Gunter Lay, Giacomo Copani, Angela Jäger and Sabine Biege
Case study findings increasingly indicate that the implementation of service‐based business concepts is becoming a global business trend. The purpose of this paper is to analyze a…
Abstract
Purpose
Case study findings increasingly indicate that the implementation of service‐based business concepts is becoming a global business trend. The purpose of this paper is to analyze a broad European survey to understand the extent to which service infusion has already deeply affected manufacturing industries and the factors influencing service infusion.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from 3,376 companies participating in the European Manufacturing Survey were included in an evaluation of service offerings and service sales. Multivariate data analyzes were used to develop statistically relevant conclusions regarding service infusion and the factors influencing it.
Findings
Whereas, the vast majority of companies surveyed offer services, the turnover generated by services was still low, and the adopted service strategies did not seem fully developed. The most significant determinant of service sales was the breadth of services offered. Other relevant explanatory factors included the characteristics of the type of products sold, whereas the position in the supply chain did not seem to affect service infusion.
Research limitations/implications
Using large‐scale survey data, this analysis provides a representative picture of service infusion in manufacturing industries and related causal relationships. Further qualitative research should develop interpretations of the relationships found in our quantitative analysis; as such, subsequent quantitative analyzes are necessary.
Originality/value
As most previous studies on service infusion are based on case study reports, the value of this paper comes from its use of a broad empirical database. Thus, the paper supports, confirms, and generalizes previous qualitative findings.
Details
Keywords
Sabine Biege, Gunter Lay and Daniela Buschak
The purpose of this paper is to propose a process‐modelling method that is based on methods from both operations management (OM) and service operations management (SOM), which…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose a process‐modelling method that is based on methods from both operations management (OM) and service operations management (SOM), which complies with the special requirements of servitised manufacturers.
Design/methodology/approach
After a comprehensive literature review of organisational change in servitised manufacturers, the requirements for modelling industrial services are established. In addition, existing business process‐modelling methods from OM and SOM are classified and related to these requirements. A modelling method that is adapted to the needs of servitised manufacturers is proposed, and the practical advantages of this methodology are explored in an exemplary case study of a machine tool manufacturer.
Findings
This paper suggests that existing instruments that have been developed within OM and SOM need considerable adjustment to comply with the needs of servitised manufacturers.
Originality/value
This paper contributes towards mastering the transition from the production of capital goods to the offering of entire solutions by outlining the special requirements of the process structure in a manufacturing company as it turns into a solution‐provider.