A framework for generating product production information for mass customization

As mass customization companies grow their business, the amount of custom information required to run the business increases. This paper proposes an information technology (IT) framework to solve this problem through automatic generation of information. The framework uses the concept of information templates or models and a rule-based system to generate manufacturing instructions. The templates combine the knowledge of bill-of-materials and resources while applying constraints to ensure the resulting custom product conforms to performance specifications. The feasibility and effectiveness of the framework and concepts are empirically validated by a case study implementation at a company that mass produces customized windows and doors in Calgary, Canada.