Changeable and Reconfigurable Manufacturing Systems

“Changeable and Reconfigurable Manufacturing Systems” discusses key strategies for success in the changing manufacturing environment. Changes can often be anticipated but some go beyond the design range, requiring innovative change enablers and adaptation mechanisms. The book presents the new concept of Changeability as an umbrella framework that encompasses paradigms such as agility, adaptability, flexibility and reconfigurability. It provides the definitions and classification of key terms in this new field, and emphasizes the required physical/hard and logical/soft change enablers. The book presents cutting edge technologies and the latest research, as well as future directions to help manufacturers stay competitive. It contains original contributions and results from senior international experts, together with industrial applications. The book serves as a comprehensive reference for professional engineers, managers, and academics in manufacturing, industrial and mechanical engineering.

Hoda A. ElMaraghy, Ph.D., P.Eng., is currently Canada Research Chair in Manufacturing Systems, Professor of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering and Director of the Intelligent Manufacturing Systems (IMS) Centre at the University of Windsor. She is a Fellow of the Canadian Society of Mechanical Engineers (CSME), Fellow of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME), Fellow of the International Academy for Production Engineering (CIRP), Member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and an International Director for the American Society for Manufacturing Engineers. Her teaching and research interests are in manufacturing systems design, modeling, flexibility, reconfiguration, control, quality, inspection, assembly, process planning and robotics. Prof. ElMaraghy is one of the pioneering researchers who contributed to the introduction of technologies such as flexible manufacturing and reconfigurable manufacturing, as well as changeable manufacturing. She has acted as a consultant to industry internationally where the results of her research were used to improve the productivity and competitiveness of many manufacturers.