Supply chain innovations for additive manufacturing

Abstract

Purpose Additive manufacturing (AM) involves the renewal of production systems and also has implications for firms’ supply chains. Innovations related to AM supply chains are, so far, insufficiently understood, but their success will require firms’ awareness of their systemic nature and their firm-specific implications. The purpose of this paper is to explore the supply chain innovations dealing with AM in business-to-business supply chains. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory qualitative research design is used. Interviews were conducted in 20 firms, workshops were organized to map AM-related processes and activities, and supply chain innovations were analyzed. Findings This study reveals practical changes in supply chains and requirements for AM-related supply chain innovations. While earlier research has centered on technology or firm-specific AM implementations, this study shows that fully leveraging AM will require innovations at the level of the supply chain, including innovations in business processes, technology and structure, as well as supportive changes in the business environment. These innovations occur in different parts of the AM supply chain and are emphasized differently within different firm types. Research limitations/implications This research was conducted in one country in the context of the machine building and process industry with a limited data set, which limits the generalizability of the results. The results offer an analytical framework and identify new research avenues for exploring the innovations in partial or complete AM supply chains. Practical implications The results offer a framework to assess the current state and future needs in AM-related supply chain innovations. Practical ideas are proposed to enhance AM adoption throughout firms’ supply chains. These results are important to managers because they can help them position their firms and guide the activities and collaborations with other firms in the AM supply chain. Originality/value This study draws attention to the supply chain innovations required when firms adopt AM in their processes. The generic supply chain innovation framework is enhanced by adding the business context as a necessary component. Implementation of AM is shown to depend on the context both at the level of the supply chain and the firm’s unique role in the supply chain. The holistic view taken reveals that successful AM technology adoption requires broad involvement from different firms across the supply chain.

Factors for metal additive manufacturing technology selection

“…When producing end-useable parts or components, the following process chain is usually followed. AM always requires a suitable 3D model, the expertise of a product designer (functionality of the design) and an AM expert to optimize the design for production with AM (Luomaranta and Martinsuo, 2020). This differs from traditional subtractive manufacturing where a digital model is not always necessary.…”

Towards a Supply Chain 4.0 on the post-COVID-19 pandemic: a conceptual and strategic discussion for more resilient supply chains

“…On this respect, some researches have been conducted presenting the benefits and impacts of disruptive technologies on supply chains. Some studies which stand out are related to big data analytics (Queiroz and Telles, 2018;Wamba et al, 2015;Gunasekaran et al, 2017;Hazen et al, 2016), IoT (Gunasekaran et al, 2016;Mishra et al, 2016;Ben-Dayaa et al, 2019), additive manufacturing (Durach et al, 2017;Luomaranta and Martinsuo, 2019), artificial intelligence (Min, 2010), cloud computing (Jede and Teuteberg, 2015), blockchain (Gurtu and Johny, 2019;Durach et al, 2020) and robotics (Fitzgerald and Quasney, 2017).…”

Industry 4.0: a review and analysis of contingency and performance effects

“…Some of the case studies, however, provide mixed results. Luomaranta and Martinsuo (2019) argue that additive manufacturing can speed up deliveries Industry 4.0: contingency and performance effects by enabling small batches, but in the same time slow down manufacturing due to the diversity of part types. Steenhuis and Pretorius (2017) also show that while additive manufacturing can speed up the production of prototypes, the overall speed of production is still lower than for traditional manufacturing.…”

“…Investigating the business model changes induced by I4.0, M€ uller ( 2019) argues that the value proposition of these businesses becomes more flexible by offering a wider product range, including new data-driven products and services, and a more flexible and customized production. In terms of additive manufacturing, Luomaranta and Martinsuo (2019) argue that it enables the "economies of one" whereby firms can manufacture personalized small batches that better fulfill individual customer demands. Besides customization, Steenhuis and Pretorius (2017) argue that additive manufacturing can also enhance the ability of firms to introduce new products or to modify existing ones, thereby enriching the product mix offered.…”