Rehg successfully treats a vast subject that usually occupies several textbooks. The author’s great knowledge and his power of synthesis make this book a precise textbook of computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM). I recommend this book to enterprise managers, professional engineers, and students. Some of the chapters are useful for enterprise economists.

This book fulfills its basic purpose and it could be used successfully as a classroom textbook, in industry training courses, and in undergraduate courses. The book is special in the way it treats the subject. Definitions, basic concepts, implementation techniques, and indicators that allow CIM integration analysis are presented as parts of the manufacturing process.

The book is divided into three parts. The first part, “Introduction to CIM and the Manufacturing Enterprise” (chapters 1 and 2), covers world competition, including the causes of some enterprise decline; production planning; the Terry Hill model and order-winning criteria; production strategies and operations classification; product development phases; production flow; and the definition and major concepts of CIM and the three basic segments of the CIM model. Part 1 has an important conclusion: the need for change in manufacturing is clear, and CIM offers a strategy for change.

Part 2, “Automating the Process Segments in Manufacturing” (chapters 3 through 11), covers three major subjects. Chapters 3 through 6 offer an analysis of the first CIM segment, which Rehg calls “product and process definition.” Chapter 3 covers design and production engineering; critical stages in the design process; and some techniques used in the implementation of CIM, including concurrent engineering, computer-aided design (CAD), and computer-aided engineering (CAE). Chapter 4 presents a design process model used in product process development, which provides the fit between production engineering and product design; concurrent engineering; and production  engineering. 

Chapter 5 presents design automation, including CAD technology and how CAD fits into the CIM enterprise. Chapter 6 presents the CAE technology used in the design process, from synthesis to evaluation, and the relationship between CAE and the concurrent engineering product design model.

Chapters 7 through 9 analyze the second CIM segment, “manufacturing planning and control.” They cover process planning and control; scheduling; inventory management and capacity planning; synchronous manufacturing; the quality process and facilities planning; and materials management.

Chapter 10 and 11 analyze the third CIM segment, “production.” They present all the activity associated with the production or shop floor, including materials and machine handling, assembly, inspection, tests, and CIM principles for the production area. Production machines used in manufacturing and manufacturing systems composed of one or more machines are the focus of chapter 10. The topics in chapter11 include production support machines and systems, industrial robots, automatic material handling systems, automatic guided vehicles, and automatic storage and retrieval systems.

Part 3, “Managing the Enterprise Resources” (chapters 12 and 13), presents the enterprise-wide concepts and information network that are critical for successful implementation of CIM. Chapter 12 presents cell control hardware and software, device control hardware and software, programmable logic controllers, numerical controllers, a network topology protocol, common databases, and the operation and management of an enterprise network. Chapter 13 focuses on integration of human resources and quality management.

Each chapter ends with a summary, an appendix on one of the topics presented in the chapter, a set of review questions, and a set of problems and projects. The questions are useful for a better understanding of the subjects presented. The problems are well chosen. The projects allow the creation of simulated situations, which will require a complex solution based on the book and the recommended reading. Some chapters also include case studies.

Throughout the book, diagrams, photographs, functional plans, and logical schemes reinforce the text. Key terms and concepts are always defined. The appendices contain a checklist with major topics covered throughout the book, techniques, economical documentation, and a list of Deming’s points. The index is good. The book is technical and is written by an author who is not only a field specialist and a good teacher, but has practical experience in CIM analysis and technical implementation. Every educational institution teaching this technology and everyone interested in manufacturing must have this book.