Post mass production paradigm (PMPP) trajectories

The paper intends to contribute to interpretations of present and future developments in manufacturing and manufacturing research. It designs hypothetical expert consolidated projections for the future of manufacturing with the focus on social impacts from information and communications technologies (ICT).

In order to obtain valid projections, Kuhn's theory of scientific revolutions has been applied to production sciences. Since, the paradigm shift to post mass production has become evident, it is clear that manufacturing will be of network type. Since, the point of a “normal science” (Kuhn) is not yet reached, empirical and methodical work is exploited, especially expert discussion results, technology forecasts and field surveys, to draw the baselines for further developments, focussing on development lines on global, regional as well as company scale.

The paper sketches organisational set ups and ICT applications for future manufacturing in order to be able to point out induced effects on other trends and drivers (especially social and societal). Major changes in role and future behaviour of manufacturing could be verified.

The paper assumes a specific driver/impact constellation, which emphasises socio‐technical relations and focuses on organisation and ICT use in manufacturing environments as decisive and limiting influences. Other socio/technology interrelations are not regarded as intensively and could be future research fields. Implications on the methods and the instruments to be used for production networks could be sketched.

Some of the methodologies may be downscaled and applied for companies in order to define future strategies. On global, on regional as well as on company level, relevant results may be considered as elements of a future networked manufacturing world.

Trends and drivers for future manufacturing have been newly put into network interrelations in order to obtain impact priorities and interaction hypotheses. Ongoing developments are envisioned as embedded in a general paradigm change. The paper draws from extensive research work on the field. It addresses researchers as well as practitioners dealing with manufacturing companies' strategy development.