Servitization for manufacturing: from product to service

Jeroen Segers introduces the workshop. As the congress in general and this session in particular are closely linked to past and coming Exser activities on servitization, he also gives a brief overview of the Exser Servitization initiative. 

Scientific introduction - Prof. dr. Andy Neely from Cambridge University, dept. Institute for Manufacturing gives an analysis of global trends in the servitization of manufacturing. Topics of his presentation include: 

• What is servitization? Servitization is the innovation of organisation’s capabilities and processes to better create mutual value through a shift from selling product to selling Product-Service Systems.
• Why is manufacturing servitizing? Explained by the economic rationale, strategic and environmental rationale. 
• Who is servitizing? Identifying which firms have servitized is difficult based on US SIC coding and classifications. It’s better to use business descriptions to identify whether firms classified as manufacturing. 
• What are the challenges of servitization? In short: Shifting mindsets, multi-year and long term timescale and developing Business model and customer offer based on customer insights. 

Ahrend: from manufacturing supplier to providing new product service combinations. 

Remond van Rijn explains Ahrend’s new concept humanizing spaces: functional sustainable design in which the human being is central. To create inspiring and simulating working, learning and living environments.

Ahrend has expertise on what people need to enable them to concentrate, to communicate to the best of their ability, and to excel. The environment is attuned to this insights. Ahrend has developed six Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) levels: 

1. C2C & Ecodesign 
2. Ecobase 
3. Perfect Seating  
4. Next Life Refresh, Refit, Return, Reuse
5. Green Lease
6. Sustainable furnishing

With these new concepts Ahrend creates added value and thereby a sustainable, profitable organization. 

IBM: from hardware/software supplier towards a complete “Smarter Planet ICT company"

Kees Donker points out for businesses and institutions everywhere, there have never been so many new possibilities at our disposal  to servitize-- a whole new generation of tools, techniques and models has come of age: Innovation enablers that are more powerful, affordable and accessible than ever before: 

• Smart Objects: They’re so common, we almost take for granted how much smaller the components of computing have become and, at the same time, how much more powerful they are getting all the time. They’ve also become so low in cost, we can use them in almost everything. They’re so abundant, they’re almost disposable, which makes the decision to use these components even easier, even for throw-away purposes.
• Connectedness of Everything: Another capability that’s available today is the vast interconnected web of people and things. We already have a billion people online, and we’re approaching the point where we’ll have a trillion machines, devices, and other objects connected as well. 
• Supercomputing for Everyone: Supercomputing is an area you would expect IBM to be talking about. But what’s really different today, however, is that you don’t need to be a big Fortune 500 company or a government to access the power of supercomputing. It’s now available to companies of every size, in every industry – even individuals.
• Information Put to Work: The amount of data that gets generated every day is just phenomenal. But it wasn’t until recently that we actually had the capability to make effective use of all that data. In fact, we’re quickly getting to a situation where enterprises are getting a handle on all their data and are very close to getting real business intelligence from it, thanks to new technology, advanced analytics and the mass adoption of standards. Just as networking standards made the Internet possible, so data and process standards in financial services, manufacturing, retail and virtually every other field are unlocking insights, answers — and revelations.
• Collaboration and Co-creation:  New kinds of relationships in business are creating a new understanding of how intellectual capital can be created and managed in ways that’s very different from the old notions of idea creation and ownership.
• Marketplace for Expertise: We already know the importance of seeking economies of scale in growing a business. The next advance is going to be what might be considered “economies of expertise,” where the wide variety and availability of different kinds of skills and expertise can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Virtual Corporation: People use to talk about the virtual corporation about the same way they’d refer to the paperless office. And it was about as believable. But thanks to many of the capabilities mentioned here, it somehow went from hype to reality, almost overnight.

The trends mentioned here will give servitization of manufacturing a tremendous boost offering new opportunities. But going towards the future with new technologies takes courage …