Manufacturing (from Latin manu factura, “making by hand”) is the use of labor and tools to make things for sale or use. The term may refer to a variety of human activity, from handiwork to high tech, but is most usually applied to industrial production, in which raw material are transformed into completed goods on a large scale.
Manufacturing takes place under all types of economic systems. In a free market economy, manufacturing is typically directed toward the mass production of goods for sale to consumers at a profit. In a collectivist economy, manufacturing is more often directed by the state to provide a centrally planned economy. In free market economy, manufacturing occur under some degree of government rule.
Modern manufacturing includes all intermediate processes required for the production and integration of a product’s components. A few industries, such as steel manufacturers and semiconductor use the term fabrication instead.
The manufacturing sector is closely connected with industrial design and engineering. Examples of major manufacturers in the United States include Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, Chrysler, Boeing, Pfizer and Gates Rubber Company. Examples in Europe include Daimler, Airbus, BMW, Michelin Tyre, and Fiat.
