A further characteristic of MC that can be derived from the various definitions in Table 1, is the order and place in the production process of the two different capabilities that were just described. Pine et al. refers to the practice that in MC the actual manufacturing of the product takes place in response to a particular elicitation of a customer’s needs. This implies two things. The first is that in the sequence of operations the production, of the end product and not necessarily of its intermediate modular components, will follow the elicitation process in order. And secondly, the production will be dependent on the preceding elicitation of a particular individual customer’s need that serves as an direct input for the products exact specification during the production phase. This notion was also present in Duray & Milligan where they state that “the products are uniquely produced for each customer which requires that the customer be involved in product design at some point”, which thus combines both sequence and dependence. Also, Von Hippel emphasized this order when he said that the collection of unique customer information is followed by “the use of that information to create a customized design; and conversion of the design into a form suitable for driving a given manufacturer’s computerized production machinery or service delivery system”. In conclusion, the definition that will be used is a combination of the goal or value of MC, it’s two distinct critical capabilities and the sequence of these two in the production process for a particular product for an individual and specific customer. Therefore, in the remainder of this thesis the following description of MC will be used: Mass Customization is the delivery of superior customer value through the better adaptation of a products features to the heterogeneous needs of a customer compared to standard mass produced ones made possible by 1) the application of new technology and management methods that enables a modular product architecture through which flexible and stable processes, quick responsiveness and economies of scale can be achieved that allows for a price level that is comparable – and often better – to those of mass produced alternatives and does not imply a switch in an upper market segment, and which is preceded and based on 2) the elicitation of information on the unique needs of a particular customer through a process of co-creation by some form of customer-company interaction that might result in an integration of the customer in the value creation process of the manufacturer and a possible learning
A further characteristic of MC that can be derived from the various definitions in Table 1, is the order and place in the production process of the two different capabilities that were just described. Pine et al. refers to the practice that in MC the actual manufacturing of the product takes place in response to a particular elicitation of a customer’s needs. This implies two things. The first is that in the sequence of operations the production, of the end product and not necessarily of its intermediate modular components, will follow the elicitation process in order. And secondly, the production will be dependent on the preceding elicitation of a particular individual customer’s need that serves as an direct input for the products exact specification during the production phase. This notion was also present in Duray & Milligan where they state that “the products are uniquely produced for each customer which requires that the customer be involved in product design at some point”, which thus combines both sequence and dependence. Also, Von Hippel emphasized this order when he said that the collection of unique customer information is followed by “the use of that information to create a customized design; and conversion of the design into a form suitable for driving a given manufacturer’s computerized production machinery or service delivery system”. In conclusion, the definition that will be used is a combination of the goal or value of MC, it’s two distinct critical capabilities and the sequence of these two in the production process for a particular product for an individual and specific customer. Therefore, in the remainder of this thesis the following description of MC will be used: Mass Customization is the delivery of superior customer value through the better adaptation of a products features to the heterogeneous needs of a customer compared to standard mass produced ones made possible by 1) the application of new technology and management methods that enables a modular product architecture through which flexible and stable processes, quick responsiveness and economies of scale can be achieved that allows for a price level that is comparable – and often better – to those of mass produced alternatives and does not imply a switch in an upper market segment, and which is preceded and based on 2) the elicitation of information on the unique needs of a particular customer through a process of co-creation by some form of customer-company interaction that might result in an integration of the customer in the value creation process of the manufacturer and a possible learning