The role of advanced manufacturing systems for world-class business

Market demands have changed manufacturing process from mass production to mass customization and responding to customers' needs. Dale[1] argues that this process consists of changes in several areas such as quality management, suppliers and customers, product design, inventory management, maintenance, automation, and etc. Collaboration aims to improve production efficiency and improve quality among other objectives. Pressures to achieve these goals have led to significant changes in engineering designs procedures. Performance standards imposed by customers induce managers to apply production management models that are widely used in the industrialized world. Specific attributes which should always be included in world class (WC) competitive advantages, a new approach to quality, JIT manufacturing techniques, concurrent engineering, changes in management the work force and more a technique and can more accurately be described as a management philosophy JIT and flexible approaches to achieving the goals. Quick responding to new developments, agility, opportunism and resource flexibility are among requirements for success in a competitive world. The difficulty that managers confront with is what quality management strategies they need to select and what methods of world class they need to rely on. The correct choice could create enormous advantages by being able to achieve the goals, which were previously not possible. This paper tries to study the impact of quality management strategy on production competence and also pinpoints on different ways of achieving the most desirable outcomes. The research also analyzes how quality management programmes can contribute to enhancing world class production.