| Learning to Change: Opportunities to Improve the Performance of Smaller Manufacturers Contributor(s): National Research Council (Author), Division on Engineering and Physical Sci (Author), Board on Manufacturing and Engineering D (Author) |
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ISBN: 0309049822 ISBN-13: 9780309049825 Publisher: National Academies Press OUR PRICE: $42.75 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: February 1993 Annotation: This report examines the importance of manufacturing to the American economy, considers the regional diversity of small and medium-sized manufacturing companies, and describes their crucial influence on the global competitiveness of American products. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Business & Economics |
| Dewey: 658.022 |
| LCCN: 93086600 |
| Physical Information: 0.39" H x 6.02" W x 9.02" (0.56 lbs) 152 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Manufacturing firms?large and small?face massive change and adjustment as they move from a stable, fault-tolerant environment of long production runs to a volatile world in which production runs are short; product characteristics are changing constantly; and defect-free, on-time production at decreasing prices is a condition for survival. The necessary changes in the production organization include everything from the layout of the shop floor to the distribution of authority between managers and workers. The magnitude of these changes threatens to overwhelm the managerial capacities of firms, regardless of their size. This study examines the particularly vulnerable situation of small and mid-size manufacturers and considers ways in which to help them undertake the many changes and adjustments necessary. These include assimilating the new tools, disciplines, and philosophy of lean manufacturing; embracing new ways of delegating responsibilities; and developing new kinds of partnerships among customers, suppliers, and employees. |