Manufacturing is the production of merchandise for use or
sale using labour and machines, tools, chemical and biological processing, or formulation.
The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but
is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed
into finished goods on a large scale. Such finished goods may be used for manufacturing
other, more complex products, such as aircraft, household appliancesor automobiles,
or sold to wholesalers, who in turn sell them to retailers, who then sell them to
end users and consumers.
Manufacturing takes turns under all types of economic systems.
In a free market economy, manufacturing is usually directed toward the mass production
of products for sale to consumers at a profit. In a collectivist economy, manufacturing
is more frequently directed by the state to supply a centrally planned economy.
In mixed market economies, manufacturing occurs under some degree of government
regulation.
Modern manufacturing includes all intermediate processes
required for the production and integration of a product's components. Some industries,
such as semiconductor and steel manufacturers use the term fabrication instead.
The manufacturing sector is closely connected with engineering
and industrial design.