A prototyping methodology to support development of generic user software

It is pointed out that a substantial body of knowledge exists on the take-up and use of software in small manufacturing enterprises (SMEs). Software use within SMEs, however, is typically limited by resource and idiosyncratic content restraints. A further barrier is that such software is frequently expensive to alter and will often require a shift in control behavior. It is noted that this need not be toward the user´s perception of requirements, nor necessarily toward best practice. The prototyping concepts used, together with the derived methodology, based on object-oriented structures are described. The use of the developed software in practice and as a learning tool in computer-aided production management for SME environments is discussed