Towards a circular solar power sector: Experience with a support framework for business model innovation
(2024) In Circular Economy and Sustainability 4. p.2093-2118- Abstract
- The rapid expansion of the global solar photovoltaic (PV) market as part of the transition to a low-carbon energy future will increase both demand for raw materials used in PV product manufacturing as well as future PV panel waste volumes. There is an urgent need for solar industry businesses to adopt circular business models, and to support this process through targeted tools and methods that can facilitate the innovation process of such models. This paper employs an action-oriented case study methodology, drawing on insights garnered from five demonstrator cases that have applied and validated a Circular Business Model Innovation (CBMI) framework within the PV sector. Results show how this framework was applied in practice during the... (More)
- The rapid expansion of the global solar photovoltaic (PV) market as part of the transition to a low-carbon energy future will increase both demand for raw materials used in PV product manufacturing as well as future PV panel waste volumes. There is an urgent need for solar industry businesses to adopt circular business models, and to support this process through targeted tools and methods that can facilitate the innovation process of such models. This paper employs an action-oriented case study methodology, drawing on insights garnered from five demonstrator cases that have applied and validated a Circular Business Model Innovation (CBMI) framework within the PV sector. Results show how this framework was applied in practice during the ideation, design, experimentation, and scaling phases of the innovation process. Specifically, results show how an experimental and iterative approach was found critical to assess viability, desirability, and feasibility of circular business strategies. The study’s empirical testing of tools with the context of a Circular Economy complements earlier theoretical conceptualizations of business model innovation processes. It illustrates how using multiple tools can provide firms with complementary insights in each stage of ideation, design, testing, and scaling of business models. It is recommended that policy makers and business leaders endorse such co-creative and experimental approaches to foster learning and business model innovation, thereby catalysing the transformation of an entire renewable energy industry sector towards Circular Economy.
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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/fd707496-cd39-450d-946f-677cd6ba161d
- author
- Strupeit, Lars LU ; Bocken, Nancy LU and Van Opstal, Wim
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-05-23
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- product-service systems (PSS), circular business models, solar energy, photovoltaic, experimentation, renewable energy
- in
- Circular Economy and Sustainability
- volume
- 4
- pages
- 2093 - 2118
- publisher
- Springer
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85193948331
- ISSN
- 2730-5988
- DOI
- 10.1007/s43615-024-00377-3
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- fd707496-cd39-450d-946f-677cd6ba161d
- date added to LUP
- 2023-09-18 18:58:48
- date last changed
- 2024-09-26 14:06:54
@article{fd707496-cd39-450d-946f-677cd6ba161d,
abstract = {{The rapid expansion of the global solar photovoltaic (PV) market as part of the transition to a low-carbon energy future will increase both demand for raw materials used in PV product manufacturing as well as future PV panel waste volumes. There is an urgent need for solar industry businesses to adopt circular business models, and to support this process through targeted tools and methods that can facilitate the innovation process of such models. This paper employs an action-oriented case study methodology, drawing on insights garnered from five demonstrator cases that have applied and validated a Circular Business Model Innovation (CBMI) framework within the PV sector. Results show how this framework was applied in practice during the ideation, design, experimentation, and scaling phases of the innovation process. Specifically, results show how an experimental and iterative approach was found critical to assess viability, desirability, and feasibility of circular business strategies. The study’s empirical testing of tools with the context of a Circular Economy complements earlier theoretical conceptualizations of business model innovation processes. It illustrates how using multiple tools can provide firms with complementary insights in each stage of ideation, design, testing, and scaling of business models. It is recommended that policy makers and business leaders endorse such co-creative and experimental approaches to foster learning and business model innovation, thereby catalysing the transformation of an entire renewable energy industry sector towards Circular Economy.<br/>}},
author = {{Strupeit, Lars and Bocken, Nancy and Van Opstal, Wim}},
issn = {{2730-5988}},
keywords = {{product-service systems (PSS); circular business models; solar energy; photovoltaic; experimentation; renewable energy}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{05}},
pages = {{2093--2118}},
publisher = {{Springer}},
series = {{Circular Economy and Sustainability}},
title = {{Towards a circular solar power sector: Experience with a support framework for business model innovation}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s43615-024-00377-3}},
doi = {{10.1007/s43615-024-00377-3}},
volume = {{4}},
year = {{2024}},
}