Title :
Beyond lean: an essay (mass production)
Abstract :
The authors take issue with the belief that traditional mass production has been superseded by a single new kind of ´lean´ organization invented in Japan and now diffusing throughout the advanced countries. They maintain that national differences in corporate strategy and organization will necessarily extend right through production. They look at the ways in which US and European firms are reorganizing to change over from traditional mass production to lean approaches and identify trends that differ from what Japanese firms have done.<>
Keywords :
manufacturing computer control; production control; Europe; Japan; USA; firms; lean organisations; manufacturing automation; mass production; Assembly; Costs; Couplings; Europe; Manufacturing processes; Mass production; Power generation economics; Process design; Productivity; Protection;
Journal_Title :
Spectrum, IEEE