Identifying the Dimensions and Components of the Sharing Economy in the Manufacturing Systems – The Case of Parts Manufacturing Companies in the Province of Qom

To connect and share resources between industrial units with unused resources on the one hand, and production systems in need on the other, a concept called “sharing economy " can be used. If sharing economy is sufficiently explained, and its theoretical aspects strengthened, more actions perform to make this concept practical. Therefore, in the present study, after studying the literature and previous studies, the components of sharing economy are identified and generalized to production systems. Utilizing a sharing economy will have a significant impact on increasing the productivity of production systems through resources sharing.  

In the first phase of this research, the library study method used to collect data and information. Content analysis method used to analyze the data and identify the dimensions and components of the sharing economy. Then, in the second phase of the research, the interview process and expert opinions were used to determine the dimensions, elements, and examples of sharing economy in production systems. After extracting questions from the concepts extracted from the first phase of the research and after conducting the interview process and summarizing it, the components and dimensions of the sharing economy in production systems validated and their examples identified.  

In this study, the components of sharing economy in production systems identified as follows: resource sharing, shared parties, forms of sharing, information and communication exchange system, ownership and access conditions, surplus capacity, exchange benefits for sharing parties and others, and social issues in sharing. These elements categorized into four dimensions: sharing mechanism, sharing requirements and conditions, sharing purpose, and sharing consequences.  

Considering the wide range and levels of coverage of the concept of sharing economy and its various operational areas, summarizing the definitions and extracting the components is highly complicated. It also seems hard to reach experts who work in the field of production systems and sharing economy or those who are familiar with its concepts. The following study subjects suggested to develop sharing economy in production systems: i) counting and examining the challenges facing the sharing economy, such as legal issues, building trust, ethical issues, insurance and taxes, and providing solutions to solve it; ii) the role of resource sharing and sharing economy in lean, agile, sustainable, green, and resilience of production systems; iii) the role of social issues regarding the sharing economy in production systems or designing a socio-economic model for it; and iv) determining the type of relationship between the dimensions and components of the sharing economy and how they affect and intensify each other with the help of methods such as structural equation modelling.  

The use of sharing economy leads to better use of resources and reduced cost of using it, reduced product cost, increased competitiveness and ultimately improved efficiency and productivity of the production system. For the supplier of resources, resource sharing in production systems leads to the prevention of stock death, earned profit and strengthened financial resources; and for the recipient of resources, it leads to reduced cost of access to resources and investment, and thus saved liquidity. In addition to the sharing parties, intermediaries and service providers, government and government agencies, the country's economic market, the working community, society, consumers and even scientific and research centres benefit.  

Resource sharing in production systems can affect or be affected by social issues. The attitude of rulers and politicians in governing society and passing laws, and overseeing their implementation can affect the concept of a sharing economy. Sharing helps in increasing social capital in the areas of education and public awareness, building trust, increasing interactions, and connecting production systems with social participation, and increasing the general level of community culture. Sharing strengthens a sense of social responsibility and can also be significant in the field of social justice and reducing social harm.  

If the concept of sharing economy explained sufficiently and its theoretical aspects strengthened, it can be operational in the next steps. In this regard, in this study, the dimensions and elements of the sharing economy in production systems identified. These dimensions and components can provide the basis for designing a practical and operational model for implementing a sharing economy in production systems, can reduce the gap between practice and theory, and can guide managers and business activists and those involved in the field.