To maintain competitiveness in the emerging global economy, U.S. manufacturing must rise to new standards of product quality, responsiveness to customers, and process flexibility. This volume presents a concise and well-organized analysis of new research directions to achieve these goals.

Five critical areas receive in-depth analysis of present practices, needed improvement, and research priorities:

• Advanced engineered materials that offer the prospect of better life-cycle performance and other gains.
• Equipment reliability and maintenance practices for better returns on capital investment.
• Rapid product realization techniques to speed delivery to the marketplace.
• Intelligent manufacturing control for improved reliability and greater precision.
• Building a workforce with the multidisciplinary skills needed for competitiveness.

This sound and accessible analysis will be useful to manufacturing engineers and researchers, business executives, and economic and policy analysts.