A tool for manufacturers to find opportunity in the circular economy -www.circulareconomytoolkit.org

Abstract Living on a finite planet and operating in a linear take-make-dispose system is placing pressure on our resources and is burdening businesses through increased material costs and scarcity of materials. In a more 'circular' economy, materials are continuously reused to minimise resource depletion. Although academic research has focused on key areas such as remanufacturing and ecodesign, no practical tools have been identified for manufacturers interested in the circular economy. How can manufacturers identify opportunities to create products and services that align with circular economy principles. Building on literature, surveys from the automotive industry and case examples, a tool was developed to assist companies in their move to a circular economy. The tool shows benefits, guidelines and examples for each opportunity, as well as key challenges. Workshops were held with manufacturers across industries to test the tool. These workshops resulted in forty opportunities identified. To make the work widely accessible, the CircularEconomyToolkit.org website was created. In the first month it was launched, the site received 3,338 visits across 76 countries, giving insight into the wider demographics of people interested in the circular economy. Universities and government agencies have been using the tool and workshops. This research took insights from the automotive sector. Future research will investigate the use and development of the toolkit in different sectors

Business model innovation and transition to a sustainable food system: A case study in the Lisbon metropolitan area

The food systems’ transition towards a sustainable involves structural changes, namely the emphasis on local production, short supply chains, and the preference for organic products. The shift in the agri-food system is taking place through the creation of entirely new businesses and individual farms moving towards organic production. In both cases, the enterprises use a combination of well-established agricultural knowledge and techniques, new scientific knowledge on productive methods and new technological platforms for commercialization. These mixed sources permit the creation of innovative business models (BMs). They exemplify how traditional industries can absorb/generate innovation at technological and organizational levels, and become part of the new knowledge-based era. The study has three objectives: to analyse the emerging agri-food businesses in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (LMA); to characterize innovative sustainable BMs within the transition dynamics; to reflect on the challenges that the characteristics of the food system pose for the emergence of these BMs. The study is part of an interdisciplinary project on Spatial Planning for Change (SPLACH). The analysis addresses the food system transition in a specific territory, namely the LMA. The paper presents results of the research conducted, focusing on the case of an organic food initiative, Quinta do Oeste.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Paths to Innovation in Supply Chains: The Landscape of Future Research

This chapter presents a Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda for supply chain and it is the result of an intensive work jointly performed involving a wide network of stakeholders from discrete manufacturing, process industry and logistics sector to put forward a vision to strengthen European Supply Chains for the next decade. The work is based on matching visions from literature and from experts with several iterations between desk research and workshops, focus groups and interviews. The result is a detailed analysis of the supply chain strategies identified as most relevant for the next years and definition of the related research and innovation topics as future developments and steps for the full implementation of the strategies, thus proposing innovative and cutting-edge actions to be implemented based on technological development and organisational change

Prototyping, experimentation, and piloting in the business model context

Business model innovation is increasingly seen as a key competitive factor in B2B settings. In this context, prototyping, experimentation, and piloting have gained prominence as agile and resourceful methods that can be employed in business model innovation pursuits. Yet, despite increasing interest in this area, and the growing number of large B2B companies who also started deploying these methods, there is a lack of clarity on the conceptual boundaries between the three concepts. This may impede the advancement of business model innovation research and practices based on the three concepts. We address this gap by conducting a structured literature review, using cross-reference searches and a key informant interview study of 43 executives in 13 B2B organisations. We offer three contributions: (1) definitions for each of these three concepts, (2) seven dominant similarities and (3) five key differences across them. Our research shows that the concepts serve distinct purposes at different stages of the business model innovation process, and we discuss these findings and their broader implications for the literature on business model innovation and for innovation management practices in B2B companies

Prototyping, experimentation, and piloting in the business model context

Business model innovation is increasingly seen as a key competitive factor in B2B settings. In this context, prototyping, experimentation, and piloting have gained prominence as agile and resourceful methods that can be employed in business model innovation pursuits. Yet, despite increasing interest in this area, and the growing number of large B2B companies who also started deploying these methods, there is a lack of clarity on the conceptual boundaries between the three concepts. This may impede the advancement of business model innovation research and practices based on the three concepts. We address this gap by conducting a structured literature review, using cross-reference searches and a key informant interview study of 43 executives in 13 B2B organisations. We offer three contributions: (1) definitions for each of these three concepts, (2) seven dominant similarities and (3) five key differences across them. Our research shows that the concepts serve distinct purposes at different stages of the business model innovation process, and we discuss these findings and their broader implications for the literature on business model innovation and for innovation management practices in B2B companies

Digitalised product-service systems: Effects on consumers' attitudes and experiences

Access-based product-service systems (AB-PSS) allow consumers to use products for a fee and might support the transition towards a circular economy. This type of business model could decrease negative impacts of consumption by reducing the number of products needed; either by extending products' lifetimes or by intensifying the use of products. Many AB-PSS in consumer markets are highly digitalised; they utilise digital platforms, have sensors embedded in the products, and rely on users' smartphones. To better understand how digitalisation impacts consumers' attitudes and use experiences in mobility AB-PSS, we applied a mixed-methods approach consisting of a survey (n = 47) and interviews (n =10). Our findings suggest that many short-term AB-PSS, such as bicycle sharing, owe their recent success to digitalisation. Further, consumers' digital confidence influences their attitude towards short-term AB-PSS. During the use of AB-PSS, users value the convenience and flexibility enabled by the digital aspects. Digitalisation also made short-term mobility AB-PSS susceptible to disruptions because the AB-PSS rely on the functioning of many digital aspects. Users seem to dislike phoning customer service and increasingly depend on their smartphones. We also provide a brief outlook of what 5G mobile networks might imply for mobility AB-PSS. With this paper, we contribute a consumer perspective on the digitalisation of services. Our findings help service designers, user experience designers, and app developers to design digitalised AB-PSS for consumer markets