Impacts of vendor project management methods on flexible manufacturing system implementation: A field study

This field study investigated the management systems developed by two vendors of flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs). The vendors had very different methods for managing the development and implementation of their FMSs. They also had very different levels of client satisfaction. The study's objectives were, first, to determine the management methods and project outcomes and, second, to investigate reasons appropriate vs. dysfunctional management methods evolved and were perpetuated. The study indicated that the vendors' project management methods for controlling their systems developments contributed to their contrasting rates of implementation problems. More importantly, the methods that each vendor evolved did not reflect the inherent project risks. Instead, the methods reflected the vendor's organizational structure and its expectations about its typical client's capabilities. The study illustrates that firms may not base their approaches for managing their systems developments on actual requirements as much as on their past experiences in marketing very different products, and also on their existing infrastracture. These approaches, however, may be inappropriate for supporting FMS development and client support.