Mass Production

Mass production is a process where products are made or constructed in a factory style environment and are produced on a large scale.  The majority of mass production is carried out using assembly lines whether they are fully automated or have employees at various positions.  Mass production is made possible through the use of components such as conveyor chains and drive belts.  Having production carried out on an assembly line helps to speed up the process and increase the output of the factory.

The modern idea of mass production and assembly lines was developed at the start of the twentieth century and was initially used in car factories in order to increase the number of vehicles being built and to reduce the amount of time it took for them to be constructed.  The basic principle behind an assembly line is that there will be a number of machines or workers at various points along the line with specific roles to perform.  The process will begin at the start of the line with a basic component and as it progresses along the line more will be added to it until the finished product comes off the line at the end.  The main advantages behind installing a production line and introducing mass production are that it speeds up the process allowing for a higher output and can also reduce the number of workers need for the construction.  In a car factory for example, at each stage of the line there will be a person or team of people employed to work on one specific component such as the wheels or the engine and dividing up the labour into groups makes the process more effective than if you had teams of workers who had to build individual cars from start to finish.

Many assembly lines are designed to carry significant loads and have to be able deal with heavy weights without failing under the stress and strain.  The item that is being produced has to be moved along the line at the correct speed and stop at the correct locations.  The conveyor chains and drive belts that are used for this process are designed to be able to cope efficiently with high capacity loads without breaking down or malfunctioning and needing frequent repairs or maintenance.  If there is a problem with a production line then this can have a serious effect on business and productivity.  If a production line fails due to a component needing replacing then this can impact heavily on the output as nothing will be produced on that particular line until a repair is carried.  As a fault can have such a serious impact on the production and lead to delays and loss of revenue it is important for production lines to use reliable conveyer chains and belts which are designed to be hard wearing and are up to the job.

You might not always think about it but most things you own or buy which consist of more than one component will probably have been made on a production line of some sort.  Without mass production and assembly lines it is likely that the production of many things would take considerably longer and as a result would not be as readily available.