Apparel Industry Management

Apparel Industry Management 3(3+0)

Lesson 37 : Computer Integrated Manufacture (Cim)

Management Perception and Attitude

In late 1970s and early 1980s, as CIM advanced quite rapidly in the USA, disillusionment with automation has surfaced. Frequently, top executives viewed CIM as just technology – a master computer controlling many robots and automated machines. They are wrong; if CIM were just technology, there would not have been as many companies having difficulty implementing it. CIM is the management of technology rather than a technology itself. It is the integration of people and functions utilizing the computer and communication networks to transform automation into interconnected manufacturing systems.

CIM requires a new perspective on the part of management – maybe even a new philosophy. Top management, manufacturing and industrial engineers must change their way of thinking and develop new skills.