Paradigms convey notions of fixed prescribed practices and examples that offer solutions to deal with the vagaries of human organizations and behavior. To define something as a paradigm freezes a sometime evanescent concept and fixes it with a phrase that enhances popular understanding and adoption. Paradigms offer a simplicity and degree of standardization to ideas that often become cliches, and, as such, inevitably entrain paradoxes. The world of production and manufacturing consists of multiple complex enterprises, industries, organizations, processes, relationships and cultures. There are many contradictions, contrasts, and dichotomies that change with time. This paper endeavors a historic and philosophic essay on some of the origins and paradoxes that surround our currently recommended production systems practices.

Volume Subject Area:
Engineering Business Management
Keywords:
Engineering and Society, Global, Manufacturing, Production, Strategy
Topics:
Manufacturing, Manufacturing systems
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 by ASME
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