Cultural Barriers to the Transition from Product to Product Service in the Medical Device Industry

Abstract

Manufacturing companies are increasingly moving up the value chain by expanding their value offering to include service components, namely Product Service Systems (PSS). Due to the fundamental differences between the provision of products and services, many struggle to effectively integrate the two into a single cohesive offering. This is particularly true of companies operating in the medical device field as, due to the high level of regulatory requirements and controls, implementation of the ‘soft' components of service provision is difficult. The aim of the research is to facilitate companies to move up the value chain from product to product-service provision. Once identified, barriers can then be directly addressed and overcome, thereby allowing the development of a cohesive PSS offering. This will be achieved by identifying existing cultural barriers in relation to the application of PSS strategy within a product-orientated business. This information can be used to facilitate the application of PSS models with produc-orientated companies. This paper details qualitative research, undertaken with eight product-orientated medical device companies and two service practitioners, which establishes, details and analyses the primary cultural barriers in relation to product to product-service transition. These cultural barriers are further extrapolated through a supporting literature research.