The purpose of this study was to examine: 1) the differences in the automation level by company characteristics(i.e., product category, product type, firm size); 2) the effects of company context(i.e., environmental uncertainty, task uncertainty) on the automation level; and 3) the effect of the automation level on manufacturing performance(i.e., quality, flexibility, time, cost). Data were collected from a mail survey. Four hundred eighty two questionaries were mailed to apparel manufacturers nationwide, and 60 responses were analyzed. The results revealed that: 1) mens and womens wear manufacturers and large manufacturers(i.e., the number of employees, sales volume) showed higher automation level; 2) environmental complexity positively affected the automation level; and 3) the automation level had a positive effect only on quality performance.