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Institut / FIR-Bereiche
More and more companies in the mechanical and plant engineering industry are transforming their business model and evolving from product to solution providers. Subscription business models play a key role in this development. They enable companies to enter long-term collaborative relationships with customers and thus monetize the potential of Industry 4.0. However, this development is not easy for many companies and is associated with numerous hurdles. One of these hurdles is the development of a suitable range of services tailored to customer needs. In this context, the bundling of individual services to service modules plays a key role in realizing new value propositions. In practice, however, companies often lack an understanding of which services need to be combined in what way to be able to realize new value propositions. Accordingly, the goal of this work is to identify relevant services for subscription business models, to cluster them into meaningful value-adding bundles, and to derive new value propositions accordingly. The new value propositions in turn enable mechanical and plant engineering companies to strengthen customer loyalty and thus achieve long-term economic success.
The complexity and volatility of companies’ environment increase the relevance of disruption preparation. Resilience enables companies to deal with disruptions, reduce their impact and ensure competitiveness. Especially in the context of procurement, disruptions can cause major challenges while resilience contributes to ensuring material availability. Even though past disruptions have posed various challenges and companies have recognized the need to increase resilience, resilience is often not designed systematically. One major challenge is the number of potential measures to increase resilience. The systematic design of resilience thus requires a detailed understanding of domain-specific measures. This also includes an understanding of the contribution of these measures to different resilience components and their interdependencies. This paper proposes a systematic approach for configuring resilience in procurement which enables the evaluation and selection of resilience measures. Based on a resilience framework, a resilience configurator is developed. The basis of the configurator are resilience potentials that have been characterized and clustered. Overarching approaches to design resilience and indicators to evaluate resilience are presented. Moreover, a procedure is proposed to ensure practical applicability. To evaluate the results two case studies are conducted. The results enable companies to systematically design their resilience in procurement.
To monetize the potential of digitalization in times of saturated markets, increased machinery and plant engineering companies are starting to transform the transaction-based business model into a customer- and service-oriented subscription business. Even though subscription offerings can create win-win situations for providers and customers, companies encounter significant difficulties in acquiring customers for this innovative business model. Historically linear acquisition processes focused on transactional product sales impede success. To identify key challenges and targeted coping strategies for customer acquisition we conducted in-depth interviews with 18 subscription managers and sales representatives from seven machinery and plant engineering case studies. In our research we uncovered four challenge dimensions: (1) lack of motivation, (2) missing skills and competences, (3) insufficient customer confidence and (4) transaction-oriented sales approach. Beyond that we derived four appropriate coping strategies (1) steering mechanisms, (2) human resource management, (3) trust building instruments and (4) systematic methodology to address them. These insights highlight the key challenges at the management level for customer acquisition that companies face when trying to initiate and sustain the transition from a purely transactional product and service business to subscription-oriented growth. Furthermore, they provide guidance how to cope with these challenges.
The adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in manufacturing companies is challenging, particularly for SMEs that lack the necessary skills to develop and integrate AI-based applications (AI applications) into their existing IT system landscape. To address this challenge, the research project VoBAKI (IGF-Project No.: 22009 N) aims to enable SMEs to identify and close skill gaps related to AI application development and implementation using proper sourcing strategies. This paper presents the interim results from the second phase of the project, which involves identifying the tasks in the lifecycle of AI applications and determining the specific skills required for executing these tasks. The presented results provide a detailed lifecycle including the phases for the development and usage of AI applications, as well as the specific tasks that SMEs must consider when implementing an AI application. These results serve as the foundation for future research regarding the required skills to execute the presented tasks and provide a roadmap for SMEs to close skill gaps and successfully implement AI applications.
Gap Analysis for CO2 Accounting Tool by Integrating Enterprise Resource Planning System Information
(2023)
Detailed carbon accounting is the foundation for reducing CO2 emissions in manufacturing companies. However, existing accounting approaches are primarily based on manual data preparation, although manufacturing companies already have a variety of IT systems and resulting data available. The gap analysis carried out based on the GHG Protocol and an reference ERP system shows how much of the required information for CO2 accounting can be integrated from an ERP system. The ERP system can cover 20 % of the required information. The information availability can be increased to 49 % through additionally identified modifications of the ERP system. Integrating the CO2 accounting tool with other systems of the IT landscape, e. g. Energy Information System, enables an additional increase.
Based on the increasingly complex value creation networks, more and more event-based systems are being used for decision support. One example of a category of event-based systems is supply chain event management. The aim is to enable the best possible reaction to critical exceptional events based on event data. The central element is the event, which represents the information basis for mapping and matching the process flows in the event-based systems. However, since the data quality is insufficient in numerous application cases and the identification of incorrect data in supply chain event management is considered in the literature, this paper deals with the theoretical derivation of the necessary data attributes for the identification of incorrect event data. In particular, the types of errors that require complex identification strategies are considered. Accordingly, the relevant existing error types of event data are specified in subtypes in this paper. Subsequently, the necessary information requirements and information available regarding identification are considered using a GAP analysis. Based on this gap, the necessary data attributes can then be derived. Finally, an approach is presented that enables the generation of the complete data set. This serves as a basis for the recognition and filtering out of erroneous events in contrast to standard and exception events.
The mechanical and plant engineering industry faces a stagnation in the new machinery market and is relying on innovative business models such as subscription to overcome these. In this business model, individually customized solution packages are offered. The success of these models depends directly on the future success of the customer, making the selection of the right customers crucial. The aim of this paper is to identify the criteria that indicate the suitability of customers for subscription models. While there are individual descriptions of suitability criteria in the existing literature, there is a lack of comprehensive consideration of customer relationship, customer company, and customer market, as the extensive consideration was not necessary in the transactional sale of machines until now. Therefore, in this study, expert interviews are conducted with companies in mechanical and plant engineering that offer subscription models. The results show criteria that are used to evaluate customers in the six main categories of creditworthiness, market potential, benefit potential, feasibility, relationship, and sales effort. In total, 24 criteria can provide insight into the suitability of the customer for a successful subscription relationship. These criteria are intended to develop target systems that meet the requirements of different stakeholders in the customer and thus support the economic viability of these business models.
The successful use of Business Analytics is increasingly becoming a differentiating competitive factor. The ability to extract data-driven insights and integrate them into decision-making is becoming growingly important. The underlying technologies are evolving exponentially, the value proposition differs from simple descriptive applications to automated decision-making. Existing approaches found in literature and practice to classify those levels only insufficiently mark down the boundaries between the different technology levels. As a consequence, it is often unclear which characteristics of the technology interact with the working environment, which can be described as a socio-technical system. Using a systematic literature review, this paper identifies the characteristics of Business Analytics and delineates three types of Business Analytics based on case studies. Thus, a starting point for the socio-technical system design and optimization for the use of Business Analytics is created.
Pricing is one of the most important, but underestimated tools, to enhance a company's profitability. Especially value-based pricing has a high potential to reach higher levels of satisfaction because it equates the needs of providers and customers. Even though, it is a well-known price model and promises higher satisfaction, many companies struggle to implement it. Especially the manufacturing industry is characterized by cost-plus pricing and competition-based pricing. However, especially for digital products these pricing strategies are insufficient. Therefore, this paper aims at exploring the design fields for value-based pricing of digital products in the manufacturing industry. To achieve this, the basics of digital products and value-based pricing are explored. Furthermore, an expert workshop is conducted that follows a framework for value-based pricing consisting of four consecutive steps analysis, price strategy, pricing, and market launch to capture the design fields. This paper concludes with limitations, and practical and research implications.
With the development of publicly accessible broker systems within the last decade, the complexity of data-driven ecosystems is expected to become manageable for self-managed digitalisation. Having identified event-driven IT-architectures as a suitable solution for the architectural requirements of Industry 4.0, the producing industry is now offered a relevant alternative to prominent third-party ecosystems. Although the technical components are readily available, the realisation of an event-driven IT-architecture in production is often hindered by a lack of reference projects, and hence uncertainty about its success and risks. The research institute FIR and IT-expert synyx are thus developing an event-driven IT-architecture in the Center Smart Logistics' producing factory, which is designed to be a multi-agent testbed for members of the cluster. With the experience gained in industrial projects, a target IT-architecture was conceptualised that proposes a solution for a self-managed data-ecosystem based on open-source technologies. With the iterative integration of factory-relevant Industry 4.0 use cases, the target is continuously realised and validated. The paper presents the developed solution for a self-managed event-driven IT-architecture and presents the implications of the decisions made. Furthermore, the progress of two use cases, namely an IT-OT-integration and a smart product demonstrator for the research project BlueSAM, are presented to highlight the iterative technical implementability and merits, enabled by the architecture.
The European Commission set out the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050, which shall be achieved by fostering the twin transition - sustainability through digitalization. A keystone in this transition is the implementation of a prospering Circular Economy (CE). However, product information required to establish a flourishing CE is hardly available or even accessible. The Digital Product Passport (DPP) offers a solution to that problem but in the current discussion, two separate topics are focused on: its architecture and its application on batteries. The content of the DPP has not been an essential part of the discussion, although access to high-quality data about a product's state, composition and ecological footprint is required to enable sustainable decision-making. Therefore, this paper presents a classification of product data for circularity in the manufacturing industry to emphasize the discussion about the DPP's content. Developed through a systematic literature review combined with a case-study-research based on common operational information systems, the classification comprises three levels with 62 data points in four main categories: (1) Product information, (2) Utilization information, (3) Value chain information and (4) Sustainability information. In this paper, the potential content structure of a DPP is demonstrated for a use case in the machinery sector. The contribution to the science and operations community is twofold: Building a guideline for DPP developers that require scientific input from available real-world data points as well as motivating manufacturers to share the presented data points enabling a circular product information management.
Manufacturing companies face the challenge of managing vast amounts of unstructured data generated by various sources such as social media, customer feedback, product reviews, and supplier data. Text-mining technology, a branch of data mining and natural language processing, provides a solution to extract valuable insights from unstructured data, enabling manufacturing companies to make informed decisions and improve their processes. Despite the potential benefits of text mining technology, many manufacturing companies struggle to implement use cases due to various reasons. Therefore, the project VoBAKI (IGF-Project No.: 22009 N) aims to enable manufacturing companies to identify and implement text mining use cases in their processes and decision-making processes. The paper presents an analysis of text mining use cases in manufacturing companies using Mayring's content analysis and case study research. The study aims to explore how text mining technology can be effectively used in improving production processes and decision-making in manufacturing companies.
Companies in the manufacturing sector are confronted with an increasingly dynamic environment. Thus, corporate processes and, consequently, the supporting IT landscape must change. This need is not yet fully met in the development of information systems. While best-of-breed approaches are available, monolithic systems that no longer meet the manufacturing industry's requirements are still prevalent in practical use. A modular structure of IT landscapes could combine the advantages of individual and standard information systems and meet the need for adaptability. At present, however, there is no established standard for the modular design of IT landscapes in the field of manufacturing companies' information systems. This paper presents different ways of the modular design of IT landscapes and information systems and analyzes their objects of modularization. For this purpose, a systematic literature research is carried out in the subject area of software and modularization. Starting from the V-model as a reference model, a framework for different levels of modularization was developed by identifying that most scientific approaches carry out modularization at the data structure-based and source code-based levels. Only a few sources address the consideration of modularization at the level of the software environment-based and software function-based level. In particular, no domain-specific application of these levels of modularization, e.g., for manufacturing, was identified. (Literature base: https://epub.fir.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/2704)
Digital technologies have gained significant importance in the course of the 4th Industrial Revolution and these technologies are widely implemented, nowadays. However, it is necessary to bear in mind that an ill-considered use can quickly have a negative impact on the environment in which the technology is used. For more responsible and sustainable use, the regulation of digital technologies is therefore necessary today. Since the government is taking a very slow response, as the example of the AI Act shows, companies need to take action themselves today. In this context, one of the central questions for companies is: "Which digital technologies are relevant for manufacturing companies in terms of regulation? This paper conducted a quantitative Delphi study to answer this question. The results of the Delphi study are presented and evaluated within the framework of a data analysis. In addition, it will be discussed how to proceed with the results so that manufacturing companies can benefit from them. Furthermore, the paper contributes to the development of an AI platform in the German research project PAIRS by investigating the compliance relevance of artificial intelligence applications.
Digital technologies such as 5G, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence (AI) are currently being used in various ways by manufacturing companies. As the fourth industrial revolution progresses, it has become apparent that reckless use and inadequate regulation of these technologies have a detrimental effect on the environment in which they are utilized. Therefore, regulation of digital technologies is imperative today to ensure more responsible and sustainable use. While governments usually establish regulations, progress is not keeping pace with the demands and hazards of employing digital technologies. The European AI law serves as an example of the considerable distance yet to be covered before binding guidelines are established. Consequently, companies must take proactive measures today to ensure that they use digital technologies responsibly in their environments. In this context, identifying which digital technologies are pertinent to manufacturing companies in terms of regulation is crucial. Furthermore, a comprehensive approach is required to design compliance holistically for digital technologies and to systematically derive the corresponding guidelines. This paper introduces a set of models that not only determine the importance of
compliance in the application of different technologies but also present a framework for methodically designing compliance. Furthermore, the paper contributes to the development of an AI platform in the German research project PAIRS by investigating the compliance relevance of applications such as artificial intelligence.
Industrial companies are moving to a solution driven business by offering smart product service systems (Smart PSS). In addition to an existing portfolio of physical goods and technical services, companies develop new digital services and combine all three offerings to an integrated digital solution business. While the development of new digital services does not pose any major challenges for companies, the successful sale of Smart PSS does. Due to changing customer requirements and value propositions of a solution, the sale of Smart PSS requires new design principles for the sales organization compared to the simple sale of physical goods or technical services. While there are already many publications on the topic of industrial sales in research, the description of Smart PSS in particular represents a new field of research. The combination of both topics is therefore not only interesting from a theoretical point of view, but also has a particularly high practical relevance and impact for industrial companies. This paper therefore describes on the one hand, which characteristics can be used to derive customer requirements for Smart PSS and on the other hand, which effects these requirements have on the sales organization of the industrial company. The design principles give recommendations for the organizational structure, the resources, the information systems and the culture of the company depending on the targeted customer type. In order to identify and describe both the customer requirements and the design principles, two morphological boxes were developed based on a literature research and semi-structured interviews with industrial companies. The paper gives an outlook on the different characteristics of the design recommendations and describes first best practices for the successful transformation of the sales organization.
Competitive differentiation in the manufacturing sector is no longer based on product and service innovations alone but on the ability to monetize the usage phase of products and services. To this end, manufacturers are increasingly looking at so-called subscription business models as a way of supplementing the traditional sale of products and services. Since supplier success in the subscription business is directly dependent on customer success, the setup and expansion of a so-called Customer Success Management (CSM) is required. While CSM has already been established in the software industry for several years, companies in the manufacturing sector are often still in the conceptual phase of a CSM, parallel to the setup and expansion of their subscription business. Therefore, this paper aims to support the set-up of a CSM by providing a reference data model, based on case study research, that can be used to support the organizational or daily CSM tasks and to serve as a blueprint for conceptualizing CSM-specific IT systems.
Systematisation Approach
(2023)
Current megatrends such as globalisation and digitalisation are increasing complexity, making systems for well-founded and short-term decision support indispensable. A necessary condition for reliable decision-making is high data quality. In practice, it is repeatedly shown that data quality is insufficient, especially in master and transaction data. Moreover, upcoming approaches for data-based decisions consistently raise the required level of data quality. Hence, the importance of handling insufficient data quality is currently and will remain elementary. Since the literature does not systematically consider the possibilities in the case of insufficient data quality, this paper presents a general model and systematic approach for handling those cases in real-world scenarios. The model developed here presents the various possibilities of handling insufficient data quality in a process-based approach as a framework for decision support. The individual aspects of the model are examined in more detail along the process chain from data acquisition to final data processing. Subsequently, the systematic approach is applied and contextualised for production planning and supply chain event management, respectively. Due to their general validity, the results enable companies to manage insufficient data quality systematically.
Pricing is one of the most important, but underestimated tools, to enhance a company's profitability. Especially in the furniture sector, customers place a special interest in cost-efficient products and easy processes. Individualised and sustainable furniture can help to create a unique selling point and deliver real value to the customers. Therefore, a platform to create designs together is needed and can involve several stakeholders in the design and production phase. However, in order to include several stakeholders, the pricing and revenue model need to reflect individual needs and be a benefit to all. In this paper, the initial situation and potential revenue model options will be presented. Furthermore, multiple scenarios for practical use will be discovered and an overview given.