Enabling Technology

At the end of the fluid phase a dominant design for assembled products emerges after a long period of experimentation in manufacture and use of the product. An equivalent to the dominant design for continuous production and non-assembled products is the enabling technology. Unlike assembled products, the focus is on the technological effort and experimentation in the production process during the fluid phase. The resultant technology is known as enabling technology. Enabling technologies are characterized by rapid development of subsequent derivative technologies, often in diverse fields.