Mechanical washing machines appeared in the early 1800s, although they were all hand-powered. Early models cleaned clothes by rubbing them, while later models cleaned clothes by moving them through water. Steam-powered commercial washers appeared in the 1850s, but home washing machines remained entirely hand-powered until the early 1900s, when several companies started making electric machines. The Automatic Electric Washer Company and Hurley Machine Corporation both began selling electric washers in 1907, while Maytag offered an electric wringer washer in 1911. In 1947, Bendix offered the first fully automatic washing machine, and by 1953 spin-dry machines overtook the wringer types in popularity.
The last wringer washer manufactured in the United States was made in June of 1990 at Speed Queen's plant in Ripon, Wisconsin. The major U.S. manufacturers today are General Electric, Maytag (Montgomery Ward), Speed Queen (Amana and Montgomery Ward), Whirlpool (Kenmore), and White Consolidated (Frigidaire and Westinghouse).
Models designed for use in other countries offer different features. One component required on all models sold in England (and possibly soon in the rest of Europe) is called the lid lock. Normally when the lid is raised the washer must stop for safety reasons. However, in England, when the washer is operating the lid must be locked closed.
The Manufacturing
Process
The manufacturing process is split into fabrication (making parts), sub-assembly (putting parts together to make components), and assembly (putting the components together to form the final product). The fabrication process comprises several different procedures, each specific to a particular type of raw material—sheet metal, plastic, or aluminum. Once the constituent parts have been made, they are assembled; major sub-assemblies, or components, include the transmission, the pump, the spin and wash tubs, the balance ring, and the painted parts. Finally, the sub-assemblies are put together inside the shell of the washer, which is then complete.
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