From component to system solution supplier: Strategic warranty management as a key to efficient integrated product/service engineering

As hardening competition in industry pushes manufacturing companies to deliver increased customer value, communication with the customer during the use phase becomes paramount. This paper investigates whether warranty management could be a strategic tool for improved integrated product/service engineering (IPSE) as a firm moves from component to system solution supplier. The research methodology applied as a multiple case study, with four suppliers as focal firms, where buyer-supplier relationships were investigated from a supplier perspective. Results show that advanced warranty management, implemented as a strategic tool, can be a key to efficient IPSE. (C) 2010 CIRP.