Knowledge and manufacturing strategy–how different manufacturing paradigms have different requirements to knowledge. Examples from the automotive industry

E-learning Readiness and Absorptive Capacity in the Manufacturing Industry

“…Consequently, knowledge work within this field is multifaceted and calls for both expert knowledge, and general know-how are necessary [18]. Effective industrial work also emphasizes capabilities to handle diversification of knowledge [19]- [20]. Knowledge to absorb and adopt are of various kinds, within humans and within machines and technology, and thus advanced expert knowledge in engineering work can be explained as systematic comparison undertaken for various reasons [19].…”

Modularization – Enabler for Shop Floor Involvement in Improvement and Development

“…Jovane, Koren and Boer [7] have developed a set of criteria to identify and describe different manufacturing paradigms. In Table 1 Henriksen and Rolstadås [8] illustrate how paradigms could be identified based on a set of similar criteria emphasizing knowledge and innovation.…”

“…Hill [9] presents basic principles for the more recent paradigms: • a discretionary approach to change to ensure that scarce development resources are used in those areas that will yield best returns • as with process choice, it is necessary to establish and then choose between sets and trade-offs that go hand in hand with each decision • the infrastructure design must respond to dynamics of reality and much of necessary change can be achieved incrementally • continuous development is easier to bring about where the responsibility for identifying and implementing improvements is locally based Lean manufacturing could also be regarded as a manufacturing paradigm [8] and contains many of the above more recent principles. Lean is based on the entirely new approach to manufacturing Japanese companies developed after World War II characterized by an emphasis on reliability, speed, "just-intime", and flexibility, rather than volume and cost [9].…”

Measuring the Intangible Aspects of the Manufacturing Strategy – A Case Study from the Automotive Industry

“…These elements put into a more coherent and holistic context could be regarded as paradigms [6]. In Table 1 Henriksen and Rolstadås [7] illustrate how paradigms could be identified based on a set of criteria. Paradigms represent principles, methods etc that inspire companies and are reflected in manufacturing strategies.…”