Cognitive science is becoming increasingly central within human factors & ergonomics and, since at the same time, there has long been a call for a more systemic perspective in the area with a somewhat wider unit of analysis, this paper argues that the theoretical framework of distributed cognition would greatly benefit the area. It would offer a more complete understanding of the user within a greater context, be it social, cultural or materialistic. This paper aims to characterize and analyse the domain of manufacturing as a complex socio-technical system from a distributed cognition perspective; focusing on the use, mediation and integration of different forms of representations, tools and artefacts in this domain. The paper further proposes and exemplifies benefits of using a distributed cognition framework in the manufacturing domain as studied by human factors and ergonomics.