Digital production

Abstract

The mobile phone is a short-lived consumer good. New models appear on the market every six to twelve months, and the necessary adaptations then have to be made in factories to keep pace: adjustments must be made to machines, new plants must be acquired, and the required amounts of space and personnel may change as well. Even the automobile industry, which has traditionally produced more long-lasting products, now has to adapt: the life span of a new generation of cars may be as short as four years. Both major and minor product reassessments may arise just as often, and as the product changes, the related production means must change as well. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.