Whether it is metal, plastic or wood, chances are that if it is some kind of finished product, it's been through an automatic lathe. So what is an automatic lathe? It is a machine that steadily spins an object between its spindles while at least one tool alters the object.

An example that most folks have probably seen is in the production of baseball bats. The rough, unshaped stick of wood is placed lengthwise between the two spindles. When the lathe is turned on, a cutting tool precisely shears away excess wood as the bat rotates between the spindles. Within a few seconds, the result is a nearly finished bat that resembles what we see on TV or at the ballpark.

Now, just imagine this example with multiple tools cutting away plastic or metal to help finish the everyday parts that are essential to making our cars, dishwashers, washing machines, notebook computers. This is what automatic lathes do thousands of times a day.

Their widespread use is essential to mass production and their efficiency has helped bring down the cost-per-unit of finished goods, which, in turn, lowers the price that consumers pay. This kind of efficiency was how Henry Ford put the world on wheels in the age of the horse and buggy.

But mass production has not always been this efficient. After the widespread introduction of interchangeable parts by Eli Whitney two centuries ago, the efficient manufacturing of those parts took a few decades to catch up.

In 1821, American machinist Thomas Blanchard created what is widely believed to be the first automatic lathe. While working at the Springfield Armory, Blanchard needed a way to cut a gunstock so he'd get the same results every time. To make this happen, he fixed a tool to a metal-framed lathe. The results were incredible. Instead of the inaccurate hand-guided cuts that were commonplace at the time, the auto lathe repeatedly provided a precise and uniform cut.

From here, the automatic lathe became more and more common. Over the years, others like Henry Maudslay, a British machinist, added improvements to the automatic lathe.

Several decades later, the automatic lathe has become commonplace in mass production. Henry Ford is one businessman who used processes and the tools of his day to reduce his cost per unit and increase efficiency. This year, as the Ford's Model T turns 100, the automatic lathe is undoubtedly one of the essential machines that helped efficiently produce the millions of the affordable cars.

As mass production increased in the 20th century, the use of the automatic lathe did as well. Their efficiency helped make it possible to win WWII and usher in an unprecedented era of manufacturing of consumer products.

The importance of the automatic lathe cannot be overstated. In less than 200 years, it has gone from helping to make consistently sized gunstocks to being an essential part of most mass production processes. Their incredible efficiency and precision make them essential for manufacturers to stay competitive in a global marketplace. Not only do they help keep cutting and shaping of materials precise, they make manufacturing incredibly efficient.