Vogelius, P; Forman, M; Haugbølle, K and Storgaard, K (2009) Innovation in the kitchen line of business: Users, configuration and context. In: Dainty, A R J (ed.) Proceedings of 25th Annual ARCOM Conference, 7-9 September 2009, Nottingham, UK.
Abstract
Buildings and the properties of specific rooms the context - call for considerations on how user involvement in the design process has to be accommodated in the strategic company set-up. This case study focuses on the handling of kitchen layouts by a major supplier, which includes a need for a definition of the expert's role in the sales organisation on the one hand and different segments of users on the other. In industrialised construction, ICT-based configurators are often highly dependent on the non-fixed and fluid nature of the construction processes. Consequently, configurators call for considerations on how to adjust the boundaries for the users' decisions, the characteristics of the product and firm strategies e.g. how the sale is organised. In the present case, two main questions seem to be urgent. First, is users' room for action increased (empowerment) or will experts play a more pronounced role? Second, the configurator makes a strategic dilemma topical - should the 'do it yourself' market in the future have high priority, or should the existing model with its extensive service and a strong sales organisation (with a network of sales offices) remain untouched? The theoretical part will draw on discussions on user-driven innovation and on theories for innovation in construction. The empirical part of the research is based on a qualitative case study, where a major Scandinavian supplier of kitchen elements sets up an internet-based design configurator.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | user; innovation; market; configurator; design; inter-organisational relations |
| Index terms: | do-it-yourself, empowerment, construction process, industrialized construction, internet, design process, configuration, strategy, case study, boundaries |
| Subjects: | design practice, computing systems, data collection methods, building construction, property law, design methods, construction type, management, systems engineering |
| Topics: | Engineering Principles, Design Practice, Research Practice, Digital Applications, Site Management, Business Strategy, Legal Issues, Human Resources, Construction Technology |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here