Definition of efficiency

The term "efficiency" originated in the early 19th century as a concept in economics to describe the relationship between the resources used and the output produced by a system or process. The word comes from the Latin word "efficientia," meaning "causing a result." The economic concept of efficiency was developed as a response to the increasing mechanization and industrialization of the time. As machines replaced manual labor, it became important to understand how to maximize output with the least amount of input. This new way of thinking about production would ultimately lead to the birth of scientific management and the concept of the "working principle" in engineering. The French economist Antoine Augustin Cournot coined the term "efficiency" in his book "Researches into the Mathematical Principles of the Theory of Wealth" published in 1838. Cournot used the term to describe the ability of an economy to produce goods and services efficiently and effectively. However, the concept of efficiency as we know it today was further developed by the American engineer and management consultant Frederick Winslow Taylor. Taylor's research, collated in his book "The Principles of Scientific Management" published in 1911, delineated techniques for increasing efficiency in industrial processes. In summary, the word "efficiency" originated in the context of economics, where it was used to describe the output and input relationship of a system or process, and its meaning and relevance in various disciplines have expanded since then.