Invention of Planned Obsolescence

score:1

Accepted answer

If you prefer your Bible straight-up and neat, the that would be Tubal Cain, first artificer in metals (Genesis 4:22); if you prefer it with a grain of salt then take your pick from Imhotep (c. 2250 B.C.), Marcus Vitruvius Pollio (born c. 80-70 BC) or numerous others.

Merriam-Webster Online gives the definition of Engineering as:

1: the activities or function of an engineer
2
a : the application of science and mathematics by which the properties of matter and the sources of energy in nature are made useful to people
b : the design and manufacture of complex products

3: calculated manipulation or direction (as of behavior) — compare genetic engineering

Nothing so unites the disciples of Engineering and Economics as the recognition that the most fundamental principle of design is the trade-off between price, quality, and lifetime of the product, and survival of the manufacturer. Every design decision made by an engineer affects the balance between these four attributes, and the most skilled engineers design products that are affordable, useable, durable, and yet wear out fast enough to perpetuate demand for the product.

Any product that wears out, (becomes obsolescent) much faster than consumers regard as reasonable for the price paid, will soon be ousted from the market by a competitive product with longer lifetime. Any product that lasts much longer will also be ousted as the manufacturer satiates the market and goes out of business.

No-one invented these basic facts, they are simple and obvious consequences of the interaction between market economics and engineering. Modern tools and modelling techniques allow the design trade-offs to be made faster, more reliably, and with greater precision, but that again is a direct consequence of the technological advances that have fueled the modern innovation of products. At the most fundamental level they are a consequence of the Laws of Thermodynamics, colloquially stated as:

  1. Energy is Conserved;
  2. Entropy cannot decrease;
  3. No heat sinks at Absolute Zero.

Or in the Gambler's version:

  1. You cannot win;
  2. You cannot tie;
  3. You must play the game.

More post

Search Posts

Related post