Late customisation: Issues of mass customisation in the food industry

McIntosh, R. I.; Matthews, J.; Mullineux, Glen; Medland, A. J.

Abstract

The strategy of mass customisation is being increasingly adopted as companies seek to exploit market trends for greater product variety and individualisation. The implications of changing to mass customisation practice are considerable, where traditional contradictions of high volume and extensive product variety require being reconciled. The literature discusses the need for an integrated approach to mass customisation across all business functions if micro-segmentation of markets is to be profitably pursued, and the current paper investigates extending the paradigm of mass customisation into the, until now, poorly represented sector of food processing. Product design and manufacturing system design for mass customisation are reviewed and contrasted with good practice in more traditional mass customisation industries.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2010
• Journal: International Journal of Production Research
• Print ISSN: 0020-7543
• Electronic ISSN: 1366-588X
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 48
• Issue: 6
• Pages: 1557-1574
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00207540802577938
• Keywords: food production, late customisation, mass customisation
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/986889
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00207540802577938