Investigating how system thinking can assist with the adoption of additive manufacturing in spare part provisioning systems

Abstract

Although the adoption of Additive Manufacturing (AM) in various industries is accelerating, the adoption of AM for industrial spare parts provisioning remains slow. AM is indicated as one of the most disruptive innovations of Industry 4.0 (4IR). Innovation is defined as disruptive when it changes the way the current industry operates. This disruption challenges the status-quo and the understanding of the risks and paradigms involved when adopting this innovation. Uncertainty can cause the innovation to be perceived as complex and can prolong the adoption of this technology. A paradigm shift from linear models to integrated, networked non-linear models will be required for adoption of AM produced spare parts and provisioning system evolution. This paper will attempt to identify how Systems Thinking can assist organisations that would like to adopt AM for spare part provisioning to resolve the above-mentioned reasons and increase the adoption of AM for spare part provisioning.