Sustainability - in light of competitiveness

There is cause for concern that many current practices in the strategic use of advanced manufacturing technologies are unsustainable since they lead t o increased resource consumption in the aggregate. This article examines th e ways the current generation of production technologies structure the form ation and growth of product markets and explains why firms, driven to stay competitive, are adopting manufacturing strategies based on reducing the ti me it takes to develop and manufacture new products. As experience in the u se of advanced manufacturing technologies has accumulated, distinctive patt erns in market organization have emerged, which, in turn, cause more firms to adopt these technologies. In effect, the markets and productions systems have co-evolved. Faster product cycles presage new product variants and fa ster product obsolescence linked to intensified customers' needs. This inte rdependency of market needs and the strategic use of manufacturing technolo gies has significance for drafting sustainable consumption policy. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.