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Article

Advanced Manufacturing Management: A Systematic Literature Review

by
Polinpapilinho F. Katina
1,*,
Casey T. Cash
2,
Logan R. Caldwell
1,
Chrystopher M. Beck
1 and
James J. Katina
3
1
Department of Informatics and Engineering Systems, University of South Carolina Upstate, 800 University Way, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA
2
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Arkansas, 1 University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
3
Charlottesville City Schools, 1562 Dairy Road, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2023, 15(6), 4702; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15064702
Submission received: 10 February 2023 / Revised: 1 March 2023 / Accepted: 4 March 2023 / Published: 7 March 2023
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Manufacturing Management)

Abstract

:
One of the long-standing principles of phenomenological understanding is focused on the role of definition. Definitions are enablers in making something definite, distinct, or clear. This study aims to generate the definition of an emerging domain of Advanced Manufacturing Management using a literature review. First, an examination of Advanced Manufacturing Management (AMM) at an institutional level is provided, revealing institutions and courses that currently populate the domain. Second, a systematic literature review for AMM is conducted utilizing and triangulating between Web of Science, Science Direct/Elsevier, and Google Scholar. The results, supported by VOSviewer, suggest a dire need for a formal definition and conceptual foundations of AMM. Third, a proposed conceptual foundation that can enable a balanced development of AMM addressing the philosophical, theoretical, epistemological, ontological, axiological, axiomatic, methodology, methods, and applications aspects is suggested to support and holistically advance manufacturing and its problem domain. This conceptual foundation supports an alternative level of thinking, decision, action, and interpretation appropriate for the AMM problem domain, simultaneously advancing its science, engineering, applications, and practice. The article concludes with several challenges for the AMM field, a path forward for developing and advancing AMM as a field capable of providing a robust approach to dealing with emerging manufacturing-related issues.

1. Introduction

While there is not one commonly accepted definition of the term ‘manufacturing’, suffice it to say that manufacturing systems are vital to the functioning of modern society. The criticality of manufacturing is increasingly seen in the importance placed on manufacturing assets, systems, and networks, whether physical [or virtual]. Manufacturing is so vital to any nation that the incapacitation or destruction of manufacturing would have a debilitating effect on security, national economic security, national public health or safety, or any combination thereof [1]. In the U.S. alone, the value of the manufacturing industry is illustrated in numbers. This industry employed 12.35 million people in December 2016 and 12.56 million in December 2017 [2]. Clearly, manufacturing is a vital sector [3] with increasing global importance.
Ontologically, the nature of manufacturing is also evolving. For example, while traditionally, products (and the associated attributes, e.g., quality) and processes have always been at the center of manufacturing [4], in the 21st century, manufacturing enterprises must cost-effectively produce and maintain high-quality variant products using multi-innovative processes. These changes are driven by the demands in modern society, that is, demand for quality products, goods, and services, globalization, and private–public governance policies, while keeping abreast of the expected traditional concepts of production and management—just-in-time delivery and profitability [5,6,7]. Tempelman et al. [4] suggest that the heart of traditional manufacturing (TM) design lies at the intersection of matching design requirements to suitable processes. This matching is essential due to the increased diversity in materials, designs, and processes. In this case, there is a call for manufacturing knowledge management that enables a structured approach for ordered thinking in response to unfamiliar and changing design scenarios [4] so that design principles can be transported in different settings. Although the suggested approach includes a robust set of dominant process qualities (15 in total) relating to three key parameters—function, cost, and quality—it is focused on ‘product’ manufacturing processes.
A related change is in our understanding of manufacturing, especially in applying technology and its influence on traditional manufacturing and advanced manufacturing. Traditional manufacturing (TM) can be defined as “the act of converting raw materials into finished products by using manual or mechanized transformational techniques” [8] (p. 1). The purpose of such activities is to add value and achieve some targeted objective—inclusive of human interest. In contrast, advanced manufacturing (AM) is “a family of activities that (a) depend on the use and co-ordination of information, automation, computation, software, sensing, and networking, and/or (b) make use of cutting-edge materials and emerging capabilities enabled by the physical and biological sciences, for example, nanotechnology, chemistry, and biology. This involves both new ways to manufacture existing products, and especially the manufacture of new products emerging from new advanced technologies” [9] (p. ii).
However, the concept of AM “is not limited to emerging technologies; rather, it is composed of efficient, productive, highly integrated, tightly controlled processes across a spectrum of globally competitive U.S. manufacturers and suppliers. For advanced manufacturing to accelerate and thrive in the United States [or any nation], it will require the active participation of communities, educators, workers, and businesses, as well as Federal, State, and local governments” [10] (p. IX). A critical difference between TM and AM is suggested by the report of The New England Council: “While traditional manufacturing (TM) uses scale and labor arbitrage to gain a competitive advantage, advanced manufacturing (AM) relies on speed, precision, innovation, and automation to improve the products and processes. Advanced manufacturing (AM) puts a premium on a management mindset that continuously improves and rapidly integrates science, engineering and technology into sustainable, environmentally responsible new designs and manufacturing capabilities” [11] (p. 14). This view is supportive of the emerging ideas of Industry 4.0 defined by the trend towards automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies and processes accelerated by the increasing interconnectivity in cyber-physical systems, Internet of Things, industrial Internet of Things, cloud computing, cognitive computing, and artificial intelligence, as well as being driven by the need for transparency and decentralization [12,13,14,15].
At this point in this study, it is evident that a succinct demarcation of TM and AM is nebulous. This is especially since the term “advanced manufacturing” can encompass any developmental changes in recent times in manufacturing, such as additive manufacturing, biomanufacturing, cyber manufacturing, green manufacturing, and space manufacturing. Moreover, AM is not limited to the transformation of resources and technologies. It encompasses technical/technology, human/social, policy, political, information, and organizational/managerial considerations. The managerial aspect of AM is where “superior management” [11] (p. 14) ideologies must play a hand.
However, there remains a lack of articulated superior management methods (and methodologies) for advanced manufacturing. Moreover, following Keating and Katina [16]), we suggest the ‘Management of Advanced Manufacturing’ can be realized through rigorous research of the philosophical, theoretical, axiological, methodological, and axiomatic underpinnings. Second, since literature is scarce on the Management of Advanced Manufacturing, it is necessary to establish a preliminary understanding of Management of Advanced Manufacturing. In this research, the term “Management of Advanced Manufacturing” is taken to mean “Advanced Manufacturing Management.” Moreover, the term “Advanced Manufacturing Management” is a topic of interest since some of the authors are affiliated with a university (i.e, University of South Carolina Upstate) that recently launched a degree program called “Advanced Manufacturing Management” [17].
Therefore, this study aims to generate a working definition for the emerging domain of Advanced Manufacturing Management. A working definition of Advanced Manufacturing Management (AMM) is developed through a review and synthesis of the literature. First, an examination of AMM is conducted at an institutional level elaborating on the nature of the institutional offering and teaching in AMM. Second, three widely used databases (i.e., Web of Science, SCOPUS, and Google Scholar) are utilized to search for any published material (emphasis on peer-reviewed materials) with the term “Advanced Manufacturing Management” to provide a synthesis. Third, a conceptual foundation that can drive an alternative level of thinking, decision, action, and interpretation is suggested for the emerging AMM domain. Finally, a suggested path forward for incorporating a conceptual foundation for the advancement of AMM is provided.

2. Advanced Manufacturing Management: A Snapshot of Institutions

Although the term ‘Advanced Manufacturing Management’ is relatively new, there exist several institutions of higher education offering credentials and teaching courses on the topic. Table 1 provides a summary of these institutions. These include the Indian State University (Indiana, USA), Brightpoint Community College (Virginia, USA), Sheridan College (Ontario, Canada), and the University of South Carolina Upstate (South Carolina, USA). These institutions represent a broad spectrum ranging from a two-year community college to a Doctoral/Research University.
The Sheridan College (Ontario, Canada) program is ideal for students interested in innovation, lean manufacturing, energy management, sustainability, and various challenges faced by manufacturing and service organizations. This one-year program prepares students already working in the field for supervisor jobs in a manufacturing company.
The Bachelor in Applied Sciences features well in this limited sample of higher education institutions. The ‘applied’ nature of these programs is meant to emphasize the applied nature of the degree in preparing candidates for technical (i.e., hard) positions as well as managerial (i.e., soft) leadership positions in the manufacturing world. The emphasis on technical and managerial skills is also evident in the courses undertaken within such programs, as illustrated by Manufacturing Leadership (University of South Carolina Upstate), and Leadership and Management of People (Sheridan Colledge). Meanwhile, courses such as Manufacturing Quality, Plant Layout, and Manufacturing Processes and Materials are geared toward technical skills needed to address hard problems in manufacturing.
A Career Studies Certificate (CSC) is also offered at Brightpoint Community College (Virginia, USA) [18]. This program of study is typically less than one year in length with a major in a career-technical area. Fundamental courses include Introduction to Basic Computer-Integrated Manufacturing; Principles of Psychology; Supply Chain Management; Quality Assurance Technology; Team Concepts and Problem Solving; and World-Class Manufacturing.
Degree-wise, a variant of Advanced Manufacturing Management is the term ‘Advanced Manufacturing Technology.’ Greenville Technical College (South Carolina, USA) offers an Applied Baccalaureate in Advanced Manufacturing Technology (BAS) which is described as an intensive, hands-on, project-based degree program designed to meet the needs of industry by preparing graduates for technical and managerial leadership positions in our growing global manufacturing economy.
Table 1. A list of AMM higher-ed degree-granting Institutions.
Table 1. A list of AMM higher-ed degree-granting Institutions.
InstitutionDegree OfferingsKey Course Offering
BachelorsMasters
University of South Carolina Upstate (South Carolina, USA) [17]x Manufacturing Work Practices; Manufacturing Leadership; Manufacturing Quality; Manufacturing Project Management; Operational Excellence; Senior Seminar
Greenville Technical College (South Carolina, USA) [19]x Manufacturing Processes and Application; Computer-Aided Design for Man. Engineering; Advanced Manufacturing Lab; Manufacturing Quality; Manufacturing Project Management; Production Process Planning; Principles of Lean Manufacturing; Industry Capstone Project; Advanced Manufacturing Senior Seminar
Sheridan College (Ontario, Canada) [20] xLeadership and Management of People; Manufacturing Processes; Operations Management; Plant Layout; Project Management; Quality Management
Indiana State University (Indiana, USA) [21]x Intro. to Materials, Processes, and Testing; Fundamentals of Manufacturing Processes; Manufacturing Processes and Materials; Computer Numerical Control Systems
The proceeding section highlights two issues: First, there is a limited number of AMM programs in higher education institutions. This is especially the case for doctoral-granting institutions. While this issue might be attributed to the nascent nature of AMM, it must be noted that the evolving nature of the domain of manufacturing remains suspect and ambiguous. The former and the latter are interesting, and somewhat troubling since manufacturing is vital for society. Moreover, in 2011, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) developed a report establishing the risks associated with AM in the U.S. and on a global scale [9]. Among the recommendations is the establishment of graduate-level degree programs in manufacturing leadership in universities tasked with developing the next generation of educators and industrial leaders, especially in the areas of integrated technologies, including robotics and advanced automation, with methods such as supply chain management and human systems integration [10]. Clearly, there remain risks and opportunities associated with AM, let alone the emerging domain of AMM. Second, in harmony with PCAST, there remains a need to establish ongoing research in university-level settings necessary for the development of the next generation of educators and industrial leaders. Such research must encompass the philosophical, theoretical, axiological, methodological, and axiomatic underpinnings of AMM.
In summary, the term ‘Advanced Manufacturing Management’ is not new. While at this point in this study, we have not seen a formal definition, it is beginning to emerge that AMM can be seen as a program study that must address aspects of technical/technology (i.e., hard) skills as well as managerial (i.e., soft) skills in manufacturing. An attempt at developing a preliminary definition follows.

3. Advanced Manufacturing Management: Literature Review

First, we establish basic definitions of the terms of interest (i.e., ‘Advanced’, ‘Manufacturing’, and ‘Management’) using the Merriam-Webster Dictionary [22]:
  • Advanced: 2a: being beyond others in progress or ideas;
  • Manufacturing: 2b: to produce according to an organized plan and with the division of labor;
  • Management: 1: the act or art of managing: the conducting or supervising of something—2: judicious use of means to accomplish an end—3: the collective body of those who manage or direct an enterprise.
A preliminary definition of Advanced Manufacturing Management is thus taken to be ‘an innovative means to more effectively organize and control technologies, methods, and processes to enhance manufacturing production operations’. We now attempt to amplify this basic definition using the literature by examining three widely used databases (i.e., Web of Science, Science Direct/Elsevier, and Google Scholar).

3.1. Web of Science Core Collection

The Web of Science Core Collection is considered the world’s most trusted publisher-independent global citation database. The Web of Science Group claims to be ‘the information and technology provider for the global scientific research community…support[ing] over 95% of the world’s top research institutions, multiple governments, and national research agencies. Around 20 million researchers at more than 7000 leading research organizations across the world rely on us to inform and guide research support, execution, evaluation, and planning decisions at a global, national, institutional, and individual level’ [23].

3.2. Science Direct/Elsevier

ScienceDirect provides access to more than 16 million articles, 2500 journals, 370 fully open-access journals, 39,000 books, and 330,000 topic pages to help researchers discover more insights, achieve more breakthroughs and move their research forward [24].

3.3. Google Scholar

Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines. The Google Scholar index includes most peer-reviewed online academic journals and books, conference papers, theses and dissertations, preprints, abstracts, technical reports, and other scholarly literature, including court opinions and patents [25]. While Google does not publish the size of Google Scholar’s database, scientometric researchers estimated it to contain roughly 389 million documents, including articles, citations, and patents, making it the world’s largest academic search engine in January 2018 [26].
A basic search of the term “Advanced Manufacturing Management” yields two (2) results in Web of Science; in Science Direct/Elsevier, the term (Advanced Manufacturing Management) yields 14 results; while, in Google Scholar, the term “Advanced Manufacturing Management” yields 160 results. Since these results are neither consistent nor distinct, further refinement is necessary. In this case, the advanced features of the selected databases are used. Although several Booleans are available (AND, OR, NOT, SAME, NEAR), this research is restructured to the term “Advanced Manufacturing Management” and its variation such as “Management of Advanced Manufacturing” appearing exactly in a phrase. Table 2 provides the results of the enhanced searches for the term “Advanced Manufacturing Management” and its variations. These results (and the subsequent searches) are current as of 23 January 2023.
We draw four conclusions from this search. First, these results are not congruent. There exists a disparity among the databases as indicated by the outputs of the search for the different terms. However, this is not a surprise since these databases are not created with the same parameters. For example, Web of Science is a human-curated database, while Google Scholar is not a human-curated database [27]. Second, although nearly 360,000 references appear relevant to this research (i.e., Set Search 2, 3, and 4), a glance at the ‘data’ indicates inaccuracies. For example, the 360,000 references include unrelated references, including book reviews, published indices, and redundancies. These inaccuracies are exacerbated by the fact that all the literature is not indexed in all the databases. Third, recalling that this study aims to generate a working definition for the emerging domain of Advanced Manufacturing Management, the literature does not offer a formal definition. In fact, nearly all of the more than 360,000 references address the topic of advanced manufacturing in the context of technology [28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40]. A handful of peer-reviewed articles (e.g., see [41,42,43]) attempt to go beyond the prevalent technical aspect of manufacturing management. This insight is also further suggested by using VOSviewer to visualize co-occurrence and keywords in selected literature. Figure 1 depicts terms that appear in the most relevant literature with most being related to the technical view of the topic. The network visualization is based on the two rows of Table 2 (set 3 and 4 searches), excluding results from Google Scholar—only 42 documents are used after the removal of duplicates and false data (e.g., book reviews).
In the technology view of advanced manufacturing, the emphasis is on “technology”—hence, advanced manufacturing technology. Advanced manufacturing technology (i.e., AMT) refers to computer-aided technologies in design and other aspects of manufacturing. Gunawardana [44] suggests that AMT can be categorized in two principal ways: (i) the classical continuum of basic manufacturing processes, which extends from make-to-order manufacturing to continuous manufacturing, and (ii) the level of integration of the overall manufacturing system. Additionally, some industrialists and economists [45] believe that AMT has great potential to offer manufacturing companies many tangible and intangible benefits. For example, Hayes and Jaikumar [46] identify benefits due to reduced labor and suggest improved product quality as a result. Yet others suggest increased product/process flexibility, enhanced time efficiency, and a shortened time-to-market [47,48].
Fourth, the technology-only view of advanced manufacturing is limiting and can exacerbate issues in manufacturing systems. This view of manufacturing tends to overemphasize technology (i.e., hardware and software) while relegating at best and at worst, excluding other aspects of manufacturing such as the human, social, organizational, political, and policy [49] aspects. Nonetheless, a handful of researchers suggest a need to view advanced manufacturing as going beyond technology and consider associated non-technical issues. For example, Salvendy and Karwowski [50] suggest the importance of humans. Moreover, Durão et al. [41] and Li et al. [42] suggest viewing manufacturing systems as having characteristics of complex systems.
At this point in this study, two observations are made: First, it is clear that there is a lack of definition of “advanced manufacturing management”. A closely related term “advanced manufacturing technology” emphasizes “technologies” involved in manufacturing processes. However, “advanced manufacturing” is not limited to transforming resources and technologies. It encompasses a wide range of considerations, including the technical/technology, human/social, policy, political, information, and organizational/managerial dimensions. The managerial aspect of AM is where “superior management” is required [11] (p. 14). Second, it is necessary to develop a formal definition and underpinning of this emerging field for several reasons. First and most relevant, definitions can serve as enablers in making something definite, conceptual, or otherwise. Second, a definition is necessary as an impetus for forming a conceptual foundational knowledge base necessary for the study and quest to understand the phenomenon in question: such studies serve as the basis for thinking, decision, action, and interpretation. The lack of a definition of “advanced manufacturing management” is a challenge and an opportunity to close a knowledge gap, especially for those involved in the teaching, researching, and practice of advanced manufacturing. Therefore, the preliminary definition of AMM is revised to encompass innovative means to more effectively control, communicate, co-ordinate, and integrate technologies, methods, and processes to enhance the production of manufacturing goods and services while addressing technology (i.e., hardware and software), human, social, organizational, political, and policy implications.

4. Advanced Manufacturing Management: A Possible Conceptual Foundation

In this section, problems that face Advanced Manufacturing Management (AMM) contributing to potential ambiguities are articulated, followed by a description of tacit core knowledge (i.e., philosophy, theory, methodology, and axiology) that might form the basis for establishing the conceptual foundations of AMM. While academic institutions, policy-makers, and private enterprises point to the need and use of AMM, there remains a lack of literature defining what AMM entails—this is a source of ambiguity. Additionally, the following is suggested as continuing ambiguity for AMM, first denoted by Keating [51] for a then-emerging field of System of Systems Engineering, and amplified for AMM:
  • Beyond some high-level agreement and need for AMM, there is no considerable broad acceptance of what constitutes AMM.
  • Although AMM is a term that has been used, it has not received broad acceptance in the definition or underlying perspectives related to philosophy, methodology, or standards.
  • While research in TM, including AMT, is robust, there is also a lack of research in AMM. AMM research efforts could range from the scholarship of discovery to the scholarship of integration, scholarship of application, and scholarship of teaching/learning [52]. These scholarships affect theory and applications and are the basis for the underpinnings of the base knowledge.
  • Irrespective of the contrast to TM and AMT, the distinctiveness of AMM in relation to associated domains has not been clearly established.
  • Current endeavors (including academic programs) that are assumed to be from the advanced manufacturing management arena do not adequately identify or qualify reasons for such claims.
  • Since AMM is in the embryonic stages, it has naturally been overshadowed and not sufficiently distinguished from either TM or AMT, further reducing the development emphasis for the AMM field.
  • The rigorous development of the conceptual and theoretical basis of AMM, essential to establishing claims of identity for the field, sustainability of development, and ultimately the viability of the field, has not been a focus.
  • Several related societal issues remain unexplored (e.g., anti-fragility, vulnerability, ethics, etc.) in AMT. However, AMM is emerging to address issues across the spectrum of the human (social), organizational (managerial), policy, political aspects, and information beyond technical (technology) considerations. Thus, AMM significantly expands AMT.
These divergences might as well be explained away by looking at the nascent nature of AMM being a developing field as well as the overemphasis on the technology aspects of TM and AMT knowledge. This has relegated the development of the precursors of AMM to a technical focus, minimizing emphasis on tacit core knowledge foundations such as philosophy, methodology, and axiology. As was the case for Keating [51,53] and later Keating and Katina [49], we find it essential to mention that AMM development is still sorely lacking in the philosophical, methodological, axiological, axiomatic, and theoretical levels to complement the applications, methods, tools, and techniques developing. This is not totally unexpected, as the path for manufacturing development has followed the ‘least resistance’ found, with a focus on a ‘technology first, technology only’ emphasis.
As suggested above, the development of a field can proceed on many fronts, ranging from theory to practice. At this point, a particular framework to better organize, integrate, and understand the research, development, and activities engaged under AMM is proposed. The framework takes a holistic view to move a field forward along several fundamental dimensions simultaneously. Based on the previous work for emerging knowledge [12,49], this framework has been crafted regarding the AMM field. Figure 2 depicts the proposed holistic relationships for integrated knowledge development in the AMM field.
The nine levels of the interrelated elements for AMM field development include:

4.1. Philosophical

The development is directed at establishing a theoretically consistent articulation of the paradigm(s) for AMM. The emerging system of values and beliefs providing a grounding for theoretical development is the primary contribution of this area. A strong, coherent, and articulated philosophical grounding is essential for providing a foundation upon which other field developments can be consistently based.

4.2. Theoretical

The development focused on explaining phenomena related to advanced manufacturing management and developing explanatory models and testable conceptual frameworks. The range of theoretical developments advances the understanding of the field and the phenomena of central concern. The theoretical development of the field must be actively pursued and not left to chance.

4.3. Epistemological

The development establishes how a researcher (i.e., a system observer) begins to understand problematic situations and communicate knowledge to fellow researchers or observers. This dimension is focused on the form of knowledge, how knowledge is acquired, and what is considered to be ‘true’ or ‘false’ for the AMM field.

4.4. Ontological

The development establishes how to deal with the existence of entities and how such entities can be grouped based on similarities and differences. Ontology helps to describe how an observer views the nature of reality in the AMM field or how concretely the external world might be understood.

4.5. Axiological

The development establishes the underlying value, value judgment frameworks, and belief propositions fundamental to understanding the variety of perspectives informing AMM. The absence of axiological considerations for the development of the field fails to recognize the essential value foundations upon which other development areas can utilize the foundational reference point(s).

4.6. Methodological

The development is undertaken to establish theoretically informed frameworks that provide high-level guidance for the design, analysis, deployment, and evolution of systems for AMM. Generalizable methodologies provide a transition from the conceptual foundations (philosophical, theoretical, and axiological) to applications that address AMM and the inherent issues in the domain of interest.

4.7. Axiomatical

This is the development of the existing and emerging theorems, principles, and laws that define the field and constitute the ‘taken for granted’ knowledge upon which the field rests. This also includes the integration of knowledge from other informing and related fields/disciplines. For AMM, the grounding in the axioms and supporting propositions suggested in General Systems Theory [54] might provide a strong starting point for further axiomatic development; in fact, some researchers suggest the inclusion of systems thinking [55,56] in making manufacturing more sustainable.

4.8. Methodical

The development focused on generating the specific models, technologies, standards, processes, and tools for AMM. In effect, this is the development of practitioners’ supporting toolsets and capabilities. While the literature includes many methods and techniques for manufacturing (see, e.g., Ankur & Rajat [57]), the methods should be compatible with the suggested elements of the conceptual foundations of AMM, including the philosophical, methodological, axiomatic, and axiological predispositions. This approach encourages consistency in the development of applicable methods.

4.9. Application

This emphasizes the advancement of AMM practice through the deployment of conceptually sound technologies and methods. This area must address emerging technologies (e.g., intelligent manufacturing, Internet-of-Things-enabled manufacturing, cloud manufacturing, and blockchain) as well as emerging threats and risks [58]. Applications that are not rooted in the conceptual foundations of the field are not likely to be either consistent or conceptually congruent with the deeper underpinnings upon which the field rests. As such, the applications, void of the field’s philosophical, theoretical, and axiomatic foundations, are not likely to produce the intended utility for which they have been designed.
At this point in the development of the AMM field, the following observations are suggested: Despite the apparent need and utility for AMM, there remains (i) a lack of a philosophical worldview for understanding AMM phenomena, (ii) a lack of methodologies to guide and direct the efforts in the AMM field, (iii) a lack of a language capable of driving thinking, decision, action, and interpretation to different levels, (iv) a lack of a well-developed set of tools/methods to assist practitioners in dealing with complex situations in AMM, and (v) a lack of a systemic developmental worldview to articulate a set of systems-based principles to more holistically engage and understand the opportunities and challenges in the AMM field.

5. Suggested Research Path and Conclusions

This treatise on AMM seeks to lay out the challenges for the more rigorous and holistic advancement of the emerging AMM field. As a starting point for the advancement of AMM, the following are suggested as demarking the AMM field from the related fields of traditional manufacturing and advanced manufacturing technologies:
  • Where traditional manufacturing fields, including advanced manufacturing technologies, have failed to produce the intended results for problems that exist well beyond technical dimensions, AMM includes more holistic dimensions, including organizational, managerial, policy, political, human, and social considerations in development.
  • Where traditional manufacturing and technology approaches cannot be appropriately applied due to the nature of the problem domain (i.e., increased uncertainty, ambiguity, and emergence), therein suggests a need for enhanced art and science, enabling the production of manufacturing goods and services while addressing the technology (i.e., hardware and software) as well as influential human, social, organizational, political, and policy implications.
In light of these considerations, the following primary challenges are suggested for maturing the AMM field.

5.1. Treating AMM as Distinctly Related, but Different, from AMT

AMM has been suggested (and recognized) as unique, as suggested by the academic programs. Therefore, the approaches and thinking based on the ‘traditional’ AM and AMT, extrapolated for application to AMM, should be met with skepticism. Otherwise, there is little utility in a unique field developed for AMM. Instead, it would be simply another form of manufacturing such as additive manufacturing, biomanufacturing, cyber manufacturing, green manufacturing, and space manufacturing.

5.2. Aspiring to Rigor in AMM Field Development

From a gestalt perspective, while applications purporting to be of the advanced manufacturing management variety may be completed with rigor, the development of the field itself has not followed a rigorous development path. This is evident by the lack of significant literature concerning the conceptual foundations for AMM. Instead, emphasis is placed on degree programs and courses. This imbalance represents a significant challenge for the holistic and balanced development of the AMM field.

5.3. Sacrificing Theoretical Maturation

There is a strong basis in systems theory and cybernetics that is largely being bypassed by the developing AMM field. The systems basis for AMM holds great promise. Existing theorems, principles, and laws stemming from the rich history of ‘systems’ seem to be ignored mainly in the development of the AMM field. The inclusion and extension of this theoretical body of knowledge can only strengthen the foundations of the AMM field.

5.4. Explore Non-Dominant Dialogues

The lack of philosophical, methodological, epistemological, theoretical, axiomatic, and axiological domains misses an opportunity to broaden the emerging AMM field. Consideration of these domains is essential to provide a more robust foundation for the AMM field. They can provide for a sustainable grounding of the AMM field in something other than more superficial methods and applications. In this case, the AMM field’s longevity is dependent on the holistic development of the field.

5.5. Unrealistic Separation of AMM from Its Context

There seems to be a lack of inclusion of context (circumstances, factors, patterns, and conditions) within which the AMM phenomenon must operate to be fully understood. This separation gives a false sense of understanding and limits the inquiry into AMM applications and field development. If AMM is to mature as an approach and a field of study, there is a need to account for the context within which AMM operates and its role in the inquiry, discovery, and assessment of the manufacturing systems context.

5.6. Holistic Treatment of the Problem Space

There is a propensity to attack manufacturing problems as first and foremost technical problems. The result is that technology-based solutions take precedence. Unfortunately, AMM is projected onto complex situations that are beyond technical-only solutions. This requires a holistic consideration involving technology/technical, organizational/managerial, human/social, and political/policy aspects—as well as their interrelationships. To focus primarily on the technical aspects limits the potential that AMM might offer.

5.7. Characteristics and Role of the AMM Manager

The knowledge, skills, and abilities that distinguish an AMM manager/leader are not sufficiently identified. Suffice it to say that this leader needs to be ‘different’ just as AMM is a unique undertaking. The nature of this ‘different’ leader must be understood and incorporated into the curriculum and training. The uniqueness of AMM suggests that this is not an easy task since an AMM manager may need to acquire knowledge from different disciplines. Moreover, there remains a lack of literature discussing the requisite knowledge for an effective AMM manager/leader.
While this set of challenges is certainly not complete, it offers a glimpse into areas that are not currently being exploited for the maturation of the AMM field. The advancement of the AMM field will require the concerted efforts of the academic, industrial, and government communities. AMM will inevitably encounter barriers from some practitioners, researchers, engineers, and the general public whose core work and understanding are based on TM and AMT, especially if the philosophic, theoretic, epistemology, ontologic, axiological, methodology, axiomatic, methods, and applications aspects are not addressed.
As AMM is a new and novel development field, the current state is incomplete, fallible, and emergent. It is incomplete since it must start to evolve through the philosophic, theoretic, epistemology, ontologic, axiological, methodology, axiomatic, methods, and applications aspects to support the ever-evolving world of manufacturing and its problem domain. AMM development is fallible as it has not been deployed with sufficient frequency in field settings—as suggested by academic programs and the literature review. AMM development is emergent since the field is nascent but advancing with new programs and an increasing need for AMM as suggested by calls for research discoveries—suggesting the increased availability of practical research and support [11,59]. This development pace is essential to rapidly advance the field in the face of increasing challenges faced by practitioners in modern complex systems. However, care must be exercised to ensure that rapid development and deployment do not become an excuse for a lack of rigor or ‘sloppiness’ in purposefully advancing the field.
Ultimately, AMM seeks to increase the probability of achieving and maintaining higher levels of desirable system viability and performance amid the internal enterprise flux and external environmental turbulence in manufacturing. However, the fundamental truth is that all systems perform essential system functions that determine system performance [60]. All systems perform these functions, regardless of sector, size, or purpose. These functions define ‘what’ must be achieved to maintain a system’s viability. However, the concept of the viability of AMM, as a field and a methodological approach to manufacturing, remains problematic and fraught with pathologies [49,61] that might hinder the viability in manufacturing contexts. These concerns are not insurmountable but must be addressed with depth, rigor, and unambiguous integration if the AMM field is to maintain the pace and challenges of manufacturing increasingly complex systems.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, P.F.K. and C.T.C.; methodology, P.F.K., C.T.C., L.R.C. and C.M.B.; software, P.F.K., C.T.C., L.R.C. and C.M.B.; validation, P.F.K., C.T.C., L.R.C. and J.J.K.; formal analysis, P.F.K., C.T.C. and J.J.K.; investigation, P.F.K.; resources, P.F.K., C.T.C. and J.J.K.; data curation, P.F.K.; writing—original draft preparation, P.F.K. and C.T.C.; writing—review and editing, P.F.K., C.T.C., L.R.C., C.M.B. and J.J.K.; visualization, P.F.K., L.R.C. and C.M.B.; supervision, P.F.K.; project administration, P.F.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This research received no external funding.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement

Data presented in this study are available upon request from the corresponding authors.

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the technical support from the University of South Caroline Upstate and MDPI reviewers.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Figure 1. VOSviewer network visualization for co-occurrence and keywords in the literature pertaining to Advanced Manufacturing Management.
Figure 1. VOSviewer network visualization for co-occurrence and keywords in the literature pertaining to Advanced Manufacturing Management.
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Figure 2. A balanced view of AMM development.
Figure 2. A balanced view of AMM development.
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Table 2. A comparative view of search results for Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Elsevier/Science Direct.
Table 2. A comparative view of search results for Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Elsevier/Science Direct.
SearchersTermsWeb of ScienceElsevier/Science DirectGoogle Scholar
Set 1 search“Advanced Manufacturing”27334,890,00022,058
Set 2 search“Advanced Manufacturing” AND “Management”482358,0009592
Set 3 search“Advanced Manufacturing Management”216014
Set 4 search“Management of [*] Advanced Manufacturing”114381
* allows for records containing similar words to be included in the results, such as manager and management.
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Katina, P.F.; Cash, C.T.; Caldwell, L.R.; Beck, C.M.; Katina, J.J. Advanced Manufacturing Management: A Systematic Literature Review. Sustainability 2023, 15, 4702. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15064702

AMA Style

Katina PF, Cash CT, Caldwell LR, Beck CM, Katina JJ. Advanced Manufacturing Management: A Systematic Literature Review. Sustainability. 2023; 15(6):4702. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15064702

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Katina, Polinpapilinho F., Casey T. Cash, Logan R. Caldwell, Chrystopher M. Beck, and James J. Katina. 2023. "Advanced Manufacturing Management: A Systematic Literature Review" Sustainability 15, no. 6: 4702. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15064702

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