Completed Clean Energy Economics & Business

Understanding how servitization can impact UK economic productivity and environmental performance

Funder UKRI
Recipient organisation Aston University
Funding £1.5M
Period Jun 2022 — Dec 2025

In plain English

AI plain-English summary

UK manufacturers are shifting from selling products to selling outcomes—jet engines sold by the hour, not by the unit—and this programme will work out whether that shift actually boosts productivity and cuts emissions. The problem is that servitization, as this business model is called, has been promoted as a win-win for the economy and the environment, but the evidence is patchy. No one has systematically tested whether it improves productivity or reduces carbon footprints, or under what conditions it backfires. This programme fills that gap by building a theoretical foundation, then testing it with real industrial partners already adopting servitization. If the research succeeds, it will produce econometric models that quantify the actual impacts on productivity and environmental performance, and identify scenarios that maximise benefits for the UK. The deliverables include open-access reference models that firms can use directly to reshape their practices, plus policy papers and workshops aimed at influencing industrial strategy around decarbonisation. The result could be a more competitive, less carbon-intensive manufacturing sector—not through regulation, but through better business models.

View original technical description
This programme will establish evidence on how servitization impacts both economic productivity and environmental performance (i.e., net-zero and the green economy), and use these insights to influence industrial policy and practice in the UK. It will explain whether, when, and how to encourage the adoption of servitization to maximise the economic and societal impact. The programme will begin by (i) developing a strong theoretical foundation based on prior research on business model innovation and value networks, then (ii) engage in theory building through collaborations with a range of industrial partners that are adopting servitization. These insights will (iii) enable econometric models to quantify impacts on productivity and environmental performances, and through experimentations with these (iv) identify a range of scenarios to maximise the benefits to the UK. Deliverables will include (i) an open-access repository for the scientific, policy, and practice communities, (ii) a set of reference models which will allow firms to translate our findings quickly to shape industrial best practices, and (iii) a series of policy and practice papers and associated workshops and events to influence decisions around industrial policy associated with productivity and de-carbonisation.

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Researchers

Ali Ziaee Bigdeli (Co-Investigator)Andreas Schroeder (Co-Investigator)Giuliana Battisti (Co-Investigator)Mirjam Roeder (Co-Investigator)Nigel Driffield (Co-Investigator)Shereen Fouad (Co-Investigator)Tim Baines (Principal Investigator)

Related Research

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Original classification

Research Grant

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