Editing Industrial Revolution (section)

==Important technological developments==
The commencement of the Industrial Revolution is closely linked to a small number of innovations,<ref name="The Industrial Revolution – Innovations"/> beginning in the second half of the 18th century. By the 1830s, the following gains had been made in important technologies:
* '''Textiles''' – [[Cotton-spinning machinery|mechanised cotton spinning]] powered by water, and later steam, increased output per worker by a factor of around 500. The [[power loom]] increased output by a factor of 40.<ref>{{Harvnb|Ayres|1989|p=17}}</ref> The [[cotton gin]] increased productivity of removing seed from cotton by a factor of 50.<ref name="Roe1916"/> Large gains in productivity occurred in [[Spinning (textiles)|spinning]] and [[weaving]] of [[wool]] and [[linen]], but were not as great as in [[cotton]].<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/>
* '''Steam power''' – the efficiency of [[steam engine]]s increased so they used between one-fifth and one-tenth as much fuel. The adaptation of stationary steam engines to rotary motion made them suitable for industrial uses.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/>{{rp|82}} The high-pressure engine had a high [[power-to-weight ratio]], making it suitable for transportation.<ref name="Hunter_1985"/> Steam power underwent a rapid expansion after 1800.
* '''Iron-making''' – the substitution of [[coke (fuel)|coke]] for [[charcoal]] greatly lowered the fuel cost of [[pig iron]] and [[wrought iron]] production.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/>{{rp|89–93}} Using coke also allowed larger [[blast furnace]]s,<ref>{{cite book|first= David S.|last= Landes|date=1969|title= The Unbound Prometheus|publisher= Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge|isbn= 978-0-521-09418-4|page=218}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Most Powerful Idea in the World: A Story of Steam, Industry and Invention|last1= Rosen|first1= William|year= 2012 |publisher = University of Chicago Press|isbn= 978-0-226-72634-2 |page=149}}</ref> resulting in [[economies of scale]]. The steam engine began being used to power blast air in the 1750s, enabling a large increase in iron production by overcoming the limitation of water power.<ref name="Tylecote_1992"/> The [[cast iron]] blowing cylinder was first used in 1760. It was improved by making it double acting, which allowed higher blast furnace temperatures. The [[puddling (metallurgy)|puddling process]] produced structural grade iron at lower cost than the [[finery forge]].<ref name="David S. Landes 1969 91">{{cite book|first= David S.|last= Landes|date=1969|title= The Unbound Prometheus|publisher= Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge|isbn= 978-0-521-09418-4|page=91}}</ref> The [[Rolling (metalworking)|rolling mill]] was fifteen times faster than hammering wrought iron. Developed in 1828, [[hot blast]] greatly increased fuel efficiency in iron production.
* '''Invention of machine tools''' – the first [[machine tool]]s were the [[screw-cutting lathe]], the cylinder [[Boring (manufacturing)|boring]] machine, and the [[Milling (machining)|milling machine]]. Machine tools made the economical manufacture of [[Interchangeable parts|precision metal parts]] possible, although it took decades to develop effective techniques for making interchangeable parts.<ref name="Hounshell-1984"/>

===Textile manufacture===
{{Main|Textile manufacture during the British Industrial Revolution}}

====British textile industry====
[[File:Hand-loom weaving.jpg|thumb|Weaving with handlooms from [[William Hogarth]]'s ''[[Industry and Idleness]]'' in 1747]]
In 1750, Britain imported 2.5&nbsp;million pounds of raw cotton, most of which was spun and woven by the cottage industry in [[Lancashire]]. The work was done by hand in workers' homes or master weavers' shops. Wages were six times those in India in 1770 when productivity in Britain was three times higher.<ref name="Beckert_2014" /> In 1787, raw cotton consumption was 22&nbsp;million pounds, most of which was cleaned, carded, and spun on machines.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/>{{rp|41–42}} The British textile industry used 52&nbsp;million pounds of cotton in 1800, and 588&nbsp;million pounds in 1850.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Industrialization and Society|last=Hopkins|first=Eric|publisher=Routledge|year=2000|location=London|page=2}}</ref>

The share of value added by the cotton textile industry in Britain was 2.6% in 1760, 17% in 1801, and 22% in 1831. Value added by the British woollen industry was 14% in 1801. Cotton factories in Britain numbered about 900 in 1797. In 1760, approximately one-third of cotton cloth manufactured in Britain was exported, rising to two-thirds by 1800. In 1781, cotton spun amounted to 5&nbsp;million pounds, which increased to 56&nbsp;million pounds by 1800. In 1800, less than 0.1% of world cotton cloth was produced on machinery invented in Britain. In 1788, there were 50,000 spindles in Britain, rising to 7&nbsp;million over the next 30 years.<ref name="Beckert_2014"/>

====Wool====
The earliest European attempts at mechanised spinning were with wool; however, wool spinning proved more difficult to mechanise than cotton. Productivity improvement in wool spinning during the Industrial Revolution was significant but far less than cotton.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969" /><ref name="David_Landes_1999" />

====Silk====
[[File:Silkmill1.jpg|thumb|[[John Lombe]]'s silk mill site today in [[Derby]], rebuilt as [[Derby Silk Mill]]]]
Arguably the first highly mechanised factory was [[John Lombe]]'s [[Derby Silk Mill|water-powered silk mill]] at [[Derby]], operational by 1721. Lombe learned silk thread manufacturing by taking a job in Italy and acting as an industrial spy; however, because the Italian silk industry guarded its secrets, the state of the industry at that time is unknown. Although Lombe's factory was technically successful, the supply of raw silk from Italy was cut off to eliminate competition. To promote manufacturing, the Crown paid for models of Lombe's machinery which were exhibited in the [[Tower of London]].<ref>{{cite ODNB|id=75296|first=Richard L.|last=Hills|title=Cotchett, Thomas|authorlink=Richard L. Hills}}</ref><ref>{{cite ODNB|id=47971|first=K. R.|last=Fairclough|title=Sorocold, George}}</ref>

====Cotton====
Parts of India, China, Central America, South America, and the Middle East have a long history of hand-manufacturing cotton textiles, which became a major industry after 1000 AD. Most cotton was grown by small farmers alongside food and, spun in households for domestic consumption. In the 1400s, China began to require households to pay part of their taxes in cotton cloth. By the 17th century, almost all Chinese wore cotton clothing, and it could be used as a [[medium of exchange]]. In India, cotton textiles were manufactured for distant markets, often produced by professional weavers.<ref name="Beckert_2014">{{cite book|title= Empire of Cotton: A Global History|last=Beckert|first= Sven|year= 2014|publisher =Vintage Books Division Penguin Random House |location=US|isbn= 978-0-375-71396-5}}</ref>

Cotton was a difficult [[raw material]] for Europe to obtain before it was grown on [[Plantation complexes in the Southern United States|colonial plantations]].<ref name="Beckert_2014" /> Spanish explorers found [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] growing sea island cotton (''[[Gossypium barbadense]]'') and green seeded cotton ''[[Gossypium hirsutum]]''. Sea island cotton began being exported from Barbados in the 1650s. Upland green seeded cotton was uneconomical because of the difficulty of removing seed, a problem solved by the [[cotton gin]].<ref name="Roe1916" />{{rp|157}} A strain of cotton seed brought from Mexico to [[Natchez, Mississippi]], in 1806 became the parent genetic material for over 90% of world production today; it produced bolls three to four times faster to pick.<ref name="Beckert_2014" />

====Trade and textiles====
[[File:Colonisation 1754.png|thumb|European colonial empires at the start of the Industrial Revolution, superimposed upon modern political boundaries]]
The [[Age of Discovery]] was followed by [[colonialism]] beginning around the 16th century. Following the discovery of a [[trade route]] to India around southern Africa by the Portuguese, the British founded the [[East India Company]], and other countries founded companies, which established trading posts throughout the Indian Ocean region.<ref name="Beckert_2014" />

A largest segment of this trade was in cotton textiles, which were purchased in India and sold in [[Southeast Asia]], including the [[List of islands of Indonesia|Indonesian archipelago]] where spices were purchased for sale to Southeast Asia and Europe. By the 1760s, cloth was over three-quarters of the East India Company's exports. Indian textiles were in demand in Europe where previously only wool and linen were available; however, cotton goods consumed in Europe was minor until the early 19th century.<ref name="Beckert_2014" />

====Pre-mechanized European textile production====
[[File:Landauer I 014 v.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Weaving|Weaver]] in [[Nürnberg]], {{Circa|1524}}]]
By 1600, [[Flemish people|Flemish]] refugees began weaving cotton in English towns where cottage spinning and weaving of wool and linen was established. They were left alone by the [[guild]]s who did not consider cotton a threat. Earlier European attempts at cotton spinning and weaving were in 12th-century Italy and 15th-century southern Germany, but these ended when the supply of cotton was cut off.

British cloth could not compete with Indian cloth because India's labour cost was approximately one-fifth to one-sixth that of Britain's.<ref name="auto" /> In 1700 and 1721, the British government passed [[Calico Acts]] to [[Protectionism|protect]] domestic woollen and linen industries from cotton fabric imported from India.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969" /><ref name="Ayers1989" /> The demand for heavier fabric was met by a domestic industry based around Lancashire that produced [[fustian]], a cloth with flax [[Warp and weft|warp]] and cotton [[Warp and weft|weft]]. Flax was used for the warp because wheel-spun cotton had insufficient strength, the resulting blend was not as soft as 100% cotton and more difficult to sew.<ref name="Ayers1989">{{Cite book
 |last1        = Ayres
 |first1       = Robert
 |author1-link = Robert Ayres (scientist)
 |title        = Technological Transformations and Long Waves
 |year         = 1989
 |url          = http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/RR-89-001.pdf
 |pages        = 16–17
 |access-date  = 20 December 2012
|archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20120301220936/http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/RR-89-001.pdf
 |archive-date = 1 March 2012
}}</ref>

On the eve of the Industrial Revolution, spinning and weaving were done in households, for domestic consumption, and as a cottage industry under the [[putting-out system]]. Under the putting-out system, home-based workers produced under contract to merchant sellers, who often supplied the raw materials. In the off-season, the women, typically farmers' wives, did the spinning and the men did the weaving. Using the [[spinning wheel]], it took 4-8 spinners to supply one handloom weaver.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969" /><ref name="Ayers1989" /><ref name="McNeil1990">{{Harvnb|McNeil|1990}}</ref>{{rp|823}}

====Invention of textile machinery====
[[File:Spinning jenny.jpg|thumb|A model of the [[spinning jenny]] in a museum in [[Wuppertal]]. Invented by [[James Hargreaves]] in 1764, the spinning jenny was one of the innovations that started the revolution.]]
[[File:Mule-jenny.jpg|thumb|The only surviving example of a spinning mule built by the inventor Samuel Crompton, the mule produced high-quality thread with minimal labour, now on display at [[Bolton Museum]] in [[Greater Manchester]]]]
[[File:Marshall's flax-mill, Holbeck, Leeds - interior - c.1800.jpg|thumb|The interior of Marshall's [[Temple Works]] in [[Leeds]], West Yorkshire]]
The [[flying shuttle]], patented in 1733 by [[John Kay (flying shuttle)|John Kay]]—with subsequent improvements including an important one in 1747—doubled the output of a weaver, worsening the imbalance between spinning and weaving. It became widely used around Lancashire after 1760 when John's son, [[Robert Kay (inventor)|Robert]], invented the dropbox, which facilitated changing thread colors.<ref name="McNeil1990" />{{rp|821–822}}

[[Lewis Paul]] patented the roller [[spinning frame]] and the flyer-and-[[bobbin]] system for drawing wool to a more even thickness. The technology was developed with John Wyatt of [[Birmingham]]. In 1743, a factory opened in [[Northampton]] with 50 spindles on each of five of Paul and Wyatt's machines, this operated until 1764. A similar mill was built by [[Daniel Bourn]]. Paul and Bourn patented [[carding]] machines in 1748. Based on two sets of rollers that travelled at different speeds, it was later used in the first [[cotton mill|cotton spinning mill]].

In 1764, in [[Oswaldtwistle]], Lancashire, [[James Hargreaves]] invented the [[spinning jenny]]. It was the first practical spinning frame with multiple spindles.<ref>R. Ray Gehani (1998). "Management of Technology and Operations". p. 63. John Wiley and Sons, 1998</ref> The jenny worked in a similar manner to the spinning wheel, by first clamping down on the fibres, then drawing them out, followed by twisting.<ref>{{Harvnb|Ayres|1989|p=1}}</ref> It was a simple, wooden framed machine that only cost £6 for a 40-spindle model in 1792<ref>{{cite book|first= David S.|last= Landes|date=1969|title= The Unbound Prometheus|publisher= Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge|isbn= 978-0-521-09418-4|page=63}}</ref> and was used mainly by home spinners. The jenny produced a lightly twisted yarn only suitable for weft, not warp.<ref name="McNeil1990" />{{rp|825–827}}

The [[water frame]], was developed by [[Richard Arkwright]] who, patented it in 1769. The design was partly based on a spinning machine built by Kay, hired by Arkwright.<ref name="McNeil1990" />{{rp|827–830}} The water frame was able to produce a hard, medium-count thread suitable for warp, finally allowing 100% cotton cloth to be made in Britain. Arkwright used water power at a factory in [[Cromford]], [[Derbyshire]] in 1771, giving the invention its name. [[Samuel Crompton]] invented the [[spinning mule]] in 1779, so called because it is a hybrid of Arkwright's water frame and [[James Hargreaves]]'s [[spinning jenny]] (a [[mule]] is the product of crossbreeding a [[mare|female horse]] with a [[donkey|male donkey]]). Crompton's mule could produce finer thread than hand spinning, at lower cost. Mule-spun thread was of suitable strength to be used as a warp and allowed Britain to produce highly competitive yarn in large quantities.<ref name="McNeil1990" />{{rp|832}}

Realising expiration of the Arkwright patent would greatly increase the supply of spun cotton and lead to a shortage of weavers, [[Edmund Cartwright]] developed a vertical [[power loom]] which he patented in 1785.<ref name="McNeil1990" />{{rp|834}} Samuel Horrocks patented a loom in 1813, which was improved by [[Richard Roberts (engineer)|Richard Roberts]] in 1822, and these were produced in large numbers by Roberts, Hill & Co. Roberts was a maker of high-quality machine tools and pioneer in the use of jigs and gauges for precision workshop measurement.<ref>{{Harvnb|Ayres|1989|p=18}}</ref>

The demand for cotton presented an opportunity to [[Planter class|planters]] in the Southern US, who thought upland cotton would be profitable if a better way could be found to remove the seed. [[Eli Whitney]] responded by inventing the inexpensive [[cotton gin]]. A man using a cotton gin could remove seed in one day as would previously have taken two months to process.<ref name="Roe1916">{{citation | last = Roe | first = Joseph Wickham | title = English and American Tool Builders | publisher = Yale University Press | year = 1916 | location = New Haven, Connecticut | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=X-EJAAAAIAAJ | lccn = 16011753 | access-date = 16 October 2015 | archive-date = 3 July 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230703113712/https://books.google.com/books?id=X-EJAAAAIAAJ | url-status = live }}. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 ({{LCCN|27024075}}); and by Lindsay Publications, Inc., Bradley, Illinois, ({{ISBN|978-0-917914-73-7}}).</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Angela|last=Lakwete|title=Inventing the Cotton Gin: Machine and Myth in Antebellum America|url={{Google books|yJ4_L3QGpRMC|page=PR7|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|year=2005|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|isbn=978-0-8018-8272-2}}</ref>

These advances were capitalised on by [[entrepreneur]]s, of whom the best known is Arkwright. He is credited with a list of inventions, but these were developed by such people as Kay and [[Thomas Highs]]. Arkwright nurtured the inventors, patented the ideas, financed the initiatives, and protected the machines. He created the cotton mill which brought the production processes together in a factory, and developed the use of power, which made cotton manufacture a mechanised industry. Other inventors increased the efficiency of the individual steps of spinning, so that the supply of [[yarn]] increased greatly. Steam power was then applied to drive textile machinery. [[Manchester]] acquired the nickname [[Cottonopolis]] during the early 19th century owing to its sprawl of textile factories.<ref>G.E. Mingay (1986). "The Transformation of Britain, 1830–1939". p. 25. Routledge, 1986</ref>

Though mechanisation dramatically decreased the cost of cotton cloth, by the mid-19th century machine-woven cloth still could not equal the quality of hand-woven Indian cloth. However, the high productivity of British textile manufacturing allowed coarser grades of British cloth to undersell hand-spun and woven fabric in low-wage India, destroying the Indian industry.<ref name="Beckert_2014" />

===Iron industry===
[[File:Reverberatory furnace diagram.png|thumb|The [[reverberatory furnace]] could produce [[cast iron]] using mined coal; the burning [[coal]] is separated from the iron to prevent constituents of the coal, such as sulfur and silica, from becoming impurities in the iron. Iron production increased due to the ability to use mined coal directly.]]
[[File:Ironbridge 6.jpg|thumb|[[The Iron Bridge]] in [[Shropshire]], England, the world's first bridge constructed of iron, opened in 1781.<ref name="Iron bridge">{{cite web|title=Ironbridge Gorge|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/371|website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=20 December 2017}}</ref>]]

====British iron production====
Bar iron was the commodity form of iron used as the raw material for making hardware goods such as nails, wire, hinges, horseshoes, wagon tires, chains, as well as structural shapes. A small amount of bar iron was converted into steel. Cast iron was used for pots, stoves, and other items where its brittleness was tolerable. Most cast iron was refined and converted to bar iron, with substantial losses. Bar iron was made by the [[bloomery]] process, the predominant iron smelting process until the late 18th century.

In the UK in 1720, there were 20,500 tons of [[charcoal iron]] and 400 tons with coke. In 1806, charcoal iron production had dropped to 7,800 tons and coke cast iron was 250,000 tons.<ref name="Tylecote_1992"/>{{rp|125}} In 1750, the UK imported 31,000 tons of bar iron and either refined from cast iron or directly produced 18,800 tons of bar iron, using charcoal and 100 tons using coke. In 1796, the UK was making 125,000 tons of bar iron with coke and 6,400 tons with charcoal; imports were 38,000 tons and exports were 24,600 tons. In 1806 the UK did not import bar iron but exported 31,500 tons.<ref name="Tylecote_1992"/>{{rp|125}}

====Iron process innovations====
[[File:Puddling furnace int captions.png|thumb|Horizontal (lower) and vertical (upper) cross-sections of a single [[Puddling (metallurgy)|puddling]] furnace]]
A major change in the iron industries during the Industrial Revolution was the replacement of wood and other bio-fuels with [[coal]]; for a given amount of heat, [[Coal mining|mining coal]] required much less labour than cutting wood and converting it to [[charcoal]],<ref>{{cite book
|title= American Iron 1607–1900|last=Gordon|first= Robert B|year=1996 |publisher = Johns Hopkins University Press|location=Baltimore and London|isbn= 978-0-8018-6816-0 |page=156}}</ref> and coal was more abundant than wood, supplies of which were becoming scarce before the enormous increase in iron production that took place in the late 18th century.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/><ref name="Tylecote_1992">{{cite book|title=A History of Metallurgy, Second Edition |last=Tylecote |first=R. F.|year= 1992|publisher =Maney Publishing, for the Institute of Materials |location= London|isbn=978-0-901462-88-6}}</ref>{{rp|122}}

In 1709, [[Abraham Darby I|Abraham Darby]] made progress using coke to fuel his blast furnaces at [[Coalbrookdale]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Danny Boyle's intro on Olympics programme |url=http://www.awardsdaily.com/blog/2012/07/27/danny-boyles-intro-on-olympics-programme/ |publisher=Awards Daily |first=Ryan |last=Adams |date=27 July 2012 |access-date=20 December 2017 |archive-date=6 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130206135250/http://www.awardsdaily.com/blog/2012/07/27/danny-boyles-intro-on-olympics-programme/ |url-status=live }}</ref> However, the coke pig iron made was not suitable for making wrought iron and was used mostly for the production of cast iron goods, such as pots and kettles. He had the advantage over his rivals in that his pots, cast by his patented process, were thinner and cheaper.

In 1750, [[coke (fuel)|coke]] had generally replaced charcoal in the smelting of copper and lead and was in widespread use in glass production. In the smelting and refining of iron, coal and coke produced inferior iron to that made with charcoal because of the coal's sulfur content. Low sulfur coals were known, but they still contained harmful amounts.<ref name="Tylecote_1992"/>{{rp|122–125}} Another factor limiting the iron industry before the Industrial Revolution was the scarcity of water power to power blast bellows. This limitation was overcome by the steam engine.<ref name="Tylecote_1992" />

Use of coal in iron smelting started before the Industrial Revolution, based on innovations by [[Clement Clerke]] and others from 1678, using coal [[reverberatory furnace]]s known as cupolas. These were operated by the flames playing on the ore and charcoal or coke mixture, [[Redox|reducing]] the [[oxide]] to metal. This has the advantage that impurities in the coal do not migrate into the metal. This technology was applied to lead from 1678 and copper from 1687. It was applied to iron foundry work in the 1690s, but in this case the reverberatory furnace was known as an air furnace.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tylecote |first=R. F. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H5hTAAAAMAAJ&q=This+technology+was+applied+to+lead+from+1678+and+to+copper+from+1687.+It+was+also+applied+to+iron+foundry+work+in+the+1690s,+but+in+this+case+the+reverberatory+furnace+was+known+as+an+air+furnace.+(The+foundry+cupola+is+a+different,+and+later,+innovation.) |title=A History of Metallurgy |date=1976 |publisher=Metals Society |isbn=978-0-904357-06-6 |language=en |access-date=28 November 2022 |archive-date=4 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404131200/https://books.google.com/books?id=H5hTAAAAMAAJ&q=This+technology+was+applied+to+lead+from+1678+and+to+copper+from+1687.+It+was+also+applied+to+iron+foundry+work+in+the+1690s,+but+in+this+case+the+reverberatory+furnace+was+known+as+an+air+furnace.+(The+foundry+cupola+is+a+different,+and+later,+innovation.) |url-status=live }}</ref>

Coke pig iron was hardly used to produce wrought iron until 1755, when Darby's son [[Abraham Darby II]] built furnaces at [[Horsehay]] and [[Ketley]] where low sulfur coal was available, and not far from Coalbrookdale. These furnaces were equipped with water-powered bellows, the water being pumped by [[Newcomen atmospheric engine]]s. [[Abraham Darby III]] installed similar steam-pumped, water-powered blowing cylinders at the Dale Company when he took control in 1768. The Dale Company used Newcomen engines to drain its mines and made parts for engines which it sold throughout the country.<ref name="Tylecote_1992" />{{rp|123–125}}

Steam engines made the use of higher-pressure and volume blast practical; however, the leather used in bellows was expensive to replace. In 1757, ironmaster [[John Wilkinson (industrialist)|John Wilkinson]] patented a hydraulic powered [[blowing engine]] for blast furnaces.<ref name="Temple 1986">{{cite book|title=The Genius of China: 3000 years of science, discovery and invention|url=https://archive.org/details/geniusofchina3000temp|url-access=limited|last1=Temple|first1= Robert|first2=Joseph|last2=Needham|year= 1986|publisher = Simon and Schuster|location=New York|pages=[https://archive.org/details/geniusofchina3000temp/page/65 65]|isbn=978-0-671-62028-8}} Based on the works of Joseph Needham</ref> The blowing cylinder for blast furnaces was introduced in 1760 and the first blowing cylinder made of cast iron is believed to be the one used at Carrington in 1768, designed by [[John Smeaton]].<ref name="Tylecote_1992"/>{{rp|124, 135}}

Cast iron cylinders for use with a piston were difficult to manufacture. [[James Watt]] had difficulty trying to have a cylinder made for his first steam engine. In 1774 Wilkinson invented a machine for boring cylinders. After Wilkinson bored the first successful cylinder for a [[Boulton and Watt]] steam engine in 1776, he was given an exclusive contract for providing cylinders.<ref name="Roe1916"/><ref>Author Simon Winchester dates the start of the Industrial Revolution to 4 May 1776, the day that John Wilkinson presented James Watt with his precision-made cylinder. (19 August 2018) [https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/fzgps/date/2018-08-19/segment/01 Fareed Zakaria ] . CNN.com</ref> Watt developed a rotary steam engine in 1782, they were widely applied to blowing, hammering, rolling and slitting.<ref name="Tylecote_1992"/>{{rp|124}}

In addition to lower cost and greater availability, coke had other advantages over charcoal in that it was harder and made the column of materials flowing down the blast furnace more porous and did not crush in the much taller furnaces of the late 19th century.<ref>{{cite book|title=Inside the Black Box: Technology and Economics|last=Rosenberg|first=Nathan|year=1982|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge; New York|isbn=978-0-521-27367-1|page=[https://archive.org/details/insideblackboxte00rose/page/85 85]|url=https://archive.org/details/insideblackboxte00rose/page/85}}</ref><ref name="auto3">{{cite book|title=The Unbound Prometheus: Technological Change and Industrial Development in Western Europe from 1750 to the Present |last=Landes |first= David. S.|year= 1969|publisher =Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge|location= Cambridge; New York|isbn=978-0-521-09418-4}}</ref>

As cast iron became cheaper and widely available, it began being a structural material for bridges and buildings. A famous early example is [[The Iron Bridge]] built in 1778 with cast iron produced by Abraham Darby III.<ref name="Iron bridge"/> However, most cast iron was converted to wrought iron. Conversion of cast iron had long been done in a [[finery forge]]. An improved refining process known as [[potting and stamping]] was developed, but this was superseded by [[Henry Cort]]'s [[Puddling (metallurgy)|puddling]] process. Cort developed significant iron manufacturing processes: [[Rolling (metalworking)|rolling]] in 1783 and puddling in 1784.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969" />{{rp|91}} Puddling produced a structural grade iron at a relatively low cost.
Puddling was backbreaking and extremely hot work. Few puddlers lived to be 40.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/>{{rp|218}} Puddling became widely used after 1800. British iron manufacturers had used considerable amounts of iron imported from Sweden and Russia to supplement domestic supplies. Because of the increased British production, by the 1790s Britain eliminated imports and became a net exporter of bar iron.

[[Hot blast]], patented by the Scottish inventor [[James Beaumont Neilson]] in 1828, was the most important development of the 19th century for saving energy in making pig iron. The amount of fuel to make a unit of pig iron was reduced at first by between one-third using coke or two-thirds using coal;<ref>{{cite book|first= David S.|last= Landes|date=1969|title= The Unbound Prometheus|publisher= Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge|isbn= 978-0-521-09418-4|page=92}}</ref> the efficiency gains continued as the technology improved.<ref>{{Harvnb|Ayres|1989|p=21}}</ref> Hot blast raised the operating temperature of furnaces, increasing their capacity. Using less coal or coke meant introducing fewer impurities into the pig iron. This meant that lower quality coal could be used in areas where [[Metallurgical coal|coking coal]] was unavailable or too expensive;<ref>{{cite book |title= Inside the Black Box: Technology and Economics |last= Rosenberg |first= Nathan |year= 1982 |publisher= Cambridge University Press |location= Cambridge; New York |isbn= 978-0-521-27367-1 |page= [https://archive.org/details/insideblackboxte00rose/page/90 90] |url= https://archive.org/details/insideblackboxte00rose/page/90 }}</ref> however, by the end of the 19th century transportation costs fell considerably.

Shortly before the Industrial Revolution, an improvement was made in the production of [[steel]], which was an expensive commodity and used only where iron would not do, such as for cutting edge tools and springs. [[Benjamin Huntsman]] developed his [[crucible steel]] technique in the 1740s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steel Production {{!}} History of Western Civilization II |url=https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/steel-production/ |access-date=1 May 2022 |website=courses.lumenlearning.com |archive-date=11 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220511213833/https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/steel-production/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The supply of cheaper iron and steel aided a number of industries, such as those making nails, hinges, wire, and other hardware items. The development of machine tools allowed better working of iron, causing it to be increasingly used in the rapidly growing machinery and engine industries.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/chapter/iron-making/|title=Iron Making {{!}} Boundless World History|website=courses.lumenlearning.com|access-date=9 January 2020|archive-date=13 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413171318/https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/chapter/iron-making/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Steam power===
{{Main|Steam power during the Industrial Revolution}}
[[File:Maquina vapor Watt ETSIIM.jpg|thumb|A [[Watt steam engine]], invented by [[James Watt]], who transformed the [[steam engine]] from a [[reciprocating motion]] that was used for pumping to a [[Rotation|rotating motion]] suited to industrial applications; Watt and others significantly improved the efficiency of the steam engine.]]
[[File:Newcomens Dampfmaschine aus Meyers 1890.png|thumb|[[Newcomen steam engine|Newcomen's steam-powered atmospheric engine]] was the first practical piston steam engine; subsequent steam engines were to power the Industrial Revolution.]]
The development of the [[stationary steam engine]] was important in the Industrial Revolution; however, during its early period, most industrial power was supplied by water and wind. In Britain, by 1800 an estimated 10,000 horsepower was being supplied by steam. By 1815 steam power had grown to 210,000&nbsp;hp.<ref>{{cite book|first= David S.|last= Landes|date=1969|title= The Unbound Prometheus|publisher= Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge|isbn= 978-0-521-09418-4|page=104}}</ref>

The first commercially successful industrial use of steam power was patented by [[Thomas Savery]] in 1698. He constructed in London a low-lift combined vacuum and pressure water pump that generated about one [[horsepower]] (hp) and was used in waterworks and a few mines.<ref>{{Citation |last=Allen |first=G. C. |title=Economic Development before 1860 |date=10 January 2018 |work=The Industrial Development of Birmingham and the Black Country 1860–1927 |pages=13–45 |publisher=Routledge |doi=10.1201/9781351251341-4 |isbn=978-1-351-25134-1}}</ref> The first successful piston steam engine was introduced by [[Thomas Newcomen]] before 1712. Newcomen engines were installed for draining hitherto unworkable deep mines, with the engine on the surface; these were large machines, requiring a significant amount of capital, and produced upwards of {{convert|5|hp|kW|round=0.5|order=flip|abbr=on}}. They were extremely inefficient by modern standards, but when located where coal was cheap at pit heads, they opened up a great expansion in coal mining by allowing mines to go deeper.<ref name="auto2">L. T. C. Rolt and J. S. Allen, ''The Steam Engine of Thomas Newcomen'' (Landmark Publishing, Ashbourne 1997). p. 145.</ref> The engines spread to Hungary in 1722, then Germany and Sweden; 110 were built by 1733. In the 1770s John Smeaton built large examples and introduced improvements. 1,454 engines had been built by 1800.<ref name="auto2" /> Despite their disadvantages, Newcomen engines were reliable, easy to maintain and continued to be used in coalfields until the early 19th century.

A fundamental change in working principles was brought about by [[Scottish people|Scotsman]] [[James Watt]]. With financial support from his business partner [[English people|Englishman]] [[Matthew Boulton]], he had succeeded by 1778 in perfecting [[Watt steam engine|his steam engine]], which incorporated radical improvements, notably closing the upper part of the cylinder making the low-pressure steam drive the top of the piston instead of the atmosphere and the celebrated separate steam condenser chamber. The separate condenser did away with the cooling water that had been injected directly into the cylinder, which cooled the cylinder and wasted steam. These improvements increased engine efficiency so Boulton and Watt's engines used only 20–25% as much coal per horsepower-hour as Newcomen's. Boulton and Watt opened the [[Soho Foundry]] for the manufacture of such engines in 1795.

In 1783, the Watt steam engine had been fully developed into a [[Single- and double-acting cylinders|double-acting]] rotative type, which meant it could be used to directly drive the rotary machinery of a factory or mill. Both of Watt's basic engine types were commercially successful, and by 1800 the firm [[Boulton and Watt]] had constructed 496 engines, with 164 driving reciprocating pumps, 24 serving blast furnaces, and 308 powering mill machinery; most of the engines generated from {{convert|5|to|10|hp|kW|order=flip|round=0.5|abbr=on}}.

Until about 1800, the most common pattern of steam engine was the [[beam engine]], built as an integral part of a stone or brick engine-house, but soon self-contained rotative engines were developed, such as the [[table engine]]. Around the start of the 19th century, at which time the Boulton and Watt patent expired, Cornish engineer [[Richard Trevithick]] and the American [[Oliver Evans]] began to construct higher-pressure non-condensing steam engines, exhausting against the atmosphere. High pressure yielded an engine and boiler compact enough to be used on mobile road and rail [[locomotive]]s and [[steamboat]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Selgin |first1=George |last2=Turner |first2=John L. |date=2011 |title=Strong Steam, Weak Patents, or the Myth of Watt's Innovation-Blocking Monopoly, Exploded |journal=The Journal of Law & Economics |volume=54 |issue=4 |pages=841–861 |doi=10.1086/658495 |jstor=10.1086/658495 |s2cid=154401778 |issn=0022-2186}}</ref>

Small industrial power requirements continued to be provided by animal and human muscle until widespread [[electrification]] in the 20th century. These included [[crank (mechanism)|crank]]-powered, [[treadle]]-powered and horse-powered workshop, and light industrial machinery.<ref>{{Harvnb|Hunter|Bryant|1991|pp=}}</ref>

===Machine tools===
[[File:Maudslay screw-cutting lathes of circa 1797 and 1800.png|thumb|[[Henry Maudslay|Maudslay]]'s early [[screw-cutting lathe]]s, developed in the late 1790s]]
[[File:Middletown milling machine 1818--001.png|thumb|The Middletown [[milling (machining)|milling machine]], developed around 1818 by Robert Johnson and Simeon North]]
Pre-industrial machinery was built by various craftsmen{{mdash}}[[millwright]]s built [[watermill]]s and [[windmill]]s; carpenters made wooden framing; and smiths and turners made metal parts. Wooden components had the disadvantage of changing dimensions with temperature and humidity, and the joints tended to work loose. As the Industrial Revolution progressed, machines with metal parts and frames became common. Other uses of metal parts were in firearms and threaded [[fastener]]s, such as machine screws, bolts, and nuts. There was need for precision in making parts, to allow better working machinery, [[Interchangeable parts|interchangeability of parts]], and standardization of threaded fasteners.

The demand for metal parts led to the development of several [[machine tool]]s. They have their origins in the tools developed in the 18th century by clock and scientific instrument makers, to enable them to batch-produce small mechanisms. Before machine tools, metal was worked manually using the basic hand tools: hammers, files, scrapers, saws, and chisels. Consequently, use of metal machine parts was kept to a minimum. Hand methods of production were laborious and costly, and precision was difficult to achieve.<ref name="Hounshell-1984" /><ref name="Roe1916" />

The first large precision machine tool was the cylinder [[Boring (manufacturing)|boring machine]] invented by John Wilkinson in 1774. It was designed to bore the large cylinders on steam engines. Wilkinson's machine was the first to use the principle of line-boring, where the tool is supported on both ends.<ref name="Roe1916" /> The [[Planer (metalworking)|planing machine]], the [[milling (machining)|milling machine]] and the [[Shaper|shaping machine]] were developed. Though the milling machine was invented at this time, it was not developed as a serious workshop tool until later.<ref name="Hounshell-1984" /><ref name="Roe1916" /> [[James Fox (engineer)|James Fox]] and [[Matthew Murray]] were manufacturers of machine tools who found success in exports and developed the planer around the same time as [[Richard Roberts (engineer)|Richard Roberts]].

[[Henry Maudslay]], who trained a school of machine tool makers, was a mechanic who had been employed at the [[Royal Arsenal]], [[Woolwich]]. He worked as an apprentice under [[Jan Verbruggen]], who, in 1774, installed a [[horizontal boring machine]] which was the first industrial size lathe in the UK. Maudslay was hired by [[Joseph Bramah]] for the production of high-security metal locks that required precision craftsmanship. Bramah patented a lathe with similarities to the slide rest lathe,<ref name="Roe1916" /><ref name="McNeil1990" />{{rp|392–395}} Maudslay perfected this lathe, which cut machine screws of different thread pitches. Before its invention, screws could not be cut with precision.<ref name="Roe1916" /><ref name="McNeil1990" />{{rp|392–395}} The slide rest lathe was called one of history's most important inventions. Although it was not Maudslay's idea, he was the first to build a functional lathe using innovations of the lead screw, slide rest, and change gears.<ref name="Roe1916" />{{rp|31, 36}} Maudslay set up a shop, and built the machinery for making ships' pulley blocks for the [[Royal Navy]] in the [[Portsmouth Block Mills]]. These machines were all-metal and the first for mass production and making components with interchangeability. The lessons Maudslay learned about the need for stability and precision he adapted to the development of machine tools, and he trained men to build on his work, such as [[Richard Roberts (engineer)|Richard Roberts]], [[Joseph Clement]] and [[Joseph Whitworth]].<ref name="Roe1916" />

The techniques to make mass-produced metal parts of sufficient precision to be interchangeable is attributed to the [[United States Department of War|U.S. Department of War]] which perfected [[interchangeable parts]] for firearms.<ref name="Hounshell-1984">{{Hounshell1984}}</ref> In the half-century following the invention of the fundamental machine tools, the machine industry became the largest industrial sector of the U.S. economy.<ref name="faculty.wcas.northwestern.edu">Economics 323–2: Economic History of the United States Since 1865 http://faculty.wcas.northwestern.edu/~jmokyr/Graphs-and-Tables.PDF {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419183804/https://faculty.wcas.northwestern.edu/~jmokyr/Graphs-and-Tables.PDF |date=19 April 2021 }}</ref>

===Chemicals===
Large-scale production of chemicals was an important development. The first of these was the production of [[Sulfuric acid|sulphuric acid]] by the [[lead chamber process]], invented by [[John Roebuck]] in 1746. He was able to increase the scale of the manufacture by replacing expensive glass vessels with larger, cheaper chambers made of [[rivet]]ed sheets of lead. Instead of a small amount, he was able to make around {{convert|100|lb|kg|-1|order=flip|abbr=off}} in each chamber, a tenfold increase.

The production of an [[alkali]] on a large scale became an important goal, and [[Nicolas Leblanc]] succeeded in 1791 in introducing a method for the production of [[sodium carbonate]] (soda ash). The [[Leblanc process]] was a reaction of sulfuric acid with [[sodium chloride]] to give [[sodium sulfate]] and [[hydrochloric acid]]. The sodium sulfate was heated with [[calcium carbonate]] and coal to give a mixture of sodium carbonate and [[calcium sulfide]]. Adding water separated the soluble sodium carbonate from the calcium sulfide. The process produced significant pollution, nonetheless, this synthetic soda ash proved economical compared to that from burning plants,<ref name="Clow52"/> and to [[potash]] ([[potassium carbonate]]) produced from hardwood ashes. Soda ash and sulphuric acid were important because they enabled the introduction of other inventions, replacing small-scale operations with more cost-effective and controllable processes. Sodium carbonate had uses in the glass, textile, soap, and paper industries. Early uses for sulfuric acid included [[Pickling (metal)|pickling]] (removing rust from) iron and steel, and for [[Textile bleaching|bleaching cloth]].

The development of bleaching powder ([[calcium hypochlorite]]) by chemist [[Charles Tennant]] in 1800, based on the discoveries of [[Claude Louis Berthollet]], revolutionised the bleaching processes in the textile industry by reducing the time required for the traditional process then in use: repeated exposure to the sun in fields after soaking the textiles with alkali or sour milk. Tennant's [[St Rollox Chemical Works]], [[Glasgow]], became the world's largest chemical plant.

After 1860 the focus on chemical innovation was in [[dye]]stuffs, and Germany took leadership, building a strong chemical industry.<ref>Lion Hirth, ''State, Cartels and Growth: The German Chemical Industry'' (2007) p. 20</ref> Aspiring chemists flocked to German universities in 1860–1914 to learn the latest techniques. British scientists lacked research universities and did not train advanced students; instead, the practice was to hire German-trained chemists.<ref>Johann P. Murmann, ''Knowledge and competitive advantage: the co-evolution of firms, technology, and national institutions'' (2003) pp.&nbsp;53–54</ref>

===Concrete===
[[File:Thamestunnel.jpg|thumb|The [[Thames Tunnel]], which opened in 1843; concrete was used in the world's first underwater tunnel.]]
In 1824 [[Joseph Aspdin]], a British [[bricklayer]] turned builder, patented a chemical process for making [[portland cement]], an important advance in the building trades. This process involves [[sintering]] [[clay]] and [[limestone]] to about {{convert|1400|°C|F|0|abbr=on}}, then [[Grinding (abrasive cutting)|grinding]] it into a fine powder which is mixed with water, sand and [[gravel]] to produce [[concrete]]. Portland cement concrete was used by English engineer [[Marc Isambard Brunel]] when constructing the [[Thames Tunnel]].<ref name="memphis"/> Concrete was used on a large scale in the construction of the [[London sewer system]] a generation later.

===Gas lighting===
Though others made a similar innovation, the large-scale introduction of [[gas lighting]] was the work of [[William Murdoch]], an employee of Boulton & Watt. The process consisted of the large-scale gasification of coal in furnaces, purification of the gas, and its storage and distribution. The first gas lighting utilities were established in London between 1812 and 1820. They became one of the major consumers of coal in the UK. Gas lighting affected social and industrial organisation because it allowed factories and stores to remain open longer. Its introduction allowed nightlife to flourish in cities and towns as interiors and streets could be lighted on a larger scale than before.<ref>Charles Hunt, ''A history of the introduction of gas lighting'' (W. King, 1907) [https://books.google.com/books?id=dAFCAQAAIAAJ&dq=Gas+lighting&pg=PA1 online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404131202/https://books.google.com/books?id=dAFCAQAAIAAJ&dq=Gas+lighting&pg=PA1 |date=4 April 2023 }}.</ref>

===Glass making===
[[File:Crystal Palace interior.jpg|thumb|The Crystal Palace housed the [[The Great Exhibition|Great Exhibition]] of 1851]]
Glass was made in ancient Greece and Rome.<ref>Patrick Degryse, '' Glass making in the Greco-Roman world: results of the ARCHGLASS project'' (Leuven University Press, 2014).</ref> A new method of [[glass production]], known as the [[Cylinder blown sheet glass|cylinder process]], was developed in Europe during the 19th century. In 1832 this process was used by the [[Chance Brothers]] to create [[Plate glass|sheet glass]]; they became the leading producers of window and plate glass. This advancement allowed for larger panes of glass to be created without interruption, thus freeing up the space planning in interiors as well as the fenestration of buildings. [[The Crystal Palace]] is a significant example of the use of sheet glass in a new and innovative structure.<ref>Hentie Louw, "Window-glass making in Britain c. 1660–c. 1860 and its architectural impact." ''Construction History'' (1991): 47–68 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/41613689 online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418185707/https://www.jstor.org/stable/41613689 |date=18 April 2021 }}.</ref>

===Paper machine===
A machine for making a continuous sheet of paper, on a loop of wire fabric, was patented in 1798 by [[Louis-Nicolas Robert]] in France. The [[paper machine]] is known as a Fourdrinier after the financiers, brothers Sealy and [[Henry Fourdrinier]], who were [[Stationery|stationers]] in London. The Fourdrinier machine is the predominant means of production today. The method of [[continuous production]] demonstrated by the paper machine influenced the development of continuous rolling of iron, steel and other continuous production processes.<ref>{{cite book
|title= A Nation of Steel: The Making of Modern America 1965–1925
 |url= https://archive.org/details/nationofsteelmak00misa
 |url-access= registration
 |last=Misa
 |first= Thomas J.
|year=1995 |publisher = Johns Hopkins University Press
|location= Baltimore and London
|page=[https://archive.org/details/nationofsteelmak00misa/page/243 243]
|isbn= 978-0-8018-6502-2 }}</ref>

===Agriculture===
The British Agricultural Revolution raised crop yields and released labour for industrial employment,<ref name="Overton">{{cite book |last=Overton |first=Mark |title=Agricultural Revolution in England: The Transformation of the Agrarian Economy 1500–1850 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1996 |page=129 |isbn=978-0-521-56859-3}}</ref> although per-capita food supply in much of Europe remained stagnant until the late 18th century.<ref name="Pomeranz">{{cite book |last=Pomeranz |first=Kenneth |title=The Great Divergence: China, Europe, and the Making of the Modern World Economy |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=2000 |page=204 |isbn=978-0-691-09010-8}}</ref> Key innovations included Jethro Tull's early 18th-century mechanical seed drill (1701), which ensured more even sowing and depth control,<ref>{{cite book |last=Temple |first=Robert |title=The Nation of Iron: An Illustrated History of the Iron and Steel Industries |publisher=Macmillan |year=1986 |page=26}}</ref> Joseph Foljambe's iron Rotherham plough (c. 1730)<ref name="Overton" /> and Andrew Meikle's threshing machine (1784), which reduced manual labour requirements.<ref name="Clark2007"/> Hand [[threshing]] with a [[Flail (tool)|flail]], was a laborious job that had taken about one-quarter of agricultural labour,<ref name="Clark2007">{{Harvnb|Clark|2007}}</ref>{{rp|286}} lower labour requirements resulted in lower wages and fewer labourers, who faced near starvation, leading to the 1830 [[Swing Riots]].

===Mining===
[[History of coal mining|Coal mining]] in Britain, particularly in [[South Wales]], started early. Before the steam engine, [[Open-pit mining|pits]] were often shallow [[bell pit]]s following a seam of coal along the surface, which were abandoned as the coal was extracted. If the geology was favourable, the coal was mined by means of an [[adit]] or [[Drift mining|drift mine]] driven into the side of a hill. [[Shaft sinking|Shaft mining]] was done in some areas, but the limiting factor was the problem of removing water. It could be done by hauling buckets up the shaft or to a [[sough]] (a tunnel driven into a hill to drain a mine). In either case, the water had to be discharged into a stream or ditch at a level where it could flow away.<ref name="auto1">John U. Nef, ''Rise of the British coal industry'' (2v 1932).</ref>

Introduction of the steam pump by Thomas Savery in 1698 and the Newcomen steam engine in 1712 facilitated removal of water and enabled deeper shafts, enabling more coal to be extracted. These developments had begun before the Industrial Revolution, but the adoption of Smeaton's improvements to the Newcomen engine, followed by Watt's steam engines from the 1770s, reduced the fuel costs, making mines more profitable. The [[Cornish engine]], developed in the 1810s, was more efficient than the Watt engine.<ref name="auto1"/>

Coal mining was dangerous owing to the presence of [[firedamp]] in coal seams. A degree of safety was provided by the [[safety lamp]] invented in 1816 by Sir [[Humphry Davy]], and independently by [[George Stephenson]]. However, the lamps proved a false dawn because they became unsafe quickly and provided weak light. Firedamp explosions continued, often setting off [[coal dust]] explosions, so casualties grew during the 19th century. Conditions were very poor, with a high casualty rate from rock falls.

===Transportation===
{{Main|Transport during the British Industrial Revolution}}
{{See also| Productivity improving technologies (economic history)#Infrastructures}}
[[File:Gas-works-near-regents-canal-1830.jpg|thumb|[[Gas Light and Coke Company|Imperial Gas Company]]’s gasworks on the [[Regent's Canal]], 1828]]
At the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, inland transport was by navigable rivers and roads, with coastal vessels employed to move heavy goods. [[Wagonway]]s were used for conveying coal to rivers for further shipment, but [[canal]]s had not yet been widely constructed. Animals supplied all motive power on land, with sails providing motive power on the sea. The first horse railways were introduced toward the end of the 18th century, with [[steam locomotive]]s introduced in the early 19th century. Improving sailing technologies boosted speed by 50% between 1750 and 1830.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Coren|first1=Michael J.|title=The speed of Europe's 18th-century sailing ships is revamping history's view of the Industrial Revolution|url=https://qz.com/1193455/the-speed-of-europes-18th-century-sailing-ships-is-revamping-historians-view-of-the-industrial-revolution/|access-date=31 January 2018|work=[[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]]|date=31 January 2018|archive-date=1 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501131436/https://qz.com/1193455/the-speed-of-europes-18th-century-sailing-ships-is-revamping-historians-view-of-the-industrial-revolution/|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Industrial Revolution improved Britain's transport infrastructure with turnpike road, waterway and rail networks. Raw materials and finished products could be moved quicker and cheaper than before. Improved transport allowed ideas to spread quickly.

====Canals and improved waterways====
{{Main|History of the British canal system}}
[[File:Barton-on-Irwell 11.05.02R.jpg|thumb|The [[Bridgewater Canal]], which proved very commercially successful, crossed the [[Manchester Ship Canal]], one of the last canals to be built.]]
Before and during the Industrial Revolution navigation on British rivers was improved by removing obstructions, straightening curves, widening and deepening, and building navigation [[Lock (water navigation)|locks]]. Britain had over {{convert|1000|mi|km|order=flip}} of navigable rivers and streams by 1750.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/>{{rp|46}} Canals and waterways allowed [[Bulk cargo|bulk materials]] to be economically transported long distances inland. This was because a horse could pull a barge with a tens of times larger than could be drawn in a cart.<ref name="McNeil1990" /><ref name="Grübler">{{Cite book
 | last1 = Grübler
 | first1 = Arnulf
 | title = The Rise and Fall of Infrastructures: Dynamics of Evolution and Technological Change in Transport
 | year = 1990
 | publisher = Physica-Verlag
 | location = Heidelberg and New York
 | url = http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/XB-90-704.pdf
 | access-date = 30 January 2013
| archive-date = 1 March 2012
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120301221205/http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/XB-90-704.pdf
 }}</ref>

Canals began to be built in the UK in the late 18th century to link major manufacturing centres. Known for its huge commercial success, the [[Bridgewater Canal]] in [[North West England]], was opened in 1761 and mostly funded by [[Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater|The 3rd Duke of Bridgewater]]. From [[Worsley]] to the rapidly growing town of [[Manchester]] its construction cost £168,000 (£{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|168000|1761|2013|r=-1}}}} {{As of|2013|lc=y}}),{{Inflation-fn|UK|df=y}}<ref>{{Harvnb|Timbs|1860|p=363}}</ref> but its advantages over land and river transport meant that within one year, the coal price in Manchester fell by half.<ref name="Bridgewatercollieries">{{cite news |newspaper=The Times |title=Bridgewater Collieries |url=http://archive.timesonline.co.uk/tol/viewArticle.arc?toDate=1985-12-31&fromDate=1785-01-01&currentPageNumber=1&resultsPerPage=10&sortBy=default&offset=0&viewName=&addFilters=&removeFilters=&addCat=&queryKeywords=bridgewater+canal&sectionId=1040&currPgSmartSet=1&pageId=ARCHIVE-The_Times-1913-12-01-08&articleId=ARCHIVE-The_Times-1913-12-01-08-001&xmlpath=&pubId=17&totalResults=1638&addRefineFilters=&removeRefineFilters=&addRefineCat=&next_Page=false&prev_Page=false&date_dd_From=1&date_mm_From=01&date_yyyy_From=1785&date_dd_to_range=31&date_mm_to_range=12&date_yyyy_to_range=1985&date_dd_from_precise=1&date_mm_from_precise=01&date_yyyy_from_precise=1785&isDateSearch=false&dateSearchType=range&refineQuerykeywordText= |date=1 December 1913 |access-date=19 July 2008 | location=London}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> This success inspired [[Canal Mania]],<ref>{{Harvnb|Kindleberger|1993|pp=192–193}}</ref> canals were hastily built with the aim of replicating the commercial success of Bridgewater, the most notable being the [[Leeds and Liverpool Canal]] and the [[Thames and Severn Canal]] which opened in 1774 and 1789 respectively.

By the 1820s a national network was in existence. Canal construction served as a model for the organisation and methods used to construct the railways. They were largely superseded by the railways from the 1840s. The last major canal built in the UK was the [[Manchester Ship Canal]], which upon opening in 1894 was the world's largest [[ship canal]],<ref>{{Cite news |title=1 January 1894: Opening of the Manchester ship canal |quote=Six years in the making, the world's largest navigation canal gives the city direct access to the sea |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/from-the-archive-blog/2011/may/17/guardian190-manchester-ship-canal-opens |newspaper=The Guardian |date=1 January 1894 |access-date=28 July 2012 |archive-date=17 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210517080559/https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/from-the-archive-blog/2011/may/17/guardian190-manchester-ship-canal-opens |url-status=live }}</ref> and opened Manchester as a [[Port of Manchester|port]]. However, it never achieved the commercial success its sponsors hoped for and signalled canals as a dying transport mode in an age dominated by railways, which were quicker and often cheaper. Britain's canal network, and its mill buildings, is one of the most enduring features of the Industrial Revolution to be seen in Britain.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A History of the Canals of Britain |url=https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/The-Canals-of-Britain/ |access-date=2022-10-13 |website=Historic UK |language=en-GB |archive-date=13 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013112947/https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/The-Canals-of-Britain/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Roads====
[[File:Rakeman – First American Macadam Road.jpg|thumb|Construction of the first macadam road in the United States in 1823. In the foreground, workers are breaking stones "so as not to exceed 6 ounces in weight or to pass a two-inch ring".<ref name="rakemanPainting">[https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/rakeman/1823.htm "1823 – First American Macadam Road"] ''(Painting – [[Carl Rakeman]])'' US Department of Transportation – Federal Highway Administration (Accessed 10 October 2008)</ref>]]
France was known for having an excellent road system at this time; however, most roads on the European continent and in the UK were in bad condition, dangerously rutted.<ref name="Grübler"/><ref name="Hunter_1985">{{cite book |title=A History of Industrial Power in the United States, 1730–1930, Vol. 2: Steam Power |last1=Hunter |first1= Louis C.|year=1985 | publisher =University Press of Virginia|location= Charlottesville |page=18}}''"There exist everywhere roads suitable for hauling".''[[Robert Fulton]] on roads in France</ref> Much of the original British road system was poorly maintained by local parishes, but from the 1720s [[turnpike trust]]s were set up to charge tolls and maintain some roads. Increasing numbers of main roads were turnpiked from the 1750s: almost every main road in England and Wales was the responsibility of a turnpike trust. New engineered roads were built by [[John Metcalf (civil engineer)|John Metcalf]], [[Thomas Telford]] and [[John Loudon McAdam|John McAdam]], with the first '[[macadam]]' stretch of road being Marsh Road at [[Ashton Gate, Bristol|Ashton Gate]], [[Bristol]] in 1816.<ref>Richard Brown (1991). "Society and Economy in Modern Britain 1700–1850" p. 136. Routledge, 1991</ref> The first macadam road in the U.S. was the "Boonsborough Turnpike Road" between [[Hagerstown, Maryland|Hagerstown]] and [[Boonsboro, Maryland]] in 1823.<ref name="rakemanPainting" />

The major turnpikes radiated from London and were the means by which the [[Royal Mail]] was able to reach the rest of the country. Heavy goods transport on these roads was by slow, broad-wheeled carts hauled by teams of horses. Lighter goods were conveyed by smaller carts or teams of [[packhorse]]. [[Stagecoach]]es carried the rich, and the less wealthy rode on [[Un-sprung cart|carriers carts]]. Productivity of road transport increased greatly during the Industrial Revolution, and the cost of travel fell dramatically. Between 1690 and 1840 productivity tripled for long-distance carrying and increased four-fold in stage coaching.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Gerhold|first=Dorian|date=August 1996|title=Productivity Change in Road Transport before and after Turnpiking, 1690–1840|journal=The Economic History Review|volume=49|issue=3|page=511|jstor=2597761}}</ref>

====Railways====
{{Main|History of rail transport in Great Britain}}
[[File:Opening Liverpool and Manchester Railway.jpg|thumb|A portrait depicting the [[opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway]] in 1830, the first inter-city railway in the world and which spawned [[Railway Mania]] due to its success]]
Railways were made practical by the widespread introduction of inexpensive puddled iron after 1800, the rolling mill for making rails, and the development of the high-pressure steam engine. Reduced friction was a major reason for the success of railways compared to wagons. This was demonstrated on an iron plate-covered wooden tramway in 1805 at Croydon, England.
<blockquote>A good horse on an ordinary turnpike road can draw two thousand pounds, or one ton. A party of gentlemen were invited to witness the experiment, that the superiority of the new road might be established by ocular demonstration. Twelve wagons were loaded with stones, till each wagon weighed three tons, and the wagons were fastened together. A horse was then attached, which drew the wagons with ease, {{convert|6|mi|km|0|spell=in|disp=sqbr}} in two hours, having stopped four times, in order to show he had the power of starting, as well as drawing his great load.<ref>
{{cite book
|title=Railroads of the United States, Their History and Statistics
 |last=Fling
 |first= Harry M.
|year= 1868|publisher =John. E. Potter and Co.
|location= [[Philadelphia]]
|pages=12, 13
}}
</ref></blockquote>

Wagonways for moving coal in the mining areas had started in the 17th century and were often associated with canal or river systems for the further movement. These were horse-drawn or relied on gravity, with a stationary steam engine to haul the wagons back to the top of the incline. The first applications of steam locomotive were on wagon or plate ways. Horse-drawn public railways begin in the early 19th century when improvements to pig and wrought iron production lowered costs.

Steam locomotives began being built after the introduction of high-pressure steam engines, after the expiration of the Boulton and Watt patent in 1800. High-pressure engines exhausted used steam to the atmosphere, doing away with the condenser and cooling water. They were much lighter and smaller in size for a given horsepower than the stationary condensing engines. A few of these early locomotives were used in mines. Steam-hauled public railways began with the [[Stockton and Darlington Railway]] in 1825.<ref>Jack Simmons, and Gordon Biddle, eds. ''The Oxford Companion to British Railway History: From 1603 to the 1990s'' (2nd ed. 1999).</ref>
 
[[File:James Pollard - The Louth-London Royal Mail Travelling by Train from Peterborough East, Northamptonshire - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|The Louth-London [[Royal Mail]] travelling by train from [[Peterborough East railway station|Peterborough East]], 1845]]
The rapid introduction of railways followed the 1829 [[Rainhill trials]], which demonstrated [[Robert Stephenson]]'s successful locomotive design and the 1828 development of [[hot blast]], which dramatically reduced the fuel consumption of making iron and increased the capacity of the blast furnace. On 15 September 1830, the [[Liverpool and Manchester Railway]], the first inter-city railway in the world, was [[Opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway|opened]].<ref>Herbert L. Sussman (2009). "Victorian Technology: Invention, Innovation, and the Rise of the Machine". p. 2. ABC-CLIO, 2009</ref> The railway was engineered by [[Joseph Locke]] and [[George Stephenson]], linked the rapidly expanding industrial town of Manchester with the port of Liverpool. The railway became highly successful, transporting passengers and freight.

The success of the inter-city railway, particularly in the transport of freight and commodities, led to [[Railway Mania]]. Construction of major railways connecting the larger cities and towns began in the 1830s, but only gained momentum at the very end of the first Industrial Revolution. After many of the workers had completed the railways, they did not return to the countryside but remained in the cities, providing additional workers for the factories.