Economic technical and managerial influences on the adoption of flexible manufacturing systems: A decision process model *

This paper examines the relative influence of economic technical and managerial factors on an organisation's decision to adopt or reject a flexible manufacturing system. Based on interviews within 31 British and West German companies the authors develop a process model of the adoption decision which provides an organising framework for their discussion. Their findings support the view developed by Gerwin and Leung that the rate of adoption of such a significant innovation depends as much upon the appropriate organisational infrastructure, the key people involved and the role of manufacturing in the overall corporate planning process, as it does upon the economic and technical case for FMS.