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Mass Customisation for Manufacturing Enterprises:
Fundamental Science, Strategic Decision Making and Systems Design
| Investigators: | Dr B L MacCarthy, University
of Nottingham Dr H J Efstathiou, University of Oxford |
| Collaborators: | Ericsson Mobile
Communications Raleigh Industries RM (Research Machines) Bookham Technology MacTaggart Scott TWI Cincom AT Kearney |
EPSRC Funding: £650,000
Across business sectors customers are demanding increased variety in products and services. In the manufacturing sectors the ability to produce customised products allows niche marketing, premium pricing and provides competitive advantage. The goal of Mass Customisation (MC) is to design, manufacture and deliver customised products without losing the essential benefits of Mass Production. A Mass Customising enterprise must therefore be able to combine customisation with high productivity, high quality, quick response and low costs. Although some businesses have made progress towards Mass Customisation, there is not a verifiable body of knowledge to support its widespread application. Proven viable strategies are needed for the widescale adoption of Mass Customisation.
This multi-company / academic collaboration is investigating the fundamental relationships, the key operational issues and the generic principles and business strategies that are central to mass customisation in different sectors. The research will enable companies to:
- evaluate the business case for adoption of mass customisation
- design or select the most appropriate operational strategies
- implement those strategies successfully
The research approach is utilising analysis, modelling and simulation combined with extensive field studies within the consortium and more generally across relevant business sectors. Pilot studies are planned within the consortium members.
The work of the consortium is laying the foundations for a wide spectrum of businesses to make step changes in their approach to mass customisation, by providing a repository of knowledge, models and tools to support the approach.
For more information see www.mass-customisation.org or www.robots.ox.ac.uk/~ac/masscustomization
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