Mirroring or misting: On the role of product architecture, product complexity, and the rate of product component change

This paper contributes to the literature on the within-firm and across-firm mirroring hypothesis – the assumed architectural mapping between firms’ strategic choices of product architecture and firm architecture, and between firms’ architectural choices and the industry structures that emerge. Empirical evidence is both limited and mixed and there is evidently a need for a more nuanced theory that embeds not only whether the mirroring hypothesis holds, but under what product architecture and component-level conditions it may or may not hold. We invoke an industrial economics perspective to develop a stylised product architecture typology and hypothesise how the combined effects of product architecture type, product complexity and the rate of product component change may be associated with phases of mirroring or misting. Our framework helps to reconcile much existing mixed evidence and provides the foundation for further empirical research

Service productisation through standardisation and modularisation: an exploratory case study

This research study examines service productisation through the standardisation and modularisation of service. This concept is studied and applied to a professional service company which is running a productisation project for improving its services. This productisation project continues further through defining, describing, and developing a service platform and standardisation of its overall services. The main objective of this study was to promote sales through the identification and definition of products and their accompanying services. Moreover, the study explores and applies service development models, namely the model of integrating markets, modular service platform, identification of modules using design structure matrix (DSM), and model for service automation. Furthermore, the study also aims to find solutions for the standardisation and modularisation of services through these models and investigates the associated benefits and issues related to overall services.© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Vertical sub-contracting relationships strategy, the Airbus First-tier suppliers\' coordination

This paper analyzes the transformations of industrial vertical relationships, and more particularly the duality of the coordination modes within new industrial architectures. The paper aims to characterize relationship between the architect and the first-tier suppliers according to the strategic degree of their competence. Two models of coordination arm\'s length and systems integration coexist within the same industrial architecture. The recourse to one or the other varies according to the policy of purchase and the strategic degree of the sub-contracted subsystems. Thus we will analyze the system of subcontracting of Airbus by focusing to the importance of the purchasing policy. The argumentation articulates in two parts. The first one considers the vertical subcontracting relationships in the framework of complex productions, by insisting on organizational aspects. The second one analyses the transformation of the \"Airbus\" productive system by focusing on purchasing process and the emergence of new First-tier supplier’s coordination modes.NAModularity – Systems Integration – Strategic competences – Purchasing Strategy – First Tier Suppliers – Airbus

Egyptian pyramid or Aztec pyramid: How should we describe the industrial architecture of automotive supply chains in Europe?

This article questions a terminology that is frequently used to describe automotive supply chains’ industrial architecture. Since vertical disintegration became a trend in the 1980s, this architecture has been represented using the image of the pyramid. Implicitly, authors have had the image of an Egyptian pyramid in mind, one that is pointed at the top and broad at the base. We will demonstrate that even if pyramids are an appropriate image, in the auto industry the Aztec variant, with its shortened peak and room for SMEs, is more accurate. The paper’s first section – with its more historical focus – explains the birth of the Egyptian pyramid. The section 2 puts forward the idea that the Egyptian metaphor is more misleading than informative. We start by demonstrating that overusing this metaphor will ultimately exclude a number of very strategic companies from analysis. This is followed by a presentation of the findings from a study of 750 French SMEs*, in which it is demonstrated both that some continue to maintain direct access to carmakers and also that the hierarchy of tiers comprising this supply chain features greater porosity than is commonly recognized.modularity, supply chain, industrial architecture, SME, automobile.

Towards a New Framework for Product Development

In the mid-1980s, Andreasen and Hein first described their model of Integrated Product Development. Many Danish companies quickly embraced the principles of integrated product development and adapted the model to their specific business and product context. However, there is concern amongst many Danish companies that Integrated Product Development no longer provides a sufficient way of describing industry’s product development activity. More specifically, five of these companies have supported a programme of research activities at the Technical University of Denmark, which seeks to develop a new framework for product development. This paper will describe the research approach being taken, present some initial findings, and outline a vision of a new working approach to product development

The Effect of Supply Chain Configuration on Small Modular Reactor Economics

This thesis examines the opportunity presented by small modular reactors (SMRs) to bring down the cost of nuclear power. The economies of scale that have traditionally driven nuclear vendors to design larger reactors can be overcome for small reactors by the combination of standardisation of design, modularisation of the build process, and progressive reduction in production cost through learning. By employing the most comprehensive nuclear plant construction cost data available, in conjunction with established cost estimating methods, a model was devised to estimate the capital costs and levelized electricity cost of a SMR, based on conventional light water reactor technology. Key elements of supply chain configuration were parameterised in the model, enabling the investigation of its effect on SMR economics. Credible SMR supply chain configurations were hypothesised, by applying procurement decision models to industry data and nuclear sector specific constraints. These configurations were evaluated using the model against a range of programme conditions. Beyond single programme supply chain design, the challenges posed by global production and deployment were considered, such as the segmentation of market demand, variations in labour costs, and the implications of regulatory barriers and localisation for SMR cost reduction methods. The costs of first developing a SMR programme were also estimated. It was established that in order for SMRs to become cost competitive with large nuclear plants, a sizeable programme of at least 10 GW of standard units is needed to achieve sufficient production volume and production rate. The preferred SMR size is in the region of 250 MWe, to achieve a balance between economies of scale and learning. Progress needs to be made in harmonising global technical standards and safety regulation to make the product-like reactor concept feasible. Moreover, a committed supply chain of collaborative enterprise partners, rather than competing transactional suppliers, is required to realise the necessary learning cost reduction.Funded by EPSRC through the ICO CDT in Nuclear Energ

Modular reactors: What can we learn from modular industrial plants and off site construction research

New modular factory-built methodologies implemented in the construction and industrial plant industries may bring down costs for modular reactors. A factory-built environment brings about benefits such as; improved equipment, tools, quality, shift patterns, training, continuous improvement learning, environmental control, standardisation, parallel working, the use of commercial off shelf equipment and much of the commissioning can be completed before leaving the factory. All these benefits combine to reduce build schedules, increase certainty, reduce risk and make financing easier and cheaper.Currently, the construction and industrial chemical plant industries have implemented successful modular design and construction techniques. Therefore, the objectives of this paper are to understand and analyse the state of the art research in these industries through a systematic literature review. The research can then be assessed and applied to modular reactors.The literature review highlighted analysis methods that may prove to be useful. These include; modularisation decision tools, stakeholder analysis, schedule, supply chain, logistics, module design tools and construction site planning. Applicable research was highlighted for further work exploration for designers to assess, develop and efficiently design their modular reactors

Designing a product service system in a social framework: methodological and ethical considerations

Macroscopic social and economic changes in the last few years are forcing business companies and public institutions to redefine their approach to social intervention, focusing on local and highly individualised solutions. This change is also calling for a new design approach. The challenge for designers is not only to be able to provide local and highly individualised solutions, but also to propose strategies to transfer and reproduce the solutions, or part of them, into different local contexts, thus creating economy of scope. This would be possible by using forms of codification and modularisation of the most relevant components in local solutions. The code refers to the organisational knowledge included in local components and the way each component interacts with the others. Like software systems, local product-service systems can be built upon a source code. This paper will illustrate how this process was developed in a concrete case. Through this case the authors analyse the possibility to build something similar to a source code for initiatives based on social interaction and investigate the process of construction of such a code Furthermore, the author discuss differences and analogies between design intervention in a social context and in the normal business context. The question of codification suggests a methodological approach for supporting transferability both in the problem space (dealing with complexity) and in the solution space (dealing with contingency). The analysis of differences and similarities between business- and socially-oriented processes suggests a new role for designers and new opportunities for innovation. Keywords: Product Service Systems, Methodology, Design and Morality, Codification, Transferability</p