"Assembly plants must be capable of producing new products faster than ever before," says Dr. David Cole, director of the Center for Automotive Research (Ann Arbor, MI).
Traditional auto plants use fixed tooling that is designed to produce only two or three models of either cars or trucks. "That leaves manufacturers vulnerable to shifts in consumer demand," explains Cole. Flexible plants use robots, conveyors, fixtures and other equipment that can be reprogrammed or reconfigured to build vehicles with different designs, such as a four-door sedan, a two-seat sportscar, a minivan or a pickup truck.