Sustainable service-based business models - Exploring the potential of digital technologies in industrial companies

Industrial companies are continuously looking for solutions to increase their competitive advantage and become sustainable. Many industrial companies have prioritised economic sustainability as means of success. However, recent decades have revealed many external pressures and these have highlighted the need for more sustainable organisations. The growing interest in sustainable alternatives has shed light on various business models which promote balance and support the path towards a more circular economy. This thesis aims to promote sustainable, service-based business models by identifying the challenges and opportunities encountered in this transition. Further, it explores the methods, tools and frameworks available in the literature and identifies the sustainability-related elements and KPIs. The results showcase a list of challenges faced by industrial companies in developing service-based business models. For instance, there is a lack of consensus on terminology for business models, sustainability and digital technologies. Although the studies included in this thesis are from different industry sectors, the challenges found were similar. The increasing availability of digital technologies and engagement of global organisations may support the development of service-based business models. In addition, new technological opportunities, regulations and incentives can promote collaboration and responsibility in companies. This thesis systematises the existing methods, tools and frameworks and shows the extent to which they support companies as they move towards sustainability. It also provides recommendations and relevant considerations for the future development of new methods and tools. This research contributes to the systematisation of knowledge gained from the different terminologies used to refer to service-based business models. It also captures unprecedented experiences from multiple industries, such as recyclers and service providers in the maritime sector. This thesis’ findings can inform and support companies on their path to understanding and implementing service-based business models

Circular lean product-service systems design: A literature review, framework proposal and case studies

In recent years, the Service Sector has received an increasing attention from both academics and practitioners. The transition from traditional manufacturing to service-oriented integrated systems has given rise to the such called: “Servitisation Revolution”, which today is a relevant revenue generator. The definition of “Product-Service Systems (PSS)” calls for an expanded value creation system through the addition of competitive advantages based on value-added services to previous companies\u27 pure product offerings. These product-services bundled solutions have been recognized as being one of the most efficient techniques towards the achievement of resource-efficient and sustainable economies. PSS paradigm has grown beyond expectations, becoming a common term among publications of the most recognized academic journals and international conferences, and a highly discussed topic across a broad range of industrial sectors. However, recent trends based on scientific and grey literature suggest analysing the compatibility of PSS with other principles, methods and tools such as “circular” and “lean” thinking, which may help to enhance the intrinsic environmentally sustainability advantage that is refer at the first PSS definitions, but that has, unfortunately, faded through time. This paper analyses how the PSS paradigm can benefit from the “circular economy” and “lean” principles. The followed research methodology included a literature review, which aims to identify those principles, methods and tools which can help to modify each stage of a traditional PSS towards a Circular Lean PSS. Furthermore, a first Circular Lean PSS Design Framework is proposed and described. This framework is validated empirically through two case studies supported by two vessel-building companies. Further research is suggested to validate the proposed framework in different industries

Battery Production Systems: State of the Art and Future Developments

This paper discusses the state of the art in battery production research, focusing on high-importance topics to address industrial needs and sustainability goals in this rapidly growing field. We first present current research around three themes: human-centred production, smart production management, and sustainable manufacturing value chains. For each theme, key subtopics are explored to potentially transform battery value chains and shift to more sustainable production models. Such systemic transformations are supported by technological advances to enable superior manufacturing performance through: skills and competence development, improved production ergonomics and human factors, automation and human-robot collaboration, smart production planning and control, smart maintenance, data-driven solutions for production quality and its impact on battery performance (operational efficiency and durability), circular battery systems supported by service-based business models, more integrated and digitalized value chains, and increased industrial resilience. Each subtopic is discussed to suggest directions for further research to realise the full potential of digitalization for sustainable battery production

Finding and Capturing Value in e-Waste for Refrigerators Manufacturers and Recyclers

In today’s highly competitive world, companies need to rethink how they create and capture value at all stages of their offering’s lifecycle. A major challenge is to integrate sustainability as a core source of value creation in their business model rather than as an add-on. E-Waste is one of the fastest-growing waste streams globally, and its value is still largely uncaptured. Urban communities generate high environmental and health impacts due to the e-waste produced by households. This paper aims to evaluate the value retained in refrigerators’ components at their end-of-life. This research work presents findings on how recyclers identify, categorise, and capture value from e-waste. Although we focus on refrigerators recyclers, the results could motivate refrigerators manufacturers to collaborate with recyclers for a more circular economy

Analyzing the risks of digital servitization in the machine tool industry

The machine tool industry plays a major role in the execution of high-quality and efficient complex manufacturing processes. The adoption of digital technologies can transform production systems into more connected, adaptive, efficient, and potentially sustainable systems. A key enabler of this transformation is servitization, a business model that builds on digitalization and data capture to deliver value through services. Digital services for machine tools typically use data obtained through highly connected manufacturing environments, providing visibility of complex lifecycles, and enabling better decision-making. However, an understanding of digital servitization to support the machine tools industry is still emerging and for most industrial actors the potential risks are unclear. The findings of this study describe potential applications of digital servitization in the machine tool industry, synthesize the identified risks from practitioners’ perspectives, and provide mitigation and contingency activities. This study contributes to bridging the gap between theory and practice by clarifying companies’ needed considerations before implementing digital services in the machine tool industry

A systematic review of empirical studies on green manufacturing: eight propositions and a research framework for digitalized sustainable manufacturing

Manufacturers are facing increasing pressures to adapt their operations to meet sustainability goals. Research and developments on industrial digitalization (aka Industry 4.0) present new opportunities to create and capture value in ever-more complex and connected industrial systems. However,\ua0digitalization\ua0does not always align with\ua0sustainability,\ua0and case studies combining these two topics are still scarce. To address these gaps, we adopted a bottom-up approach to (1) identify existing environmental solutions and their implementation challenges by reviewing 208 empirical studies, and (2) formulate eight propositions to guide further work so that digitalization supports environmental improvements more systematically. Finally, a framework for\ua0Digitalized Sustainable Manufacturing\ua0consisting of four research themes is proposed, pointing to future research needed to align industrial development with sustainable development goals. The propositions and framework aim to structure and focus future research by targeting specifically the challenges encountered when implementing environmental solutions in manufacturing

Achieving Sustainable Manufacturing by Embedding Sustainability KPIs in Digital Twins

The manufacturing industry requires highly flexible and dynamic production lines that shift from conventional mass production to cover the requirements and fulfill demands. Customized production may reduce production waste but has not been studied to a wide extent. The advancement of digital technologies, e.g., Digital Twins, enable factories to collect real-time data. Also, they can enable remote monitoring of the production processes by establishing bi-directional flows of data between the physical and virtual spaces. This study draws its sight to the potential of digital manufacturing to improve sustainability in production systems by making use of Digital Twins. This research work performs a literature review and identifies suitable KPIs for a DES model and evaluates the impact in a drone factory in four scenarios that test final assembly processes. The findings of this work can pose a first step toward the future development of a digital twin

Achieving Circular and Efficient Production Systems: Emerging Challenges from Industrial Cases

As the need for more responsible production and consumption grows quickly, so does the interest in the concepts of eco-efficiency and circularity. To make swift progress towards sustainability, solutions must be developed and deployed at scale. It is therefore critical to understand the challenges faced by industry to accelerate the uptake of best practices for circular and efficient production systems. This paper presents the emerging issues from three industrial pilots in an on-going collaborative project. We discuss and suggest further work around crucial questions such as: How to deploy circular solutions from lab to industrial scale? How can digitalization support efficient circular processes