Biblioteca Digital de VanguardiaFlexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries
The paper presents the preliminary results of an international research project undertaken in Brazil, India, Mexico, Turkey, Thailand and Venezuela on whether and to what extent flexible automation (FA) has diffused lo developing countries, and what its impact has been on product, plant and firm sca...
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| Formato: | info:eu-repo/semantics/article |
| Lenguaje: | Español |
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Universidad del Pacífico
1996
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| Acceso en línea: | https://revistas.up.edu.pe/index.php/apuntes/article/view/443 http://biblioteca-repositorio.clacso.edu.ar/handle/CLACSO/52774 |
| _version_ | 1782339506523865088 |
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| author | Alcorta, Ludovico |
| author_facet | Alcorta, Ludovico |
| author_sort | Alcorta, Ludovico |
| collection | Repositorio |
| description | The paper presents the preliminary results of an international research project undertaken in Brazil, India, Mexico, Turkey, Thailand and Venezuela on whether and to what extent flexible automation (FA) has diffused lo developing countries, and what its impact has been on product, plant and firm scale and scope. It shows that while diffusion has been rapid in the countries under study, particularly in the case of computer-numerically- controlled (CNC) machine tools, it was far slower than in developed countries. The paper analyses firm data on product scale and concludes that flexible automation does not necessarily lead to reductions in product scale and increases in product variety or scope. While there has been an increase in the 'variety' of goods produced this has often been the result of the availability of a wider range of sizes in goods and due to vertical integration into the production of components, not so much as a result of the manufacturing of different products. The paper concludes that, as compared with previous technologies, the output or capacity of most plants and firms increased, which was accompanied in some firms by lower unit costs, thus suggesting increasing optimal scale. The main reasons for increasing optimal scale are the reduction in waiting times, better factory and labour organization, higher machine efficiency and larger capital and marketing 'fixed' costs. Such findings imply that scale will continue to be a barrier to entry into industry production. |
| format | info:eu-repo/semantics/article |
| id | clacso-CLACSO52774 |
| institution | CLACSO, Repositorio Digital |
| language | Español |
| publishDate | 1996 |
| publisher | Universidad del Pacífico |
| record_format | greenstone |
| spelling | clacso-CLACSO527742022-03-17T18:47:55Z Flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries Automatización flexible y economías de escala en países en desarrollo Alcorta, Ludovico The paper presents the preliminary results of an international research project undertaken in Brazil, India, Mexico, Turkey, Thailand and Venezuela on whether and to what extent flexible automation (FA) has diffused lo developing countries, and what its impact has been on product, plant and firm scale and scope. It shows that while diffusion has been rapid in the countries under study, particularly in the case of computer-numerically- controlled (CNC) machine tools, it was far slower than in developed countries. The paper analyses firm data on product scale and concludes that flexible automation does not necessarily lead to reductions in product scale and increases in product variety or scope. While there has been an increase in the 'variety' of goods produced this has often been the result of the availability of a wider range of sizes in goods and due to vertical integration into the production of components, not so much as a result of the manufacturing of different products. The paper concludes that, as compared with previous technologies, the output or capacity of most plants and firms increased, which was accompanied in some firms by lower unit costs, thus suggesting increasing optimal scale. The main reasons for increasing optimal scale are the reduction in waiting times, better factory and labour organization, higher machine efficiency and larger capital and marketing 'fixed' costs. Such findings imply that scale will continue to be a barrier to entry into industry production. Este artículo presenta los resultados preliminares de un proyecto de investigación internacional llevado a cabo en Brasil, India, México, Tailandia, Turquía y Venezuela, acerca del grado de difusión de la automatización flexible (AF) en los países en desarrollo y de su impacto en la escala y alcance de producción a nivel de producto, planta y firma. Muestra que, si bien la difusión ha sido rápida en los países en estudio, especialmente en el caso de las máquinas herramientas de control numérico computarizado (CNC), ésta fue mucho menor que en los países desarrollados. El artículo analiza datos a nivel de firma sobre escala de producto y concluye que la automatización flexible no lleva necesariamente a reducciones en la escala de producto ni a aumentos en la variedad o alcance de la producción. Si bien ha habido un aumento de la 'variedad' de bienes producidos, éste ha sido muchas veces el resultado de un mayor rango de tamaños y de la integración vertical hacia la producción de componentes, y no tanto de manufactura de productos diferentes. El artículo concluye que, en comparación con tecnologías anteriores, la producción o capacidad de la mayoría de las plantas y firmas aumentó, lo cual vino acompañado de menores costos unitarios en el caso de algunas empresas, sugiriendo por tanto aumentos en la escala óptima. Las principales razones que explican estos aumentos en la escala óptima son la reducción en los tiempos de espera, una mejor organización de la planta y del trabajo, mayor eficiencia de la maquinaria y mayores costos 'fijos' de capital y mercadeo. Tales hallazgos implican que la escala va a seguir constituyendo una barrera de mirada a la producción industrial. 1996-11-11 2022-03-17T18:47:55Z 2022-03-17T18:47:55Z info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion https://revistas.up.edu.pe/index.php/apuntes/article/view/443 10.21678/apuntes.39.443 http://biblioteca-repositorio.clacso.edu.ar/handle/CLACSO/52774 spa https://revistas.up.edu.pe/index.php/apuntes/article/view/443/445 Derechos de autor 2017 Apuntes http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 application/pdf Universidad del Pacífico Apuntes. Social Sciences Journal; Apuntes 39; 13-47 Apuntes. Revista de ciencias sociales; Apuntes 39; 13-47 2223-1757 0252-1865 |
| spellingShingle | Alcorta, Ludovico Flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries |
| title | Flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries |
| title_full | Flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries |
| title_fullStr | Flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries |
| title_full_unstemmed | Flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries |
| title_short | Flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries |
| title_sort | flexible automation and economies of scale in developing countries |
| url | https://revistas.up.edu.pe/index.php/apuntes/article/view/443 http://biblioteca-repositorio.clacso.edu.ar/handle/CLACSO/52774 |