Introduction

Abstract

Manufacturing industries traditionally develop and produce tangible goods. Additionally, they provide their customers with services such as maintenance and repair, in case these goods malfunction, or training so that their customers’ employees can use these goods properly. In the past, these services have not played a significant role in manufacturers’ strategies. Recently, however, researchers and consultants are increasingly recommending that manufacturers reassess the value of services. The term “servitization” has been introduced to conceptualise the idea of manufacturers becoming service providers. This introductory chapter aims to confront the scientific servitization debate with recent data regarding the industrial diffusion of servitization models. Through the juxtaposition of research and practice, it will become obvious that the practical diffusion of servitization cannot keep pace with the increasing number of scientific publications focusing on servitization. The two objectives of this book relate to this gap between research and practice: First, this book offers detailed analyses of manufacturing sectors that elucidate the options and barriers related to servitization from a sector-based perspective. This sector-based approach allows for an individual and in-depth examination of the relationships among manufacturers and their clients by explaining leads and lags in servitization. Second, this book examines all primary and supporting activities of manufacturers with respect to manufacturers’ need to reshape their activities in order to cope with the challenges of adopting a servitized business model. Such an examination will clarify the extent of a comprehensive servitization approach. This book is organised based on these two objectives and is thus divided into two parts. This introductory chapter concludes by introducing the remaining chapters and their authors.