Product development process for a new healthcare service in the Industry 4.0 context: an action research approach

Abstract

Precision Medicine (PM) is a personalised approach that uses genetic, environmental, and lifestyle information to prevent, diagnose, and treat disease more effectively. This study aims to explore how Industry 4.0 technologies can enable the development of a new healthcare product, specifically a new PM service. Action Research has been used to identify the needs and orient the design and development of a technological platform that enables PM to be applied in healthcare institutions. This methodology can also act as a guide for advancing research and making the service a regular clinical practice. This research furthers understanding of how I4.0 technologies enable the generation of specific capabilities and their use to create other innovative healthcare products, in general, and PM products, in particular. Study findings offer practical and governmental implications and can serve as the basis for digital platform design and development to facilitate PM practices in healthcare institutions.

Keywords:

• New product development
• healthcare service
• Industry 4.0
• precision medicine
• digital platform
• action research

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (Research Project PID2019-106577GB-I00 of MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033), the Andalusian Plan for Research, the University of Jaen’s Plan for Transfer, Employability and Entrepreneurship 2020, and Fujitsu.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Miguel Núñez-Merino

Miguel Núñez-Merino received his master’s degree in Data Science and Computer Engineering from the University of Granada in 2020 and is a graduate in Statistics and Business Administration (University of Jaén). He is currently working towards an Industrial PhD degree with Fujitsu and the Department of Business Organisation at the University of Jaén. His research interest is focused on Industry 4.0, logistics, and the supply chain. He has presented works at some prestigious international conferences such as POMs. He has published in the International Journal of Production Research (top-cited paper in IJPR 2020-2021), International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management and in Technological Forecasting and Social Change.

Juan Manuel Maqueira-Marín

Juan Manuel Maqueira-Marín is a Full Professor of Business Administration and Management of Technology at the University of Jaén (Spain). He has a wide experience as a practitioner in technology management at technological firms such us Fujitsu Technology Solutions Inc, a multinational company leader in the development, implementation, management and maintenance of IT projects for core business processes. He has taken part in many technological innovation projects in several industries. The results of his research have been also published as research papers in top peer-reviewed Journals such as: International Journal of Production Research, Production Planning & Control, Computers & Industrial Engineering, Employees Relations, Journal of Cleaner Production, Industrial Management & Data Systems, International Journal of Technology Management, Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, amount others.

José Moyano-Fuentes

José Moyano-Fuentes is a Full Professor of Management at the Department of Business Organisation, Marketing and Sociology at the University of Jaén (Spain). He is currently developing several projects investigating explanatory factors of supply chain strategies implementation and supply chain adaptability, with a particular focus on the role of emerging technologies in the field of Industry 4.0. His research has appeared in the Administrative Science Quarterly, Journal of Management of Information Systems, Journal of Management Studies, International Journal of Management Reviews, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, International Journal of Production Economics, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal; Production Planning & Control, International Journal of Production Research; Technological Forecasting and Social Change; Computers & Industrial Engineering; or Technovation, among others.

Carlos Alberto Castaño-Moraga

Carlos Alberto Castaño-Moraga studied Telecommunications Engineering at the University of Valladolid and obtained his doctorate degree on Signal Processing from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. During this time, he became involved with the Harvard Medical School and INRIA Sophia-Antipolis to conduct part of his research activity on medical imaging and advanced signal processing frameworks. Lastly, he complements his training with the business area and holds an Executive MBA by IESE Business School (University of Navarra). After being responsible for research and innovation in a range of companies, he joined Fujitsu in 2014 to develop projects focused on data-driven digital transformation in organisations and to lead projects based on data exploitation to obtain added business value.