Strategic perspectives on modularity

Florent Catel () and Jean-Charles Monateri ()
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Florent Catel: LEPII - Laboratoire d'Economie de la Production et de l'Intégration Internationale - UPMF - Université Pierre Mendès France - Grenoble 2 - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Jean-Charles Monateri: LEPII - Laboratoire d'Economie de la Production et de l'Intégration Internationale - UPMF - Université Pierre Mendès France - Grenoble 2 - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

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Abstract: In this paper we argue that the debate on modularity has come to a point where a consensus is slowly emerging. However, we also contend that this consensus is clearly technology driven. In particular, no room is left for firm strategies. Typically, technology is considered as an exogenous variable to which firms have no choices but to adapt. Taking a slightly different perspective, our main objective is to offer a conceptual framework enabling to shed light on the role of corporate strategies in the process of modularization. From interviews with academic design engineers, we show that firms often consider product architecture as a critical variable to fit their strategic requirements. Based on design sciences, we build an original approach to product modularity. This approach, which leaves an important space for firms' strategic choices, proves also to seize a large part of the industrial reality of modularity. Our framework, which is a first step towards the consideration of strategies within the framework of modularity, gives an account for the diversity of industrial logics related to product modularization.

Keywords: innovation; réseau; production industrielle; produit; stratégie de l'entreprise; organisation de l'entreprise; organisation industrielle; modularité; product modularity; corporate strategy; technological determinism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2005
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-00097733v1
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Published in DRUID Tenth Anniversary Summer Conference 2005 "Dynamics of industry and innovation : organizations, networks and systems", Copenhaguen Business School, Copenhagen, 27-29 juin 2005, 2005, pp.32

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