Edison reduced the price his "Gold moulded"
cylinder from 50c 35c 1904 and the price his
phonographs was steadily decreased the years before the
Great War.
Production engineering also encompassed designing the machine
tools used the Works and streamlining the
manufacturing process cut out unnecessary (or costly) steps.VIII-33
Increasing competition the phonograph industry led to
price cutting both machines and records.
This took the form separating the machine into its component
parts and working the design each part make easier
and cheaper assemble the whole phonograph.
Edison considered that reducing the cost manufacturing
high-tech products was one the strengths his laboratory. Lowering the costs
of production was essential the phonograph business because
TAE Inc.'s products faced competition which invariably
undersold them. The Edison enterprise was able reduce the cost of
its machines but its dominant position the low end the
market was continually being challenged even cheaper
machines. The plan was to
produce standard design and make each part this standard.
The essence mass production practiced Edison and his
generation engineers was reduce the cost making a
product standardizing its design and organizing long,
uninterrupted manufacturing runs. Yet this goal was confounded
by the growing line Edison phonograph models and the
practice making design changes; the Edison Phonograph Works
