Manufacturing Strategies in the Eighteenth Century: Subcontracting for Growth among Papermakers in the Auvergne
研究了18世纪法国奥弗涅地区造纸商如何通过转包而非技术革新或企业扩张来大幅提高产量，以应对市场需求，揭示了早期制造商策略的社会经济条件。
From the sixteenth century to the end of the eighteenth century, the papermakers of Ambert (Auvergne, France) remained the leading producers of quality printing paper in Europe. During the second half of the eighteenth century, they expanded greatly their production in response to a dynamic market. This success was achieved not through the adoption of new methods or the expansion of enterprises but through subcontracting practices. This article explores the conditions that fostered such strategies. It confirms the multiplicity of options available to early modern manufacturers but suggests that the socioeconomic characteristics of each community of producers conditioned their choices.