State of the art on the role of the Theory of Inventive Problem Solving in Sustainable Product-Service Systems: Past, Present, and Future

The transition towards Sustainable Product-Service Systems (SPSS) is not an easy journey. The literature indicates several difficulties in obtaining success in the development of SPSS offers. These hardships indicate the need for well-structured methods supporting the systematic generation of sustainable innovations and solving contradictions during the stages of the servitization process. The Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (TRIZ) is worldwide recognized by its potential to systematically solve contradictions and generate innovations. However, the research framework available and its application into SPSS domain· are still very limited. Thus, to address this gap, this paper aims to explore the contributions and challenges of the adoption of TRIZ in the development of SPSSs. A systematic literature review of the foundations and advances in this topic was conducted. The primary results indicate the main contributions from TRIZ to SPSS development, the types of eco-innovations resulting, the artifacts (e.g. models, methods, proposition or instantiation) that applied TRIZ towards SPSS and the most frequent category of PSS resulting according to TRIZ. Findings suggest that the systematic innovation proposed by TRIZ has great potential to enable the development of systematic SPSS offers. Synergies between TRIZ and the sustainable strategies of Cleaner Production also were mapped. Finally, our study proposes a research agenda and indicate the main challenges to apply the TRIZ in SPSS models. A new concept emerges in servitization field: the Systematic and Sustainable Product-Service Systems (SSPSS).