TY - JOUR
T1 - New production arrangements
T2 - the totally flexible cage?
AU - Dawson, Patrick Mark
AU - Webb, Jan
PY - 1989
Y1 - 1989
N2 - This paper examines the management of innovation and change in two different operating units on a single site of a UK Division of a high technology US-owned multinational corporation. The transformation of work in changing from `production for stock' to `production to order' is analysed, and the process of changing established patterns of work (as a brownfield operation), and designing new production arrangements from the outset (as a greenfield operation) are contrasted and compared. The key features of Just-in-Time and Total Quality Control principles are identified and the extent to which they represent real inovations in production is assessed. The paper concludes with a critical discussion of the flexible specialisation debate through reappraising the empirical evidence, and concludes by rejecting the view that modern production arrangements signal the general enhancement of working life through a reversal of the division of labour, increased worker autonomy and greater employee involvement in production.
AB - This paper examines the management of innovation and change in two different operating units on a single site of a UK Division of a high technology US-owned multinational corporation. The transformation of work in changing from `production for stock' to `production to order' is analysed, and the process of changing established patterns of work (as a brownfield operation), and designing new production arrangements from the outset (as a greenfield operation) are contrasted and compared. The key features of Just-in-Time and Total Quality Control principles are identified and the extent to which they represent real inovations in production is assessed. The paper concludes with a critical discussion of the flexible specialisation debate through reappraising the empirical evidence, and concludes by rejecting the view that modern production arrangements signal the general enhancement of working life through a reversal of the division of labour, increased worker autonomy and greater employee involvement in production.
U2 - 10.1177/0950017089003002006
DO - 10.1177/0950017089003002006
M3 - Article
SN - 0950-0170
VL - 3
SP - 221
EP - 238
JO - Work, Employment & Society
JF - Work, Employment & Society
IS - 2
ER -