The Transformative Effects of Digital Technologies on the Product Design Practices of Servitizing Manufacturers

Abstract

Digital technologies have enabled manufacturing companies to extend their product-based portfolios with innovative service offerings. Various aspects of this shift have been explored from a service and system design perspective. However, the transformative effects of the deployment of digital technologies on product design practices, particularly in manufacturing firms have been relatively neglected. To explore this issue, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 manufacturing industry experts. Four product design practices that underwent a change process as a result of digital transformation were identified: Modifying product designs to enable diverse servicing options at the outset, redefining the role of customer data in the design process, focusing on the outcomes to facilitate cocreation, and designing feedback mechanisms about the past and current product status. The articulation of these themes contribute to the design literature on the effects of digital transformation, as well as to the literature on service transitions in manufacturing firms.