Tools for the Variety-Oriented Product-Service System Design

This chapter delves into the complexities of designing Product-Service Systems (PSS) and introduces tools to manage this intricacy effectively. It begins by highlighting the transformative megatrends influencing businesses, such as increased demand for individualized products and continuous technological advancements. These trends present both challenges and opportunities, with PSS emerging as a viable solution to enhance customer loyalty, add value, and promote sustainability. However, the integration of products and services also increases complexity, which this chapter aims to address. The main complexity drivers in PSS are identified and analyzed, with a focus on internal variety as a primary challenge. To tackle this, the chapter presents adapted tools from the Design for Variety method, including the Product-Service System Family Functional Structure (PSS PFFS) and the Variety Allocation Model (VAM) for PSS Families. These tools enable a comprehensive view of variety in PSS and support the reduction of complexity in both product and service domains. The chapter concludes with an industrial application of these tools, demonstrating their effectiveness in revealing variety and indicating potential for reduction. Future research directions are also discussed, emphasizing the need for comprehensive method development and integration with modularization approaches.