Search Results (75)

The construction industry plays a crucial role in the global economy but faces significant challenges, including inefficiencies, high costs, and environmental impacts. Although Building Information Modeling (BIM) has been widely adopted as a solution to these issues, its practical impact remains limited. This study investigates how manufacturers can enhance their contributions to improve BIM’s effectiveness, proposing that coopetition practices—combining competition and cooperation—can positively influence these contributions, thereby enhancing the benefits of BIM. To explore this hypothesis, an Experimental Coopetition Network was implemented in the Portuguese ornamental stone (POS) sector, utilizing Industrial IoT technology to facilitate collaboration among selected companies. The study assessed the impact of coopetition practices on key performance indicators related to BIM, including on-time delivery, labor productivity, and CO₂ emissions. The findings demonstrate significant improvements in scheduling, operational efficiency, and environmental sustainability, validating the hypothesis that coopetition practices can enhance manufacturers’ contributions to BIM. These results suggest that coopetition practices contribute to better project outcomes, increased competitiveness, and sustainability within the construction industry. Despite the promising results, the study acknowledges limitations such as the scope of the sample size and observation periods, indicating areas for future research. This research contributes to the theoretical framework of coopetition, aligning with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and provides valuable insights for industry practitioners and policymakers seeking to implement more sustainable construction practices. Full article

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are vital to the European economy, but sustaining coopetition networks—collaborative arrangements between competitors—remains challenging. In this study, this gap is addressed by developing a reference model and methodology for coopetition networks explicitly designed for SMEs and grounded in the service-dominant (S-D) logic framework. The model provides a structured approach for managing coopetition across the entire network lifecycle, from initiation to dissolution, emphasizing value co-creation and resource integration. A proof of concept (PoC) was implemented in the Portuguese ornamental stone sector to validate the model, revealing significant improvements in manufacturing effectiveness and demonstrating the model’s practical applicability. The results underscore the potential of coopetition networks to boost SMEs’ competitiveness and performance while identifying key trade-offs and risks, such as knowledge sharing and market cannibalization. Although the model addresses critical challenges, in this study, limitations are acknowledged and areas for future research are suggested, particularly in relation to the long-term sustainability of coopetition and the influence of interpersonal dynamics. Full article

Garden managers face the dilemma of promoting and preserving their gardens. Overtourism in popular gardens can be solved by cooperating to entice visitors to alternative, less popular gardens. However, such an enticement strategy may not be successful because garden managers not only cooperate with but also compete against each other (i.e., coopetition). How can garden management practitioners forge a coopetitive relationship to encourage visitors to move from over- to less crowded gardens? Addressing this question, this study aimed to propose a successful coopetitive strategy to redistribute visitors. This study was drawn primarily from semi-structured interviews with garden staff of an overcrowded national garden and multiple less crowded metropolitan gardens. A thematic analysis of qualitative data revealed a lack of cooperation between national and metropolitan gardens and highlighted the former’s aspirations for further growth despite perceived overtourism. This study proposes using the ambiguous cultural status of national and metropolitan gardens as a catalyst for coopetition between them, and contributes to the discourse on sustainable cultural tourism by broadening its scope and redressing the scholarly imbalance between an overemphasis on visitors’ behaviour and a dearth of attention on practitioners of (horti)cultural tourism. Theoretical contributions are detailed at the end of this article. Full article

Under the frequent occurrence of external environmental risks and in the context of breakthrough innovations driving new quality productivity, this study explores the intrinsic mechanisms by which supply chain integration affects enterprise breakthrough innovation. Grounded in supply chain integration and breakthrough innovation theories, we used statistical methods to analyze data from a sample of 209 valid enterprises. The study systematically interprets these mechanisms from the perspective of competition and examines the moderating effect of external environmental turbulence on competitive strategy. The results demonstrate that supply chain integration capability significantly and positively influences breakthrough innovation, with vertical and horizontal competing strategies acting as mediators. Additionally, environmental turbulence positively moderates the relationship between supply chain integration capability and horizontal competing strategies. The results of the study are of great theoretical and practical significance in promoting the integration of enterprises’ supply chains and enhancing their sustainable innovation capabilities. Full article

Coopetition, while offering significant strategic advantages, presents challenges in maintaining long-term collaboration among competitors, often due to a lack of perceived value for the participating actors. This study explores the role of technology in overcoming these challenges by applying the Service-Dominant Logic (S-D Logic) framework to investigate how technology-driven networks can enhance value co-creation among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The study hypothesizes that transitioning to technology-driven coopetition networks can substantially improve value co-creation. To test this hypothesis, the research critically evaluates existing theoretical approaches to coopetition, identifies gaps in understanding value creation mechanisms, and implements an experimental technology-driven coopetition network leveraging Internet of Things (IoT) technology. The research design is applied explicitly to the Portuguese ornamental stone industry, a significant economic and cultural sector. The findings confirm that technology-driven coopetition networks can enhance value co-creation and improve outputs. These results suggest that integrating technology into coopetition frameworks can provide a viable path to sustaining competitive advantages in SMEs. Full article

The construction industry plays a crucial role in the global economy but faces persistent challenges such as inefficiency, high costs, and significant environmental impact. Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been proposed as a solution to enhance efficiency and sustainability through digital representations of construction projects. However, the full potential of BIM has yet to be realized. A contributing factor to this gap is that construction manufacturing companies, which produce upstream parts and products used downstream in construction, are often overlooked in discussions of BIM’s benefits. This study explores the potential of coopetition networks to help manufacturing companies better align with BIM dimensions. Coopetition networks, which integrate competitive and cooperative strategies, present a promising method to enhance the effectiveness of manufacturing companies. Focusing on the Portuguese Ornamental Stone industry, the study employs an experimental pilot network facilitated by the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to assess the effects of competition on labour productivity, on-time delivery, and environmental performance among stone companies. The findings indicate that coopetition networks significantly improve alignment with BIM requirements, enhancing operational efficiency and sustainability. Despite being limited by a small sample size, this research offers valuable insights into the role of manufacturing companies in BIM-enhanced construction projects and the broader applicability of coopetition networks in advancing BIM objectives. These results highlight the potential of coopetition networks as a strategic approach to improving performance in the construction industry. Full article

This paper investigates strategic production selections in scenarios of credit sharing between cooperative fuel vehicle (FV) automakers and new energy vehicle (NEV) automakers under the dual-credit policy. Three coopetition production strategies are formulated: the simultaneous production strategy, the FV priority production strategy, and the NEV priority production strategy. On the basis of these three production strategies, this study examines the optimal strategy for both parties in scenarios of no credit sharing, credit sharing dominated by the FV automaker, and credit sharing dominated by the NEV automaker. The simultaneous production strategy is the most conducive to both parties’ coexistence in the vehicle market, and the FV or NEV priority production strategy can be adopted to realize the Pareto optimization of their total profit in certain applicable intervals. Credit sharing will greatly change both parties’ applicable intervals and optimal strategy selections, and credit sharing dominated by FV automakers has been proven to effectively improve their social welfare with a low credit price. Interestingly, a high credit price is sometimes more important for the development of NEVs than the NEV cruising range and substitutability under the dual-credit policy. This study also demonstrates the impact of the credit coefficient, credit equilibrium, and NEV substitutability on both parties’ production decisions and credit sharing. Our study has important managerial implications and can be utilized as strategic guidance for FV/NEV automakers to pursue coopetition under the dual-credit policy. Full article

In our rapidly globalizing and digitizing world, small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises (SMEs) face significant challenges that compel them to adopt a co-opetition strategy—a blend of competition and collaboration. Despite their potential benefits, the high failure rates and unmet expectations of co-opetition networks highlight a significant gap in the empirical frameworks for establishing and maintaining these networks. This research seeks to address these gaps by developing a framework that enhances value cocreation in the Portuguese ornamental stone sector, integrating the latest developments in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), Service-Dominant Logic (S-D Logic), and service science. Question: How can a framework integrating IIoT, S-D Logic, and service science enhance value cocreation and manage co-opetition among SMEs in the Portuguese ornamental stone sector? Methods: Theoretical insights and practical applications were synthesized to develop and validate a comprehensive co-opetition framework. This framework was tested through an experimental pilot project in the Portuguese ornamental stone sector, leveraging IIoT. Results: The implementation of the framework demonstrated significant operational efficiency, including enhanced performance, reduced production variance, and better resource utilization, indicating that integrating IIoT within co-opetition networks can effectively support SMEs. Conclusions: This study confirms the transformative impact of embedding IIoT in co-opetition networks, offering a replicable and scalable framework for other sectors. This framework addresses the empirical gap and aligns with broader socio-economic goals, setting the stage for further research into its applicability and potential across diverse industrial environments. Full article

This study investigates the competitive issues of the newsvendor problem with product substitution under the carbon cap-and-trade system. Building on existing research, this paper introduces the carbon cap-and-trade system under uncertain market demand and considers that the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) can choose to procure raw materials from the contract manufacturer (CM), with both final products being substitutable. Furthermore, we explore the different substitution relationships between OEM and CM products under both pure competitive and co-opetitive modes. For this problem, decision models are developed for various scenarios, and optimal solutions satisfying given conditions are provided. We find that in one-way substitution, under pure competition, an increase in the OEM’s (or CM’s) green investment and substitution rate only leads to an increase in OEM’s (or CM’s) yields, while an increase in the OEM’s (or CM’s) green investment does not necessarily reduce CM’s (or OEM’s) yields. In the co-opetitive mode, an increase in the substitution rate and green investments of both manufacturers may lead to an increase in the yields of both manufacturers. Furthermore, an increase in carbon trading prices does not necessarily inhibit the manufacturer’s yields. Moreover, we find that under the same competition mode, under certain conditions, two-way substitution between OEM and CM can bring better profits to both manufacturers and the entire supply chain. When the two modes are in the same substitution scenario, and the CM cannot substitute for the OEM, the optimal decisions and total supply chain profits of the two modes are equal. Finally, through numerical analysis, we find that neither mode is necessarily optimal when CM can substitute for OEM. Additionally, it is observed that when the same mode is in different substitution scenarios, total supply chain profits may be enhanced in the presence of product substitution. Full article

Abstract: This research addresses the critical gap in enabling effective coopetition networks through technological innovation with the development of Cockpit4.0+, an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) artefact tailored for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). By employing the principles of Service-Dominant Logic (S-D Logic) and leveraging the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology, Cockpit4.0+ represents a pioneering approach to incorporating the IIoT within ecosystems for value co-creation. This facilitates competition and cooperation among firms, enhancing the operational dynamics within SME networks. Evaluated by experts in the ornamental stone sector, a significant sector of the Portuguese economy, the system demonstrated a positive functional acceptance rate of 78.9%. An experimental test was conducted following the positive preliminary functional evaluation of Cockpit4.0+, especially among more digitally advanced companies. The findings revealed that the on-time delivery performance under current best practices (CB.Ps) was 67.1%. In contrast, implementing coopetition network practices (CN.Ps) increased on-time delivery to 77.5%. These positive evaluations of Cockpit4.0+ underscore the practical applicability of S-D Logic and provide fresh insights into the dynamics of coopetition, particularly beneficial for SMEs. Despite its promising results, the real-world efficacy of IIoT systems like Cockpit4.0+ requires further empirical studies to verify these findings. Future research should focus on examining the scalability of Cockpit4.0+ and its adaptability across various sectors and enhancing its cybersecurity measures to ensure its long-term success and broader adoption. Full article

This research reviews the phenomenon of extractive deforestation as a possible trigger for cascade reactions that could affect part of the forest ecosystem and its biodiversity (surface, aerial, and underground) in tropical, subtropical, and boreal forests. The controversy and disparities in criteria generated in the international scientific community around the hypothesis of a possible link between “mother trees” and mycorrhizal networks in coopetition for nutrients, nitrogen, and carbon are analyzed. The objective is to promote awareness to generate more scientific knowledge about the eventual impacts of forest extraction. Public policies are emphasized as crucial mediators for balanced sustainable development. Currently, the effects of extractive deforestation on forest ecosystems are poorly understood, which requires caution and forest protection. Continued research to increase our knowledge in molecular biology is advocated to understand the adaptation of biological organisms to the new conditions of the ecosystem both in the face of extractive deforestation and reforestation. The environmental impacts of extractive deforestation, such as the loss of biodiversity, soil degradation, altered water cycles, and the contribution of climate change, remain largely unknown. Long-term and high-quality research is essential to ensure forest sustainability and the preservation of biodiversity for future generations. Full article

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has significantly transformed the traditional energy market and reshaped international cooperation and conflict dynamics through its expanding trade in renewable energy resources. This study focuses on examining the complex and evolving nature of coopetition relationships in the renewable energy trade among BRI countries from 2013 to 2020. Understanding the interplay between cooperation and competition in this sector is crucial for comprehending the dynamics and stability of these trade relationships. Using a signed network approach, the findings of this study reveal that the countries predominantly exhibit a cooperative relationship. However, as time progresses, a notable pattern emerges, characterized by the coexistence of “competitive cooperation” and “cooperative competition”. In addition, coopetition group clustering is strongly influenced by geographical location. China, as a key player in the BRI, demonstrates a coopetition group characterized by a high inflow and low outflow pattern. Furthermore, the implementation of the BRI has greatly improved the overall stability of trade along the route. However, the coexistence of competition and cooperation among nations has increased the uncertainty of trade relations, thereby exerting a certain level of influence on their stability. Based on these findings, this study proposes policy recommendations to strength renewable energy trade relationships along the BRI route. Full article

Cooperation among tourist attractions has encouraged a new form of competition among tourist destinations. Regional tourism cooperation can create win–win scenarios for participating tourist destinations, such as complementary advantages and improved comprehensive competitiveness. This study constructed a competitiveness measurement model and evaluated the competitiveness of tourist attractions. The index variables were set to modify and establish the gravity models (GMs). The cooperation network was established using Ucinet 6.0 software, and the competitive value of the tourist attractions and the structure characteristics of the network were analyzed. The results indicate that the competitiveness of tourist attractions in Jiangsu Province and Zhejiang Province is strong, while that of attractions in Anhui Province and Shanghai is weak. Tourist attractions in Shanghai, Suzhou, and Hangzhou have strong gravity for cooperation. Furthermore, the density of the cooperation network is high. The core members of the network are mainly distributed in the eastern region of the YRD and play a core role in the tourism cooperation therein. The cooperation network can be divided into four subgroups at level 2 and seven subgroups at level 3. The conclusions of this study can help the government formulate more targeted regional tourism cooperation policies. Full article

This multiple regression study investigated the relationship between the political network and the adoption of digital transformation strategy and if moderated by perceived corruption and political ideology of top managers among diverse enterprises in China. The aim of this study is to contribute to strategic management research on non-market factors of digital transformation. The instruments used for the study were political network relationships, digital transformation strategies, perceived corruption, economic conservatism, cultural conservatism, social conservatism, and meritocracy of top managers. A basic regression model is a causality test between the political network and digital transformation. In addition, moderated multiple regression analysis with factor analysis to analyze moderator variables perceived corruption and political ideology and their interaction with the political network and effect on digital transformation. The study included 214 firms as a convenience sample. Practical significance indicates that the firm with a higher level of political network relationships is more likely to conduct digital transformation and the higher level of top manager’s perceived corruption and economic conservatism mitigates the positive impact of the political network on digital transformation, while the higher level of top manager’s meritocracy tendency strengthens the positive impact of the political network on digital transformation. Full article

Digital twins are emerging as a prime analysis, prediction, and control concepts for enabling the Industrie 4.0 vision of cyber-physical production systems (CPPSs). Today’s growing complexity and volatility cannot be handled by monolithic digital twins but require a fundamentally decentralized paradigm of cooperating digital twins. Moreover, societal trends such as worldwide urbanization and growing emphasis on sustainability highlight competing goals that must be reflected not just in cooperating but also competing digital twins, often even interacting in “coopetition”. This paper argues for multi-agent systems (MASs) to address this challenge, using the example of embedding industrial digital twins into an urban planning context. We provide a technical discussion of suitable MAS frameworks and interaction protocols; data architecture options for efficient data supply from heterogeneous sensor streams and sovereignty in data sharing; and strategic analysis for scoping a digital twin systems design among domain experts and decision makers. To illustrate the way still in front of research and practice, the paper reviews some success stories of MASs in Industrie/Logistics 4.0 settings and sketches a comprehensive vision for digital twin-based holistic urban planning. Full article