Ultra-flexible production manufacturing

A system of manufacturing comprising:

• one or more work cells, where each of said cells performs one or more manufacturing processes on an associated one of one or more workpieces;
• one or more mobile transport units (“MTUs”) to deliver transportable containers containing said workpieces to and from said work cells, said one or more mobile transport units delivering said containers to said work cells independent of a fixed in place path between said one or more work cells and in a manner such that said workpieces are localized in said work cells;
• and
• a computer system having therein status information for each of said one or more MTUs and using said status information to control each of said one or more MTUs to deliver said transportable containers to and from said one or more work cells;
• wherein when a determination is made that work performed at one of said one or more work cells on said associated workpiece is in error, said computer system commands said associated one of said one or more MTUs to deliver said transportable container with said workpiece on which said work in error was performed to one of a rework station or a disposal area.