... meaning that the ability of a manufacturer to predict the performance of a new manufacturing process is very limited. In effect, you are not able -- you are dealing here with a technology that in some sense has a relatively modest scientific or theoretical underpinning. It's developed on the basis of trial and error in many cases and is developed in an atmosphere of considerable uncertainty, which makes it very difficult to predict the performance of a new manufacturing process, particularly in the -- in a high-volume, commercial-scale manufacturing establishment in advance of its introduction. So, a fairly high uncertainty, specifically with respect to the process technology. The process technology and the product technologies are very tightly interconnected in this industry and probably more and more so. That is to say, these links have increased in tightness and complexity over the last 20 years. So, it is to a much greater extent ...

See this essay or coursework document in full right now