| Developments in the market place, as well as technological developments, stimulate the thinking about alternative layout (physical) and control (logical) principles in manufacturing. The manufacturing sector has become increasingly competitive as markets become more global. As a result, producers of goods are under constant and intense pressure to quickly and continuously improve their operations by enhancing productivity, quality and customer responsiveness. Many firms, furthermore, are faced with a turbulent environment indicated by high demand variability, frequent changes of the product mix, a high number of unique orders, a high variation of processing times, and variable production sequences. This situation requires an agile manufacturing situation in which the physical and/or logical layout can be easily adapted in order to gain a competitive performance. Cellular manufacturing and other approaches that integrate layout changes and control changes provide opportunities for production organizations that face these new requirements. |
