he can write down the time from
memory.
In the case of that part of the work which is done by the
machine the rate-fixer refers to tables which are made out for
each machine, and from which he takes the time required for any
combination of breadth, depth, and length of cut.
49. While, however, the accurate knowledge of the quickest
time in which work can be done, obtained by the rate-fixing
department and accepted by the men as standard, is the greatest
and most important step towards obtaining the maximum out¬
put of the establishment, it is one thing to know how much work
can be done in a day, and an entirely different matter to get
even the best men to work at their fastest speed or anywhere
near it.
50. The means which the writer has found to be by far the
most effective in obtaining the maximum output of a shop, and /
which, so far as he can see, satisfies the legitimate requirements,
both of the men and the management, is the dißerential rate
system of piece work.
This consists briefiy in paying a higher price per piece, or per
unit, or per job, if the work is done in the shortest possible time,
and without imperfections, than is paid if the work takes a
longer time or is imperfectly done.
51. To illustrate: Suppose 20 units or pieces to be the largest
amount of work of a certain kind that can be done in a day.
Under the differential rate system, if a workman finishes 20
pieces per day, and all of these pieces are perfect, he receives,
say, 15 cents per piece, making his pay for the day 15 X 20 = $3.
If, however, he works too slowly and turns out, say, only 19
pieces, then, instead of receiving 15 cents per piece he gets only
12 cents per piece, making his pay for the day 12 X 19 = $2.28,
instead of $3 per day.
6S4
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
If he succeeds in finishing 20 pieces, some of which are imper¬
fect, then he should receive a still lower rate of pay, say, 10 cents
or 5 cents per piece, according to circumstances, making his pay
for the day $2, or only |i, instead of $3.
52. It will be observed that this style of piece work is directly
the opposite of the ordinary plan. To make the difference be¬
tween the two methods more clear: Supposing, under the ordi¬
nary system of piece work, that the workman has been turning
out 16 pieces per day, and has received 15 cents per piece, then
his day's wages would be 15 X 16 = $2.40. Through extra
exertion he succeeds in increasing his output to 20 pieces per
day, and thereby increases his pay to 15 X 20 = $3. The
employer, under the old system, however, concludes that $3 is
too much for the man to earn per day, since other men are only
getting from $2.25 to $2.50, and therefore cuts the price from
15 cents per piece to 12 cents, and the man finds himself working
at a more rapid pace, and yet earning only the same old wages,
12 X 20 = $2.40 per day. What wonder that men do not care
to repeat this performance many times ?
53. Whether cooperation, the differential plan, or some other
form of piece work be chosen in connection with elementary
rate-fixing as the best method of working, there are certain
fundamental facts and principles which must be recognized and
incorporated in any system of management, before true and last¬
ing success can be attained; and most of these facts and prin¬
ciples will be found to be not far removed from what the strictest
moralists would call justice.
54. The most important of these facts is that men will not
do an extraordinary day's ^vork eor an ordinary day's
pay; and any attempt on the part of employers to get the best
work out of their men and give them the standard wages paid by
their neighbors will surely be, and ought to be, doomed to failure.
55. Justice, however, not only demands for the workman an
increased reward for a large day's work, but should compel him
to suffer an appropriate loss in case his work falls off either in
quantity or quality. It is quite as important that the deduc¬
tions for bad work should be just, and graded in proportion to.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
655
the shortcomings of the workman, as that the reward should be
proportional to the work done.
The fear of being discharged, which is practically the only
penalty applied in many establishments, is entirely inadequate
to producing the best quantity and quality of work; since the
workmen find that they can take many liberties before the man¬
agement makes up its mind to apply this extreme penalty.
56. It is clear that the differential rate satisfies automatically,
as it were, the above conditions of properly graded rewards and
deductions. Whenever a workman works for a day (or even a
shorter period) at his maximum, he receives under this system
unusually high wages; but when he falls off either in quantity
or quality from the highest rate of efiiciency his pay falls below
even the ordinary.^
57. The lower differential rate should be fixed at a figure
which will allow the workman to earn scarcely an ordinary day's
pay when he falls off from his maximum pace, so as to give him
every inducement to work hard and well.
58. The exact percentage beyond the usual standard which
must be paid to induce men to work to their maximum varies
with different trades and with different sections of the country.
And there are places in the United States where the men (gen¬
erally speaking) are so lazy and demoralized that no sufficient
inducement can be offered to make them do a full day's work.^
59. It is not, however, sufficient that each workman's ambition
should be aroused by the prospect of larger pay at the end of
even a comparatively short period of time. The stimulus to
maximum exertion should be a daily one.
This involves such vigorous and rapid inspection and returns
as to enable each workman in most cases to know each day the
exact result of his previous day's work — i. e., whether he has
succeeded in earning his maximum pay, and exactly what his
^ In practice the low rate is usually set at, or a trifle above, the prevailing rate
in the vicinity; while the high rate is, of course, considerably above the customary
rate. — Ed.
^ This is well illustrated by the fact that the same company which finds the
differential rate working to advantage in Philadelphia is unable to apply it to the
class of men working in one of its plants in Chicago. — Ed.
6s6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
lösses are for eareless or defective work. Two-thirds of the
moral effect, either of a reward or penalty, is lost by even a short
póstponement.
60. It will again be noted that the differential rate system
forces this condition both upon the management and the work¬
men, since the men, while working under it, are above all anxious
to know at the earliest possible minute whether they have earned
their high rate or not. And it is equally important for the man¬
agement to know whether the work has been properly done.
61. As far as possible each man's work should be inspected
and measured separately, and his pay and losses should depend
upon his individual efforts alone. It is, of course, a necessity
that much of the work of manufacturing — such, for instance, as
running roll-trains, hammers, or paper machines — should be
done by gangs of men who cooperate to turn out a common
product, and that each gang of men should be paid a definite
price for the work turned out, just as if they were a single man.
In the distribution of the earnings of a gang among its mem¬
bers, the percentage which each man receives should, however,
depend not only upon the kind of work which each man performs,
but upon the accuracy and energy with which he fills his position.
In this way the personal ambition of each of a gang of men
may be given its proper scope.
62. Again, we find the differential rate acting as a most power¬
ful lever to force each man in a gang of workmen to do his best;
since if, through the carelessness or laziness of any one man, the
gang fails to earn its high rate, the drone will surely be obliged
by his companions to do his best the next time or else get out.
63. A great advantage of the differential rate system is that
it quickly drives away all inferior workmen, and attracts the
men best suited to the class of work to which it is applied; since
none but really good men can work fast enough and accurately
enough to earn the high rate; and the low rate should be made
so small as to be unattractive even to an inferior man.
64. If for no other reason than it secures to an establishment
a quick and active set df workmen, the differential rate is a valu¬
able aid, since men are largely creatures of habit; and if the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
657
piece workers of a place are forced to move quickly and work
hard the day workers soon get into the same way, and the whole
shop takes on a more rapid pace.
65. The greatest advantage, however, of the differential rate
for piece work, in connection with a proper rate-fixing department,
is that together they produce the proper mental attitude on the
part of the men and the management toward each other. In
place of the indolence and indifference which characterize the
workmen of many day work establishments, and to a considerable
extent also their employers; and in place of the constant watch¬
fulness, suspicion, and even antagonism with which too fre¬
quently the men and the management regard each other, under
the ordinary piece work plan, both sides soon appreciate the fact
that with the differential rate it is their common interest to co¬
operate to the fullest extent, and to devote every energy to turn¬
ing out daily the largest possible output. This common interest
quickly replaces antagonism, and establishes a most friendly
feeling.
66. Of the two devices for increasing the output of a shop,
the differential rate and the scientific rate-fixing department,
the latter is by far the more important. The differential rate is
invaluable at the start, as a means of convincing men that the
management is in earnest in its intention of paying a premium
for hard work; and it at all times furnishes the best means of
maintaining the top notch of production; but when, through its
application, the men and the management have come to appre¬
ciate the mutual benefit of harmonious cooperation and respect
for each other's rights, it ceases to be an absolute necessity. On
the other hand, the rate-fixing department, for an establishment
doing a large variety of work, becomes absolutely indispensable.
The longer it is in operation the more necessary it becomes.
67. Practically, the greatest need felt in an establishment
wishing to start a rate-fixing department is the lack of data as
to the proper rate of speed at which work should be done.
There are hundreds of operations which are common to most
large establishments; yet each concern studies the speed prob¬
lem for itself, and days of labor are wasted in what should be
6s8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
settled once for all, and recorded in a form which is available to
all manufacturers.
68. What is needed is a hand-book on the speed with which
work can be done, similar to the elementary engineering hand¬
books. And the writer ventures to predict that such a book
will before long be forthcoming. Such a book should describe
the best method of making, recording, tabulating, and indexing
time observations, since much time and effort are wasted by the
adoption of inferior methods.
69. The term " rate-ffxing department " has rather a formid¬
able sound. In fact, however, that department should consist
in most establishments of one man, who, in many cases, need
give only a part of his time to the work.
70. When the manufacturing operations are uniform in char¬
acter, and repeat themselves day after day — as, for instance, in
paper or pulp mills — the whole work of the place can be put
upon piece work in a comparatively short time; and when once
proper rates are fixed, the rate-fixing department can be dispensed
with, at any rate until some new line of manufacture is taken up.
71. The system of differential rates was first applied by the
writer to a part of the work in the machine shop of the Midvale
Steel Compan}^, in 1884. Its effect in increasing and then main¬
taining the output of each machine to which it was applied was
almost immediate, and so remarkable that it soon came into
high favor, with both the men and the management. It was
gradually applied to a great part of the work of the establish¬
ment, with the result, in combination with the rate-fixing de¬
partment, of doubling and in many cases trebling the output,
and at the same time increasing instead of diminishing the accu¬
racy of the work.
72. In some cases it was applied by the rate-fixing department
without an elementary analysis of the time required to do the
work; simply offering a higher price per piece providing the
maximum output before attained was increased to a given extent.
Even this system met with success, although it is by no means
correct, since there is no certainty that the reward is in just pro¬
portion to the efforts of the workmen.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
6S9
73. In cases where large and expensive machines are used,
such as paper machines, steam hammers, or rolling mills, in
which a large output is dependent upon the severe manual labor
as well as the skill of the workmen (while the chief cost of pro¬
duction lies in the expense of running the machines rather than
in the wages paid), it has been found of great advantage to estab¬
lish two or three differential rates, offering a higher and higher
price per piece or per ton as the maximum possible output is
approached.
74. As before stated, not the least of the benefits of elementary
rate-fixing are the indirect results.
The careful study of the capabilities of the machines, and the
analysis of the speeds at which they must run, before differential
rates can be fixed which will insure their maximum output, al¬
most invariably result in first indicating and then correcting the
defects in their design, and in the method of running and caring
for them.
75. In the case of the Midvale Steel Company, to which I
have already referred, the machine shop was equipped with
standard tools furnished by the best makers, and the study of
these machines, such as lathes, planers, boring mills, etc., which
was made in fixing rates, developed the fact that they were none
of them designed and speeded so as to cut steel to the best ad¬
vantage. As a result, this company has demanded alterations
from the standard in almost every machine which they have
bought during the past eight years. They have themselves been
obliged to superintend the design of many special tools which
would not have been thought of had it not been for elementary
rate-fixing.
76. But what is, perhaps, of more importance still, the rate-
fixing department has shown the necessity of carefully system¬
atizing all of the small details in the running of each shop; such
as the care of belting, the proper shape for cutting tools, and the
dressing, grinding, and issuing same, oiling machines, issuing
orders for work, obtaining accurate labor and material returns,
and a host of other minor methods and processes. These details,
which are usually regarded as of comparatively small importance,
66o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and riiany of which are left to the individual judgment of the
foreman and workmen, are shown by the rate-fixing department
to be of paramount importance in obtaining the maximum out¬
put, and to require the most careful and systematic study and
attention in order to insure uniformity and a fair and equal
chance for each workman. Without this preliminary study and
systematizing of details, it is impossible to apply successfully
the differential rate in most establishments.
77. As before stated, the success of this system of piece work
depends fundamentally upon the possibility of materially in¬
creasing the output per man and per machine, providing the
proper man be found for each job and the proper incentive be
offered to him.
78. As an illustration of the difference between what ought
to be done by a workman well suited to his job, and what is
generally done, I will mention a single class of work, performed
in almost every establishment in the country. In shovelling
coal from a car over the side on to a pile one man should unload
forty tons per day, and keep it up, year in and year out, and
thrive under it.
With this knowledge of the possibilities I have never failed to
find men who were glad to work at this speed for from four and
a half to five cents per ton. The average speed for unloading
coal in most places, however, is nearer fifteen than forty tons
per day. In securing the above rate of speed it must be clearly
understood that the problem is not how to force men to work
harder or longer hours than their health will permanently allow;
but, rather, first, to select among the laborers which are to be
found in every community the men who are physically able to
work permanently at that job, and at the speed mentioned, with¬
out damage to their health, and who are mentally sufficiently
inert to be satisfied with the monotony of the work, and then, to
offer them such inducements as will make them happy and con¬
tented in doing so.
79. The first case in which a differential rate was applied
furnishes a good illustration of what can be accomplished by it.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
661
A standard steel forging, many thousands of which are used
each year, had for several years been turned at the rate of from
four to five per day under the ordinary system of piece work, 50
cents per piece being the price paid for the work. After analyz¬
ing the job and determining the shortest time required to do
each of the elementary operations of which it was composed
and then summing up the total, the writer became convinced
that it was possible to turn ten pieces a day. To finish the forg-
ings at this rate, however, the machinists were obliged to work
at their maximum pace from morning to night, and the lathes
were run as fast as the tools would allow, and under a heavy
feed.
It will be appreciated that this was a big day's work, both for
men and machines, when it is understood that it involved re¬
moving, with a single 16-inch lathe, having two saddles, an
average of more than 800 pounds of steel chips in ten hours.
In place of the 50-cent rate that they had been paid before, they
were given 35 cents per piece when they turned them at the
speed of 10 per day, and when they produced less than 10, they
received only 25 cents per piece.
80. It took considerable trouble to induce the men to turn at
this high speed, since they did not at first fully appreciate that
it was the intention of the firm to allow them to earn permanently
at the rate of $3.50 per day. But from the day they first turned
10 pieces to the present time, a period of more than ten years,
the men who understood their work have scarcely failed a single
day to turn at this rate. Throughout that time, until the be¬
ginning of the recent fall in the scale of wages throughout the
country, the rate was not cut.
81. During this whole period the competitors of the company
never succeeded in averaging over half of this production per
lathe, although they knew and even saw what was being done
at Midvale. They, however, did not allow their men to earn
over from $2 to $2.50 per day, and so never even approached
the maximum output.
82. The following table will show the economy of paying high
wages under the differential rate in doing the above job : —
662
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
COST OF PRODUCTION PER LATHE PER DAY
Ordinary system of piece work
Differential rate system
Man's wages.
Machine cost
$2.50 Man's wages.
3.37 Machine cost
$3-50
3-37
Total cost per day $5.87
5 pieces produced.
Total cost per day $6.87
10 pieces produced.
Cost per piece
$1.17 Cost per piece
$0.69
The above result was mostly, though not entirely, due to the
differential rate. The superior system of managing all of the
small details of the shop counted for considerable.
83. There has never been a strike by men working under
differential rates, although these rates have been applied at the
Midvale Steel Works for the past ten years; and the steel busi¬
ness has proved during this period the most fruitful held for
labor organizations and strikes. And this notwithstanding the
Midvale Company has never prevented its men from joining
any labor organization. All of the best men in the company saw
clearly that the success of a labor organization meant the lower¬
ing of their wages, in order that the inferior men might earn
more, and, of course, could not be persuaded to join.
84. I attribute a great part of this success in avoiding strikes
to the high wages which the best men were able to earn with
the differential rates, and to the pleasant feeling fostered by
this system; but this is by no means the whole cause. It has
for years been the policy of that company to stimulate the per¬
sonal ambition of every man in their employ, by promoting
them either in wages or position whenever they deserve it, and
the opportunity came.
A careful record has been kept of each man's good points as
well as his shortcomings, and one of the principal duties of each
foreman was to make this careful study of his men, so that sub¬
stantial justice could be done to each. When men, throughout
an establishment, are paid varying rates of day work wages,
according to their individual worth, some being above and some
below the average, it cannot be for the interest of those receiving
high pay to join a union with the cheap men.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
663
85. No system of management, however good, should be
applied in a wooden way. The proper personal relations should
always be maintained between the employers and men; and
even the prejudices of the workmen should be considered in
dealing with them.
The employer who goes through his works with kid gloves on,
and is never known to dirty his hands or clothes, and who either
talks to his men in a condescending or patronizing way, or else
not at all, has no chance whatever of ascertaining their real
thoughts or feelings.
86. Above all is it desirable that men should be talked to on
their own level by those who are over them. Each man should
be encouraged to discuss any trouble which he may have, either
in the works or outside, with those over him. Men would far
rather even be blamed by their bosses, especially if the " tearing
out " has a touch of human nature and feeUng in it, than to be
passed by day after day without a word, and with no more notice
than if they were part of the machinery.
The opportunity which each man should have of airing his
mind freely, and having it out mth his employers, is a safety-
valve; and if the superintendents are reasonable men, and listen
to and treat with respect what their men have to say, there is
absolutely no reason for labor unions and strikes.
87. It is not the large charities (however generous they may
be) that are needed or appreciated by workmen, such as the
founding of libraries and starting workingmen's clubs, so much
as small acts of personal kindness and sympathy, which estab¬
lish a bond of friendly feeling between them and their em¬
ployers.
88. The moral effect of the writer's system on the men is
marked. The feeling that substantial justice is being done
them renders them on the whole much more manly, straight¬
forward, and truthfuL They work more cheerfully, and are
more obliging to one another and their employers. They are
not soured, as under the old system, by brooding over the in¬
justice done them; and their spare minutes are not spent to the
same extent in criticising their employers.
664
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
A noted French engineer and steel manufacturer, who recently
spent several weeks in the works of the Midvale Company in
introducing a new branch of manufacture, stated before leaving
that the one thing which had impressed him as most unusual
and remarkable about the place was the fact that not only the
foremen, but the workmen, were expected to and did in the main
tell the truth in case of any blunder or carelessness, even when
they had to suffer from it themselves.
89. From- what the writer has said he is afraid that many
readers may gain the impression that he regards elementary
rate-fixing and the differential rate as a sort of panacea for all
human ills.
This is, however, far from the case. While he regards the
possibilities of these methods as great, he is of the opinion, on
the contrary, that this system of management will be adopted by
but few establishments, in the near future, at least; since its
really successful application not only involves a thorough or¬
ganization, but requires the machinery and tools throughout
the place to be kept in such good repair that it will be possible
for the workmen each day to produce their maximum output.
But few manufacturers will care to go to this trouble until they
are forced to.
90. It is his opinion that the most successful manufacturers,
those who are always ready to adopt the best machinery and
methods when they see them, will gradually avail themselves of
the benefits of scientific rate-fixing; and that competition will
compel the others to follow slowly in the same direction.
91. Even if all of the manufacturers in the country who are
competing in the same line of business were to adopt these
methods, they could still well afford to pay the high rate of wages
demanded by the differential rate, and necessary to induce men
to work fast, since it is a well-recognized fact the world over that
the highest-priced labor, providing it is proportionately produc¬
tive, is the cheapest; and the low cost at which they could pro¬
duce their goods would enable them to sell in foreign markets
and still pay high wages.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
665
92. The writer is far from taking the view held by many
manufacturers that labor unions are an almost unmitigated
detriment to those who join them, as well as to employers and
the general public.
The labor unions — particularly the trades unions of England
— have rendered a great service not only to their members, but
to the world, in shortening the hours of labor and in modifying
the hardships and improving the conditions of wage workers.
In the writer's judgment the system of treating with labor
unions would seem to occupy a middle position among the vari¬
ous methods of adjusting the relations between employers and
men.
When employers herd their men together in classes, pay all
of each class the same wages, and offer none of them any induce¬
ments to work harder or do better than the average, the only
remedy for the men lies in combination; and frequently the
only possible answer to encroachments on the part of their
employers is a strike.
This state of affairs is far from satisfactory to either employers
or men, and the writer believes the system of regulating the
wages and conditions of employment of whole classes of men by
conference and agreement between the leaders, unions, and man¬
ufacturers to be vastly inferior, both in its moral effect on the
men and on the material interest of both parties, to the plan of
stimulating each workman's ambition by paying him according
to his individual worth, and without limiting him to the rate of
work or pay of the average of his class.
93. The level of the great mass of the world's labor has been
and must continue to be regulated by causes so many and so
complex as to be at best but dimly recognized.
The utmost effect of any system, whether of management,
social combination, or legislation, can be but to raise a small
ripple or wave of prosperity above the surrounding level, and
the greatest hope of the writer is that, here and there, a few
workmen, with their employers, may be helped, through this
system, toward the crest of the wave.
666
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Discussion
Mr. H. L. Gantt. — One cannot read Mr. Taylor's admirable
paper on " A Piece Rate System " without realizing that it con¬
tains vastly more than the title suggests. It is really a system
by which the employer attempts to do justice to the employee,
and in return requires the employee to be honest.
His method of fixing rates by elements eliminates, as nearly as
possible, all chance of error, and his differential rates go a long
way toward harmonizing interests of employer and employee.
It was my good fortune to work for a year as his assistant in
this work, and I fully agree with him as to the effect on the men.
They improve under it, both in honesty and efficiency, more than
I have ever seen them do elsewhere. Realizing that substantial
justice was being done, and that to do their duty was to follow
their own interest, it soon became a matter of habit with them.
The greatest obstacle in the way of adopting this system is that
the man 4n charge of the rate-fixing department must be a man
of more than ordinary ability, and should have had a very wide
experience. To err in fixing a rate has a very bad effect upon the
men, who should never have reason to think that the element of
" guess " occurs in their rate. It is therefore only in a compara¬
tively very large establishment, where a capable man can be em¬
ployed to give his time to this work, or in a very small one, where
the superintendent can give it his personal attention, that the
plan is entirely applicable.
His idea of a hand-book on the speed with which work can be
done, similar to the elementary engineering hand-books, is one
which is bound to interest all progressive engineers, and I hope
that he will see that his predictions about such a book do not fail.
In paragraph 15 he states that a clerk in the factory is the
particular horror of the old-time manufacturer. Why is this ?
In many cases the manufacturer is a shrewd and successful man,
and if so, why has he not seen the advantage of using a clerk in
connection with his foreman ?
This takes us back to the advantages of a system. No matter
how successful a system may be in one shop, modifications are
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
667
always required to make it equally successful in any other. No
shop should be run to . suit the demands of a system, but the
system must be modified to suit the demands of the shop. No
system is a success unless it makes work go more smoothly and
cheaply, and ultimately makes the proper running of a shop inde¬
pendent of any particular man.
The fact that most ready-made systems fail in almost all of
these respects makes the shrewd, old-style manager fight shy of
them, and regard any approximation to them as a needless ex¬
pense.
To pay men what they are worth requires that we keep accu¬
rate records of their work, and as the foreman is too valuable a
man to be used as a clerk, he should have this work done for him,
and be free to give his entire time to his men and the work.
Finally, the ideal system must be automatic and self-contained.
It must be so simple as to appeal to those working under it, and
should impose checks in such a way as to prevent or correct
errors without the interference of the superintendent, or of any
one not directly connected with doing the work under it, and,
above all, it should be free as possible from " red tape."
Mr. F. A. Halsey. — Mr. Taylor's paper points out that in
cases where the machine cost exceeds the wages paid, a piece
rate which increases with the output may be compatible with
reduced cost, as the output advances. Simple as is the idea, it
is, I must own, new to me, and it may be admitted at once that
in such cases the advancing piece rate is justifiable, provided the
maximum output cannot he obtained without it. In the average
case, however, where the wages paid exceed the machine cost,
the condition no longer holds, and the advancing piece rate
would involve an increased cost, as an accompaniment of an
enlarged output.
It was under the condition of a moderate tool cost that my
Premium Plan (see vol. xii, page 755, of the Transactions) was
devised, and its application, under a high tool cost, was not con¬
sidered, the fundamental idea being that the workman's earnings
per piece should decrease (though per day increase) as the output
increased. By reference to my paper on the Premium Plan it
668
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
will be seen that the need of dijßferent premium rates to cover
different conditions was clearly recognized, and while such a
development was not contemplated, it is plain that there is
nothing to prevent making the premium rate so high as to give
the workman a wage which increases faster than the output, if
the conditions are such as to make that course necessary to secure
the maximum output.
It thus seems to me that, while Mr. Taylor's plan is applicable
only to the condition of high tool cost, the Premium Plan not
only applies to the condition of low tool cost, for which it was
planned, but to the condition of high tool cost as well. There
are not many shops in which the maintenance of every tool costs
more than the wages of its operator — the tools falling under that
class being usually in the small minority. Mr. Taylor's system
being economically applicable only to the larger tools, it would
seem necessary, if the best results are to be obtained, to apply it
only to such large tools, and use some other system for the
smaller ones. With the Premium Plan, the same system, as has
been shown, applies to all, and its advantage in requiring only
one system of time and cost keeping against two, with Mr. Tay¬
lor's system, is apparent.
Is it clear, however, that a wage rate which advances faster
than the output is necessary in any case ? The only system
which will endure is the one which pays the least possible per
piece of product. The purpose of these systems is not, primarily,
to pay high wages, but to produce cheap work, the adjustment
sought being one which shall give the workman an increased
wage per day in return for a decreased cost per piece of product.
In my experience, a comparatively small premium will call out a
workman's best efforts, provided the work is not too laborious,
and the workman is assured against future cuts in the rate. Why
should this not be the case with large and expensive tools as well
as small ones, and, if true, why should the wages increase faster
than the product, even on large tools ?
Mr. Taylor's strictures on the piece work plan have my cordial
approval, but what is the fundamental difficulty with piece work?
simply that the output under it is always found to be larger than
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
669
anticipated, and a rate which seemed moderate before trial is
found to be excessive after trial. The workman's earnings,
increasing pro rata with the product, soon get to be excessive,
unless he has acquired wisdom and restrains himself. In Mr.
Taylor's system, the earnings under an increase of product in¬
crease still faster than with piece work, and the consequences of
a too high rate would be even more serious than with piece work.
Wherein, then, does the superiority of Mr. Taylor's system over
piece work lie ? Not in the advancing piece rate, hut in the method
of fixing rates. If Mr. Taylor can determine the maximum out¬
put of the miscellaneous pieces of work comprised in the everyday
operation of the average machine-shop, he has accomplished a
great work, and the present paper should be followed at once by
another, giving the fullest possible details of his method. It is
this universal difficulty of determining the possible output which
is at the bottom of the difficulties besetting the piece work plan,
and it was its contemplation which led the writer's thoughts to
the Premium Plan. With that plan, the attempt to determine the
possible output is abandoned. Present output is taken as
the basis, and if the premiums offered for an increase are small,
as they should usually be, no possible increase of output can carry
the workman's earnings beyond reason. It is its extreme flexi¬
bility and the absence of danger of expensive errors of judgment
which chiefly commend the Premium Plan, and while it is impos¬
sible to judge Mr. Taylor's method of fixing rates with the present
knowledge of it, I must say that it is hard to conceive anything
so simple or safe as the plan offered by me.
Still another point presents itself. When piece work is intro¬
duced in place of day work, the rate offered is usually less than
the work previously cost. The workmen often object, as few of
them know the real capacity of the tools, and the system is only
introduced by the exercise of some coercion on the part of the
employer. Nevertheless these first rates are eventually found to
be too high, and a really large output is only reached after several
successive cuts. Now, if the final output is to be determined at
once by Mr. Taylor's method, and the rates fixed in accordance,
is not still greater opposition on the part of the men to be ex-
&JO
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
pected ? The maximum output is usually and necessarily a
matter of growth. With Mr. Taylor's plan there must intervene
a period of low pay.^ The outcome is uncertain to the workmen.
They are full of distrust, and can they be blamed if they rebel ?
Right here, again, the merits of the Premium Plan are conspicu¬
ous. There is no cut at its introduction; on the contrary, pres¬
ent output is taken as the basis, and the workman is offered an
increased wage if he will increase the output. The result is
satisfaction from the start, and increasing satisfaction as time
goes on. Nothing can be simpler, fairer, or plainer, and nothing
can meet all the varied conditions more perfectly.
Mr. F. W. Taylor. — In Mr. Halsey's criticism of my piece
rate system, he very justly lays great weight on the elementary
rate-fixing as the most important part of the system. An accu¬
rate knowledge of the quickest time in which each job can be
done is the very foundation upon which the differential rate
rests, and without this knowledge the whole system must fall to
the ground.
Mr. Halsey is in error, however, in his assumption that my
system of piece work involves paying a higher price per piece
than is paid under the ordinary system. On the contrary, with
the differential rate the price will, in nine cases out of ten, be
much lower than would be paid per piece either under the ordi¬
nary piece work plan or on day work. An illustration of this
fact can be seen by referring to paragraphs 79 to 83 of the paper,
in which it will be found that a piece of work for which the work¬
men had received for years, under the ordinary piece work sys¬
tem, 50 cents per piece, was done under my system for 35 cents
per piece, while in this case the workmen earned $3.50 per day,
when they had formerly made, under the 50-cent rate, only $2.25
per day.
It is quite true that under the differential rate the workmen
earn higher wages than under other systems, but it is not that
they get a higher price per piece, but because they work much
^ This was one of the difl&culties with the differential piece rate plan which led
to the development of the Gantt bonus method. See H. L. Gantt's " Work, Wages,
and Profits." —Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
671
harder, since they feel that they can let themselves out to the
fullest extent, without danger of going against their own interests
in the long run. What I said in the paper was that the manage¬
ment could well aßord to pay a higher price per piece, to insure
the maximum possible output, not that it was necessary to do so.
Mr. Halsey is right in saying that there is sometimes difficulty in
introducing the differential rate, owing to the great and sudden
increase in speed which is demanded of the workmen. This is
particularly true of the first few cases in which the system is
applied in a new establishment — C^est le premier pas qui coûte —
and much tact and skill is sometimes required to get the men to
accept and work under the first rate. After the system, however,
once has a start in a place, on however small a scale, the workmen
are quite as quick to recognize its merits from their standpoint
as the management are from theirs.
Mr. Halsey's is by far the best of the ordinary systems of
piece work, yet, even under his system, there still remains what
to my mind is the very weakest point of all the ordinary systems,
and what may be called, almost, the curse of modern industrial
management, namely, that it is for the workman's interest to
" soldier " and go as slowly as possible on each new piece of work
that comes along, so as to get as high a price per piece as possible
when piece work first starts; and for this reason, even after
piece work has been inaugurated, under Mr. Halsey's plan, there
is almost necessarily a great lack of justice in the prices fixed for
different jobs, since the starting-point from which the first rate is
fixed is unequal and unjust. Some of the rates may have re¬
sulted from records obtained when a good man was working close
to his maximum speed, while others are based on the performance
of a medium man, at one-third or one-quarter speed, and from
this follows a great inequality and injustice in the reward of even
the same man when at work on different jobs.
Other defects of Mr. Halsey's plan, and which are corrected by
my system, are: —
First. That it is slow and irregular in its operation in reducing
costs, being dependent upon the whims of the men working under
it.
672
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Second. That it fails to especially attract first class men and
discourage inferior men.
Third. That it does not automatically insure the maximum
output of the establishment per man and per machine.
Mr. John A. Penton.^ — Although I am not a member of the
Society, I want to thank you for the privilege of just saying a
word. The paper we have just listened to and the presentation
made by Mr. Taylor strike me as being perhaps the most remark¬
able thing of its kind I ever heard in my life. I do not wish to
say anything about its merits, or demerits, if it has any. My
knowledge of it is altogether too superficial to admit of anything
of that sort; but I can sympathize with every word he said, for
the reason that fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, I was for
five years at one time occupying the position of president of a
very large organization, which would be called a labor organiza¬
tion, prominently identified with the iron business. With us,
the treatment of this piece work problem was something which,
even now as I think of it, causes me to shudder and to feel a little
nervous; and when I think of the problems which might be
solved by this paper presented by Mr. Taylor — such a one, for
instance, as was solved by the military at Homestead a year or
two ago — when I think of all those things, and of the numberless
instances which occur almost every year, I feel that, as a work¬
man, I want to congratulate Mr. Taylor and to say that his paper,
I think, is a landmark in the field of political economy; and, as
all our leading thinkers have devoted their time in the last few
years to solving problems of that kind, I feel that the paper he
has written is worthy of the greatest consideration at the hands
of every employer, and at the hands, also, of the employee. It
seems to me that every sentence, almost, might form a text for
an article. It certainly enunciates a number of logical ideas,
and I feel that I would like to go before the American Society of
Mechanical Engineers, and, as a workman, testify to my feelings
in the matter.
Mr. W. S. Rogers. — It is strange how we meet old faces once
in a whilé. In 1883, in the State of Ohio, I had charge of men,
^ Formerly President of the Brotherhood of Machine Moulders.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
673
and that identical plan of a differential piece price came into my
head. I was not near as old then as I am now, but I recognize,
also, the fact that I am not talking to students now. I am talk¬
ing to men who know more than I do of how to handle men. A
very capable member of this association, who is now dead (Cap¬
tain Minot), was a particular friend of mine, and I laid this plan
before him. He said: " Do you believe in it ?" I said : " I think
that is just the thing to fetch my shop right down to where it
ought to be." He said: "Try it." He went by my shop to and
fro to his, and he would stop occasionally and say: " Rogers,
how is the differential working ? " At first I was enthusiastic.
At the end of six weeks, he said: " Rogers, what do you think of
the differential ?" I said: " Captain, I feel like a thief; it
is n't honest. There are times when a man cannot turn out as
much work today as he did yesterday, and it is not his fault; the
fault lies sometimes in the foundry or elsewhere, and the man is
not to blame, but I have got to live up to my rules and cut the
price." " Well," he said, " I thought you would feel that way,
and I have been feeling that way for you." Then I abolished it.
At the Providence meeting, Mr. Halsey read a paper on the Pre¬
mium Sharing Plan. I have tried it three times since. I have a
friend of mine trying it. I am trying that in the shop where I
am today, and it is simple and easy, and the men ask for it.
You cannot give it to them fast enough, and you do not require
a rate-fixer. Now, as to cutting prices and cutting rates, I know
an instance that occurred not long ago. A man took charge of a
shop, and not ten days after he went there he slapped it on to
piece work. Today he is looking for another situation and the
firm is cutting the men. You cannot pass to piece work in¬
stantly, or anything else, until you thoroughly understand the
whole situation; and you have got to throw your hobbies and
ideas to the winds and be governed by what you find and the men
you find. A short time ago a man applied at our place for work.
I make it a point, if possible, to hire every man. He said he was
a machinist. He asked what wages he would get. I said:
" That depends on you; your rate will not be fixed for one week."
I asked where he was from. Hè replied that he was glad to
674
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
get away from a place where the differential system was in
operation.
Mr. F- W. Taylor. — I must object to Mr. Rogers saying that
he tried my system of piece work; for, according to his own
statement, he entirely omitted the vital part of my plan, namely,
the elementary rate-fixing, without which the differential rate
must, in most cases, prove a failure. He, however, says that he
only tried differential rates for six weeks, which, in point of fact,
is no trial whatever. If he had tried the plan for six years or
even six months, and abandoned it, his experience might have
some weight, but six weeks counts for nothing. Regarding his
statement that his workman was glad to get away from my sys¬
tem, all that I need say is that about a thousand of the most
intelligent, most prosperous, and contented workmen in the coun¬
try are working there under this system, and a majority of these
men have been in the employ of the company for more than ten
years, without complaint about the system, and without a strike
or even the talk of a strike. Can Mr. Rogers say as much
regarding the workmen of any other steel works in the country ?
Mr. Wm. Kent. — I am very glad that Mr. Rogers has attacked
Mr. Taylor's paper. There are very few men who have the
courage to do it. I hope there will be others who will rise up
and attack it, and I know of no man stronger than Mr. Taylor to
repel such attacks. He is just the kind of man to stand a good
deal of hammering, but sometimes I think he may come out on
top.
In regard to Mr. Halsey's plan, which Mr. Rogers has indorsed,
I had the pleasure some years ago of indorsing it also, and I
think I was possibly the first one to put it on trial, because Mr.
Halsey had told me about it two or three years before he pub¬
lished his paper. So far as I know, the plan has been an entire
success. But my opinion is that Mr. Taylor's plan is a little
ahead. It is probably a little better, provided it is carried out
with proper intelligence, by the right men, with proper sense
of generous treatment of their workmen. I regard this whole
question, which was started, possibly, by Mr. Towne, in his
paper, then continued by Mr. Halsey, and now supplemented
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
67s
by Mr. Taylor's paper, as one of the most important questions,
not only before this Society, but before the world to-day —
the harmonizing of labor and capital; and this question is not
to be settled by the opinion of the old-time mechanics, such
as my young friend who has spoken. It is to be settled, after a
profound study, by men capable of logical analysis, and by
students of political economy, and I do not expect that we are
going to introduce any of these systems, in any great degree, by
the men who are now over fifty years of age, who have all their
old-time prejudices; but I think it will be from such men as the
one who presented those opening remarks, such as Mr. Gantt, a
young man, a technical graduate, who has given some attention
not only to workshop matters, but to political economy, and» that
such men will be the ones who will introduce this system in the
long run. I hope to see this subject of workshop economics
taught as an inductive science from actual statistics — statistics
of tool cutting, of wages, of rates, in the modern method of study¬
ing political economy; that this science must be taught in our
technical schools, and that our graduates will graduate, not with
the knowledge of how to apply this system, but with minds
trained to begin studying the system in practice, and gradually
the proper systems for our shops will be evolved. I heartily
congratulate Mr. Taylor on the paper he has presented, and hope
he will continue his studies for a great many years to come in
this direction.
Mr. D. L. Barnes. — I would like to ask Mr. Taylor a question
about a matter upon which he has not entered in his paper.
How does he deal with the apprentice system ? A good appren¬
tice will often do as much work as a journeyman. Now, is he to
get the same price ? The temptation for the manufacturer is to
use as many apprentices as possible. How are disputes about
apprentices with labor organizations to be settled ? That, to
my mind, is the most important problem with which a manu¬
facturer has to deal, when the work is such that an apprentice
can do it.
The plan proposed by Mr. Taylor is applicable in a shop where
the profit is great and where there is an unlimited amount of
676
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
orders to work on. But suppose the contract price is fixed, and
the orders are not very frequent, and the profits small ; can a man
afford to pay more for extra quality work than for what will pass
as good work ? It seems to me that the manufacturer can afford,
under those conditions, to pay only one price, and that is to get
work good enough to pass inspection, and how the differential
rate system can be applied under those circumstances I do not
see.
Mr. Taylor. — The answer to that is this: With regard to
apprentices, in the first place, the Midvale Steel Company takes
no regular apprentices, in the old-fashioned meaning of the term,
but they do take a great many boys, young men, and even older
laborers, and teach them trades, and when I was there I treated
my apprentices or learners just as I would the other men. I let
them earn all that they could earn, and I was delighted to have
them do it. I do not care who turns out my work. So much
work is worth so much money, whether done by an apprentice
or by a man just tottering to the grave. With all due respect to
Mr. Barnes, the apprentices or learners are not able to do, in my
experience, anything like as much work as the first-class trained
workmen are able to do, and under the differential rate system
they must be content with the lower price per piece. They, how¬
ever, always have the higher price per piece before them as a goal,
to spur them on to become fast and accurate workmen, and the
system has certainly worked admirably in this respect, since I
should say that fully two-thirds of the skilled workmen of the
place have been taught their trades right there in the steel works.
As to the second matter referred to by Mr. Barnes, namely, the
applicability of the differential rate to a shop which did not have
sufficient work to completely occupy all of its tools; if the differ¬
ential rate system involved paying a higher price per piece than is
paid under other systems — that is, if you had to pay with the
differential rate actually a higher price for a piece than your
competitors pay — then Mr. Barnes is perfectly right in saying
that in a shop which runs slack of work this could not be done.
As I have already explained in answering Mr. Halsey, however,
in most cases where the differential rate is applied your actual
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
677
piece work rate is lower than your competitor's price is, so that
you have the advantage not only of a larger productivity per
tool, but also a lower price per piece.
Mr. Gustavus C. Henning. — I would like to add a few words
in commendation of Mr. Taylor's paper, not because I have been
an employer of labor, but simply because I have suffered from
being in intimate connection with unsatisfied laborers. I found
that, in shops where the old-fashioned piece rate was in vogue,
every time a man did a good piece of work his wages were cut
down. They would induce a man to turn out the work on the
plea that it had to go out in a hurry, and just as soon as his
amount of work increased his rate was cut down, so that he was
always kept to earn about the same amount of money per day.
I remember one case where this had a very important effect on
the character of the work. It was driving rivets. The men
were driving originally about 2,500 steel rivets, with hydraulic
riveters, by contract, but they earned so much money at the rate
they were getting that before the next lot of similar work was
contracted for a lower rate was offered, and the men had to drive
3,500 instead of 2,500. The first trouble that arose was that 90
per cent of the rivets were not absolutely tight. Then the shop
began to question the propriety of the inspector marking all the
loose rivets, because most of them could only be shown to be
loose by tapping them on both sides of the head, but if tapped
on one side only they would rarely show a defect. Then the men
were made to cut out this work at their own expense and put in
new rivets, the shop pa3dng for the new rivets, but the labor was
found by the riveting gang, and they lost money. Then the
power for driving the rivets was increased, improving the work
very much. The men actually succeeded in running up their
capacity to about 4,500 rivets per 10 hours, but there were so
many loose ones in the work that the men, of themselves, dis¬
carded the use of steel rivets, although it was prescribed by the
specifications, and used iron rivets, because they could be driven
tighter. Then, when the objection was made that the contract
called for steel rivets, heaven and earth were raised to prevent
the reintroduction of steel rivets, and the work was shipped one
678
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
hundred and twenty-six miles, with these wrought-iron rivets in
place, and it was only after the severest fight that they were com¬
pelled to cut out about 3,000 iron rivets in the field and replace
them by steel, simply to make the contractors understand that
they would have to carry out their agreement. That was all
caused by the piece rate system. If such a systèm as this had
been in use, such a thing could never have occurred. Those men
were trying to do their best, but by doing their best they were
compelled to work harder and were getting less and less pay; the
work was inferior to what it was when the men were getting less
pay and turning out less. I think, if such a system as Mr.
Taylor here describes can be carried out on any work in hand,
and arranged to suit the particular shop in which it is to be in¬
troduced, it would certainly improve the work, increase the
capacity, and make the general relation between employer and
employee a far more satisfactory one than-it is in many of our
works at the present day.
Mr. C. E. Bernent. — I would like to ask Mr. Taylor a question
or two. Do I understand that when the maximum day's work is
fixed, it is never changed ?
Mr. Taylor. — When, by the elementary rate-fixing, you have
found out what a maximum day's work is, for instance, on a lathe
or a planer, on a certain class of work, that rate is never changed
until some new element enters the problem; that is, until you
have a distinctly new method of doing the work. If you invent
a new tool which will turn out more work, or if the machine
heretofore used is materially improved or better speeded, etc.,
then the rate is altered; but while the conditions remain the
same as originally, and after a careful and thorough analysis has
been made of the quickest time in which the job can be done,
that rate is never cut; that rate remains permanent until a
material change takes place in the rate of wages paid throughout
the country — such a change, for example, as occurred very
generally in the rate of wages paid in 1893. At this time, the
rate of wages paid under differential rates was cut, and the men
did not complain of the cut. They saw the justice of it.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
679
Mr. Bernent. — Suppose, in ordinary piece work, the same
pains was taken and the piece work price was fixed on that basis,
would n't that be as just as your system ? You fix a day's work
which you calculate is the greatest that the machine or man
can turn out. Now, suppose in an ordinary piece work shop,
such as I am running, we fix a piece work price based on a maxi¬
mum day's work, why is not that as just a price, provided the
same pains is taken to fix it ?
Mr. Taylor. —If you can once persuade your men that you
are really going to allow them to earn more than the usual stand¬
ard of wages no differential is essential; that is to say, it is not
then nearly as necessary as it usually is. I think I said distinctly
in the paper that, after your men are thoroughly in accord with
the management and you are all pulling together, it is possible
to drop the differential rate without a great sacrifice of the
amount of your product, but even then you will make a sacrifice
of possibly 10, 15, or 20 per cent of your product, because the
incentive of earning his differential is lacking to make each man
work to his maximum. The case is very much like running a
race — if there is no goal to reach, if each man can go at any
rate of speed to suit himself, they will not go as fast as they will
if they have got to get to the tape at a certain time, or else forfeit
their premium. That is the incentive of the differential rate.
What I did not speak of and what is of equal importance is, that
it spurs the firm to keep their shop in the best of order. Every¬
thing must be kept up in the finest state of repair, or the men can¬
not earn their differential rate, and I think, if possible, that this
indirect result of the system is a greater benefit to the firm than
the rate is itself.
Mr. J. L. Gobeille. — This paper is especially interesting, since
our moral responsibility toward those in our employ is so prom¬
inent a feature of this discussion. In a certain concern, twenty
men were displaced by that number of women, the output of
both being practically the same. Now, the average pay of these
women was much less, perhaps one-half what the men had earned.
While we are discussing ethics and morals, the question comes
to me whether it is right to put those women in at the highest
68o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
rate they had previously earned, and thus save an equal sum for
the department, or whether they should have been paid, as Mr.
Taylor paid his apprentices, equal pay for equal work. Appren¬
ticeship, by the way, is a back number and a lost art, except in
shops in small country towns, and they do not pay the same rate
as men get per unit of work.
Seriously, I believe the " woman question " will be prominently
before the Society in a few years. In a little while women will be
running all the lighter tools in machine-shops and factories.
This is certainly coming. I am doing it and others must come
to it.
Believing that our first duty is to the workman, and profit on
the investment a secondary consideration, what discrimination,
if any, shall we make between men and women, without, perhaps,
in every instance taking the high moral ground that Mr. Rogers
esteems so important in running a factory ?
Mr. J. F. Holloway. — Feeling that I may possibly claim a
place in that class known as old-time mechanics, I would like to
say a few words on the matter under discussion. It certainly
does commend itself to all thoughtful and well-meaning persons,
that there should be some method provided by which workmen
could obtain a better rate for what they do, and, at the same time,
that proprietors should make more money out of it. Whenever
that can be accomplished, it certainly will be a long step in ad¬
vance. It seems to me that, in these latter days, so many
combinations and so many differences have come up that it is
exceedingly difficult to see how this may be brought about. The
changed conditions in manufacturing, especially in the line of
manufacturing with which most of us are connected, that of;
machinery, are so different from what they were years ago that
they have brought in new complications. As Mr. Gobeille has
weU said, he doesn't know where the apprentices are to-day. I.
myself hardly know where you will find apprentices. When
Mr. Rogers and I were boys, the apprentices were in small shops.:
The machine shops of this country were individual shops ; they;
Were owned by the man who operated them, or by a small part¬
nership j and the apprentice had tjie privilege, The inestimable;
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
privilege, of living in the family, of getting up in the early morn¬
ing and making the fire, milking the cow, and taking care of the
horse, before he went to work in the shop. There was a certain
community of feeling, in those days, between the boys in the
shop and the master, which I think passed away when machine-
shop owners became corporations, when they were managed by
a board of directors who never saw the workmen, who knew
nothing of them, individually, and, as I fear, cared less.
It is unfortunate in many ways that there should have been that
sort of a diversion of interests, that sort of almost antagonism
which has grown up in these latter years between workmen and
their employers, and often for the reason that they do not know
who their employers are. They know the superintendent of the
works, and they know their foreman, and they have a slight
acquaintance with the paymaster, through the medium of their
check number, but over and beyond that they do not know who
they work for. They never come in contact with the owners,
and that sort of human contact which is so essential to good
feeling, as Mr. Taylor has well observed, is not now prominent.
The directors look only at the balance sheet. If the affairs of
the company have been well managed, or the state of the market
has been such as to enable them to show good balance sheets,
then there is nothing said ; but if unfortunate contracts have been
made, or if the market prices have gone down and the balance is
on the wrong side of the ledger, the directors, meeting in solemn
conclave, say, Well, we have got to cut the workmen, and they
do so; and in doing that there has grown up, as I say, a sort of
antagonism between workmen and employers which is exceed¬
ingly unfortunate for both. If any way can be devised by which
this can be remedied, it will be certainly an advantage to each.
So far as the intent of the paper is concerned, and so far as the
many good things in it are concerned, I heartily commend it, and
I am very glad, indeed, to have listened to it. I am very glad,
indeed, to know that there are gentlemen in the profession of
engineering who are thinking and studying about the social side
of these questions, and I am in hopes that something may come
out of it which may be of mutual benefit. There are other
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elements which have come into existence in latter years which
have been, I think, equally harmful. Among them are organi¬
zations, ostensibly for the benefit of the workman and possibly
in some ways truly so. In many instances they have assumed
to do the workman's thinking. They have assumed to take care
of the workman, as they say, but unfortunately, in many cases,
the men who have thus assumed to take care of the workmen are
not the men who should have been put in the place of leaders,
and it is, unfortunately, often for this reason that strikes arise,
that divisions take place. There has grown up a feeling that one
man shall have the same pay as another man, irrespective of his
skill, experience, or industry. I think that is unfortunate, be¬
cause it detracts from the energy and from the industry and from
the ambition of a good man. These associations, which I am
quite willing to believe were intentionally well-meant, and de¬
signed for the welfare of the workmen, compel certain things
which I am certain do not in the end conduce to their advantage,
because it brings all men to one lower level. No matter how good
workmen they may be, no matter how industrious they may be,
no matter how ambitious they may be to get a home for them¬
selves and their family, they are tied down to one common grade
and they are controlled often by one person, so that the individ¬
ual liberty of the workman today is wanting.
As to the matter of apprentices and as to the matter of pay
that they may get, I would say that the work of today is done
largely by special machinery. I can hardly agree with my friend
Mr. Rogers in his suggestion, elsewhere made at this meeting,
that we should do away with all engine lathes, and throw them
into the scrap heap; but it is true that the special machines of
today largely supplement the industry and the intelligence of
the workman. A bright young fellow, without any previous
mechanical training, can go into almost any establishment and
go on almost any machine, and with industry and applicatiou
he can in a very short time do just as much as a skilled workman
on that machine. In fact, the term skilled workman is now a
v^ery indefinite term. He may be a skilled workman on a slotting
machine, or à shaper, or milling machine, but the true skilled
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
683
workman, whom you could send anywhere to do anything, and
who could accomplish it with few or no tools, is sadly wanting.
So I can hardly see how you can manage the apprentice part of
any system so long as there are no longer any apprentices to
apply it to.
Mr. F. W. Taylor.^ — I am much surprised and disappointed
that the elementary rate-fixing has not received more attention
during the discussion. No better evidence could have been
produced, however, of the crude and elementary state in which
the art now stands, of determining the time to do work and of
fixing rates, than that only one member of the engineering
Society which is in the closest touch with the manufacturers of
the country should have most briefly referred to the matter,
while thirteen engineers have discussed at length the less impor¬
tant matter of what kind of piece work to use.
I am, nevertheless, mostly firmly convinced that the question
of scientific rate-fixing must occupy more and more of the atten¬
tion of manufacturers in the future. Competition will force the
subject upon them.
I think that this will prove a most fruitful field for investiga¬
tion for young engineers in the future.
^ Author's closure under the rules.
WAGES AND WAGE SYSTEMS AS INCENTIVES
By C. BERTRAND THOMPSON
Reprinted by permission of System
" How do you pay your men ? " the manager of a thriving New
England plant employing about a thousand hands was asked.
" I started thirty years ago with a straight day rate, and an
occasional piece rate in some departments. Now I am using
about every system" there is : day rates, piece rates, premiums,
Gantt bonuses, Emerson bonuses, some Taylor differential piece
rates, and salaries and commissions in the administrative and
selling departments."
" Why do you use so many methods ? "
" I have had to in order to meet the changing conditions of the
labor market, not only with day laborers, skilled workmen and
machinists, but with clerks, executives, and salesmen. Men are
entitled to a wage for giving me their time to dispose of. I have
to pay my watchmen just to be present, though they may have
nothing actually to do once in ten years. But what I want more
than anything else is that my men shall employ their time pro¬
ductively, turning out goods, superintending manufacture more
effectively or selling my output. This takes more than their
time. It takes their energy, their thought, their interest and
their enthusiasm. I found that these desirable things could not
be had for a mere day wage. The problem of securing them was
one of market conditions and the psychology of the workers.
" My grandfather ran a mill where the women who tended the
machines would leave them whenever they liked and go out to
look after their children playing in the factory yard. These
occasional absences didn't make much difference, since they were
working twelve hours a day. Then the shortening of hours
began, until now I am running only forty-eight hours a week.
In the old days competition was not very keen, and all industry
operated at about the same level of inefficiency. Today we have
684
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68s
to work for all we get. And above all we must have efficiency
in the factory and in the selling field.
" When the pressure began to be felt, we could get our work up
by the simple though disagreeable process of driving. But that
does not serve any longer. Workmen, especially if they are
skilled, and competent executives and salesmen, do not have to
stand it. We have had to depart widely from the old day wage
and piece rates, therefore, in order to provide some incentive for
the men to give voluntarily the volume of production and the
personal efficiency which employers must have."
He went on to tell me about some of his experiences. There
was a girl in his plant working on hand-folding. Her day wage
amounted to $6 a week. At one time this work had been done
on a piece rate basis. Figured by the old rate, the girl was
actually earning just $1.05 a week, as against the $6 she was
getting. This discrepancy was called to her attention daily, but
without effect; and after five weeks she was discharged. Her
sister, employed in the same plant, pleaded for her reinstatement,
on the ground that the girl had not understood that she was
expected to work for that price; she supposed she was paid just
for her time. A bonus plan carefully worked out was applied to
this group of workers, and thereafter there was no trouble.
This illustrates the idea that some men have: that they are
paid a day wage just for being in the shop or the office, and that
if the employer wants productiveness and " results " besides, he
must expect to pay extra for them. It is like the carpenter who
applied for a job in one of the Thames shipyards. When asked
what wages he expected he said: " Three shillings if I take the
hammer here," up near the head; " four shillings if I take
it here," half way down the handle; " Five shillings if I take it
here," at the point where he could work most efficiently with it.
What the employer wants, in most cases, is of course not the
mere time and presence of the employee, but his productiveness.
If the manager could abolish day rates and pay only by the piece
for what the man produced or sold and nothing more, he would
do it. Or, if he held to the day wage, he would like to pay only
for the time actually spent on production or selling. He would
686
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
have time tickets for every moment of the day, and would pay
on those only which were productively used. If a man waited
about between jobs it would be on the man's own time. This is,
of course, impracticable. Many delays between jobs are inevi¬
table, and others the management has not taken the trouble to
eliminate. In the majority of cases the employee who waits is
not the one who is responsible for the delay, and his living cannot
be made dependent on other people's failures.
" The question I have to solve," said the manager, " is how to
get all the time of my employees occupied productively, contin¬
uously and efficiently."
The old answer to this question, and one still tried in some
places, is plain driving. A young man was sent to a quarry in
Vermont where the output for some months had been unsatis¬
factory. He was told to put in force the modern efficiency
methods he had just read about in a book, but especially to get
a larger output. When he got there he found that the men were
loafing outrageously. He forgot all about his book and started
in at once to get behind them and drive them to efficiency. His
program worked for about six weeks, then there was a strike.
The expedient of cutting piece rates to such a point that the
worker will have to go at a furious gait to earn a living is a familiar
one. A big company in Pennsylvania worked this plan regularly
for several years, until in the end its men struck. Others are
still doing it, and have " gotten away with it " thus far; but
competent workmen shun such concerns, and those who stay are
merely waiting for a good chance to break out.
Human nature reacts on this practice in much the same way in
all grades of employment.
Some managers have cut an agent's commissions in the effort to
make him hustle. A Boston firm in a growing specialty business
put men on the road who were soon earning commissions amount¬
ing to an average of twenty dollars a day. Orders were coming
in fast; but the firm decided that this rate of pay was too high
and should be reduced. It took long and hard-fought argument
to convince them of the folly of this course. Their agents, good
men, bringing in large contracts, would undoubtedly have quit
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
687
the firm had the proposed reduction in commissions been
made.
The contract system is a modification of the day wage, in¬
tended to accomplish some degree of speeding up without placing
the responsibility for driving where it belongs — on the employer.
The manufacturer hires the contractor at a fixed sum, and the
contractor sets a rate of pay and a speed of work which will
enable him to get as much as possible out of the contract. He
has every incentive to drive the laborer up to and beyond the
limits of safety. This is the essence of the sweating system.
Its excesses can be restrained only by law, or by the employer
who steps in between the contractor and his force; and if he
does this he may as well eliminate the contractor altogether.
This is just what has happened at a great locomotive works which
once had a full-fledged contract system, but now retains only the
name. Its contractors have ceased to be anything but sub-
foremen.
This policy is rapidly waning in popularity, all the more
rapidly as labor becomes more effectively organized. The
elimination of ruthless driving is one of the best things to the
credit of the labor unions. Where the work is mental rather
than physical, as in the case of salesmen, executives and clerks,
driving has never resulted in permanent gains. You can prod an
agent into the presence of the prospects every day, but you can't
make him sell.
Intensified competition between managers, and a growing
self-consciousness and independence in the workmen, have made
it imperative that some incentive to increased production be
provided, which will accomplish what driving was intended to
do but failed in. To provide this incentive is one of the tasks of
management today.
There are four principal levers by which you can move a man
to action: fear, pride, ambition, loyalty. Not all men can be
moved by all of them, nor do they all have the same value as
incentives to efficiency. Fear is one of the strongest of the
emotions but is brutalizing in its effect, is therefore least effective,
and is becoming daily more difficult to apply, except in unusual
688
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conditions. Mere pride or emulation, when aroused, works
beautifully for a time, but soon wears out. People soon get
tired of either winning or losing, especially if the game is costing
them considerable effort, and the only reward iá " honorable
mention." But when combined in some way with a more
substantial gain, pride may be made a most powerful incentive.
Ambition, when effectively appealed to, is stronger still; but the
longest lever of them all is loyalty. People will do most and
best when they are deeply and fundamentally loyal. Loyalty,
like love, is a more or less unreasoning force, which has but one
aim : to do one's best for mistress or manager.
These levers can be swung on two fulcrums: the market rate
of wages, or a rate above the market. In the rest of this article
we shall see how wages " at the market " may be modified to
rouse the motives of efficiency; in the next, how wages " at the
market plus " can be applied to the same end.
The market rate of wages obviously makes no appeal to ambi¬
tion. The forces determining it are apparently beyond the
control of the individual laborer, and ambition appeals to the
individual.
In a few rare cases emulation may be brought into play. A
scheme has been worked out in connection with construction
work whereby the contractors succeed in getting gangs and
individuals competing with each other. " Athletic contests "
are arranged between gangs building piers. Both start at exactly
the same moment on the same kind of pier; they have the same
service, the same bricks and mortar. The winners are decorated
with buttons. This works well for a short time; and by the time
the enthusiasm has died down the job is ended and the contractors
are elsewhere starting the same " contests " with a new set of
workmen. So it is with sales contests. Unless the contest is
followed by substantial benefits for the contestants, or dissolu¬
tion of this organization, about one in a generation is sufficient.
The goad of fear will make a man work better than no incentive
at all. With wages at the market it can be brought into play
only in bad times, when other jobs are scarce. When all em¬
ployers are " full up " the men with the jobs have got to do what
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
689
the boss tells them. Of course this is very far from efficiency,
but it is perhaps better than blank indifference and positive
soldiering. All employers have noticed a seasonal variation in
the attitude of their men. When there is plenty of work disci¬
pline becomes difficult. When work is scarce every one is remark¬
ably willing to please.
Fortunately the incentive of fear has practically ceased to
operate, especially with skilled men and in highly organized
trades. The competent salesman or artisan can always get
another job, and the unions will see that the ordinary man is not
allowed to starve for asserting his manhood. And it is well for
the future of efficiency in industry that the employer is forced to
appeal to some more humane and elevating motive.
The thing to do is to arouse the enthusiastic loyalty of the
employees. Sometimes that is done by the sheer force of the
personality of the employer. Some managers are " magnetic."
They draw people about them by their personal charm. They
seem to emanate fairness and democracy. Every member of the
force feels that the manager knows him personally and likes him.
TJiis is a gift of the gods.
The president of a great company with five plants in different
parts of the country tells me that one of the chief reasons for his
success in dealing with his employees — and his men all swear
by him — is the fact that his door is always open to any one who
wants to see him for any purpose. He will talk over anything
with his employees, from the granting of a holiday to the naming
of the latest baby. Unfortunately this policy is limited in its
application both by the personal deficiencies of many employers
who have not this divine gift, and by the defects of organization
which do not permit the ordinary manager to spend very much
of his time on these " confabs."
A policy which has attracted increasing attention in recent
years is the so-called " welfare " work, which at its best is the
policy of doing things for the employees which they could not do
for themselves, and not from charitable motives but with the
object in view of making their lives more attractive and healthful
and the workmen more efficient..
690
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
This is a somewhat risky policy, beset with dangers and temp¬
tations. It has had some conspicuous failures; but it has also
been made to succeed conspicuously. It appears to work best
when it comes in response to the real needs of the employees,
like the reading rooms at the desert stations on the Santa Fe;
when it is done unostentatiously and not for the mere purpose of
advertising; and when it is done inexpensively and economically,
so that there can be no suspicion that large sums are being spent
on frills which had better be paid out as wages.
Provision can be made for outdoor athletic sports on vacant
fields at very small expense. This is always appreciated and
effective; whereas a large and gorgeous clubhouse may be entirely
neglected and the management that built it despised. One
company turned over a large room in its plant for the use of a
girls' club ; the girls accepted it, but were not really happy until
they were allowed to pay for the heat and light. Not until then
did they begin to talk about " their " clubroom, and to bless
the management. Lavish expenditures for "welfare" challenge
criticism, and invariably arouse all that suspicion which centuries
of oppression have ground into the wage-earner. Only the more
intelligent and better-paid employees can really appreciate the
value of such collective expenditures for them.
Here again the personal factor enters largely. When " wel¬
fare " work is in the hands of an unpopular man it almost invari¬
ably fails. In one very large establishment the development of
the " welfare institutions " was entrusted to such a department
head. He got as far as the organization of a mutual benefit
society. Some time ago it was announced that the manager
was going abroad, and it was hinted around that the proper
thing would be to give him a farewell dinner. Every one was
delighted to go to the dinner — they were so glad it was his
farewell. But when he came back a few months later the point
of view was changed. Unwittingly, with the remembrance of his
farewell dinner urging him on, the unpopular manager thought
it would be a pleasant thing for the mutual benefit society to have
a picnic, partly at the company's expense. The picnic was
arranged, and something like $400 spent on it. Out of ten
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
691
thousand employees about forty went. Today that concern has
doubts about the value of " welfare " work. And yet it needn't
have, if it were only wise enough to see where its mistake lay.
These supplements to " wages _at the market " are helpful,
when the situation is such that they can be used; but it is the
opinion of many managers that after all they are supplements
only, and that the body of the problem is the setting of a fair
market rate. If your employees are convinced that their rates
are fairly set, there will be no great active enthusiasm, to be sure,
but you will have a basis for a powerful appeal in time of stress.
This raises the question, " What are fair wages ? "
Merely to answer, " the prevailing rate," is not to answer at all.
For our question is, in other terms: " Can we show that the pre¬
vailing rate is fair ? "
The wages which might possibly be paid lie somewhere between
the lower limit of subsistence for the employee and the lower
limit of subsistence for the employer. If the employee does not
get at least this minimum he will quit or die, or both. The
employer, on the other hand, has got to get enough to pay his
employees, to pay for materials and equipment, and to support
himself. In addition, he has got to clear enough to make it
worth while for him to stay in business and take the risk and the
trouble that both involve, rather than shun the risk and trouble
by taking employment with somebody else.
The value of the product has nothing to do with these minimum
limits; nor have these limits much to do with the value. Society,
the whole body of consumers, sets a value on the product quite
independently of the wants or needs of either employer or em¬
ployee. In the bicycle business, for instance, when the com¬
munity at large decided that it no longer cared much for bicycles,
no amount of need on the part of manufacturers could induce
society to pay what would have been necessary to keep them in
business. Neither did the fact that a large number of people
were thrown out of work when the desire for bicycles disappeared
have any effect on society.
Society sets the price or value of work done for it in accordance
with methods of its own, entirely distinct from the needs of either
692
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
employer or employee. Their pa3niient has got to come out of
that value; somehow or other it has got to be divided between
employer and employee; and the whole question of fairness
centers around the mode of this division.
The popular theory among many economists today is that the
division is made in proportion to the relative contributions of
each group and even of each individual engaged in the process of
production and marketing. This would be comforting if it were
true; but unfortunately it does not seem to fit the facts. What
part of the value of an article is contributed by employers and
employees respectively, and then again by different groups, such
as manufacturers, salesmen, transportation companies, and retail
clerks, and finally by each individual in those groups, it is abso¬
lutely impossible to say.
When you find, for instance, that 30.6 per cent of those in the
patent medicine business are clerks, how are you going to deter¬
mine what each of these clerks contributed as compared with the
people who ground the materials, the mixers, the machinists,
the bottlers, the labelers, the packers, the advertising men, and
the rest ? How is it possible to apportion, out of the dollar
(or the 59 cents at the cut-rate store) received for the bottle, the
contribution of each of those people, or even of each group ?
The same analysis must be applied to every business. There
are certain stages in the progress of some kinds of work where
you can reckon the actual physical contribution of an individual
workman with some degree of accuracy; but in no industry is it
possible to determine what proportion of the value of the finished
and marketed product was contributed by any one workman or
group of men.
If the theory won't help us, perhaps the facts will. Statistics
show with some clearness that the wages of unskilled laborers
vary with the cost of living. When the cost of subsistence goes
up wages must go up too. Wages of skilled labor are those of
unskilled plus a certain addition, determined by several factors,
as will be seen in a moment. Statistics again show that the wages
and salaries of skilled workmen vary fairly closely with the stand¬
ard of living; but it is not clear in this case which is cause and
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
693
which is effect: that is, whether high wages make a high standard
of living, or vice versa. The probabilities are that it is both;
when wages go up, the standard of living rises; this makes a new
minimum of subsistence for the skilled man; this makes it pos¬
sible for him to resist strongly any tendency to reduce wages
below his new minimum, and exerts a continual pressure to raise
them above this point.
The trained man is also helped by the possibility of getting
more in some other business or employment. The employer has
no measure of productivity in many cases by which to set the
salary; he has to go by what his man can get elsewhere; he has
to pay the man's " opportunity cost," as the economists call it.
Your clerk getting $1,000 thinks he can earn $1,500 writing ads;
so he threatens to go into the advertising business. If you want
to keep him you have got to come up to his new expectation,
especially if he is really a competent man, and the chances of
success are in his favor. Skilled men are comparatively scarce;
the demand for them is great, and their opportunity cost is
therefore higher. They get higher wages than the unskilled, not
because of any social obligation felt by their employers, but
because they are able to command them.
Another important factor in determining the division of the
value of the product between the employer and the employee is
organization. Skilled labor gets a better wage partly because
it is better organized. Unskilled labor is organizing, and is
finding its conditions improved at once. Organization counts
tremendously in deciding what share of the zone between the
limits of subsistence of the employer and of the employee is going
to labor. The employer holds the funds, he is the one who makes
the pa3mients, and it is he who determines whether he will
employ at all or not. He therefore has an immense advantage
in bargaining which can be met only by organization.
That this advantage can be counterbalanced even by com¬
paratively unskilled labor and on short notice has been shown
by the success of the Lawrence strike and the recent coal and
railroad strikes abroad, where the men have shown that they are
the masters of the situation.
694
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In the popular mind, to which appeal must finally be made in
the questions arising between capital and labor, a fair wage is
that which permits the employees to maintain the standard of
living to which they are accustomed, and which therefore rises
with increase in the cost of living. It will vary also with the
margin between cost of materials, plus overhead, and the selling
price; that is, when this margin is large and business is prosper¬
ous, labor is expected to get a larger share; when the margin falls,
labor must expect a decrease of wages. This is an automatic
sliding scale which public opinion will always support.
I asked the president of a large company, who is especially
interested in the handling of his labor, how he determined the
wages when he started a new department. He could not go by
the market rate in that vicinity, for there was none. He said
he began by setting the wage in accord with the neighborhood
cost of living and the standard of the men he would take on for
his new work; later he modified the wages as necessity required
or opportunity allowed. He paid higher when he could, less
when he had to.
Fairness in setting a rate " at the market " helps when trouble
comes and it is necessary to make an appeal to the sense of justice
of employees and public. It is thus a form of insurance, a nega¬
tive benefit. It does not arouse any enthusiasm, for people
expect a man to be fair, and are merely not disappointed when he
is. To awaken the enthusiastic support and cooperation with¬
out which the efiiciency demanded by modern conditions cannot
be had, something more than this must be done.
It is pretty clear to most managers that the policy of paying
wages and salaries " at the market," while it may do for the
ordinary run of ordinary business, will not do at all for those
kinds of business which demand the highest grades of productive,
administrative and selling ability. Fair wages, sensible " wel¬
fare work," and a winning personality in the management will
get and keep a fair organization of hardworking, conscientious
" pluggers "; but it does not and cannot secure that brand of
enthusiasm which makes the prize-winning business, as distin¬
guished from the common or garden variety. The prize-winning
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
69s
organization must be built up by careful nursing of all the best
talent available. You get this talent, and then keep it after
you have trained it, only by offering, in some way, to pay more
for it than the other fellow pays; in other words, you must set
your wages and salaries somehow " at the market plus."
A rate a little higher than your competitors are paying appeals
to every incentive that makes for efficiency. One of the floor
foremen in a certain concern was a competent fellow when he
wanted to be. He could maintain discipline, get the work out
and keep up the quality. But he was a suspicious and grouchy
individual, and every once in a while would decide that the firm
was trying in some way to " do " him. Of course, while in these
moods his chief aim in life was to retaliate, in some quiet and
unobtrusive way, which would be none the less effective. He
was finally brought into line by paying him 10 per cent more
than the prevailing rate. Thereafter, though he was still sus-
picuous and grouchy, whenever he showed any tendency to " lie
down on the job," the firm would bring out a powerful argument,
to wit, the loss of that 10 per cent bonus he would suffer if he had
to get a job elsewhere. Fear was the only emotion which could
reach this man; and as he was highly skilled, and could get
another job at any time, the only way this spring could be tapped
was by paying him above the market.
The moment you pay a man or woman a higher wage or salary
than other people in the same neighborhood and line of work are
getting, you have touched that motive of pride and emulation
which is such a powerful incentive with the higher grade of
employees. In one factory where there is a bonus system the
employees have organized a " Bonus Club," to which none are
eligible except those capable of earning the usual bonus of 30
per cent. The privilege of belonging to that club, the Phi Beta
Kappa of the mill, is as eagerly sought after as the increase in
pay. It is like publishing the pictures of the sales agents who
make the biggest selling records. These men become known and
quoted as authorities. All the best stories are attributed to
them. They may even become the center of a sort of hero-
worship, with its set of legends and its group of disciples. And
696
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
this kind of incense, combined with substantial increases in
salaries and commissions, works wonders. But the picture
alone will not.
If the market rate is somewhere near the standard of living,
those who get something over the market are in position to
maintain that standard and a little over, which they can put in
the savings bank or into a building and loan association. This
policy gets and holds the men of ambition and initiative. One
publishing concern, which pays a bonus on sales, is considering
the feasibility of paying that bonus in the form of a savings bank
account, partly to see who among its agents are the men who
appreciate its value. These are the men it will keep and promote.
As the account grows their ambition grows with it; their self-
respect also increases and they become incapable of falHng below
the best that they can do.
In a factory which was introducing the bonus system it was the
policy to offer the bonus to the men for their voluntary accept¬
ance. It almost invariably happened that the first men in each
department to accept were those with families who were planning
to " get ahead " in some way, usually to buy a little lot and build
on it. The sight of these men earning their bonuses and demon¬
strating the possibility of getting out of the rut of day wages soon
stimulated the ambition of the others, and under the impetus
of this goad they pleaded for the opportunity to earn the bonus —
even those who originally had opposed its introduction. The
net result in one department, after certain changes had been
made in the construction of the machines, was to increase the
output 105 per cent and the wages of the men 50 per cent.
Loyalty is an important factor in any industry or business, and
especially in those where it is difficult to measure the output, and
where the output depends largely on the way the man feels. An
executive or salesman does his best when he feels " right." The
same is true of the clerical force. Where the work is largely
mental — and all work is at least partly mental — the state of
mind of the employee is the most important condition.
A man whose pride and ambition are aroused and satisfied by
the firm he is working for is pretty apt to have a strong feeling of
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
697
loyalty for it. This sentiment can be fanned into a roaring flame
by the policy of what might be called " ultrafairness that is,
not only paying for what the man does directly, but for what he
does indirectly as well. An insurance agent, for example, lands
his risk; after that the company takes care of it, follows it up,
does all the collecting and the accounting; but when the renewal
comes, the company pays the agent just the same.
For the agent this is like flnding money, although, of course, he
did have something to do with it originally. This near-gift ties
him to his company. A similar policy is pursued by a specialty
manufacturing company which is famous for the loyalty of its
sales force. The country is divided into districts, with an agent
in each. Any sale made in a district, no matter who made it, pays
a commission to the agent in whose district it is. The sale may
be made to a visitor at the works of the company, or by another
agent who met the customer in another part of the world; it
makes no difference.
This not only gets the loyalty of every agent, but in addition
it tends to eliminate jealousies, and to make the knowledge of
one of the men the possession of all of them. A well-known
magazine, which publishes books to be sold only by advertising
in its own columns, does something like this. It pays the maga¬
zine agents and canvassers a bonus on the books sold; they have
nothing to do with selling books, except that the sale of the books
is dependent on the circulation of the magazine. This indirect
relationship protects the deal from the charge of " charity " ; but
at the same time it is so indirect that it looks like a mark of special
consideration on the part of the house.
The secret in all these plans is that they give the employee the
feeling of the bondholder, the " plu te," who apparently gets his
money with no effort at all, except to open his pocket and let it
drop in. This feeling is so rare, and so delicious, that most men
and women will do anything for the employer who can give them
the experience. It is like riding in the boss's auto. You can
feel, for the moment, all the commiseration which you imagine
he feels for the ordinary pedestrian, though the pedestrian may
698
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
be the man who works at the next desk to yours, or a desk higher
up. You love the boss for giving you the chance.
The industrial air is thick today with the cries of the inventors
of various " systems " of paying wages, hawking the advantages
of their wares. A man hardly feels justified in calling himself an
" industrial engineer" or a " production engineer " or an " effi¬
ciency expert " until he has developed some new kind of bonus or
premium, and added another wrinkle to the familiar curves
showing the operation of the standard systems. And yet what
they all amount to is simply an expedient for paying above the
market rate, and on some basis more or less directly connected
with the employee's output. Where the nature of the work
permits, as in factory production, some kinds of clerical work,
and selling, the connection is made as direct as possible, and the
bonus is in some way made proportionate to the increased output
or sales. In other cases an indirect connection is established;
but in all cases the aim of the buyer of labor is to pay the market
rate plus something added for unusual diligence and success.
As these " wage systems " are all aimed at the same thing, to
arouse the enthusiasm which leads to efficiency, their relative
value depends upon the success with which each accomplishes
this purpose. Their success depends upon the conditions under
which each is introduced and maintained. That system is the
best which under given circumstances produces the maximum
efficiency with the minimum cost and friction.
The earliest method used for this purpose was the ordinary
piece rate. This permitted the exceptional workman to earn a
daily wage somewhat in excess of that currently paid. It got as
high a degree of efficiency as the workman was able to devise for
himself. It was easy to introduce, and worked well — until the
management began to feel that the men were earning too much,
and proceeded to cut the rates. The succeeding history of this
process is too well known to call for narration. Its inevitable
result was to call the unions to the protection of their members
from this form of injustice; and the result is that today, unless
there are the strongest guarantees that the rates will not be cut,
the unions are in general opposed to the system. Any change
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
699
from day rates to piece rates, unless most carefully made, is apt
to arouse the opposition of the workmen; and if it is carried
through in spite of them, they will take it out in soldiering, so
that the effort to get greater production is defeated. One big
concern obviates this by forbidding its employees to earn over
what it considers a fair day wage. The men are all on piece
work, but when they have earned what the company says they
should, they are expected to loaf. Of course, they simply stretch
out the time on each job so as to come out even at the end of the
day. This is about the worst possible system, both for the
management and the men.
Many progressive concerns have improved on this by giving
a basic guaranteed day rate, with an addition for each increase
over the normal production. They have added to this a syste¬
matic course of instruction, so that their employees may increase
their output to the limit. A big department store in Boston pays
its saleswomen a wage based on a certain amount of sales per week.
It runs a school of salesmanship. When the clerks get over their
minimum they are paid a commission in addition to their week's
wages. When this commission has been earned regularly for a
few weeks, the basic rate is increased, and again a commission
paid for the excess of sales over the new minimum. A great
magazine publishing house pays its typists |8 per week for so
many hundred square inches of typewriting, and 25 cents a
hundred inches for all over that. The result is that the average
earnings of its typists exceed $12 a week. This company also
maintains an elaborate school where the best way of doing every¬
thing in all its departments is continually taught both to new
recruits and to old employees. The spirit here is of the finest,
and it pays the company many times over in increased output.
The Towne-Halsey premium plan is another system easy to
introduce and maintain, and productive of results. As used
originally by the Yale and Towne Company, it consisted in setting
a standard time in which a job should be done, based on the best
time in which it had been done in the past by an average man.
Then the workman was given half or one-third the time he saved
in doing the job. If the standard time was eight hours, the rate
700
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
30 cents per hour, and the man did it in six hours, there was
added to his regular wage, 6X30 cents, or $1.80, plus one-half
2 X 30 cents, or 30 cents, making a total for the job of $2.10, or
35 cents per hour. The man got a higher rate and had in addi¬
tion two hours to apply on another job on which he could be
earning the same or a higher rate; the firm's overhead was less,
its labor cost was lower, and it was under no temptation to cut
the rate. There was no objection from the unions, and every¬
body was happy — until the men found a way to beat the com¬
pany in setting a rate on new work,^ and made such excessive
wages that a modification became imperative.
The trouble with this system came in the method of setting
the standard time. That was left to the men, and of course their
tendency was to make the standard time as large as possible.
The way it worked, especially on new jobs, is clearly shown by
Mr. Taylor:
Suppose that two men, named respectively Smart and Honest, are at
work by the day, and receive the same pay, say 20 cents per hour. Each of
these men is given a new piece of work which could be done in one hour.
Smart does his job in four hours (and it is by no means unusual for men to
soldier to this extent). Honest does his in one and one-half hours.
Now, when these two jobs start on this basis under the Towne-Halsey -
plan and are ultimately done in one hour each. Smart receives for his job 20
cents per hour plus a premium of 60/3 — 20 cents — a total of 40 cents.
Honest receives for his job 20 cents per hour plus a premium of 10/3 — 3
1-3 cents — a total of 23 1-3 cents.
This easy means of getting excessive premiums of course did
not long remain undiscovered. There are two ways of meeting
the difi&culty. One is to reduce the rate at which the premium
increases : the other is to set the standard time in a better way.
The best known method of reducing the premium is the Rowan
plan; the leading exponents of the other method (which was
finally adopted in the Yale and Towne plant) are Taylor and
Gantt.
The Rowan plan takes the standard time as set by the men,
just like the Towne-Halsey. But the premium is figured dif¬
ferently; the workman's share is a percentage of his regular rate
equivalent to the percentage of the standard time he has saved.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
701
If the time is eight hours, the rate 30 cents, and the work is done
in six hours, the two hours saved is 25 per cent of the standard,
the regular wages are 6 X 30 cents, or $1.80, and the premium is
one-fourth of this, or 45 cents. In the early stages the premium
is usually higher than by the Towne-Halsey plan; but it decreases
as the amount of saving increases, with the curious result that
when the man saves 90 per cent of the standard time his pre¬
mium is the same as when he only saved 10 per cent. This de¬
creased gain in earnings, of course, destroys the incentive to beat
the management as in the case supposed by Mr. Taylor; but it is
equally effective in penalizing honest efforts to make great gains.
The first 20 or 30 per cent increase in efficiency is easy for any
good man; it is the higher percentages which become difficult;
and it is just those higher percentages which are paid for at a lower
rate by the Rowan plan.
Nevertheless both the Towne-Halsey and the Rowan plans
have at times been strikingly successful, and are in use in many
establishments. Their inventors are all leading manufacturers,
practical and successful men. Their plans are easy to introduce,
standard times are easily ascertained, no suspicions are aroused,
'the temptation to cut is slight or none at all, and an increased
output is invariably obtained.
But their defects are glaring, and it was to remedy these that
Mr. Emerson evolved his system. First he sets a standard time
partly in accordance with past achievement, and partly in accord¬
ance with what an expert time study shows would be right.. This
standard is called 100 per cent. A workman must reach 66 f
per cent of this to hold his job. For every increase of efficiency
beyond 66 f per cent he gets a bonus, very small for the first
increases, and becoming larger as he approaches the standard.
At ICQ per cent he gets 20 cents bonus on the dollar of wages;
over 100 per cent he gets one cent for each one per cent. Thus
at 140 per cent efficiency the gets a bonus of 60 cents on the
dollar. The management can afford this on account of the lower
overhead cost per unit of product.
This system involves a little more work on the part of the
management than the other in setting the standard time, yet
702
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
it is conservative and ought not to arouse antagonism. It pays
the men a guaranteed base rate, and an increase for any improve¬
ment in efficiency, this bonus increasing as the difficulty of further
increasing inefficiency becomes greater. It does not leave the
loophole for beating the management which exists in the Towne-
Halsey plan.
On the other hand, inasmuch as the rate is not set with
thorough exactness, it contains the germ of future trouble. Fur¬
ther, the gradual increase in pay, beginning at the first little
increases in efficiency, allows the easy-going unambitious work¬
man a chance to get a little better output and stop there, content
with his slightly increased wage. There is no powerful incentive
to get the best possible.
The Taylor system (and the Gantt, which grew out of it) is
based on a radically different set of principles from all these.
It sets a standard time for each job with a precision as nearly
scientific as the nature of the work will permit. Materials,
equipment, processes and methods are perfected first; then the
workmen are trained carefully and patiently to the performance
of the work in the best way that experts can determine; the
result of this process is the standard time. It is what the trained
man can do under circumstances made as nearly ideal for him as
the management can devise. After the management has done
its part, which is considerable, Gantt says to the workman:
" Now we will pay you your usual wages until you have learned
to do this in the proper time. We will provide you with an
instructor and with all the conditions which are necessary for
you to do it in this time, and when you have succeeded we will
pay you from 30 to 60 or 100 per cent bonus in addition to your
regular wages, depending on the nature of the work; but whether
you get up to the standard or not you will never be paid less than
your present wages."
The plan known as the Taylor differential piece rate makes the
same proposition as to standard time, conditions and instruction,
but says to the workman:
" When you have learned to do this in the standard time, we
will pay you a piece rate higher than you have had before; but
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
703
if you fall below the standard your piece rate will be lower. With
a high output, you will get higher pay for more pieces; if you fall
below, you will get lower pay for fewer pieces." This is in effect
a tremendous inducement to high efficiency, combined with a
penalty for failure.
These methods, of course, set their standards with due regard
to what a capable worker can do permanently without injury to
his health, as has been shown in several elaborate investigations.
They are strongly selective; they appeal most to the ambitious,
the energetic and the intelligent; such workers are brought to a
high plane of efficiency and are kept there by the prospect of the
entire loss of the bonus if they fall below it. On account of the
rigidity with which the standard is set it is impossible to beat
the management; and as the gain is shared between the employer
and the employee there is no incentive to cut rates, and every
inducement to keep them up. The percentage of bonus that goes
to the workman is not arbitrary but is the result of experiments
made to determine what percentage would get the largest number
of workmen up to the standard. And the results of the system
when it is applied in its entirety are in some cases so extraordinary
as to seem incredible.
But, on the other hand, the Taylor system is the most difficult
to develop and maintain. It involves a degree of intelligence and
ability on the part of the management which is comparatively
rare. Though the results read like a fairy tale, to get them
requires an investment of time, money and patience which few
feel prepared to make. In addition, there is a tendency at present
on the part of the unions to oppose all efficiency " systems,
under which term they hash together everything except straight
day rates.
The difficulty with the men, however, is insignificant in com¬
parison with the trouble which the management has with itself.
The Taylor system is a radically new departure which calls for
an entirely different spirit and attitude of the management
toward its responsibilities. It challenges the management to
manage; and this is precisely what they are most averse to doing,
so long as they can get along somehow or other with the men
704 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
managing for them. Isn't this a question for every manager to
consider ?
The problem of the relation of the labor unions to all systems
of efficiency is not so hopeless as it seems. The unions have been
productive of an immense amount of good; and the evil for which
they have been responsible is due partly to the stand of their
employers, and to the ignorance in regard to economic conditions
and facts in which they have been left by those who ought to
know better. Their opposition to piece rates, for instance, is
entirely justifiable, in view of the history of this particular method
of payment.
On the other hand, their aversion to modern methods of man¬
agement is chargeable to two causes, both of them bound to dis¬
appear; the fear on the part of some of the leaders that with
wages paid in proportion to efficiency there will be no further
need for unions, and the fear on the part of the rank and file that
increased output means a decrease in the number of those
employed.
The first t3q)e of fear was illustrated by the locomotive en¬
gineers, when their president announced fiatly to the Santa Fe
that the bonus system and the Brotherhood of Locomotive
Engineers could not coexist on the same road at the same time.
The San te Fe had to run its trains, so they carried their point, and
the engineers are doing without the bonus. Where bonuses are
paid there is less occasion to strike for higher wages; and for those
whose living depends on strikes or the prospects of strikes, this
does not open up a pleasant vista.
Not all labor leaders, however, look at the plans for getting
higher wages from this point of view. Some of them see that
their unions exist for many other indispensable purposes besides
getting higher wages; and that even with the best bonus system
there will be the same necessity for organized labor to protect
itself against the greed of unscrupulous employers who will
succumb to the temptation to cut bonuses as their forefathers
cut piece rates. The only way to meet this is by an unvarying
and long-continued régime of absolute fairness and reliability in
their relations with their workmen on the part of all employers.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
70s
The other objection, that increased output means diminished
employment, is more subtle; yet the facts of history show the
contrary so consistently that the prevalence of the idea must be
charged to sheer ignorance.
This ignorance of what history has proved, the employers and
the better informed workmen must eradicate. They must show
how increased output means, in the long run, lower prices, greatly
increased demand, and increased employment to meet the new
demand. Also that it means a larger dividend in which the
laborer may share, and a lower cost for the products which he
consmnes; in short, that this idea is one of the most cruel self-
delusions from which humanity has ever suffered. It demands
an incessant campaign of education.
With the disappearance of these two fears, employers and
unions are bound to unite eventually in a common effort to
increase the efficiency of production and distribution. They will
reduce and perhaps eliminate the hardship which has usually
accompanied the period of transition from one stage of efficiency
to another. ( They will eliminate the wasted energy characteristic
of ordinary methods of production, and thus increase the total
product in which they must all share. J They will reduce the
friction and waste of disorganized marketing, and they will adjust
the balance of supply and demand more carefully and intelli¬
gently, so that there will be made just what can be absorbed at the
minimum waste cost, and no more. This will keep everybody
busy all the time and the industrial millennium will be nearly at'
hand.
This is no irridescent phantasy, but merely a statement of the
probable outcome of the tendency of today to attack and solve
intelligently the age-long problem of fair dealing between the
master and the man.
THE RELATION OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT TO
THE WAGE PROBLEM
«
By C. BERTRAND THOMPSON
Reprinted by permission of the Journal of Political Economy
That the Taylor system of scientific management has made
good with manufacturers and employers who know, cannot now
in the light of recent history be gainsaid. The sworn testimony
of manufacturers before the Congressional Committee on Labor
" appointed to investigate the Taylor and other systems of man¬
agement "Ms conclusive on this score. The report of the chief of
ordnance for 1912^ with reference to the working of the system in
government arsenals is an illuminating and informing document
from an unprejudiced source, which settles the question at least so
farï'as machine-shops are concerned. The application of scientific
management to other branches of industry has been spreading
widely, not only in this country but abroad in Europe and Japan,
and always with the same satisfactory results. In spite of the
popular confusion of ideas about what scientific management is
and the frequent mistaking of various other " systems " for the
Taylor system, the success of the latter in its complete applica¬
tions is now indisputable, and well-informed managers are aware
of that fact.
It is not surprising, however, that the mass of laboring men are
as a whole quite uninformed and misinformed on the subject.
Men who work in plants organized according to the Taylor system
know the facts and are quite willing to admit its success from their
point of view. But the majority of workingmen have ñever seen
such plants, and in all frankness it must be said that they have
been consistently and persistently misinformed, especially by
^ Special Committee to Investigate the Taylor and Other Systems of Shop
Management, The Taylor and other Systems of Shop Management. Hearings,
October 4, 1911, to February 12, 1912. Government Printing Office, Washington,
1912.
® Government Printing Office, Washington, 1912.
706
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
707
some of their trade union leaders, in regard to the effect of the
system upon the health and wages of the men. This propaganda
of misinformation is but a variation of the warfare with which the
introduction of machinery was met, and it is likely to have the
same effect of retarding the further development of scientific
management, unless counteracted by a propaganda of facts. A
campaign of education of the workingmen is necessary and, if
long enough continued, is bound to be effective. Such a cam¬
paign, however, must itself be based upon facts ; and in this paper
I hope to show the bearing of the Taylor system on the " wage
problem."
Of the trinity of materials, machinery, and men that consti¬
tutes factory organization, the most important factor is men.
Though every one recognizes this truth, very few have in the past
acted upon it. A great deal of attention has been given to the
purchase of materials in the cheapest markets, and the getting
of materials best adapted to the processes in hand. And, simi¬
larly, much thought has been devoted to the technical improve¬
ment of machinery and the introduction of inventions. Every
up-to-date concern has its purchasing agents, its inspectors and
laboratories, its machinists and inventors; but very few seem to
have given particular attention to the most fundamental of the
three elements — the men.
In spite of the prevalence of the talk about sanitation, safety,
welfare, esprit de corps, etc., the most vital point of contact be¬
tween managers and the men is the pay envelope. There is no
solution of the problem of apparently conflicting interests between
employers and employed that does not involve fundamentally the
question of wages.
What is the relation of scientific management to the wage
problem ? Perhaps the easiest way to make clear the point at
which I hope to arrive in this paper is to review briefly the history
of wage systems.
It is rather difficult to say which kind of wages came first —
day rates or piece rates. Probably both have existed ever since
one man worked for another. Perhaps piece rates came first; for
we may imagine that, when our primeval ancestors got together
7O8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and one of them decided to fish for a day if another would make
axes that same day, they would swap products with each other.
In other words, each was paying the other for a definite product,
which is the essence of a piece rate. In a condition of society in
which foresight was not highly developed and complex thought
was difficult, such a method was the easier and therefore probably
the more common. But when the operations of labor became
more complex and the imagination more comprehensive, one
would start to do something for another that would necessarily
take more than a day. The workman in the meantime would
have to live and could not wait until the product he was working
on was finished before getting some kind of pa3mient. His pay
evidently could not be for a definite product and must therefore
have been on a day rate. But whatever the origin and the
priority of these rates, it is a fact that they have existed side by
side through all historic time.
The idea of payment for work involves the notion of equiva¬
lence of value, and this notion has crystallized into the common
expression, " a fair day's work for a fair day's pay." These
terms are exceedingly vague. A fair day's work seems to mean to
most people that the workman shall keep busy for the greater part
or the whole of the day, or at least appear to be busy. A fair day's
wage in most minds means such a wage as will enable a man to live
up to the standard of comfort common among his peers in the
community. In primitive conditions if a man would work all day
and his employer would pay him for that day's work what was
necessary to enable him to live, the sense of fairness was satisfied.
Both of these ideas are exempHfied in the parable of the man
who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vine¬
yard; an hour or two later he went out and hired others; late in
the afternoon he hired still others; then at the end of the day each
was paid a penny. The men that went to work in the early morn¬
ing protested that, as they had worked longer, they should be paid
more. The master of the vineyard, however, maintained that it
was his right to pay what he chose, and his idea seems to have
been that whether a man worked one hour or ten he needed the
penny in order to live. The workmen were going on the theory
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
709
that a fair day's work means working all day; the employer on
the theory that a fair day's wage is what a man needs.
One obvious difficulty with day wages lies in the fact that,
though the wage may be fairly set by public opinion or by organ¬
ization, the content of a day's work is not by that method estab¬
lished. You may satisfy the workman by giving him what he
needs, what he has to have, but you have not necessarily satisfied
the employer that the workman has done a fair day's work merely
because he has spent a certain number of hours on the job; for
after all the employer's equivalent is not as a rule the mere com¬
mand of the workman's time but a measurable product.
When the day's wage is set by public opinion or by organiza¬
tion, but the day's work is not, there is a tendency for the day's
work to diminish gradually to the point where the workman can
just keep his job. That this has happened in many cases is a
matter of current knowledge, and is one reason for the dissatis¬
faction of employers with the day wage; for the workmen have
sometimes abused their opportunity and have done just the least
possible ; and their opportunity to do this has arisen largely from
the fact that the employer has never really known what a fair
day's work is.
When this condition becomes intolerable to the employer, the
natural, the obvious thing to do is to pay for the unit of product
instead of the time employed. The history of piece rates is well
known. On their introduction the employer pays for what he
gets and the employee is paid for what he does. Both sides are
satisfied and the production increases. The time soon comes
when the workman puts forth all the energy he can muster to earn
as large a wage for as large a number of units of product as he can
possibly produce. The employer is highly pleased with the
increased production, but soon begins to worry about the wages
he is paying. Then comes the inevitable cut. The workman has
himself established the rate of production of which he is capable,
and the employer figures a piece rate on this production which will
just provide the man an average living wage. One or two cuts are
usually enough to show the workman the futility of putting forth
his best efforts under such a system; and the advantages of piece
7IO SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
rates have in many cases been destroyed in this way by the greed
and the injustice of the employer. The opportunity for greed and
injustice, however, arose from the fact that neither the employer
nor the employee really knew what a fair day's work was.
It is generally recognized today that both day rates and piece
rates are clumsy and inefhcient, for the reason that the workman
will frequently beat the day rate and the employer will cut the
piece rate. This is made possible and practically inevitable by
the ignorance on both sides as to what is either a fair day's work or
a fair day's wage.
Many efforts have been made to avoid both horns of the
dilemma. From the fourteenth century on, legislation was
depended upon. Legislation which set wages to meet the condi¬
tions existent at the time it was passed was fairly efficient; but the
rapid changes in industrial conditions were not followed by
equally rapid changes in legislation; with the result that the laws
of the market prevailed eventually over the laws of the legislature.
In fact near the beginning of our modern era of industrial organ¬
ization existing legislation had actually become obsolete, and the
attempt to regulate wages by act of Parliament was, under the
influence of the ideas of Adam Smith, formally and officially
given up.
Adam Smith's optimistic philosophy to the effect that if men
were left alone the compromise effected by the conflict of their
self-interests would work out to the greatest satisfaction of all,
was not justified by the event. The Statutes of Labourers,
though poorly fitting the conditions at the beginning of the nine¬
teenth century, were some slight protection to the workingman.
Though originally intended to set a maximum beyond which
wages should not go in periods when labor was scarce, their appli¬
cation changed entirely in the course of two centuries, and in the
early years of the industrial revolution they established at least a
minimum wage and, when they were repealed, the workingman
was left at the mercy of his employer, and from his relatively
weak position was forced down to and below the limit of endur¬
ance. His only resort was organization.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
711
This was the time at which labor unions in the modern sense of
the term established themselves, demonstrated the necessity of
their existence, and got the foothold which they maintain in Eng¬
land and America and many other countries today. They were
the answer of the under dog to the insolent assertion of preroga¬
tive on the part of the employers to establish any wages and any
conditions which they chose to impose.
Labor unionism has not been exempt from the usual tendency
of movements to go too far in the direction in which they started.
The unions were organized originally to protect the employee
against the aggression of employers; but as they began to feel
their power and to exercise it, it was inevitable that in the course
of a few decades they should turn the tables on the employers and
themselves become the oppressors. They discovered that they
could tell the employers what the latter must pay but that the
employers had no means of determining how much work the
employees ought to do. The policy of restriction of output has
been based on many arguments, but the most primitive and
potent reason for it is the selfish tendency of human nature to give
as little as possible for what it gets. When the employees through
organization acquired the power to determine wages and the
employers in their ignorance had no means of determining a fair
day's work, a minimum output was the inevitable consequence.
If in some cases this tendency was counteracted by a sense of
fairness and mutual dependence, in many more cases it was aggra¬
vated by the feeling of conflicting interest and inherent hostility
between the two parties. In fact this feeling of hostility has been
so prominent as to mislead many men into the idea that to solve
the wage problem meant merely to establish cordial relations
between the employer and the employee. Many means to this
end have been proposed and tried.
One of the earliest attempts to bridge the gulf was to leave the
method of payment unchanged but to secure the cooperation of
the workingman by the psychological means of kindness, fair
treatment, and the development of a spirit of loyalty and of per¬
sonal satisfaction in doing the job right; this is the basis of the
so-called " welfare movement." Experience has shown that
712
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
where day wages are paid and there is no established method of
determining and enforcing a day's work, the best that can be done
is to try to develop the spirit of cooperation by such methods.
There are many objections, however, to most welfare schemes.
One reason for their frequent failure is the fact that they are
largely personal to the man who instáis and develops them. He
is unable to resist the temptation to impose upon the workingmen
his own ideas of what is best for them. Often also he is arbitrary
and capricious. He looks at welfare work as a gratuity on his
part which he can extend or withhold at his convenience. Some¬
times also, in the excess of his zeal, he carries his welfare activities
down to the most personal details of his employee's domestic
management and arouses a feeling of strong resentment. But
more important than these objections is the common and natural
opinion of the men that the firm which can afford to maintain
welfare institutions can just as well afford to pay better wages,
and that they (the men) have a right to decide for themselves how
these wages shall be spent. And, finally, welfare schemes often
bear the aspect of charity to the employee or of advertising for
the firm; and in either case they come speedily to destruction.
Some manufacturers have said: If welfare is charity and
charity is disagreeable to the men, let us be businesslike. The
success of our concern is the joint product of the men and the
management, and it is businesslike for the management to share
the profits with the men. We will limit our profits to lo per cent
and all over that we will divide among our employees."
The history of profit-sharing has been as discouraging as that
of welfare movements. One or two conspicuous successes may be
pointed out; but, on the whole, it is a history of failure. The
recent report of the British Board of Trade on Profit Sharing,^
bringing its history in Great Britain up to date, shows con¬
clusively that the best results accomplished in a few establish¬
ments consist merely in a general better feeling toward the
management. It points out that definite and substantial in-
^ (British) Board of Trade (Labour Department), Report on Profit Sharing
and Labour Co-partnership in the United Kingdom. Wyman & Sons, Ltd., Lon¬
don, 1912.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
713
creases in output or in wages are rare, if they exist at all, and that
at the best it is extremely difficult to establish a relation between
such improvement as has been observed and the method of profit
sharing. The reasons for this are numerous: in the first place
the reward is too remote and uncertain; the workman may wait
a year for his dividend and then find that there is nothing to be
divided. He is usually suspicious that the accounts are being
juggled in the interests of the management. In any case he
finds his share of the profits ridiculously small in proportion to
the increase of energy he may have put into his work. The
most conspicuous example of this is the scheme of interesting the
employee in the concern by allowing him to purchase shares; a
holder of five shares in a company that has an issue of twenty
million may double, treble, or quadruple his output and efficiency
without producing the sKghtest effect upon the dividends on his
shares. Beyond and behind all these reasons is the fact that
people generally do not consider profit sharing fair. Profit
sharing is a form of partnership, and a partnership should be for
worse as well as for better; but the profit sharing scheme divides
part of the profits among the men and imposes all the losses on
the management. Such a scheme is not and cannot be per¬
manently satisfactory.
As these plans have failed one after another, other schemes
have been proposed to take their place. It was felt that the inter¬
est of the workman, which the usual profit sharing scheme had
failed to arouse, might be secured if the workman were to get
more quickly the benefits of his increased activity. A straight
piece rate which would secure him such a benefit would carry
with it the temptation to the management to cut; so the scheme "
was evolved of setting a standard time, based on experience, in
which work could be done, and then dividing with the workman
any time saved by the latter over the standard time. This
amounts to notifying the workman in advance that, after certain
earnings on a piece rate basis have been reached, his rate will
be cut one-half. Crude as it is, this premium system has been
successful for limited periods in many cases. The management
makes its cuts once for all in advance and the workman knows
714
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
exactly what is cotning. Unless some cut is made which is not
scheduled, the men will work under this scheme with considerable
interest and profit both to themselves and to their employer.
But this scheme also usually fails in the long run because it has
not cured the fundamental weakness of both day and piece rates:
to wit, uncertainty as to what is a fair day's pay and ignorance as
to what is a fair day's work. In short, none of the current and
historic methods of wage payment satisfy the popular demand for-
equivalence incorporated in the expression, a " fair day's work for
a fair day's wage," for the reason that neither side of the equation
has been until recently definitely determined. Where there is
only uncertainty as to what constitutes either a day's work or a
fair wage, there can obviously be no satisfactory solution of the
problem.
So far as I know, the first recorded successful attempt in his¬
tory to determine either side of the equation accurately and
scientifically was made by Mr. Frederick W. Taylor at the works
of the Midvale Steel Company thirty years ago. As foreman in
the plant, Mr. Taylor found himself involved in the usual conflict
over wages; and he observed that no matter what scheme he
tried, he did not secure permanent satisfaction among the work¬
men or the employers. Nobody really knew what ought to be
expected as a day's work. He set out, therefore, to devise a
method to determine accurately if possible what a fair day's work
was, and then to pay for the performance of this work in propor¬
tion as it exceeded the ordinary commonly accepted day's work on
which the ordinary rates of pay were based.
As the result of several years' study and experimenting, Mr.
Taylor evolved the method of time study and the differential
piece rate which characterize his system of scientific management
today. Where the differential piece rate prevails, there are two
rates for each product : one known as the low rate and the other
as the high rate. For example, time study shows that it is pos¬
sible to produce lo units of a certain product in a day; for each of
these units the workman gets 35 cents, provided he produces the
10. But, if he produces less than 10, he gets 25 cents per unit.
If he ptoduces 8 units, he gets $2.00; if 9, $2.25 ; if 10, he gets, not
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
lo X 25 cents but 10 X 35 cents, or I3.50. This obviously pro¬
vides a strong incentive to a man to accomplish the production on
which the high rate is based.
The essential feature of the system is, however, that the stand¬
ard production (known technically among the Taylor group as
" the task ") must be based on an accurate time study; and it
must be determined with the same impersonal and dispassionate
desire for truth that actuates the scientist in his laboratory. The
work to be studied is divided first into its elementary operations,
and the time in which these operations can be performed after
methods and materials have been standardized, is ascertained by
a long-continued series of tests on an average man fitted for the
job under observation. The requirements are intelligence,
patience, analytical power, and the capacity for accurate observa¬
tion on the part of the time study man (for whom we should like
to adopt the French name chronométreur), and honesty and skill
on the part of the observed. Given these qualifications, the
determination of a fair day's work is a mere impersonal study
of a physical fact. It is simply answering the question how long
it takes to do a given thing, and the answer does not depend on
any man's personality: it makes no difference whether the time
study is done by a union leader or by the owner of the works, by
an old man or a young woman; personal interest plays no more
part in it than it does in the measurements of an astronomer or
physicist.
Time study then, when made by competent men trained in its
technique and the technique of the industry under observation,
defines at least one side of the equation : namely, the content of a
fair day's work. Such study, when properly made, includes
allowance for necessary rest and other necessary delays. When
these facts are determined and a mimimum time established, the
conclusion is a positive, impersonal fact, the result of observa¬
tion; it is not a matter of any one's opinion or interest, but a fact
established in accordance with the approved methods of scientific
investigation.
Time study, while but one element of the Taylor system of
management, is typical of that system in its scientific method; and
7I6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
this characteristic method is that which has gained for the Taylor
system the name of " scientific management." When such time
study is instituted in a plant, it involves the standardization of
administration and of equipment, materials, and methods, and
therefore implies a radical and revolutionary reorganization of the
plant. The establishment of a fair day's work (the task) and
the institution and maintenance of conditions which will enable
the workman to accomphsh this work and earn the increased com¬
pensation known as " the bonus," cannot be done successfully in a
plant managed by the old methods. It requires more than a new
mechanism; it requires a new mental attitude on the part of the
management, the attitude of the scientific investigator, which is
as free as possible from personal interest, and which assumes
nothing that cannot be ascertained and proved; it means a new
moral attitude — a substitution of the passion for truth for the
reliance on guess work, ignorance, and bluff which has heretofore
prevailed.
The usual method of setting piece rates makes no claim to being
scientific, even if in some cases it may be honest. Some plants
establish their rates as the result of a series of observations of the
time similar jobs have taken in the past; but as these observations
show widely varying times for the same work, an average is taken
which is simple arithmetic and nothing else. Others set a rate on
the basis of what they can afford to pay in the prevailing state of
the market. New rates are almost always set by some one's
" judgment " which is merely a term for a more or less experi¬
enced guess.
For all these methods the Taylor system substitutes the method
of the scientific observer. If the observer, being human and in
some cases more in sympathy with the management than with the
men, allows his scientific judgment to be swayed by his desire to
make the day's work as large as possible, he cannot do otherwise
than overstep the mark to the extent of setting a task which can¬
not be accompHshed. But this process is self-defeating, for if the
task cannot be made, the bonus cannot be earned, and the men
will not attempt to do the new day's work. The management
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
717
thereby loses more than the men, and the intrusion of a greedy
bias kills the goose that lays the golden egg.
The Taylor system therefore puts a firm foundation under one
pier of the arch which is to bridge the gulf between employer and
employee, in that at least it makes it possible to determine what is
a fair day's work. What does it say about a fair day's wage ?
Scientific management does not today attempt to establish
what is a fair day's wage. It takes the prevailing rate of wages in
the community and then proceeds to add to that a bonus in pro¬
portion to the achievement secured in excess of the ordinary
achievement in that community. This process, however, leaves
the basic rate to be determined as before ; that is, by the ordinary
daily bargaining in the market. We have seen that in this
bargaining the disadvantage at which the workman is placed by
his dependence upon his work for a Hving has subjected him to
abuse at the hands of his employers. Legislation has failed to
determine a fair day's wage. It can set a rate of payment, but,
until it sets the amount of work that is to be done for that rate and
enforces the performance of the standard amount of work set, the
rate is futile. In this fact hes the fundamental weakness of
mimimum-wage legislation. The law cannot compel an em¬
ployer permanently to pay $8 a week, unless it can also assure
him workmen who can and will produce at least $8 worth.
Experience has shown that the good-will of the employer cannot
be depended upon permanently to maintain a fair day's wage.
Public opinion also has failed, for the reason that, while in an
abstract way each man wants justice for the other fellow, he is not
willing to make much personal sacrifice in the way of paying
higher prices for the other fellow's product. Each member of the
public wants to buy everything as cheap as he can get it, even if
this cheapness involves some one's else low wages.
In my opinion it is as true today as it was a century ago that the
final resort of the workingman is in the collective force of organ¬
ized labor. Under scientific management or any other system,
the workmen must depend upon their combined power to enforce
a mimimum wage. But this policy will not succeed in the future
any better than it has in the past, unless the demand for a mini-
718
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
mum wage is accompanied by the promise and guaranty of a
quantity of work which will warrant that wage. There is no
possible harmony between scientific management, large output,
and the social interest on the one hand, and mere unintelligent
force, restriction of output and class interest on the other. But
the labor union which will adopt the policy of establishing a mini¬
mum wage as a basic rate on which a bonus, determined by the
conditions of the industry, shall be paid for the performance of a
proper day's work, and which, in addition, will assist if necessary
in determining what a proper day's work is, and in enforcing the
performance of that work on the part of its members, is acting at
once in its own interest and in that of society. This would be a
long step toward the solution of the wage problem and would help
to bring about that cooperation of employee and employer which
we all desire and hope for but rarely see.
It is something more than a dream that labor unions are sooner
or later going to take over scientific management and make it their
own. They have already established their right — by force, to be
sure, as most rights are established — to determine a minimum
wage. They have established their right to safe and sanitary
conditions of work. There are cases on record where they have
gone to the management and said: "You will have to scrap that
obsolete machinery and put in new machinery. ' ' They have com¬
plained to state commissions of the obsolete equipment of rail¬
roads. They have even struck to compel the management to
instal the Taylor system, and have done this, not because they
were primarily interested in large output or higher profits for the
management, or even in a lower cost to the consumer, but because
they were intelligent enough to realize that in industry as else¬
where, knowledge is the foundation of justice, and only that
method of management based upon knowledge can answer per¬
manently the question of fairness.
Along this line a union can and should say to its employer:
" We do not care how much profit you can make out of your busi¬
ness but we insist upon having fair wages, and if you cannot make
enough by your present methods to pay us fair wages, you must,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
719
if you want to employ us, organize your business on the most
modern and scientific plan, so that you can pay us."
When labor unions arrive at that point of view, as they will
when they get a type of leadership which is more interested in
securing the welfare of their members through peaceful progress
and cooperation than in earning their salary by fomenting strife
— when they take over scientific management and say: "We
believe in this and will help it because it means larger output,
lower cost to the consumer, higher wages for ourselves, prosperity
for the employer, general satisfaction and a higher standard of
living; and because it is good for us we insist that you shall adopt
it " — then we shall have a type of cooperation which is perma¬
nent because it involves fundamentally the welfare of both parties.
And in this I believe I see as near a solution of the wage problem
as we are likely to reach under our current form of industrial
organization. This involves not the weakening but the strength¬
ening of organization of both employers and employees, and
the assumption of greater responsibility on both sides. It can
come only with the increase of knowledge and under the pre¬
dominating influence of a desire for truth and justice; and as
usual the world is being driven toward truth and justice by the
stress of the conflict brought on by ignorance and injustice.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT AND THE WAGE-
EARNER
BY FRANK T. carlton
ALBION COLLEGE
Reprinted by permission of the Journal of Political Economy
Efficiency programs are attracting much attention in this
country, at the present time, because nearly all of the great ex¬
panse of land found within the borders of the United States has
been taken up and the vast natural resources of the nation have
been tapped. We are entering a period of diminishing returns;
and a period in which increasing attention will be directed toward
small economies that were not considered worthy of notice a gen¬
eration ago. " The cream has been skimmed off the pan of our
natural resources." Also, factory legislation, laws as to hours
of labor, and the activity of labor organizations are tending to
raise the level of wages and to increase the expenses of operating
a business. As a consequence, employers are being stimulated
to adopt more efficient methods.
Many indications point to the conclusion that modern indus¬
trial nations are passing over the threshold of a new era in indus¬
trial and social progress. We are about to enter upon a period
marked by the rapid increase in the use of machinery and of
carefully planned methods of doing work. Witness, for example,
the glass-bottle blowing machine, the giant mail-order house
with its systematized large-scale distribution of goods, and the
farmer's use of engines drawing gang-plows. The term " indus¬
trial revolution " has heretofore been applied to the rapid adop¬
tion of new tools and machines.
" Social invention " is to be typical of the epoch just ahead.
And what may be tabulated under the head of social invention,
efficiency engineering, or scientific management ? Efficient com¬
binations of labor-saving machines, accurate information as to the
time and energy required to do specific jobs, motion studies of
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
721
different craftsmen, and psychological studies of the kinds of
incentives which most effectively stimulate workers to do their
work efficiently — these are some of the important planks in the
efficiency program.
Scientific management or efficiency engineering is concerned
with two somewhat interrelated matters. The first is efficient
systematization of the work in a given factory from the engineer¬
ing or the mechanical point of view — the routing of the work,
proper cutting speeds, the care of tools and machines, and the
like. The second factor is psychological in its nature; it relates
to the effective methods of " energizing " the workers by pro¬
viding potent incentives and by stimulating interest in the work.
The first is the more simple of the two problems but it cannot be
carried out successfully without solving the psychological prob¬
lem. Since technical improvements in machine-shop methods
increase the per-capita output of the wage-earners, these scientific
methods will doubtless be introduced, as were machines, in spite
of opposition. Efficient methods of doing work will sooner or
later displace less efficient methods just as, for example, the
steamboat has displaced the sailboat, the automobile is displacing
the horse upon the streets of our cities, and the giant drop-ham¬
mer has displaced the village blacksmith. The transformation
may be retarded; but the constant pressure of economic forces
will finally break down all opposition.
But the second portion of the program of the efficiency engineer
cannot be forced through. It cannot be secured by coercion; it
can be effectively carried out only when the wage-earners har¬
moniously cooperate with the managers in working out the pro¬
posed plan. The fundamental problem of efficiency engineering
centers around the treatment of the wage-earners. It is more
a problem concerned with the relations existing between the
employer and his employees than it is a problem of bookkeeping
or of the care of machines or of the selection of tools. The pioneer
and leading exponent of efficiency engineering, Mr. F. W. Taylor,
writes: " This close, intimate, personal cooperation between the
management and the men is of the essence of modern scientific or
task management." And Harrington Emerson asserts that to
722
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
establish rational work standards for men requires, indeed,
motion and time studies of all operations, but it requires in addi¬
tion all the skill of the planning manager, all the skill of the phy¬
sician, of the humanitarian, of the physiologist; it requires infinite
knowledge directed, guided, and restrained by hope, faitl^, and
compassion."
In theory, according to its advocates, scientific management
stands for increased productive capacity without increased effort;
it aims to do away with lost motion and useless movements. It
means maximum results with a minimum of effort; it does not
mean frenzied production." Now, these objects are certainly
worthy of approval; and, consequently, opposition to efi&ciency
engineering must arise because of the methods employed in carry¬
ing out the policy. Our attention evidently must be directed
toward this pertinent inquiry: How, then, can this " close, inti¬
mate, personal cooperation," of which Mr. Taylor speaks, be
secured ?
It is perhaps worth while at the outset to call attention to the
obvious fact that the man who is " working for himself " does not
object to methods or systems which lighten his work. The far¬
mer is glad to obtain a tool which will increase his productivity.
Even the conservative wife of the farmer is not adverse to the
installation of a new or better pump, a cream-separator, or some
scheme which will save steps. Why, then it may be asked, does
the wage-earner so frequently resist the introduction of new
machinery or of new and scientific methods of performing work ?
The farmer and the farmer's wife do not fear that the new ma¬
chines or methods will cause them to lose their positions, or that
they will be called upon to do much more work for little more
pay. They believe, on the contrary, that their income will be
increased and the length of their working-day reduced. In
short, they are confident that the results of their efforts will be
multiplied. On the other hand, the wage-earner feels instinc¬
tively, too often as the consequence of past experience, that the
system of scientific management is some more or less subtle
scheme to advance the interests of his employer at the expense
of the workers individually or as a class. How can the view-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
723
point of the worker be modified until it coincides in this par¬
ticular with that of the farmer or with that of the man who is
" working for himself ? " This points to another fundamental
problem for the efi&ciency engineer to solve.
The wage-earner is today insistently demanding that a portion
of his share in the advantages accruing from the introduction of
improved machinery and of scientific management be given to
him in the form of a shorter working-day. His conception of a
desirable form of society in the twentieth century is not one in
which a certain number of individuals work at high speed during
a long working-day but one in which all work during a short
working-day. There are, obviously, at least two alternative
methods which may be pursued in producing a given quota ^ of
economic goods and services: a small number of men may be
employed for a long working-day or a larger number for a shorter
working-day. From the standpoint of the wage-earner observ¬
ing a large and apparently growing army of unemployed, the
second alternative is by no means repulsive. His ideal is not
necessarily maximum productivity per worker per day; but a
condition in which work and recreation are blended for each
and every individual. And, if economics is the reasoned
activity of a people tending toward the satisfaction of its needs,"
shall the economist confidently assert that the wage-earner's
ideal is one worthy only of contemptuous rejection ?
If scientific management has great possibilities, the effect of its
introduction may not be unlike that caused by the displacement
of the hand tool by the machine. Not only may increased pro¬
duction be anticipated, but also the displacement of workers,
temporary unemployment for many, and a multitude of in¬
dustrial evils which accompany every important readjustment
in the sphere of industry. The introduction of scientific man¬
agement bids fair to cause " another intensive, resistless reorder-
^ The assumption of " a given quota of economic goods and services " is appli¬
cable only to a static state and, in so far as the argument of the writer is based
upon this assiunption, it does not apply to a dynamic economic condition in which
the quota of economic goods and services which can be absorbed by society is
constantly increasing. — Ed.
724
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ing of industrial life." ^ And the wage-earner, with his skill as his
sole capital, with only a small savings account or none, and with
a family to provide for, is justified in manifesting alarm. A
resistless reordering of industrial life " usually means, for
many wage-earners, unemployment and uncertainty. John
Stuart Mill asserted that " hitherto it is questionable if all the
mechanical inventions yet made have Hghtened the day's toil of
any human being." Will scientific management do so ?
Before passing to a consideration of the conditions which are
requisite for the successful outcome of scientific management, it
seems appropriate to notice some of the points made by Mr. F. W.
Taylor in his recent book, The Principles of Scientific Management.
These points have a direct bearing upon the later discussion of the
topic under consideration.
Mr. Taylor declares that under an adequate system of scientific
management, " each man should daily be taught by, and receive
the most friendly help from, those who are over him, instead of
being, at the one extreme, driven or coerced by his bosses, and at
the other left to his own unaided devices." In this manner, it is
urged, " systematic soldiering " on the one hand and injurious
speeding-up on the other hand will be avoided. But is it reason¬
able to expect that the workers will willingly and contentedly
leave the determination of the definition of systematic soldiering
and injurious speeding-up to the inevitably prejudiced judgment
of their employers ? ^
The model workman, from the standpoint of the typical efii-
ciency engineer, is the vigorous man who freely expends all of his
^ While it is true, as the writer suggests, that the introduction of scientific
management means eventually " a resistless reordering of industrial life," it appears
to be assumed that this reordering must come about quickly. The fact is, as has
been pointed out by Mr. Taylor and as is evidenced in experience, that the effect
of this development of management upon industrial conditions is and must neces¬
sarily be gradual from the nature of the factors involved: the necessarily slow
development of the science of each industry; the weight of the inertia both of
management and men to be overcome; the scarcity of experts available to extend
the system; and numerous other reasons. — Ed.
2 The writer here overlooks the fact that the task to which he refers is not
based upon any one's judgment, either that of the employer or of the employee,
but upon accurate time study. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
725
surplus energy during working-hours and who utilizes his non-
working-hours only for recuperation and preparation for another
day's work.^ It is not the purpose of efficiency engineering to
allow the worker to depart from the door of the factory at night
with more than a minimum of surplus energy for recreation, for
family life, for civic duties, or for trade-union activities. In short
I find little in the actual program of efficiency engineering which
indicates that the wage-earner is to be given opportunity for indi¬
vidual development — and I have not overlooked the various
paternalistic endeavors classified as welfare work. A human
machine rather than a man is the " model workman." I also find
Httle, or more accurately nothing, in Mr. Taylor's book which
indicates that he appreciates or sympathizes with the viewpoint
of the wage-earner.
Mr. Taylor informs us that a long series of experiments has
shown that an increase in wages up to 60 per cent beyond the
wages usually paid has a good effect upon the men. But, " on
the other hand, when they receive much more than a 60 per cent
increase in wages, many of them will work irregularly and tend
to become more or less shiftless, extravagant, and dissipated.
Our experiments showed, in other words, that it does not do for
most men to get rich too fast."^ But what of the efficiency of the
^ Cf. this statement with Mr. Taylor's definitions. The following quotation is
from his " Principles of Scientific Management," page 9.
" The principal object of management should be to secure the maximum pros¬
perity for the employer, coupled with the maximum prosperity for each employee.
" The words ' maximum prosperity ' are used, in their broad sense, to mean not
only large dividends for the company or owner, but the development of every
branch of the business to its highest state of excellence, so that the prosperity may
be permanent.
" In the same way maximum prosperity for each employee means not only
higher wages than are usually received by men of his class, but, of more importance
still, it also means the development of each man to his state of maximum efficiency,
so that he may be able to do, generally speaking, the highest grade of work for
which his natural abilities fit him, and it further means giving him, when possible,
this class of work to do." — Ed.
2 Mr. Taylor's observation on this matter has been amply confirmed by experi¬
ence. One conspicuous example should be sufficient. The man referred to in
" Shop Management " as " Schmidt," the pig-iron handler, has had his record
traced recently, and the investigation showed that the unusual and exceptional
earnings he made were used largely in drinking. — Ed.
726
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
corporation whidi receives large increases in its rate of profits ?
How do such increases affect the alertness of the managers,
the adoption of improved methods, machines, and safety appli¬
ances ? ^ Can the workers or the consumers afford to allow an
emplo}ing corporation to increase its rate of profits ? If so, how
rapidly and how much ? This is an unworked field of efficiency
engineering. And our efficiency engineers are not enthusiasti¬
cally interested in investigations of this sort.
•• Soldiering " on the part of wage-eamem in the United States
is alleged to be a menace to the prosperity- of eveiy- establishment
and of eveiy- wage-earner in the nation. The causes of soldiering,
according to Mr. Taylor, are three in nuniber; but these are
readily reducible to two. These two causes may be stated as
foUows: (d) the general acceptance of the lump-of-work doctrine;
{h) the lack of scientific management. I have elsewhere ® shown
that the lump-of-work argument cannot be so easily laughed out
of court as some economists and employers would have us believe.
The workingman is interested in tomorrow's job and wages rather
than in some indefinite benefit to society next decade.
The knowledge that a certain polic}-. if pursued by all for a period of years,
will ineritably bring about reductions in the wage scale does not appeal to the
average wage-earner with a family to feed, clothe, and shelter, in the direct
and forceful manner that the immediate probability of slack work does. He
sees that by " nursing " a particular job he may work longer or another fel¬
low-workman may be employed. This is something tangible, the other is a
remote and uncertain possibility. Immediate work for John overshadow
the ^-ision of a chance of future emplojnnent for Tom, Dick, and Harry, and
other unnamed and unknown individuals.
]Mr. Taylor directs attention to the shoe industry. The intro¬
duction of machiner}- into this industry has undoubtedly cheap¬
ened the price of shoes to the consumer; and the workers can, as
a consequence, afford to buy more and better shoes. And it may
also be true " that there are relatively more men working in the
1 Inasmuch as the increased profits refored to cannot posist in competitive
conditions, in the absöice of managerial alatness, this alatness is in such condi¬
tions automatically maintained. In most cases it is iMaásely the ^ct that the
managa has the acquisitive or business tanpaamait that is iadhyatsahle to his
being managa instead of man. — Ed.
® The History and Problems of Organised Labor, R). 132-134-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 727
shoe industry than ever before." But it is also a fact that many
workers were adversely affected by the introduction of shoe
machinery. That great and spectacular outburst of unionism —
the Knights of St. Crispin — was not the fantastic result of purely
imaginary dangers. Many men with wives and children to feed,
clothe, and house saw their trade, that is, their means of earning
a decent livelihood, being ruined; they saw — and their vision
was not defective — the menace, at that time and place, of cheap
labor. Their problem was individual and immediate, not social
- and a matter of future welfare.^
The non-social lump-of-work argument is closely paralleled by
what may well be called a lump-of-capital argument. Many a
corporation composed of individuals who are not in business for
their health has obtained a patent upon some new appliance
which would cheapen the cost of production but necessitate the
scrapping of much valuable equipment; and, consequently,
with the aid of our antiquated patent laws such corporations
have quietly shelved the patents. The attitude of the capitalist
in such a case is not very dissimilar to that of the workingman
who opposes the introduction of machinery or of new processes
which threaten his trade or his lump-of-labor. In addition to
the prevention of soldiering on the part of workingmen one of the
problems of a well-rounded program of efficiency engineering
would be to prevent the shelving of new appliances and machines,
and, perhaps, to call for a modification of patent laws. But so
far as my knowledge goes, our efficiency engineers have not paid
much attention to this important matter.
With these illustrations before us, you are asked to direct your
attention to the requisites, in the judgment of the writer, for a
successful form of efficiency engineering or of scientific manage¬
ment.
^ The writer is correct in calling attention to this fact which has apparently
hitherto been overlooked by most of the exponents of scientific management. It
is on account of the important personal bearing of scientific management that the
problem of educating the laborer is so much more difl&cult than from a strictly
logical point of view would appear to be necessary. — Ed.
728 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
All careful and disinterested students of efficiency engineering
will doubtless admit that such systems are advocated by the
employer, that the employer instituting them expects to direct
their operation, and that the systems are adopted primarily for
the benefit of the employer. The problems connected with the
various systems are viewed from the standpoint of the employer
and capitalist. Benefit to the wage-earner is perhaps considered
to be an incidental advantage; but it is a secondary matter. The
bright and shining goal — the attractive lure — is lowered costs
and increased profits, rather than better workmen and citizens, or
more leisure and culture and enjoyment for the toiling mass and
their families.^ Is it reasonable to expect that the wage-earners,
organized or unorganized, will grow enthusiastic over a lop-sided
system of scientific management ? If, as Mr. Taylor declares,
close, intimate, personal cooperation " is required to " enér-
gize " a plant, efficiency engineering cannot reach a high degree of
success while the workers distrust the motives of the employer,
or as long as the workers in the plant are convinced that the
employer is trying to get more work out of them without pro¬
portionally increasing their pay.
The average American citizen looks askance upon an arbitrary
government which is in no way under the control of the mass of
governed. The despot, whether enlightened and benevolent or
not, would be regarded with suspicion and would not be tolerated.
Men have repeatedly and vigorously objected to arbitrary action
on the part of government. And for centuries the western world
has been moving toward democracy. The Louis XIV view of
government is obsolete, but absolutism in industry is still char¬
acteristic of the business world. Will not, therefore, the average
wage-earner, granted political privileges but shut out of the
councils of industry, distrust the management of the business in
which he earns his daily bread. He will certainly see in the plans
of the employer schemes for quietly and effectively squeezing
the laboring man. The workers in our shops, factories, and
^ It is neither a long nor a difficult course of reasoning which connects lowered
costs, increased profits, and higher wages (the latter unfortimately omitted by the
author) with " more leisure and culture and enjoyment for the toiling mass and their
families." — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 729
mines can no more be expected to look with favor upon arbitrary
changes concerning which they have not been consulted, than
can the average citizen of today be expected smilingly to abide
by the rulings of an arbitrary monarch.
The day of the individual entrepreneur is of the past, not of the
present nor of the future. We may regret his going; we may
vociferously assert that he was superior to the giant corporation
with its collection of mutually independent units, and we may
argue that the rivalry between entrepreneur and entrepreneur is
essential to business progress and industrial efficiency; but the
corporation is here, and here to stay. Likewise, the day of indi¬
vidual bargaining with the isolated worker is passing. Employers
may strive to delay its going; but in vain will be the effort. Pro¬
fessor Commons has pointed out that unorganized as well as
organized workers are willing to strike for the right to bargain
collectively. " It is their desperate recognition that the day of
individual bargains is gone for them." It is safe to assert that
efficiency engineering will not be successfully introduced and
maintained by union-smashing corporations demanding indi¬
vidual bargaining with workers, because " close, intimate,
personal cooperation between the management and the men "
obviously is impossible under such conditions.^
Organized labor is definitely committed to the method of col¬
lective bargaining; and both organized and unorganized wage-
earners recognize that, except in a few highly skilled trades and in
the case of farm laborers, the individual bargain leads toward a
sweating system. The employer who demands the continued use
of the individual bargain, whether the demand is made in the
name of liberty and the freedom of contract or in the name of
efficiency, becomes an object of suspicion. Individual bargain¬
ing is productive of distrust rather than of harmonious coopera¬
tion. ^ And consequently efficiency engineering can only hope to
^ Thus far scientific management has been introduced mainly in establishments
which practise individual bargaining exclusively and, in spite of the theory, it is
evident to any student of those organizations that " close, intimate, personal
cooperation between the management and the men " has been secured. — Ed.
® As may be inferred from the previous note, this statement is not borne out
in experience. — Ed.
730
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
succeed, in the long run, in energizing workers by utilizing the
collective bargain. And accepting the collective bargain means
the partial admission of the representatives of the workers into
the councils of the employers. It is a tentative step away from
autocracy in business; it is a step toward putting industry upon
a peace instead of a war footing. Collective bargaining and the
admission of the workers into the councils of the management
are essentials of close cooperation between the management and
the employees. But the leaders in the movement for efficiency
engineering have not, as yet, given this fundamental fact definite
recognition.
Successful scientific management — management which pos¬
sesses the qualities demanded by its advocates — must neces¬
sarily cast aside the old incentives such as coercion, and the
constant nagging and prodding by the foreman. Furthermore,
it must be so directed that the workers will be convinced that it
is to their interests "to accept the planning-room's methods and
program, and to follow the system outlined by the experts
in charge of the work. But, without organization and the col¬
lective bargain, have the workers any reason to believe that the
program of the efficiency engineer will benefit them ? If the
history of the introduction of machinery, or of the course of
events in the steel industry since unionism was driven from the
steel mills offers any useful lessons, the obvious conclusion, in
the judgment of the writer, is that the workers must unite upon
both the industrial and the poHtical field in order to derive any
considerable share of the advantage of efi&ciency engineering.
Without united and aggressive action, it]may be anticipated that
the workers will be shorn of the major portion of the direct bene¬
fits which may result. Mutual respect and cooperation between
employers and employees are the fruits of equahty in the strength
and coherence of their respective organizations; and, indeed, only
under such conditions can scientific management achieve its maxi¬
mum of efficiency. Further, it may be quite confidently asserted,
that if under our present industrial order this kind of scientific
management or of efficiency engineering cannot thrive, then is
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
731
that order doomed to be displaced by socialism or some other
form of industrial democracy.
The growth of industrial unionism with its emphasis upon direct
action, as illustrated in the recent English strikes and the Law¬
rence strike, indicates that a new era in unionism is beginning.
Bitter opposition to organized labor and contemptuous disregard
of the demands of employees are strengthening the spirit of soli¬
darity in the ranks of the working class. If it be desirable that
a class-conscious and united army of wage-earners be developed,
then the bitterest and most uncompromising opponents of organ¬
ized labor are its friends in disguise; and the union-recognizing
employer its dangerous antagonist. But if it be desirable to pre¬
vent such a consummation, the wise and conservative entre¬
preneur of today will recognize organized labor and accept the
collective bargain.
In fixing upon the remuneration to be given to the wage-earner
in a factory where scientific management is utilized, two points
must be determined : the day wage and the amount or rate of the
premium or bonus. In either case it is possible to utilize the col¬
lective bargain. The premium rate as well as the day wage can
undoubtedly be fixed by means of the collective bargain. Scien¬
tific management can therefore utilize the collective bargain; it is
not restricted to the individual bargain. And it is not clear that
the wage-earner need oppose. Although under the premium plan,
all workers in a given class would not receive the same weekly
wage, yet the premium rate could be adjusted by agreement
between the employer and the officers of the union. And the
rate also could be so adjusted as to militate against over-driving.^
The spokesmen of organized labor inform the general public that
the union demands a minimum wage, not a uniform wage. But
a reasonable premium plan would offer a minimum wage with an
opportunity to receive a bonus for efficiency. This would not
necessarily militate against organized labor unless a flat rate of
^ This statement betrays a misimderstanding of the nature of a task. See the
article, " The Relation of Scientific Management to the Wage Problem," page
706. — Ed.
732
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
wages within a given class of workers is essential to the main¬
tenance of union solidarity.
In conclusion, it may be pointed out that the success of collec¬
tive bargaining which has been asserted to be an essential element
in successful efficiency engineering in turn depends upon the solu¬
tion of the basic problem: What is a fair wage ? Or, more
specifically, the question may be formulated in the following
manner: What is a fair wage in an epoch when competition is
being displaced as an effective force in the industrial world ?
Or, one further step may be taken: Is there a concept of a fair
wage which can be made acceptable to both employer and em¬
ployees ? Concretely and specifically, the question may be
stated after this fashion: Can a scientific basis be found for the
determination of a satisfactory time base and for a satisfactory
premium rate for the various progressive wage systems which are
being introduced by efficiency engineers ? The familiar theories
of wages such as the wage-fund theory, the residual theory, and
the marginal-productivity theory are all grounded upon the
fundamental postulate of free competition. But today monop¬
oly, special privileges, and economic friction play such important
rôles in the economic sphere that none of these theories throws
much light upon the actual wage question. Indeed, no incon¬
siderable portion of the recent theorizing as to the rights of labor
and of capital is futile because it proceeds on the theory that free
competition exists. To work out the hypothetical course of a
projectile moving in a vacuum is important; but in order to
determine its actual trajectory such studies must be supple¬
mented. In like manner, a theory of wages applicable in a hypo¬
thetical state of free competition is desirable; but it also should be
supplemented by a thorough study of the effect of economic
friction and monopoly.
And, lastly, it may not be irrelevant to inquire: Can scientific
management reach a high level of efficiency while approximately
one-half of the adult wage-earners of the nation are receiving not
more than $500 per year ? But students of workingmen's bud¬
gets seem to agree that in order to support a normal family in a
decent manner an income of $750 to $900 per year is required.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 733
Does not the efficient working-out of a plan of scientific manage¬
ment require the efficiency engineer to go outside the shop in
which the workers are employed ? Does it not require a study
of the conditions surrounding the home life and the recreations
of the wage-earner, such as food, housing, amusements, and the
like ? ^ In building the Panama Canal, it was found necessary
to devote much attention to the sanitary conditions within the
Canal Zone. This work was carried out as an essential part of
the work of building the canal; it was an integral part of scien¬
tific management and of good business policy as applied to that
great undertaking. Surely the same principles apply to the
management of any large business within the borders of the
nation.
In brief, these are the conclusions reached: (i) Up to the pres¬
ent, efficiency engineering has been a one-sided matter. (2) If
any high degree of success is to be attained the cooperation of
the men with the management must be secured. (3) Such co¬
operation can be secured only by utilizing the collective bargain
and by admitting in some measure the representatives of the
workers into the councils of the management. (4) And, still
further, the success of collective bargaining depends," in the long
run, upon finding some mutually acceptable basis for a fair wage.
^ This fact is fvilly recognized by practitioners of scientific management; but
they also recognize the possibihties of danger and of the accusation of unreasonable
interference, if any considerable effort is made to control the food, housing, and
amusements of the workers. — Ed.
ANOTHER SIDE OF EFFICIENCY ENGINEERING
BY DEXTER S. KIMBALL
PROFESSOR OF MACHINE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION, SIBLEY COLLEGE,
CORNELL UNIVERSITY
Reprinted by permission of The American Machinist
In these days when hurry and speed are the keynote of indus¬
try it would seem to be almost sacreligious, or at least a mark of
ignorance, to raise one's voice even in doubt, to say nothing of
protest, against any ways or means for increasing production.
Yet I cannot but think that only certain aspects of some of the
new methods of increasing production are being presented and
that those aspects, which are so alluring, entirely overshadow
certain others and hence do not give a true perspective of what
the net results will be. Now I may be entirely mistaken in my
point of view. If so I shall be glad to be corrected and wiU no
doubt find many who will be glad to correct me.
In the outset I wish to state that I believe firmly in modern
methods of production and appreciate fully what increased pro¬
ductive power by means of machinery and improved methods
has done for our civihzation. I believe we should welcome and
encourage any and all new discoveries in machinery or methods
which will enable us to still further increase our capacity in this
direction and gladly accord the honors due to those who have
been and now are leaders in this work. No sane man questions
the net results to humanity of improved modern methods as far
as they have affected physical and mental well-being. No one
who knows much about manufacturing doubts that many of the
methods now being advocated in many quarters under the name
of " Efficiency Engineering " will still further multiply the fruits
of human effort. The questions which I wish to raise concern
the expediency of certain methods of applying them and the social
and economical effects which are claimed for their application.
The mental and physical welfare of the individual members
of any form of organized society are dependent largely upon
three factors, namely: —
734
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
735
(1) The natural resources at the command of the community.
(2) The tools and methods of production which are available
to develop these resources.
(3) The knowledge arid organization whereby the fruits of
labor may be fairly and equally distributed.
In the early and simple forms of organized society where re¬
sources were ample but tools of production primitive, the third
factor came very nearly being realized in full; but as society
became more and more complex it became increasingly difñcult
for the producer to enforce his demands and secure the full re¬
turn for the service which he had rendered to society. The
introduction of machine processes and the tremendous extension
of division of labor, intensifying as they have the complexity of
our social organization, have still further intensified this difficulty.
The effect is greatest where the skill or intelligence of the worker
is least. Experience shows that the rate of pay for industrial
workers has not increased in proportion to the increase in pro¬
ductive capacity; he would indeed be a bold man who would
contend that in our organization today with its immense burden
of high financiers, grafters, drones and incompetents, the pro¬
ducing classes, including employer and employee, are receiving
full return for the services which they render.
Many civilizations have possessed immense natural resources,
and the modern nations possess tools of production such as the
world has never seen; but only in the simplest forms of organiza¬
tion has equitable distribution of the products of labor been
achieved; all experience goes to show that increased productive
capacity does not necessarily mean increased revenue to the pro¬
ducer; but on the contrary may, if he is not alive to his own in¬
terest, mean an actual decrease. We read of few nations who
have starved to death for lack of tools or methods of production,
but the highway of history is paved with the bones of civilizations
which came to grief on the rocks of unfair distribution. Many
of the existing modern nations still carry dreadful scars received
in bloody revolutions which had their genesis in this, the greatest
of problems of organized society, while many more tremble on
the brink of similar disasters.
736
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Principles of the New Industrial Efficiency
With these things in mind let us examine the principles of the
new industrial efficiency as laid down by its leading exponents.^
No one can reasonably doubt that the extension of these
methods in greater detail will, in general, give increased produc¬
tion, because they have been apphed already on a very large scale
with great success. And there can be little doubt but; what these
methods will come into common use and their field be extended
more and more as they are more fully understood. Labor-saving
machinery and processes always, eventually, come into common
use no matter what the opposition to their adoption may be.
In the long run it would seem that humanity as a whole benefits
from their adoption. It may be noted in passing that the effect
of new labor-saving processes and methods is very similar to that
of labor-saving machines, namely, to put actual production in
the hands of inferior classes of men under the direction of a few
more highly skilled or more intelligent leaders. This tends to
further extend the principle of division of labor and to disinte¬
grate what are commonly known as trades into fragmentary
portions where each worker performs only a small part of what
was formerly the work of one man.
Now in the methods under discussion whe.re refined measure¬
ments are made of the physical and mental abihties of men it
puts into the hands of the employer a more powerful selective
agency than he has hitherto possessed. If this selective power
be used solely for the purpose of sorting men so as to eliminate
the indolent and those who are clearly unfit for the work in hand
there can be no objection raised to them from the humane stand¬
point. If, however, they are used to eliminate all but the very
best workers their effect will be disastrous both from the humane
and from the economic standpoint until an entire readjustment
of the field has taken place. There are at present more men than
positions. Any scheme which tends to still further concentrate
labor in the hands of a few can hardly be desirable; and in the
hands of grasping employers such a result is possible. What is
1 Mr. Kimball here recites briefly the four Taylor " principles."
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
72>7
wanted is a scheme whereby every man can be worked up to his
full efl&ciency whether his output be as great as his neighbor's or
not. Economically there can be nothing gained by concentrating
labor in the hands of a few picked men if they must support
indirectly a large number- of idle or poorly paid men. Efficiency
is, after all, only a relative term and it is far better that all men
be producing up to their capacity than that all the production
be by the relatively more efficient. We are as much in need of
men who can organize industries and lead the army of producers
as we are in need of more refined methods of production.
Some Claims of the Advocates of the New Methods
These new methods then, in so far as we have discussed them,
are means of increasing man's productive power and fall, there¬
fore, under the second item of the classification made in the first
part of this paper. To what extent will they affect the third
item, namely, equitable distribution of the products of labor ?
The advocates of these new methods make such claims as the
following: —
" The great increase in wages which accompanies this type of
management will largely eliminate the wage question as a source
of dispute."
" The one cure, the only one for the condition that confronts
us, is to increase the efficiency of the producer."
" The low cost of production which accompanies a doubling
of the output will enable the companies who adopt this manage¬
ment, particularly those who adopt it first, to compete far better
than they were able before, and this will so enlarge their markets
that their men will have almost constant work even in dull times,
and that they will earn large profits at all times.
" This means increase in prosperity and diminution in poverty
not only for their men, but for the whole community around
them," and many other statements, of the same tenor.
That is to say, increased productive power necessarily means
increased profits and their resulting comforts to the actual pro¬
ducer; for a diligent search through the literature of efficiency
engineering fails to disclose any new principle regarding the
738
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
distribution of the fruits of labor. True, great stress is laid on
the " square deal " and the cooperation of the employer and
employee; but these are not peculiar to any system of manage¬
ment.
It is also, of course, true that decreased cost of production
always gives the employer an opportunity to pay better wages
until his competitors obtain the same methods, when the natural
law of competition again comes into effect, and the employer is
again confronted with the choice of smaller profits, lower wages
or still more refined methods and improved tools.
Parallel between Labor-saving Machinery and
Labor-saving Management
The greatest gain in productive ability which the world has
ever witnessed came with the introduction of labor-saving
machinery. All the possibilities for the physical and mental
betterment of humanity offered by the most tremendous gain in
productive power mankind has ever witnessed were opened up at
that time. The immediate effect of these new methods was to
reduce the workers concerned to a state of pauperism and wretch¬
edness which was relieved only by legislation and other reactive
measures and not by anything inherent in the new methods.^
These methods have been improved and added to steadily for
over a hundred years and what is the net result ? Today the
skilled mechanic who can save a competence is a rarity. Instead
of the individual independence which every man should be able
to acquire, we are talking of governmental and other forms of
pensions; in spite of our much vaunted increased educational
facilities only 25 per cent of the entire population of this, the
most favored of countries, get the minimum amount of education
which is considered necessary to make them intelligent citizens.
True, the workman of all kinds has benefited very greatly by the
improved methods, and it is also true that he is better clothed,
^ It is hardly accurate to say that this was the " immediate effect " or that it
was due solely to the introduction of " these new methods." The factors referred
to were spread over a period of forty to fifty years and were complicated by many
other factors, notably the Napoleonic wars. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
739
fed, housed, and particularly better educated than formerly; but
the fact remains that his progress has not been proportionate to
his increased productive capacity.
I am willing to concede, therefore, that these so called new
methods will increase production; that in all probability they
will, in time, be generally used and that the general effect should
benefit humanity; but I see no reason for thinking that they
inherently possess any power to change the problem of distribu¬
tion. It may be that these methods will even make it necessary
for the worker to redouble his efforts. Even the most ardent
advocates of the new methods are compelled to acknowledge at
times the truth of these statements, as for instance, the following :
" Inasmuch as mechanics as a class get little benefit from the
development of a better method or a labor-saving process, they
are, as a rule, little interested in such improvements."
And again: " If the fruits of scientific management are directed
into the proper channels the workingman will get, not only a
fair share but a very large share of the additional profit arising
from improved industry. In order that the workingman may
get this large share of the benefits through higher wages, shorter
hours, and better working conditions, the labor unions must
participate in fixing those wages, hours and conditions, and in
determining the application to the various businesses of the
principles of scientific management." And this is the crux of
the whole matter. If the fruits of production under methods as
they now exist could be more fairly distributed and the wastes
due to foolish and oppressive financiering eliminated so that the
producing classes, employer and employee alike, would receive
what is justly theirs, much of the problem would be solved; if
Mr. Taylor or Mr. Gantt, or Mr. Brandeis can only tell us how
this can be done, they will do more for humanity, as it exists in
organized society, than any one, economist or engineer, who has
ever walked this planet, and infinitely more than can be accom¬
plished by the most refined methods of production which they
can develop. The great problem which confronts us is not and
has not for many years been that of production, but distribution.
We can now produce more manufactured goods than we can use.
740 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and far more than is needed to make us all comfortable. All the
new productive processes possible will throw little light on the
problem of why we find in many places, at one time, storehouses
filled with raw material, idle factories equipped with the finest
tools the world has ever seen and people walking the street with¬
out food or clothing, yet willing to work.
The problem is too complex to be solved by the simple expe¬
dient of increased production. There still remain the questions
of competition, unfair taxation, immigration and a dozen other
factors that are not as yet within the control of the employer, be
he ever so fair minded, or of the employee, be he ever so strongly
organized. I am not so sure but what a small readjustment of
some of these would do as much for the workers, both employer
and employee, as a large increase of productive power. What
we need most is scientific distribution. Fortunate, indeed, will
we be if some of the reactive infiuences now at work on our social
and industrial organization will point the way to this much
needed readjustment.
THE TAYLOR SYSTEM OF SHOP MANAGEMENT
AT THE WATERTOWN ARSENAL
Appendix i to Report or the Cheep of Ordnance, 1913
Reprinted by permission of the Chief of Ordnance
Watertown Arsenal, June 21, 1913.
Hon. Lindley M. Garrison,^
Secretary of War, Washington, D. C.
Dear Sir; — We, the representatives of the different trade
unions employed at this Arsenal in the various departments do
hereby request and petition you to abolish the Stop Watch
System because of the unfair and unreasonable methods which are
described in the following:
This is the machine shop: A third class machinist rated at
$2.56 per day, for instance, working on a job; the stop watch
premium makes his appearance and makes a time study of opera¬
tions, etc. He goes back to his desk and juggles figures for a
while and he is given a long time and a short time to finish the
job. Sometimes he makes the time reasonable and other times,
he is a long way off. This third class man may make a premium
of 80 cents to $1.00 per day. But it must be borne in mind that
he is only capable of running one kind of a machine, whereas a
first class man rated at $3.52 per day (this Arsenal is depending
on first class work) can operate any machine and this time study
or Stop Watch is not put on the job. You can therefore see the
unfairness of this premium system towards a first and third class
machinist.
Another case is of a man getting $3.52 per day and running a
large machine. Where it requires so much time to finish a large
piece, he generally has those pieces on premium from i to 6 to
18 months, making $26 to $32 per month. Whereas a man going
around the shop at the same pay working at different jobs does
not get a chance at this class of work or machine, which is abso¬
lutely unfair.
* Petition of certain of the workmen. — Ed.
74*
742
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
It also may be seen that a man is working on a lathe, roughing
a dozen pieces. He makes a full premium which is equivalent
to $i.oo per day above his day's pay. This job very often is
taken away and given to another man to finish, which requires
closer and accurate work and is subject to inspection. He makes
approximately 15 to 60 cents on the same job. The difference
between the time study on the roughing and the finishing of the
job can be seen is very unreliable.
Several cases in the Blacksmith Shop that does not work satis¬
factory according to the Stop Watch Premium:
A blacksmith had been working on several forgings and soon
after he had started, he was going to be the first victim for the
time piece ; forging under normal conditions had been completed
and the blacksmith's estimated time for this piece of work was
8 hours and 20 minutes. The Stop Watch man made a time
study of operations; went away and juggled figures for a while,
came back and set the total time for the completion of this piece
of work, six hours, which was impossible for him to do.
Another blacksmith had a much more trying period with the
Stop Watch Premium System. He was about to start on several
forgings and the Stop Watch man appeared to make a time study
of the job, to be completed. The blacksmith, evidently, was not
accustomed to this way of doing business. He put a piece of
steel into the fire until it was hot and then started to forge the
piece with his helper. The Stop Watch man told him to put
another piece in the fire while working and he positively refused.
The foreman and officer in charge of the shop was notified and
came to investigate the matter.
The Stop Watch man told the blacksmith there was no need of
his being there then. The blacksmith then told him he did not
know why he was there, but that he the blacksmith did know the
reason of the Stop Watch man being present there. Finally, the
blacksmith went out, saying, " No Stop Watch for me, I have
always done a day's work for the Government, and always will as
long as I work in this Arsenal."
The System in the foundry has not been carried out as promised.
In addition to the speeding up of men, there has been a con-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
743
tínual cutting in the time of similar articles. It is not a question
in the minds of those in charge of what a job is worth, but is
based upon the quickest time that one can make and in nearly
every case where fault has been found by the workmen in regard
to time, he was told that it was the time set and not satisfaction
given whatsoever in this department that it is impossible to keep
or to get a sufficient number of laborers owing to the abnormal
pace which they are expected to go. This department has
unanimously petitioned this continuance of a System.
Take a painter's case, for instance; two men taken from the
yard laboring gang were placed upon a job painting shot and shell
together with all templets and instructions. For doing the work
they are rated at $1.84 per day. The Stop Watch Premium was
advised, therefore, they received from 60 to 70 cents, added on
to their regular day's pay on account of the premium, and one of
the regular painters was suspended for lack of work, whereas if
this man was given the work through the regular channels, there
would be no need of suspension. Whereas a great deal more work
would be accomplished by so doing and the other painters would
not have to stop their regular work to mix paint for the laboring
men from the yard.
The conditions of the Stop Watch Premium in the Carpenter
Shop are equal to those in the Machine Department. For
instance, a man started to work recently repairing old Shot and
Shell Boxes. The work did not require a very skilful man and
the Stop Watch was introduced. This man got 60 cents over
his day's pay. It must be taken into consideration that there are
first class men in this Wood-Working Department such as
cabinet makers, pattern makers and wood turners, whereas it
may be seen that the third class rated man gets more money than
the first class mechanic by this unfair method.
Referring to the laborer in the Yard, for instance, a time study
has been made between shops and buildings, it is expected that
the man shall make the same time from day to day irrespective
of load or the animal, with no allowance for the conditions of the
weather whatsoever. Again, if a carload of pig-iron arrives at
this Arsenal with approximately 40 ton on board, it is to be
744
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
unloaded by Stop Watch Premium. For instance, a car with side
boards measuring 4 feet high is expected to be unloaded just as
quickly as a car with 18 Side Boards, which is utterly impossible.
On a recent occasion, a man with a horse and team entered the
foundry to clean up waste material such as slag iron and sand
which were unfit for use. They usually use an ordinary shovel
with a capacity of 21 lbs., which is described in the so-called
Taylor Book. He was told by the Stop Watch man to use a
scoop shovel which has a capacity of 40 lbs., and the foreman of
the Yard arrived^on the job and told him it was not fit for any
white man to use on that class of work. The team was loaded,
however, with the usual shovel and went on its way to the dump¬
ing place. The Stop Watch Man told the foreman in a very
sarcastic manner that he should not talk that way before the men
to him. Whereas it may be seen that his sole object was to push
the man to the dead limit simply because he was a laborer, irre¬
spective of the size of the shovel or the nature of the work.
Referring to the accidents: A great many are caused by this
continual driving from day to day. It also may be seen that the
majority of men are failing in health. Whereas it is absolutely
impossible for a man to work and do justice to himself or the
work which is required of him on account of the Stop Watch
Premium System. More than 75 per cent of accidents has taken
place this year than the previous year of which a very careful
record has been made from time to time in all departments. It
may also be seen that the bad work and rejections are greater
than ever before by 100 per cent. Below is a list of the names of
the representative mechanics of their respective departments.
Machine Shop A. J. Coyle
Blacksmith Shop Matthew T. Glynn
Foundry Joseph R. Cooney
Pattern James B. Cunningham
Carpenter Eugene P. Gingras
Paint H. A. Gildersleeve
Yard Laboring Peter Kidbride
Respectfully yours,
Maurice W. Bowen
Chairman, Represenative Committee
23 Charles Street, Auburndale, Mass.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
745
Watertown Arsenal, June 17, 1913.
Hon. Lindley M. Garrison,
Secretary of War, Washington, D. C.
Dear Sir; — We, the undersigned, employees of the Govern¬
ment, representing 349 of a total of 373 hands employed in the
various departments as indicated hereon, respectfully petition
that the Taylor System, now in operation at this Arsenal, be
immediately discontinued for the reasons as hereinafter set forth.
We object to the use of the Stop Watch, as it is used a means of
speeding men up to a point beyond their normal capacity. It is
hiuniliating and savors too much of the slave driver.
A comparison of the record of serious accidents occurring in the
works since the introduction of the Stop Watch Premium System
will convince the most skeptical that it is dangerous to limb and
life, and we claim that a large percentage of these accidents are
the direct result of the driving system in vogue at this Plant.
We believe that this System, instead of producing what was
claimed it would produce, — high wages to employees, with a
low cost of production has worked exactly opposite inasmuch as
the investigation into the wages paid (outside of premium) will
show that there has been no material increase in wages, while
the cost of production has been increased to such an extent that
large deficits are being reported on nearly every job of any con¬
sequence that is done at this Arsenal.
The number of non-productive employees in proportion to the
productive employees who are necessary to carry out the details
of the System, has been largely responsible in the great increase
in overhead expense, which in many cases, has resulted in the
Government being unable to compete with outside concerns and
has resulted in contracts being placed with outside parties to do
work which the Arsenal is equipped to do and which, under
normal conditions, could be done at a cost considerably under
that charged by the Contractor securing the work. For instance,
it has become the practice to let large contracts for manufacturing
patterns, which the Arsenal is equipped to manufacture and
could manufacture at a figure considerably below that charged
by'outside concerns; the quality of work being considered were
746
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
it not burdened by an excessive overhead charge which must be
carried to pay an abnormal non-productive force of employees.
We cite the above case to show that there is ground for our
belief that the continuance of this System would finally eventuate
in closing this Arsenal as a manufacturing Plant.
A large corps of inspectors are kept busy examining and reject¬
ing material, and the number of pieces rejected since the Pre¬
mium System was inaugurated has increased by a large percentage.
The number of parts rejected since the System was installed will
run well into the thousands.
The effect of this System here has been to create a feeling of
distrust between the employees and the management; it has
destroyed every vestige of cooperation between the workmen and
the foremen collectively, and has produced a condition of unhap-
piness throughout the whole works.
For the reasons as stated above as well as many others which
we will not trouble with at this time, we respectfully pray that
you, as head of the War Department, take such immediate steps
as will effectually remove this System from Watertown Arsenal
and restore the workmen to a condition similar to that enjoyed
by other artisans and laborers in the public service as well as in
most private manufacturing plants.
We also respectfully petition that the records as obtained by
means of stop watch observation be removed from this Arsenal
or destroyed altogether as they do not represent the normal time
in which given work should be accomplished, but rather they are
the product of the " speed up " System which has resulted in
accidents, inferior work and numerous abuses such as no American
Citizen should be called upon to endure.
In conclusion let it be understood that the signatures to this
petition were not obtained by coercion or unfair means and each
individual signing this petition, does so of his own free will and
accord.
Respectfully submitted,
Maurice W. Bowen
Chairman Representative Committee.
23 Charles St., Auburndale, Mass.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
747
Signed by 51 molders and helpers; 25 pattern makers, carpen¬
ters, and painters; 17 blacksmiths and helpers; 53 yard laboring
men; 88 machinists and helpers, assembling department; 88
machinists and helpers.
War Department,
Office of the Chief of Ordnance,
Washington, September 6, 1913.
Memorándum for the Secretary of War.
Subject: Petitions of Watertown Arsenal employees against
certain features of the Taylor system of shop management.
1. These petitions were referred to this ofhce accompanied by
certain questions in regard to the Taylor system of scientific shop
management. These questions will be answered in their order.
Question i. " Exact figures of everything going into the mat¬
ter of cost. That is, all expenses upon which cost prices should be
figured."
Depending upon the use which is to be made of the figures there
are three general classes of costs of articles procured for the public
service by the Ordnance Department. These can be called —
(a) The appropriation cost,
(b) The arsenal cost, and
(c) The War Department cost.
2. The appropriation cost includes all expenditures made out
of the appropriations for procuring the article, either by manu¬
facture or purchase, such as those made for labor, material,
civilian superintendence, power, heat, light, clerical work, draft¬
ing, current repairs, leaves and holidays, disabilities, etc.
3. The arsenal cost is the appropriation cost with what is
known as the " arsenal burden " added. The arsenal burden is
composed of items which increase the cost of the article at the
establishment where it is procured, but are not paid for from the
congressional appropriation which is made directly for procuring
the article, such as interest on the value of the plant, depreciation,
allowance for fire losses, pay of officers and enlisted men, etc.
4. The War Department cost is the arsenal cost with the addi¬
tion of the " War Department burden." The War Department
748
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
burden comprises the proportion of the expense of maintaining
the War Department proper which is rightfully chargeable to the
manufacturing operations of the Ordnance Department. It is
composed of the proper proportion of items, such as salaries in
the ofhce of the Secretary of War and in the various bureaus of the
War Department, contingent expenses of the War Department,
rent of buildings for the War Department, expenses of the Office
of the Chief of Ordnance chargeable to manufacturing operations,
pay of retired officers and enlisted men of the Ordnance Depart¬
ment, etc.
5. The appropriation cost is the only one with which these
petitions are concerned, since the statements made therein relate
to comparative costs of manufacture before and since the in¬
troduction at the Watertown Arsenal of the time study and
premium features of the Taylor system. The arsenal cost is
generally used for the purpose of comparing Government manu¬
facture as carried on by the Ordnance Department with private
manufacture. The War Department cost is of importance when
there is a question of securing reimbursement of that department
for serviceable property disposed of by it in accordance with the
methods authorized by law.
Question 2. " The system as now operated."
6. The Taylor system of shop management may be roughly
divided into two general parts. The first part relates to the
systemization of processes of manufacture, so that these proc¬
esses shall be carried on in a perfectly orderly manner, with
better forethought and provision than has ever before been given
them, and with more detailed arrangements concerning their
relations to each other. To the natural inquiry as to what there
is new in this, since everybody has always been striving for sys¬
tem and order in manufacturing operations, the answer must be
made that the amount of attention which is given under Mr.
Taylor's method to system, as evidenced by the number of the
personnel engaged and the expense involved — that is, by the
amount of administrative energy which is devoted to it — is so
different from that which has ever anywhere before his time been
devoted to systemization as to be absolutely revolutionary.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 749
7. The second part relates to the quantity of output to be
obtained from the workman, and the stimulus required to induce
him to cheerfully and earnestly and intelligently strive to give
the output. This part rests upon the theory that the best and
most expeditious way of doing a piece of work is too difficult
of ascertainment for the workman who has to do it to have any
reasonable chance of arriving at it; and that it must be reached
through painstaking study, by methods prescribed by a highly
skilled and expensive specialist, utilizing measurements of the
time required by the various elements of a job, and a great deal
of knowledge such as the workman does not have and cannot
be expected to have. There is the further theory that the current
rate of wages, as it exists in any manufacturing community, is not
that corresponding to the best directed and most earnest efforts
of the employees, but is that corresponding to the class of per¬
formance in connection with which the rate has grown up, which
is very far from being the best reasonably and agreeably attain¬
able. By expensively finding out the best method of doing a
given piece of work, and the time in which it can reasonably
be done by following this method, and then by making it very
well worth the employee's while to approach, within a given
interval, this time, or to improve upon it, means are found to
improve the individual output, and to improve the compensation
which is paid for it, in a manner profitable and satisfactory to
both employer and employee.
8. For a comprehensive understanding of the system and its
inauguration at the Watertown Arsenal it will be necessary to
read Mr. Taylor's careful works upon Scientific Management,
upon Shop Management, and upon The Art of Cutting Metal.
A highly condensed exposure of the system and of the three
years of its operation at the Watertown Arsenal is, however,
contained in my annual reports for the fiscal years 1911 and 1912,
from which the pages relating to this subject have been extracted
and are attached hereto.
9. The second part of the system, relating to time study of a
given job and the premium offered for approaching the time thus
arrived at, is the part which is objected to in the petitions, being
7SO
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
called in one of them the " stop watch system," because a time¬
piece is used in studying the various component elements of a job,
so as to arrive at a conclusion as to the manner in which the total
time may be shortened. The process can be described as follows î
A workman being employed upon a job for which it is intended
to set a rate, the time study man takes his station near him and,
openly and with the full knowledge upon the part of all concerned
of what he is about, proceeds to study the job by first dividing it
into its different component movements and periods. He then
times carefully each one of the movements and periods, usually
more than once. From the data thus obtained he works out
what he considers the best sequence of movements and periods,
making, if possible, certain elements simultaneous which before
were successive, and arrives at a complete program for performing
the job and at an estimate of the time in which, by attentively
following the program, the job should be completed. This time
is called the " task time." It must be understood that the
management has theretofore had no definite idea as to the time
in which the job should be done, or that it was being done unneces¬
sarily slowly. Knowledge has been lacking to permit an idea as
to this point to be formed. Also, any unnecessary slowness is
likely to have been caused as much by unscientific methods as by
lack of diligence on the part of the workman. The whole object
is to secure an intelligent idea of the best way to do the work and
of the right time for it. Upon these two points all hands have
been without reliable information.
IG. After the task time has been arrived at; and it must be
remembered that no necessity for unpleasant exertion is admitted
in fixing the time; some stimulus in the form of increased pay
is given to the workman for meeting this time, or for approaching
it. The particular scheme of increase is not important, provided
always that it gives an adequate reward for good effort. The
scheme applied at the Water town Arsenal is as follows: The
workman is informed that his regular pay is not to be affected.
He continues to receive that in any event. The task time is then
increased by two-thirds, and he is told that for every minute
which he saves within this increased time he will be paid, in addi-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
751
tion to his regular pay, for half a minute, at his regular rate.
From this it follows that if he completes the job in exactly the
task time the increase in his pay will amount to 33Í per cent. No
limit is placed upon the time in which he can do the work or the
extra amount which he can thus earn, and it frequently happens
that the task time is bettered, and more than 331 per cent extra
is earned.
II. The commanding ofñcer of the Watertown Arsenal makes
a report each month of the premiums earned by the employees
of that establishment. A copy of his report for the month of
May, 1913, is inclosed herewith. It shows that the premiums
earned in that month ranged from practically nothing to $31.02,
which was made by a man whose day rate was $3.52, whose total
day rate pay was $95.04, and whose premium therefore increased
his pay by 35.38 per cent. It is the object of the management to
have as many men as possible working under the premium system,
and effort is made to enable each workman to increase his pre¬
miums to the fullest extent. There has been introduced a system
of rewarding the foremen by premiums which increase with the
proportion of their subordinates who are working upon premium
jobs and with the amount of premiums which they earn. So that
the foremen are stimulated to assign as many men as possible to
jobs on which they can increase their pay in this way, and to help
each one of them to the greatest possible increase. On account of
the limited number of time study men, and on account of the
nature of the work, it is not possible to give all of the men pre¬
mium jobs. The report for May shows that, in the foundry
during that month, 13 molders out of 13 had such jobs; in the
machine shop, 130 machinists out of 166, and 26 machinists'
helpers out of 70; among the laborers, 22 out of 45 had such jobs;
and in the carpenter shop, 5 carpenters out of 14 worked on pre¬
mium jobs. The percentage in extra compensation earned by the
men on premium jobs, while so working, on an average was, in the
foundry, 25.24 per cent; in the machine shop, 24.69 per cent by
machinists, and by machinists' helpers, 28.97 cent; by
laborers, 24.06 per cent; by teamsters, 26.35 cent; by black¬
smiths, 39.39 per cent; by blacksmiths' helpers, 39.39 per cent;
752
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and by carpenters, 61.6 per cent. In the foundry 66.95 P^r cent
of the entire working time of the whole number of employees of
the class who worked on premium jobs at all was spent on that
class of jobs. For the machine shop these figures were 45.65
per cent; for the machinists' helpers, 12.83 cent; for the
laborers, 12.71 per cent; for the teamsters, 26.35 P^^ cent; for
the blacksmiths and blacksmiths' helpers, 8.81 per cent; and for
the carpenters, 5.38 per cent. It will be seen that there is still
much room for including more employees in the number earning
premiums, and constant efforts are being made in this direction.
The average premium in the month of May, of all the men earn¬
ing premiums, was $8.96, which was earned by 210 men out of
about 600. This average would have been greater if these men
had worked on premium jobs all the time, which was not possible.
12. The extracts from my annual reports show that great
economy of manufacture, as well as benefit to the workmen,
arises from the employment of both general parts of the Taylor
system. It has been estimated, from analysis of a large
number of jobs, that the increase of output, due to time study
and premium pa3mient, in a given time, is about 200 per cent.
The analysis was of 39 different jobs, of which records were on
hand of the time required to do them, both on the day rate and
on the premium system. In four of the cases the jobs, under the
two systems, had been done by the same men, and the records
showed that the time required by these men, under day work,
ranged from one and a half to three and a half times the time in
which they did the same jobs under the premium system, with an
average of 2.72 times.
13. Perhaps something can be said on both sides of the ques¬
tion of stimulation by high rewards. There are in all walks of
life men who wear themselves out in their effort at great accom¬
plishment, and there are more such in a new country, where the
rewards are great, than in old countries, where the more settled
conditions impose narrower limitations upon what may be
accomplished by strenuous and intelligent effort. It is not easy
to set a point at which stimulation by high reward should cease.
The Taylor system does not attempt to settle the question. But
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
753
with the limitation of hours of labor in the Government service,
it does not seem to be likely that workmen will be stimulated to
efforts injurious to their health by rewards so great that they can¬
not refrain from overexerting themselves in order to secure them.
14. The question remains to be answered how the process at
the Watertown Arsenal differs in kind from the class known as
" speeding up," or " sweatshop," or " slave driving " processes,
so called. I take it that the essential difference lies in the char¬
acter of the stimulation which is applied to increase the output.
In the reprehensible methods the output of a very rapid workman
is taken as the standard, and the rate set is such that this output
must be reached in order to make ordinary wages. The task and
the compensation are so fixed that, unless the employee puts
himself under a great strain all the time he is either discharged or
fails to earn a living wage. In other words, the highest possible
output is demanded for what is, at best, no more than the current
rate of wages. The Taylor system, on the contrary, demands the
ordinary output only at the current rate of wages, and, as prac¬
tised at the Watertown Arsenal, neither effects nor threatens any
reduction of the wages in vogue before the introduction of the
system. The increased output is accompanied by an increase,
and a very substantial increase, in the pay. And no rate is set
which requires heart-breaking exertion or exertion of a character
which is not agreeable, in order to increase the wages theretofore
received. The management spends a great deal of money and a
great deal of effort in finding out the best way to do a piece of
work. It then offers the workmen an inducement to meet this
by giving them the benefit of the time and money spent, in the
way of information as to the best way to proceed, in order to
enable them to make higher earnings. No discharges have taken
place at the Watertown Arsenal because of failure to accomplish
work in the time set; and no reduction of pay of any class of the
employees had been put into effect since the introduction of the
Taylor system. That is, all premiums earned have been over and
above the wages which were being received before the system was
put into effect. All of the men are informed of the system in
practice at the arsenal, and all give their consent to it by being
754
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
taken on. The time study and premium features have now beeii
in use for over two years.
15. A great deal has been made of the following statement in
one of Mr. Taylor's books:
When an establishment has reached an advanced stage of organization in
many cases a fifth element should be added, namely, the task should be made
so difficult that it can only be accomplished by first class men.
This is claimed to be the " speeding up " process, pure and
simple. The statement has received some explanation by the
following :
It must be distinctly understood that in referring to the possibilities of a
first class man the writer does not mean what he can do when on a spurt
or when he is overexerting himself, but what a good man can keep up for a
long term of years, without injury to his health, and become happier and
thrive under.
The character of the exertion is well covered by the explanation,
but perhaps some relief is needed from apprehension in regard to
those men who may not be the fastest workmen of their class.
Of course common sense prevents the understanding that all men
must be thrown out of employment except the very best. The
work must be done, and it must be done by such men as are in
existence. It is not out of accord with ordinary practice, either
under the Taylor system or otherwise, to have one's work done
by the best workman that one can get. Harshness of stimulation
is avoided by the principle that the task must be such as he who
has it to do can " become happier and thrive under." But Mr.
Taylor himself has furnished an explanation of what he means by
a " first class " man. On pages 1454 et seq., volume 2, of the
testimony taken by a committee of the House of Representatives
to investigate the use of the Taylor and other systems at Govern¬
ment establishments, he says:
I have found that an illustration often furnishes the most convincing form
of definition. I want therefore to define what I mean by the words " first
class " through an illustration. To do so I am going again to use horses as
an illustration, because every one of us knows a good deal about the capacity
of horses, while there are very few people who have made a sufficient study of
men to have the same kind of knowledge about men that we all have about
horses. Now, if you have a stable, say, in the city of Washington, containing
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
7SS
300 or 400 horses you will have in that stable a certain number of horses
which are intended especially for hauling coal wagons; you will have a cer¬
tain number of trotting horses; and a certain number of saddle horses — of
pleasure horses, and of ponies in that stable.
Now, what I mean by a first class horse to haul a coal wagon is something
very simple and plain. We will all agree that a good big dray horse is a
" first class " horse to haul a coal wagon (a horse, for instance, of the t)T)e
of a Percheron). If, however, you live in a small town and have a small
stable of horses, in many cases you may not have enough dray horses in your
stable to haul your coal wagons, and you will have to use grocer wagon horses
and grocery wagons to haul coal in; and yet we all know that a grocery
wagon horse is not a " first class " horse for hauling coal, and we aU know
that a grocery wagon is not a " first class " wagon to carry coal in; but
times come when we have to use a second class horse and wagon, although
we know that there is something better. It may be necessary even at times
to haul coal with a trotting horse, and you may have to put your coal in a
buggy under certain circumstances. But we aU know that a trotting horse
or a grocery horse is not a " first class " horse for hauling coal. In the same
way we know that a great big dray horse is not a " first class " horse for
hauling a grocery wagon, nor is a grocery wagon horse " first class " for
hauling a buggy, and so, right down the line.
Now, what I mean by " first class " men is set before you by what I mean
by " first class " horses. I mean that there are big powerful men suited to
heavy work, just as the dray horses are suited to the coal wagon, and I would
not use a man who would be " first class " for this heavy work to do light
work for which he would be second class, and which could be just as well
done by a boy who is first class " for this work, and vice versa.
What I want to make clear is that each type of man is " first class " at
some kind of work, and if you will hunt far enough you will find some kind
of work that is especially suited to him. But if you insist, as some people in
the community are insisting (to use the illustration of horses again), that a
task — say, a load of coal — shall be made so light that a pony can haul it,
then you are doing a fool thing, for you are substituting a " second class "
animal (or m^in) to do work which manifestly should be done by a " first
class " animal (or man). And that is what I mean by the term " first class
man."
Now, there is another kind of " second class " horse. We aU know him.
Among the " first class " big dray horses that are hauling coal wagons you
will find a few of them that will balk, a few of them that can haul, but won't
haul. You will find a few of these dray horses that are so absolutely lazy
that they won't haul coal wagons. And in the same way among every class
of workmen we have some balky workmen — I do not mean men who are
unable to do the work, but men who, physically well able to work, are simply
lazy and who through no amount of teaching and instructing and through
no amount of kindly treatment, can be brought into the " first class." That
is the man whom I call " second class." They have the physical possibility
of being " first class," but they obstinately refuse to be so.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Now, Mr. Chairman, I am ready to answer your question, having clearly
in mind that I have these two types of " second class " men in view; the
one which is physically able to do the work, but who refuses to do it, and the
other who is not physically or mentally fitted to do that particular kind of
work, or who has not the mental caliber for this particular job. These are
the two types of " second class " man.
The Chairman. Then how does scientific management propose to take
care of the men who are not " first class " men in any particular line of
work ?
Mr. Taylor. I give it up.
The Chairman. Scientific management has no place for such a man ?
Mr. Taylor. Scientific management has no place for a bird that can
sing and won't sing.
The Chairman. I am not speaking about birds at all.
Mr. Taylor. No man who can work and won't work has any place imder
scientific management.
The Chairman. It is not a question of a man who can work and won't
work; it is a question of a man who is not " first class " in any particular line;
according to your definition.
Mr. Taylor. I do not know of any such line or work. For each man
some line can be found in which he is " first class." There is work for each
type of man, just, for instance, as there is work for the dray horse and work
for the trotting horse, and each of these types is first class for his particular
kind of work. There is no one kind of work, however, that suits all types of
men.
If, under the Taylor system, a man is not earning good pre¬
miums, there is an inducement for everybody connected with the
management to try to find out the reason. And, if the reason is
discovered to be that he is working at a class of employment for
which he is not well suited, it becomes everybody's interest to
find something for him for which he is well suited and at which he
can earn good premiums.
Question 3. " The result of discontinuing the system at
present in operation and adopting some other system, and what
other system would be recommended if the present system is
abandoned."
16. As before stated, the system spoken of is the time study
and premium feature of the Taylor system. The result of dis¬
continuing the premium feature would bring all of the employees
back to the state of day work system of payment, under which
they were working before the introduction of premiums, and, as a
matter of course, the output would fall back to that which pre-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
757
viously obtained. That is, the wages of the workmen now earn¬
ing premiums would be reduced by amounts running up to 35.38
per cent, and averaging about 20 per cent; and the output of
these workmen would be reduced about 60 per cent; this without
shortening the hours of labor or improving conditions of work.
The immediate reduction of the wages of those workmen who are
engaged in repetition work could be avoided by substituting for
the premium system of payment a piece work system, such as has
been for many years satisfactorily used at various other arsenals.
So far as these jobs are concerned there would be little to choose
between the premium and the piece work system of payment.
But there is little repetition work at the Watertown Arsenal, and
the repetition jobs now in progress would soon run out. When
an attempt is made to set a rate for a new job of repetition work
there is always an embarrassing lack of information upon which
to base the proper rate. Usually a tentative rate is set, and when
this is found unsatisfactory, either to the management or the
workmen, as is generally the case, it is changed, to the intense
dissatisfaction of either one or the other. Cutting of rates, to
meet what has been regarded as unjustifiable wages, has been a
fruitful source of dissatisfaction with the piece work system, and
has resulted finally, often times, in a limitation of output, holding
back both production and compensation. When repetition work
of some classes has lasted a long time it sometimes has been found
possible to secure a satisfactory and reasonable adjustment of the
rate; but even under such conditions the work has proceeded a
long time without the advantage, to the management and to the
workmen, which would result from an intelligent time study by a
skilled specialist, with the object of determining the best pro¬
gram. The repetition jobs at the Watertown Arsenal are too
short to permit the use of a try-out method of rate setting, and it
is therefore probable that when the work had so changed as to
prevent the use of the information which has already been gath¬
ered, the abolition of time studies would prevent the formation
of new programs and the setting of rates on new jobs, and the
worit would revert ultimately to the day wage conditions.
758
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Question 4. " Specific facts with respect to all other allega¬
tions in these papers."
17. The papers consist of two petitions from workmen at the
Watertown Arsenal; one dated June 21, 1913, and signed by
names claimed to be those of a representative committee, and one
dated June 17, 1913, signed by something over 300 employees.
The petitions are fastened together, with the petition dated
June 21 preceding. Taking the statements in this petition in
order, and numbering them in accordance with the red ink num¬
bers which have been placed on the margin of the petition, they
are met as follows:
Complaint No. i. — This complaint is that a low class ma¬
chinist is given opportunity of earning from 80 cents to $i a day
by making a good output. There is no claim made that the work
is beyond the capacity of the low grade machinist, and it appears
to be held that the work ought to be given to a higher grade ma¬
chinist, whether with or without opportunity to earn a premium
is not clear, but from the statement " this time study or stop
watch is not put on the job," it may be inferred that the claim is
that a high grade man should do the work and that he also
should be allowed to earn the premium. On the ground that the
reply is obvious none will be made to the claim that a higher-
grade man than is necessary should be put on the work; but a
reply is needed to the inference that highly paid machinists are
not allowed to earn premiums.
A partial reply is found in complaint No. 2, where it is alleged
that one high grade machinist makes a premium while another
does not, and a conclusive reply is found in the inclosed statement
of premiums earned during the month of May, 1913, from which
it appears that premiums, and very substantial ones, were, during
that month, made by i machinist of the I3.76 per day grade, by
8 of the $3.52 grade, by 33 of the $3.28 grade, and by 58 of the
$3.04 grade; while they were earned by only 33 of the $2.80 grade,
and 7 of the $2.56 grade. It is true, however, that some of the
highest-paid machinists, to whom the most difficult jobs must be
assigned, do not earn premiums on these jobs, for the reason that,
not being intended to be repeated, they are not such as time study
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
759
can be made upon and a rate for them set. Continued effort is
made to so distribute the work that all machinists may have
a chance at premium jobs, and when this cannot be done and a
low grade man is earning more, through a larger output, than a
higher grade man whose output cannot be measured, it is no
more than the case which is common in industrial work, of a
piece worker with no claim to skill in more than a special and
narrow line, who, by special industry, is earning more than a man
of much more general skill not on piece work. In either case no
one is hurt, and some are benefited.
Complaint No. 2. — This is a complaint that one of the high
grade machinists is making a premium while another does not
have the chance. It is answered above by the statement that
this cannot always be prevented, but that every possible effort is
made to distribute the premium jobs so that all may have a
chance at them. The extent to which this effort has been success¬
ful in the machine shop is evidenced by the fact that, for the
months of April, May, and June last, the amount of work under
the premium system was 36 per cent of all the work done in that
shop, including both machinists and helpers, and in the month of
May the premium work was 45.65 per cent of all the work done
by all machinists.
Complaint No. j. — This is a complaint that rates are so set
that machinist doing the rough part makes a higher premium
than the more highly skilled man doing the finishing part of the
same job. No evidence is given in support of this allegation, and
its general truth is denied. The rates are so set that it ought to
be possible for any workman of any grade to make, without disa¬
greeable effort, 33^ per cent more than his day rating, whatever
the day rate may be. The day rate is, of course, determined by
the class in which the man's skill causes him to be graded. Very
conclusive evidence that the allegation is unfounded is contained
in the statement made above as to the relative number of men of
the different grades who made premiums during the month of
May.
Complaint No. 4. — This is a complaint that a blacksmith
estimated that it would require 8 hours and 20 minutes to do a
760
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
certain piece of work, while the time study man placed the time
at 6 hours, which is claimed to have been impossible to meet.
Taking this complaint just as it stands it appears that since the
task time was 6 hours, the time within which premium would
commence to be earned would be two-thirds greater, or 10 hours.
A blacksmith doing the work in 8 hours and 20 minutes would be
paid for one-half of the i hour and 40 minutes which he would
come within the premium time; that is, he would be paid at his
regular rate for 50 minutes of time, which for an ordinary black¬
smith would amount to 34 cents. It is shown, therefore, that on
his own estimate, the blacksmith would have made about 34
cents a day extra.
In this connection the following example under the premium
system is of interest: Time study was made of a job of forging
40 friction bands, after the forging had progressed through several
bands. As a result of the study a rate was set requiring the pieces
to be forged in 2 hours and 27 minutes each as task time, in order
to earn a premium of 33I per cent, or about $1.09 per day. The
blacksmith completed the remaining pieces, 33, in an average
time of 2 hours and 12.4 minutes each, thereby earning premium
of $1.39 per day, more than 33^ per cent. For the bands which
he had forged before the time study was made he had taken 6
hours and 41 minutes each.
Complaint No. 5. — This seems to be a complaint that, in
making time study of a job of forging some crosshead pawls for a
disappearing gun carriage, the time study man had endeavored
to have the work proceed so that a piece would be in the forge
being heated while another piece was being forged; to which the
smith objected. In the actual event the point was not insisted
upon at the time the study was made, but in fixing the task time
the ground was taken that this simultaneous work should be done,
that is, a piece should be heated while another was being forged.
On this assumption the task time was fixed at i hour and 50
minutes, corresponding to a 33 i per cent premium. The smith
thereupon actually did the work in an average time of i hour and
49.5 minutes each, thus earning just over the full premium.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
761
Complaint No. 6. — This is a general complaint of speeding up
in the foundry, it being charged that there has been a continual
cutting in the time allowed for molding similar articles. When
the premium system of payment was first started in the foundry
no time studies of molding operations had been made, and as it
was desired to give both the workmen and the Government the
benefit of the increased production due to the stimulation of
premiums as quickly as possible, existing records of time in doing
jobs under the day work system were utilized as a basis for setting
rates. As was expected, and announced beforehand, many of
these rates permitted the earning of abnormal premiums, and
some of them did not permit earning sufficient premiums. In the
cases where the premiums were too low the rates were adjusted
so as to allow higher ones to be earned; but where the premiums
attainable were too high the rates for these articles were not
changed, and were never thereafter changed; but in setting rates
later on very similar articles the experience of the previous rates
was utilized so as to permit the average workman to earn the
designed premium of 33 i per cent. An examination of the in-
. closed statement of premiums earned in the month of May will
show that the average premium earned in the foundry was 25.24
per cent, while the satisfactory fact is also shown that over 66
per cent of all the molder's work done was on a premium basis.
These figures are conclusive in showing that the molders in the
foundry have had a fortunate experience.
In regard to the charge that it has been impossible to keep or to
get a sufficient number of laborers in the foundry owing to the
abnormal pace at which they are expected to go, it is sufficient to
state that during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1913, only two
molders were separated from the service for any cause, one having
been furloughed and the other having resigned.
Complaint No. y. — This is a complaint that the work of paint¬
ing shot and shell is given to selected men from the laboring gang,
at $1.84 per day, with the opportunity of earning premiums said
to range from 60 to 70 cents, instead of being given to regular
painters, with the result that, in one case at least, a regular
painter was laid off for lack of work. Here, again, no charge is
762
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
made that the laboring men were not capable of doing the work.
As a matter of fact, they were capable of doing it, and did it very
satisfactorily, since it was exceedingly simple work, requiring no
special skill. The regular painters were used for the more appro¬
priate work of mixing the paint and making preparation for the
lower grade men. Actually, much of the work required of the
laborers was handling the projectiles, which is rough work for
which they are better suited than are painters.
Complaint No. 8. — This is another complaint that a man of
no great skill was set at doing rather rough work, repairing old
shot-and-shell boxes in this case, instead of giving it to a high-
grade man. The obvious advisability of giving this kind of
work to the class of man that it is stated to have been given to
needs no insistence; the fair treatment of the man who did the
work is evidenced from the statement in the complaint that he
made 60 cents over his day's pay. That the low class man by
the methods used was enabled to make as high pay as do cabinet¬
makers, pattern makers, and wood turners may be a reason why
efforts should be continued to get these last classes of skilled
woodworkers under the premium system, but it is not a reason
for discontinuing the advantage accorded the less skilled wood¬
worker. It has not thus far been found practicable at the
Water town Arsenal to apply time study and premium system of
payment to the high grade woodworkers, but efforts to this end
are continuing. That is, the management is trying to extend
the benefits of the system to those who are not now enjoying
them, and is not contemplating withdrawing them from the
ones who now have them.
Complaint No. ç. — This is a complaint that the laboring work
of carting must be performed without allowance for the day,
load, or animal. The carting about the establishment has been
put under the premium system and the load is carefully taken into
consideration; but no allowance is made for the weather. That
the system does not operate unfairly is shown by the fact that in
the month of May laborers working on premium jobs earned 24
per cent over and above their pay of $1.84 for the time while they
were so working.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
763
Complaint No. 10. — This is a complaint that no allowance is
made for the height of the sideboards in the time set for unloading
a car of pig-iron. This refinement has not yet been gone into as
the cars in which pig-iron is received have usually sideboards of
3 feet or under. Time studies of unloading ordinary pig-iron have
not been made at the Watertown Arsenal, but those used in set¬
ting rates have been accumulated elsewhere by the time study
expert employed at the arsenal. In 13 instances reported there
was only i in which a considerable premium, 30 per cent in that
instance, was earned. The question as to whether any very great
efforts to earn premiums were made is raised by the very dif¬
ferent lengths of time required to do apparently similar amounts
of work. The subject needs more attention at the arsenal and
will receive it.
Complaint No. 11. — This is a complaint that the stop watch
man endeavored to prescribe the use of shovels of 40 pounds
capacity instead of shovels of 21 pounds capacity in cleaning up
waste material about the foundry. The point in this case is that
the time study man was trying to obtain some experimental
information in regard to the use of a 40 pound shovel, and had no
intention of continuing the use of this shovel for ordinary work.
It appears that he did not insist upon the use of the larger shovel,
and that the work went on with the smaller one. The matter is
a very unimportant one; but it may be stated that on more than
one occasion men have been noticed to be voluntarily using 40
pound shovels in the work referred to.
Complaint No. 12. — This is a complaint that a large increase
in the number of accidents is caused by the driving system.
Careful record of all accidents is kept at the arsenal. Most of the
accidents occur in the machine shop. During the fiscal year
ended June 30, 1912, the total number injured in this shop was
34, of which 5, or 14.7 per cent, were working on premium at the
time. During the fiscal year ended June 30, 1913, 57 persons
were injured in the machine shop, of which 13, or 22.8 per cent,
were premium workers. During these two years the number of
workmen employed in the machine shop remained about the
same, but the amount of premium work increased nearly four-
764
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
fold. That is, while the amount of premium work increased
about 300 per cent, the percentage of accidents to premium
workers increased only 8.1. During the nine months from
October to June, 1913, 33 machinists were injured, 10 of whom,
or approximately 30 per cent, were premium workers. During
this same period 44.8 per cent of the work in the machine shop
was premium work. It thus appears that the percentage of
accidents among the premium workers was less than the percent¬
age of premium work; that is, that the greater proportion of
accidents during these nine months occurred among the day
workers. These figures are a conclusive refutation of the
charge.
It is true that the number of accidents has increased during
comparatively recent times. This increase is coincident with
the better understanding of the disability act, by reason of which
the employees now receive compensation for absence on account
of injury, which was formerly denied them.
Complaint No. ij. — This is a complaint that the majority
of the men are failing in health. This is distinctly not true.
There is no evidence of it, and no complaint of it. A number of
men questioned on the subject denied it, no man being found who
claimed or admitted that his health had been injuriously affected;
and no man has personally claimed that he has been overworked.
In regard to the possibility of overwork, it is at least extremely
improbable. In machine work particularly, where, as stated
before, most of the premium jobs are found, the machinist
usually stands for a considerable time looking on while the
machine is doing the work. Such a job can be divided into
machine time and handling time, and the machine time can be
subdivided into that in which the feed is by hand and that in
which the feed is by power. It is during the time that power
feed is operating that the machinists simply stand and watch the
work. Ten jobs, taken at random, have been examined and the
following have been found to be the percentage which the power
feed time, that is the resting time, is of the whole time required
for the job: Job No. i, 5.75 per cent; job No. 2, 68 per cent; job
No. 3,40 per cent; job No. 4, 58 per cent; job No. 5,35 per cent;
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 765
job No. 6, 46 per cent; job No. 7, 78 per cent; job No. 8, 71 per
cent; job No. 9, 80 per cent; and job No. 10, 54 per cent. Of
course, during the power feed time the machinist has to fix his
attention upon his work; but it is not strained attention, and is
not of a wearing character. These figures, coupled with the
facts of moderate working hours, frequent holidays, and generally
good working conditions, show the practical impossibility, in
the general case, of overworking a machinist.
Complaint No. 14. — This is a complaint that the number of
rejections for bad work is greater than ever before, by at least
ICQ per cent. The inspection service has been improved under
the Taylor system, and the number of inspectors increased.
Formerly it was customary to inspect only the finished pieces,
and the inspectors examined only such operations as the foremen
called upon them to inspect. Under the better organization of
the present system inspections are prescribed in the planning
room and many more operations are inspected; with the result
that the standard of work is being gradually raised, and that it is
much easier than formerly to fix the responsibility for spoiled
work, which was then shared indefinitely by the workmen, the
foreman, and the inspector. An examination of the rejection
reports does not indicate that there is a greater amount of spoiled
work by the premium workers than by the day workers. It is
also shown that the amount of spoiled work at the Water town
Arsenal is not greater than that of other establishments engaged
in work of similar character, and is not inordinate. The economy
of its production also indicates that fact.
18. In the petition of June 17, 1913, I have numbered the
complaints, as in the previous petition, and will speak of them in
order :
Complaint No. i. — This is a general complaint that the time
study system is used as a means of speeding men up abnormally,
that it is humiliating and savors of the slave driver. The fact
of speeding up men abnormally has been denied, and there ought
to be nothing humiliating to an honest workman in an effort to
arrive, by careful study, at a measure of the time required to do a
given piece of work, in order to set for it a rate which is just, and
766
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
at the same time enables the workman to make higher pay than
ever before.
Time studies are not required for every job, nor more than once
upon the same job; that is, they are comparatively infrequent.
During the two years in which the process has been in operation
at the Watertown Arsenal, 149 men out of about 600 have had
time studies made of work which they were performing. Many
of these men had only one time study made of their work during
the two years, and the maximum number which was made of the
work of any one man was 11, and this occurred in the case of 4
men only. The average number was about three, which would
mean one in about eight months. As the premium work in¬
creased, however, during the latter part of the two years, the
average interval during the latter part would be correspondingly
shorter.
Complaint No. 2. — This complaint charges the premium
system with an increase of accidents and has been answered with
reference to the first petition.
Complaint No. j. — This complaint is a statement that the
system has not produced the high wages promised. The com¬
plaint is that there has been no increase of wages except through
premiums paid. As the only increase promised by the system
is through premiums, the complaint falls to the ground. Rates
of wages, as is well known, are determined by the wages paid for
work of Hke character in the vicinity; premiums are paid as per¬
centages on those rates. Nothing else has ever been promised,
and in this respect the promise has been amply fulfilled.
The statement that the cost of production has been increased
to such an extent that large deficits are being reported is the exact
contrary of the fact, and in that it is made without knowledge is
reckless.
Complaint No. 4. — The substance of this charge is the same
as that mentioned above — increased cost of production, and an
illustration is given of orders placed with outside parties for
patterns which could have been made at the arsenal. When
orders for patterns have been placed with outside parties it has
been because there were rush orders for them, which otherwise
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
767
would have required an increase of the pattern making force,
which would have been only temporary. It is considered unde¬
sirable to frequently increase and reduce the force in any depart¬
ment, and to be detrimental to the interests of the workmen.
It is true that in many of these cases, if not all of them the esti¬
mate for the manufacture of the patterns at the arsenal was
greater than the price for which the patterns were purchased.
This is not as it should be, and it may perhaps be explained by
the fact that it has not yet been found practicable to apply the
Taylor system of shop management to the pattern shop. The
statement that the overhead charges due to the system are respon¬
sible for the expense therefore falls to the ground, and the strong
presumption is raised that an improvement in costs would be
effected by applying to the pattern shop some of the features of
the system which have been found so effective in other parts of
the establishment. This charge as to the cost of patterns instead
of being an arraignment of the Taylor system really constitutes
an arraignment of its absence.
Complaint No. 5. — This complaint concerns the number of
inspections and the rejections for spoiled work, which have been
dealt with above.
Complaint No. 6. — This is a statement to the effect that the
system is bound to destroy good feeling between the workmen and
the management. All the evidence except that of these peti¬
tions, is directly to the contrary. There is a cheerful and cordial
cooperation between all parts of the establishment and of the
individuals employed in it, which is markedly better than that
which was apparent before the introduction of the system. The
occasions on which men have to be admonished for various
reasons have diminished and the cooperative efforts in pushing
work along have increased, as was to have been expected when it
was made to the interest of everybody to push it along.
19. So much for the specific allegations contained in the peti¬
tions. In all cases they show the complaints of injury to be
without foundation, and in many cases they show that the com¬
plaint of too much premium system is really a complaint of too
little of it, in that the point complained of is that somebody is
768
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
given a chance at the premiums while another is not. As fre¬
quently stated in the course of this paper, efforts are made to
increase the amount of premium work, and the success attained
is evidenced by the fact that the amount of premium work
during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1913, was about four times
that of the preceding fiscal year. In the 17 months ended May
31, 1913, the amount of money paid out in premiums, over and
above the regular wages, was $22,257.82.
20. In the face of the demonstrated advantage of the pre¬
mium system to a considerable percentage of the workmen,
accompanied by no compulsion to undue or disagreeable exertion
and of its disadvantage to none, the question remains as to why
there should come in a numerously signed petition for the aboli¬
tion of the system. The statement advanced of reasons for
granting the petitioners' requests are shown to have no basis in
fact, in that no injustice or real hardship exists. If the reasons
given for the requests are the real ones it ought therefore to be
supposed that the objections would disappear upon the showing
that their foundation is in error. I think the question is partially
answered by the statement that in many instances the petitions
do not represent the real sentiment of the persons whose names
are attached to them. Upon the receipt of the petitions they
were sent to the Water town Arsenal for certain information, and
there a number of the employees were examined individually as
to their views. Some stated that they liked the system and had
refused to sign the petitions. Several stated that they did not
wish to sign, but had done so under compulsion. Also it was
discovered that the facts alleged in the petitions were not asserted
by a considerable number of the alleged signers, since many signa¬
tures were obtained without showing the matter subscribed, to
which the signatures were afterwards copied — the signers know¬
ing only that they were opposing the Taylor system. As soon as
it became known about the establishment that employees were
being individually interviewed a telegram charging intimidation
was sent to the local Member of Congress, and at the same time
the answers received commenced to take on a uniform tone of
opposition to the system. Nevertheless it must be stated that
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
769
some of the workmen, including men who were earning good
premiums, declared voluntarily their opposition to the system.
21. I think the petitions are due both to the coercion and the
teachings of labor organizations. The coercion comes from the
opposition which organized labor has always shown to the increase
of the productivity of the" individual, which it has fought in all the
forms in which it has made its appearance, from the time of the
introduction of the power loom. The fact that increased indi¬
vidual production redounds ultimately to the advantage of the
working classes, as well as to that of everybody else has been
powerless to produce a change of attitude in this respect. In the
ordinary case this is perhaps explicable by the fact that, while the
ultimate advantage is demonstrated, the immediate effect is
disastrous to some of the individuals involved, while an imme¬
diate remedy for the disaster has not been provided. In the
instance of increased productivity at the Watertown Arsenal,
however, there has been no immediate disadvantage to any class,
since the substantial increase in the wages paid out has not been
accompanied by any diminution of the working force.
22. From interviews with the employees I am of the opinion
that the teaching of the unions at the Watertown Arsenal is that,
if the men will join in the expulsion of the premium system, the
political power of the unions will be sufficient and will be used to
secure the same increase of pay as is had under the premium
system, without the necessity of working for it. This, of course,
could not be accomplished without the abandonment of the rule
of the department that the wages paid at an arsenal shall be the
same as those of the vicinity for work of like character. Careful
examination upon this point is periodically made, and it is a fact
that at the present time the wages at the Watertown Arsenal are
slightly above those paid in the vicinity. Evidence as to the
effect of the comparison is always welcome from the representa¬
tives of the workmen and readjustment is willingly made when
occasion for it is shown.
23. The subject of the discontinuance of the system through
legislative action has been up in both Houses of Congress, in
which resolutions forbidding it have been introduced and have
770
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
been favorably acted upon by the committees to which they were
referred. So far as I know the committees have not taken evi¬
dence upon the subject matter of the resolutions; no one has been
summoned from this department, which is the only Government
organization which has introduced the system in its entirety.
Pursuant to a resolution of the House of Representatives, a com¬
mittee of that body investigated the Taylor and the other systems
of shop management and their application to Government work
in 1911-12, and the committees reporting upon the propositions
above mentioned to abolish the system made use of the report of
the investigating committee, notwithstanding the fact that this
report recommended that there should be no legislation upon the
subject at the time. The report of the investigating com¬
mittee, however, did not make a statement of what it had found
at the Watertown Arsenal as a result of its investigation, but
mentioned in a condemnation a number of reprehensible practices
which it did not find and did not say that it had found at that
establishment. It is impossible to find in the report of the com¬
mittee a statement of the general conditions under the system
and of conclusions in regard thereto; these must be sought in
reading through the three volumes of evidence taken and printed.
I think it would not be difficult for you to reach a conclusion which
would be satisfactory to yourself through an examination which
you would have the time to make, and I entertain no doubt that,
if permitted to handle the matter at the arsenal, without legisla¬
tive directions, I could continue its operations satisfactorily,
since the leaders of disturbance could not hold the men in opposi¬
tion to the manifest advantages of which they have had experience.
But danger lies in congressional action, under pressure from
outside the arsenal, and for the purpose of satisfying Congress
and the country at large as to the advantage or disadvantage,
both to the Government and to the employees, of the features
complained of as in operation, I think that an investigation
should be made by an authoritative body in which the country
could have confidence, which should take the time necessary for
the purpose, and would render a report embodying its findings as
to the facts and conditions and its conclusions thereon, with its
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
771
recommendations; which could be relied upon for the govern¬
ment of their action by those in authority who are called upon to
take action in the premises and who, of course, have not the time
to look thoroughly into the matter for themselves. Such a body
I believe to be the Industrial Commission appointed by the
President pursuant to the act approved August 23, 1912, entitled
" An act to create a commission on industrial relations." I do
not believe that there is any more worthy subject for the investi¬
gation of this commission than the one of modern scientific
management in industrial works, of which they have now an
illustration in four years' operation at a Government establish¬
ment conducted openly, under public laws and regulations, and
operated with solicitude for the welfare of its employees and
without profit.
24. The numerous documents containing the information
from which this memorandum has been compiled are on file in
this office and available for examination, but are withheld in
order to diminish the size of this already bulky communication.
Respectfully,
William Crozier,
Brigadier General, Chief of Ordnance.
[Extract from the Report of the Chief of Ordnance, 1911.]
Scientific Management
About three years ago the department began to devote atten¬
tion to the subject of scientific management as applied to its
manufacturing operations. Previously to the last fiscal year
the subject has been considered more as an experimental detail
of shop management, but it has now assumed sufficient impor¬
tance to justify a reference to it in this report.
It is unnecessary here to attempt any detailed description of
the principles of scientific management or the particular applica¬
tion of those principles which constitutes the Taylor System,
since both have been the subject of extensive discussion in the
public prints and have been very fully described in various trea¬
tises. It may be said, however, that the principles are no new
772
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
discovery, nor are they claimed to be such by the advocates, and
that the many details have been the subject of special and
laborious attention for many years. One of the basic ideas is the
application of educated and scientifically trained intelligence
to those operations of manufacture which were formerly con¬
sidered either as of too small importance to attract such attention
or as belonging entirely to the practice of a trade, and were there¬
fore left to the judgment or choice of those immediately and
practically connected with the operations; that is the workmen
and foremen. The employees to whom these matters have
heretofore been left acquired their skill not from study, but by
copying the methods of their predecessors, and are not generally
inclined to question the old methods. Besides, the best method
of doing certain work is too difiicult of ascertainment for the work¬
man to have any chance of success in arriving at it, which has to
be done by careful and scientific consideration of a number of
variable elements whose successful combination is a matter of
high skill and careful observation. An illustration is the process
of cutting metal, a particular task involving which is usually
given a workman with no other special instructions than that he
is to use a particular machine and follow a drawing upon which
dimensions and allowed variations therein are specified. The
matters which are left to the workman's own determination are
the form of cutting tool — which he usually grinds himself —
the speed at which he will run the machine, the depth of the cut
which he will take in removing the metal which must come off,
and the feed which he will set for the travel of the tool along the
piece. In determining these matters there should be taken into
consideration the character of the metal upon which the work is
to be done, the qualities of the steel in the cutting tool, the best
length of time for the cutting tool to last without renewal, the
strength of the machine, and the capacity of the belting to trans¬
mit power to it without slipping. Certain only of these elements
can be known to the workman; others are without his ken and
have probably been determined without consulting him, as, for
instance, the appliances by which the machine is to be given its
power and speed, and the specifications for the steel in the cutting
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
773
tool; and the best combination so as to secure the completion of
the task in the shortest possible time can only be insured by the
application of recorded results of long experience and close obser¬
vation of the art of cutting metals. Efficient work requires that
the workman must be given the elements of speed, feed, depth of
cut, and a cutting tool by some one who knows what the combi¬
nation ought to be.
When the claims made by the advocates of scientific manage¬
ment first attracted my attention, the question of the efficiency
of existing shop methods was naturally raised in order to estimate
the probable value of a change. It is believed that the shop
methods in effect at the different arsenals were fully abreast of the
best general practice in private industries of the same nature.
While, therefore, the general conditions would compare favorably
with commercial practice, in those arsenal shops engaged in the
manufacture of small arms, ammunition, etc., where the work
consists of turning out large quantities of the same pieces, the
necessity for closely coordinating the successive operations and
for eliminating delays had been more evident than in general
machine shop and jobbing work, more study had been given the
subject, and as a result the methods there were highly developed.
It may be said, in fact, that those shops have had scientific
management for years and do not, therefore, appear to afford as
wide a field for improvement as might be found in the others.
I may also say that one of the earliest publications upon scientific
management was a work entitled The Cost of Manufactures
and the Administration of Workshops," by Capt. Henry Metcalfe,
an officer of the Ordnance Department, published in 1885. Of
Capt. Metcalfe's work Mr. Taylor said, in 1903:
455. Among the many improvements for which the originators will prob¬
ably never receive the credit which they deserve may be mentioned:
461. The card system of shop returns invented and introduced as a com¬
plete system by Capt. Henry Metcalfe in the Government shops of the
Frankford Arsenal. The writer appreciates the difficulty of this under¬
taking, as he was at the same time engaged in the slow evolution of a similar
system in the Midvale Steel Works, which, however, was the result of a
gradual development, instead of a complete, well thought out invention, as
was that of Capt. Metcalfe.
774
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
As a result of consideration given the subject the probability
that the general machine shop and job work practice might be
materially improved by the methods of scientific management
seemed great enough to warrant a practical trial. With this
object I directed, something over two years ago, the trial at the
Watertown Arsenal, Mass., of some of the elementary features
of what is known as the Taylor System, with the intention of
testing out these features thoroughly and determining their value
before proceeding further, and I employed Mr. Carl G. Barth, an
expert in shop management recommended to me by Mr.- Taylor,
to assist us in effecting their introduction.
Mr. Earth's principal service has been the systemization of the
general processes of manufacture. Under his guidance we have
systematized the method of putting work into the shops, so that
orders for manufacture now go from the office to the shops with
a much more complete arrangement and supply than formerly
of drawings, specifications, lists of parts, bills of material, and
orders relating to particular parts of the structure to be produced,
so that the foremen are relieved from much of the semi-clerical
and other office work which they used to have to do, and for
which they are not well qualified and cannot attend to without a
neglect of other more appropriate duties. We have systematized
the work of planning the course of component parts of the struc¬
tures to be manufactured through the shops of the arsenal, so
that this course shall be regular and orderly, and the work shall
at no time be held through the lack of some component which is
not at hand when needed, and that no wasteful effects shall arise
through congestion of work at particular machines, or the idleness
of other machines or workmen, while waiting for the assignment
of operations which should have been planned for them in
advance. For this purpose there has been installed a planning
room, equipped with personnel and appliances, for the regular
production of what might be called the time-tables of the thou¬
sands of pieces which must travel through the pattern shop, the
foundry, the forge shop, the machine shop, and the erecting shop
on their way from the stage of raw material to that of finished
product, without collisions, or unnecessary delays. We have
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
775
systematized the issue of material for manufacture from the
storehouses to the shops, and have placed the task of estimating
the amount of material required among the duties of persons
other than those who are to make use of the material in manu¬
facture, so as to reduce the likelihood of over-estimates, to insure
the possession of the material at the time when it is needed,
prevent the disappearance of material while awaiting use and the
duplication of issues, and to insure the return to the storehouse
of surplus material, with the result of a useful reduction of the
amount of material issued, and supposedly used, for particular
fabrications. We have systematized the care of material in store
and the accountability for it, so as to insure more frequent and
accurate check of the material on hand with the clerical state¬
ment of what ought to be on hand. We have also systematized
the methods of caring for machines and tools so as to preserve
their eihciency; for example, the proper maintenance of the con¬
dition and tightness of the extensive system of belting, and the
systematic tempering, and grinding of cutting tools; and we
have made such improvements in the efficiency of certain ma¬
chines as to greatly increase their output. As an example of the
last-mentioned item of improvement, we made such changes in
the cutters and speeds of a certain gear-cutting machine as to
increase its daily output nearly threefold, and this at a time when
it was operating in accordance with general practice and to the
satisfaction of the skilled workman who was employed at it.
The practical effect of these methods at the Water town Arsenal
has been a material reduction in the cost of general manufacture
at that place. The most important manufactures at the Water-
town Arsenal are seacoast gun carriages, which are large structures,
with hundreds of parts, requiring many months for their comple¬
tion. It is therefore difficult to give at this time many examples
of the decrease of cost of production due to the improvements
which have thus far been made, but the following are illustrative:
Five different orders, each for 40 sets of parts for the alteration
of 12 inch mortar carriages have been given in comparatively
recent years. The first two orders were executed before the
introduction of the improvements very summarily and partially
776
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
described herein. The average cost per set of these two orders
was $1,536.73. The third order was carried through after some
httle progress had been made in the new methods, and the cost
per set under it was $1,120.32. The last two orders had the
benefit of most of the improvements which have thus far been
introduced, and under these the cost per set was $988.36. Another
example is found in the case of 6 inch disappearing gun carriages.
Under an order for three carriages which was executed under the
old system the cost of each carriage was $24,618.31. Under the
new system the cost of each carriage, under an order for two, was
$18,103.13. This comparison is, however, not quite accurate,
since the first order had to stand the cost of the patterns, which
the last order got the benefit of. This cost would, however, not
have been nearly sufficient to overcome the difference in price.
In the case of the parts for the mortar carriages, the direct labor
cost per set was reduced from $411 for the first order of 40 to
$275 for the last order, and that of the indirect labor and other
shop expenses was reduced from $358 to $332. In the case of the
6 inch disappearing gun carriages the cost of the direct labor was
reduced from $10,239 to $6,949, and that of the indirect labor
and other shop expenses from $10,263 to $8,956. This satisfac¬
tory result has been attained without affecting the pay of the
employees or requiring special exertion by them. The previous
practice at the Watertown Arsenal was the same as that still
followed in practically all machine shops the management of
which has not yet appreciated the wastage that a scientific study
of the usual practice is claimed to reveal. The principal elements
of this wastage include failure to appreciate and to utihze the full
and efficient power of machine tools, lack of planning by which
machines are frequently without work, the employment of skilled
workmen instead of cheaper help to bring work to machines or to
procure and grind their cutting tools, etc. By the establishment
of specified feeds and cuts the work done by the machines is
increased, and by regulating the ffow of work so that it shall be
even and continuous, and employing laborers and messengers to
supply the work and tools to the skilled workmen, the latter are
able to devote the time and labor which they previously expended
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
777
in other ways to work proper for their grade. Mr. Barth entered
upon his employment on June 14, 1909, since which date he has
given in the 2 years and months intervening till September
30,1911,156 days of service to the arsenal, at a total cost, includ¬
ing his expenses, of $8,808.30.
In view of the successful results obtained at the Water town
Arsenal, in December last I decided to assemble at that arsenal
a board, which included the commanding officers of the principal
manufacturing arsenals, for the purpose of studying the shop
methods which had there been put in practice and of deter¬
mining the extent to which these methods were suitable for other
arsenals.
The board of officers made a thorough study of the Watertown
methods and recommended the adoption of those methods for
similar work at other manufacturing arsenals, with such changes
in details as local conditions seemed to require. In accordance
with this recommendation preliminary steps toward introducing
the methods, in so far as they are applicable, have been taken at
several other arsenals. Due, it is believed, to an erroneous con¬
ception of the purposes which it is intended to accomplish by these
methods, the employees at one of the other arsenals to which the
changes are to be applied have protested against the installation.
They have been assured that this department does not contem¬
plate the introduction of any system, or any feature of a system,
which is oppressive or unjust. As stated above, the features
which have been in effect at the Watertown Arsenal for about two
years, and which are all which it is intended to introduce at the
other arsenals at the present time, do not affect the wages to be
paid to employees or the exertions to be made by them.
The employees have been fully informed as to my intentions in
this matter. The explanation given them should suffice to allay
any apprehension that may have been aroused by a misunder¬
standing of the matter, and induce them to await the result of the
practical trial of the methods in question, with confidence that
their proper interests are not endangered.
In addition to the study of methods, scientific management
usually includes some plan for demonstrating to the workman
778
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
that he can increase his production without unduly exerting him¬
self, and for stimulating him to do so by offering him increased
pay for such increase in output. The advocates of the Taylor
System claim with great positiveness that the features of that
system which do affect the employees' pay, if applied, will result
in further very marked economies to the Government, accom¬
panied by increased pay and conditions generally satisfactory to
the employees. These claims they base upon the result of actual
experience in shops in which the system has been put in operation.
The confirmation of the claims as to the advantages of the features
first installed, which the practical test at Watertown afforded,
lends such force to these further claims that, in the absence of any
positive evidence to the contrary, I do not think they can be
disregarded by an administrative officer honestly desirous of
serving the interests of the Government. Briefly stated these
features contemplate offering additional pay to workmen for
work performed in the manner and sequence selected from the
results of careful study, and completed within the time which that
study indicates as sufficient for the purpose. The saving in time
results, aside from any increased efficiency of machines, chiefly
from the effect of the instructions given the workmen, by which
their effort is more advantageously applied, and will involve no
exhausting exertion on their part, nor such as should be disagree¬
able. If the work is not performed within this given time, the
workman receives his regular daily pay; never less than his
regular pay. The proposition is simply that if he follows his
instructions and by so doing saves time, his pay will increase in
proportion to the time saved. For example, a workman has
been doing a piece of work in 190 minutes. After painstaking
study of the job and of all the means of saving time the man is
carefully instructed as to these means, and is told that for every
minute saved, within say 120 minutes, he will be paid for half a
minute at his regular rate, in addition to his regular daily pay; and
that it is thought that he can do the work in 72 minutes, for which
time the increase over his regular pay will amount to 33 t per cent.
The real point in the matter, however, is the determination, by a
method of scientific common sense, of the time within which the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
779
work can and should be done, and the particular method of com¬
pensation as a stimulus for meeting this time is not important.
An application of the method described to the first employee
of the Watertown Arsenal was made in May last. The circum¬
stances are worth examining somewhat in detail, as they are
illustrative of what might, at least, be accomplished by the general
use of the method. The case was that of a machinist cutting
gear wheels on a gear-cutting machine. It must be remembered
that all the preliminary means of improving the machine had
already been resorted to. It had been standardized and speeded
up and, although not a new machine, it was in as good condition
as it could be for getting the best output. The man employed
at it, a capable workman, well disposed to turning out a good
day's work, had already cut a number of the gears, so that his
ordinary rate of production was known. A careful time study
had been made, and an instruction card issued to him in accord¬
ance with the methods of the Taylor system. The following
figures are given as illustrating the change of output: The time
which the man had occupied in cutting a gear was 329 minutes ; as
the result of the time study he had been told that he would be
paid at his regular rate for a half minute for every minute under
300 minutes within which he would cut a gear, and that the results
of the time study showed that he should cut them in 180 minutes
each, in which case his premium would be 33^ per cent over his
day rate, $3.28, which he was assured he was going to get in any
event. No limit was placed upon the amount which he could earn
by cutting the gears in still less time than 180 minutes each.
Under these conditions the man went at the work and cut 10
gears, all that were left to be cut, in 220 minutes each, thus
increasing his pay about 18 per cent over his day rate. This
appears to have been a result worth attaining, and was reached,
not only by stimulating the man and giving him instructions, but
also by affording him all the facilities for doing the work which a
careful study made had shown might be given him with advan¬
tage to the Government. The magnitude of the achievement
does not yet appear in its entirety. Of the 329 minutes which
had been previously taken in cutting a gear, 152 minutes was
78o
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
the ninnîng time of the machine, which the man could not alter,
leaving 177 minutes as the handling time, occupied by the man in
taking out finished gears, putting in new blanks to be cut, adjust¬
ing cutters, etc., so that the 109 minutes finally saved were out
of the 177 minutes handling time. The cost of the gears before
putting the man on the premium system had been, for his own
labor, for the labor of his helper, for the cost of running the
machine, and for indirect expenses, $4.75 each. The final cost
for these same items was $3.28 each, making a saving of $1.47 per
gear, or 44 per cent. For the effect on the man's pay: He cut
each gear in 80 minutes less than the 300 minutes which were
given him as the time within which he would be paid premium;
he was therefore paid, at his rate of 41 cents per hour, for 40
minutes for each gear, and as he cut a gear in 220 minutes he thus
made 40 minutes' pay, or 37 cents, every 220 minutes, which is
at the rate of 7.45 cents per hour, an increase of about 18 per cent
over his regular rate, which applied to his entire day's pay would
raise it from $3.28 to $3.87.
Following the above quoted case, and several others in the
machine shop of the arsenal, an attempt was made to extend the
improvement in methods to the foundry, where there was thought
to be still greater opportunity for economies which would result
advantageously both to the employees and to the Government.
There had been no opportunity for making a time study such as
had preceded the placing of some mechanics under the premium
system in the machine shop, but the advantages in that shop had
been so great that it was concluded that part of them could be
had by placing some of the molders under the premium system,
while basing the time within which premiums might be earned
upon the record of preceding production. It was well known
that this time was greater than it should be, but as it was intended
at this time to apply it only to certain work which was not to be
repeated, it was considered wise to allow the workmen the advan¬
tage of this liberal time for the sake of the economies which would
also result to the Government. Several molders were given jobs
under this plan; but it was not successful in getting any material
reduction of the time occupied in doing the jobs, or in producing
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
781
premiums for the men. A time study was therefore made upon
a mold for the pommel of a pack saddle, of which a considerable
number were required. Under the day wage system a molder had
been making these molds in about 53 minutes each. The time
study showed that they ought to be made in 24 minutes each;
and in accordance with the usual rule premiums were to com¬
mence to be earned after the time represented by the 24 minutes
plus two-thirds of the 24 minutes, or 40 minutes. Both the
molder and the foreman, however, thought this time was too
short, and the officer in charge of the shop therefore increased
it arbitrarily to 50 minutes.
However, although no objection to the time study was made
at the time, on the same evening a meeting of the molders was
held, and it was decided that they would not submit to the proc¬
ess, and when, on the following day, attempt was made to carry
it on with reference to another man on another job, the molders
all struck, leaving their work. Their places were being filled by
other men employed when, after a few days, they returned to
work under the same conditions as those on account of which
they had left, with the information that the whole matter would
be made the subject of an investigation.
After the return of the striking molders to work the man who
had been on the pommel job was again put at it and occupied the
same time as before, about 53 minutes for each. One of the new
men who had been taken on was therefore assigned to this job,
when he made the molds at an average of 20 minutes each, the
castings from them not being distinguishable from those made by
the former molder. That this time of 20 minutes each was not
difficult of accomplishment is shown by the fact that this man
upon one occasion did a whole day's work at the rate of 16
minutes each; and on one occasion was observed to make one of
the molds in 10 minutes. Also, one of the striking molders after
his return made them in 28 minutes each.
When these molds were produced in 53 minutes each their labor
cost, including helper and all the direct and overhead charges,
was $1.17 each. When they were made in 20 minutes each this
cost was reduced to 54 cents. There was thus a saving of 63
782
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
cents on each mold, and as, at the 20 minute rate, 24 molds were
made per day, the net daily saving to the Government upon this
one molder's job was $15.10. The pay of the time study man,
a high-priced specialist, was $15 a day; so that his entire day's
pay was saved on this one job. When the molds were made at
the rate of 53 minutes each, under day wages, the molder earned
$3.28 per day; when they were made in 20 minutes each, under
the premium plan, the molder earned $5.74 per day.
During the month of September last 29 men, in the foundry
and machine shop, were working more or less time under the
premium system. Their total pay for the time that they were so
working, at their regular rate, was $1,108; the premiums which
they earned amounted to $279.19. They thus increased their
regular daily pay by an average of something over 25 per cent.
It is a pertinent inquiry who was hurt by this process ? The men
were certainly benefited in their compensation. They were not
required to overexert themselves, nor directed to speed up, and
the best evidence obtainable is to the effect that the rate at which
they worked was not such as ought to have been other than pleas¬
ant.
Up to October i about 120 jobs have been done under the new
scheme in the machine shop, and the average premium earned by
the machinists engaged upon them was a little over 21 per cent
of their wages.
After the return of the molders to work, Lieut. Col. John T.
Thompson, from the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, was directed
to proceed to the Watertown Arsenal and make an investigation
of the strike and the events preceding it. From his report it
appears that the objection on the part of the dissatisfied workmen
is to the process of making a time study, which generally precedes
the setting of a premium time upon a new job ; and the underlying
cause of this objection appears to be an apprehension that
advantage will be taken of the knowledge gained by the time
study to speed up the workmen with a temporary incentive to
work fast, and then to use the knowledge thus acquired to require
the increased rate of production at the same old pay. Such an
apprehension might well be produced by the following circular:
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
783
Affiliated with the American Federation of Labor.
International Association of Machinists,
Office of International President,
404-407 McGill Building, Washington, D. C., April 26, igii.
OfiScial circular No. 12.
To the order everywhere, greeting:
It has been the purpose of the grand lodge in the past to raise a warning
voice whenever dangers have arisen which would affect our craft, and to
point the way to safety. Through the efforts of our organization the
machinists' trade has been raised to a higher level, as far as wages and condi¬
tions of labor are concerned, than otherwise would have obtained.
Wherever a high-paid class of labor exists by reason of organization and
skill combined it has had the effect of stimulating the inventive genius of em¬
ployers to find ways of eliminating skiU and with it the high-priced mechanic
and substituting common laborers with corresponding low wages.
The latest danger, and the one we propose to deal with in this letter, is the
so-called Taylor system of shop management. Mr. Taylor, the originator of
this system, is a former master mechanic of the Midvale Steel Co., Phila¬
delphia, Pa., and is weU qualified by disposition and education to undertake
to undermine our trade. His system is very insidious in the process of
installation and operation, it being his plan to install it slowly, and by a
process of selecting workmen, he will have it in full operation in a shop in the
time it takes him to select a body of docile, nonresisting workmen.
Mr. Taylor's system, as applied to the machinist trade, in brief, is as fol¬
lows:
1. Instead of having a general foreman in a shop, he has four specialized
shop foremen, each of whom performs a specified part of a foreman's job.
They are called the " speed boss," " gang boss," repair boss," and " in¬
spector boss." These jobs are given out as plums to machinists who are
willing to act as pacemakers.
2. Instead of machinists using their judgment in doing their work, Mr.
Taylor has a " planning department," which furnishes the machinist with an
" instruction card " similar to a drawing, telling him exactly what feeds,
speeds, tools, and machines to use; how to hold the work, etc., leaving
nothing to the workman's judgment. This eliminates skill and common
laborers are used.
3. Instead of relying on the honor of the machinists, together with the
watchfulness of the foreman as a means of getting a fair day's work from the
men, Mr. Taylor holds a stop watch on the best workman while working
fast, and leaves out the time on all such movements as he thinks is unneces¬
sary. The result forms a standard for a day's work. To get a man to work
at a terrific pace is his method. He solves it something like this:
{a) Offering a bonus for reaching this maximum.
(Ô) Standardizing the movements of a workman, thus making an autom¬
aton of him.
(c) Fining the workman all the way from i cent to $60.
784
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
(d) Discharging all who fail to reach the maximum pace after a trial.
(e) Discharging the dissatisfied workman, and keeping those who will do
as they are told.
(/) Offering the foreman a bonus to keep the men spurred up to the top
speed.
(g) Installing piece work with a differential rate per piece, thus: If the
maximum day's work is 10 pieces, and the workman may get, say, 35 cents a
piece, or $3.50 per day, if he succeeds in completing the entire task. If, how¬
ever, he fails to finish 10 pieces, even if he misses this limit by only a fraction
of I piece, he gets only 25 cents a piece, or less than $2.50 per day. This
gives a tremendous incentive to a man to exert himself to the utmost.
4. Instead of collective bargaining, Mr. Taylor insists upon individual
agreement, and any insistence on organized labor methods will result in
discharge.
Wherever this system has been tried it has resulted either in labor trouble
and failure to install the system, or it has destroyed the labor organization
and reduced the men to virtual slavery, and low wages, and has engendered
such an air of suspicion among the men that each man regards every other
man as a possible traitor and spy.
The present effort on the part of Mr. Taylor is to have his system installed
in the Government arsenals and navy yards. He has been so successful
that the War Department has decided to give his system a trial. This
would give his methods a tremendous advertisement, and only be a short
time until all private manufacturers throughout the country would adopt
his system, since, with the public, the Government has the reputation of
being a good employer. This is but another instance in which a good reputa¬
tion is exploited for a despicable purpose. We do not know what motives
the War Department has in the matter, but we do know that this proposed
staggering blow at labor must be met by determined resistance.
The installation of the Taylor system throughout the country means one
of two things, i. e., either the machinists will succeed in destroying the use¬
fulness of this system through resistance, or it wiU mean the wiping out of
our trade and organization, with the accompanying low wages, life-destroy¬
ing hard work, long hours, and intolerable conditions generally.
It is manifestly impossible in a short letter to explain the Taylor system
satisfactorily, but let this letter serve as a warning to you to prepare for the
struggle. As a means of preventing the Taylor system of shop management
gaining headway, we ask you to carry out the following instructions:
(1) Purchase a book explaining the Taylor system.
(2) Appoint a committee to read this book and report findings to the
lodge.
(3) Instruct the secretary or a committee to immediately write to the
Secretary of War, to two United States Senators of your State, and the Con¬
gressmen from your district, protesting against the installation of the Taylor
system by the Government, asking the law makers to support any measure
that may be submitted to Congress which will secure this result.
It would be well to enumerate some of the objections to the system as out¬
lined in this letter.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
78s
We trust that you will be impressed with the importance of this matter,
and will see the impending danger. Act quickly.
Yours fraternally,
Jas. O'Connell,
International President, International
Association of Machinists.
This circular was issued last spring, closely following a vigorous
protest of the employees of the Rock Island Arsenal against the
introduction at that arsenal of the first-described part of the
Taylor system which concerns systemization and general admin¬
istration only, without directly affecting the employees or their
compensation, and which had been shown to be so advantageous
at the Watertown Arsenal, the protest being based upon the fear
of what might follow.
It seems quite conceivable that men might be influenced by
such publications as this, coming from organizations which they
support themselves, to such an extent as to cause them to lose
sight of the fact that the Government is not in the " sweatshop "
business, and that there are plenty of instances in the Ordnance
Department itself in which employees are continuously earning
by stimulated efforts under the piece work system, wages very
considerably in excess of those paid to persons of the same degree
of skill, under the day wage method. A little inquiry would
show that there are many employees in the department working
at employment which can be readily learned in time very much
less than that required for the apprenticeship of a machinist,
for instance, who are regularly earning the wages of a good
machinist paid by the day. If the employees of the Ordnance
Department were left to the guidance of their own experience in
Government employ, and if the leaders of labor organizations
would take pains to inquire as to the promise in regard to condi¬
tions of employment which is implied in the record of labor in the
Government service before taking and diffusing alarm, I believe
that experiments such as the one now making at the Watertown
Arsenal would be given the fair chance which they do not have
when feehiigs are stirred up by such circulars as the one just
quoted.
786
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
As an example of what is shown by this department's record of
employment; the gear-cutting machinist whose experience has
been described above has been a regular employee of the depart¬
ment for a number of years. During the fiscal year ended June
30 last, in which the experience described occurred, he had been
given, as usual, leave of absence with pay for 131 days' annual
leave, 13 Saturday half-holidays, and 7 full holidays, making
27I days in all, for which he received $83.56, without rendering
any service. For the service which he did render during the year
he received $899.65. The amount which he received for no
service therefore was a little over gl per cent of that which he
received for his labor; and the labor was rendered at the rate of
only eight hours a day. His holiday time he was privileged to
use for his own pleasure or profit. In addition he had the sta¬
bility of the civil-service tenure of office; had an opportunity to
take his luncheon in a clean, well-warmed and ventilated and
well-kept lunch room, where facilities were supplied for heating
coffee, etc. ; was able to take a shower bath at the end of his work
if he wished to; and enjoyed the assurance that if disabled by his
work for over 15 days he would, under the governmental liability
act, be paid at his full rate for the time for which his disability
should last, up to one year; or that his dependent family would
be provided for at such rate in case of his being killed. With this
experience I do not believe that, of his own motion, this good
man would have become suddenly possessed of the fear that the
spirit of his employment by the Government was to be entirely
changed and that thenceforth he was to be subjected to an unen¬
durable slave driving process.
The theory under which the trial is being made at the Water-
town Arsenal is that the current rate of wages is notJ a just
compensation for the employees' best production, but that it is
compensation for the character of production under which the rate
has grown up, which is very far from the best. It is believed that
better production can be had by proper care upon the part of the
management, but that continued high production is impossible
without correspondingly high wages. It is also considered that
there are differences between men which should be taken account
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
787
of in their compensation. There is not lacking evidence that
these differences are not always rehshed by labor organizations,
and that there is some tendency upon the part of members of
these organizations to consider that they should be industrially
as well as politically equal; and it may be that this feeling is
stronger on the part of employees in a Government establish¬
ment, feeling that all men are properly equal before the law, than
in private employment. I have not yet reached a conclusion as
to the extension to other arsenals of the part of the Taylor system
of shop management which directly affects the workmen, and I
do not intend to do so in advance of further trial at the Water-
town Arsenal; but I am convinced that, either by this system or
by some other, it ought to be possible to secure better cooperation
of the employees among themselves and between them and the
management than has been had in the past. I think it ought to
be possible to accomplish this by making it to the interest of as
many employees as possible to call attention to any improvement
which would increase their productiveness, or to any slackness
which diminishes it, and I do not think that the spirit of keenness
and forwardness which ought to accompany conditions of this
kind would properly be described as one involving spying, or a
state in which every man's hand would be against his neighbor, as
has been alleged.
As to the effect upon the employment of labor which would be
produced if a given amount of work were to be performed by a
less number of men than had previously been required for it, it
should be borne in mind that at a Government establishment the
amount of work is regulated by the capacity of the establishment
and the appropriations available. If by means of improved
methods this department should be able to diminish the cost of
military stores manufactured by it, by reason of the increased
efficiency of labor or otherwise, the funds thus saved would not
be turned back into the Treasury, but would be used to manu¬
facture additional stores, for which there is much need, requiring
the employment of additional labor. This result would be com¬
parable to that obtaining in private manufacture when diminished
cost and price increase consumption.
788
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In getting this system going for the last two years or more
the commanding oíñcer of the Watertown Arsenal, Lieut. Col.
Charles B. Wheeler, and his first assistant, Maj. C. C. Williams,
have been called upon for efforts much in excess of those cor¬
responding to ordinary working hours and have exhibited a
degree of zeal and intelligence which merits special mention.
[Extract from the Report of the Chief of Ordnance, 1912.]
Scientific Management
In my report for the fiscal year ended June 30,1911, the subject
of the application of more scientific management to the plants of
the Ordnance Department was discussed at some length, and a
detailed statement of the reasons that determined-the trial, the
extent to which the system had been introduced, the conditions
under which it would be retained or extended, and the results
already obtained were given.
During the past year the subject has received even greater
public attention than before, so that it is deemed proper to
describe the progress made and the conditions that have
developed since my last annual report in greater detail than
would otherwise be considered necessary.
The occurrence of the brief strike among the molders at the
Watertown Arsenal, mentioned in my last annual report, was
represented by the outside labor interests which had supported
the strike and were encouraging opposition to the introduction of
scientific management in the plants of this department as indica¬
ting the existence of unsatisfactory conditions, due to the use of
the particular system of management under trial, known as the
Taylor System. The representations made induced the House of
Representatives to appoint a special committee to investigate the
Taylor and other systems of shop management. While the
resolution authorizing the appointment of the committee provided
for the investigation of other systems, it specifically named the
Taylor System and directed that the applicability of this system
to Government works, its effect on the health and pay of the
employees, and on wages and labor cost be ascertained. The
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
789
special committee thus appointed began its labors on October 4,
1911. The members visited the Watertown Arsenal and held
hearings there, at Boston, New York, and Washington, covering
a period between October 4, 1911, and February 12, 1912. Ample
opportunity was afforded to all Government officers and em¬
ployees, outside labor leaders and workmen, industrial engineers,
civilian managers, and generally to any one interested in the
subject, to present their views to the committee. In short, the
committee went into the subject thoroughly and had presented
to it in great detail all the information needed for an exhaustive
study and the formation of an authoritative conclusion. The
committee made its report to the House on March 9, 1912, and it
was unanimous. Inasmuch as the opponents of the Taylor
System had virtually concentrated their attack upon the time
study and premium features under trial atthe Watertown Arsenal,
claiming that those features operated against the health and
well-being of the employees, it is particularly interesting to
note what the committee, as the result of its investigation, had
to say upon the points especially affected by those features.
Their remarks were as follows :
Neither the Taylor system, the Emerson system, the Gantt system, the
Brombacher system, the Stimpson system, nor any of the systems of so-called
scientific management have been in existence long enough for your committee
to determine with accuracy their effect on the health and pay of employees
and their effect on wages and labor cost. The conclusions we have arrived at
are all based upon what we consider to be the logical sequence of the condi¬
tions existing or proposed. The selection of any system of shop management
for the various Government works must be to a great extent a matter of
administration, and your committee does not deem it advisable nor expe¬
dient to make any recommendations for legislation upon the subject at this
time.
In other words, the committee, properly zealous to protect the
well-being of the employees, failed to find any ground in the
representations made by the opponents of the system upon which
to base condemnation or serious criticism of the methods in effect
or contemplated by this department, or any conditions which
called for remedial legislation, although it showed its alert interest
in the well-being of the workmen by mentioning and condemning
many oppressive practices, which it did not find, and did not say
790
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
it had found, at the arsenals of this department. This result
should be sufficient to stay the campaign against the use of the
Taylor system by the Government, which, on the part of its
opponents, has been principally one of misrepresentation of the
purposes sought, and unjustified assertions as to the results which
it would produce, at least until bad conditions become a fact
instead of a mere prediction. Particularly have these opponents
endeavored, by quoting carefully selected and therefore mislead¬
ing extracts from the writings of its original advocate, to create a
popular prejudice against the time study and premium features
of this system, alleging that these features are only devices for
" speeding up " the workman and reducing him ultimately to the
level of a " machine " or " beast of burden." The persistency
with which these statements have been circulated, in the face of
failure of the committee to discover any facts which justify them,
excites more than a suspicion that there is some other reason
which animates the opposition than a fear that the employees of
the department are going to be overworked. The following
instance, which occurred at the Watertown Arsenal, well illus¬
trates the fact that the time study is not an instrument of oppres¬
sion, but that the determination of the proper quantity of work
revealed by its use is advantageous to the workman as well as to
the Government, and that the department intends to act justly
upon the information thus obtained. After a time study had
been made on a piece of work, the workman proceeded to earn a
good premium, but upon comparing the cost of the work to the
Government before and after the premium system of payment,
it was discovered that the cost was greater afterwards than before.
That is, there was no saving of time and overhead charges to
compensate for the increased amount paid to the workman. The
reason was that this was an exceptionally fast and skilful man,
and that he had been all along giving an output corresponding to
a reasonable task time without getting paid for it. In other
words, he was underpaid. The time study disclosed this, and he
is now being paid in accordance with his merits.
In spite of the well-grounded conclusion reached by the com¬
mittee that no legislation is needed at present, interests outside
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
791
of the Government service have, nevertheless, succeeded in
having bills introduced into both Houses of Congress which aim
to prohibit the taking of accurate time studies of operations and
the payment of premiums, or extra pay, to the workman. The
effect of these bills, if enacted into law, would be to deprive the
workmen of all material advantages that scientific management
offers them. The attitude of the department is that improve¬
ment in industrial conditions should benefit both employer and
employee. This attitude is clearly evidenced by the record that
the department has made in its dealings with its employees and
was given positive expression in my testimony before the special
committee last January. To prevent any misunderstanding
upon this point, it is considered fitting to quote that portion of
the hearings which contains the expression referred to :
Mr. Tilson. There is another question I would like to ask in regard to
the system. If, after a fair trial of the second part, as we have called it, of
this Taylor system, at Watertown Arsenal, it should be found that it does not
work satisfactorily to both the Government and the men, after a fair trial, so
it could not be claimed on either side that it had not a fair trial, it should be
discovered that it could not be installed satisfactorily to the workmen them¬
selves and to the management, do you believe that it would be installed at
the other arsenals, regardless of that fact ?
Gen. Crozier. No, sir; it would not be my intention to install it at the
other arsenals under those circumstances.
Mr. Fitzgerald. Would it mean the ehmination of that feature at the
Watertown Arsenal ?
Gen. Crozier. Yes, sir; it would.
Mr. Fitzgerald. In its entirety ?
Gen. Crozier. Of this second part of the system ?
Mr. Tilson. Any part which did not work satisfactorily.
Gen. Crozier. I would not permanently continue any system that was
the cause of continued discontent.
Mr. Tilson. You regard the workmen at the Watertown Arsenal as fair-
minded men — the majority of them — men who as between man and man
would wish to be fair. Now, after giving it a fair trial with these men, if it
engenaered constant strain and you could not make any satisfactory arrange¬
ment with this system, would it not discourage it in your eyes ?
Gen. Crozier. Yes, sir; it would. After I shall have given it a fair trial,
then I shall know everything about it of my own knowledge.
Mr. Fitzgerald. Of course, there are some features that might remain
after this second part of the system was presumed to have been abohshed,
like the time records, for instance. Would workmen be required to still
maintain the time as determined by the time study methods of this system ?
792
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Gen. Crozier. I think I have covered that when I say that I would not
continue anything that produced permanent discontent.
Mr. Tilson. The system or any part of it ?
Gen. Crozier. No, sir.
Mr. Tilson. I just wanted to be sure of what you said, General. I
simply wanted it reiterated, that is all.
Gen. Crozier. Anything that produced permanent dissatisfaction and
discontent would be given up. We desire to have our relations with the
workmen harmonious.
Mr. Tilson. That's the point.
These expressions should not be misinterpreted. They do not
mean that any feature deemed beneficial will be given up imme¬
diately upon the request of employees, without investigation of
the grounds and reasons for such a request. Before the aban¬
donment of a feature is decided upon it must be demonstrated
that those objecting to it have worked under it long enough to
understand it thoroughly, that their objections are material and
based upon their own experience rather than the suggestions of
others, and that they represent in number more than the small
discontented element that exists in all industrial organizations.
The time study affords the most accurate measure yet devised
for determining the just quantity of work that should be per¬
formed without overexertion, and the premium system is one of
the means by which this just quantity of work can be adequately
paid for. The combination of the two secures increased earnings
to the competent workman, without a corresponding decrease
to the less competent, a positive and material step forward which
it would seem should meet with general approval. The proposed
bill, however, takes away this advantage, and requires the work¬
man to continue to labor under the old conditions, the unsat¬
isfactory and inadequate character of which is evidenced by the
symptoms of general unrest occurring throughout the industrial
world.
The advocates of these bills profess to foresee that the time
study and premium features will produce conditions inimical
to the workman, and draw a harrowing picture of a future in
which the overwrought workman is laboring feverishly to accom¬
plish daily a task beyond his strength in return for a wage no
greater, and perhaps less, than he formerly received. The
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
793
absurdity of the supposition that such a state of affairs in a plant
belonging to this Government would be tolerated by the people,
or that there is any incentive which would lead sane Government
oíñcials to attempt anything of the sort, does not seem to strike
these prophets. Neither do they appear to comprehend the fact
that the determination of the rate of wages to be paid is a matter
wholly independent of any system of management. The Taylor
system has no occult power to force workmen to work under
unsatisfactory conditions or for an inadequate wage. It does
not take away from the workmen any weapon of self-protection
which they now possess. Wages are not fixed by a system, but
by agreement. Under the Taylor system there is exactly the
same opportunity for bargaining, either individually or collec¬
tively, exactly The same remedies for oppressive conditions, in
short, exactly the same protection for the workmen that there is
under any other system — no more and no less. The same
forces that operate now to maintain, raise, or depress the rate of
wages will operate as effectively under the Taylor system, and
these are the only forces that can affect the question. When the
time study has revealed more accurately than mere guesswork
how much work can properly be done, there still remains the
question as to how much shall be paid for that work. The settle¬
ment of that question is not determined by the time study, nor by
any other feature of the Taylor System. But the result of the
time study has furnished the workman with a vastly better ground
upon which to bargain about wages than he had when both
parties were merely guessing as to the amount of a fair day's
work. In the face of the actual results so far obtained, and the
unequivocal statements as to the future intention of this depart¬
ment, the effort to protect the workmen from purely visionary
dangers by depriving them of a present and very material benefit
appears so strained and illogical as to suggest irresistibly either
that the real reason for the effort has not been revealed or that
those who profess to be so alert in protecting labor are singularly
obtuse. Should they be successful in their effort to eliminate
the time study and premium features, the workman who has
become accustomed to receiving a substantial increase in his pay
794
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
envelope under the premium system is going to find it difficult to
figure out how he has been benefited when that increase is taken
away from him and his hours of work are not reduced. I believe
that the practical experience of the benefits of the premium
system obtained by those who have worked under it during the
past year will lead to a saner and more enlightened view of the
subject, and develop clearly the fact that there is not, on the part
of those who are personally affected, any real wish for the enact¬
ment of legislation so evidently opposed to their interests.
To show how directly and materially the premium system,
based upon time study, has benefited the workman, I invite
attention to the following data as to the number, trade, and grade
of the employees who have worked on premium during the past
year, and the average monthly percentage of their regular
pay represented by the premiums earned. (See tables, pages
795-801.)
The net result of these figures may be more significantly sum¬
marized by the statement that 153 men received during the last
fiscal year a total of $6,938.43 more than they would have been
paid except for the time study and premium features. Had
conditions been such that all of these men could have been em¬
ployed continuously on premium jobs, the premiums earned
would constitute an actual increase in their annual pay of 28.59
per cent.
These very substantial increases earned under the premium
method, without complaint of undue or disagreeable exertion, can
hardly be regarded by any unprejudiced person as other than a
distinct improvement in the industrial position of the workmen
concerned, who must have been enabled thereby to live better
and to obtain for themselves and their families advantages not
previously enjoyed. It is difficult to believe that these men and
those dependent upon them really favor a legislative prohibition
of the premium feature, which would deprive them of their new
comforts and compel a return to their former scale of living. I
do not believe it, but by evidence gathered on the spot, as well as
by the above considerations, am convinced that a free expression
of opinion by the employees of the Watertown Arsenal, if it were
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
795
PREMIUMS EARNED DURING MAY, 1913
By Molders
No.
Time
Day
rate
Total
pay,
day
rate
Pre¬
Total
amount
Hours of
premium time
paid for
Hours worked
on premium
Average
pre¬
mium
Days
Hours
mium
paid
Hours
Mins.
Hours
Mins.
percent,
earned
4
27
$3-04
$82.08
$12.41
$94.49
32
39
82
10
39.73
5
27
3.28
88.56
4.55
93."
ii
7
70
45
15.71
6
14
3
3-04
43.70
5.62
49.32
14
47
93
50
15.75
7
27
3-52
95.04
23.72
118.76
53
54
i8r
35
29.68
8
27
3-S2
95.04
13.91
108.95
31
37
128
35
2458
9
27
3-52
95.04
13.46
108.50
30
35
176
35
17.29
10
23
3-52
80.96
16.60
97.56
37
44
137
30
27.44
ii
27
3.28
88.56
17.23
105.79
42
2
163
20
25-73
12
27
3-S2
95.04
18.66
113.70
42
24
118
45
35.70
IS
27
3.68
99.36
20.94
120.30
45
32
195
25
23.30
16
27
3-04
82.08
11.39
93.47
29
59
142
40
21.01
17
27
3-52
95.04
15.11
110.15
34
20
104
25
32.88
18
27
3.68
99.36
20.95
120.31
45
33
195
25
23.30
Total
194.55
452
13
1.791
25-54
, j-iia. iiiiu.
Premium percentage of shop = 1 ygi hrs ~ cent. Hours worked on premium is
66.gs per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
In Machine Shop
31
27
$3.04
$82.08
$1.12
$83.20
2
57
27
25
10.76
33
21
3.28
68.88
4.03
72.91
9
50
58
40
16.76
35
24
3-04
75.62
8.51
84.13
22
23
135
40
16.49
38
27
3.28
88.56
20.85
109.41
50
52
166
10
30.61
39
27
3.52
95.04
31.02
126.06
70
30
199
10
35.38
41
27
3.28
88.56
21.26
109.82
51
52
158
30
32.72
42
27
3.28
88.56
21.38
109.94
52
9
164
5
31.78
43
27
3.04
82.08
6.¿II
88.49
16
52
128
20
13.14
44
15
3.04
47.88
6.96
54.84
18
19
67
30
27.13
45
27
3-28
88.56
19.44
108.00
47
25
136
35
34.71
46
18
3-28
59.04
25.47
84.51
62
7
175
45
35.34
47
27
3.28
88.56
21.12
109.68
51
31
184
35
27.91
48
26
3-04
80.56
5.09
85.65
13
24
179
30
7.46
49
27
3-28
88.56
9.85
98.41
24
2
191
45
12.53
50
27
3.52
95.04
29.70
124.74
67
30
193
25
34.89
51
27
2.80
75.60
14.13
89.73
40
23
141
35
28.52
52
27
3.04
82.08
24.14
106.22
63
32
155
35
40.83
54
27
3.28
88.56
14.79
103.35
36
5
132
5
27.31
55
27
3.04
82.08
5.96
88.04
15
42
196
25
7.99
56
24
3-04
72.96
10.57
83.53
27
49
92
5
30.20
57
27
3.28
88.56
1.44
90.00
3
30
15
23.33
58
26
4
3.04
80.56
4.87
85.43
12
50
36
35.64
59
27
3.28
88.56
23.14
iii.70
56
27
210
25
26.82
60
27
3.28
88.56
6.16
94.72
15
2
39
55
37.66
61
27
3.04
82.08
10.35
92-43
27
14
108
45
25.04
62
27
2.80
75.60
8.33
83-93
23
49
"3
55
20.91
63
26
4Î
3.04
80.84
13.84
94.68
36
26
118
15
30.81
64
26
4
3.52
93.28
6.19
99.47
14
4
130
10
10.80
27
26
27
20
27
27
27
27
27
20
25
20
20
23
27
27
20
27
27
27
27
27
25
27
27
25
25
27
20
27
26
27
26
27
26
27
26
27
27
27
26
5
27
27
27
26
lO
27
9
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
PREMIUMS EARNED DURING MAY, 1913 — Continued
In Machine Shop — Continued
ne
Day
rate
Total
pay,
day
rate
Pre¬
mium
Total
amount
paid
Hours of
premium time
paid for
Hours worked
on premium
Average
pre¬
mium
percent,
earned
Hours
Hours
Mins.
Hours
Mins.
$3.28
$88.56
$8.82
$97.38
21
31
154
10
13-95
5
3-28
8733
8.01
95-34
19
32
56
30
34-57
2.56
69.12
.86
69.98
2
42
46
55
5-75
3-28
85.28
22.15
107.43
54
I
226
35
23-83
3-04
82.08
25.62
107.70
67
26
193
15
34-88
3-04
82.08
9-63
91.71
25
21
74
34-25
3-04
82.08
8.87
90.95
23
21
310
40
7-Si
3.28
88.56
30.22
118.78
73
42
166
20
44-30
3-52
95-04
13.68
108.72
31
5
151
15
20.55
6
3-04
81.32
13-43
94-75
35
21
176
20
20.04
li
3.28
82.61
18.40
lOI.OI
44
53
129
45
34-59
7
2.80
75-25
4.98
80.23
14
14
80
5
17.17
7i
2.80
75-42
10.13
85-55
28
56
180
20
16.04
3-04
69.92
15-91
85-83
41
52
137
50
30.37
2.80
75.60
23.89
99-49
68
16
191
25
35-66
3-04
82.08
13-43
95-51
35
21
105
40
33-45
2
3-04
79.80
25-31
105.II
66
36
194
55
34-16
3-28
88.56
28.25
116.81
68
54
187
5
36.82
3-04
82.08
4.61
86.69
12
8
43
5
28.16
3 04
82.08
3-04
85.12
7
59
58
25
13-66
2.80
75.60
18.29
93-89
52
16
173
35
30-11
• .
3.28
88.56
11-35
99.91
27
41
85
25
32-41
, ,
3.28
82.00
12.51
94-51
30
30
310
10
9-83
, ,
3.28
88.56
18.03
106.59
43
59
113
35
38-72
3-04
82.08
17-38
99.46
45
44
198
35
23.02
3-04
76.00
18.31
94-31
48
II
169
40
28.39
I
3.28
82.41
24.21
106.62
59
3
196
20
30.07
3.28
88.56
X.03
89-59
2
30
54
50
4-55
6
3.28
87.74
4.61
92-35
II
14
65
17-28
3-52
95-04
23-05
118.09
52
23
179
5
29.25
3
2.80
73-85
-73
74-58
2
5
145
25
1-43
2.80
75.60
11.96
87-56
34
II
134
20
25-44
ij
304
79.61
3-49
83.10
9
II
29
5
31-57
304
82.08
1.26
83-34
3
19
30
50
10-75
3-04
81.89
6.14
88.03
16
9
55
30
29.09
3.28
88.56
2-37
90-93
5
47
28
30
20.29
lè
3 04
79.61
9.91
89-52
26
5
94
20
27-65
, ,
3-04
82.08
.22
82.30
34
31
15
1.81
3-04
82.08
17-37
99-45
45
42
151
55
30.08
3-04
82.08
5-90
87-98
IS
32
lOI
10
15-35
2^
3.04
79-99
13-59
93-58
35
45
134
25
26.59
2.80
14.00
14.00
7
30
2.56
69.12
7-04
76.16
22
149
5
14-75
3-52
95-04
20.49
115-53
46
34
159
30
29-19
3-04
82.08
6.64
88.72
17
28
96
55
0 '
30
H
3-52
94.82
5-50
100.32
12
30
126
SO
9-85
3-04
30-40
30.40
9
20
3.28
88.56
6.87
95-43
16
46
78
20
21.40
3.28
29.52
-57
30-09
I
23
15
9.22
3-04
30-40
.18
30.98
I
32
6
40
23.00
No.
I3S
136
137
138
139
140
141
143
144
145
146
148
149
iSi
153
154
155
158
159
162
168
169
176
177
178
179
180
182
186
188
191
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
210
211
212
215
216
220
222
223
224
22s
226
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
797
PREMIUMS EARNED DURING MAY, 1913 — Continued
In Machine Shop — Continued
Time
Day
rate
Total
pay,
day
rate
Pre¬
mium
Total
amount
paid
Hours of
premium time
paid for
Hours worked
on premium
Average
pre¬
mium
percent,
earned
Days
Hours
Hours
Mins.
Hours
Mins.
25
4Í
$3-04
$77.61
$13-71
$91.32
36
4
105
34-34
27
2.80
75.60
.04
75-64
7
25
55
-45
23
7è
3-04
72.77
13.84
86.61
36
25
131
10
27-76
25
3-04
76.00
1-74
77-74
4
34
146
15
3-12
27
3-52
95-04
13-13
108.17
29
51
158
35
18.82
25
2.80
70.79
2-57
73-36
7
21
71
15
10.31
27
3-04
82.08
ii.ii
93-19
29
14
125
23-38
26
3-04
79.04
11-35
90-39
29
52
92
15
32.37
26
2.80
75-25
9.69
84-94
27
42
105
5
26.36
2
2.80
5-6o
5-60
3
10
27
3.28
88.56
18.96
107.52
14
157
29-44
26
6
3-04
81.32
18.66
99.98
t
49
6
169
55
28.88
25
6
3-04
78.28
78.28
13
10
25
3i
2.80
71.22
13-16
84.38
37
37
141
45
26.53
27
, .
2.80
75.60
-31
75-91
54
59
30
I-51
25
6è
3-04
78.47
.86
79-33
2
15
3
45
60.00
26
5è
3 04
81.13
1-53
82.66
4
2
18
25
21.90
6
, ,
3-04
18.24
71
18.95
i
52
21
10
8.81
27
2.56
69.12
22.21
91-33
69
25
198
15
35-01
26
5i
2.56
68.32
8.14
76.46
25
26
98
15
25.88
27
2.80
75.60
5-64
81.24
16
7
76
20
1845
27
2.56
69.12
69.12
30
50
27
2.80
75.60
4-54
80.14
12
59
95
13-66
26
5i
2.80
74-72
23-15
97-87
66
8
159
25
41.48
27
, ,
3-04
82.08
.09
82.17
14
2
30
9-33
27
3.28
88.56
9.71
98.27
23
41
147
35
16.04
27
. ,
3-04
82.08
29.58
iii.66
77
51
217
30
35-79
27
3-28
88.56
5-92
94.48
14
27
44
25
32-53
26
4
3-04
80.56
19.30
99.86
50
47
166
40
30.47
27
. ,
3-76
101.52
3-51
105.03
7
28
22
35
33-06
24
4
2.56
62.72
11.47
74.19
35
50
120
20
29.77
27
328
88.56
19-59
108. is
47
47
235
25
20.29
26
42
2.56
68.00
3-79
71.79
ii
51
80
14.81
27
2.80
75.60
4-48
80.08
12
49
71
55
17.82
ii
5
3-04
35-34
-49
35-83
i
17
44
15
2.90
26
4
3-04
80.56
.68
81.24
i
47
5
55
30.14
27
, ,
3-04
82.08
16.68
98.76
43
53
134
25
32.64
27
2.80
75.60
4-49
80.09
12
50
60
40
21.15
27
3-04
82.08
4.88
86.96
12
51
39
35
32.46
26
7 2
3.28
88.35
22.97
111.32
56
i
182
55
30.62
26
i
3-04
79-42
18.71
98-13
49
14
185
26.61
27
3-04
82.08
ii.os
93-13
29
5
167
5
17.40
26
7i
3-04
81.89
2.13
84.02
5
37
19
35
28.68
26
7è
2.80
75-42
7-49
82.91
21
24
85
25
25-05
26
7i
3-04
81.89
3-97
85.86
10
27
91
35
ii.41
27
3-04
82.08
2.10
84.18
5
31
18
15
20.32
26
2.80
75-07
1-57
76.64
4
29
20
22.41
25
, ,
3-04
76.00
5-07
81.07
13
20
48
20
27-58
27
3.28
88.56
12.24
100.80
29
52
120
40
24-75
25
7
3-04
78.66
16.65
95-31
43
49
152
25
28.74
798
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
PREMIUMS EARNED DURING MAY, 1913 — Continued
In Machine Shop — Continued
no.
time
day
rate
total
pay,
day
rate
pre¬
mium
total
amount
paid
hours of
premium time
paid for
hours worked
on premium
average
pre¬
mium
percent,
earned
days
hours
hours
mins.
hours
mins.
227
287
total
27
25
i
$2.80
3-04
$7s-6o
76.19
$3-47
26.57
$79-07
102.76
9
69
55
55
34
192
40
30
28.60
36.32
1,398.06
3,601
8
14.583
35
23-14
premium percentage of shop =
3,601 hours 8 minutes
= 24.69 per cent. time worked on pre-
14,583 hours 35 minutes
mium is 45.65 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
By Craneman
283
28
7
$62
per m.
$59.68
$1.26
$60.94
4
49
14
5
34-20
hours worked on premium
same class.
is 1.38 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the
By Chipper
312
27
$2.24
$60.48
$0.82
$61.30
2
55
8
36-45
hours worked on premium is 3.7 per cent ot the entire working time of all employees of the
same class.
By Machinists' Helpers
42
27
$2.80
$75.60
$5-70
$81.30
16
18
s8
35
27.82
174
27
2.40
64.80
1.07
65.87
3
33
48
55
7-25
228
27
2.00
54.00
3-85
57-85
15
25
46
15
33-33
232
27
2.00
54-00
7-38
61.38
29
30
177
16.66
233
27
2.24
60.48
6.63
67.11
23
41
68
5
34-78
234
27
2.40
64.80
9-54
74-34
31
47
82
30
38-52
235
27
2.40
64.80
3-05
67-85
10
9
60
16.91
236
27
2.00
54-00
3-24
57-24
12
59
40
32.45
240
25
2.00
50.00
3-77
53-77
15
4
56
25
26.70
244
27
2.00
54-00
3.61
57-61
14
27
44
25
32.53
247
26
4
1.84
48.76
-40
49.16
i
44
5
35
31-04
252
27
2.00
54.00
16.49
70.49
65
59
158
5
41-73
258
26
1.84
47.84
2.98
50.82
12
59
40
32-45
260
27
1.84
49.68
49.68
29
35
263
27
2.00
54-00
3-70
57-70
14
48
45
30
32.52
272
25
4
2.00
51.00
-34
51-34
i
22
12
45
10.71
27s
27
2.00
54-00
8.09
62.09
32
21
120
15
26.90
277
26
3
2.00
52-75
3-59
56.34
14
22
40
40
35-32
278
26
4
1.84
48.76
1.71
50.47
7
27
22
35
32.98
292 •
27
2.24
60.48
8.15
68.63
29
8
114
25
25.46
294
25
2.00
50.00
4-43
54-43
17
42
55
15
32.03
295
26
1.84
47.84
1.70
49-54
7
24
21
20
34-68
298
27
2.00
54.00
9.10
63.10
36
24
96
55
37-55
303
25
s
2.00
51-25
9-38
60.63
37
32
154
10
24-34
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
799
PREMIUMS EARNED DURING MAY, 1913 — Continued
By Machinists' Helpers — Continued
No.
Time
Day
rate
Total
pay,
day
rate
Pre¬
mium
Total
amount
paid
Hours of
premium time
paid for
Hours worked
on premium
Average
pre¬
mium
percent,
earned
Days
Hours
Hours
M ins.
Hours
M ins.
309
314
Total
27
24
ñ
$1.84
1.84
$49.68
45.88
$14.81
•44
$64.49
46.32
63
i
24
56
184
6
25
3s-00
30.12
I33-I,')
S18
25
1,789
40
28.06
^ , 518 hours 25 minutes „ ,
Premium percentage of shop = —5—r ^—7— = 28.07 per cent. Time worked on pre-
1,789 hours 40 minutes
mium is 12.83 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
By Laborers
54
27
$2.24
$60.48
$0.49
$60.97
i
45
5
20
32.81
4
27
1.84
49.68
8.94
58.62
38
53
132
29.45
5
5
1.84
9.20
.22
9.42
57
3
40
25.90
7
28
2.00
56.00
1.23
57-23
4
55
15
35
31-55
ii
28
2.00
56.00
.26
56.26
i
2
3
40
28.18
12
17
2.00
34-00
•44
34-44
i
46
6
15
28.26
14
25
4
2.00
5i.oo
11.92
62.92
47
44
140
10
34-05
16
28
2.24
62.72
•03
62.75
7
i
25
8.23
17
27
1.84
49.68
1.19
50.87
5
ii
39
35
13.09
18
27
2.00
54-00
2.29
56.29
9
10
43
35
21.03
22
27
2.00
54.00
5-34
59-34
21
23
45
40
46.82
24
27
4
2.00
55-00
2-33
57-33
9
20
38
45
24.08
26
26
4
1.84
48.76
2.15
50.91
9
22
45
20.81
36
27
1.84
49.68
.18
49.86
48
2
40.00
37
26
4
1.84
48.76
6.17
54-93
26
50
100
10
26.78
41
25
1.84
46.00
1-95
47-95
8
29
41
15
20.56
43
26
1.84
47.84
.18
48.02
48
2
40.00
44
21
1.84
38.64
.48
39.12
2
7
42
5
5.02
48
26
1.84
47.84
• 71
48.55
3
4
58
45
5-21
52
26
1.84
47.84
•05
■ 47.89
14
22
45
1.02
54
27
1.84
49.68
.06
49-74
17
13
2.17
58
26
7
1.84
49-45
2.05
51-50
8
52
41
5
21.58
Total
48.66
203
4
843
45
23.02
T, . , , 203 hours 4 minutes , j
Premium percentage of shop = —r •—i— = 24.06 per cent, lime worked on premium
® 843 hours 45 minutes
is 12.71 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
By Rigger
13
30
1 $62.00
$62.00
$1.28
$63.28
4
54
15
35
31-44
Hours worked on premium is 6.49 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the
same class.
Ï Per month.
Soo
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
PREMIUMS EARNED DURING MAY, 1913 — Continued
By Fireuan
No.
Time
Day
rate
Total
pay,
day
rate
Pre¬
mium
Total
amount
paid
Hours of
premium time
paid for
Hours worked
on premium
Average
pre¬
mium
percent,
earned
Days
Hours
Hours
Mins.
Hours
Mins.
39
30
1 $75.00
$7S-oo
$1.52
$76.52
4
55
IS
35
31-55
Hours worked on premium is 6.49 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the
same class.
By Teamsters
3
8
28
29
30
45
Total
27
26
27
23
22
27
4
$2.00
2.24
2.00
2.00
2.00
2.00
$s4-oo
5936
s4-00
46.00
44.00
s4-00
$7-94
7-51
6.47
5-49
2.78
950
$61.94
66.87
60.47
51-49
46.78
63-50
31
26
25
21
ii
37
45
SI
53
57
8
59
134
83
83
85
73
130
30
20
35
30
20
23-69
32-15
31-06
25-64
15-14
29-14
39-69
155
33
590
15
26.14
„ . . , , 155 hours 33 minutes ^ , ,t,.
Premium percentage of shop = hours is minutes ~ P®' cent. Time worked on premium
is 48.38 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
By Blacksmiths
3
27
$3-52
$95-04
$14-98
$110.02
34
2
82
5
41.46
6
27
3-28
88.56
4-38
92.94
10
41
31
25
34-00
Total
19-36
44
43
113
30
37-73
. 44 hours 43 minutes . xj , j
Premium percentage of shop = „3 hom.s 30 minutes ^ Hours worked on pre¬
mium is 8.81 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
By Blacksmith Helpers
25
26
$2.00
$52.00
$8.51
$60.51
34
2
82
S
41.46
29
26
2.00
52.00
2.67
54-67
10
41
31
25
34-00
Total
ii.18
44
43
113
30
37-73
44 hours 43 minutes , tt 1 j
Premium percentage of shop = hours 30 minutes ~ 39-39 per cent. Hours worked on pre¬
mium is 8.81 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
1 Per month.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
8oi
PREMIUMS EARNED DURING MAY, 1913 — Continued
By Carpenters
No.
Time
Day
rate
Total
pay,
day
rate
Pre¬
Total
amount
Hours of
premium time
paid for
Hours worked
on premium
Average
pre¬
mium
Days
Hours
mium
paid
Hours
Mins.
Hours
Mins.
percent,
earned
58
27
$3-04
$82.08
$7.92
$90.00
20
51
36
15
57-51
63
27
3-04
82.08
13-47
95-55
35
27
53
40
66.05
6s
27
3.28
88.56
•39
88.95
57
2
20
40.71
67
27
2.80
75.60
12.44
88.04
35
33
53
45
66.13
68
27
3-04
82.08
2.39
84-47
6
17
14
50
42.35
Total
36.61
99
5
160
50
54-55
, , 99 hours í minutes , , , ,
Premium percentage of shop = Ï5o"'hc)urs 50 minutes ~ Hours worked on premium
is 5.38 per cent of the entire working time of all employees of the same class.
Hours worked
Hours of pre¬
Per
on premium
mium time
Date
ber of
jobs
paid for
Premium
Regular
cent of
men
paid
pay
Hours
Min.
Hours
Min.
Molders
July, 1911
August, 1911
18
796
55
113
7
$46.72
$332.60
14.0
September, 1911
19
I.74S
45
450
35
186.46
721.97
25-8
October, 1911
17
1,962
40
439
35
182.35
807.64
22.6
November, 1911
16
1-564
30
389
40
161.58
644-54
25-1
December, 1911
18
2,141
56
478
29
198.74
881.80
22.5
January, 1912
17
2,570
30
692
40
286.88
1,061.11
27.0
February, 1912
19
2,392
562
40
183-11
1,037.26
17.6
March, 1912
18
2,175
50
600
59
246.79
917.67
26.9
April, 1912
12
1,644
507
207.81
674.21
30.8
May, 1912
II
1,490
45
478
41
197-03
614.56
32.1
June, 1912
II
1,298
16
380
53
156-85
533-89
29-4
$2,054.32
$8,227.25
24.97
Machinists
July, 1911
4
25s
59
45
$20.16
$84.46
23.8
August, 1911
8
^839
190
45
67-40
I 351-08
19.2
September, 1911
10
1,052
39
255
15
92-73
384-96
24.0
October, 1911
15
1,261
28
316
8
115-36
420.89
27-4
November, 1911
20
2,612
5
637
II
235-27
941.21
2.5.0
December, 19x1
30
3.217
45
844
39
314-14
1,166.93
26.9
January, 1912
SI
4,766
30
1.329
37
506.64
1,769.78
28.6
February, 1912
52
4.195
30
1,086
20
414-75
1,580.38
26.1
March, 1912
59
5.088
25
1.629
7
613.60
1,898.40
32-3
April, 1912
88-
6.350
5
1,980
40
745-08
2,385-41
31-2
May, 1912
94
7.497
55
2,309
II
876.16
2,849.30
30.7
June, 1912
84
7.511
55
2,311
22
882.82
2,868.97
30-7
$4,884.11
$16,701.77
29-24
1 One man's time omitted on account of loss of card; time assumed.
8o2
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
possible to receive it, would be strongly in favor of a continuance
of the system.
The figures given above show the benefits which accrue to the
workman from the Taylor System as applied at the Watertown
Arsenal. It is now appropriate to consider what advantages
have been secured for the Government. In my last annual
report such typical examples of reduced cost of manufacture were
given as were available at that time. It must be remembered
that the Government lacks the simple measure of economical
efficiency which a private concern possesses in its net earnings,
and that a convincing and definite comparison can only be had
when the same or very similar articles have been manufactured
under both new and old conditions. It should not occasion sur¬
prise, therefore, that the concrete instances available are not more
numerous. But while these instances are not many, they serve
to indicate beyond a reasonable doubt that the methods which
have been so successful in the cases cited are producing a propor¬
tionate success in the work generally. From a comparison of the
job cards of about 60 different jobs, each of which was performed
under both the old day work and the premium system, it appears
that the average rate of production under the premium system is
about 2^ times that of day work. Had the same number of men
been working on premium work throughout the year as were
employed on such work during May and June at the Watertown
Arsenal, there would have been a total net saving to the Govern¬
ment of $100,095.80. Inasmuch, however, as the number in the
earlier months was much smaller, the amount saved was less, and
the saving actually made was $49,102.95, as compared with the
amount which had been estimated that the work was going to
cost.
Savings from Improved Shop Management and Premium
System {except as noted) and Disposition Thereof
The reduced cost of production at the various ordnance estab¬
lishments, due to the improved methods of manufacture and to
the premium system, as previously outlined, will continue to be
realized from year to year. These savings were made with
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
803
practically no reduction of wages of employees; on the contrary,
there were a large number of increases in day wages at all the
arsenals, and the earnings of those on a piece work or premium
basis were increased considerably. These increases, of course,
have been deducted from the amount of savings reported below.
Due to the existence of these savings for the current fiscal year
the estimates for the next fiscal year have been reduced, thus
giving the most practical expression to the results obtained. The
savings amounted to over $240,000, which was used to increase
the amount of work done and material manufactured under the
various appropriations from which the savings were made. The
estimates for the manufacture of small arms ammunition during
the next fiscal year have been reduced by $150,000 below the
current appropriations; but for the reduced sum just as much
ammunition will be procured as would be possible under the pres¬
ent appropriations at the prices of a year ago. The estimate for
the manufacture of small arms is $100,000 less. The number of
small arms made will not be as great as under the current appro¬
priation, but it will not be diminished in proportion to the reduc¬
tion in the estimate.
These figures need little comment, and, taken in connection
with those showing the increased earnings of the workmen,
furnish a complete explanation and justification of the advocacy
of the Taylor system by this department. The workmen have
received higher wages, while the net cost of the work has been
reduced, an industrial result which both employers and employees
are generally desirous of achieving. So far, at least, the advan¬
tages anticipated for both the Government and the employees
have been realized, and none of the objectionable results so confi¬
dently predicted by its opponents have developed. The present
situation, therefore, offers every inducement for the continuance
of the conservative application of the Taylor system begun by
this department, and such extension of the use of those features
proved to be beneficial as local conditions shall justify.
8O4
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Surplus Stock Savings
Inasmuch as scientific management more systematically directs
greater attention to all details of manufacturing work than was
previously bestowed, its trial by the department led to a closer
study, among other objects, of the amount and kind of material
that should be kept on hand for manufacturing purposes, with
the object of reducing such stock to the lowest limit consistent
with efficient and economical operation. The study given this
subject resulted in the adoption during the past year of a uniform
system for determining the amount of stock to be carried and for
providing for its replenishment. The overaccumulation of stock
is easily accomplished. Material is prone to be scattered through
a manufacturing establishment in unimpressive lots and to rest in
out of the way places unobserved. The record of it is buried in
the property return, often under a variety of half-known names,
not meaning much to the clerks who handle the returns, which for
the large arsenals are ponderous volumes discouraging critical
examination. A careful determination under a scientific method
of the proper quantity of stock to be kept on hand revealed the
fact that in the case of many items the quantity had been exces¬
sive, and that the stock of those items could be greatly reduced.
The process of realizing upon this surplus by using it in current
manufacture was at once begun and will be continued until it is all
absorbed. It will take several years to accomplish this. During
the past year $122,789.61 worth of this surplus has been used.
This means that the manufacture of the articles for which the
surplus material was used was accomplished by the actual dis¬
bursement of $122,789.61 less than would otherwise have been
required so that that amount of money was available for addi¬
tional work.
The surplus stock savings, amounting to $122,789.61, were
utilized in manufacturing 2,189 additional infantry riñes and a
large amount of small arms ammunition; while $17,585.13 were
turned into the Treasury, as the purpose to which this sum was
applicable can be covered by other appropriations without
increase. Some $17,000 of this saving is still on hand.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
80s
Stock Fund not yet Utilized
At the Springfield Armory there is a remaining surplus of
$130,313.53 over and above that mentioned above. When
future orders are received by the armory for the manufacture of
arms report in each case will be promptly made to this office
showing the value of the surplus material which can be utilized
in such manufacture, and the allotment covering such orders will
then be correspondingly reduced. This surplus consists largely
of those components of the riñe which require the longest time,
in the event of war, for their procurement, as, for instance, gun
stock, which should be seasoned for several years prior to use, and
steel for the larger parts, as for the barrel and receiver, so that the
amount of the saving does not represent a corresponding quantity
of material for that number of completed riñes. It will require
several years to absorb this surplus, which represents the amount
by which the war reserve of material can be reduced by reason of
the satisfactory store of finished riñes.
Reports have not yet been received from the other arsenals as
to the resulting surpluses that will be available for such use in the
stock fund. When such reports shall have been received these
surpluses will be similarly utilized.
Scrap material was utilized, as usual, in the manufacture of all
articles whenever possible. The value of the scrap material so
utilized during the year amounts to about $212,000. Under the
new stock system this scrap is now taken up at its proper value
on the stock fund account. That used in the manufacture of
any article is charged against the allotment for its manufacture
and credited to the stock fund account. When the stock fund
exceeds an authorized maximum the excess is turned back to this
office and made available for allotment for additional manu¬
factures.
Recapitulation of Savings
Saving^ from improved shop management, and premium
system
Savings resulting from the use of surplus stock
$240,461.93
122,789.61
Total
S363,251.54
8o6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Cash Rewards for Employees
During the past year the subject of the desirability and justice
of securing authority by which employees who were the authors
of suggestions that resulted in value improvements or economies
in manufacturing processes or plant could be adequately rewarded
was .taken up and a recommendation submitted to you that an
effort be made to obtain the necessary legislative action.
The history of this department contains many instances of
employees who have offered suggestions that resulted in material
improvements and economies. Under previously existing law
there was no suitable way by which the laudable interest of these
employees could be properly recognized. This lack of power
to reward such suggestions undoubtedly deprived the Govern¬
ment of much advantage that would accrue from the stimulus
to the interest in their work that could otherwise be secured, and
placed the Government in the unsatisfactory position of appro¬
priating such suggestions and beneffting from them without
suitable recognition of the authors. The action recommended
met with your approval and the matter was submitted to Con¬
gress. The result was the passage of an act, approved July 17,
1912, which authorized the payment of periodic cash rewards for
the most valuable suggestions submitted by employees. So far
as I know this act is the first successful effort on the part of any
executive department of the Government to recognize in a
material way those praiseworthy efforts of its employees which
are outside of their ordinary work and for which their regular
wage cannot be considered a fair compensation. In addition it
affords another practical instance of the desire of this department
to deal fairly with its employees and to promote that community
of interest and close cooperation which both equity and efficiency
demand. The necessary instructions for putting the act into
effect have been issued, in accordance with which the first period
within which rewards may be won will be from October i to
December i of this year.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT AS APPLIED TO
WOMEN'S WORK
CHAPTER Vn IN "MAKING BOTH ENDS MEET," BY SUE AINSLEE CLARK AND
EDITH WYATT
Reprinted by permission of The Macmillan Company
Within the last thirty years a new method of conducting work,
called Scientific Management, has been established in various
businesses in the United States, including " machine shops and
factories, steel work and paper mills, cotton mills and shoe shops,
in bleacheries and dye works, in printing and bookbinding, in
lithographing establishments, in the manufacture of typewriters
and optical instruments, in constructing and engineering work —
and to some extent — the manufacturing departments of the
Army and Navy." ^
Three of the enterprises to a greater or less degree reorganized
by this new system in this country employ women workers.
These establishments are a New Jersey cotton mill, a bleachery
in Delaware, and a cloth finishing factory in New England. The
reduction of costs for the owning firms inaugurating Scientific
Management has already received a wide publicity. It is the
object of this account to present as clear a chronicle as has been
obtainable of the effect the methods of Scientific Management
have had on the fortunes of the workers — more especially on
the hours, the wages, and the general health of the women workers
in these houses who have so far experienced its training.^
^ Brief on behalf of TrafiSc Committee of Commercial Organizations of Atlantic
Seaboard, p. 70. Louis D. Brandeis.
^ Fourteen years ago Scientific Management was applied to women's work in a
Rolling Machine Company in Massachusetts. Here the women's hours were
reduced from 10^ a day to 2>}4; their wages were increased about 100 per cent; and
their output about 300 per cent. All the women had two days' rest a month with
pay. The work consisted in inspecting ball-bearings for bicycles. Their depart¬
ment of the business, however, closed twelve years ago. Accurate facts other
than those listed concerning the workers' experience as to hours, wages, and general
health under Scientific Management are at this date too few to be valuable.
807
8o8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
What, then, are the new principles of management which have
been inaugurated ? What is Scientific Management ? The
expression may perhaps best be defined to lay readers by a lay
writer by means of an outline of the growth of its working prin¬
ciples in this company — an outline traced as far as possible in
the words of the engineers creating the system, whose courtesy
in the matter is here gratefully acknowledged.
I
In 1881, Mr. Frederick W. Taylor, the widely reverenced
author of the " The Art of Cutting Metals " and of " Shop Man¬
agement," then a young man of 21, closed, in grave discourage¬
ment, a long, hard, and victorious contest of his conducted as
gang boss of the machinists of the Midvale Steel Company in
Pennsylvania. In the course of the last three years, as he nar¬
rates in his book Principles of Scientific Management: ^ —
By discharging workers, lowering the wages of the more stubborn men
who refused to make any improvement lowering the piece rate and by other
such methods, he (the writer) succeeded in very materially increasing the
output of the machines, in some cases doubling the output, and had been
promoted from one gang boss-ship to another until he became the foreman
of the shop. . . . For any right-minded man, however, this success is in no
sense a recompense for the bitter relations which he is forced to maintain
with all those around him. Life which is one continuous struggle with other
men is hardly worth living. . . . Soon after being made foreman, therefore,
he decided to make a determined effort in some way to change the system of
management so that the interests of the workmen and the management
should become the same instead of antagonistic. . . . He therefore obtained
the permission from Mr. William Sellers, the President of the Midvale Steel
Company, to spend some money in a careful scientific study of the time
required to do various kinds of work.
Lack of information on the part of both workers and the management as
to the quickest time in which a piece of work can be done constitutes what
has been the most formidable obstacle in the path of aU progress toward
improved industrial conditions. . . . Every wasteful operation, every
mistake, every useless move has to be paid for by somebody, and in the long
run both the employer and the employee have to bear a proportionate share.
. . . For each job there is the quickest time in which it can be done by a
first class man; this time may be called the " Standard Time," for the
job. . . . Under all the ordinary systems this quickest time is more or less
completely shrouded in mist.
^ Principles of Scientific Management, by F. W. Taylor.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
809
Through a period of about twelve years the simplest operations
in the shop were now timed, observed, and studied by graduates
from science courses, different university men, engaged by Mr.
Taylor, until a general law had been discovered regarding the
exertion of physical energy a first class worker could employ
" and thrive under." It was found that the worker's resistance
of fatigue in lifting and carrying the load depended, not on the
amount of strength in terms of horse-power which he was obliged
to exert to elevate and sustain the load, but on the proportion
of his day spent in rest. For instance, a pig-iron handler, lifting
and carrying pigs weighing 92 pounds each, could lift and carry
47 tons of iron in a day without undue fatigue if fifty-seven per
cent of his working hours were spent in rest, and forty-three per
cent were spent in work. If he lifted and put in place a number
of pigs amounting to half that tonnage, he might work without
undue fatigue for a greater part of the day. Under a certain far
lighter load he could work without fatigue all day long, with no
rest whatever.
With accurate time study as a basis, the " quickest time " for
each job is at all times in plain sight of both employers and work¬
men, and is reached with accuracy, precision, and speed.
Here is an account of the effect the result of this time study
and these tests in strength produced on the output and wage of a
group of men at the Bethlehem Steel Co., whose work Mr.
Taylor reorganized after that of the Midvale Steel Company: —
The opening of the Spanish War found some 80,000 tons of pig-iron piled
in small piles in an open field adjoining the Bethlehem Steel Company's
works. Prices for pig-iron had been so low that it could not be sold at a
profit, and was therefore stored. With the opening of the Spanish War the
price of the pig-iron rose, and this large accumulation of iron was sold.
The . . . steel company's . . . pig-iron gang . . . consisted of about 75
men . . . good average pig-iron handlers, under an excellent foreman. . . .
A railroad switch was run out into the field, right along the edge of the piles
of pig-iron. An inchned plane was placed against the side of a car, and each
man picked up from his pile a pig of iron weighing about 92 pounds, walked
up the inclined plank, and dropped it on the end of the car.
We found that this gang were loading on the average of about i2>^ tons
per man per day in this manner. We were surprised to find, after studying
the matter, that a first class pig-iron handler ought to handle between 47
and 48 tons per day, instead of i2}4 tons, which were being handled.
8io
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
This task seemed so very large that we were obliged to go over our work
several times before we were sure we were absolutely right. . . . The task
which faced us as managers under the modern scientific plan . . . was . . .
to see that the 80,000 tons of pig-iron were loaded on the cars at the rate of
47 tons per man per day in place of 125^ tons. ... It was further our
duty to see that this work was done without bringing on a strike among the
men, without any quarrel with the men, and to see that the men were happier
and better contented with loading at the new rate of 47 tons than they were
when loading at the old rate of 12)4. tons.
The first step was the scientific selection of the workmen. . . . Under
. . . scientific management . . . it is an inflexible rule to talk to and deal
with only one man at a time, since we are not dealing with men in masses,
but are trying to develo';^ each individual man to his highest state of effi¬
ciency and prosperity. The 75 men in the gang were carefully watched and
studied for three or four days, at the end of which time we had picked out
four men who were believed to be physically able to handle pig-iron at the
rate of 47 tons per day. A careful study was then made of each of these men.
. . . Finally one man was selected from among the four as the most likely
man to start with.
This man, who had been receiving $1.15 a day, agreed to follow
for $1.85 a day the directions of the time student, who had deter¬
mined the proportion and intervals of rest necessary for the
regular accomplishment of the task, without overstrain or undue
fatigue. The worker started to carry his accustomed load and at
regular intervals was told by the time student, observing the
proper period for rest and work with a watch: " Now pick up a
pig and walk. Now sit down and rest. Now, walk — now,
rest, etc."
He walked when he was told to walk and rested when he was told to rest,
and at half past five in the afternoon had his 47^^ tons loaded on the car.
And he practically never failed to work at this pace and to do the task that
was set him during the three years that the writer was at Bethlehem. . . .
Throughout this time, he averaged a little more than $1.85 a day; whereas
he had never received more than $1.15 a day, which was the ruling wage at
that time in Bethlehem. . . . One man after another was picked out and
trained to handle pig-iron at the rate of 47^^ tons a day, until all of the pig-
iron was handled at this rate, and aU of this gang were receiving sixty per
cent more wages than other men around them.
A very brilliant and extended investigation concerning the
elimination of waste of human energy and labor by motion study
has been made independently of Mr. Taylor by Mr. Frank Gil-
breth, whose discoveries in the field have already cut down the
effort of the labor of bricklaying two-thirds. . . .
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
8ll
These extremely simple processes of bricklaying and carrying
pig-iron have been selected as instances of the procedure of Scien¬
tific Management, because they reveal one of its most illuminating
qualities. Scientific Management makes an art of all work. It
gives the most primitive manual task its right dignity, and turns
knowledge, science, and the powers of direction from the position
of tyrants of labor to that of its servitors.
Scientific Management, then, besides eliminating waste in
human energy, or rather by way of eliminating this waste,
eliminates waste in equipment, waste in machine power, and
evolves through an extended planning department such better
appliances, such an improved program of work and recording
of individual work as has been only very imperfectly indicated
here. . . .
" But these," said Mr. Taylor, in speaking of the methods of
Scientific Management, " are incidents in the course of Scientific
Management. Its great underlying purpose is the achievement
of prosperity for the workers and for the employers." Mr. Tay¬
lor's definition of prosperity, given on another occasion, is one of
the finest the present writer has ever heard. " By a man's
prosperity, I mean his best use of his highest powers."
It may be asked, after the efficiency of workers has been
increased by scientific study, what provision is made by scientific
study for their increased compensation. While Mr. Taylor was
at the Bethlehem Steel Company, Mr. Henry L. Gantt, then
engaged with him in reorganizing the Bethlehem Steel Works,
first applied the Bonus and Task System of compensation, which
may be described loosely as a premium paid if a certain predeter¬
mined amount be accomplished in a certain time. Its general
principles are these : ^ —
1. "A scientific investigation in detail of each piece of work
and the determination of the best method and the shortest time
in which the work can be done."
2. "A teacher capable of teaching the best methods and
shortest time."
^ Work, Wages and Profits, pp. no to in. H. L. Gantt.
8i2 scientific management
3. " Reward for both teacher and pupil, when the latter is
successful." 1
II
About five years ago Mr. Gantt was consulted concerning the
application of Scientific Management in a New England Cloth
Finishing house. The installation of the new system here began
on the eve of a strike which the workers lost. The history of
this strike and its causes is not a part of this account. Only
these facts concerning it bear upon the present subject. The
strike started among the men folders, then folding 155 pieces of
cloth a day for $10 a week on week wages, and asking for ten
per cent increase of wage without increase of output. The women
folders' wage on lighter work was I7.50. As will be seen, this
request was met by Scientific Management. The wage was
increased far beyond ten per cent. The output was increased,
both by improved mechanical methods, and by a standard of
more expert work, to from 447 to 887 pieces a day. The engineers
of Scientific Management had not on either one side or the other
any part whatever in the strike. But undoubtedly one of its
contributing causes was a distrust aroused by the rumor that a
new system of work was to be inaugurated.
The Cloth Finishing establishment bleaches, starches, and
calenders dimities, muslins, percales, and shirtings, and folds and
wraps them for shipping. The factory has good light and good
air and an excellent situation in open, lightly rolling country.
About two hundred young women, Americans, Scotch, English,
and French Canadians are now employed here on the bonus and
task system, most of them whom I saw living with their families
in very attractive houses in pleasant villages near. One or two
were on the gloomy, muddy little streets of a French Canadian
mill town. These girls, too, were in well-built houses and not
living in crowded conditions. But all their surroundings were
dingy and disagreeable. At the Cloth Finishing factory and
1 While the bonus system as a means of compensation has been used very often
in connection with the Scientific Management, it must not, however, be supposed
that this method of compensation is alone and in itself Scientific Management. In
fact, as employed without Scientific Management, it is to be regarded with some
apprehension.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
813
both the other establishments, every opportunity for the fullest
inquiry among workers as to the result of the system for them was
offered by the owning companies. Difficulties in the industry
for the workers were frequently pointed out by managers; and
the addresses and names of the less well-paid workers and those
in the harder positions were supplied as freely as information
about the more fortunate effects of the system. Both this firm
and that of the cotton mill are anxious to obtain first class work
through first class working conditions as rapidly as trade condi¬
tions will allow.
The first process at which women ar^ employed is that of keep¬
ing cloth running evenly through a tentering machine. The
machine holds on tenter hooks — the hooks of the metaphorical
reference — the damp cloth brought from the process of bleach¬
ing, and rolls it through evenly into a drier, where it slips off.
There are two kinds of tentering machines. At one kind two
girls sit, each watching an edge of the cloth and keeping it straight
on the tenter hooks, so it will feed evenly. The newer machines
run in such a manner that one girl who may either stand or sit
can watch both edges. Because of the nearness of the drying
closet, the air would be hot and dry here but that outside air is
driven in constantly by fans through pipes with vents opening
close to the workers.
The tentering machines used to run slowly. This slowness
enhanced the natural monotony and wearisomeness of the work.
The girls used to receive wages of $6 a week, and to rest three-
quarters of an hour in the morning and three-quarters of an hour
in the afternoon, with the same period for dinner at noon in the
middle of a ten-and-one-half hour day. After Scientific Manage¬
ment was introduced, the girls sat at the machine only an hour
and twenty minutes at a time. They then had a twenty-minute
rest, and these intervals of work and rest were continued through¬
out the day by an arrangement of spelHng with " spare hands."
The machines were run at a more rapid rate than before. The
girl's task was set at watching 32,000 yards in a day; and if she
achieved the bonus, as she did without any difficulty, she could
8i4
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
earn $9 a week. The output of the tentering machines was
increased about sixty per cent.
The girls at the tentering machines praised the bonus system
eagerly. They said they could not bear to return to the former
method of work; that now the work was easier and more interest¬
ing than before, and the payment and the hours were better.
One of the " spare hands " showed me, as a memento of a new
era at tenter-hooking machines, the written slip of paper the
efficiency engineer had given to her, explaining to her how to
arrange the intervals of rest, and to start the " rest " with a dif¬
ferent girl on each Saturday — a five-hour day — so that the
same girls would not have three intervals of rest every Saturday.
But in another part of the factory the girls at the tentering
machines had wished to lump their rest intervals and to take
them altogether in fifty-minute periods in the middle of the
morning and of the afternoon. Here the " spare hands " inter¬
vals at the machines fell awkwardly, and they were obliged to
work for an unduly long time. The girls became exhausted with
the monotony in these longer stretches of work; and further
wearied themselves by embroidering and sewing on fancy work
in the long rest periods. Here the girls were much less contented
than in the other departments.^
After the cloth is dry and passed through calendering machines
where men are employed, it is run into yard lengths by a yarding
machine or " hooker." At the yarding machines the girls stand
under the frame holding the wooden arms that measure off the
cloth back and forth. The workers here used to earn $7.50
a week. They watch the machine, mark defects in some kinds of
cloth, by inserting slips of paper, stop the machine when the
material runs out, and lift the pile of measured cloth to a table
where it is taken up by the cutters and folders and inspectors.
After the bonus system was introduced at the machines where
the heavier material is measured, the yarding machines were all
elevated to small platforms, so that the pile when finished would
^ The work in this department was, besides, rather slack at the time of year
when I visited the factory, and wages for some of these workers were $6 a week, as
low as they had been before the bonus was introduced.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
be on a level with an adjacent table, and the worker need not lift
and carry the heavy weight of cloth to the table, but could slide
the work. The machine was run more rapidly. The task was
increased to about 35,000 yards, or from about 155 pieces to
about 610. The wage with the bonus was now about $10 on full
time, and the hours were lessened 45 minutes, as at the tentering
machines.
The worker stops the yarding machine by throwing her weight
on her right foot, on a pedal to the right. The girls interviewed
said they did not feel this as a strain, as there was a knack in
doing it easily. On consulting a neighborhood physician it was
found that within the last ten years, however, several women,
both at the yarding and tentering machines, had strained them¬
selves, probably by the tread at the yarding machine and by the
slightly twisted seated position the older tentering machines
necessitated. The number of these cases traceable to any one
process of work had not increased under the new system. The
whole number of these cases in the factory had, on the other
hand, either decreased under the new system, or else had not
come under this doctor's care. He believed, however, that there
was a reduction of the cases, and that this reduction was attrib¬
utable to the better general health achieved by shorter hours,
better ventilation, and better working conditions and appliances.
The increased task at the yarding machine seems to have
increased the danger of accidents. A knife extends from the
side of the machine; and when the girl's attention is concentrated
on her work, she sometimes puts her fingers too near the blade,
and cuts them, though no instance was known here of the loss
of a finger or of serious injury.
The girls stand all day at the yarding machine and at most of
the succeeding processes of preparation. These are various
arrangements of inspecting, counting yards, folding in " book
folds," of doubled-over material, or " long folds " of the full
width, ticketing and stamping, tying selvages together with silk
thread, or tying them to wrapping paper by means of a little
instrument called a knot-tier — this process is called knotting —
t)dng with ribbons, pasting on strips of silver tissue ribbon,,
8i6
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
further ticketing and stamping, and running the sets of tickets
indicating the several yards in each piece through an adding
machine, which then produces on a stamped card the total
number of yards in each consignment, before it is finally rushed
away for shipment.
The process of inspection is different for different qualities of
material. Before the material is bleached, the number of yards
and the character of treatment for each piece are specified on
stamped orders issued from the planning room and sent with the
cloth through the processes of production. It may as well be
said here, that several girls have been promoted from manual
work to work in this planning room, where they stamp orders,
on a bomis at different rates, giving them a wage of about $io a
week in full time on office hours of 8 hours a day.^
The inspector receiving the bales from the yarding machines
now counts off the number of yards and cuts the bale in accor-
ance with these directions. Some material she inspects yard by
yard for imperfections and dirt. After marking the yards on the
cut piece, she sends it on to the folder if it is clean, and if it is
< spotted to girls who wash out the spots and press the cloth.^ On
other material, imperfections are marked by the girl at the yard¬
ing machine, by the insertion of slips of paper. As the inspector
has less to do on these pieces, she not only counts and cuts, but
folds them.
Before the introduction of the bonus system, one girl used to
fold, inspect, and ticket. She used also to carry her material
from a table near the yarding machine. Boys now bring the
material except where at the yarding machines for heavier stuffs
it is pushed along the table. The hours, as for almost all of the
bonus workers, have been shortened by 45 minutes. The wages
which were $7.50 a week are now between $10 and $11 on full
time. Almost all the workers here said they greatly preferred
the bonus system and would greatly dislike to return to other
work.
1 The girl who directs them and issues the orders receives a bonus for eveiy
stamper earning a bonus and earns on full time from $12 to $15.
2 These girls are not employed under the bonus and task system. But it is
interesting to observe that they may either sit or stand to iron, as they prefer.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
817
But in dealing with the heavier materials the work was tiring,
and more tiring under the new system than before, as the number
of pieces lifted had been increased. It was said while there was
every intention of fairness on the part of the management in
arranging the work, it was sometimes not evenly distributed in
slack times, the same girls being laid off repeatedly and the same
girls chosen to work repeatedly instead of in alternation.
In the further processes of folding, some of the work and the
lifting to the piles of the sheer, book-folded stuff is light, but
requires great deftness; other parts of the work and the lifting
to the piles are heavier.^ The wage before the bonus was intro¬
duced was $7.50 a week, and with the bonus rose to $11 a week,
in full time. As with the inspectors, the work was now brought
to the folders, and the hours were shortened by 45 minutes.
Here there was great variation in the account of the system.
One of the folders on light work, a wonderfully skilful young
woman, who had folded 155 pieces a day before, and now folded
887, could run far beyond her task without exhaustion and earn
as much as $15 a week. She and some of the expert workers
paused in the middle of the morning for 10 or 15 minutes' rest
and ate some fruit or other light refreshment, and sometimes took
another such rest in the afternoon.
Another strong worker, employed on heavy material, though
she liked the bonus system, and said " it couldn't be better," had
remained at work at about the same wages as before, because
she was a httle ahead of the others before and earned $8 a week;
and now, as there was hardly more than enough of her kind of
work to occupy her for more than four days a week, she still
earned about $8.
One folder was made very nervous by a constant fear that she
would not earn her bonus. She always did complete the necessary
amount; but when the system was first introduced, she had been
sleepless night after night. Though this sleeplessness had passed
away, she still took a nerve tonic to brace her through her work;
and this was the case with another folder. The mothers of both
1 The men folders at the heaviest work here now receive with the bonus from
$14 to $17 a week.
8i8
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
these girls urged them to return to week work. But this was of
poor quality — odds and ends — and the girls disliked it, and
persisted in the new system.
In tying ribbons around the bolts of material, the girls sit at
work. Their wages had been $i a day for tying ribbons around
600 pieces; and now, on a bonus for 1200 pieces, is at times for
quick workers, as high as $11. But the ribbon t3dng was not
steady work. It is applied to only some of the material, and the
task and bonus here are intermittent. The girls who knot, or
run silk threads through the selvages, paste on tinsel ribbon, and
wrap are younger than the other workers. Their wages before
had been from $5.80 to $6 a week. Now they are in some cases
over $8; in others about $7; in others about $6. The work
reaches them in better condition than before. They said it was
more interesting, and the chief diíñculty was in lifting occasionally
a greater number of heavy pieces in piling. Seats were provided
for these workers except for those at tinselHng; and if they found
they were able to complete the task easily, they sat at the work.
At the heavier work, the girl at yarding, the folder, knotter, and
ticketer, all worked tandem, and if the girl at yarding loses her
bonus, all the girls lose the bonus.
In the last process of stamping tickets and ticketing, the girls
work without one superfluous motion, with a deftness very attrac¬
tive to see; and both here and at book folding justify the claim
made by Scientific Management that speed is a function of
quality. The wages here had been $6 before, and were now in
full time from $9 to $10. As the task before had been combined
with various other processes, it was, as in other cases, impossible
to determine how much the work of each worker had been
increased. The present task was that of ticketing 39 bundles of
5 pieces each hourly, with different rates for different amounts of
tickets, and was not considered at all a strain. But at the ticket¬
ing connected with the adding machines the work was not dif¬
ferentiated so carefully. More of the heavy work came to these
ticketers, and the lifting was sometimes too exhausting. But
the work was better than in former times, and the wages of from
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
819
$9 to $10 were thought just, if a higher rate had been added for
the heavier work here.
Ill
All this work described at the tenter hooking, the yarding, the
folding, inspection, and ticketing was of a different character
from that carried on under the bonus and task system in a large
room where sheets and pillow-cases were manufactured. This
work afforded the only instance of an application of Scientiffc
Management to the processes involved in the great needle trades
and was, on that account, of special interest.
The white cloth is brought on trucks to the girls, who tear it
into lengths, in accordance with written orders received with each
consignment. They snip the cloth with scissors, place the cut
against the edge of an upright knife, set at a convenient height
on a bench, and pull the two sides of the cloth so that the knife
tears through evenly to the end; then they stamp the material,
fold it over, and place it on a truck to be carried to the machine
sewer. The weekly wages before the bonus was introduced had
been $5.98 and were now with the bonus $6.75, though workers
sometimes tore more than the 1190 sheets required by the task
and made from $7 to $7.50 by a week's work. The quick workers
occasionally stopped for 10 or 12 minutes in the morning and ate
a light lunch. The task was severe for the muscles of the hand
and forearm, and apt to cause swollen fingers and strained wrists,
though the girls bound their wrists to prevent this. All the work
was done standing. The loosened starch flying here was annoy¬
ing, both to the tearers and the girls at the sewing-machines.
Since the time of the inquiry, all the girls engaged in tearing
have been relieved and transferred to other positions, and the
work of tearing has been done by men.
Here the sheets are turned back and hemmed by workers who
sew tandem, one girl finishing the broader hem and the other the
narrower one, their task being 620 sheets a day. The girls at the
machines formerly earned I7.50, and now earn with the machine
set at the higher rate of speed from $8 to $11. They stop for 10
minutes in the morning, and clean the machines and clear away
the litter around them. The sewing and stooping are monot-
82o scientific management
onous, and the work on bonus here is apt to cause nervousness,
because of uncertainty occasioned by frequent breakages in the
machines^
There is a room at one side of the department, where the girls
were to rest when they had completed their tasks. But the
present foreman, not understanding the system, comes to the
rest room and hurries them out again, even after the 620 sheets
are finished.^ One of the girls in the department, an Italian girl,
who used to run far beyond the task at the machine, had fallen
ill under the strain of the work, or at least left the factory looking
extremely ill and saying that she had broken down and could not
remain. Another unfortunate result of the speed at the sewing-
machines is that the girls are more apt than before to run the
needles through their fingers.
The folding in this department is also exhausting, and the
management is trying to find a better system of conducting this
process than that now employed. The folders here stoop and
pick up the sheets and fold them lengthwise and crosswise. The
task is 1200 a day; and the wage with the bonus comes to
between $6 and $7 a week. But after the bonus is earned, pay¬
ment is, for some reason, not suitably provided on work beyond
the task. One worker said she used to fold one or two pieces
above the amount without any objection, but lately she had
folded as many as 200 beyond, without payment.^
From the folders the sheets are carried away to a mangle,
where they are folded over again by young girls. The work is
light, but the payment of $5.80 to $6 for 770 pieces an hour is
low. The mangle is well guarded. By an excellent arrange-
* A worker does not lose her regular wage if she is stopped by a breakage. Her
time card is altered. And she has credit on a time basis for the period while the
machine is not running. A breakage in the first machine of a tandem pair stops
both sewers. But a breakage in the second means that work piles up for the second
sewer, and unless she makes it up, she will prevent her companion from earmng
a bonus, though not a time wage.
2 The management, on learning of this, said the practice would be stopped at
once.
' This must have been due to a misunderstanding of the Gantt bonus. Mr.
Gantt's arrangement provides for payment for work in excess of the task set on a
piece rate basis determined by the earnings at the task point. — Ed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
821
ment here, the material is piled on a small elevator, so that the
girl at the mangle does not have to stoop or lift, but easily adjusts
the elevator, so that she can feed the mangle from the pile at her
convenience. The girl at a mangle can earn from $7 to $8 and
is not tired in any way by her work.
The final stamping and wrapping in paper and tying with
cord are done at a rate of 25 pieces an hour, for a wage coming to
$6 a week, by young girls; and the situation is otherwise about the
same as with the other wrappers.
Except at the mangle, the operation of the sheet and pillow¬
case factory was unsatisfactory to the management, who had
begun to study the department for reorganization just before
the time of the inquiry. Competition had so depressed the price
of the manufacture of sheets that the commission men, for whom
these processes described were executed, paid 25 cents a dozen
sheets for the work. This does not, of course, include the initial
cost of the material. It means, however, that all of the following
kinds of machine tending and manual labor on a sheet were to be
done for 2}^ cents: —
Tearing (men workers) Book-folding (women workers)
Hemming (women workers) Wrapping (women workers)
Folding (women workers) Ticketing (women workers)
Mangling (women workers)
The management lost in its payment for labor here, and yet
felt the work was too hard for its workers, and should be changed.
Alterations in the rest periods are now being introduced. For
the girls the system of operation at the time of the inquiry in the
sheet and pillow-case factory, except on the mangle, was un¬
doubtedly more exhausting than the old method, though their
wages had been increased and their hours shortened.
In general in the Cloth Finishing establishment Scientific
Management had increased wages.
It had shortened hours.
In regard to health and fatigue, outside the sheet factory,
when the general vague impression that the new system was more
exhausting than the other was sifted down, the grist of fact
remaining was small, and consisted of the instances mentioned.
822
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
About forty young women told me their experience of the work.
Sometimes their mothers and their fathers talked with me about
it. Every one whose health had suffered under the new task
had been exhausted by some old difñculty which had remained
unremedied. This point will be considered in relation to the
industry of the other women workers in the other houses after
the accounts of their experience of Scientific Management.
IV
There are over 600 workers in the New Jersey cotton mill.
Of these 188 are women. One hundred and ten of the women
workers are at present engaged under the bonus and task system,
though the management expects to employ eventually under this
system all of its workers, and is in this establishment markedly
in sympathy with Scientific Management. The mill is a large,
well-lighted brick structure, with fields around it, and another
factory on one side, on the outskirts of a factory town. The
establishment is composed of a larger and newer well-ventilated
building, with washed air blown through the work-rooms; and
an older building, where the part of the work is carried on which
necessitates both heat and dampness to prevent the threads from
breaking.
The cotton, which is of extremely fine quality, comes into the
picker building in great bales from our southern sea-coast and
from Egypt. It is fed into the first of a series of cleaners, from
the last of which it issues in a long, flat sheet, to go through the
processes of carding, combing, drawing, and making into roving.
The carding product consists of a very delicate web, which, after
being run through a trumpet and between rollers, forms a
" sliver " of the size of two of one's fingers, from which it issues
in a long strand. This strand or sliver is threaded into a machine
with other ends of slivers and rolled out again in one stronger
strand; and this doubling and drawing process is innumerably
repeated, till the final roving is fed into a machine that gives it a
twist once in an inch and winds it on a bobbin. There are three
kinds or stages of twisting and winding roving on these machines,
and at the last, the " speeders," women are employed.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
823
Up to this point all the workers have been men. These
speeders are in the carding rooms, which are large and high, filled
with great belts geared from above, and machines placed in long
lanes, where the operatives stand and walk at their work. Hu¬
midifying pipes pass along the room, with spray issuing from their
vents. The Hnt fibres are constantly brushed and wiped up by
the workers, but there is still considerable lint in the air. The
heat, the whir of the machines, the heaviness of the atmosphere,
and the lint are at first overpowering to a visitor. While many
of the girls say that they grow accustomed to these conditions,
others cannot work under them, and go away after a few days' or
sometimes a few hours' trial.^
The speeders stand at one end of a long row of 160 bobbins and
watch for a break in the parallel lines of 160 threads, and twist
the two ends together when this occurs. The greater number of
the speeders used to earn $6 a week. But two or three women,
on piece work, earned about $9 and did nearly twice as much as
the other workers. The speeders had helpers who used to assist
them to thread the back of the machine and to remove and place
the bobbins in front. The change or " doff " occupied about 20
minutes. It generally occurred five times in the day of the better
worker and thus consumed an hour and forty minutes of her
working time. The hours in the cotton mill are ten and a half
a day with five and a half on Saturday, — 58 hours a week.
In order to ascertain the proper task for the speeders, a time
study was made of the work of one of the abler workers, who may
^ " The cotton as it grows in the field becomes more or less filled with blown
dust. . . . Lint is given off in all processes up to and including spinning. . . .
The only practical way to keep down the dust in all of these operations is by fre¬
quent sweeping and mopping the floor and wiping off the machinery." Report on
Condition of Women and Child Wage-earners in the United States. Vol. I, p. 365.
" What degree of moisture is safely permissible from the standpoint of the
operatives' health is an unsettled question. . . . When the operative after a day's
work in a humid and relaxing atmosphere goes into one relatively drier, the assault
on the delicate membrane of the air-passages is sharp. The effect of these changes
is greatly to lower the vital resistance and make the worker especially susceptible
to pulmonary, bronchial, or catarrhal affections. It is very possible that the dust
and lint present in the mill have been credited with effects which are due in part to
these atmospheric conditions." Report on Condition of Women and Child Wage-
earners in the United States. Vol. I, p. 362.
824
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
be called Mrs. MacDermott, a strong and skilful Scotch woman,
who had been employed at speeding in the mill for 14 years.
Mrs. MacDermott was employed to teach the other speeders
how to accomplish the same amount in the same time. The
girls now thread the back of the machines with her help. Mrs.
MacDermott, the speeder tender herself, and the doff boys, all
working together, remove the bobbins and fill the frame, thus
accomplishing the change in 7 minutes instead of 20 minutes.
The girls are paid, while learning better methods from Mrs. Mac¬
Dermott, at their old rate of a dollar a day. If they accomplish
the task allotted, they receive a dollar a week more fiat-rate, a
bonus equivalent to a few cents a pound on each pound received
by the management; and this brings the wage to $1.65 a day,
or between $8 and $10 a week. The work tires the girls no more
than it did before. They receive about thirty per cent more
wages, and the management receives from the speeders nearly
twice as great an output as before. Mrs. MacDermott's wage
as a teacher has been raised to $12.
From the speeders, the doff boys send the roving — called fine
roving in the mill, because the other rovings in preceding opera¬
tions are coarser — upstairs in the older building to the spinners.
Spinning is a more difficult task than speeding. Two rovings
are here twisted together by the machines. The spinners have
104 bobbins on one side of a frame, and watch for breakage, and
change the bobbins on three frames, or six " sides.'* Spinners
formerly worked at piece-work rates and by watching eight sides,
and frequently doing the work very imperfectly, would earn
about $9. After a time study was taken, the task was set at six
sides, and doffs as called for by a schedule. With the bonus the
girls' weekly wage comes to about $10. In the spinning depart¬
ment there is a school for spinners. The heads receive a dollar
for every graduate who learns to achieve the task and bonus.
The yarn is carried from the spinners to the spoolers, and
wound from bobbins to spools for convenience in handling. The
work of the spool tenders seemed to the present writer to be the
severest work for women in this cotton mill. The bobbins run
out very rapidly, and require constant change. The girls watch
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
82s
the thread for breakages just as at the other machines. In replac¬
ing the bobbins and fastening the broken threads with a knot tier,
the girls have to stoop down almost to the floor. Before the
time study was taken, the girls were watching 7 5 bobbins, hurry¬
ing up and down the sides, bending up and down perpetually at
this work. Some of the spool tenders had $6 a week on piece
work; others, more experienced workers, were able to earn
$10.50 at piece work, although the work was frequently unsatis¬
factory and had loose ends. A little Italian girl, who may be
called Lucia, an extremely rapid worker, used to run wildly
from one end of the frame to the other, and in the summer-time
fainted several times at her work from exhaustion. A time study
was taken from the work of a very deft young Polish girl, and from
Lucia. The other spoolers were taught to work with the same
rapidity, and were soon able to earn with the bonus and the work
done beyond the task a sum which brought their wage up to
nearly $12 a week.
This lasted for about two months. But the work was so
improperly done and the spools were so full of loose and untied
ends, etc., that the number of spindles to be tended was reduced
from 75 to 50, and the machines were run at a lower rate of speed.
The task was changed accordingly so that the worker's wage,
simply with the bonus, was as it had been before. But she was
unable to overrun the task as far as she had formerly. By the
workers' constant attention, the work now improved in quality,
but the limit of quantity, was, of course, lower. The wages with
the bonus dropped back to a smaller excess, or $1.47 a day.
This was, of course, disheartening, though Lucia said it was
better, she was so much less tired by the work than she had been
before. But the work is still undoubtedly very wearying and
diflicult. The spoolers still give incessant attention to their
work, still do their best, and yet make by close application far less
than they had grown accustomed to expect whether justly or
unjustly.^ The task is now 12 doffs a day — each doff requiring
a change of 208 bobbins. So that in changing bobbins alone the
1 Besides, work had lately been slack, and this had further decreased the
wages.
820
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
girls have to stoop down over 2000 times a day, without counting
all the stooping for knot tying, which the forewoman said would
about equal the labor of bending and working at bobbin changing.
She had talked with the management about having the frames
raised, so as to eliminate this exhausting process of stooping to
work for the spoolers. This change had been made in two
machines and will doubtless be extended.^
At the further twisting and plying of the cotton, the processes
succeeding the spooling, men are employed. From these the
yarn goes to the winding room in the newer building, where better
air and temperature are possible than in the carding and spinning
rooms. The winding room is large and light. At one side stand
the warps, very tall and interesting to see, with their lines of
delicate filament and high tiers of bobbins. In the winding room
girls are engaged at machines which wind the yarn from spools
back to bobbins for filling in the looms and also for the warp.
In winding the filling bobbins the girls watch the thread from
eighteen bobbins, and replace and stop bobbins by pressing on
foot pedals. The worker had made from I7 to $7.50 a week
before a time study was taken and the task increased. She can
now make from $8 to $10.50 a week. The work is lightened for
her by the fact that whereas she formerly placed the bobbins on
the warp, doffers now do this for her. But the increased stamping
of the pedals made necessary by the larger task is very tiring.
There are no women on bonus in the weave room, where the
warp and the filling are now carried. After the woven product
comes from the weaving room — an extremely heavy, strong
stuff of the highest grade, used for filter cloth and automobile
tires — it is hung in a large finishing room in the newer building
over a glass screen lighted with sixteen electric lights which shine
through the texture of the material and reveal its slightest defect.
After it has been rolled over the screen, it is sent to girls who
remedy these defects by needlework.
1 Since visiting the New Jersey cotton mil], the present writer has seen spool
tenders at work at a machine requiring no stooping, and provided with a board
below the bobbins, placed at such a height that the worker can relieve her position
while standing by resting her weight against the board, above one knee and then
above the other.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
827
It is again run over the lighted screen by the inspectors and
returned to the girls if there are still defects. Before the bonus
system was applied, the girls had made $5.04 a week, and finished
about 5 rolls a day. After the system was applied, they made
from $7 to $8 and did sometimes 10 and sometimes 12 rolls a
day. But, in spite of the greatest care on Mr. Gantt's part in
standardizing the quality in this department, here, as with the
spool tenders, requirement as to quality had recently caused a
temporary drop in wages. This change in requirement was
occasioned, not as at the spool tending by the negligence of the
workers, but by the somewhat unreasonable caprice of a customer.
Knots in the texture, formerly sewed down as they were, are
now cut and fastened differently. To learn this process meant
just as hard work for the girls, and put them back temporarily
to their old day rate,^ though they were recently becoming
sufficiently quick in the new process to earn the bonus as well as
before.
By and large, the wages of the women workers in the cotton
mill had been increased by Scientific Management.
Their hours had not been affected. These were in all instances
10^ a day and on Saturday. There was no overtime. But
on five nights in the week, women preparing yarn for the follow¬
ing day worked at speeding and spinning from six at night until
six in the morning, with half an hour for lunch at midnight.
This arrangement had always been the custom of the mill. The
girls go home at six for breakfast, sleep until about half past four,
rise, dress, and have supper, and go to work in the mill again at
six. The night workers I visited had worked at night in other
mills in New England before they worked in New Jersey. Their
sole idea of work, indeed, was night work; and if it were closed
in one mill, they sought it in another. One of the youngest girls,
a clever little Hungarian of 17, who had been only 3 years in this
country and could barely speak English, knew America simply as
a land of night work and of Sundays, and had spent her whole
life here like a little mole. The present owner, the superinten¬
dent, and the head of the planning department all seriously dis-
* At the same time work was so slack that week wages had dropped to $3 and $4.
828
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
liked night work for women, and said they were anxious to
dispense with it. But they had not been able to arrange their
output so as to make this change, though they intended to
inaugurate it as rapidly as possible.
Concerning the health and conservation of the strength of the
women workers in the mill under Scientific Management, the
task of the speeders and of the women at cloth inspection tired
the girls no more than it had before. In the spool tending and
the winding, as the two most exhausting operations in each
process, the stooping and the stamping of the pedals had been
increased by the heightened task, the exhaustion of the workers
was heightened. But the work of the excitable little spool tender
mentioned was finally so arranged as to leave her in better health
than in the days when she was employed on piece work, and the
management was now endeavoring to eliminate the stooping at
the bobbins. At spinning almost all the spinners found the work
easier than before, probably because Scientific Management
demands that machine supervision and assistance shall be the
best possible. It must be remembered that the adjustment of
conditions in the mill here is comparatively new. Almost all
the girls said: " They don't drive you at the mill. They make
it as easy for you as they can." It was of special value to observe
the operation of Scientific Management in an establishment
where all the industrial conditions are difficult for women. As
in the white goods sewing for the Cloth Finishing establishment,
these industrial conditions are unfortunately controlled to a great
extent by competition and by custom for both the employer and
the employees. The best omen for the conservation of the health
of the women workers under Scientific Management in the cotton
mill was the entire equity and candor shown by the manage¬
ment in facing situations unfavorable for the women workers'
health and their sincere intention of the best practicable read¬
justments.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 829
V
The application of Scientific Management to women's work in
the Delaware Bleachery was very limited, extending only to
about 12 girls, all employed in folding and wrapping clothd
The factory, on the outskirts of a charming old city in Delaware,
is an enormous, picturesque cement pile, reaching like a bastion
along the Brandywine River, with its windows overlooking the
wooded bank of the stream.
The girls stand in a large room, before tables piled with great
bolts of material, and stamp tickets and style cards, fasten them
to the roll, fold over the raw edges of the material in a lap, tie
two pieces of ribbon around the bolt, wrap it in paper, stamp and
attach other tickets, and tie it up with cord to be shipped. Here,
after a time study was made of the quicker girls in all the opera¬
tions, different tasks were set for different weights of material;
and if the task was accomplished, a bonus was paid, amounting,
roughly speaking, to a quarter of the worker's hourly wage.
The arrangement of the different processes was so different for
each worker, after and before the system was installed, that none
of the girls could compare the different amounts of work she
completed at the different times. But the whole output, partly
through a better routing of the work to the tables, and by paying
the boys who brought it a bonus of 5 cents for each worker who
made her bonus, was increased from twenty-five to fifty per
cent.
The girls' hours were decreased from 10^ a day with frequent
overtime up to nine at night to 9^ a day with no overtime, the
Saturday half-holiday remaining unchanged. Here is a list of
the changes in the week wages. The work at the time of the
Inquiry was slack. Sometimes there were only a few hours in the
day of wrapping of a kind on which the task and bonus was
applied. Besides, these workers were in the midst of an establish-
^ One of the girls issues batches of tickets. Another girl unfolds one end of
certain of the packages, and inserts a ticket and stamps an outside label, to accord
with the invoice system of some of the purchasers. These girls had received before
$5.40 and $4.84 a week, respectively, and now receive, the one $5.73, and thè other
between $5 and $6.
830
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ment managed by another system. The bonus was given on the
basis of the former wage. And this remained lower in the case of
workers employed fewer years by the firm, though sometimes
their task was the same as that of workers employed longer.
Where the girls wrapped both the heavier and the lighter ma¬
terials, the allotment of these was in the hands of a sub-foreman,
who, instead of being in the new position of a teacher rewarded
for helping each worker to make her bonus, was in the old position
of a distributor of favors. The slackness of the work had led the
management, in a good-willed attempt to provide as well as pos-
Per Week
Formerly
Folding and ticketing on light material
$5 to 6
S4.84
Wrapping light material
6 to 7
4-56
Wrapping light material
7 to 8
4.84
Wrapping light and heavy material
6 to 6.50
4-56
Wrapping light and heavy material combined
with napkin tying
6 to 7
4.84
Folding and ticketing both light and heavy ma¬
terial
5 to 6
4.84
Folding and ticketing both light and heavy ma¬
terial (unaccustomed to the work)
4.59 (once 6.69)
4-56
Folding and ticketing both light and heavy ma¬
terial (unaccustomed to the work)
S
4.56
Folding and ticketing both light and heavy ma¬
terial (unaccustomed to the work)
3 to s
7
(in another department)
sible for the employees, to place several girls from other depart¬
ments under this sub-foreman. One of these less strong and
experienced girls, at the time of the inquiry, was receiving such an
amount of heavy work that she could wrap only enough of the
task to enable her to earn from $3 to $5 a week. The firm's
policy was paternalistic, and while in many ways it had a genuine
kindness, it was not in general sympathy with Scientific Manage¬
ment, though the superintendent is a thorough and consistent
supporter of the new system. But he had not been able, single
handed, to achieve all the necessary adjustments, in spite of the
decided increase of output the new methods had already obtained
for the company.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
831
Even considering slackness, these increases per week for first-
rate speed and work, though in many cases the work was light,
cannot but seem small. All the girls lived in attractive houses
and pleasant places. All but one were with their families. The
city has an open market. People of all grades of income go to
market properly with market-baskets, choose food of excellent
quality, and have fresh vegetables through the winter. The
ladies of the house, the girls' mothers, preserve fruit from June
strawberries to autumn apple-butter, and exhibit it proudly in
row after row of glass jars. But the girls' wages could not pay
for such living conditions. The girl who was boarding, and whose
wages were sometimes $5 a week, could not always pay her board
bill and had almost nothing left for other expenses.^
In regard to health and fatigue the main difficulty here, as at
the Cloth Finishing factory, was in the lifting of heavier pieces of
cloth. Two of the girls had suffered, since the introduction of
the bonus and task, by straining themselves in this way. One
of them was at home ill for a week, and is now quite well again.
The other girl was away for two months, and though she is now
at work, has not fully regained her health. The company had
at once obtained employment less straining for the first of these
girls, and the second said that the firm had always been fair with
her in arranging the work. It was said that it had been Mr.
Gantt's intention to have the heavier lifting done by men and
boys, instead of combining it with the larger tasks the girls now
accomplished under the new system. But the department had
never fully carried out its intention, and unfortunately since
Mr. Gantt's departure rather more of the heavy material had
been ordered from the house than before.
The general good will of the firm, the picturesque factory site,
the pleasant work-rooms, and the attractive living conditions of
the Delaware workers gave them an extraordinary opportunity to
pursue their labor healthfully. But because of its incomplete
adoption, Scientific Management, though it had shortened hours,
^ All the firms have rest rooms for the girls. The Delaware firm and the New
Jersey cotton mill have pleasant lunch-rooms, where an excellent lunch is provided
at cost.
832
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
ánd in most cases had raisèd wages, had proven of less potential
value to the workers than to those in the more difficult industrial
situation obtaining in the cotton mill.
VI
In general, then. Scientific Management for women workers
in this country may be said as far as it has been applied to have
increased wages, to have shortened hours, and to have resulted
fortunately for the health of women workers in some instances
and unfortunately in others.
Wherever a process presented a difficulty which remained
unremedied, if the task were multiplied, the difficulty, of course,
was multiplied. No matter how greatly the weight of à wagon
is lightened, if there is a hole in the road of its passage, and the
road is now to be travelled sixty times a day, instead of twenty
times, as before, the physical difficulty from this hole is not only
trebled, but while it may be endured with patience twenty times,
is not only a muscular, but a nervous strain at the sixtieth. This
was the situation in regard to all unrelieved heavy lifting wherever
cloth was manipulated, the situation in regard to the stooping
for the spool tenders, the stamping at the winding machine, and
the stooping and breakages at the sewing-machine. But these
points, instead of being ignored by the management, were seriously
regarded by the employers as inimical to their own best interests
in combination with those of their employees, and in all the
establishments were in process of adjustment.
In the present writer's judgment this adjustment would have
been inaugurated earlier in several processes and would have been
more rapid and effective for both, the employer's interest and that
of the women workers if the women workers' difficulties had been
fairly and clearly specified through trade organization. Such an
organization would also be of value in preventing danger of
injury for workers whose attention under Scientific Management
should be concentrated on their tasks, and of value in supporting
the tendency of Scientific Management to pay work absolutely
according to the amount accomplished by the worker, and not
under a certain specified rate for this amount.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
833
Scientific Management as applied to women's work in this
country is, of course, very recent. This synthesis of its short
history is collected from the statements made by about eighty
of the women workers, by Mr. Gantt, and by the owner, superin¬
tendent, and head of the planning department of the cotton mill,
by the superintendent and one of the owners of the Cloth Finish¬
ing factory, and the superintendent and one of the owners of the
Bleachery. The account should be supplemented by several
general observations.
The first is that it is difficult to determine where the health of a
worker has been strained by industry and where by other causes.
Quite outside any of the narratives mentioned were those of two
young women employed under Scientific Management whose
health was hopelessly broken. Both of these poor girls were
subject to wrong and oppressive maltreatment at home. Indeed,
from oppression at home, one of the girls had repeatedly found
refuge and protection in the consideration shown to her by the
establishment where she worked. It was not she who blamed the
new way of management for her breakdown, but people whose
impression of her situation was vague and lacked knowledge.
The whole tendency of Scientific Management toward truth
about industry, toward justice, toward a clear personal record
of work, established without fear or favor, had inspired something
really new and revolutionary in the minds of both the managers
and the women workers where the system had been inaugurated.
Nearly all of them wished to tell and to obtain, as far as they could
the actual truth about the experiment everywhere. Almost no
one wished to " make out a case." This expressed sense of candor
and cooperation on both sides seemed to the present writer more
stirring and vital than the gains in wages and hours, far more
serious even than the occasional strain on health which the
imperfect installation of Scientific Management had sometimes
caused.
These strains on women's health in industry in America —
stooping and monotony in all the needle trades, jumping on
pedals in machine tending, dampness and heat in cotton produc¬
tion, the standing without pause for many hours a day through-
834
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
out the month, the lifting of heavy weights in packing and in
distribution — all these industrial strains for women constitute
grave public questions affecting the good fortune of the whole
nation and not to be answered in four years, nor by one firm. It
is undoubtedly the tendency of Scientific Management to relieve
all these strains.
No one can see even in part the complications of contemporary
factory work, the hundred operations of human hands and
muscles required for placing a single yard of cotton cloth on the
market, the thousand threads spinning and twisting, the thousand
shuttles flying, the manifold folding and refolding and wrapping
and tying, the innumerable girls working, standing, walking by
these whirring wheels and twisting threads and high piled folding
tables, without feeling strongly that ours is indeed an industrial
civilization, and that the conditions of industry not only com¬
pletely control the lives of uncounted multitudes, but affect in
some measure every life in this country today.
No finer dream was ever dreamed than that the industry by
which the nation lives should be so managed as to secure for the
men and women engaged in it their real prosperity, their best
use of their highest powers. By and large, the great task of com¬
mon daily work our country does today is surely not so managed,
either by intent or by result, either for the workers or for the most
" successful " owners of dividends. How far Scientific Manage¬
ment will go toward realizing its magnificent dream in the future
will be determined by the greatness of spirit and the executive
genius with which its principles are sustained by all the people
interested in its inauguration, the employers, the workers, and the
engineers.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT AS VIEWED FROM THE
WORKMAN'S STANDPOINT
What the Men thought of the Methods used in a
Shop that increased its Production by Modern
Methods of handling Men
Reprinted by permission of Industrial Engineering
In the past few months there has appeared in the columns of
Industrial Engineering considerable material on the scientific
management of labor, its effect on the efiiciency of the shop, and
the benefits that will accrue to all hands by the adoption of its
principles, rather than by adherence to the older type of " mili¬
tary " management. Much that has been written dealt with the
question from the employer's side. Stress was laid on the fact
that he could increase the quality and quantity of his product
without the addition of new machinery. It was also stated that
scientific management would totally eliminate labor troubles; of
this last statement many owners and managers are probably
skeptical, and perhaps with reason. It does, at first sight, appear
improbable that a workman could be required to turn out from
two to three times as much work as formerly, and have him
remain contented at the same time. A skeptic of such a state¬
ment is fairly entitled to proof. We are now prepared to offer it.
In proving the statements as to the contentment of the worker,
the employer's word need not be accepted. We can safely take
his statements in regard to increase of product, and of quality of
work, but for proof that the methods used to obtain this increase
are not burdensome we must go to the men themselves. This
the writer has done.
The Link-Belt Company, having shops at Philadelphia, Chi¬
cago and Indianapolis, operates these shops wholly under the
principles of scientific management. In the main, the so-called
" Taylor System " is in use. Modifications of the original system
have been found advisable. One of the fundamental principles
83s
836
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
of scientific management is that all planning of the method of
doing a job shall be done by a man, or men, especially trained for
the work, and not by the man at the machine. Another is that
the minimum time required to do a certain piece of work be
accurately determined. The man is then given an instruction
card telling him exactly how to do the work, and the time re¬
quired for each piece if the instructions are followed. If the man
does each piece in the time specified or less, he is given a certain
price per piece. If he takes longer than the time specified, he is
given another, and much lower, price per piece. This is what Mr.
Taylor calls the " differential piece rate " plan of payment, and
is the principal method used in the Link-Belt shops.
It was the writer's privilege, recently, to spend considerable
time in the Philadelphia plant investigating the workings of the
system of management there used, and its effects. As he was
at one time, several years ago, and before the present scheme of
management was installed, employed in this same plant, he was
able to compare with some accuracy the results obtained under
the old and new systems.
The officials of the company were most emphatic in their
statements as to the value of the new order of management,
which has now been tried for over five years. From his knowl¬
edge of previous conditions in the shop, which even in the earlier
days was one of the best managed in the country, the writer
could see that from the employer's standpoint scientific manage¬
ment was an unqualified success. He, however, was most
curious as to its effect on the men. It was immediately suggested
by the superintendent that he get the information at first hand
from the men themselves. He was allowed to wander around the
shop and question the men at will.
It is interesting to note that the men do not know of any par¬
ticular system of management in the shop. They know that if
they do what is expected of them the earning rate is high, and if
they do not, the earning rate is much lower. They refer to
differential rate system as " two-rate piece work."
Invariably all conversations with the men led back to the sub¬
ject of the pay envelope, and in every case the man volunteered
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
837
the information that it was the amount of money he received on
pay day that interested him. He did not object to working in
any particular way desired by the boss, provided that he was
able thereby to receive a fatter pay envelope. He soon learned
that he could tùrn out the greatest amount of work by following
the instructions given him, rather than by tr3dng methods of his
own. Therefore, as one workman put it, " I'm doing the work
so as to get the most money, and the boss's way is the best way
I know."
The writer talked with many of the men. The burden of the
talk of all was the same; they had to work steadily; they had to
pay strict attention to business; they had to follow the instruc¬
tions given to them; but they made more money than they could
in any other shop; the bosses helped them; the company treated
them square, and you could not drive them out of the shop with
a club.
A typical interview was that with one of the lathe hands.
This man, at day work, was rated at 28 cents per hour. He stated
that on the " two-rate piece work " his earnings were as high as
43 to 45 cents per hour. Questioned as to how much more he
turned out at piece work than if he was on day work he said, I
don't know. You see it's been a long time since I was on day
work, and on piece work we don't slow down any, for then we
might get into the low rate, and we would make but little more
than we do on day work." Asked then if he was not afraid that
if he made high wages the rate would be cut, he replied, " No,
the company's square. They never cut the rate. If they make
a mistake and we made a little more than they wanted us to,
they take their medicine and there's no kick coming." And be it
known that when you have got a workman to say that the com¬
pany is square, you have obtained the last word on the subject.
There is no higher praise possible. And the squareness of the
company is one of the most important factors in scientific manage¬
ment. We shall have more to say on this later.
" But," continued the workman, " if they make a mistake the
other way, they fix it. If they give us a job and figure on taking
two cuts over it, and we find the casting is made large, so that we
838
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
have to take three cuts, or is hard so that we can't run as fast or
take as heavy a cut as they want us to, or if anything happens
that they didn't think of, so that it takes longer than they
thought it would, all we have to do is to tell the gang boss. He
puts it up to the office, and they make a new rate on the job.
The mistakes are always on the company and not on us, if we do
as they want us to." It will be well to keep in mind the above
paragraph. It will explain to a great extent the duties of the
" demonstrator " to appear later.
The workman was then asked if he had to work much harder
at piece work than he would if the whole shop was on day work,
to which he replied in the affirmative. " But," he added, " it's
this way: it is rather steadier than harder. I'm after the coin;
I'm going to work where I can get the most. If I could get more
over at Midvale ^ than I can here, I'd quit and go over to Mid-
vale, even if I had to work harder than I do here. I don't mind
the work. I get more money for doing it than I would if I was
on day work some place else, so I'm staying right here as long
as I can make good." This statement led to the question as to
how soon a new man was expected to " make good " at the
necessarily high pace that was the standard in the shop. It
transpired that plenty of opportunity was given to become
accustomed to the existing conditions. New men are put on
day work for from four to six weeks, until they catch the spirit of
the place. They are then put on piece rate, and the incompetent
automatically weed themselves out. If they cannot maintain
the standard set, they make a very low rate per piece, and pos¬
sibly earn less than they would at day work in a shop where the
average speed of working is lower. They therefore leave of their
own accord, and it is seldom necessary to discharge a man for
inefficiency. Consequently, aU the men average up to a high
standard, probably much above that found in most shops in
Philadelphia.
The man was then bluntly asked if he would rather be on piece
work than on day work — they are sometimes put on day work
if the job has not been standardized, or if no time study of its
^ Midvale Steel Works, an adjoining plant.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
839
conditions has been made — and he replied, " If you saw the
long face on a fellow on day work for a week you wouldn't ask
that. Why, his pay envelope looks so thin that you'd think
there was nothing in it." From which it may be inferred that
the piece work system, if conducted rightly, is not the unmixed
evil it is often claimed to be by some misguided persons.
The man was next questioned as to spoiled work. It de¬
veloped that if he spoiled a piece, he was expected to replace it
on his own time — i. e., he was not paid for the time required to
make the new piece. He was also asked if there was much work
spoiled. This subject was deemed important, as it has been
claimed by opponents of advanced systems of management that
the high speed required of the men is subversive to accuracy.
The workman pointed out, clearly and forcibly, that he spoiled
very little work. In the first place, he couldn't afford to. In
the second place, in order to make the high rate he had to attend
very strictly to his machine, and he did not allow his attention to
be distracted while he was working. His instruction card told
him plainly what to do, and if he followed instructions he could
not go wrong. This testimony was later confirmed by the
superintendent, who stated that the quality of work was much
higher than it formerly was. In answer to a question as to
whether he was any more fatigued at the end of the day than
formerly, when he did not have to maintain such high speed, the
man said he did not think he was. He said, that he was kept so
busy all day that he did not have time to think of being tired.
Quitting time came before he thought it was near due. Finally,
the man expressed himself as being thoroughly satisfied with his
job, and convinced that he was much better off than before the
company began to pay him the way it was now doing.
Conversations with other men brought out practically the
same facts. They are all contented. They took pride in their
work, and seemed to be especially proud of the fact that they were
employed in the Link-Belt shops.
Mention has been made in one of the previous paragraphs of
the duties of the " demonstrator." It is necessary under the
system used in the Link-Belt shops that when the time in which
840
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
a piece of work is to be performed is fixed and the instruction
card bearing this time is issued to the workman, the company be
prepared to demonstrate to any workman that the work can be
done in this time. The writer had related to him by the demon¬
strator an incident which showed the value of this provision.
The demonstrator in this case also happened to be the man who
sets the rates on all the work in the shop.
The incident related by the demonstrator was as follows: A
new turret lathe had been installed and it was decided that a
certain piece to be made in quantity should be manufactured on
this machine. The rate setter had had no opportunity to run
the machine in question or to make any time studies on it. How¬
ever, from his knowledge of how the job had been done in other
machines and from his general knowledge of machine work, he
put a time of 23 minutes on the job. The card was issued to the
workman early the next morning, giving instructions for this job
and showing him the time in which it should be performed. The
demonstrator was prevented by illness from showing up at the
shop the next morning. The next day, when he appeared, he found
considerable trouble in the shop. The man to whom the job had
been assigned declared that it was impossible to do it in 23
minutes. He had appealed to the gang boss and to the super¬
intendent who were powerless to change the time set in the
absence of the rate setter. The workman was naturally very
much disturbed. The superintendent and the gang boss were
somewhat stirred up, as the man was one of the best workmen in
the shop and they desired to aid him. They suggested that the
rate setter either revise the rate or convince the workman that
the job could be done in the time allowed. The rate setter, who
now became the demonstrator, after a short conversation with
the workman, said that although he had never run the machine,
he was sure that he (the demonstrator) could do the work in the
time allowed. The workman offered to bet him that he could
not do it in three trials. The demonstrator took him up and
started in. On the first trial he made the piece in 23)^ minutes;
on the second trial he made in 22 minutes; and on the third trial
in 19 minutes. The man who had been closely watching the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
841
motions of the demonstrator, then told him to get away from the
machine, that if he could do it in 23 minutes, he was sure that he
(the workman) could. On his first trial he made the piece in
21 minutes and subsequently, reduced the timé to 17 minutes,
which is now about what he usually requires on this job
The rate setter declared that 23 minutes was a very bad esti¬
mate on his part, and that if he had known the machine better,
it would probably have been lower.
In many shops the temptation in this case would have been to
cut the rate so that the man would have been regularly required
to do the work in 17 minutes. The fact that this has not been
done shows that the company thoroughly appreciates the neces¬
sity of acting fairly by its men and maintaining a rate when it
has once been made. The fact that the company maintained
this rate and others of like class, convinces the men that they have
nothing to fear by working at their maximum pace and turning
out the greatest possible quantity of work. They know that
in no case will they be compelled to call the maximum rate,
attained under probably exceptional conditions, the ordinary
rate to be attained under any and all conditions. Because they
thoroughly understand the necessity of keeping faith with the
men is one of the reasons why the Link-Belt Company is able to
retain in its employ such a large body of exceptionally fine
mechanics, while working them at a much swifter pace than is
the case in most every other shop in the country.
PREFACE TO THE FRENCH EDITION OF "THE
PRINCIPLES OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT "
BY FREDERICK W- TAYLOR
bY henri le chatelier
TRANSLATED BY ELEANOR BUSHNELL COOKE
The author of this volume, Frederick Winslow Taylor, is the
well-known inventor of high-speedJoc^ : his discovery has revo-
lutionized all mechanical construction. It has doubled and
tripled the output of machine tools, while increasing in the same
proportion the daily production of the workmen. This remark¬
able increase in production and the corresponding decrease in the
cost of the .output, have produced very important economic con¬
sequences, of which the following is an example, among many
others. An American company. The Pennsylvania Railroad,
was preparing to double its machine shops, when the unexpected
appearance of high-speed tools made it possible for them to double
their output at a single stroke, and thus to abandon their plans
for enlargement. In other places the economies effected through
high-speed tools have brought about profound changes in the
old methods of work, reversing, for example, the relative impor¬
tance of forging and finishing. Many engineers engaged in
mechanical construction and many mechanics are familiar with
these facts and appreciate their importance.
After having exercised such an influence on the evolution of
modern industry, the ideas of the great American engineer should
command some attention. He attributes to his principles of
scientific management in machine shops a still greater importance
than to that of the discovery of high^^peed took. In thi face
of such a claim on his part, it would be unreasonable to refuse
to study these new methods with the greatest care. It is obvious
that no one can claim absolute infallibility, even after great
accomplishments. Former successes, however, create a presump¬
tion in favor of the man who has made them.
842
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
843
The dominant idea of Frederick Taylor aims at an increase in
the product of labor, without increasing the fatigue of the work¬
up; and this increase in output leads invariably to a large
increase in the man's wages. It is possible to accomplish this
result "because the output of each workman depends in all cases
on a very considerable number of independent factors, or vari¬
ables, to speak in mathematical terms. In the case of turning
metals in a lathe, for example, Frederick Taylor has shown that
the minimum number of these variables is twelve, each having
an important bearing on the final result. Confronted by this
complex problem, it is evident that the workman cannot, by
mere guess work, discover for himself the most fayorable condi¬
tions for the execution of the tasks assigned to him. To estab¬
lish these best adapted conditions for lathe work, elaborate slide
rules have been found indispensable. The study of the working
of metals, one of the most important of the author's accomplish¬
ments, has cost more than $200,000 and required twenty-five
years of work.^
Even the simplest shop operations are difficult to plan properly
and are beyond the capacity of the workman. For example,
the simple operation of loading pig-iron into cars involves very
delicate physiological problems. The alternations of rest and
labor, the rate of speed of each motion, the weight lifted at each
effort, considerably modify the fatigue incident to a given task.
By systematic motion study Mr. Taylor has succeeded in quad¬
rupling the production of his workmen, without material increase
of fatigue. He has made it possible for them to load 47 tons
day after day, year after year, instead of the 12^ tons which
had been their accustomed daily stint when left to themselves,
while at the same time doubling their pay.^ In like manner, a
mason habitually makes five times as many motions as are neces¬
sary, when handling his bricks and mortar and laying them in
place. A study of bricklaying made in Philadelphia and carried
on for several years made it possible to produce in a given time
nearly three times as much work as formerly.
^ See the introduction to Taylor's " Art of Cutting Metals," republished in this
book, p. 242. — Ed.
® This should be "increasing their pay sixty per cent."
844
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
The opinions advanced in this book will certainly shock a
great many employers, and a still greater number of workmen,
because they are opposed to current ideas and prejudices. Fred¬
erick Taylor is manifestly in advance of his age; all the more
reason for the closest examination of his ideas.
Scientific management or work in industrial establishments
has for its essential object, the increase of individual productivity,
and this is diametrically opposed to the cherished ideas of the
labor unions of today. Their chief concern is just the opposite,
namely, to limit the output of every workman, so as to assure
work to a greater number of men, and thus to limit the number
of the unemployed. Is it unreasonable to ask them to ponder
a little over these problems, to study them at closer range, to
devote a few hours of leisure to the reading of this little book ?
In looking over the daily papers and the records of the Chambers
of Deputies about the year 1840, the reader would appreciate the
alarm occasioned by the introduction of railroads. It was feared
that they were going to throw large numbers of people out of
work; to take the bread from the mouths of all teamsters and
diligence drivers, and to ruin agriculture by eliminating the use
of horses. The peasants were not the only ones to express these
fears; educated men occupying important positions in business
and politics shared their apprehensions. In spite of these pessi¬
mistic prophecies, the number of horses and carriages in use is
still increasing. Today no labor union would dream of advocat¬
ing the elimination of railroads. They all see too clearly what a
large part this means of quick communication has played in the
increase of general wealth and in the development of prosperity
among all classes of society. Are they then sure that they are
not making the mistake of repeating the errors of their fore¬
fathers under another form, in opposing, as they are now doing,
the development of better and quicker methods of production ?
To all workingmen reading these words, one may say in good
faith. Stop and think!
The manufacturers are making an entirely different type of
objection to the Taylor methods. They state that their appli¬
cation demands conditions that are not only very taxing, but
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
84s
also exceedingly difficult to realize. Foremen must be put in
charge of the workmen who know the manual trade as thoroughly
as their subordinates do: and yet the young engineers of today
are more or less looked down upon by the skilled mechanic. At
the same time, in order to apply efficiently the Taylor methods,
these engineers must be thoroughly trained in scientific methods
of great precision. In fact they are required to measure, almost
to the fraction of a second, the time which the workmen placed
under their authority take to make each motion, to move a foot
or an arm. All this seems very complicated. If manufacturers,
however, will look back to the state of manufacturing at about
the time when railroads were first introduced, they will see a
very different type of organization from that of today; infinitely
more simple, infinitely less complex. There were at that time
few if any engineers with scientific training; no laboratories, and
the rule-of-thumb sufficed for everything that was made. With¬
out a moment's hesitation, employers of that period would have
considered it folly to install in manufacturing establishments
either chemical laboratories or laboratories for mechanical experi¬
mentation; and still less those for physical research. And yet
today these laboratories are found everywhere in the great
industries. In some shops more than a hundred employees are
engaged in work of this type. In the same way manufacturing
is now generally directed by scientifically educated engineers.
Will not this development probably lead the Captains of Industry
to ask themselves whether the use of the methods of precision
recommended by Taylor for studying the work of their employees,
will not become in the near future as indispensable as chemical
analysis is today for the purchase of mineral products ? One
can say to them, as to the workingman. Stop and think!
Right now, manufacturing is going through a serious crisis.
During the last century, it attained a degree of expansion abso¬
lutely unforeseen, thanks to the help of the experimental sciences,
mechanics, physics, and chemistry. During a few years it
made more progress than had been made in all previous history.
But this forward movement is beginning to slacken; the inces¬
sant struggle between capital and labor hinders further progress
846
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
and menaces even the results already attained. To escape from
this critical situation and to resume their forward march, manu¬
facturers will have to apply themselves to the solution of the
labor problem, and to this end they must call to their aid the
economic and social sciences. The application of these sciences
would seem to be as important for the development of public
wealth in the future as that of the physical and natural sciences
has been in the past. Now, according to Mr. Taylor, his system
for the organization of labor would give an almost complete solu¬
tion of the problems affecting the relations of capital and labor.
There have never been either strikes or serious labor difficulties
in the shops where this system is in operation. It would be
worth the trouble to verify on the spot such a surprising fact.
This would be an easy matter for manufacturers, as they are
constantly sending their engineers abroad to study new types of
machines: Why not send them also to study new methods of
management ? The workingmen, for their part, should com¬
mission the representatives of their unions to make a similar
investigation.
The incessant struggle between capital and labor, which has
reached an acute stage today, has two very distinct causes:
first, the natural perversity of man which impels him to do the
greatest possible harm to his neighbor, either by robbing him of
his good fortune, or for the simple pleasure of evil doing; and
second — and more happily — this ignorance of his own real
interests.
The track walker who throws out a switch in order to wreck
a train and to kill as many people as possible is a veritable vandal,
obeying the same instincts as the negro among the uncivilized
natives of Africa, who slay for the pleasure of seeing the blood
run. The speculator, who manipulates the stock market so as
to ruin a laboring or agricultural district, the manufacturer who
deteriorates the quality of his goods and cheats his customer,
the business man who speculates with and loses the funds en¬
trusted to him by his too confiding clients, have the same type
of mind, and cause the same troubles, the same wrecks in society.
From time immemorial the average morality of men has hardly
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
847
varied. The fear of the police, religious sentiment, and the power
of custom in civilized communities can temporarily curb these
evil instincts; but as soon as these reins are relaxed, man reverts
to the savage state. This always becomes apparent after a
revolution, when the power of the police is for the time being sus¬
pended, and likewise in any country where authority falls into
disrepute. We must resign ourselves to living with this tendency
towards disorder; while trying to maintain the authority of the
police, cost what it may.
But, in addition to this, the ignorance of man on the subject
of his real interests is prodigious. Especially is this true in the
case of the working man. Fortunately this ignorance can be
corrected; for man is constantly increasing his knowledge. A
thousand years ago, not a single manual laborer knew how to
read. Today almost all of them read. But although they do
not yet have the smallest knowledge of the economic sciences,
we must not, however, despair of their capacity to learn. This
will require earnest effort. Some day employers and workmen
will surely succeed in thoroughly grasping certain truths that
simply do not exist for them at the present time. It is impossible
to realize the extent of this ignorance, unless one has actually
come into close contact with it.
I have always treasured the remembrance of an incident in
which I happened to play a part at the beginning of my engineer¬
ing career, when I was in charge of the operation of the mines of
the mineralogical district of Besançon. One day I received a
petition signed by all the workmen of the mines of Ougnée
(Jura). They appealed to me as the representative of the
management, and asked my protection from the superintendent
of the mine. This man had induced them to agree to accept a
piece work contract for taking out the ore, in place of the old day
labor, and had, they said, entirely deceived them, as the new
arrangements were less advantageous than the old. In response
to my inquiry, the superintendent of the mine said: " Send me
at once this petition with your approval, and I shall be only too
happy to act upon it. I had made a mistake in the calculations
which served as a basis for the establishment of new rates, and
848
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
I am now paying my miners wages which are more than 15%
higher than the old ones. I did not know how to return again
to the former schedule, not daring to hope for such a favorable
opportunity as this."
Before studying the science of economics, one must believe in
its existence. Today every one believes in the physical sciences.
If an inventor were to pretend to have discovered the means of
retarding or hastening the march of the sun, every one would
laugh at him — workmen as well as employers. But in the
realm of economic facts, there are no absurdities that one may
not advance, with the certainty of finding believers to accept
them. People do not as yet suspect the existence of determinate
relations between different economic facts; that is to say, the
existence of what we call natural laws. In the moral and the
economic world, these laws are complex and difficult to study.
They depend upon a greater number of single factors than in the
material world; yet, like them, they cannot be evaded. In both
cases the efforts which have been made to transgress these laws
have ignominiously failed. The rulers of the first Republic of
France believed it possible to procure resources by creating paper
money, the assignats, and giving it forced circulation, but as a
consequence the amounts in paper money demanded for the
smallest purchase constantly advanced until no one could get
anything in exchange for this paper; the severest measures
proved powerless to give it any value; credit is regulated by
laws which are beyond the mere whim of the legislator. For
the same reasons, the Republic of 1848 was not able with its
national ateliers to give employment to all laborers; not even to
those who wished to work; still less to the loafers. Neither will
the equalization of all wages, advocated today by certain vision¬
aries, ever be realized. . This also is an impossibility.
The general diffusion of the belief in the existence of inevitable
natural laws, that is, the belief in determinism, will constitute an
enormous step in advance, even if these laws whose possible
existence is admitted remain unfathomed. This belief in deter¬
minism leads one necessarily to consider in every case the possi¬
bility of attaining the desired end. On the other hand, in the
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
849
absence of this belief, our efforts are squandered in vain endeavors
to find the best means of accomplishing the desired end : federa¬
tions of unions and of employers, political action, etc. Effort
and money are spent lavishly, and society is overturned without
accomplishing anything, whereas a few minutes of preliminary
refiection would often have suf&ced to turn one aside from an
impracticable scheme.
When belief in determinism shall have become common with
employers and workmen, half of the social problem will be
solved. Then also, the ideas of Frederick Taylor will find many
advocates.
Let us suppose for a moment that the belief in economic deter¬
minism has become general and let us try to unravel some of its
laws. Here is one, for example, to begin with, of such extreme
simplicity that you will say that it is too obvious to deserve more
than a statement.
In civilized countries men have a great desire for happiness;
they seek all the amenities of life, and are willing to make strenuous
efforts to procure them.
Restraint is indispensable in civilized countries. Often the
negroes of the African tribes are satisfied with primitive homes;
they go without clothes and have no other ambition than to
lead a vegetative existence in the sunshine, without bestirring
themselves. In these countries the economic conditions are
exceptional.
On the contrary, in civilized countries the desire to enjoy the
pleasures of life, each day more numerous, to possess the good
things in increasing degree, to make more money (for money
makes it possible to procure in exchange all the coveted joys)
is certainly the most powerful motive to force men into action.
One is dumbfounded at the amount of, labor accomplished by
the husbandmen, the small proprietors doing their own work,
when they are sure of not having to divide the reward of their
labor with any one else. Here is a fundamental truth; an
economic law. In spite of its simplicity and its obviousness,
it is necessary to call attention to it, because of the consequences
which it entails.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Here is one of the consequences which, in itself, constitutes a
second law, not less fixed than the first but, however, less gener¬
ally accepted. It is of paramount importance from the point
of view of the labor problem.
The inhabitants of a given civilized country become twice as rich,
each time they succeed in doubling their productivity because, on
the average, each one then has twice as many useful or agreeable
things to use.
This truth, this law, is so self-evident, that there should be no
need to elucidate it. In a country where each inhabitant would
produce all the materials necessary for his needs, no competition
would be possible; the law would then apply equally to savage
tribes and to civilized races. Formerly, it was so in France;
the peasant produced on his land the grain necessary for his
nourishment; he then ground it to make flour, and he himself
baked the bread. He raised a pig also; he killed it, and salted
it for his winter food. He cultivated hemp, spun the thread and
wove his cloth; he also grew, the wood and the straw necessary
for the building of his thatched house. In increasing his pro¬
duction, as the use of farm machinery today makes possible for
him, he has obtained a greater output for his labor. The sale
of the excess of his production has permitted him to replace the
hovel of his fathers, by a solid house of stone, of concrete and of
slate. His establishment in this luxurious house will remain for
him the greatest joy of his life, and compensate him for aU
future toil.
Outside of certain mountainous regions, still deprived of the
means of easy communication, this old type of agricultural organi¬
zation is rarely found in France. Almost everywhere a speciali¬
zation of labor has come about, by which it is possible for every
man to obtain greater returns for his effort. The peasant of
Beauce prefers to grow corn; the peasant of Normandy to raise
stock. Neither of them continues to manufacture cloth, because
it can easily be purchased at a much lower cost in the large mills.
This division of labor necessitates incessant exchanges on their
part, to allow each one to accumulate all the varied things con¬
sidered necessary to comfortable living. If, thanks to this
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
851
specialization, our peasants and our spinners together succeed
in producing today, twice as many useful things as in the past,
they will each one of them be able to procure either directly or
by exchange, twice as much as formerly; they will then have
become twice as wealthy.
We must, however, make a restriction here. Where speciali¬
zation occurs, it is not sufficient that an isolated individual double
his production, to become twice as rich; his neighbors must also
do the same, for otherwise there would be no one with whom to
exchange the products of his labor, and his increased output
would then be of no use to him. Here we find an essential condi¬
tion of the law of the proportion between the increase of pro¬
duction and that of wealth.
In civilized countries, this difficulty never presents itself be¬
cause of a well-recognized rule not to concentrate one's efforts
on the production of articles of too limited use. One can pursue
without hesitation the multiplication of things used for food, for
the toilet, for construction, for the means of transportation, etc.,
and of all the raw materials necessary for these industries, such
as coal, iron, cement, etc. There is practically no limit to their
consumption.
The following is a very clear illustration of this fact. In the
early days of railroading no one even suspected the magnitude
of the possible ultimate development of traffic; this was excus¬
able, for terms of comparison were lacking. Today, it would
seem that the experience of the past ought to render it possible
to make fairly definite calculations in this matter. And yet a
few years ago, at the time of the organization of the Metropolitan
Railway of Paris, every one, including the most able railway en¬
gineers, absolutely miscalculated the capacity of the Parisians
for intra-mural travel. They figured that they had made more
than adequate provision, both as to the size of the trains and
the frequency of their running. No sooner was the first line
put into operation, however, than they were forced to recognize
the necessity of doubling the length of the trains. They have
since multiplied the number of lines in service, yet, in spite of
all their efforts, they have not succeeded in overcoming an in-
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
credible congestion at certain hours of the day. We often hear
that an increase in production does not necessarily bring about
an increase in consumption; that we must avoid exceeding the
power of the consumer to absorb. In reality, as demonstrated
by the example of the metropolitan railway, there is no limit to
this power of absorption. At least in civilized countries, because
there is no limit, either, to the desire for comforts and luxuries.
It is necessary to proclaim this truth incessantly and to make
the whole world acknowledge it.
As long as this truth fails to be recognized, the ideas of Fred¬
erick Taylor will fail to be appreciated at their full value, for
their sole object is precisely to increase every man's power of
production. Machinery, although very often used without such
methods as will secure its proper output, has already produced
enormous results. Within a century it has increased man's pro¬
ductive power almost tenfold, and hence, increased tenfold his
wealth. Without making any further change in the machinery
itself, the method proposed by Taylor makes it possible for each
workman to double, and sometimes even to triple, his production,
and in consequence to double and to triple the general wealth.
Why is it that a law so important, a thorough understanding
of which is so useful, should be so often misconstrued and con¬
tested ? The explanation must be sought among the multiple
errors of judgment among men. Instead of appealing to ordi¬
nary common sense, they either make long calculations, entirely
misleading, or else they allow themselves to be guided by un¬
reasoned opinions.
The first mistake arises from the use of money (which is now
universal) for the payment of salaries, instead of the old method
of paying in kind. Money only serves to satisfy our needs in
so far as it makes it possible for us to obtain useful articles, by
exchange. Today the sum of one franc represents about 3
kilograms of bread, while at the time of the assignats i franc
represented less than 30 grams of bread. For the same amount
of money spent the actual bread obtained was a hundred times
less then than it is now. Now, in most cases, the workmen con¬
sider only the amount of money that they receive in wages. If,
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
8S3
for example, they all were to succeed in doubling their produc¬
tion, without having their wages increased, they would believe
themselves to be absolutely robbed, and would think that they
had secured no benefit from the increase in their output. In
reality, at the same nominal wages, they would have doubled
their income, because, on account of the diminution of the price
of things resulting from this extra output, they would be able,
with the same wages, to buy twice the amount of useful things
for themselves.
The fact, is however, that the actual dollars and cents received
is almost always increased in proportion to the increase of in¬
dividual production. Frederick Taylor, in his system of scientific
management, proposes to increase the wages 33 to 100% for the
workmen who succeed in doubling or in tripling their production.
This primary difficulty, concerning the use of money, is not
fundamentally very serious, and it could be satisfactorily ex¬
plained to the workmen with very little trouble.
We come now to an objection which is much more serious,
because it does not result entirely from an error. When the
daily output of the shops in a given trade is suddenly doubled
by the introduction of new machines and new methods of work,
the inevitable consequence is a disturbance in the market of the
manufactured article; increase of consumption does not at once
follow the sudden increase of production. Prices fluctuate,
wages must be reduced or some of the workmen discharged, to
avoid too great over-production. The discharged workmen,
who are obliged to learn a new trade, as well as those retained
sometimes with reduced wages, suffer obvious hardship. It is
against this loss that the efforts of the labor unions are directed
in a desire to limit the production of all of their members; it is
against the same difficulty that the employers also league them¬
selves in their trusts, when they impose a limit to the production
of each of the allied shops.
Both the employer and the workman are laboring under a
common misapprehension, but one that is easily understood.
The reduction of prices is, however, not the result of over¬
production, for the capacity for absorption of a civilized country
8S4
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
is, as we have already indicated, almost infinite: the damage
results simply from too sudden and too violent fluctuations in the
rise and fall of production. Men, and associations of men, can¬
not suddenly change their conditions and their habits, any more
than a violently hurled stone can be stopped or its course suddenly
deflected, without producing shocks or serious accidents. All
sudden change in an economic condition is destructive; the
diminution of production, indeed even more than its increase.
To understand this, it is sufficient to note the social upheavals
brought about by decreases, however insignificant, in the pro¬
duction of food stuffs. Consumers suffer keenly from it, as
have often, by reaction, the producers whose stores have been
pillaged. This happened during our first Revolution, and can
be seen still in France, on the very day on which I write these
lines.
We see here an absolute law. In the same way, temporary
suffering is bound to follow whenever new legislative measures
are put too suddenly into execution, changing the regime of com¬
merce or of industry: particularly is this true of any new tax
or of a change in customs duties. If manufacturers and mer¬
chants, however, are too often the first to provoke these economic
disturbances by unreasonable demands, it is because they cherish
the hope, frequently mistaken, that the loss may all be borne by
their competitors and neighbors. When they demand protection
for their manufactured products, they too frequently make it
their business at the same time to prevent the according of the
same advantages to the articles they consume, whether they be
raw or manufactured materials.
All the economic ills imputed to the increase of production
are in reality occasioned solely by the undue haste with which
the changes are accomplished. The damage would be practi¬
cally negligible if the changes were made with extreme delibera¬
tion. It is therefore an absolute and a serious error, from the
point of view of both the general and the individual welfare, to
insist on opposing an increase in production. The only concern
need be to properly regulate the speed with which the change is
made in order to reduce the necessary losses, and, in the last
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
analysis, to accept cheerfully an inevitable temporary inconven¬
ience which is negligible in view of the positive advantages which
come to all of us as a result of the increase of wealth. In the
application of economic laws, sufficient time should always be
given for their establishment on a solid foundation, whether they
be labor legislation, customs duties, or whatsoever. Of all
economic disturbances, these two are perhaps the most danger¬
ous, because by their very nature, they can be made instantane¬
ously. On the contrary, in the case of an improvement in
methods of production, that is, of the development of better
machines and the perfecting of methods of work, this incon¬
venience is generally greatly reduced, because, from their very
nature, these improvements can only be made slowly. It often
requires more than ten years to bring a new manufacturing
process into successful use. How many times have an inventoras
patents, though legally valid for a period of fifteen years, become
public property before they have had any considerable practical
application! This was the case, for example, with the Siemens-
Martin process for the manufacture of steel.
It will be the same a fortiori with the application of the scienti¬
fic methods of work advocated by Frederick Taylor. In the
fifteen years since the first publication of these principles, the
number of shops that have put the new methods into use is
negligible; it will probably be another fifty years before they
come into general use; their application therefore need occasion
no apprehension.
Every progressive reform tending to increase production is
free from serious danger because, on one hand, the managers
have time to study the general trend and to adapt themselves
to its final consummation, and on the other hand, the constant
coming and going of workmen in the shops makes it unnecessary
to discharge them so as to compensate for their increase in pro¬
ductivity. At most, it is enough to hire a smaller number of
men day by day, if, at any given time, the consumption in an
industry falls behind the production. Finally, the manufactured
products which accumulate in the shops are not lost; the normal
demand for them is so great that they disappear very rapidly;
856
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
in certain industries the plant itself is completely renewed every
ten or fifteen years. By a progressive evolution, all of the neces¬
sary changes can thus be made without any serious damage or
loss.
A last difi&culty, really the most serious of all, arises from the
question of the equitable division of the profits between the
workmen and the employers, between the producers and con¬
sumers. One of the characteristics of „civilized races is, as we
have already said, the disappearance of the small proprietor liv¬
ing alone on his land, and producing all that he needs to live.
Specialization and cooperation have increased the productive
power of man enormously; the great factories, with their many
workmen, their engineers, their selling agents, and their moneyed
stockholders, have made it possible to reach a production per
capita out of all proportion greater than the results obtained in
the past by individual workers. It is impossible to recede from
this new type of organization; we must accept then one of the
inevitable inconveniences of the new conditions, the necessity
for sharing the profits of the joint accompHshment. Each of
the two parties wishes to have the lion's share and this greed at
times surpasses every other with the employer, as well as with
the workman; it prevents their giving proper attention to other
considerations often far more important. The workman hesi¬
tates to increase his output, for fear of seeing his employer profit
from it more than himself, and the employer, remembering the
hard years, fears to raise the wages of his employees, even when
the increase in their production makes it possible for him to do
so. At the same time, the owner of the business for once in
accord with his fellow workers, refuses to reduce his selling price,
even when the increase of production diminishes his cost price.
It is painful to him to contribute too directly to the enrichment
of the consumer.
This question of the division of profits is the most serious ele¬
ment in the labor problem to-day. Employer and employee
alike wish to secure greater happiness; each wishes to reap the
greatest possible reward for his labor. Now, as we said in the
beginning, there are two ways to increase one's personal riches;
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
857
either to seize the largest possible proportion of the profits re¬
sulting from the work done in common, or to produce more,
while keeping the percentage of division constant. Human
nature is so constituted that it attaches much more value to
gains of the first kind than to those of the second, while they are,
in fact, by far the less important of the two.
Let us take the industries where the capital is large, and of
such a nature that its returns can reach a total equal to the pay
of the workmen. In spite of the efforts of certain Utopians the
workmen will never succeed in wresting from capital the full
amount of the profits, unless all the shops could shut down from
day to day; and production, and in consequence wealth in
general, would dwindle to nothing. Perhaps they will succeed
some day in taking half of the actual returns now received by
capital. They will first have to become better informed; they
must first learn to understand and discuss a cost price, and they
must not allow themselves to be tossed about by fair words;
doubtless they will wait long for this Goldén Age to come. If
this time ever arrives, they will then, in these exceptional in¬
dustries, have increased their share of the profits more than 25%,
but this increase will be much smaller in the very numerous
industries where wages play a predominant part in the cost of
manufacture. While this small gain on the part of the workman
has been slowly wrested from his employer, industrial improve¬
ments and the increase of the individual production of the work¬
men will have perhaps increased tenfold again the wealth of
every one of them. About this enormous gain they do not con¬
cern themselves: they do not even suspect its existence.
The most elementary common sense demands the abandon¬
ment of prejudices concerning these two ways of increasing in¬
dividual wealth. Employer and employee, of course, must
continue to defend their right to their proper share resulting
from the work done in common, for from the day on which either
one would cease to protect himself, he would be sure of being
absolutely robbed by his co-partners. But for all that, the far
more important consideration of the increase of production must
858
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
not be forgotten. On this point the essential interests of the
employer and of the workmen are identical, and it ought to be
easy for them to cooperate.
They should do just what many producers and consumers are
now doing who know how to work together for their common
interests. For example, although in France manufacturers of
steel and the engineers of the great metal working companies are
in constant warfare with their customers, the railroad companies,
and although they do not easily agree on selling prices, on the
terms of contracts, nor on any of the commercial questions where
their interests are opposed: yet this does not prevent their
recognizing that it is mutually profitable to improve the quality
of steel and they meet together in technical conventions to dis¬
cuss these questions. They willingly fraternize on a vantage
ground where their interests are identical. Workmen and em¬
ployers ought to do the same.
In a more or less distant future all these elementary truths
will surely be generally accepted. When that day comes, work-
ingmen will no longer start a strike because of the introduction
of new machines into their shops; they will do so rather when
their employers are too ignorant or too old-fashioned to increase
their output per man as they ought to by the introduction of
the most efficient machines and methods, in this way securing
for themselves higher wages, not forgetting of course to demand
proportionally a fair share of the profits for the work done in
common.
The scientific management of our factories and industrial works
proposed by Frederick Taylor is a realization of the essential
ideas here suggested; it demands of the captains of industry
that they apply their knowledge and experience to increasing the
capacity for production of their workmen; and to the workmen
it offers as a reward for their increased output a large increase in
wages, to say nothing of the greater value given to money earned
by the worker brought about through the reduction in the sell¬
ing price of manufactured articles because of their lower cost
price.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
859
But to attain this end, the belief in economic determinism
must first be made general, and the acceptance of the law must
be general, that an increase in output means an increase in
wealth. This is today the battle to be won. In the past the
physical sciences have increased tenfold the riches of the world;
in the future the economic sciences will perform again the same
miracle.
BIBLIOGRAPHY OF
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
BIBLIOGRAPHY OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
BY C. BERTRAND THOMPSON
The following references with the exception of those printed in italics are cited in the
article on "The Literature of Scientific Management " in this volume.
I. Development and Theory of Scientific Management
American Society of Mechanical Engineers; Majority Report of Sub-Com¬
mittee on Administration on the Present State of the Art of Industrial
Management. Transactions of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers/vol. 34, p. 1131; Minority Report, p. 1151; discussion,
ibid., p. IIS3, vol. 35, pp. 447, 871.2
Aspects of Scientific Management. Nation, vol. 92, p. 464.
Babbage, Charles. The Economy of Manufactures. Chas. Knight, Lon¬
don, 1832.
Barth, C. G. Shde Rules as Part of the Taylor System. Trans. A. S. M. E.,
vol. 25, p. 49.®
Transmission of Power by Leather Belting. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol.
31, P- 39-
Bradlee, H. G. A Consideration of Certain Limitations of Scientific Effi¬
ciency. In Technology and Industrial Efficiency, p. 190. McGraw-
Hill Co., New York, 1911. Also Stone & Webster's Public Service
Journal, vol. 8, p. 323-
Brandeis, L. D. Scientific Management and the Railroads. The Engineer¬
ing Magazine Co., New York, 1911.
Scientific Railroad Management. Engineering Magazine, vol. 40,
p. 622.
Brewer, C. S. Scientific Management in the Army and Navy. World's
Work, vol. 23, p. 311.
Cardullo, F- E. Industrial Administration and Scientific Management.
Machinery, vol. 18, pp. 843, 931; vol. 19, p. 18.®
Church, A. H. Has " Scientific Management " Science ? American Ma¬
chinist, vol. 35, p. 108.
The Meaning of Scientific Management. Engineering Magazine,
vol. 41, p. 97.
Church, A. H., and Alford, L. P. The Principles of Management. Ameri¬
can Machinist, vol. 36, p. 857. Review of same by D. S. Kumball and
J. Calder. Ibid., p. 965.
Civilian Expert Board. Report on Industrial Management of United States
Navy Yards. Prepared by direction of Hon. George von L. Meyer,
Secretary of the Navy. Government Printing Office, Washington, 1912.
^ Hereafter abbreviated A. S. M. E.
2 Majority Report and part of discussion reprinted in this volume.
* Reprinted in this volume.
863
864
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
(^) Comment upon Some of the History of the Science of Management. Engi¬
neering &° Contracting, vol. 38, p. i6g.
Cooke, M. L. Academic and Industrial Efficiency. Carnegie Foundation
Bulletin No. 5, 1910.
Copley, F- B. How it Works: What Manufacturers and Workmen are
Getting out of Scientific Management. American Magazine, vol. 75,
p. II.
Crissey, F. E. The Taylor System Again. American Machinist, vol. 34, p.
1182.
Day, Charles. Industrial Plants. The Engineering Magazine Co., New
York, 1911.
The Machine Shop Problem. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 24, p. 1302.
Management Principles and the Consulting Engineer. Engineering
Magazine, vol. 41, p. 133.^
Diemer, Hugo. The Efficiency Movement in igii. Iron Age, vol. 8g, p. 87.
Factory Organization and Administration. McGraw-Hül Co., New
York, 1910.
Dow, C. S. Scientific Management. Chautauquan, vol. 66, p. 357.
Educational or Administrative Efficiency ? Engineering Magazine, vol. 40,
p. 606.
Edwards, J. R. Fetishism of Scientific Management. Journal of American
Society of Naval Engineers, vol. 24, p. 355.
{The) Efficiency of Labor— {an editorial). Industrial Engineering, vol. 7,p.463.
Efficiency Program. Independent, vol. 70, p. 739.
Emerson, Harrington. Efficiency. System, vol. ig, p. 37.
Efficiency as a Basis for Operation and Wages. The Engineering
Magazine Co., New York, 1909; 3d ed., revised and enlarged 1912.
Philosophy of Efficiency. Engineering Magazine, vol. 41, p. 23.
The Twelve Principles of EfiSciency. The Engineering Magazine
Co., New York, 1911; revised and enlarged ed., 1912.
{An) Essay on Scientific Management. London Nation, vol. 11, p. 632. See
discussion by H. G. Self ridge and Dorothea Spinney. Ibid., p. 766.
Ferguson, B. M. The Application of the Taylor System of Shop Manage¬
ment to Gas Works. American Gas Light Journal, vol. 95, p. 225. Also
Progressive Age, vol. 29, p. 830.
Frederick, J. G. Applying the Science of Management to Selling. Indus¬
trial Engineering, vol. 12, p. 204.
Galloway, L., Hotchkiss, G. B., and Mavor, J. Business Organization.
Alexander Hamilton Institute, New York, 1912.
Gantt, H. L. Graphical Daily Balance in Manufacture. Trans. A. S. M. E.
vol. 24, p. 1322.^^
Industrial Efficiency. Machinery, vol. 18, p. 700.
The Mechanical Engineer and the Textile Industry. Trans. A. S. M.
E., vol. 32, p. 499.
Work, Wages, and Profits. The Engineering Magazine Co., New
York, 1910; revised ed., 1913. Reviewed by C. W. Mixter. American
Economic Review, vol. I, p. 103.
^ Reprinted in this volume.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
865
Gilbreth, F. B. Bricklaying System. Clark Publishing Co., Chicago, 1909.
• Primer of Scientific Management, Van Nostrand Co., New York,
1912.
Gilbreth, L. M. The Psychology of Management. Industrial Engineering,
vol. II, pp. 343, 429; vol. 12, pp. 13, 65, 116, ISS, 199, 248; vol. 13, pp.
18, 66, 113, 161, 213.
Going, C. B. The Efficiency Movement — an outline. Trans. The Effi¬
ciency Society, vol. i, p. 11.
Principles of Industrial Engineering. McGraw-HiU Co., New York,
1913.
Guernsey, J. B. Scientific Management in the Home. Outlook, vol. 100,
p. 821.
Halsey, F. A. The Administration of the Premium Plan. American Ma¬
chinist, vol. 22, pp. 60g, 631, 6gi.
The Economics of the Premium Plan. American Machinist, vol. 23,
p. 418.
The Origin of the Premium Plan. American Machinist, vol. 23, p. 33.
From Piece Work to the Premium Plait. American Machinist, vol. 32,
p. 464.
The Premium Plan Criticised. American Machinist, vol. 22, pp. 336,
838.
Some Questions Regarding the Premium Plan with Answers to Them.
American Machinist, vol. 22, p. 240.
Halsey, F. A., and Rowan, James. The Premium Plan of Paying for Labor.
Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 12, p. ysS- Reprinted as chapter xi in " Trade
Unionism and Labor Problems " edited by John R. Commons, Ginn
& Co., Boston, 190s.
Hoyt, C. W. Scientific Sales Management. Woolson & Co., New Haven,
1913-
Jackson, D. C. Criticism of the Engineering Schools. Stevens Indicator,
vol. 27, p. 2S.
Johnson, James R. A Manager's View of the Taylor System. American
Machinist, vol. 34, p. 883.
Jones, H. P. Do TayloPs Methods increase Production ? American Ma¬
chinist, vol. 33, p. 1^3.
Kendall, H. P. Management: Unsystematized, Systematized, and Scienti¬
fic. In Scientific Management, Tuck School Conference, p. 112. 1912.1
Abstract in Industrial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 374.
Kimball, D. S. Another Side of Efiiciency Engineering. American Ma¬
chinist, vol. 3S, p. 263.^
Principles of Industrial Organization. McGraw-Hill Co., New York,
1913-
LeChatelier, H. Introduction to the French edition of F. W. Taylor's
" Principles of Scientific Management." ^
Lyon, Tracy. Scientific Industrial Operation. In Technology and In¬
dustrial Efiiciency, p. 200. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1911. Also
Iron Age, vol. 87, p. 922; and Industrial World, vol. 45, p. 464.
1 Reprinted in this volume.
866
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Maclaurin, R. C. Educational and Industrial Efficiency. Science (n. s.),
vol. 33, p. loi. (Editorial on same), Industrial Engineering, vol. 9, p. 216.
Metcalfe, Henry. The Cost of Manufactures and the Administration of
Workshops. Wiley & Sons, New York, 1894 (3d ed.).
The Shop Order System of Accounts. Trans. A. S. M. E. vol. 7, p.
330.
Meyers, G. J. The Science of Management. Journal American Society of
Naval Engineers, vol. 23, p. 994.^
Morrison, C. J. What Efectivo Organization Means. American Machinist,
•vol. 35, P- 7^4-
Outerbridge, A. E., Jr. Labor Saving Machinery the Secret of Cheap Produc¬
tion. Engineering Magazine, vol. 12, p. 650.
Page, A. W. What is Scientific Management ? Frederick W. Taylor^s Work.
WorlTs Work, vol. 21, p. 14043.
Peck, E. C. Systematic versus Scientific Management. Iron Age, vol. 88,
p. 364.
Perry, E. The " Outsider " and the Busy Business Man. Engineering
Magazine, vol. 40, p. 249.
Philbrick H. S. Scientific Management. World To-day, vol. 21, p. 1167.
Popcke, A. G. The Relations of Capital, Labor, and Efficiency in Manufac¬
turing. Engineering Magazine, vol. 43, p. 857.
Redfield, W. C. Scientific Spirit in Management. American Machinist, vol.
36, p. 612.
Richards, F. Is Anything the Matter with Piece Work ? Trans. A. S. M.
E., vol. 25, p. 68. Reprinted in American Machinist, vol. 26, p. 1733.
Rowan, James. A Premium System AppHed to Engineering Workshops.
Proceedings, Institute of Mechanical Engineers, March 20, 1903, p. 203.
Reprinted in American Machinist, vol. 26, p. 1383.
A Premium System of Remunerating Labor. Proceedings, Institute of
Mechanical Engineers, Sept., 1901, p. 863.
Schiller, B. A German View of the Premium Plan. American Machinist,
vol. 27, pp. 208, 246.
(The) Science of Management Defined, and the Scope of This Science. Engi¬
neering and Contracting, vol. 29, p. 339.
Scientific Management — {an editorial). Engineering and Contracting, vol. 33,
P- 379-
Scientific Management More than a Labor Problem — (an editorial). In¬
dustrial Engineering, vol. 11, p. 467.
Smith, Oberhn. The Naming of Machine Parts. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 2,
p. 366.1
Special Committee to Investigate the Taylor and other Systems of Shop
Management: The Taylor and Other Systems of Shop Management.
Hearings Oct. 4, 1911 to Feb. 12, 1912. Government Printing Office,
Washington, 1912.
Stimpson, H. F. Business Administration as a Constructive Science. Iron
Age, vol. 87, pp. 662, 722.
Works Management as a Constructive Science. Iron Age, vol. 87, p.
248.
1 Reprinted in this volume.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
867
Tardy, W. B. A Plea for a Standard Organization of the Engineer Division
Aboard Ship, and for a Uniform Method of Management of the Engineer
Department with a Section Devoted to the Application of Scientific
Management. Journal of American Society of Naval Engineers, vol. 23,
p. 681.
Taylor, F. W. The Art of Cutting Metals. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 28,
p. 31; discussion, p. 281.^
A Comparison of University and Industrial DiscipHne and Methods.
Stevens Indicator, vol. 24, p. 37.
The Gospel of Efficiency. American Magazine,'ool. 71, p. 570; vol. 72,
p. loi. Reprinted in World's Work {London), vol. 18, pp. gi, 168.
Notes on Belting. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 15, p. 204.
A Piece Rate System. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 16, p. 856. Reprinted
by American Economic Association, Economic Studies, vol. i, no. 2, p. 89;
also by Engineering Magazine, vol. 10, p. 690.2
Principles and Methods of Scientific Management. Journal of Ac¬
countancy, vol. 12, pp. 117, 181.
Principles of Scientific Management. Harper & Bros., New York,
1911.
Shop Management. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 24, p. 1337. Repub¬
lished in book form by Harper & Bros., New York, 1910. Reviewed by
E. D. Jones in American Economic Review, vol. 2, p. 369.
Why Manufacturers Dislike CoUege Graduates. Sibley Journal of
Engineering, vol. 24, p. 195.
Taylor, F. W. and Thompson, S. E. Concrete Costs. Wfiey & Sons, New
York, 1912.
Thompson, C. B. The Relation of Scientific Management to the Wage
Problem. Journal of Political Economy, vol. 21, p. 630.2
Thompson, S. E. The Taylor Differential Piece Rate System. Engineer¬
ing Magazine, vol. 20, p. 617.
Towne, H. R. The Engineer as Economist. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 7, p.
425-
Gain Sharing. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 10, p. 600. Reprinted by
American Economic Association, Economic Studies, vol. i no. 2, p. 51.
Walker, Amasa. Scientific Management Applied to Commercial Enter¬
prises. Journal of Political Economy, vol. 21, p. 388.
Webster, A. G. Scientific Management and Academic Efl&ciency. Nation,
vol. 93, p. 416.
What is Scientific Management, and What Does it Do ? Industrial Engi¬
neering, vol. 9, p. I.
Wooley, E. M. Getting Out the Mail. System, vol. 21, p. 284.
" Lost Motions " in Retail Selling. System, vol. 21, pp. 366, 465.
The " One Best Way." System, vol. 2c, pp. 223, 356, 468, 614.
—- Scientific Management in the OflSce. System, vol. 21, p. 3.
The Wanton Waste of Labor. System, vol. 21, pp. 13, 173.
1 Introduction and parts of discussion reprinted in this volunte.
* Reprinted in this volume.
868
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
II. Scientific Management in Operation
Adams, C. W- The Differential Piece Rate. American Machinist, vol. 34,
p. 18.
Alford, L. P. Scientific Management in Use. American Machinist, vol. 36,
p. 548-
Allen, C. L. The General Manager in Specific Industries — Experiences with
the Taylor System. Trans. The Efficiency Society, vol. 1, p. 247.
American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Majority Report of Sub-Com¬
mittee on Administration on the Present State of the Art of Industrial
Management. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 34, p. 1131.^
Arnold, H. L. Pre-Eminent Success of the Differential Piece Rate System.
Engineering Magazine, vol. 12, p. 831.
Barth, C. G. Betterment of Machine-Tool Operation by Scientific Metal
Cutting. Engineering Magazine, vol. 42, p. 586.
Chief of Ordnance, Reports of, for 1911, 1912, and 1913. Government
Printing Office, Washington.^
Cook, A. M. Scientific Management Methods at a Naval Magazine. En¬
gineering Magazine, vol. 42, p. 75.
Diemer, Hugo. Shop System of Ferracute Machine Company. Iron Age,
vol. 88, p. 106.
Dodge, J. M. A History of the Introduction of a System of Shop Manage¬
ment. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 27, p. 720.^
Evans, H. A. Detailed Instruction for Machine Shop Methods. American
Machinist, vol. 31, p. 645.
Do Taylor's Methods increase Production ? American Machinist,
vol. 34, p. 1133.
General Instruction for Machine Shop Methods. American Ma¬
chinist, vol. 31, p. 610.
Output under Scientific Management. American Machinist, vol. 34,
p. 1202.
Reduction in Cost of Navy Yard Work. American Machinist, vol.
33, p. 1200.
Flack, A. Machine Shop Experience with the Principle of Efficiency Re¬
ward. Engineering Magazine, vol. 41, p. 641.
Gantt, H. L. A Practical Application of Scientific Management. Engi¬
neering Magazine, vol. 41, p. i.
Going, C. B. Methods of the Santa Fe. Engineering Magazine, vol. 36,
p. 909; vol. 37, pp. 9, 225, 337, 541.
Kendall, H. P. Management : Unsystematized, Systematized, and Scienti¬
fic. In Scientific Management, Tuck School Conference, p. 112, 1912.^
Abstract in Industrial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 374.
Lewis, Wilfred. An Object Lesson in Efficiency. In Technology and In¬
dustrial Efficiency, p. 173. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, 1911.1 Ab¬
stract, in Industrial Engineering, vol. 9, p. 379.
Ï Reprinted in this volume.
® Appendix i of report for 1913 reprinted in this volume.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
869
Porter, H. P. Observations on Scientific Management. The Printing Art,
vol. 18, p. 17.
Scientific Management — Can it be Applied to the Printing Industry ? — {an
editorial). The Printing Art, vol. 17, p. 223.
Shaw, A. W. Scientific Management in Business. Review of Reviews, vol.
43, P- 327-^
Sterling, F. W. The Successful Operation of a System of Scientific Manage¬
ment. Journal of American Society of Naval Engineers, vol. 24, p. 167.^
Tardy, W. B. Scientific Management and Efficiency in the United States
Navy. Engineering Magazine, vol. 41, p. 545. Abstract in American
Review of Reviews, vol. 44, p. 229.
Taylor, A. K. Applying the Principles of Scientific Management to the Print¬
ing Business. Inland Printer, vol. 48, p. 373.
(The) Taylor System in Government Shops. Iron Age, vol. 8q, p. 726.
Towne, H. R. The General Principles of Organization Applied to an Individ¬
ual Manufacturing Establishment. Trans. The Efficiency Society, vol. i,
P- 77-
III. Scientific Management and the Railroads
Baker, Benjamin. Efficiency, Freight Rates and the Tariff Revision. Review
of Reviews, vol. 43, p. 80.
{The) Bonus System on the Santa Fe. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 47, p. 11Q2.
Brandeis, L. D. Scientific Management and Railroads. The Engineering
Magazine Co., New York, 1911. Reviewed by E. D. Jones in American
Economic Review, vol. i, p. 833.
Scientific Railroad Management. Engineering Magazine, vol. 40, p.
622.
Brewer, C. B. Substitute for the Rate Increase: Economics of Scientific
Management as Applied to Railroads. Scientific American, vol. 104, p.
596.
Brombacher, M. H. C. AppHcation of Scientific Management to a Railway
Shop. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 51, p. 23.
Burns, G. J. Notable Efficiencies in Railway Machine Shop Operation.
Engineering Magazine, vol. 42, pp. 161, 386, 616.
Canadian Pacific Shop Management. American Machinist, vol. 35, p. 1164.
Colvin, F. H. How Bonus Works on the Santa Fe. American Machinist,
vol. 36, pp. 7, 165.
(The) Comparative Merits of Functional and Geographical Systems of Or¬
ganization. Engineering News, vol. 64, p. 692.
Cunningham, W. J. Scientific Management in the Operation of Railroads.
Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 25, p. 539.^ Reprinted in Railway
Library, 2d series, 1911, p. 118. Abstract in Freight, vol. 12, p. 137.
Efficient Management — {an editorial). Railway Age Gazette, vol. 31, pp. 886,
1103.
Emerson, Harrington. How Railroad Efficiency can be measured. Engi¬
neering Magazine, vol. 42, p. 10.
1 Reprinted in this volume.
870
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
—— The Methods of Exact Measurement applied to Individual and Shop
Efficiency at the Topeka Shops of the Santa Fe. American Engineer &
Railroad Journal, vol. 81, p. 221.
Preventable Wastes and Losses on Railroads. Railway Age Gazette,
vol. 45, p. 12.
Fagan, J. O. The Dream of Scientific Management on Railroads. Journal
of Accountancy, vol. 12, p. i.
Fagan, J. O., and Abbott, E. H. Humpty Dumpty's Question, and its
Answer. Outlook, vol. 97, p. 543.
Felton, S. M. Scientific Management of American Railways. In Technol¬
ogy and Industrial Efficiency, p. 221. McGraw-Hill Co., New York,
1911.
Franklin, B. A. An Efficiency Experiment Station for the Railroads. Engi¬
neering Magazine, vol. 42, p. i.
Fritch, L. C. Opportunities for Economy on Railways. Railway Age
Gazette, vol. 51, p. 1059.
Fry, C. H. The Working of the Premium System on the Santa Fe. Rail¬
way Age Gazette, vol. 41, pp. 476, 504.
Genesis of Railway Brotherhoods. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, p. 782.
Going, C. B. Methods of the Santa Fe. Engineering Magazine, vol. 36, p.
909, vol. 37, pp. 9, 225, 337, 541.
Harahan, W. J. Scientific Management. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50,
p. 212.
Hinckley, B. S. The Scientific Thought applied to Railroad Problems. In
Technology and Industrial Efficiency, p. 181. McGraw-Hill Co., New
York, 1911.
Hine, C. deL. Modern Organization. The Engineering Magazine Co.,
New York, 1912.
Hines, W. D. " Scientific Management " for Railways. Nation, vol. 91,
p. 576.
Hutchins, F. L. Letter on Scientific Management. Railway Age Gazette,
vol. 50, p. 268.^
Jacobs, H. W. Betterment Briefs. Wiley 8: Sons, New York, 1909. Edi¬
torial on same. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 45, p. 892.
Leech, C. C. Letter on Efficiency. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 51, p. 221.
Letters on Scientific Management. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, pp. 310, 311.
Mistakes of the Efficiency Men. Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, pp. 29, 230,
391, 849, 1059.1
Moffett, C. Saving $1,000,000 a Day for American Consumers. Ramplonas
Magazine, vol. 26, p. 346.
Morrison, C. J. Letter on Scientific Management. Railway Age Gazette,
vol. 50, p. 214.
Railroad Efficiency and the Labor Unions. Iron Age, vol. 87, pp. 476, 724.
(The) Railways and Scientific Management — (an editorial). Engineering
8: Contracting, vol. 35, p. 379.1
Scheduling Locomotive Repair Work on the Canadian Pacific Railway. In¬
dustrial Engineering, vol. 8, p. 380.
Reprinted in tMs volume.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
871
Scientific Management — (editorials). Railway Age Gazette, vol. 50, pp.
18, 210, 26s, 307, 344, 387, 835; vol. SI, pp. 19, 20, 50, 889, 1106.
Scientific Management of Railway Shops. Machinery, vol. 10, p. 16.
Shop Efficiency and Railroad Rates. American Machinist, vol. jj, pp. logy,
1127.
Stimpson, H. F., Allison, L. W., Sheafe, J. S., and Morrison, C. J. Apphca-
tion of Scientific Management to a Railway Shop. Railway Age Gaz¬
ette, vol. SI, pp. 33, 38,42, 46.
Symons, W. E. The Practical Application of Scientific Management to
Railway Operation. Journal of Franklin Institute, vol. 173, pp. i, 140,
271, 365-
Taylor, F. W. Scientific Management. New England Railroad Club, Oct.
10, 1911, p. 138.
What is Scientific Management ? Railway Age Gazette, vol. so, p. 839.
(The) Working of the Premium System on the Santa Fe — (an editorial).
Railway Age Gazette, vol. 4s, p. 413.
IV. Methods
General Books
Evans, H. A. Cost Keeping and Scientific Management. McGraw-Hill
Co., New York, 1911.
How Scientific Management is applied. The " System " Co., Chicago,
1911.
Knoeppel, C. E. Maximum Production in Machine Shop and Foundry.
The Engineering Magazine, New York, 1911.
Parkhurst, F- A. Applied Methods of Scientific Management. Wiley &
Sons, New York, 1912.
Taylor, F. W. Shop Management. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 24, p. 1337.
Republished in book form by Harper & Bros., New York, 1910.
Taylor, F. W. and Thompson, S. E. Concrete Costs. Wiley & Sons, New
York, 1912.
Methods of Approach to the System
Dodge, J. M. The Spirit in Which Scientific Management should be ap¬
proached. In Scientific Management, Tuck School Conference, p. 142.
1912. Abstract in Industrial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 350.1
Hathaway, H. K. Discussion of F W. Taylor's " Art of Cutting Metals."
Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 28, p. 287.1
Prerequisites to the Introduction of Scientific Management. Engi¬
neering Magazine, vol. 41, p. 141.1
Installation of Scientific Management — (an editorial). Industrial Engineer¬
ing, vol. 10, p. 301.
Osborne, W. Echoes from the Oil Country. American Machinist, vol. 34,
p. 1036.
Taylor, E. M. Modern Methods and the Business Specialist. Iron Age,
vol. 84, p. 184.
1 Reprinted in this volume.
872
SC/ENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Functional Foremanship
Calder, John. The Production Department. Trans. The Efficiency So¬
ciety, vol. I, p. 155.
(The) Foreman's Place in Scientific Management. Industrial Engineering,
vol. 9, p. 197.1
Time and Motion Study
Adamson, N. E., Jr. The Taking of Time Study Observations. Industrial
Engineering, vol. 10, p. 439.
Cost and Time Keeping Outfit of the Taylor System. American Machinist,
vol. 29, p. 761.
Ennis, W. D. An Experiment in Motion Study. Industrial Engineering,
vol. 9, p. 462.
Frederick, J. G., and McCormack, H. S. Motion Study in Office Work.
System, vol. 21, p. 563.
Gantt, H..L, Hipped " on Motion Study. Industrial Engineering, vol.
8, p. 307.
Gilbreth, F. B. Chapter 14 of " Bricklaying System." Clark Publishing
Co., Chicago, 1909.
Motion Study. Van Nostrand Co., New York, 1911.
Hathaway, H. K. Elementary Time Study as a Part of the Taylor System
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Lefevre, Theotiste. Guide Pratique du Compositeur. Firmin Didot,
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Micro-Motion Study — a New Development in Efficiency Engineering.
Scientific American, vol. 108, p. 84.
Reed, H. W A Time Study under the Taylor System. American Machin¬
ist, vol. 35, p. 688.
Scott, W. D. The Rate of Improvement in Efficiency. System, vol. 20, p.
155-
{A) Thought on Scientific Management. Industrial Engineering, vol. 11, p.
293-
Wooley, E. M. Getting Out the Mail. System, vol. 20, p. 284.
" Lost Motions " in Retail Selling. System, vol. 21, pp. 366, 465.
Classification
Benedict, H. G. The Mnemonic Symbolizing of Stores under Scientific
Management. Industrial Engineering, vol. 12, pp. 24, 69.
Thompson, C. B. Giving a Business a Memory. System, vol. 22, p. 588.
Memory Tags for Business Facts. Ihid., vol. 23, p. 21. Taking Fac¬
tory Costs Apart. p. 131. Listing Stock to Index Wastes.
p. 260. Keeping Tab on Finished Parts. Ihid., p. 386. Right Filing
and Easy Finding. Ibid., p. 286.*
1 Reprinted in this volume.
Î Reproduced in this volume under the title " Classification and Symbolization."
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 873
Routing
Day, Charles. Industrial Plants. The Engineering Magazine Co. New
York, 1911.
• The Routing Diagram as a Basis for Laying Out Industrial Plants.
Engineering Magazine, vol. jç, p. 8og.
Gantt, H. L. The Mechanical Engineer and the Textile Industry. Trans.
A. S. M. E., vol. 32, p. 499.
Hathaway, H. K. The Planning Department. Industrial Engineering, vol.
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(The) Tool Room under Scientific Management (R. T. Kent). Industrial
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Standardization
Ballard, P. Scientific Management and Science. Cassier's Magazine, vol.
41, p. 425.
Barth, C. G. Slide Rules as Part of the Taylor System. Trans. A. S. M. E.,
vol. 25, p. 49.1
Carpenter, C. U. Profit-Making Management. The Engineering Maga¬
zine Co., New York, 1908.
Day, Charles. Advanced Practice of Economical Metal Cutting. Engi¬
neering Magazine, vol. 27, p. 549.
Gilhreth, F. B. The First Case of Standardization. Trans. The Efficiency
Society, vol. i, p. 257.
The Instruction Card as a Part of the Taylor Plan of Management.
Industrial Engineering, vol. 11, p. 380.
Reed, H. W. Following a Fixed Schedule under the Taylor System. Ameri¬
can Machinist, vol. 35, p. 1020.
Two Turret Lathe Instruction Cards. American Machinist, vol. 36,
P- 915-
Taylor, F. W. The Art of Cutting Metals. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 28, p.
31.2
Notes on Belting. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 15, p. 204.
Wooley, E. M. Scientific Management in the Office. System, vol. 20, p.
3-
Cost Accounting
Church, A. H. Production Factors. The Engineering Magazine Co., New
York, 1910.
The Proper Distribution of Expense Burden. The Engineering
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Cost and Time Keeping Outfit of the Taylor System. American Machinist,
vol. 29, p. 761.
Emerson, Harrington. Practising Efficiency and Knowing Costs — a Letter
to a New England Manufacturer. The Emerson Co., New York, igiz.
1 Reprinted in this volume.
2 Introduction and parts of discussion reprinted in this volume.
874
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Evans, H. A. Cost Keeping and Scientific Management. McGraw-Hill
Co., New York, 1911.
Sacerdote, Guido. Collecting Data to Compide Costs. American Maxhinist,
"ool. 35, P- 870.
Simeon, C. J. The Scientific Management of a Foimdry. Iron Trade Re¬
view, vol. 50, p. 68.
Selection and Training of Employees
Blackford, Katherine M. H., and Newcomb, Arthur. The Job, the Man, the
Boss. Doubleday, Page & Co., New York, 1914.
Emerson, Harrington. The Scientific Selection of Employees. The Emer¬
son Co., New York (pamphlet).
Gantt, H. L. Work, Wages and Profits. The Engineering Magazine Co.,
New York, 1910; revised ed., 1913. Reviewed by C. W- Mixter. Ameri¬
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Wooley, E. M. The " One Best Way." System, vol. 20, pp. 227, 356, 468,
614.
The Wanton Waste of Labor. System, vol. 21, pp. 13, 173.
Wages as Incentive
Barnes, G. N. Wage Systems and their Bearing Upon Output. Engineering
Magazine, vol. 27, p. 4Ç0.
(British) Board of Trade (Labour Department) : Report on Profit Sharing
and Labour Co-partnership in the United Kingdom. Wyman & Sons,
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Differential Piece Rates — (an editorial). Engineering, vol. 80, p. 413.
Emerson, Harrington. Different Plans of Paying Employees. Iron Age,
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A Rational Basis for Wages. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 25, p. 868.
Gantt, H. L. The Basis of Proper Management. American Machinist, vol.
35, P- Ho.
Bonus System of Rewarding Labor. Review of Reviews, vol. 26, p. 326.
Bonus System of Rewarding Labor by the Bethlehem Steel Co., Engineer¬
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Modifying Systems of Management. Trans. A.S.M. E., vol. 2 3, p. 63.
The Problem of Industrial Efficiency. Industrial Engineering, vol. g,
p. 179.
The Straight Line to Profit. System, vol. ig, p. 115.
—^— The Task and Bonus System. American Machinist, vol. 33, p. 920.
The Task and a Day^s Work. Industrial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 363.
Task Work — The Basis of Proper Management. Machinery, vol. 18,
p. 27g.
Work, Wages and Profits. The Engineering Magazine Co., New York,
1910; revised ed., 1913. Reviewed by C. W. Mixter. American Eco¬
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Halsey, F. A., and Rowan, James. The Premium Plan of Paying for Labor.
Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 12, p. 755. Reprinted as Chapter XI in
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
875
" Trade Unionism and Labor Problems," edited by John R. Commons.
Ginn & Co., Boston, 1905.
Hastings, Clive. The Efficiency of the Worker and his Rate of Pay. Am¬
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Morrison, C. J. Piece Rates vs. Bonus. American Machini^, vol. 36, p.
178.
Rowan, James. The Premium Plan at the Works of David Rowan àr Com¬
pany, Glasgow, Scotland. American Machinist, vol. 25, pp. 4g, 53.
A Premium System Applied to Engineering Workshops. Proceedings
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in American Machinist, vol. 26, p. 1383.
Taylor, F. W. A Piece Rate System. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 16, p. 856.
Reprinted by American Economic Association, Economic Studies, vol. i,
no. 2, p. 89; also by Engineering Magazine, vol. 10, p. 690.^
A Piece Rate System and Shop Management. Engineering Magazine,
vol. 10, p. 690.
Thompson, C. B. The Reason for a Payroll. System, vol. 22, p. 249. When
Higher Wages Pay. Ihid. p. 339.^
Thompson, S. E. The Taylor Differential Piece Rate System. Engineer¬
ing Magazine, vol. 20, p. 617.
Towne, H. R. The Engineer as Economist. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 7, p.
425-
— Gain Sharing. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 10, p. 600. Reprinted by
American Economic Association, Economic Studies, vol. i, no. 2, p. 51.
Walker, W. O. The Value of Incentives. American Machinist, vol. 26,
p. 996.
Wright, C. D. Profit Sharing. Bulletin of Bureau of Statistics of Labor,
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V- Personal Factor in Scientific Management
Bloomfield, Meyer. Scientific Management: Cooperative or One-sided.
Survey, vol. 28, p. 312.
Carlton, F. T. Scientific Management and the Wage-Earner. Journal of
Political Economy, vol. 20, p. 834.^
Church, A. H. Intensive Production and the Foreman. American Ma¬
chinist, vol. 34, p. 830.
Clark, S. A., and Wyatt, Edith. Making Both Ends Meet. The Macmillan
Co., New York, 1911.®
Do Men like Work ? Industrial Engineering, vol. 8, p. 288.
Dwight, F. H. The Taylor System as a Machinist sees it. American Ma¬
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Emerson, Harrington. Ethics and Wages. Outlook, vol. 99, p. 682.
Evans, H. A. Effect of the Taylor System: What is to become of the
Mechanic ? American Machinist, vol. 33, p. 1095.
1 R6t>riated i& this volume.
* Reprinted in this volume under the title " Wages and Wage S3^tems as Incentives."
* Chapter 7 reprinted in this volume.
876 SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Flanders, R. E. Scientific Management from a Social and Economic Stand¬
point. Machinery, vol. 18, p. 764.
Gantt, H. L. Training Workmen in Habiis of Industry and Cooperation.
Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. jo, p. 1037.
Godfrey, J. R. Eliminating the Inefficient Man. American Machinist,
vol. 34, p. 1232.
Going, C. B. The Efficiency of Labor. Review of Reviews, vol. 36, p. 329.
Goldmark, Josephine. Fatigue and Efficiency. The Russell Sage Founda¬
tion, New York, 1912.
Gulick, L. H. The Human Element. Trans. The Efficiency Society, vol. i,
p. 181.
Hartness, James. The Factor of Habit. Trans. The Efficiency Society,
vol. I, p. 237.
Human Factor in Works Management. McGraw-Hill Co., New
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Helping a Man to Find his Place— (aneditorial). Machinery, vol. 18, p. 679.
Higgins, M. P. Intensified Production and Its Influence upon the Worker.
Engineering Magazine, vol. 20, p. 568.
Hudson, F C. The Machinist's Side of Taylorism. American Machinist,
vol. 34, p. 773.
Kellogg, P. U. A National Hearing for Scientific Management. Survey,
vol. 25, p. 409.
Klyce, E. D. K. Scientific Management and the Moral Law. Outlook,
vol. 99, p. 659.
Lewis, Wilfred. F- W- Taylor and the Steel MiUs. American Machinist,
vol. 34, p. 655.
Münsterberg, Hugo. Psychology and Industrial EflSciency. Houghton,
Mifflin Co., Boston, 1913.
Or'cutt, W. D. The Conservation of Human Efort. Harper's Magazine, vol.
122, p. 432.
Outerbridge, A. E., Jr. The Educational Influence of Machinery. Engi¬
neering Magazine, vol. 9, p. 225.
The Emancipation of Labor by Machinery. Engineering Magazine,
vol. 9, p. ICI 2.
Redfield, W. C. The Moral Value of Scientific Management. Atlantic
Monthly, vol. no, p. 411.
Rose, F. H. The Rise of Labor through Labor-Saving Machinery. Engi¬
neering Magazine, vol. 27, p. 836.
Scientific Management — (an editorial). Engineering (London), vol.93,
p. 289.
Scientific Management as viewed from the Workman's Standpoint. Indus¬
trial Engineering, vol. 8, p. 377.^
Slave Driving or Scientific Management ? — {an editorial). Industrial Engl"
neering, vol. g, p. 30g.
Special Committee to Investigate the Taylor and other Systems of Shop
Management: The Taylor and other Systems of Shop Management.
Hearings, Oct. 4, 1911 to Feb. 12, 1912. Government Printing Office,
Washington, 1912.
1 Reprinted in this volume.
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
877
Taylor, F- W. Shop Management. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 24, p. 1337.
Republished in book form by Harper & Bros., New York, 1910. Re¬
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Towne, H. R.; Smith, Oberlin; Calder, John; Higgins, A. C.; and Falke-
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Van Alstyne, David. Profitable Ethics. In Technology and Industrial
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Whiting, F. J. The Personal Equation in Scientific Management. Stone
& Webster's Journal, vol. 8, p. 411.
Relation of Scientific Management to Social Problems
Cooke, M. L. Spirit and Social Significance of Scientific Management.
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Diichey, Louis. Scientific Business Management. What is it ? What
Effect will it have on the Revolutionary Movement ? International
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Hörschel, W. H. Social Philosophy and the Taylor System — Will the
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Kimball, D. S. Another Side of Efficiency Engineering. American Ma¬
chinist, vol. 35, p. 263.^
Taylor, F. W. Principles of Scientific Management. Harper & Bros., New
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VI. Scientific Management and Organized Labor
Brandeis, L. D. The New Conception of Industrial Efficiency. Journal of
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Organized Labor and Efficiency. Survey, vol. 26, p. 148.
Brombacher, M. H. C. The Rock Island Arsenal Labor Trouble. Iron
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Chief of Ordnance, Report of, for 1913. Government Printing Office, Wash-
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Commissioner of Labor, Eleventh Special Report of (prepared under the
direction of Carroll D, Wright) : Regulation and Restriction of Output.
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Commons, J. R. Organized Labor's Attitude towards Industrial Efficiency.
American Economic Review, vol. i, p. 463.
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Emerson, Harrington. The Fundamental Truth of Scientific Management.
Journal of Accountancy, vol. 12, p. 17.
Fry, J. P. Relation of Scientific Management to Labor. Iron Trade Re¬
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Gantt, H. L. Application of Scientific Methods to the Labor Problem. Am¬
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Gilbreth, F. B. The Theory at Work. Journal of Accountancy, vol. 12, p. 195.
1 Reprinted in this volume.
2 Appendix i of this report reprinted in this volume.
878
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
Golden, John. The Attitude of Organized Labor. Journal of Accountancy,
vol. 12, p. 189.
Gray, J. H. How Efficiency shoxdd Benefit the Employer, the Employee,
and the Public. Trans. The Efficiency Society, vol. i, p. 67.
{The) Lahor Unions and the Taylor System — {aneditorial). Industrial Engi¬
neering, vol. p, p. 476.
Norris, H. M. Actual Experience with the Premium Plan. Engineering
Magazine, vol. 18, pp. 572, 589.
O'ConneU, J. Piece Work not necessary for best Results in the Machine
Shop. Engineering Magazine, vol. 19, p. 373.
Pierce, W. S. Government Work — Shop Management. Iron Age, vol.
89, p. 476.
Railroad Efficiency and the Labor Unions. Iron Age, vol, 87, p. 476.
Scientific Management — {an editorial). Outlook, vol. ç8, p. 46.
Scientific Management and the Labor Unions — (an editorial). World's
Work, vol. 22,, p. 14311.
Scientific Management and the Limitation of Output—{an editorial). Indus¬
trial Engineering, vol. 10, p. 204.
Scientific Management at United States Arsenals. Iron Age, vol. 88, p.
1022.
Scope of Scientific Management. Electrical Railway Journal, vol. 41, p.
451-
Stilson, C. H. Letter on Scientific Management. American Machinist,
vol. 35, P- 175-
Stratton, G. F- Ca-Canny and Speeding Up. Outlook, vol. 99, p. 120.
Taking Ambition out of the Workman. Century, vol. 82, p. 462.
Taylor, F. W. Shop Management. Trans. A. S. M. E., vol. 24, p. 1337.
Republished in book form by Harper & Bros., New York, 1910. Reviewed
by E. D. Jones in American Economic Review, vol. 2, p. 369.
Thompson, C. B. The Relation of Scientific Management to the Wage
Problem. Journal of Political Economy, vol. 21, p. 630.^
1 Reprinted in this volume.