The new knowledge worker can choose when to work, from home, in the train, at a hotel or in the office. Office work has changed from a single function, in one place over a nine to five period to being made up of money activities being undertaken in a variety of places over a fractured period of time. The focus on space intensification and more effective management is also reflected in city mode usage, with an overlap of car parking, and the vision of the twenty four hour city. Technology has above all provided the ability to shrink space. The Sega virtual reality fantasy ride has shrunk the half acre site of the big dipper to no more than 6 sq m of a static seating unit.
Telecommunications are the generator of new products and new businesses.
Mass produced products such as cars and shoes with computer controlled ordering and production can at final assembly be customized to individual demands. Volvo with their experiment of team assembly are producing signature cars. New products have been designed around the commodity of time. Companies such as United Parcel Service and Federal Express have built global business on maximising time. Telephone, banking and insurance, with the improved service of twenty four hour access have revolutionized financial services.