Industrialization involves the use of machines to dramatically increase productivity. Production of goods became concentrated in factories, where the combination of specialization of labor and automation reduced labor costs and, ultimately, the cost of the final manufactured product to the consumers. Industrialization revolutionized living standards, both positively and negatively. The rapid growth of production industries and the reduced cost of production have led to the prosperity of some of the richest families in history. Industrialization has also led to the creation of a blue-collar working class. In newly industrialized nations, these workers, skilled only in their chosen trade, were often underpaid and forced to endure abominable working conditions.