Jan Sher Akmal, Mika Salmi, Roy Björkstrand, Jouni Partanen and Jan Holmström
Introducing additive manufacturing (AM) in a multinational corporation with a global spare parts operation requires tools for a dynamic supplier selection, considering both cost…
Abstract
Purpose
Introducing additive manufacturing (AM) in a multinational corporation with a global spare parts operation requires tools for a dynamic supplier selection, considering both cost and delivery performance. In the switchover to AM from conventional manufacturing, the objective of this study is to find situations and ways to improve the spare parts service to end customers.
Design/methodology/approach
In this explorative study, the authors develop a procedure – in collaboration with the spare parts operations managers of a case company – for dynamic operational decision-making for the selection of spare parts supply from multiple suppliers. The authors' design proposition is based on a field experiment for the procurement and delivery of 36 problematic spare parts.
Findings
The practice intervention verified the intended outcomes of increased cost and delivery performance, yielding improved customer service through a switchover to AM according to situational context. The successful operational integration of dynamic additive and static conventional supply was triggered by the generative mechanisms of highly interactive model-based supplier relationships and insignificant transaction costs.
Originality/value
The dynamic decision-making proposal extends the product-specific make-to-order practice to the general-purpose build-to-model that selects the mode of supply and supplier for individual spare parts at an operational level through model-based interactions with AM suppliers. The successful outcome of the experiment prompted the case company to begin the introduction of AM into the company's spare parts supply chain.
Details
Keywords
Iñigo Flores Ituarte, Sergei Chekurov, Jukka Tuomi, Julien Etienne Mascolo, Alessandro Zanella, Patrick Springer and Jouni Partanen
Additive manufacturing requires a systemic approach to help industry on technology applicability research. Towards this end, the purpose of this research is to help manufacturing…
Abstract
Purpose
Additive manufacturing requires a systemic approach to help industry on technology applicability research. Towards this end, the purpose of this research is to help manufacturing business leaders decide whether digitalised manufacturing based on additive manufacturing are suitable for engineering applications and help them plan technology transfer decisions.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology is based on case study research and action research, involving a mix of quantitative and qualitative research methods. The empirical part involved the study of the fatigue life of industrial component manufactured by laser sintering as well as a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods to define a strategic decision-making.
Findings
Laser-sintered plastic materials are suitable in end use automotive applications, especially when there are multiple product variations. Fatigue life of the tested coupling meets the design requirements. Additionally, production of mechanical parts can be substituted by additive methods while digitalising the manufacturing process to gain productivity, especially when there is a need for mass-customisation.
Research limitations/implications
This research relies on a single case study research. The application used is unique and its technical empirical data cannot be transferred directly to other applications.
Practical implications
Industry practitioners can use this research to shed light on technology transferability challenges considering technical feasibility of additive polymer materials, economic aspects as well as strategic implications for implementing digitalised manufacturing methods based on additive manufacturing.
Originality/value
This research presents a combined study of technical and strategic factors for additive manufacturing transferability using an industrial mass-customisation case as an example. In addition, a new cost comparison model is presented including the impact of geometry variations.
Details
Keywords
Siavash H. Khajavi, Jan Holmström and Jouni Partanen
Innovative startups have begun a trend using laser sintering (LS) technology patents expiration, namely, by introducing LS additive manufacturing (AM) machines that can overcome…
Abstract
Purpose
Innovative startups have begun a trend using laser sintering (LS) technology patents expiration, namely, by introducing LS additive manufacturing (AM) machines that can overcome utilization barriers, such as the costliness of machines and productivity limitation. The recent rise of this trend has led the authors to investigate this new class of machines in novel settings, including hub configuration. There are various supply chain configurations to supply spare parts in industrial operations. This paper aims to explore the promise of a production configuration that combines the benefits of centralized production with the flexibility of local manufacturing without the huge costs related to it.
Design/methodology/approach
This study quantitatively examines the feasibility of different AM-enabled spare parts supply chain configurations. Using cost data extracted from a case study, three scenarios per AM machine technology are modeled and compared.
Findings
Results suggest that hub production configuration depending on the utilized AM machines can provide economic efficiency and effectiveness to reduce equipment downtime. While previous studies have suggested the need for AM machines with efficiency for single part production for a distributed supply chain, the findings in this research illustrate the positive relationship between multi-part production capability and the feasibility of a hub manufacturing configuration establishment.
Originality/value
This study explores the promise of a production configuration that combines the benefits of centralized production with the flexibility of local manufacturing without the huge costs related to it. Although the existing body of knowledge contains research on production decentralization, research on various levels of decentralization is lacking. Using a real-world case study, this study aims to compare the feasibility of different levels of decentralization for AM-enabled spare parts supply chains.
Details
Keywords
Jan Holmström, Jouni Partanen, Jukka Tuomi and Manfred Walter
The purpose of this paper is to describe and evaluate the potential approaches to introduce rapid manufacturing (RM) in the spare parts supply chain.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe and evaluate the potential approaches to introduce rapid manufacturing (RM) in the spare parts supply chain.
Design/methodology/approach
Alternative conceptual designs for deploying RM technology in the spare parts supply chain were proposed. The potential benefits are illustrated for the aircraft industry. The general feasibility was discussed based on literature.
Findings
The potential supply chain benefits in terms of simultaneously improved service and reduced inventory makes the distributed deployment of RM very interesting for spare parts supply. However, considering the trade‐offs affecting deployment it is proposed that most feasible is centralized deployment by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), or deployment close to the point of use by generalist service providers of RM.
Research limitations/implications
The limited part range that is currently possible to produce using the technology means that a RM‐based service supply chain is feasible only in very particular situations.
Practical implications
OEMs should include the consideration of RM in their long‐term service supply chain development.
Originality/value
The paper identifies two distinct approaches for deploying RM in the spare parts supply chain.
Details
Keywords
Jan Holmström and Jouni Partanen
The purpose of this paper is to explore the forms that combinations of digital manufacturing, logistics and equipment use are likely to take and how these novel combinations may…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the forms that combinations of digital manufacturing, logistics and equipment use are likely to take and how these novel combinations may affect the relationship among logistics service providers (LSPs), users and manufacturers of equipment.
Design/methodology/approach
Brian Arthur’s theory of combinatorial technological evolution is applied to examine possible digital manufacturing-driven transformations. The F-18 Super Hornet is used as an illustrative example of a service supply chain for a complex product.
Findings
The introduction of digital manufacturing will likely result in hybrid solutions, combining conventional logistics, digital manufacturing and user operations. Direct benefits can be identified in the forms of life cycle extension and the increased availability of parts in challenging locations. Furthermore, there are also opportunities for both equipment manufacturers and LSPs to adopt new roles, thereby supporting the efficient and sustainable use of digital manufacturing.
Research limitations/implications
The phenomenon of digital manufacturing-driven transformations of service supply chains for complex product does not yet fully exist in the real world, and its study requires cross-disciplinary collaboration. Thus, the implication for research is to use a design science approach for early-stage explorative research on the form and function of novel combinations.
Practical implications
Digital manufacturing as a general-purpose technology gives LSPs an opportunity to consolidate demand from initial users and incrementally deploy capacity closer to new users. Reengineering the products that a manufacture currently uses is needed to increase the utilization of digital manufacturing.
Originality/value
The authors outline a typology of digital manufacturing-driven transformations and identify propositions to be explored in further research and practice.
Details
Keywords
Maria Talvinko, Antonius van den Broek and Mikko Koria
Entrepreneurial experimentation is often studied in the context of tech, retail and high-growth startups. Current interpretations lean on limited empirical data and suggest…
Abstract
Purpose
Entrepreneurial experimentation is often studied in the context of tech, retail and high-growth startups. Current interpretations lean on limited empirical data and suggest structured and deliberate approaches. Our empirical observations in the food and beverage industry expand these perspectives by revealing emergent and impulsive experimentation practices.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative multiple case study of 20 small food and beverage ventures examined experimentation within non-tech and “everyday” contexts. Applying an abductive research design, the authors investigate experimentation practices through the conceptual lenses of transformation, social learning model, play, improvisation and entrepreneurial hustle.
Findings
The study reveals three forms of experimentation in the food and beverage sector: informative decision-making, transformative learning and improvisational exploring. These forms vary in their deliberateness and differ from those seen in the context of tech, retail and high-growth start-ups. In the food and beverage sector, not all uncertainties and opportunities can be rationally validated, but they require transformational social interactions with stakeholders, and swiftly changing situations need to be addressed in ways other than rationally pre-planned experiments.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the entrepreneurship literature by extending the dominant rational view of experimentation. By refining deliberateness in entrepreneurial actions and synthesizing and categorizing experimentation in three forms, this study constructs a more nuanced picture of what entrepreneurial experimentation consists of in the work of “everyday” ventures.