Applying service CAD system to value customization

This chapter introduces a new concept, value customization, to increase the level of customer satisfaction. It presents methodologies and practice for designers to customize value in a service in industrial operation based on the discipline of service engineering (SE). SE aims at creating more value largely by knowledge and service contents rather than just materialistic contents. Especially, an information system named Service Explorer, an implementation of the methodologies, is applied to an Italian accommodation industry. After the application, five redesign options such as introducing a new service system with cash-back and a system of renting various goods were generated. Through this, the effectiveness of SE for value customization is suggested. This chapter addresses the importance of identifying value to be provided with specific customers based on their particular requirements, which has only briefly been discussed in researches of mass customization. In addition, both service activities and physical products can be crucial to realize value. Several further research issues such as general design methods for value customization were also identified.