Experiences in the ‘agentification’ of a manufacturing plant

Globalization of markets, embodiment of new technologies, and the need of fast reconfigurability are leading small manufacturing enterprises into changing their manufacturing systems for adaptable and flexible ones. In this context, IT agentification is the key of a new approach for adapting obsolete manufacturing systems to the requirements of the new economy. In this paper we present a theoretical model, and our practical experiences in the agentification of a small manufacturing plant.