TY  - JOUR
AB  - The transformation of US manufacturing, led by computer‐integrated
manufacturing (CIM) systems, has already begun to take root. This
article examines the potential benefits to firms which understand and
can exploit CIM technology to its fullest extent. Because CIM
simultaneously provides high product variety with low costs,
conventional assumptions about competitive strategy and organisation
design need reevaluation. As companies must work with increasingly
scarce capital, human resources and time, CIM becomes an attractive
option not only for highly capital‐intensive industries such as
automobiles, but also for fast‐changing areas such as textiles, fashion
design, and consumer appliances. CIM combines the benefits of economies
of scope with the scale economies traditionally garnered only with
large, rigid and dedicated factories. Success with CIM and other new
manufacturing technologies depends on new organisational designs and
incentives that foster fast innovation and cross‐functional integration.
CIM′s promising role in transforming the manufacturing firm into a
service business across many different industries will spur many US
firms′ efforts to enter a global marketplace.
VL  - 11
IS  - 10
SN  - 0144-3577
DO  - 10.1108/EUM0000000001288
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000001288
AU  - Lei David
AU  - Goldhar Joel D.
PY  - 1991
Y1  - 1991/01/01
TI  - Computer‐integrated Manufacturing (CIM): Redefining the
Manufacturing Firm into a Global Service Business
T2  - International Journal of Operations & Production Management
PB  - MCB UP Ltd
SP  - 5
EP  - 18
Y2  - 2024/05/10
ER  -