Over the last thirty years US manufacturers have come under enormous pressure to manufacture higher quality goods at lower cost. A traditional response has been to relocate production facilities to the Pacific Rim. While reducing production costs, it introduces new challenges in managerial coordination, especially as ever-shorter product development life-cycles and trends in design for manufacturability demand that product design and development (usually done in the US) become more tightly linked to the manufacturing process. Two of the most popular mechanisms for improving manufacturing operational efficiency over the last twenty years have been widespread use of computers and dissemination of world class manufacturing practices. Sophisticated computer-based information technologies (ITs) have enabled firms to cut costs and improve quality through automation and improved intra- and inter-plant integration. Information technologies such as electronic mail and video conferencing are used to reduce the negative effects of geographic distance on communication and amplify the positive effects of tapping into a world-wide base of operational expertise. A number of people-based world class manufacturing practices have also become popular, including statistical process control, total quality management, and continuous improvement. Specific production techniques such as JIT and kanban are also widespread. These technologies and practices not only improve coordination of product flows but also increase control over manufacturing processes by continuously reducing variability. These higher levels of production control are absolutely critical to improved performance in such a dynamic and competitive market. This study addresses how managers use information technologies and world class manufacturing practices for coordination of manufacturing activities, both within and between plants. Do investments in information technologies yield higher levels of performance, or, must they be accompanied by investments in 'people-based' world class practices? What is the nature of the impacts of these ITs and practices? We investigate these issues via a field study of 30 plants constituting a majority of the world's production capacity in the disk drive industry. Fourteen plants have already been visited, yielding interesting preliminary results. We propose to visit an additional 16 plants to enable more powerful analyses can be performed. Data collection will involve use of survey instruments and structured interviews. Firms have already provided site access.
