On the Economy of Machinery and Manufactures

On the Method of Observing Manufacturies

160.  Having now reviewed the mechanical principles which regulate the successful application of mechanical science to great establishments for the production of manufactured goods, it remains for us to suggest a few enquiries, and to offer a few observations, to those whom an enlightened curiosity may lead to examine the factories of this or of other countries.

The remark—­that it is important to commit to writing all information as soon as possible after it is received, especially when numbers are concerned—­applies to almost all enquiries.  It is frequently impossible to do this at the time of visiting an establishment, although not the slightest jealousy may exist; the mere act of writing information as it is communicated orally, is a great interruption to the examination of machinery.  In such cases, therefore, it is advisable to have prepared beforehand the questions to be asked, and to leave blanks for the answers, which may be quickly inserted, as, in a multitude of cases, they are merely numbers.  Those who have not tried this plan will be surprised at the quantity of information which may, through its means, be acquired, even by a short examination.  Each manufacture requires its own list of questions, which will be better drawn up after the first visit.  The following outline, which is very generally applicable, may suffice for an illustration; and to save time, it may be convenient to have it printed; and to bind up, in the form of a pocket-book, a hundred copies of the skeleton forms for processes, with about twenty of the general enquiries.

GENERAL ENQUIRIES

Outlines of a description of any of the mechanical arts ought to contain information on the following points

Brief sketch of its history, particularly the date of its invention, and of its introduction into England.

Short reference to the previous states through which the material employed has passed:  the places whence it is procured:  the price of a given quantity.

[The various processes must now be described successively according to the plan which will be given in (161); after which the following information should be given.]

Are various kinds of the same article made in one establishment, or at different ones, and are there differences in the processes?

To what defects are the goods liable?

What substitutes or adulterations are used?

What waste is allowed by the master?

What tests are there of the goodness of the manufactured articles?

The weight of a given quantity, or number, and a comparison with that of the raw material?

The wholesale price at the manufactory? (L s. d.) per ( )

The usual retail price? (L s. d.)

Who provide tools?  Master, or men?  Who repair tools?  Master, or men?

What is the expense of the machinery?

What is the annual wear and tear, and what its duration?

Is there any particular trade for making it?  Where?

Is it made and repaired at the manufactory?

In any manufactory visited, state the number ( ) of processes; and of the persons employed in each process; and the quantity of manufactured produce.

What quantity is made annually in Great Britain?

Is the capital invested in manufactories large or small?

Mention the principal seats of this manufacture in England; and if it flourishes abroad, the places where it is established.

The duty, excise. or bounty, if any, should be stated, and any alterations in past years; and also the amount exported or imported for a series of years.

Whether the same article, but of superior, equal, or inferior make, is imported?

Does the manufacturer export, or sell, to a middleman, who supplies the merchant?

To what countries is it chiefly sent? and in what goods are the returns made?

161.  Each process requires a separate skeleton, and the following outline will be sufficient for many different manufactories: 

Process ( ) Manufacture ( )
Place ( ) Name ( )
date 183

The mode of executing it, with sketches of the tools or machine if necessary.

The number of persons necessary to attend the machine.  Are the operatives men. ( ) women, ( ) or children? ( ) If mixed, what are the proportions?

What is the pay of each? (s. d.) (s. d. ) (s. d.) per ( )

What number ( ) of hours do they work per day?

Is it usual, or necessary, to work night and day without stopping?  Is the labour performed by piece—­or by day-work?

Who provide tools?  Master, or men?  Who repair tools?  Master, or men?  What degree of skill is required, and how many years’ ( ) apprenticeship?

The number of times ( ) the operation is repeated per day or per hour?

The number of failures ( ) in a thousand?

Whether the workmen or the master loses by the broken or damaged articles?

What is done with them?

If the same process is repeated several times, state the diminution or increase of measure, and the loss, if any, at each repetition.

162.  In this skeleton, the answers to the questions are in some cases printed, as “Who repair the tools?—­Masters, Men”; in order that the proper answer may be underlined with a pencil.  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.  A much better average will result from enquiring what quantity is considered a fair day’s work.  When this cannot be ascertained, the number of operations performed in a given time may frequently be counted 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 the number of strokes per minute, even though he is outside the building in which it is contained.  M. Coulomb, who had great experience in making such observations, cautions those who may repeat his experiments against being deceived by such circumstances:  ‘Je prie’ (says he) ’ceux qui voudront les repeter, s’ils n’ont pas le temps de mesurer les resultats apres plusiers jours d’un travail continu, d’observer les ouvriers a differentes reprises dans la journee, sans qu’ils sachent qu’ils sont observes.  L’on ne peut trop avertir combien l’on risque de se tromper en calculant, soit la vitesse, soit le temps effectif du travail, d’apres une observation de quelques minutes.’  Memoires de l’Institut. vol.  II, p. 247.  It frequently happens, that in a series of answers to such questions, there are some which, although given directly, may also be deduced by a short calculation from others that are given or known; and advantage should always be taken of these verifications, in order to confirm the accuracy of the statements; or, in case they are discordant, to correct the apparent anomalies.  In putting lists of questions into the hands of a person undertaking to give information upon any subject, it is in some cases desirable to have an estimate of the soundness of his judgement.  The questions can frequently be so shaped, that some of them may indirectly depend on others; and one or two may be inserted whose answers can be obtained by other methods:  nor is this process without its advantages in enabling us to determine the value of our own judgement.  The habit of forming an estimate of the magnitude of any object or the frequency of any occurrence, immediately previous to our applying to it measure or number, tends materially to fix the attention and to improve the judgement.