The implementation of advanced manufacturing technologies: An empirical study of surface mount technology

In the right context advanced manufacturing technologies (AMTs) can offer a telling competitive advantage. AMTs have the potential to preserve existing markets or win new customers, and therefore their successful implementation has become a matter of importance. Unfortunately, many manufacturers are still struggling with their implementation.;This dissertation presents the findings from a study into the successful implementation of AMTs. The focus of this research was on how manufacturers adopted and adapted AMTs. The conceptual framework for this study was based on preliminary case studies and the literature. The study relied on a survey research methodology, and data was collected from 190 plants that implemented an AMT called surface mount technology (SMT). Respondents were key project team members. Data analysis consisted of multivariate statistics.;This study found evidence that plants should employ different implementation approaches based upon an AMTs' technological maturity. The most successful learning actions among early AMT adopters were aimed at clarifying which form of AMT to pursue. Pioneers that emphasized vendor and expert learning recorded lower start-up problems after the automation was installed. Alternatively, the most successful late adopters focused on confirming which AMT to purchase. Followers with the fewest technical and organizational problems relied more on simulations and experiments.;Technological maturity also played a role during AMT adaptation. The most successful actions for AMT pioneers were aimed at making on the shopfloor adaptations to operations, systems, and shopfloor personnel. Conversely, the most successful late adopters focused on above the shopfloor adaptations involving systems that usually support AMTs. Engineering human resource changes were also important for late adopters.;This study helps managers better plan AMT implementations and deploy resources throughout the adoption and adaptation process. For academics, this study tests the concepts of "learning before doing" and "mutual adaptation", and is the first empirical study in the OM field to directly forge the link between adjacent implementation process stages. Methodologically, it also contributes to the literature by demonstrating the importance of controlling for technologies and time, as well as providing new scales for measuring the adoption and adaptation of AMTs.