Most of the examples of company towns in this article are from the late nineteenth century onwards, when working and living conditions were already starting to improve. But it is worth looking at the earlier history of model villages[0], starting with New Lanark[1] established in 1786. These were founded at the very start of the industrial revolution, when working and living conditions were deteriorating following the mass migration from the countryside to the new industrial towns with their "dark satanic mills". In this context, the model villages were much more genuinely focussed on the social and humanitarian aspects than the later company towns. You could argue that model villages were more about proving that you could still treat people well and make a profit, whereas the later company towns were more focussed on simply trying to maximise profit.