Means of Production
(Redirected from Productive Capital)
A Means of Production is an economic resource that is used to produce goods and services (through labor processes and production systems).
- AKA: Productive Asset, Capital Good, Economic Infrastructure, Production Facility, Productive Capital, Production Factor, Industrial Capital.
- Context:
- It can typically enable Value Creation through production processes.
- It can typically facilitate Labor Productivity through technological enhancement.
- It can typically determine Production Capacity through resource constraints.
- It can typically embody Technical Knowledge through production technology.
- It can typically structure Work Organization through physical configuration.
- It can typically support Economic Output through productive capability.
- It can typically shape Production Relations through ownership structure.
- It can typically influence Social Organization through production requirements.
- ...
- It can often represent Fixed Capital through durable production assets.
- It can often require Capital Investment through acquisition costs.
- It can often generate Economic Surplus through productivity improvements.
- It can often undergo Technological Obsolescence through innovation cycles.
- It can often embody Economic Power through ownership concentration.
- It can often structure Class Relations through access limitations.
- It can often constrain Production Possibility through technological capability.
- It can often determine Scale Economy through capacity utilization.
- ...
- It can range from being a Simple Means of Production to being a Complex Means of Production, depending on its technological sophistication.
- It can range from being a Labor-Intensive Means of Production to being a Capital-Intensive Means of Production, depending on its factor composition.
- It can range from being a Material Means of Production to being a Digital Means of Production, depending on its physical nature.
- It can range from being a Single-Purpose Means of Production to being a Multi-Purpose Means of Production, depending on its functional flexibility.
- It can range from being a Small-Scale Means of Production to being a Large-Scale Means of Production, depending on its production capacity.
- ...
- It can be owned through Private Property Regimes in capitalist systems.
- It can be controlled through State Ownership in socialist systems.
- It can be managed through Cooperative Structures in collective ownership systems.
- It can be transformed through Technological Innovation in economic development.
- It can be allocated through Market Mechanisms in competitive economies.
- ...
- Examples:
- Physical Means of Production Types, such as:
- Industrial Facilitys, such as:
- Manufacturing Plant for automotive production producing vehicles and transportation equipment.
- Processing Facility for food processing producing packaged food products and beverages.
- Assembly Factory for electronics manufacturing producing consumer electronic devices and computer hardware.
- Industrial Workshop for furniture crafting producing specialized furniture pieces and custom fixtures.
- Production Equipments, such as:
- Industrial Machinery for textile manufacturing producing clothing items and fabric products.
- Production Line for pharmaceutical manufacturing producing medical drugs and healthcare products.
- Robotic System for semiconductor fabrication producing microchips and electronic components.
- Industrial Tool for artisanal metalworking producing metal art pieces and decorative objects.
- Natural Resources, such as:
- Agricultural Land for crop cultivation producing grain crops, fruits, and vegetables.
- Mining Operation for resource extraction producing metal ores, precious metals, and industrial minerals.
- Forest Resource for wood harvesting producing lumber, pulp, and wood products.
- Energy Resource for fuel extraction producing petroleum products, natural gas, and coal.
- Industrial Facilitys, such as:
- Digital Means of Production Types, such as:
- Software Systems, such as:
- Enterprise Resource Planning System for corporate management producing operational efficiency services and business insights.
- Computer-Aided Design System for architectural design producing building plans and structural models.
- Artificial Intelligence Platform for market analysis producing consumer behavior predictions and trend reports.
- Digital Production Software for media creation producing digital content, visual effects, and animation.
- Digital Infrastructures, such as:
- Cloud Computing Platform for application hosting producing software-as-a-services and computing resources.
- Data Center for information management producing data storage services and processing capacity.
- Digital Network for telecommunications producing connectivity services and data transmission capability.
- Computational Grid for scientific research producing simulation results and complex calculations.
- Software Systems, such as:
- Service-Based Means of Production Types, such as:
- Educational Institutions, such as:
- University for higher education producing skilled professionals and research knowledge.
- Vocational School for technical training producing certified technicians and skilled tradespersons.
- Corporate Training Center for workforce development producing employee skills and organizational capability.
- Online Learning Platform for distance education producing credentials and verified competencies.
- Healthcare Facilitys, such as:
- Hospital for medical care producing treatment services and health improvements.
- Research Laboratory for biomedical research producing medical innovations and treatment protocols.
- Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Plant for drug production producing medications and therapeutic agents.
- Medical Equipment Factory for device manufacturing producing diagnostic equipment and treatment apparatus.
- Financial Institutions, such as:
- Bank for financial intermediation producing credit services and transaction processing.
- Investment Firm for capital allocation producing portfolio management services and investment returns.
- Insurance Company for risk management producing protection services and financial security.
- Financial Exchange for market operation producing price discovery services and liquidity.
- Educational Institutions, such as:
- Historical Means of Production Evolution, such as:
- Pre-Industrial Means of Production (Before 1760) using manual tools and animal power producing handcrafted goods and agricultural products.
- Early Industrial Means of Production (1760-1870) using steam engines and mechanized equipment producing textiles, iron products, and mass-manufactured items.
- Advanced Industrial Means of Production (1870-1970) using electrical systems and mass production lines producing automobiles, appliances, and consumer goods.
- Automated Means of Production (1970-2010) using computer controls and robotic systems producing electronic devices, precision components, and software products.
- Smart Means of Production (2010-Present) using artificial intelligence and internet of things producing connected devices, data services, and personalized products.
- ...
- Physical Means of Production Types, such as:
- Counter-Examples:
- Labor Power, which is the human capacity to work rather than a physical production resource.
- Consumer Goods, which are used for personal consumption rather than productive activity.
- Financial Capital, which represents monetary value rather than physical productive resources.
- Intellectual Property, which is a legal right rather than a tangible production asset.
- Natural Resources in an unappropriated state, which have not been incorporated into production.
- See: Mode of Production, Relations of Production, Means of Production Transformation, Productive Forces, Capital Good, Fixed Capital, Factors of Production, Economic Base, Technological Determinism, Capital Accumulation, Economic Infrastructure, Production System, Economic System, Private Ownership, Public Ownership.
References
2013
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Means_of_production
- Means of production refers to physical, non-human inputs used in production — the factories, machines, and tools used to produce wealth[1] — along with both infrastructural capital and natural capital. This includes the classical factors of production minus financial capital and minus human capital. They include two broad categories of objects: instruments of labour (tools, factories, infrastructure, etc.) and subjects of labour (natural resources and raw materials). If creating a good, people operate on the subjects of labour, using the instruments of labour, to create a product; or, stated another way, labour acting on the means of production creates a good.[2] When used in the broad sense, the "means of production" includes the "means of distribution" which includes stores, banks, the internet and railroads.[3]
The term can be simply and picturesquely described in an agrarian society as the soil and the shovel; in an industrial society, the mines and the factories; and in a knowledge economy, offices and computers.
- Means of production refers to physical, non-human inputs used in production — the factories, machines, and tools used to produce wealth[1] — along with both infrastructural capital and natural capital. This includes the classical factors of production minus financial capital and minus human capital. They include two broad categories of objects: instruments of labour (tools, factories, infrastructure, etc.) and subjects of labour (natural resources and raw materials). If creating a good, people operate on the subjects of labour, using the instruments of labour, to create a product; or, stated another way, labour acting on the means of production creates a good.[2] When used in the broad sense, the "means of production" includes the "means of distribution" which includes stores, banks, the internet and railroads.[3]
- ↑ James M. Henslin (2002). Essentials of Sociology. Taylor & Francis US. p. 159. http://books.google.com/books?id=852vjh_IwusC&pg=PA159.
- ↑ Michael Evans, Karl Marx, London, England, 1975. Part II, Chap. 2, sect. a; page 63.
- ↑ Flower, B.O. The Arena, Volume 37. The Arena Pub. Co, originally from Princeton University. p. 9