Adam Smith's Pin Factory
Adam Smith - Our Founding Father INTRODUCTION This essay on Adam Smith and his famous example of a pin factory also serves as an introduction to some of the themes in the over 100 essays in this blog. Adam Smith wrote the Wealth of Nations during the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. It was published in 1776. The dynamics of the Industrial Revolution continue to be a disruptive force; because of AI, it might be even more disruptive in the future. ADAM SMITH’S PIN FACTORY Adam Smith’s description of a pin factory is on the first page of The Wealth of Nations . (Chapter 1 – “Of the Division of Labour”) Drawings of pin factories of this period show workers using hand tools. Smith says the process can be broken down into 18 distinct steps, including packaging the pins. Smith mentions that pin factory workers were poorly paid, despite their high productivity. Adam Smith says he visited a pin factory empl...