Developing remote monitoring services: Important points to consider

After-sales services are important to manufacturing companies both as a source of income and as a source of gaining competitive advantage. Searching for new sources of value in the after-sale market is thus of importance for these companies since it could help them to attract customers. Manufacturing companies are now seeking innovative ways to develop after-sales services with the use of remote monitoring systems (RMS). However, the sale of such services has been problematic, as barriers to change have arisen in the process of technology adoption. In this paper we identify a number of barriers to technology adoption based on a case study of a capital equipment manufacturer and three of its customers. Taken together, they represent ample evidence that while technologies such as remote monitoring systems represent cutting-edge technology, their successful adoption requires that organizational processes resonate well with the technological potential.