The ability to manufacture several products on the same production line and switch seamlessly among them allows a firm to both hedge against demand uncertainty and respond to competition. In this paper, we empirically analyze the deployment of manufacturing flexibility in the North American...

The number of different car and light truck models produced in North America has increased enormously over the last decades. The data suggests that producing this increased variety of vehicles is associated with a productivity penalty. We show that manufacturers can adopt complementary...

The number of different car and light truck models produced in North America has increased enormously over the last decades. The data suggests that producing this increased variety of vehicles is associated with a productivity penalty. We show that manufacturers can adopt complementary...