A manufacturing plant struggles with custom-fitting slightly varied components. Applying which inventor’s key principle solves this issue?

💡 Explanation:

The problem of custom-fitting varied components is solved by the principle of interchangeable parts. Eli Whitney is credited with developing and promoting this manufacturing system in the United States, which requires all parts to be nearly identical and meet strict tolerances. This standardization eliminates the need for manual fitting, enables efficient mass production, and simplifies repairs. The assembly line (Ford) is a technique for movement/speed, and the laboratory model (Edison) is a method for organized R&D, neither addresses the core component uniformity problem.