Ford

Ford motor company Ford Motor Company (Ford Motor Company), an American automotive company specializing in the production of cars of the Ford, Mercury and Lincoln brands, trucks, and various agricultural machinery. Ford owns Jaguar. The headquarters is located in Diborn (Michigan), near which was once the farm of the parents of Henry Ford. The company was founded by Henry Ford in 1903 and, according to its creator, was immediately intended to produce a mass cheap car. Initially, this was the model "A", in 1908 it was replaced by the model "T", baptized by caricaturists "tin Lizzy". The success of the new model was so great that the ever- expanding Ford enterprises could not cope with orders. In the first year of production of this model, 10,660 cars were sold, which broke all records in the automotive industry of the time. In 1913, for the first time in the world, a method of standardization of interchangeable parts of products and a conveyor assembly technology for cars were introduced at the Ford Motor, which made it possible to raise labor productivity by 40-60% in just one year. At the same time, the wages of workers and employees increased in such a way that it exceeded the average in industry by two times. The enterprises introduced an eight-hour working day. By the middle of 1914, 500,000 “T” models had been produced, and by 1923, every second car in America was made at Ford Motor plants. In the 1920s and 1930s, Ford Motor actively opened branches in many countries of the world, including cooperating with Soviet Russia (the creation of GAZ and AMO plants). Although Henry Ford was very negative about the October Revolution, he nevertheless believed that Russia had a great future if it embarked on the path of industrial development. In 1922, Ford Motor acquired Lincoln, whose management was entrusted to Edsel Ford. The authoritative management style of a senior Ford is becoming a favorite target of the left press; Ford’s refusal to tolerate trade unions in its enterprises triggers a campaign of real persecution. However, by the end of the 1920s, Americans were tired of the monotonous “T” model. Competitors from General Motors, Ford Motor, are responding ahead of the Ford A model, whose popularity still lags behind Chevy and Buick. The Great Depression of 1929 sharply reduces car sales. Wages fall by half. In 1932, the beginning of the mass production of V-shaped 8-cylinder engines. Ford Motor Company is the first company that managed to produce a monolithic eight-cylinder block. It will be many more years until Ford’s competitors can launch reliable V-8 engines for mass production. Meanwhile, the Ford car and its reliable engine became the favorites of practical Americans. An assembly plant opened in Cologne. The Mercury line of cars, launched in 1938, was relatively successful. Edsel Ford nominally controls the company, but his authority is not comparable to that of his father. Stagnation begins in affairs, which lasted until the beginning of World War II, when military orders improved matters. From 1942 to 47, the production of civilian cars stopped abruptly, since The company has directed all its efforts to military needs. The gigantic wartime program launched by Edzel Ford produced 8,600 four- engine V-24 Liberator bombers, 57,000 aircraft engines and over a quarter of a million tanks, anti-tank installations and other military equipment in less than 3 years. After the brief reign of old Ford (Edsel died in 1943) in 1945, power passed to Henry Ford II, who breathed new life into the company. Ford Junior reorganizes the recruitment system, uses brainstorming techniques known to him from the war by inviting a group of system analysts to develop the company's strategy. In 1949, Ford Motor Company sells approximately 807,000 cars, increasing its profits from 94 million (last year) to 177 million dollars and reaching the highest sales volume since 1929. The post-war reorganization program of Henry Ford II made it possible to quickly restore the health of the company. The result was the construction of 44 production plants, 18 assembly plants, 32 spare parts warehouses, two huge test sites and 13 engineering research laboratories in the United States. The launch of the Thunderbird series of models in 1955 and the Mustang, which are now classic, strengthened the financial position of the Ford Motor. The attractive 4-seater Mustang in 1965 became America's darling. In the first 100 days, 100,000 of these cars were sold. Total sales for the year amounted to 418,812 vehicles, which brought the company $ 1 billion in profits. In 1968, the first 1.6-liter model of the Escort Twin Cam began its sports career, successfully opening the season and winning the ring race in Ireland, Danish Tulip, Austrian Alps, Acropolis and Rally of Scotland for eight weeks. By the end of its first season, Escort won in the famous 1000 Lakes Rally in Finland, which helped Ford take over