The mission of the Flexible Services and Manufacturing Journal, formerly known as the International Journal of Flexible Manufacturing Systems, is to publish original, high-quality research papers in the field of services and manufacturing management. All aspects in this field including the interface between engineering and management, the design and analysis of service and manufacturing systems as well as operational planning and decision support are covered. The journal seeks papers that have a clear focus on the applicability in the real business world including all kinds of services and manufacturing industries, e.g. in logistics, transportation, health care, manufacturing-based services, production planning and control, and supply chain management. Flexibility should be understood in its widest sense as a system’s ability to respond to changes in the environment through improved decision making and business development procedures and enabling IT solutions.