Mass customization is a business model that uses flexible, computer-aided manufacturing systems to produce goods tailored to individual customer specifications while keeping costs close to those of standard mass production, combining the efficiency of mass manufacturing with the variety of custom-made goods. The term was coined by Stan Davis in his 1987 book Future Perfect, building on ideas anticipated by Alvin Toffler in his 1970 book Future Shock, and the approach was developed further and popularized in a business-strategy context by B. Joseph Pine II in his 1993 book Mass Customization: The New Frontier in Business Competition.
Facts
Core MechanismMass customization uses flexible, often computer-aided production systems to combine the low unit costs of mass production with the ability to tailor each individual unit to a specific customer. It typically postpones the step that differentiates a product for its buyer until as late as possible in the supply chain, so customization does not require a separate production run for every variant. 1 Origin YearAlvin Toffler anticipated the idea in 1970's Future Shock; Stan Davis coined the term itself in his 1987 book Future Perfect. Connections
Associated With
Nike offers mass customization through its Nike By You program, letting customers configure individual shoe designs on a standardized production line.
Mass customization uses flexible, computer-aided manufacturing systems to tailor goods to individual specifications, tying the model to technology-industry advances in automation and configuration software.
Sources
1. Wikipedia, Mass Customization
WikipediaWikipedia: Mass customization, lead paragraph
Mass customization makes use of flexible computer-aided systems to produce custom products. Such systems combine the low unit costs of mass production processes with the flexibility of individual customization.
Wikipedia: Mass customization, History section, Davis coinage
the term was later coined by Stan Davis in 1987, in Future Perfect
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