Flexible manufacturing is one of the 1 emerging automation concepts. In order to understand this concept, we must discuss automation in general. 2 we know, mechanization started 3 the Industrial Revolution, when machines performed some of the functions of labor. Automation 4 mechanization and went beyond it. With the twentieth century came a new concept, mass production. The automation technology then available, i.e., the assembly line, markedly 5 the productivity of workers and resulted in economic prosperity. In fact, both the assembly line 6 the transfer line belong 7 the domain of fired automation, in which the sequence of processing operations remains unchanged 8 the production run because the sequence of operations is determined mainly 9 the nature and arrangement of the physical equipment in the production line, which, once established, cannot usually be changed, except with great difficulty. It can, therefore, be seen that the fixed automation, which is based 10 integrating and coordinating simple operations, has three characterizing features. First, it requires very high initial capital cost; second, it is suitable only for high production volume ( to pay back for its high capital cost ); and third, it is inflexible and cannot handle product changeover or even major changes in the product design.
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