Frank Gilbreth Papers on Microfilm
Collection Number: 5424 mf
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library
Title:
Frank Gilbreth Papers on
Microfilm, 1910-1924
Collection Number:
5424 mf
Creator:
Gilbreth, Frank
Quantity:
4 microfilm reels
Forms of Material:
Papers (documents), microfilm.
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor- Management Documentation and
Archives, Cornell University Library
Abstract:
Selected papers pertaining to industrial engineering by
Frank Gilbreth.
Language:
Collection material in English
Frank Gilbreth was born in Fairfield, Maine in 1868, to John Hiram and Martha (nee
Bunker) Gilbreth, and had no formal education beyond high school.
At age 3, his father passed away, it was after this that his family moved to Boston,
Massachusetts. He became a bricklayer apprentice after high school, which led to him
becoming a building contractor, an inventor with several patents and lastly a
management engineer. He also became an occasional lecturer at Purdue University,
where his papers are housed. Gilbreth married Lillian Evelyn Moller on October 19,
1904 in Oakland, California; they had 12 children, 11 of whom survived him.
As a result of Gilbreth trying to make his bricklaying job faster and easier, he and
his wife, Lillian Moller Gilbreth, came up with an idea to study the work habits of
manufacturing and clerical employees in all sorts of industries. They worked to find
ways to increase output and make the jobs easier. They founded a management
consulting firm, Gilbreth, Inc.
Gilbreth served in the U.S. Army during World War I. He was charged with finding
quicker and more efficient means of assembling and disassembling small arms.
According to Claude George (1968), Gilbreth reduced all motions of the hand into
some combination of 17 basic motions. These included grasp, transport loaded, and
hold. Gilbreth named the motions therbligs, "Gilbreth" spelled backwards with the th
transposed. He used a motion picture camera that was calibrated in fractions of
minutes to time the smallest of motions in workers.
According to George the Gilbreths were, most of all, scientists who sought to teach
management that all parts of the workplace should be constantly questioned, and
continuely updated. Their emphasis on the 'one best way' and the therbligs predates
the development of continuous quality improvement (CQI), and the understanding that
repeated motions can lead to workers experiencing repetitive motion injuries.
Gilbreth was a first with many of his ideas, such as positioning a 'caddy' for
surgeons instruments, so they could be handed them more efficiently and easily. He
also devised a standard technique for armies to train their recruits how to rapidly
disassemble and reassemble their weapons even when blindfolded or in total darkness.
Gilbreth died of a heart attack on June 14, 1924, at age 55, his wife Lillian
outlived him by 48 years.
Selected papers pertaining to industrial engineering. Original materials are held by
Purdue University. Microfilm copied purchased from Purdue University in April
1968.
Names:
Gilbreth, Frank B. (Frank Bunker), 1868-1924.
Form and Genre Terms:
Papers (documents)
Microfilm.
Access Restrictions:
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a
reference archivist for access to these materials.
Restrictions on Use:
This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet
and Procedures for Document Use.
Cite As:
Frank Gilbreth Papers on Microfilm #5424 mf. Kheel Center for Labor-Management
Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library.
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positive
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| Reel 2 | ||
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positive
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| Reel 3 | ||
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positive
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| Reel 4 | ||
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positive
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