THIS PAPER DESCRIBES A STRUCTURED APPROACH TO THE CREATION OF FLEXIBLY INTEGRATED MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS. METHODS AND TOOLS ARE DESCRIBED WHICH OFFER A MEANS OF OVERCOMING TRADITIONAL CIM SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION PROBLEMS BY PROVIDING AN OPEN APPROACH AT BOTH FACTORY AND WORKCELL LEVELS OF MANUFACTURING ENTERPRISES. SYSTEMS CONSTRUCTED USING THIS APPROACH ARE CAPABLE OF ACCOMMODATING BOTH LONG TERM STRATEGIC AND SHORT TERM OPERATIONAL CHANGE.
