Herbert Hoover’s 1920s Standardization Drive Streamlined U.S. Industry

In the early 1920s, U.S. Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover launched a massive effort to standardize a wide range of industrial products, from street paving stones to glassware. By reducing the number of variations—such as cutting 65 different brick sizes to just 11—Hoover made replacement parts interchangeable, improving efficiency across sectors.

Podcast creator Roman Mars of 99% Invisible explains that Hoover’s push for uniform specifications, including a 60‑degree screw thread, helped the United States achieve a level of coordination that later underpinned its economic strength, even though Hoover’s later presidency was marred by the Great Depression.