Higher-Level Capabilities of System-of-Systems Constituents: A Case of Industrial Ecosystems

Abstract

In a system-of-systems, independent constituent systems collaborate to achieve broader capabilities they cannot provide on their own. This paper investigates the nature of the constituent system capabilities beyond basic operational actions, to achieve a deeper understanding of what is required to participate in a system-of-systems. Through a case study of industrial ecosystems, the need is shown for planning how to use basic operational capabilities, for dynamic capabilities to achieve long-term evolution, and for resilience capabilities to deal with perturbations. This also affects the governance of the system. The findings are used to extend an existing conceptual model of constituent systems and to characterize collaboration in a system-of-systems that implements a value network.