Flexible system design means that a system can adequately respond to external changes, both internal and external, and does so in a time and cost effective manner.
Manufacturing Systems
In the realm of manufacturing systems, flexibility has been separated into 11 different classes:
- Machine flexibility - The different operation types that a machine can perform.
- Material handling flexibility - The ability to move the products within a manufacturing facility.
- Operation flexibility - The ability to produce a product in different ways.
- Process flexibility - The set of products that the system can produce.
- Product flexibility - The ability to add new products in the system.
- Routing flexibility - The different routes (through machines and workshops) that can be used to produce a product in the system.
- Volume flexibility - The ease to profitably increase or decrease the output of an existing system. At firm level, it is the ability of a firm to operate profitably at different output levels. Firms often use volume flexibility as a benchmark to assess their performance vis-à-vis their competitors.
- Expansion flexibility - The ability to build out the capacity of a system.
- Program flexibility - The ability to run a system automatically.
- Production flexibility - The number of products a system currently can produce.
- Market flexibility - The ability of the system to adapt to market demands.
Systems of Systems
Enterprise flexibility - creating options (also strategy?) Flexibility as a hedge against the environment. Flexibility as the capacity to adapt.