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The Internet of Things in manufacturing innovation processes: Development and application of a conceptual framework

Andrea Caputo (Lincoln Business School, University of Lincoln, Lincoln, UK)
Giacomo Marzi (Department of Science for Business and Economics, University of Florence, Florence, Italy)
Massimiliano Matteo Pellegrini (Department of Business Administration, University of West London, London, UK)

Business Process Management Journal

ISSN: 1463-7154

Article publication date: 4 April 2016

Issue publication date: 4 April 2016

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to contribute and enrich the scientific debate about the phenomenon called the Internet of Things (IoT) from a managerial perspective. Through the lenses of management and innovation literature, the authors investigate the main facts that characterize the IoT and developed a conceptual framework to interpret its evolution. The framework has then been applied to the case of a three-dimensional (3D) printing technology used for additive manufacturing.

Design/methodology/approach

A theoretical analysis of the phenomenon of the IoT and its main elements has been performed to construct a conceptual framework in a managerial fashion able to describe the evolutionary impacts of the phenomenon on the manufacturing industry.

Findings

Through consequential steps, namely radical, modular, architectural and incremental innovation, and by adopting and integrating the Henderson and Clark model, the authors explain the cornerstones of the evolutionary impact of the IoT on the manufacturing industry. Finally, the authors apply the framework to the case of additive manufacturing and 3D printing.

Practical implications

The framework’s practical value is related to its employability in interpreting and possibly forecasting the evolution of manufacturing industries thanks to the advent of the IoT, allowing managers to capture value arising from technological changes.

Originality/value

This study offers a clear and simple model to interpret the impacts of the IoT. Such a goal has been obtained by systematizing the disconnected research on the topic and arranging such contributions into solid paradigms of the managerial literature.

Keywords

Citation

Caputo, A., Marzi, G. and Pellegrini, M.M. (2016), "The Internet of Things in manufacturing innovation processes: Development and application of a conceptual framework", Business Process Management Journal, Vol. 22 No. 2, pp. 383-402. https://doi.org/10.1108/BPMJ-05-2015-0072

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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