Flexibility of manufacturing systems, as a key factor of survival in the market, is regarded as the ability of handling changes in variants and volume governed by different capabilities depending on system level and manufacturing process. Research on flexibility has been of interest over years, resulting in a vast field of organizational, technical, and process-based enablers. The practical review in terms of needs, enablers and implementations of changeable production systems is however scarce. The objective of this paper is to present an initial review of industrial practice regarding flexibility in manufacturing systems, based on the current frame of reference and empirical study of two manufacturing companies in Sweden which helps industrial companies to identify their flexibility needs and the required enablers to achieve them.