Mariale Moreno

Can re-distributed manufacturing and digital intelligence enable a regenerative economy? An integrative literature review

This paper uses an integrative literature review to explore the concept of re-distributed manufacturing and the opportunities to deliver more regenerative and resilient systems of production and consumption through the application of circular innovation. The study identified multiple similarities between the drivers of re-distributed and circular models of production and consumption that could be fostered by the use of digital intelligence. A set of criteria for redistributed manufacturing and circular innovation were developed and used to identify 33 existing case studies of consumer goods production. Case study analysis resulted in the identification of three types of re-distributed manufacturing that integrated characteristics of circular innovation. The paper concludes by describing some of the future research challenges in the transition towards re-distributed and circular models of production.

The Individual-Practice Framework: A Design Tool for Understanding Consumer Behaviour

Design for behaviour change is a growing research field which aims at providing methods and tools to foster pro-environmental and pro-social action through the application of diverse theories, models and approaches from the social sciences. This chapter presents the Individual-Practice Framework, which uniquely combines insights from social psychology and social practice theory, and discusses its possible use as a design tool. The Individual-Practice Framework captures the interrelation between the individual and specific combinations of the ‘material’, ‘meaning’ and ‘competence’ elements of practices. The framework is proposed here as a design tool for the effective exploration and envisioning of innovative, and conceivably more sustainable, product and service solutions. The paper discusses the advantages of employing the framework as part of the design process, sets preliminary guidelines for practical application and considers possible limitations. It concludes with an assessment of the potential for adoption of the Individual-Practice Framework in participatory design workshops.

Opportunities for redistributed manufacturing and digital intelligence as enablers of a circular economy

ABSTRACT The linear production of consumer goods is characterised by mass manufacture by multinational enterprises and globally dispersed supply chains. The current centralised model has created a distance between the manufacturer and end user, limiting the opportunity for intelligent circular approaches for production and consumption. Through a mixed method approach, opportunities of circularity are explored for the consumer goods sector. The study presents four lenses to analyse three enterprises through a multi-case study approach to explore the potential of digital intelligence and redistributed manufacturing (RDM) as enablers of circular business models. In addition, the study examines whether Discrete Event Simulation can be used to evaluate the circular scenarios identified through quantifying flows of material that determine traditional economic value (cost/tonne). The mixed method approach demonstrates that, a qualitative systemic analysis can reveal opportunities for circularity, gained through implementing ‘digital intelligence’ and distributed models of production and consumption. Furthermore, simulations can provide a quantified evaluation on the effects of introducing circular activities across a supply chain.

Developing Scenarios for Product Longevity and Sufficiency

This paper explores the narrative of peoples’ relationships with products as a window on understanding the types of innovation that may inform a culture of sufficiency. The work forms part of the ‘Business as Unusual: Designing Products with Consumers in the Loop’ [BaU] project, funded as part of the UK EPSRC-ESRC RECODE network (RECODE, 2016) that aims to explore the potential of re-distributed manufacturing (RdM) in a context of sustainability. This element of the project employed interviews, mapping and workshops as methods to investigate the relationship between people and products across the product lifecycle. A focus on product longevity and specifically the people-product interactions is captured in conversations around product maintenance and repair. In exploring ideas of ‘broken’ we found different characteristics of, and motivations for, repair. Mapping these and other product-people interactions across the product lifecycle indicated where current activity is, who owns such activity (i.e. organisation or individual) and where gaps in interactions occur. These issues were explored further in a workshop which grouped participants to look at products from the perspective of one of four scenarios; each scenario represented either short or long product lifespans and different types of people engagement in the design process. The findings help give shape to new scenarios for designing sufficiency-based social models of material flows.

Digital Redistributed Manufacturing (RdM) Studio: A Data-Driven Approach to Business Model Development

The theme of Redistributed Manufacturing (RdM) has gained in interest over recent years. While much research has taken place into the effects of RdM on current manufacturing models very few people have proposed new business models for this concept. The RdM studio is a new approach to business model development that will allow future users to dynamically incorporate data and experiment with new redistributed manufacturing scenarios. An RdM System Dynamics (SD) model is illustrated (as a potential constituent model of the RdM studio) with a case study called ShoeLab that explores RdM scenario generation through parameter sets utilising the SD modelling method. This research provides a valuable platform on which future models and scenarios may be derived.