Sofia Lingegård

Integrated Product Service Engineering - Factors Influencing Environmental Performance

This paper aims to lead theoretical discussion regarding which IPSE (Integrated Product Service System) factors are expected to increase environmental performance of a life cycle compared to a traditional product sales business. Existing theories such as theory of product development, transaction cost theory and theory for risk management are used and the paper theoretically analyzes and identifies the following crucial characteristics; complexity of the product, uncertainty of offering, control of product operation, asymmetric information and scale of economy.

PSS Contracts for Rail and Road Infrastructure

The productivity development for rail and road infrastructure has been weak a long time; and explanation can be found in the traditional contracts used, with little room for incentives for innovation. This literature study investigates the use of the few realized PSS contracts within the rail and road infrastructure. The descriptions and the scientific reports are on a synoptic level and a majority of the reports are funded by the involved actors, showing that there is an interest for PSS contracts in the industry and indicating significant potential for further research in the area.

Identification of Risks Related to Integrated Product Service Offerings of Rail Infrastructure - A Swedish Case

This research aims to explore and propose a more effective management of rail and road infrastructure and the possibility of a more resource-efficient road and rail infrastructure by applying business models based on performance and a life-cycle perspective.There is a lack of efficiency in the Swedish rail and road infrastructure industries - at the same time as the availability of the rail tracks and roads is essential. Rail and road infrastructure have long lifetimes, around 40-60 years, and during these decades regular maintenance and reconstruction are needed to ensure proper function. Large amounts of resources are required to construct the infrastructure, and the overall environmental pressure depends substantially on this.This research is largely based on interviews conducted with the buyer, contractors and design consultants for rail and road infrastructure in Sweden. Literature reviews have been conducted to develop the framework needed to analyze the empirical findings. This research contributes by building on theory in areas such as Integrated Product Service Offerings (IPSOs) and eco-design, and this abstract presents a brief summary of the overall conclusions.Several challenges for rail and road infrastructure in Sweden have been identified, such as the lack of information and knowledge transfer between different projects and actors. This is due to e.g. the use of traditional short-term contracts and conservative cooperate cultures, creating sub-optimizations in management. Increased collaboration, through e.g. partnering, seems to be a promising way to increase the information and knowledge transfer between actors by increasing trust and interaction. In this way, management would be more effective, and by involving contractors in the design phase, more efficient technical solutions could be developed and used. Additionally, increased involvement by the design consultants and an iterative information loop between design, construction and maintenance could also be beneficial. The research indicates that increased cooperation increases trust. In this way, there is a possibility to remove the detailed requirements that prevent new ways of working.Rail and road infrastructure have characteristics, such as the resources used and the importance of availability, that are well-suited for IPSOs. This performance-based business model with a life-cycle perspective provides incentives to optimize the use of resources and provide a holistic view for management that is lacking today for rail and road infrastructure. However, a long-term contract such as an IPSO creates uncertainties. The actors are risk-averse, which is an obstacle in the development of new business models and contract forms. Most of the risks and uncertainties identified are due to lack of experience. This implies that an implementation of IPSOs will have a steep learning curve. Additionally, risk allocation between the actors is important for effective management: too much risk for the suppliers will make them reluctant in developing new solutions, and they will use a risk premium to cover up for the risk.