The next floor of the pyramid of civilization – the technological mode of production, which expresses the aggregate used in society technologies, principles and organizational forms of production, capital goods, as well as natural productive forces. In the early stages of formation epoch of human society, archeologists and historians differ on the basic materials from which tools were made (stone, bronze, iron). The main source of energy was the muscular power of man, then animals, dominated by simple cooperation of labor, with almost complete subordination to man the forces of nature. But step by step, people formed artificial world of increasingly sophisticated tools, then machines, complex technical systems, transmitting power, and now the executive and supervisory role they invented instruments, systems, programmable control. Developed social division of labor – in-process, multi-sectoral, spatial, production of the enterprise, region, country, world economy becoming more and more signs integrated whole. In the transition from one civilization to another, there is a change of technological methods of production used a set of means of production and forms of organization – develops technological revolution. But in this type of qualitative changes of production, technological change, ways of life based on common principles and sources of energy technology systems requiring specific, appropriate forms of organization of these systems of production.
Thus, the industrial mode of production, which began with the Industrial Revolution, includes five technological structures. The first of are largely based on technology inherited from the manufactory mode of production, the second – the fourth successive stages of self-expression of the industrial mode of production, modern, fifth, dominant in the developed countries at the end of XX century. is a transition to a postindustrial technological mode of production, carries the germ, the primary elements of the latter, which will evolve to based only on their own in the next century. Every technological system, in turn, includes a number of successive times in about ten years of related generations of technology, each of which implements a large invention, a basic innovation. Today's example is the alternation of generations of computer, laser, space, missile technology. Each generation is a step in the formation and deployment technological cycle of higher level (scientific and technical direction), which implements the principle of common technology in many versions and models of vehicles.
Related technological methods of production, technological structures, generation of technology form the general field, the transition periods of varying duration, thus ensuring the continuity of technological progress. At the same time, approval of each new generation of technology, technological structure and mode of production marks another step of technological progress, technological revolution of a scope and depth. Transient generation of technology, as well as the transitional process way, guided by the contradictory, to successive technological principles, are less effective. Most effective way of different generations and located in the middle of the technological cycle of higher level, expressing the phase of maturity, the full realization of its potential. Stage in the development of technology reflects the steps of knowledge, the materialization of knowledge and technological skills of a person and, in turn, offer new spaces in the development of its productive capacity.