Abstract: A method and system for determining an optimal material movement product path within a computer based manufacturing system is disclosed. A transport matrix is created having multiple rows and columns, each associated with a workstation within a computer based manufacturing system. At each cell within the matrix located at an intersection of a selected row and column, the attributes for all possible methods of transport between the associated workstations are listed. Preferably transport attributes, such as transport type, velocity/distance, travel time, capacity, authorization required, fragility, cost and current status of the transport system are listed within the cell and may thereafter be dynamically updated. After identifying a selected product path an analysis of the transport matrix may be utilized to determine an optimal route based upon user inputs, such as the most rapid, least expensive, or most reliable form of transport, for transporting material between selected workstations.