ON THE ASSEMBLY LINE: A VIEW FROM INDUSTRIAL SOCIOLOGY

摘要

This paper presents the scientific concerns and some results of the LiMITE — on the Assembly Line: Innovation, Work and Employment - project. Even considering the vast number of experimented industry production technologies, the classic assembly line has proved to be a structuring element within the frame of mass production, whereas known the difficulty to find practical alternative solutions. In this sense, the constraints brought up by the assembly line in order to develop innovative working practices remain relevant. For this reason, it is also important to look for the possibility to develop innovative working practices under the dominant model, i.e. the assembly line inherited from Ford. The paper's empirical section is based on two case studies pointed to two companies from the automotive components industry.