This thesis stems from the future scenario that as additive manufacturing (AM) technologies become cheaper and more readily available, consumers without formal design training will begin to customise, design and manufacture their own products. Much of this activity is likely to infringe on brands' intellectual property. The research explores the feasibility of a situation in which, rather than attempting to prohibit such activity, manufacturers engage with consumers to facilitate it, thus retaining control (albeit reduced) over their brand's image and the quality of products offered. The research begins with a literature review encompassing AM technologies and their adoption by consumers; mass customisation (MC) and the management of variation in product offering; and traditional models of industrial design (ID), including user-centred design and co-design. It finds that conventional definitions of MC and ID are unable to provide for the possibility of consumer intervention in the shape and non-modular configuration of products. Further research was then conducted in the areas of Open Design (including crowdsourcing, open sourcing and 'hardware hacking') as well as bespoke customisation, which were found to be much more accommodating of the scenario proposed. A new term, 'consumer design', is introduced and defined, together with the hypothesis that in future, the role of the industrial designer may be to design 'unfinished' products. An original classification of consumer involvement in ID is presented. Empirical research, undertaken with consumers using an iterative design software package (Genoform), demonstrated a preference for designing within pre-determined boundaries. Action research was conducted to assess consumer-oriented 3D CAD software, and compare its capabilities with that of MC toolkits. A survey of senior designers and brand managers revealed strategies for implementing and managing a brand's product design language, and a guide was created to show the relative importance of designed features. Using these findings, a prototype toolkit was created to demonstrate how a brand might facilitate consumer interaction with the shape design of a complex consumer electronics product (in this case a mobile phone). The toolkit was tested with both consumers and experienced designers to assess its viability. The research finds that it is possible to create a consumer-design toolkit which enables untrained users to change the form of a product, whilst maintaining brand equity and ensuring the product's functionality and manufacturability.

THE OPERATIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF SERVICE CUSTOMISATION LEVEL Customisation offers the opportunity for organisations to capitalise on the many potential benefits to both themselves and to clients, afforded by offering a greater choice of goods and services for customers. Many organisations have implemented increased customisation with the expectation of increased demand and profitability. However a critical analysis of the operational aspects involved in customising services reveals that different levels of customisation have distinct operational needs which render the adoption of different levels of customisation more difficult than is indicated in existing literature. Three distinct degrees of customisation are examined in this study. These are standardisation, medium customisation and high customisation. The study puts forward a comprehensive model which provides an insight into the organisational factors which potentially enable or impede an organisation in introducing different levels of customisation. This model builds on previous studies of factors which impact on the ability of an organisation to deliver customised services. Factors which are included in this model are: (a) the level and type of knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) held by employees involved in designing and delivering services (b) the degree of information distribution and exchange between employees and (c) goal clarity for staff involved in delivering the service. Initial case studies conducted in six organisations and a subsequent quantitative study which elicited 101 responses from 21 organisations, revealed that each level of customisation held a distinct configuration of these operational factors. Organisations offering high customisation were characterised by a low degree of information distribution and exchange between employees, a high level of KSA's about the service being provided and low goal clarity for service staff. Organisations offering medium customisation were characterised by a high degree of information distribution and exchange between employees, a moderate level of KSA's about the service being provided and relatively high goal clarity for staff. Organisations offering standardised services were characterised by a low degree of information distribution and exchange between employees, a low level of KSA's required about the service being provided and high goal clarity for staff. By examining the relationship between customisation and the identified operational implications, the study allows us to piece together a multi-faceted viewpoint of the same broad issue, which is answered by the overarching question 'how are organisations enabled to provide different levels of customisation'? This study therefore provides us with a well-rounded insight as to how and why organisations can effectively implement different levels of service customisation.

Nas ultimas décadas, houve um aumento na diversidade do perfil dos moradores bem como nos seus requisito específicos em decorrência de mudanças no estilo de vida contemporâneo. Tais mudanças vem tornando a provisão tradicional de habitações padronizadas inadequadas e demandam o desenvolvimento de estratégias de customização capazes de responder aos requisitos específicos dos moradores. Neste contexto, a abordagem da customização em massa (CM) e conceitos relacionados pode potencialmente aumento o valor do produto habitacional através do atendimento dos requisitos específicos do moradores. Apesar disto, a literatura é ainda limitada em termos de estudos que auxiliem organizações a desenvolver estratégias de customização, especialmente no setor habitacional. Visando responder este problema de pesquisa, esta investigação adota a abordagem da design science. Esta abordagem tem por objetivo desenvolver soluções (artefatos, modelos, software, entre outros) que resolvam problemas práticos e ao mesmo tempo tenham potencial para uma contribuição teórica. A solução desenvolvida nesta pesquisa é um modelo conceitual com categorias de decisão para definição de estratégias de customização no contexto habitacional. O modelo contém dez categorias de decisão, que definem o escopo de uma estratégia de customização e abordam aspectos relacionados a interface com o cliente, design do produto, e operações. Outros resultados da pesquisa, além deste modelo, incluem implementações (operacionalizações que demonstram que a solução funciona), avaliação da utilidade da solução, e avaliação da contribuição teórica da solução. O processo de pesquisa envolveu etapas chave da design science: encontrar um problema prático e com potencial para contribuição teórica, obter um entendimento deste problema, desenvolver uma solução, testar a solução, avaliando sua utilidade, e avaliar a contribuição teórica desta solução. Quatro estudos de caso com organizações envolvidas no setor da construção habitacional (no Brasil e no Reino Unido) também foram desenvolvidos. Em termos da contribuição teórica do modelo, algumas categorias (classes de itens, combinações de módulos, unidades de customização, e sequências de configuração) foram desenvolvidas com base em dados empíricos e constituem nova conceitualizações relacionadas a abordagem da CM que podem ser usadas no desenvolvimento de estratégias de customização. Outras categorias (espaço de solução, interface entre módulos, ponto de entrada do pedido, tipos de customização, e abordagens de visualização) baseiam-se em conceitos já disponíveis na literatura. A contribuição destas categorias é adaptar tais conceitos, através da proposição de constructos, visando facilitar a aplicação dos mesmos na definição de estratégias de customização. / There has been an increasing diversity on dwellers profiles and on their requirements in the last few decades, due to major changes in contemporary lifestyles. Such changes are making the traditional provision of standardised houses inadequate, requiring the development of new strategies able to provide customised dwellings. In this context, the application of the mass customisation (MC) approach and related concepts can potentially increase the value of housing through the fulfilling of the specific requirements of dwellers. In spite of that, the literature on the MC approach is limited in providing guidance to organisations in developing customisation strategies, particularly in the house-building sector. In order to address such a problem, a design science approach is adopted in this investigation. Such an approach deals with the construction of solutions (artefact, models, software, among other) for problems with practical relevance and potential for theoretical contribution. The solution devised in this investigation is a conceptual framework to be used by organisations of the house-building sector in defining customisation strategies. The framework entails ten decision categories that define the scope of a customisation strategy and also address some aspects of the clients’ interfaces, product design, and operations areas. Other outputs of this research include (i) instantiations (implementations that demonstrate that the solution works), (ii) evaluation of the solution utility, and (iii) evaluation of the theoretical contribution of the solution. The research process undertaken involved keys steps of the design science approach: find a practical problem with potential for a theoretical contribution, obtain an understanding of such a problem, develop a solution, test the solution and evaluate its utility, and assess the theoretical contribution of the solution. Four case studies with organisations (in Brazil and in the U.K.) of the house-building sector were also carried out and were particularly important in the solution devising and solution testing steps. In terms of theoretical contribution of the solution, some of the categories developed (classes of items, module combinations, customisation units, and configuration sequence) are grounded on empirical data and provide new conceptualisations related to the MC approach and which can be used in defining customisation strategies. Other categories (solution space, modules, module interfaces, order penetration point, types of customisation, and visualisation approaches) rely on existing concepts and underpinnings available on the literature on the MC approach. The main contribution of those categories is to adapt such concepts by proposing operational constructs, enabling such knowledge to be more applicable in devising customisation strategies.

Nas ultimas décadas, houve um aumento na diversidade do perfil dos moradores bem como nos seus requisito específicos em decorrência de mudanças no estilo de vida contemporâneo. Tais mudanças vem tornando a provisão tradicional de habitações padronizadas inadequadas e demandam o desenvolvimento de estratégias de customização capazes de responder aos requisitos específicos dos moradores. Neste contexto, a abordagem da customização em massa (CM) e conceitos relacionados pode potencialmente aumento o valor do produto habitacional através do atendimento dos requisitos específicos do moradores. Apesar disto, a literatura é ainda limitada em termos de estudos que auxiliem organizações a desenvolver estratégias de customização, especialmente no setor habitacional. Visando responder este problema de pesquisa, esta investigação adota a abordagem da design science. Esta abordagem tem por objetivo desenvolver soluções (artefatos, modelos, software, entre outros) que resolvam problemas práticos e ao mesmo tempo tenham potencial para uma contribuição teórica. A solução desenvolvida nesta pesquisa é um modelo conceitual com categorias de decisão para definição de estratégias de customização no contexto habitacional. O modelo contém dez categorias de decisão, que definem o escopo de uma estratégia de customização e abordam aspectos relacionados a interface com o cliente, design do produto, e operações. Outros resultados da pesquisa, além deste modelo, incluem implementações (operacionalizações que demonstram que a solução funciona), avaliação da utilidade da solução, e avaliação da contribuição teórica da solução. O processo de pesquisa envolveu etapas chave da design science: encontrar um problema prático e com potencial para contribuição teórica, obter um entendimento deste problema, desenvolver uma solução, testar a solução, avaliando sua utilidade, e avaliar a contribuição teórica desta solução. Quatro estudos de caso com organizações envolvidas no setor da construção habitacional (no Brasil e no Reino Unido) também foram desenvolvidos. Em termos da contribuição teórica do modelo, algumas categorias (classes de itens, combinações de módulos, unidades de customização, e sequências de configuração) foram desenvolvidas com base em dados empíricos e constituem nova conceitualizações relacionadas a abordagem da CM que podem ser usadas no desenvolvimento de estratégias de customização. Outras categorias (espaço de solução, interface entre módulos, ponto de entrada do pedido, tipos de customização, e abordagens de visualização) baseiam-se em conceitos já disponíveis na literatura. A contribuição destas categorias é adaptar tais conceitos, através da proposição de constructos, visando facilitar a aplicação dos mesmos na definição de estratégias de customização. / There has been an increasing diversity on dwellers profiles and on their requirements in the last few decades, due to major changes in contemporary lifestyles. Such changes are making the traditional provision of standardised houses inadequate, requiring the development of new strategies able to provide customised dwellings. In this context, the application of the mass customisation (MC) approach and related concepts can potentially increase the value of housing through the fulfilling of the specific requirements of dwellers. In spite of that, the literature on the MC approach is limited in providing guidance to organisations in developing customisation strategies, particularly in the house-building sector. In order to address such a problem, a design science approach is adopted in this investigation. Such an approach deals with the construction of solutions (artefact, models, software, among other) for problems with practical relevance and potential for theoretical contribution. The solution devised in this investigation is a conceptual framework to be used by organisations of the house-building sector in defining customisation strategies. The framework entails ten decision categories that define the scope of a customisation strategy and also address some aspects of the clients’ interfaces, product design, and operations areas. Other outputs of this research include (i) instantiations (implementations that demonstrate that the solution works), (ii) evaluation of the solution utility, and (iii) evaluation of the theoretical contribution of the solution. The research process undertaken involved keys steps of the design science approach: find a practical problem with potential for a theoretical contribution, obtain an understanding of such a problem, develop a solution, test the solution and evaluate its utility, and assess the theoretical contribution of the solution. Four case studies with organisations (in Brazil and in the U.K.) of the house-building sector were also carried out and were particularly important in the solution devising and solution testing steps. In terms of theoretical contribution of the solution, some of the categories developed (classes of items, module combinations, customisation units, and configuration sequence) are grounded on empirical data and provide new conceptualisations related to the MC approach and which can be used in defining customisation strategies. Other categories (solution space, modules, module interfaces, order penetration point, types of customisation, and visualisation approaches) rely on existing concepts and underpinnings available on the literature on the MC approach. The main contribution of those categories is to adapt such concepts by proposing operational constructs, enabling such knowledge to be more applicable in devising customisation strategies.

This thesis report has been written for the Innovation in Business, Engineering, and Design master’s program (specialization in design) at Linnaeus University in Växjö, Sweden, in collaboration with IKEA, a furniture company in Älmhult, Sweden.  This report is about finding form for customization to contribute to adapting cultures into product development. IKEA is iconic for Swedish design; however, it is a global company with customers all around the world. The research explores how IKEA can maintain its strong Swedish identity while inviting in different cultural influences. It decodes how cultural elements are integrated within the homes of people living away from their home countries.  A line of customized products was designed and developed with Ukrainian-influenced cultural values through form, colour, and pattern. Although the project was done through the lens of Ukrainian culture, the ideation behind the product development adaptability can be applied to any culture. The products bring together an understanding of product use and performance, as well as cultural traditions in the home.

Product customisation has always been a regular practice as a form of self or group identification. Previous studies have demonstrated that when investing time and effort to customise a product, an emotional attachment to that product develops. Since the 1980s, new technologies in design, manufacturing and communications have facilitated customisation practices for mass manufacturers as well as for individual consumers. For example, computer algorithms can now automate customisation (i.e. individualise), meaning that the investment of time and effort can be significantly lower than in other customisation processes. Such novel automated practices have, however, not considered the effects on emotional attachment to products, which occurs when the consumer personally engages in the process. This research investigates individualisation as a form of customisation by looking at the relationship between an individualised product and the consumers’ attribution of value and emotional attachment to the end result. This was achieved through a mixed methods approach: following a literature review, in-depth interviews, observation and experiments were carried out. Four pilot studies were conducted, involving 42 respondents (designers, company directors, and consumers). The main study engaged a further 44 respondents, profiled as one of two types of consumers depending on their critical engagement with customisation processes, namely Active Consumers (AC) that Passive Consumers (PC). Data was collected through five Action Research cycles and incorporated key features of Design-Based Research. It was then processed, coded and analysed using thematic analysis. This study makes contributions to knowledge in the area of product customisation and individualisation, as well as in the research methods developed, applied and refined over the four pilot iterations and in the main study. Results suggest that despite limiting freedom of choice, individualisation is a valuable approach to product customisation, particularly for PCs willing to relinquish part of the decision making to an automated process, in order to obtain a customised and unique design. ACs, on the other hand, value their freedom to customise their own products and see individualisation as a limitation to the customisation experience and as a hindrance to developing emotional attachment to the product. These findings have the potential to inform entrepreneurs’ and designers’ decisions to better understand and exploit the benefits associated to individualisation processes. Offering specific consumer groups opportunities to engage with the individualisation process can trigger a strong emotional product attachment and potentially generate new business opportunities.

This research investigates the potential of the general public to actively design their own products and let consumers either manufacture by themselves or send the files to manufacturers to be produced. This approach anticipates the rapid growth of fabrication technology, particularly in Additive Manufacturing (AM)/3D printing. Recent developments in the field of AM/3D printing have led to renewed interest in how to manufacture customised products and in a way that will allow consumers to create bespoke products more easily. These technologies can enhance the understanding of non-technology compliant consumers and bring the manufacturing process closer to them. Consequently, to make AM/3D printing more accessible and easier to employ by the general public, design aspects need to be developed to be as simple to operate in the same manner as AM/3D printing technologies. These technologies will then attract consumers who want to produce Do-It-Yourself (DIY) products. This study suggests a Computer-aided Consumer Design (CaCODE) system as user- friendly design software to simplify the Computer Aided Design (CAD) stages that are required to produce 3D model data required by the AM/3D printing process. This software will be an easy-to-operate design system where consumers interact with parameters of designed forms easily instead of operating conventional CAD. In addition, this research investigates the current capabilities of AM/3D printing technologies in producing consumer products. To uncover the potential of consumer-led design and manufacturing, CaCODE has been developed for consumer evaluation, which is needed to measure the appropriateness of the tool. In addition, a range of consumer product samples as pens has been built using a range of different materials, AM/3D printing technologies and additional post-processing methods. This was undertaken to evaluate consumer acceptance of the AM/3D printed product based on products perceived quality. Forty non-designer participants, 50% male and 50% female, from 5 to 64 years old, 6-7 participants per ten-year age groups in 6 groups, were recruited. The results indicated that 75% of the participants would like to design their own product using consumer design software. The study compared how consumers interacted with the 3D model to manipulate the shape by using two methods: indirect manipulation (sliders) and direct manipulation (drag points). The majority of the participants would prefer to use the direct manipulation because they felt it was easy to use and enabled them to enjoy the design process. The study concluded that the direct manipulation was more acceptable because it enabled users to touch the digital product and manipulate it, making it more intuitive and natural. The research finds that there is a potential for consumers to design a product using user-friendly design tools. Using these findings, a consumer design tool concept was created for future development. The study indicated that 53% of participants would like to use products made by AM/3D printing although they still wanted the surface finish of injection moulded parts. However, the AM/3D printing has advantages that can fulfil the participants preference such as multi-materials from the material jetting method and it is proved that additional post-processing can increase participants acceptance level.

Many organisations aim to grow and increase their profitability, yet not many start-ups manage to survive beyond birth. The transformation into a well-established enterprise is generally seen as a big obstacle to tackle. Further on, project based organisations faces several challenges during scale-up such as how to maintain customisation within customer projects and how to keep up across-functional integration. This thesis addresses how a start-up manufacturing enterprise can scale-up its customer project management. Accordingly, the aim of this thesis is to get a better understanding of the difference between a start-up and an incumbent enterprise, and in turn highlight how to maintain customised operations in a project based organisation. The basis for this thesis is a case study conducted at Northvolt, a lithium-ion battery manufacturing enterprise located in Sweden. The outcome was performed through a collaboration with Northvolt’s customer project management department, and an analysis of conducted best-practice interviews together with a literature review. The empirical findings can be summarised in the following: • First, a growing enterprise needs to implement industry quality standards through the identification of standardised modules. Likewise, an enterprise needs to find which layers to keep flexible and create an environment that enables customisation. • Second, the dynamics within organisational structures can be illustrated as a cradle moving back and forth. An external platform enables new product development. • Third, cross-functional integration is identified as a corner stone for scale-up, but also vital to maintain new product development and hence customisation. • Fourth, pushing down the ownership together with clear targets and milestones is crucial to facilitate a mindset that motivates the workforce in growing sustainable. At the end, this thesis provides Northvolt with some key aspects to have in mind while scaling-up their customer project management, and highlights the conceptual contribution. / En strävan efter uppskalning är vanligt förekommande för företag inom tillverkningsindustrin. Däremot är det inte en självklarhet att transformera ett start-up till ett väletablerat företag. Att omstrukturera verksamheten till en framstående och välfungerande organisation uppfattas i regel som en svår uppgift. Projektbaserade organisationer möter allt som oftast flera utmaningar under uppskalning, sa som att bibehålla kundanpassning inom kundprojekt samt att den tvärfunktionell kommunikationen ofta blir lidande. Den har uppsatsen adresserar huruvida ett tillverkningsföretag, som befinner sig inom start-upstadiet, kan skala upp sin kundprojektavdelning. Därmed syftar denna uppsats till är att ge en ökad förståelse av vad som skiljer ett start-up från ett väletablerat företag, samt identifiera huruvida det går att bibehålla kundanpassning inom växande projektbaserade organisationer. Grunden till denna uppsats är en fallstudie genomförd tillsammans med Northvolt, ett batteritillverkande företag baserat i Sverige. Resultatet är baserat på best-practice intervjuer samt en litteraturstudie, varav analysen ar utförd i samarbete med Nortvhvolts kundprojekt avdelning. Det empiriska resultatet kan kort sammanfattas enligt: • För det första, ett växande företag behöver implementera branschspecifika kvalitetsstandarder genom att identifiera vad som kan standardiseras. Likaså behöver ett företag specificera vilka delar som kan hållas flexibla för kundanpassning. • För det andra, en organisation pendlar allt som oftast mellan olika strukturer. Genom att skapa en extern plattform kan ett företag generera produktutveckling i allt högre grad. • För det tredje, tvärfunktionell kommunikation är en grundsten för uppskalning, men även en nyckel för att generera produktutveckling och därmed kundanpassning. • För det fjärde, att trycka ansvaret längre ner i hierarkin tillsammans med att implementera tydliga mål och hållpunkter utgör en grund för att ge arbetskraften den motivation som krävs för att växa hållbart. Till sist bidrar denna uppsats med några applicerbara verktyg som Northvolt kan ta tillhanda för att skala upp deras kundprojekt avdelning, och slutligen en redovisning av det konceptuella bidraget inom uppskalning av projektbaserade organisationer.

nternational market entry strategies gained increasing importance due to globalisation. Companies became multinationals. Therefore, new challenges arose due to different market and customer requirements. One topic, which gained importance in B2B context, is customer value. Customer value can be defined as the perceived benefits a company delivers its customers in comparison to the perceived expenses. Nevertheless, no uniform definition exist. In addition to that, if there is a direct connection between B2B customer value and international market entry strategies have not been investigated yet. Therefore, this thesisprojectdeals with the influence of B2B customer value on international market entry strategies. To determine the link, following research question guides this thesis: How does B2B customer value influence international market entry strategies in Northern Europe?The research isnot only focused on Northern Europe but also on the data centre segment. The investigated countries are Norway, Ireland, UK and Finland. These countries are highly interesting for the commission partnerdue to market developments and mega trends. Furthermore, the commission partneris represented by local subsidiaries in the four countries of interest. In order to answer the research question, deep insights are generated via semi-structured interviews. Three customer groups are investigated: Data centre operator as well as owner, constructors including panel builder and system integrators as well as design consultants. The interviews are conducted either face-to-face or if necessary via telephone in the four countries of interest. The interviews include questions about B2B relationships, brand and marketing.If culture influences B2B customer value is investigated indirectly bythe questions on B2B relationship.Market intelligence questions are added in order to create a deeper understanding of the market.Furthermore, these insights also help to interpret the answers of customers. Due to the interviews, a picture of the B2B customer value in Northern Europe is created. Northern European customers value reliable suppliers who can offer quality products as well as solutions. In addition to that, the importance of global brands andmarketing of competences is determined. Due to combining the findings with the cultural dimensions of Hofstede, it is concluded that customer value differs between other countries.Hence, customer value influences international market strategies, as different customer value require distinct international market entry strategies.

Abstract Historically, design has been associated with unique, handmade products and utilities; however, the advent of the Industrial Revolution introduced the system of mass-production, which generated a recurrent and ambivalent problem: the lack of customized products. Generative Design redresses this issue. This new design method is based on a system of rules, which produce a design that maintains individuality and character. Generative Design takes one away from natural elements and the distinct personalities of designs and products. Forming a design out of certain algorithms and sets of rules constricts it to artificiality and separates it from the natural. Hence, Generative Design has mostly developed without paying close attention to natural processes and human interaction. Based on the research, an attempt has been made to bridge the gap between the artificial and the natural, instituting a dialogue between the two. This study has brought together the two concepts of Generative Design and mass production to produce a series of designs which can be mass-produced yet remain unique because of their connection to the natural world.