LOCOMOTION 381 



By careful observation, and by the elimination of unnecessary 

 motions Taylor obtained important practical results, inasmuch 

 as he increased the daily output per man from 12J tons to 47 

 tons. 



The work done represented the carrying of 1,156 pigs of 41-4 

 kg. weight each. The total time under load being 252 minutes 

 out of the working day of 10 hours (600 minutes). The " loaded " 

 time per pig was 13-2 seconds. The labourer walked on the level 

 at -83 metres per second (3 km. per hour). He covered 11 metres 

 per trip, i.e., 26 kilometres per day. 



This result agrees with the author's observations ( 290) on the 

 carrying of loads of from 45 to 50 kg., by which it was found that 

 willing subjects could cover as much as 30 kilometres at a speed 

 of 1-34 metres. 



The short distance of the trip (11 metres) in Taylor's experi- 

 ments necessarily reduced the speed of walking, although some of 

 the men exceeded the above speed of -83 metres per second and 

 carried as much as 58 tons per diem. 



The maximum number of metre-kilogrammes a day, with work- 

 men of 75 kilogrammes, was therefore : 



(75 + 414) 13,000 = 1,513,200 metres-kilogr. in going. 

 75 X 13,000 = 975,000 metres kilogr. in returning. 



Total, 2,488,200 metre-kilogrammes. 



This result has a two-fold interest On the one hand, it shows 

 that, under certain conditions, a man can increase his output by 

 due regulation of speed and effort, and by taking definite periods 

 of rest. On the other hand, it reveals the inadequacy of em- 

 pirical methods based, as in the present case, on what might be 

 described as a " standard labourer." 



Taylor should have increased the speed of his men to about 

 4} km. per hour and also increased the number of periods of 

 rest. It should also be noted that, before the pigs were carried, 

 they had to be lifted to the height of the waist, and that they 

 were loaded into a truck reached by a small inclined plane. Also 

 the unloaded return journeys were numerous. Altogether, the 

 conditions were different from those of simple transportation, 

 broken only by periods of rest, sufficient to restore the vital forces. 

 Also Taylor's method, based on the timing of movements, is open 

 to physiological objections, it is useful, but incomplete (see below). 



293. Various Observations. Amontons ( l ) quotes the case of 

 those who carry baskets (hottes). The basket weighed 14-7 kg., 



( x ) Amontons (Hist. Acad. Roy. Sciences, 1703, p. 104). 



