Advances in designing product-service systems

Product-Service Systems (PSS) have emerged as a class of hybrid business models that have evolved particular relevance to enterprises operating in a resource-efficient, circular economy (environments that places an emphasis on sustainable, collaborative, system-centric perspectives). More than a decade of PSS research has produced some significant contributions, especially in the area of business models, and performance measures associated with delivering successful PSS solutions. This paper reviews recent advances in the existing literature and assesses the essential components required for designing a sustainable PSS. The vital components identified by this analysis of the literature are: PSS ontology, requirements definition, design process support for generating PSS concepts, and the evaluation of PSS concepts. The review highlights the state-of-the-art PSS research in these four areas, and discusses research gaps and directions for future research.