Industrial Revolution: Origin, Impact and Timeline

What is the Industrial Revolution? What are the impacts it had on society? Read further to know more.

The “first industrial revolution” refers to the changes in the industry and the economy that occurred in Britain during the 1780s and 1850s.

Later, similar changes occurred in European countries and the USA. These were anticipated to have a significant effect on both the economies and societies of those countries as well as the rest of the world.

This phase of industrial development in Britain is strongly associated with new machinery and technologies. Compared to the handcraft and handloom industries, these allowed for the mass production of items.

Modern Industrialisation

Britain was the first country to experience modern industrialization.

Wages and Salaries

• By the end of the 17th century, money was widely used as a medium of exchange and a large section of the people received their income in the form of wages and salaries rather than in goods.
• As a result, people had more options for how to spend their money, and the market for goods increased.

Growing Population and Increase in Number of Towns

• From the eighteenth century, many towns in Europe were growing in area and population, nearly doubling between 1750 and 1800.
• The largest of them was London, which served as the hub of the country’s markets, with the next largest ones located close to it.
• By the eighteenth century, the centre of global trade had shifted from the Mediterranean ports of Italy and France to the Atlantic ports of Holland and Britain.

Network of Transportation

• In England, the movement of goods between markets was helped by a good network of rivers, and an indented coastline with sheltered bays.
• Until the spread of railways, transport by waterways was cheaper and faster than by land.

Strong Financial System

• The Bank of England served as the central focus of the country’s financial system (founded in 1694).
• In England, there were over a hundred provincial banks by 1784; over the following ten years, their numbers tripled.
• These banks provided the capital necessary to start and support large industrial enterprises.

Rich Source of Staple Materials for Mechanisation

• The availability of coal, iron ore, and other industrial minerals like lead, copper, and tin made England fortunate because these elements were essential for mechanization.
• By 1848, Britain was smelting more iron than the rest of the world put together.

Technological Inventions for Cotton Spinning and Weaving

• From the seventeenth century, the country had been importing bales of cotton cloth from India at great cost. As the East India Company’s political control of parts of India was established, it began to import, along with cloth, raw cotton, which could be spun and woven into cloth in England.
• A series of technological inventions successfully closed the gap between the speed of spinning raw cotton into yarn or thread, and of weaving the yarn into fabric.
• To make it even more efficient, production gradually shifted from the homes of spinners and weavers to factories.
• Raw cotton had to be entirely imported and a large part of the finished cloth was exported. This sustained the process of colonization so that Britain could retain control over the sources of raw cotton as well as the markets.

Steam Power

• The ability of steam to provide enormous amounts of power was a key factor in large-scale industrialization. In 1840, British steam engines were generating more than 70 per cent of all European horsepower.

Emergence of Railway

• Railways emerged as a new means of transportation that was available throughout the year, both cheap and fast, to carry passengers and goods. The invention of the railways took the entire process of industrialization to a second stage.

First Industrial Revolution: 1765

The first Industrial revolution began in Great Britain and spread to Europe and North America.

Key Features:

• The transition from hand production methods to machines.
• New chemical manufacturing and iron production processes.
• Increased use of steam power and water power.
• Development of the machine tools industry.
• Significant growth in the textile industry.
• Expansion of the canal and railway networks.

Impact: This led to urbanization as people moved to cities for work, marked the beginning of significant environmental changes, and established the factory system of production.

Second Industrial Revolution: 1870

The Second Industrial Revolution gained momentum in Western Europe, the United States, and later Japan.

Key Features:

• Advancements in steel production became the backbone of infrastructure and manufacturing.
• Widespread adoption of electricity led to new inventions like the light bulb and electric motors.
• Introduction of the internal combustion engine, fueling the development of automobiles and aeroplanes.
• Innovations in communication technology, such as the telegraph and telephone.
• Expansion of chemical, electrical, and petroleum industries.
• The birth of mass production techniques was epitomized by Henry Ford’s assembly line.

Impact: Accelerated global trade and urbanization, contributed to the rise of big business and significantly improved standards of living. However, it also led to environmental degradation and contributed to social inequalities.

Third Industrial Revolution: 1969

The third Industrial revolution emerged from the United States and spread globally.

Key Features:

• The rise of digital technology, including computers, the Internet, and information technology.
• The transition from analog to digital technologies.
• Development of renewable energy sources and more efficient use of energy.
• Automation of manufacturing through robotics and computer-aided design (CAD).
• The emergence of biotechnology and genetic engineering.

Impact: This has led to the globalization of the economy, profound changes in communication and access to information, and the creation of entirely new industries. It has also raised concerns about privacy, cybersecurity, and the displacement of workers by automation.

Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0): Present

A fourth industrial revolution, known as Industry 4.0, which is based on a recent technological development called digitalization, is set to take place in the world due to tremendous advancements in the sectors of hardware and information technology.

• While Industry 3.0 focuses on the automation of single machines and processes, Industry 4.0 concentrates on the end-to-end digitization of all physical assets and their integration into digital ecosystems with value chain partners.
• Driven by the power of big data, high computing capacity, artificial intelligence, and analytics, Industry 4.0 aims to completely digitize the manufacturing sector.
• Industry 4.0 is the next phase in bringing together conventional and modern technologies in manufacturing to create “smart factories”.

Industry 4.0 and India

A huge number of MSMEs have just started to enter the automation phase.

• To achieve the ambitious target of making India a global hub for manufacturing, design, and innovation, and augmenting the share of manufacturing in GDP from the current 16% to 25% by 2025, the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies becomes imperative to increase competitiveness and build efficient value chains.
• In its pursuit to foster best-in-class manufacturing infrastructure in India, the “Make in India” initiative is spearheading wider adoption of ‘Industry 4.0’.

Conclusion

India has a robust ecosystem that has the potential to use emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Internet of Things (IoT), Blockchain, and Big Data, and it can catapult India’s development to new heights by creating millions of new opportunities of employment.

India has already developed a national strategy to prepare for the development of an AI research-based robbers ecosystem in India.

Following the vision of inclusive growth “sabka sath, sabka vikas”, the government has now given a call for “Artificial Intelligence for all”.

India not only sees this as a change in the industrial scenario but as a catalyst to change its social fabric. While Industry is a platform, production is a process and technology is a tool, its ultimate goal is to benefit and transform the marginalized and the outliers of society.

Related article: Changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth

Article Written By: Priti Raj