Metla Project 3502

Business networks, innovation and new product and service concepts in wood products industries of the building construction value chain

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Duration: 2008-2011   Keywords: business concept, business economics, business network, competition, customer value, customer-orientedness, demand, industrial policy, innovation, innovation policy, innovation process, marketing, markets, product concept, regional economy, regional policy, service concept, social economics, value chain, wood products, wooden building construction
Research Programme: Renewing wood product value chains and timber procurement solutions

Objectives

On a global scale there is a stagnating market for basic wood products to be expected in the future. Intensifying price competition in markets for bulk products will make manufacturing and export to be a hardly unprofitable business. There are, however, market opportunities for wood products offered by the increasing demand for family homes, as well as the new consciousness of the benefits of wood for the evironment and human welfare. There is pressure exerted on the way how to do business by the consolidation of the distribution chain and social factors shifting and fragmentating consumer behaviour that is manifestated in the demand for mass-customized products and services. In the building construction market customer-based market segmentation and customer-oriented business models are the cornerstones of the wood products industry’s growth strategy. In the new concept for doing business the importance of the capability to provide new customer value, to quickly respond to customer needs and to continuously improve process efficiency is stressed. Besides efficient manufacturing and logistics processes flexible manufacturing systems and customer-supplier interaction in innovation processes are key factors for achieving competitive advantage. Participating in collaborative business networks provide SMEs an opportunity to exploit the economies of specialization and to get access to collective structures and complementary competencies. Collaborative networking models cover actors alligned vertically along as well as horizontally across value chains.

The objectives of the project are, first, to analyse the changing needs and the purchasing motives of customers and to explore and develop new customer-based product and service concepts for the Finnish wood products industries. The project involves detailed surveys of companies, industrial cutomers and consumers in the wood products value chain. The objective of the project is further to start research activities in developing measuring and analysing procedures applicable for describing and assessing innovation processes in wood products value chains related to building construction, collaborative business networks of SMEs and for measuring related impacts on capacity building and business success as well as social impacts on income, employment etc.

Project leader: Rimmler, Thomas
The Finnish Forest Research Institute, Joensuu Office, PL 68, FI-80101 JOENSUU, FINLAND
Phone: +358 10 211 5349 Telefax: +358 10 211 2103
E-mail: thomas.rimmler@metla.fi

Other researchers: Enroth, Raija-Riitta (2008), Lähtinen, Katja (2009), Mantere, Juha (2011), Nummelin, Tuomas, VA (2011), Ollonqvist, Pekka, JO (2008-11), Perttula, Sini (2011), Riala, Maria, VA (2010-11), Räty, Tarmo, JO (2009-11), Toropainen, Mikko, JO (2008-11), Valtonen, Kari, VA (2008-09)


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Updated 10.02.2012
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