As model mix increases and production volume decreases, assemblers are discovering that tried and true manufacturing strategies no longer apply.
In describing U.S. consumers on his 1972 comedy recording, Class Clown, George Carlin was almost prophetic about the state of U.S. manufacturing today. The typical consumer, he noted, does not merely want an inhaler with a nasal decongestant. He wants an inhaler for his left nostril imprinted with his state's motto.