When GM's robots ran amok. (General Motors Corp.'s failed automation strategy)
Economist (US), The, August, 1991
AFTER all the problems their industry has been through, it takes a lot to make American car workers go misty-eyed. But there were tears in october last year when workers gathered at the giant Hamtramck plant in Detroit. They were there for the presentation of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, a prize that had been given to the Cadillac division of General Motors Gm). Although it was the first time that a car maker had won the award, that was not the only reason why emotions ran high. Five years ago this was the most troubled car plant in America.
It was at Hamtramck that an extraordinary gamble by GM with new technology spectacularly backfired. The production lines ground to a halt for hours while technicians tried to debug software. When they did...
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