Systemic Design Method for Co-creation of 3D Printing Service

Abstract

Background- As one of the objectives of Design for Additive Manufacture, the capability of customized geometry promotes 3D printing to increasingly realize product customization in the service market. Defined as a business strategy focus ing on customer experience and interacti on , co-creation is expected to obtain fast-growing market volume. Recently, some co-creation of 3D printing service (3DPS) have been released to realize value creation. Despite its rapid growth, there is little research on this field, especially its design method. Aim- T his research aims to define a systemic design method for developing the co-creation of 3DPS. Method- First, this research distinguished ambiguous-type and definite-type of 3DPS co-creation. The latter was taken as the current research object, because it presents the services scope more clearly. Furthermore, in order to solve the research question, that is, how to organize the service innovation for 3DPS co-creation, evidence needed to be collected by observing the mentioned cases. Therefore, holistic multiple-case study of 3DPS co-creation samples was designed and conducted, as it was herein employed as the research method. T h is research is divided into three sections. The first section presents the preparation for data collection, involving case selection and the formulation of evidence collection. The second section analyzes the collected evidences. Based on the evidence analysis, the third section concludes the knowledge of 3DPS co-creation. In order to collect adequate evidences, a pair of models was employed to build a framework. The first one is the Den Hertog's service innovation model, which presents four dimensions including new service concept, new client interface, new service delivery system, and technological options. Another model refers to the building blocks of interactions for value co-creation: dialogue, access, risk-benefits, and transparency, presenting the components in basis construction, which are necessary for the interaction between consumer and service provider. Finding- The findings conclude a systemic design method for 3DPS co-creation, which is divided into the following steps: embed d ing 3DPS co-creation in current product customization, develop ing a WebGL-based interface for service processes, prepar ing 3D printing technology for customized results , evaluat ing and optimiz ing the co-creation structure according to the standard including clear dialogue s , complete customization access, reasonable understanding of risk-benefits, and ideal transparency. Conclusion- This research proposes a systemic design method for co-creation of 3DPS, which promises benefits to enterprises engaged in the 3D printing service, and will contribute to promoting co-creation in the context of service design and other related fields. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4995/IFDP.2016.3144