The Machine That Changed the World (book)

The Machine That Changed the World is a 1990 book about automobile production, written by James P. Womack, Daniel T. Jones, and Daniel Roos.

It is the result of five-years research by the International Motor Vehicle Program (IMVP) at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), aimed at finding success factors in the global automobile industry.

The book traces the history of "craft" and "mass" production methods, and notes how Toyota found flaws and wastage with these systems, eventually developing lean production. The dissemination of lean methods from Japan to the wider world is discussed.

This book made the term lean production known worldwide, and is described as a classic or a "mainstay". Business Week described it as "the most readable book on the changes reshaping manufacturing".

A revised edition was published in 2007.