Eli Whitney

For More Information and List of Books on Mr. Whitney Click the Photo Above.

  Eli Whitney was a famous American inventor in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s.  Most people know Mr. Whitney for his invention of the cotton gin.  He was born in 1765 and attended Yale University.  While his cotton gin invention was in fact revolutionary many people attempted to steal the idea which ultimately led to Mr. Whitney changing his focus to guns and ammunition.  At this time muskets required a great deal of manual labor and time to build.  To reduce the amount of time and complexity associated with building a musket Mr. Whitney began building interchangeable parts which certainly improved the changeover times and reduced the need for workers to setup and re-setup with each musket.  As a result of these interchangeable parts the assembly or assemble to order concept was created.  Along with the design of interchangeable parts Mr. Whitney spent a great deal of time studying the motion of workers and people.  Mr. Whitney’s drive and passion for improving things then lead to what we know today as time and motion studies.  One might guess that even during the industrial revolution many different forms of waste were revealed.

Reference: "Eli Whitney: Father of American Technology - Fast Facts ... - YouTube." 14 Dec. 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyvxFCMShNQ. Accessed 26 Nov. 2018.