Challenges in developing modular services in manufacturing companies: A multiple case study in Danish manufacturing industry

Customers are increasingly expecting customized and personalized physical products and service offerings to fit their unique needs. To manage these diverse customer needs, applying modularity is relevant. Modularity in product design is a widespread and well-established research field while research on service modularity is still rather immature. Research on service modularity mainly relates to the service industry and only limited research exists on service modularity in manufacturing industry. Based on case studies in industry, this paper examines challenges when developing modular services in a product-service-system context. The study concludes that several challenges exist, such as lacking foundation for service control. (C) 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.