Aksenova, G and Oti-Sarpong, K (2024) Beyond "platformania" in the construction sector: Conceptualisations and implications of product platformisation in the UK. Construction Management and Economics, 42(3), pp. 229-250. ISSN 01446193
Abstract
The UK government’s recent transformation agenda focused on a Platform approach to Design for Manufacture and Assembly (P-DfMA) has attracted interest from the construction sector. A closer examination of the P-DfMA agenda raises questions about its origins and implications. This paper critically analyses grey sector literature, policy and government-supported reports on P-DfMA to discuss how it has been conceptualised, and the implications for the growing “platformania” in the UK construction sector. To this end, firstly platform conceptualisations are synthesised, and distinctions between product platforms and DfMA are highlighted. Secondly, based on an analysis of policy and related documents, five areas critical to driving the platformisation agenda are identified: Product platform development; digitally designed components; platform leadership and ownership; platform governance; and business models. The critical analysis suggests that product platformisation in the UK construction sector requires two distinct types of platform approaches: the product platform; and a transaction platform or a marketplace for buyers and sellers of the components of product platforms. The implications of both for the strategic organising of construction firms, and the five areas identified, are discussed and synthesised with the evidence from management literature. Practical and policy implications for sector stakeholders are outlined, along with questions for future research on product platformisation in the construction sector.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | product platforms; policy; construction sector; transformation; critical analysis; design for assembly; construction companies; design for manufacture |
| Index terms: | construction firm, construction company, evidence, documents, construction sector, product platform, platform, governance, design for manufacture and assembly, transformation, business model, ownership, design for manufacture, policy implication |
| Subjects: | evaluation and assessment methods, organization, policy studies, business, innovation and technology management, manufacturing engineering, economics, digital design, professional development, industry analysis |
| Topics: | Governance, Business Strategy, Information Management, Engineering Principles, Research Practice, Organizational Design, Digital Applications |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTA |
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