Abstract
This literature-grounded research contributes to a deeper understanding of modularization as a system life cycle management strategy, by providing a comprehensive view of its key barriers, drivers, possible mechanisms of implementation and impact. This comprehensive view, arranged into a decision-making–driven ontology, enables a decision maker to systematically identify modularization implementation opportunities in different industrial and service domains. The proposed ontology transforms modularization into a fully operationalizable strategy and contributes to a paradigm shift in the understanding of modularization, from a pure design option (i.e. modularity) to a fully strategic choice that, by nature, impacts on many of the system’s life cycle phases and involves a number of stakeholders.
Highlights
One recent example in the attempt of exploiting the potential benefits of modularization of product manufacturing is Project Ara by Google
To address this knowledge gap, this article puts forward a comprehensive ontology of modularization conceptualized as a system life cycle management strategy, which can be implemented through a structured decision-making process by identifying a comprehensive knowledge base for its key barriers, drivers, possible mechanisms of implementation and impacts, considering that a number of stakeholders may be involved in making these decisions and being affected by them, along the life cycle and, the supply chain(s)
The comprehensive ontology of modularization developed in the present study contributes to putting forward a domain-independent modularization implementation strategy
Summary
‘Modularity’ and the process of its implementation (referred to as ‘modularization’ hereinafter) have recently been widely explored by academics; as a couple of paramount examples, it is enough to consider a special issue published on the International Journal of Operations and Production Management in 2010 (‘Modularity: implications for strategy and operations’, in Vol 30, Issue 1), and still the need for a research agenda, published on the same journal in 2017 (‘Service modularity and architecture – an overview and research agenda’, Brax et al.[1]). An exhaustive conceptualization of modularity and modularization and their key dimensions have only been developed rather recently.[5,6,7] Starr,[8] who first discussed the application of modularization in production and manufacturing in 1965,9 in 2010 states that firms’ top management did not fully consider in the past 50 years its strategic implications, due to the lack of a structured taxonomy (i.e. to a broader extent, of an ontology) To address this knowledge gap, this article puts forward a comprehensive ontology of modularization conceptualized as a system life cycle management strategy, which can be implemented through a structured decision-making process by identifying a comprehensive knowledge base for its key barriers, drivers, possible mechanisms of implementation and impacts, considering that a number of stakeholders may be involved in making these decisions and being affected by them, along the life cycle and, the supply chain(s). The key findings of the study and conclusions are drawn in the final section
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