Product service systems, after-sales service and new product development

After-sales service is a critical element in the successful marketing of many products. Capital goods, for example, manufacturing equipment, require after-sales service such as maintenance and repair in order for customers to get the full value from them. Some manufacturers have started to offer customers an integrated product and service, termed a product-service system in the academic literature. However, in order to deliver such integrated offerings, a different approach to new product development (NPD) is required. This is because the product design influences after-sales service requirements, and so this needs to be considered during NPD. However, researchers have largely ignored the relationship between NPD and service. To address this gap, six in-depth case studies were conducted at leading companies that offer a combined product-service offering, to identify how service requirements are typically evaluated at the design stage. The results show that at companies where after-sales is an important element of the business, service requirements are systematically evaluated during NPD through the involvement of after-sales personnel and the use of field service data to set design goals.