Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550

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Journal of Cleaner Production

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jclepro

Upgradable PSS: Clarifying a new concept of sustainable

consumption/production based on upgradablility
Olivier Pialot a, *, Dominique Millet a, b, Justine Bisiaux c
a
QUARTZ, Supmeca, France
b
COSMER, Universit

e de Toulon, France
c
COSTECH, UTC Compi egne, France

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Confronted with the accelerated product obsolescence and the resulting waste of materials, the concept
Received 4 May 2015 of optimised/increased/hybridised upgradability is considered. In the literature, upgradability is used to
Received in revised form respond to local technical problems (updating norms, update because of a broken component etc.) or as
29 August 2016
an end-of-life option. In our view however, it constitutes the heart of a new and promising paradigm of
Accepted 30 August 2016
Available online 31 August 2016
production/consumption. This paper proposes to consider hybrid systems that are called Upgradable
Product Service System (Up-PSS) combining upgradability with optimised maintenance, with valor-
isation of end-of-life parts and with the servicisation of the offer. The promises of increasing attrac-
Keywords:
Upgradability
tiveness for clients, new businesses for manufacturers and a host of environmental benets make this
Sustainable consumption new concept highly pertinent compared to known models of production/consumption such as rema-
PSS nufacturable products, easily recyclable products, PSS, optimal maintenance products or basic upgrade
products. Moreover, Up-PSS is a new opportunity to switch to offers without ownership transfer that
facilitates the implementation of circular economy. In order to shed light on the eld of Up-PSS and
investigate the boundaries of this new paradigm, three actions are carried out: (1) focus groups with
consumers and workshops with two manufacturers (2) on the upgradability of real products and (3) on
the changes in business models. Our action research approach resulted in clarifying this new concept of
the product by dening key ideas based on three keystones: (i) upgrades should be scheduled according
to regular cycles of successive lines of functional improvements to satisfy the following themes of value
creation: utilitarian, emotional, ethical, and service-oriented. There should also be specic upgrades
chosen from a catalogue; (ii) the effects are strong environmental gains from multiple principles of
rationalisation materials use but also by encouraging users to eco-friendly usage of their products; this is
formalised by an eco-score to which both users and producers are committed. (iii) The above are
accompanied by continuous interaction between clients and manufacturers through a web platform,
offers of upgradable systems that would integrate bundles of services resulting in the system's growing
attractiveness in the eyes of clients. This in turn would set in motion new modes of contracts, offering
manufacturers new and more frequent ways of earning revenue; this would be conditional on setting up
an upgradability support service that would be attractive to clients as well as reorganising the value
chain with the participation of new partners. This transformation of the value network over time implies
developing new development paths for business models to facilitate the transition from current eco-
nomic models centred on material goods to models that are more service oriented.
2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction: from static, passive, throwaway objects to a

new category of sustainable systems with multiple upgrade
cycles

Our society has become more and more preoccupied with

environmental issues. The accelerating rhythm of product renewal
* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: olivier.pialot@supmeca.fr (O. Pialot). results in materials and energy being exploited ever more rapidly.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.08.161
0959-6526/ 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
Today, with an annual consumption of raw materials at about 60
billion tonnes (SERI Research center, 2009), the world's population
consumes about 50% more natural resources than 30 years ago
(Commissariat ge
ne

ral au De

veloppement durable, 2010). In OECD
countries,1 the volume of household waste ows increased by 40%
between 1980 and 1997 (Commission of the European
Communities, 2006).
The current mode of mass consumption and production that is
called the Accelerated Process of Renewal of New Throwaway
Products (APRNTP) is no longer compatible with sustainable
development (World Commission on Environment and
Development, 1987). Finding a solution requires to imagine new
models of production and consumption.
To support the idea of sustainability, another mode of con-
sumption/production could be considered: the Dynamic of
Continuous Upgrades Integrated into Sustainable Products
(DCUISP), in other words a product whose end-of-life would be
projected over a longer term through optimal modularity. With
such products, any technical, functional or visual improvement
could be easily integrated, and could even depend on the
changing needs of each user. The optimisation of modules' lifespan
would rationalise the use of materials and the most efcient
technologies in terms of energy could be put to use at any time. This
ideal picture is however difcult to achieve for many reasons.
Notably, the exible structure it implies could make certain
changes in the modules, but it would be difcult to alter interfaces
between modules or their basic form. Similarly, a system with a
certain size can be hard to miniaturize: downsizing suggests the
design of a system as a whole (Carey et al., 2011). More generally,
changes resulting from breakthroughs of technology or usage are
difcult to anticipate.
Between these two models (no evolution in APRNTP and
continuous evolution in DCUISP), is suggested a middle way that
considers products with certain xed structural characteristics
which discontinuously evolve through the integration of functional
changes one, two, three or even four times during their life.
Firstly, the concept of upgradability (functional improvements
brought to a system over time) is considered as the foundation of a
new paradigm of consumption/production (CP/P) that would
satisfy at the same time the Environmental sustainability notably
due to the rationalisation of materials use over time and the added
value of such systems both for clients and producers.
Secondly, the assumption is made that it is necessary to hy-
bridize (1) various strategies for rationalising materials use and (2)
value creation in order to maximise the potential of upgradable
systems in terms of environmental sustainability and added value.
In this spirit of multi-solutions that are exible over time through
upgrades, it can be considered:
(1) Different strategies for rationalising materials use exist; they
are centred on loops of material ows at end-of-life, the
extension of lifespan or the creation of dematerialised value.
(2) Different strategies of value creation exist, from selling
products to selling services.
The aim of this paper is not to demonstrate the quantitative
superiority of this new mode of CP/P based on upgradability, but to
characterise certain promises, dene a perimeter of success and
clarify certain aspects to show that such a concept is pertinent.
In order to shed light on the potential, the perimeters and some
of the ways of implementing this new paradigm based on up-
gradability (introduced in section 1), Section 2 shows the real need
1
Organisation of Cooperation and Economic Development.
539
for product upgradability, lays out the original positioning, prom-
ises and opportunities of our approach compared to alternative
modes of CP/P proposed in the literature and the key questions
dening the boundaries of upgradable offers. Section 3 presents the
three actions undertaken to determine the characteristics of an
upgradable system: (1) focus groups with consumers and (2)
workshops with two industrial actors on the upgradability of real
products and (3) on the change in business models to understand
their different points of view. Section 4 highlights what is learnt
from the results, leading to a proposal for three keystone principles
of our new concept of CP/P based on upgrades (section 5) with a
view to economic growth freed from consumption of resources.
2. Issues about upgradable systems
2.1. Need for upgradable systems
The upgradability of an artefact is dened as an artefact that can
upgrade its functionality during operation (like software) and/or at
remanufacturing stage (Shimomura et al., 1999). Upgradability of-
fers exibility in terms of adapting to change (changing needs,
wear, obsolescence etc.) that is promising for the consumer
(attractiveness and system usability), for industrial actors (business
loyalty) and for the environment. To remain rooted in reality and
take what at this stage is only a theoretical projection further, it is
necessary to conrm the potential need for systems upgradability
in the eld, with the stakeholders involved. A concrete study was
carried out with multi-national (France, Germany and Spain)
viewpoints on a specic type of product: electrical household ap-
pliances (Pialot and Millet, 2014).
The results show:

For the vacuum cleaner and the expresso machine, more than
50% of products are thrown away, even if they still work (Fig. 1:
left). Functional improvements could thus respond to this
dissatisfaction in order to extend product lifetimes.

The problems that lead to end of use are distributed unevenly
(Fig. 1: center). Each of these problems is important in its own
way. The accumulation of problems is an important issue: nearly
50% of products accumulate 3 problems or more (Fig. 1: right).
The concept of integrated functional improvements seems a
good way to counter dissatisfaction as early as possible.
2.2. Towards sustainable Upgradable-PSS, a new paradigm for
consumption/production (CP/P)
The quantitative study showed strong potential for applying the
concept of upgradability. Upgradability must be put into perspec-
tive with new alternative paradigms of CP/P proposed in the liter-
ature, such as Post Mass Production (Umeda et al., 2000) or the
parsimony paradigm (Cucuzzella, 2009). The analysis of these
alternatives shows that they are associated with three main prin-
ciples of rationalisation of materials use (MRPr.) if the ratio value
of the system over Time/Material consumed is considered:
increased Time, Value and Material unchanged (MRPr.1); increased
Value, Time and Material unchanged (MRPr.2); reduction of Ma-
terial consumed, Value and Time unchanged (MRPr.3). Fig. 2 pre-
sents these three principles of rationalisation of materials use and
links each of them with the existing models of CP/P in order to
compare concrete elements.
These different modes of CP/P (Remanufacturing, Recycling,
Maintenance, Upgrading, Product-oriented PSS, PSS related to
continued use and PSS related to intermittent/one-shot use)
materialising the different principles of rationalisation of materials
540 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
use (MRPr.1-Time; MRPr.2-Value; MRPr.3-Material) are character-
ized in Fig. 3, according to the localisation of environmental gains
(green column), potential attractiveness (orange column) in the
eyes of clients and difculties of implementation (grey column).
From the point of view of environmental gain, reductions of
impacts are expected for each of the ve modes of CP/P under re-
view, but their origin differs in terms of the life cycle phase con-
cerned. It should be noted that the gain of a service-based strategy
(based on dematerialisation) be observed more easily by calcu-
lating the amount of material for a comparable price for the client.
From the point of view of attractiveness, remanufacturing,
recycling and object sharing are not attractive for customers
because they do not allow for functional improvements. The
attraction for sharing and in some cases for remanufacturing lies in
a reduced price. For maintenance, attractiveness is related to the
length of time the product continues to perform. The addition or
improvements of functionalities generate more value, whether this
is through upgrading the product or through services made avail-
able (PSS).
At this stage, each mode of CP/P has been considered in an
isolated fashion. Since it is being tried to maximise the potential of
an upgradable system in terms of environmental sustainability and
added value by combining different strategies, it is necessary to
consider mixtures, combining upgradability with remanufactur-
ing/recycling, with maintenance, servicisation or sharing. For each
mix considered in Fig. 4, it can be concluded on the possibility and
interest of a hybrid solution.
Fig. 4 highlights the exibility of upgradability: it not only allows
for hybridisation with all the modes of CP/P under consideration
but also contributes elements that respond to the weaknesses/
limitations of those other modes.
The concept of upgradability makes the product more adaptable
to changing needs, fashions and norms in the use phase and this
contributes to the product's lifetime.
Other hybridizations may have benecial effects. This is for
example the case of the Maintenance and Remanufacturing. Design
efforts for a faster and less expensive maintenance by easy
dismantling facilitate also remanufacturing operations at end of life
of the product. But the hybridisation between usage/result -ori-
ented PSS (which underlies contracts without ownership transfer)
and remanufacturing and/or recycling appears to be a more
attractive option. Indeed, the non-transfer of ownership means that
manufacturer-seller turns itself into product eet manager. Its re-
sponsibility and interest for maximizing end of life of its products
and/or interest to extend the lifetime of its products become an
essential point of its business. Moreover, in this conguration, the
Fig. 1. Results of survey for vacuum cleaner (234 Questionnaires) based on (Pialot and Millet, 2014).
product is systematically retrieved at the end of its life (no collec-
tion problems). In other words, and following the spirit of Tukker,
migrate to functionality economy is a strategic way for the imple-
mentation of the circular economy.
By aiming to maximise the potential of an upgradable system in
terms of environmental sustainability and added value, it is pro-
posed to form hybrid systems called Upgradable PSS (Up-PSS)
combining upgradability with the three following modes of CP/P:
On the use phase:

1) Hybridisation with maintenance allows to adapt to systems
wear and tear and thus in the end, maximises systems' life-
times and performance consistency.

2) Hybridisation with the PSS mode of servicisation increases
the offer's value without adding a lot of material (demateri-
alisation of value by added services)
 For us, beyond dematerialised value brought to the product,
the challenge of this hybridisation is to lead consumers to
switch to offers without ownership transfer, that is to say
towards the sale of services (from Product-oriented Up-PSS
to usage/result-oriented Up-PSS) for the reasons described
above.
On end-of-life/extraction of materials phases:
To achieve maximum environmental performance, the whole of
the life cycle must be taken into account.

3) Hybridisation with remanufacturing and/or recycling allows
(environmental and economic) valorisation of worn modules
and end-of-life products. This is even more so since upgradable
products are easy to dismantle and collection of worn modules
is made easier by the fact that certain actors are already involved
in upgrades integration process.
These Up-PSS are highly promising in terms of environmental
impact and added value. The aggregation of value-creating strate-
gies (addition of services and functional improvements) also lets us
envisage a mass market for Upgradable-PSS that would be inac-
cessible for any of the modes taken in isolation. There is an
increasing design effort involved because of the accumulated
constraints of each mode, but this effort is quite similar to that of
designing the upgrading mode alone.
The promising new mode of CP/P offered by Up-PSS needs to be
further examined in terms of concrete identity markers and dened
in terms of its key notions.
 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550 541

Fig. 2. The 3 principles of rationalising materials use - including the following references : (Gehin et al., 2008; Pigosso et al., 2010; Rose et al., 2002; Ijomah, 2002; Ostlin et al., 2008;
Xing et al., 2003; Umeda et al., 2007; Kondoh et al., 2009; Mont, 2002; Tukker, 2004).

Fig. 3. Comparison of existing modes of consumption/production (CP/P).

2.3. Structural elements of an upgradable system
These Up-PSS raise new questions about the upgradable side
of products. What are the structural elements of such a system?
What types of offer can upgradability propose? How does up-
gradability redene the market relationship between manufacturer
and consumer? This is a new mode of consumption that needs to be
explored. Four key dimensions/questions are distinguished to
structure these ideas.

Which upgrades should be integrated?
542 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
Fig. 4. Possibilities for hybridisation with a CP/P mode of upgradability - including the following references: (Tchertchian and Millet, 2012; Tchertchian et al., 2010; Pialot et al.,
2012).
A central question is the identity, shape and reason for the up-
grades integrated to an Upgradable-PSS over time. In the literature,
for an upgradable system based on a modular structure, Umeda
distinguishes functional upgrades and parametric upgrades: func-
tional upgrading, which adds or removes functions such as adding
the two-sided copying function to a photocopier, and parametric
upgrading, which changes the performance of a product such as
increasing copying speed. (Umeda et al., 2005). With regard to the
objectives of upgrading, certain studies of functional analysis can
be enlightening. The question of which type of upgrades to inte-
grate has a direct inuence on the offers that can be proposed; it
also raises essential questions during the design phase. A typology
of upgrades is needed.

When should upgrades be integrated?
This question on the dates of integration leads to other related
questions: should upgrades be integrated in regular cycles? What is
the right rhythm for integrating upgrades? Should the quantity of
upgrading be the same from one sequence to another? In our
previous studies on remanufacturing (Pialot et al., 2012), well
dened cycles were considered; these were constrained by the
lifetimes of essential components and by the costs and environ-
mental impacts of changing modules and returning them to the
factory for renovation. In the more accessible conguration of up-
gradability (modules being changed by a technician or even by the
client, with no return to factory necessary), the denition of cycle
becomes less constraining so that it is possible to imagine cycles
that are not prescribed in advance. These questions about the
format of cycles (prescribed or not, regular or not ) provide a
sketch of what can be from now called the upgradability scenario
of modules that can be dened more precisely.

What type of value proposition? What type of customer rela-
tionship? What form of contract?
This set of questions is related to the consequences of upgrad-
ability on the standard mode of consumption. In fact, selling an
upgradable system implies selling a product that evolves but that
sale also includes all of its functional improvements over time, and
even other related services. The upgradable character of the system
totally changes the structure of the value proposition. From being
established and static, it becomes multi-form and dynamic. A
certain number of questions then concern the perception of
 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
upgradability by the client. Will this client anticipate future de-
velopments, or will he react simply to short-term stimuli? Which
upgrades will be considered valuable? How will the conditions of
upgradability be perceived (price, environment, loss of ownership
etc.)? The client-producer relationship is also impacted, as is the
mode of contract of Up-PSS (Product, Usage or Result - oriented).

Which business model is appropriate?
From the point of view of business model, upgradability implies
that the manufacturer reconsiders customer relationships, adds
one or several potential partners to materialize the support services
for upgradability and imagines several modes of contract to be able
to build a strategy to lead consumer towards offers without
ownership transfer.
3. Research method
To respond to all these questions three sets of experiments with
both consumers and producers are carried out (Fig. 5).
3.1. Workshops design of upgrade scenario
In order to understand how the design team should identify
which upgrades to add to the product and if they should be inte-
grated in the short, medium and long term, upgrade scenario
workshops with a multidisciplinary team were held with two
manufacturers of mechatronics devices about one of their products.
The workshops followed the guidelines below.
1. Generate a list of upgrades (considering the technological evo-
lution of modules making up the existing product and changes
in user needs) in the short, medium and long term
2. Specify the upgrades (attractiveness, cost increase, environ-
mental impact (EI), feasibility, date of integration, type of up-
grades etc.)
3. Construct an upgrade integration scenario thinking about
various cycle formats (cycle number, duration etc.)
4. Specify scenarios (attractiveness for client, economical costs and
environmental impacts)
5. Compare scenarios and discuss the differences (cycle number,
cycle duration, quantity of upgrades, type of upgrade etc.).
3.2. Focus groups on upgradability issues
In order to hear what clients had to say, a qualitative approach
based on focus groups (2 groups respectively of 6 and 5 persons)
was held on the case of vacuum cleaner (Fig. 6). In the rst stage the
aim was to follow the evolution of consumers' criteria of choice
according to what they knew and their view of the possible future
for new products; the goal was especially to better understand why
consumers change products while the product is still in working
order.
In the second stage, after explaining upgradability, the focus
groups were used to understand and map consumers' apprehen-
sions and fears of this new concept. The principle was one of semi-
open discussion, that is, with guiding questions asked about, for
example, the types of offers they expected, types of guarantee, the
time between each upgrade, contract conditions and how upgrades
should be integrated.
3.3. Workshops business model of upgradability
To take account of the impacts of upgradability on the standard
543
business relationship, Business Model workshops were held with
two manufacturers. They were to rethink the business model
possibilities for the rm in the short, medium and long term, taking
into account different modes of contracts (from the sale of products
to the sale of services). Starting off from a 9 blocks modelling of the
business model (Osterwalder et al., 2010) and adopting a partici-
pative position with a constructivist and semi-directive approach,
these workshops were held with a multidisciplinary team repre-
sentative of the rm (actors involved in the supply chain, sales,
management of the business model and company strategy). The
following process was adopted:
1. Draw up the current business model (BM); (make an inventory
of the current BM identifying its main focus with a view to
gradually changing the business model.)
2. Think about what the future BM could be by using the 9 blocks-
BM canvases (Osterwalder et al., 2010) and taking into account
the upgradability scenarios built in Workshop 3.1.
3. Rene the different ideas for gradual change in the BM to come
up with new BMs and position them in the short, medium and
long terms, with the intention to switch to offers without
ownership transfer.
4. Dene a development path for BMs with the multidisciplinary
team.
5. Specify the development path of the BM: assessment, time-
frame for implementation etc.
One of the challenges of these workshops was to build up new
business models that would act as intermediaries in constructing a
development path leading to passing from business models focused
on material goods to business models focused on services.
4. Results
The results of these experimentations are shown in line with the
way the questions were presented in Part 2.
4.1. Typology of upgrades
Thanks to the upgrade scenario workshops and the survey about
the replaced product (Section 2.1), it was possible to propose a
typology of upgrades shown in Fig. 7.
Following these workshops, are distinguished upgrades relating
to utility, sensory aspects and environmental aspects. It is consid-
ered that (1) parametric upgrades that directly impact objects'
main performance, but these are quite difcult to integrate because
they mean changing the module completely; (2) functional and/or
generic upgrades are less easy to foresee but are often easier to
integrate (by adding a module for example).
Finally, from a consideration with manufacturers about the issue
of ideal upgrades, it seems that upgrades relative to the fashion
for connected objects based on adding sensors e processing
transmitted data, are worthwhile because they contribute a wealth
of dematerialised functionalities, that is, a whole range of po-
tential new services with little need for material. Moreover, the
added value of these upgrades can be easily repeated (i.e. new
functionality added in app). That enables more frequent added
value. In other words, such systems would offer a whole gamut of
services to clients representing as many business opportunities for
the manufacturer during the life of the product. Theses upgrades
are named service upgrades.
4.2. Forms of upgrade scenarios
Upgrade scenario workshops with manufacturers show that the
544 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550

Fig. 5. Structuration of the experimentations.

Fig. 6. Structuration of focus groups (left) around the presentation of a set of 11 innovations proposed to the group (right).

extended lifetime of an upgradable system is quite easily estimated
and the issues of upgrade scenario focus on the programming of
upgrades, the rhythm of upgrades integration and how to choose
the upgrades to integrate. The responses from the workshops
regarding these issues are the followings:
A. Programmed cycles?
From the manufacturers and environmental points of view, the
absence of upgrade cycles was judged to be risky because there is
no visibility on the upgrades brought to the product over time. Not
having cycles means that consumers would choose the upgrades
they wanted, and when to integrate them. This presents several
problems. Two extreme cases come to mind:

Clients who always want their product to be the latest model;
they know all the latest evolutions and are always doing up-
grades. This situation has a negative impact on the environment.

Clients who do not do what they say, or procrastinate about
integrating the latest product upgrades. Upgradable products
thus become just like conventional products increasingly un-
attractive with no lengthening of their lifetime.
The interest of including upgrades over time, that is imposing
the right number of upgrades (not too few, not too many) optimises
product longevity, associates a guarantee to the upgrades, allows
manufacturers to anticipate the ows of used modules to be pro-
cessed, and ensures that the product maintains its attractiveness
along with the associated income for manufacturers.
B. Cycle length?
The cycles must not be too short for technological reasons and
the time needed for new developments, but also because each
novelty should represent a gap for the client. The cost/constraint of
the operation on the product (at the client's home, parcel post etc.)
may also result in increasing the time between two changes. On the
 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
Fig. 7. Complete typology of upgrades from upgrade scenario Workshops.
contrary, too long time between cycles means risking a lack of
reactivity towards novelties introduced by competitors and a loss of
interest on the part of the client.
C. Choice of upgrades?
From an industrial point of view, products are designed with
priority given to criteria of performance or themes of value crea-
tion. Depending on market requirements, the history of the brand
and the product range, manufacturers highlight certain criteria
judged to be the most important. Of course, upgrades will be based
on these priority themes of value creation. The upgrade is an asset
for any manufacturer who wants to become a leader or pro-active
on this characteristic, for it offers repeated added value on an
aspect of the product over time. On a smaller time scale, this con-
nects with Hatchuel's lines of innovation (Le Masson et al., 2006)
(Hatchuel et al., 2001).
4.3. Consumers' perception of upgrading
The focus groups gather consumer perceptions and points of
view.
A. Consumers' perception of evolutions
The results of the rst part of the focus groups dealt with a list of
innovations that the participants desire a priori (step 1) enriched by
11 specic innovations suggested in a second time (step 2 in Fig. 6).
For the two groups, these 11 specic innovations are different from
the innovations imagined by the group. Results show that con-
sumer choice is inconstant as Fig. 8 illustrates: the innovations
desired in the second round are largely those that were suggested.
This result may explain how any novelty may be enough to incite
purchase of a new product. It shows the lack of understanding or
vision of consumers and their difculty in foreseeing future pos-
sibilities. This type of short term consumer perception leaves us
thinking that they react to stimuli without anticipating the future
(Fig. 8).
The second part of the focus groups dealt with consumers'
perception of upgrading regarding not only the change in offer and
their relationship with manufacturers but also with environmental
or operational aspects:
B. General perception of upgradability
545
Some see only an improvement in preventive maintenance:
they are unable to anticipate their future needs in terms of product
evolutions. On the contrary, others worry about the over
complexity of managing all the evolutions of the product over time.
C. Problem of dependence
The most important fear related to upgrading is that of depen-
dence related to a purchase in the form of guaranteed upgrades
over a lengthy period of time. This dependence relates to the choice
of product made according to needs at a certain date, the brand, the
manufacturer's continued existence (it seems odd to commit
yourself for 20 years for a vacuum cleaner we don't know where
we will be living, or what our needs will be.)
D. Environmental credibility
Consumers are fairly sceptical about the eco-friendly nature of
upgrading. They can easily imagine a number of ways in which
manufacturers could drift into a sort of contractual built-in
obsolescence. Others focus on modules being changed while still
in working order rather than thinking of the whole product that
would have a longer life (why change a part that still works?)
E. Extra cost
The fear of being caught up in a system of regular spending on
upgrades that end up costing a lot more is a real one (it's even
cheaper just to buy a new one). Depending on the manufacturer's
strategy (niche luxury product, popularisation of upgradable
products etc.) the price level could vary. The attraction of an up-
gradable product depends above all on the added value of each
upgrade.
F. Easy & Fast to change
How upgrades actually happen is a matter of great interest for
consumers (How do we know when the parts are available?
Who changes the parts?) When it is possible, some customers are
ready to change the parts themselves, others do not want to and
prefer this to be done by a certied technician.
The results of the focus groups and the Upgrade scenario
Workshop converge towards dening a sort of schedule of up-
grades' integration over time in order to:
546 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
Fig. 8. Consumers' perception of evolutions (results from focus groups 1 & 2).

Integrate right number of upgrades (not too few, not too many)
and to give a visibility of business and design efforts to manu-
facturer (Result 4.2.A)

Help consumers to have a vision of future functionalities (Result
4.3.A)

Avoid the apprehensions of extremes perceptions of upgrad-
ability (Result 4.3.B)

Plan a reasonable future credible on environmental aspects
(Result 4.3.D)

Help consumers to have a visibility of the costs of upgradability
and to avoid the fear of being caught up in a system that end up
costing a lot more (Result 4.3.E).
This schedule would be composed of upgrade lines (Result
4.2.C) each of which would relate to a criterion of value creation
among utilitarian (utility value), sensory (emotional value),
environmental (ethical value), service (dematerialised utili-
tarian value) (Result 4.1). The rhythm of upgrades' integration
should be neither too fast nor too slow (Result 4.2.B). A number of
upgrade line(s) would be required and the others would be
whichever the customer selects such as X upgrades lines chosen
among the whole proposed lines. A catalogue of single/autono-
mous upgrades chosen by the client on demand would enable
consumers to integrate more specic and/or more optional up-
grades (especially functional upgrades), and would enable manu-
facturers to offer innovations proactively or reactively over time.
4.4. Change of business model for manufacturers
The two manufacturers took account of several client segments,
different markets or distribution channels and tried to anticipate
new more service-oriented businesses. The Up-PSS offering, which
includes one product, the upgrades that must be integrated over
time and associated services, may be sold as product-oriented Up-
PSS (a product with a support service and/or with a set of associ-
ated services ), as usage-oriented Up-PSS (all-inclusive services'
offer with different options to choose) or as result-oriented Up-PSS
(pay-per-result ).
To pass from business models focused on goods to those focused
on services, the Business model workshops resulted in
identication of the four following principles:

Change the key elements of the business model towards ser-
vices: needs analysis and establishing better tracking of client
relations; rethinking the offer with a product with a longer
lifetime and upgrade scenarios based on upgrade lines related to
value criteria (utilitarian; sensory; environmental; ser-
vice); reconguring the value network for the implementation
of upgradability; changing modes of remuneration in favour of
service-based models such as rental.

Dene a gradual pathway enabling businesses to transform from
a business model focused on the product to one focused on
services. This transformation is made up of different hybrid-
isations of business models covering the short to the long term
and avoids having to implement a sudden radical organisational
and strategic change.

Enable the co-existence of different business models by varying
their relative importance (% of turnover generated) over time.

Dene strategic transitional upgrades to support the transition
between two successive business models from the listing of
upgrades forming the dened upgrade lines. These transitional
upgrades facilitate effective technological implementations
involved in changing the business model (putting sensors into a
product to gradually offer software services or a catalogue of
smartphone apps for example).
For each of the manufacturers, the result is a service oriented
grading of business models as illustrated in Fig. 9. Note that this
study was carried out with two manufacturers who do have neither
the same business congurations (B2C and B2B), nor the same
market dynamics (in recession or progression) and dissimilar client
relations (existing distributor or not). One of the manufacturers
found it more difcult to change his business model over the long
term and envisage a more service-oriented future. These studies on
the business model seem accessible to any type of business inter-
ested in upgrades.
5. Discussion
Our results enable us to clarify the denition of key structural
 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
bricks (brick shape in Fig. 10) and characteristics associated with
upgradability (oval shape in Fig. 10). Our reections enable us to
propose additional bricks (marked with an asterisk in Fig. 10) to
consolidate the new mode of consumption/production material-
ized by Up-PSS. Important new concepts (underlined text in Fig. 10)
are presented in the form of denition.
Considering the three stakeholders of a sustainable mode of
CP/P that are Customer, Business and Environment (O'Hare
et al., 2007), the big picture of Up-PSS is represented as based
on three keystones (Fig. 10):

KEYSTONE 1 (Customer point of view): an improved offer based
on a dynamic of upgrades and service

KEYSTONE 2 (Environment point of view): a lower environ-
mental impact based on strategies of rationalisation of material
use and eco-learning

KEYSTONE 3 (Business point of view): a dynamic of upgrad-
ability based on client-producer interaction and the develop-
ment path of business models
5.1. KEYSTONE 1: an improved offer based on a dynamic of
upgrades and service
The rst keystone of an Up-PSS relies on a programming of
upgrades that must be integrated over time. This programming is
characterized by the key notions upgrade lines of modules and
Themes of Value Creation (VaCT). The proposal of a catalogue of
single upgrades completes an offer that becomes servicised
(including a set of services) and delivers a sustainable value prop-
osition with a growing attractiveness (Fig. 11).
Denition of Upgrade lines: a succession of upgrades whose
integration is programmed over time and which feed the same
Themes of VAlue Creation.
These upgrade lines enable consumers to anticipate the prod-
uct's evolution, and allow manufacturers to manage prolonged
product lifetime, guarantees, ows of worn module returns or other
aspects where value can be created in order to be perceived as
innovative. The upgrade lines rely mainly on parametric upgrades
that are foreseeable and directly impact the primary performances
of the apparatus in question. The idea is to be specic enough about
these upgrades to convince clients but not to deliver too many
details because of the uncertainty of technological roadmap beyond
the short term and the risk to give away plans for innovations to
competitors.
Denition of Theme of VAlue Creation (VaCT): The intended
target with a view to a future ideal system that contributes value.
Four types of themes of value creation characteristic of the
Fig. 9. Illustration of a path of business model development using transitional
upgrades.
547
desired functional evolution for an upgradable system have been
identied: As well as conventional performance criteria such as
utilitarian (utility value) and sensory (emotional value), are
added environmental (ethical value), essential when considering
a product that is upgraded over the long term, and the service
value (dematerialised utilitarian value) that improves the system's
functionalities.
A catalogue of Single upgrades: To complete the above upgrade
lines, a catalogue of single/autonomous upgrades chosen by the
client on demand enables consumers to integrate more specic
and/or more optional upgrades (especially functional upgrades),
and enables manufacturers to offer innovations proactively or
reactively over time. The modular structure can be used to t the
product to the consumer, proposing customisation from the start.
An offer of services: ideas of services that can be associated to an
upgradable product, notably those based on the addition and/or
evolution of sensors in the product, open the possibility to
completely new lines of increasing functionalities (that are dema-
terialised as tting with the environmental dimension). The
themes of value creation related to services can be new compared
to the product's conventional functions. This potential bundle of
services, accumulated with the service of upgrades, constitutes a
value proposition based on services.
A sustainable value proposition with growing attractiveness:
Instead of customers having a product whose attractiveness de-
creases (from wear and obsolescence), and that they must change
to access renewed attractiveness, they obtain a system that im-
proves over time with a more robust and reliable product base
thanks to successive upgrades over time and also access to new
services. With the power to improve products, users of upgradable
systems benet from objects with increasing functionalities. To
this functional attractiveness is added that of environmental gains
that increase with each extension of the products' lifetime. These
attributes are what make upgradable systems increasingly
attractive.
5.2. KEYSTONE 2: a lower environmental impact based on
strategies of rationalisation of material use and eco-learning
The second keystone of an Up-PSS is an environmental gain
derived from the hybridisation of rationalisation strategies in the
use of the material relative to extended life time, optimisation of
end-of-life and dematerialisation (hypothesis of Up-PSS in section
2.2). To complete and consolidate this environmental gain, the
adding of two supplementary bricks is proposed: eco-learning
strategy and eco-scorecard/passport that aggregates all envi-
ronmental performances and engages both manufacturer and user
towards a common green objective. Firstly, the Up-PSS are char-
acterized by:
Rationalisation of use of material through extending product
lifetime: Integrating upgrades over the lifetime of the product
prolongs product lifetime because the 2 phenomena that reduce
product attractiveness for clients, wear and obsolescence, are
countered by products' adaptability. It is estimated that this
extension of lifetime could be important, that the environmental
gain will be built into the right number of upgrades at the right time
and that the scheduling of these upgrades will be from 2 to 5 cycles
of use (1e4 cycles of upgrade).
Rationalisation of use of material through optimising end-of-
life: Added to this extension of lifetime is an optimised end-of-life.
This schedule of upgrades, carried out by a support service that
collects worn modules at the same time as it implants improved
modules, facilitates the end-of-life processing of these modules for
the following reasons: ows are known (no uncertainty), the state
of the modules is known (they thus do not have to be sorted) and
548 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550

Fig. 10. Bases of the Upgradable-PSS mode of consumption/production.

Fig. 11. (a) Structure of an Upgradable-PSS. (b) Illustration of the increasing attractiveness of an Upgradable-PSS.

the dismantling has already been done. Moreover, this scheduling
of worn out modules for processing forms a perennial network of
actors in end-of-life channel and facilitates the end-of-life pro-
cessing of the product structure.
Rationalisation of use of material through dematerialisation:
Upgrades enable value propositions based on more services: a
bundle of linked services can be accumulated with the service of
upgrading. Through this value based on service, increase in revenue
is no longer linked to use of materials.
Secondly, to go beyond the rationalisation of use of material, it
could be added an eco-learning strategy and an eco-scorecard/
passport to dispel fears about potential excesses and legitimize
the efforts of stakeholders to obtain environmental gain.
Denition of an eco-learning strategy: a strategy that aims to
involve users in the eco-friendly usage of products by making eco-
usage-feedback to make them aware of the environmental impacts
they generate.
To go beyond the rationalisation of material, it is important to
aim for energy efciency in the use of a device destined for a long
lifetime. To involve users in eco-friendly usage of their devices, they
need to be made aware of poor usage, situations where they could
be more sparing with energy but also with material in order not
counter the intended long lifetime. These situations of poor usage
can evolve along with the integration of new upgrades. To help
users to graduate towards eco-usage, upgrades provide the op-
portunity to change strategies over time. This could be eco-usage-
feedback via a smartphone for example, but it is possible to
envisage systems that would prevent product use if usage in-
structions were not respected.
Denition of eco-scorecard/passport: A booklet/passport
linked to the upgradable product that aggregates the scores of
environmental impacts due to upgrades, their impact on the
extension of product lifetime, eco-usage and the dematerialisation
and optimisation of end-of-life of worn modules and the basic
product structure.
To be credible on environmental aspects and avoid the appre-
hensions about environmental drifts of upgradability (Result 4.3.D),
a permanent record of the environmental impacts of Upgradable-
PSS is imagined: this booklet commits both the manufacturer and
user towards a common green objective; this is true even in cases of
changed ownership or termination of contract, the booklet being
linked to the product, not to the owner. This passport/health
booklet of the upgradable product could aggregate the environ-
mental impacts over and above the rationalisation of materials. In
 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
fact, upgrading contributes towards product energy efciency over
time because it is possible to integrate the most efcient technol-
ogies at any time (lters with less energy loss, more efcient bat-
tery charging strategy etc.). It can also generate strategies to lead
users towards true eco-friendly usage through the long-term
relationship between product and user and upgrades guided by
eco-feedback. Involving users in a process of eco-friendly usage in
which they are actors of their environmental impacts seems a good
way of conveying a system's eco friendliness.
5.3. KEYSTONE 3: a dynamic of upgradability based on client-
producer interaction and the development of new business models
The third keystone of an Up-PSS is a dynamic of upgradability
based on the key brick strategic transitional upgrades, and char-
acterized by Development paths for changing business models
(Result 4.4). To consolidate this dynamic, three additional bricks are
suggested: support service of upgrades, UpWebPlatform to
facilitate the more frequent consumer-manufacturer interaction
due to the dynamic of upgrades, and innovative models of
contracting.
Strategic transitional upgrades: These are upgrades integrated
strategically into the system and seen as transitional supports be-
tween two successive business models. Because the system is
evolutionary, the idea is to achieve upstream integration of the
functionalities on which the business or businesses of the future
will be built. Integrating sensors to propose services is one way of
anticipating a more service oriented offer.
Denition of development path to change business models: A
scenario of a succession of several business models in the short,
medium and long terms, with a potential coexistence of several of
them at a certain date, and using upgradability as a transitional
support towards transformation to avoid radical organisational and
strategic change.
The change in value proposition, offer, mode of contract,
remuneration and systemised end-of-life both of used modules and
upgradable product structure involve a change in the value chain
and the actors in play. This whole business model has to be thought
out anew. These changes are deep enough to raise questions about
the vision of the company's business in the long term. Upgrad-
ability appears as a trigger for a change in modes of consumption
towards models that are more service oriented. At the same time
upgrades are an opportunity because they make systems more
evolutionary.
To facilitate this upgradability dynamic, three additional blocks
are considered:
New support services for upgradability: The support services for
upgradability must be set up. These are necessary for the implan-
tation of new upgraded modules and EOL processing of used
modules. This obviously implies organisational transformations
and changes in the value chain. Multiple congurations are possible
involving stakeholders from producers to consumers along with
distributers. Certain users are happy to change their modules
themselves while others prefer that this be done by a certied
technician (Result 4.3.F). This should not be experienced as a
constraint, only as a way of upgrading a product; the manufacturer
could leave the choice up to the client; this new and necessary
organisation implies new logistics.
Denition of Up-Web-Platform: A platform of direct and
continuous exchange between producer and client, based on a
website enabling stakeholders to gather useful information and
interact.
To help consumers choose upgrades and the way how to up-
grade (Result 4.3.F), it is proposed to create a direct link between
manufacturers and consumers based on a web interface. The
549
manufacturer can collect and prioritise client dissatisfaction; track
changes in client needs, nd out more about purchase choice
criteria and suggest potential innovations. As well as expressing
himself on the above subjects, the customer can access user guides,
tips, or congure choices for future upgrades, access question and
answer workshops with other consumers, swap shops or loans of
certain upgrades, competitions for designing future upgrades etc.
Unlike a conventional product where there is practically no inter-
action between the client and the producer once the product has
been unwrapped, an upgradable system would be regulated by
almost continuous interactions that could be increased by
connection to intelligent systems and sensors making products
connected, or by envisaging a system of rewards encouraging
consumers to interact.
Innovative models of contracting: Because of upgrades and the
more service oriented offer, the model of revenue is obviously
different. With an upgradable system, there are numerous oppor-
tunities to make income. In terms of upgrades, the offer is made up
of upgrade lines that are programmed over time and one-off
upgrades from a catalogue; upgrade lines suggest a contract
structure. The servicisation of the offer becomes even more sig-
nicant if one considers connected upgrades (based on adding
dynamic sensors e processing of service data transmitted). This
contributes a wealth of dematerialised functionalities in the form of
services that can be adapted to user needs. Many models of con-
tract/remuneration are possible if one considers the conditions of
contracts for modules, sales of points, lengths of guarantee or
even the sale or hiring of the upgradable product itself. Faced with
the fear of dependence with the manufacturer of upgradable sys-
tem over a lengthy period of time (Result 4.3.C), a sort of
dependenceefree link is proposed. For the client, the ability to
change a contract easily or modify conditions is a possibility to have
this dependenceefree relationship with manufacturer (gradual
decreasing pricing of contracts to encourage re-subscription,
renewable/extendable guarantee depending on choice of up-
grades, resalable or stoppable contracts etc.). For the manufacturer,
these new systems involve more stakeholders and several sales
opportunities during the product's lifetime, both of which consti-
tute more potential sources of revenue.
6. Conclusion/perspectives
This paper has consolidated a new mode of consumption/pro-
duction based on upgradability: Upgradable-PSS. These new sys-
tems are based on multiple upgrade cycles scheduled in the form of
upgrade line chosen by the consumer on themes of utilitarian,
sensory, environmental and service oriented value. Upgradable-PSS
relies on several principles of rationalisation of materials use
(prolonging lifetime, adding value to EOL material through rema-
nufacturing and/or recycling, dematerialisation through adding
service-oriented value such as services with connected objects).
They could also encourage users in eco-friendly usage of their de-
vices. Upgradable-PSS thus maximise potential in terms of envi-
ronmental gain. Moreover, the potential attractiveness of the offer,
based on upgrades with added services, can be a trigger to push the
client into offers without ownership transfer; this implies changing
all or part of the business model centred on a standard market
model. These changes of business model are not to be made
abruptly but following more gradual transformation paths. It
should be noted that the principle of sharing objects (MRPr3) that
seems to be emerging today might provide a promising approach
for optimising Upgradable-PSS in the future; it constitutes a break
with traditional customer usage and for manufacturers it entails a
transformation from an organisational and business point of view.
Designing such upgradable systems demands considerable
550 O. Pialot et al. / Journal of Cleaner Production 141 (2017) 538e550
efforts, because a whole new eco-system has to be put in place. It is
necessary to develop a design methodology specic to Upgradable-
PSS (design for upgradecycling). This method would be structured
around a backbone of a scenario of upgradability of modules that
constitute the upgradable system and the elaboration of new
upgradability business models (strategies of commercial offering,
contracting and upgradability support networks). Formalising this
specic process would be carried out in the form of a SADT. With a
view to helping design teams in their efforts, micro-tools are being
developed to ensure a wide spectrum exploration, to calculate
certain indicators automatically and therefore simulate a great
number of possibilities.
Acknowledgement
The Design for upgradecycling project (IDCyclUM) is an in-
dustrial research project (40 months) coordinated by Prof. Millet
(LISMMA) nancially supported by the French Research Agency
(Ref 11-ECOT-001-IDCyclUM-01). The consortium is composed of 7
partners: the laboratories LISMMA, G-SCOP, COSTECH, GAEL, IWF
(Germany) and industrial companies ROWENTA and NEOPOST.
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