Exploring relationships between Lean 4.0 and manufacturing industry

Abstract

Purpose Over the past few decades, lean manufacturing has focussed on being customer-centred and now Lean 4.0 technologies have made it possible for manufacturers to have a deeper view of waste reduction. Technologies such as the internet of things, artificial intelligence, three-dimensional printing, robotics, real-time data, cloud computing, predictive analytics and augmented reality, are helpful to achieve Lean 4.0. This study aims to develop the conceptual understanding of Lean 4.0, related tools and linkage with Industry 4.0. Further, it provides the strategies for implementing Lean 4.0, developing lean culture and highlights the Lean 4.0 application in the manufacturing context. Design/methodology/approach This study relates to Lean 4.0 and its technologies. Prominent research is identified through Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar and studied as per the objective of this study. This lean revolution provides customers desire for personalisation, connectedness, high-quality and valuable products. Lean 4.0 provides valuable information on the value chain and production process. This revolution has significantly impacted refining production processes for a greater level of adaptability and cost reduction. Findings This paper is brief about Lean 4.0 and its capabilities for the reduction of waste. The authors discussed different tools used in Lean 4.0 and its relationship with Industry 4.0. The classical strategies and progressive features of Lean 4.0 for overall enhancing the manufacturing sphere are discussed diagrammatically. Finally, it identified and discussed 14 significant applications of Lean 4.0 for manufacturing industries. Originality/value This study provides a comprehensive understanding of Lean 4.0 and related tools and strategies that help the upcoming manufacturing industries.

Lean in industry 4.0 is accelerating manufacturing excellence – A DEMATEL analysis

“…Research paper (Javaid et al, 2021) on L4.0 has brought out its following 14 applications in manufacturing industries: waste reduction, increase productivity, develop manufacturing operations, automation, monitoring, improvement in operational excellence, real time information, optimize production efficiency, build an open communication system, storing an unlimited amount of data, increase quality, digital information, minimize operational Lean in industry 4.0 expenses and effective decision making support. A deeper study on it does indicate a degree of overlap in application areas.…”

“…However, with the increasing complexity of operations of the current supply chain, many companies have started finding lean techniques not enough to address the competitive pressures of the competitive world today and tomorrow (General Electric, 2016). Furthermore, technology intervention is gaining huge momentum after the incredible disruptions of 2020 and it is pushing manufacturing even further toward digitization, robotics, cloud computing (CC) and autonomous operations (Javaid et al, 2021). This need is driving the merger of the physical world and the digital worlds in the form of Industry-4.0 (I4.0) and getting integrated to lean (Laaper and Kiefer, 2019).…”

Development of an industry 4.0 transformability index for manufacturing systems

“…The I4.0 characteristics and implementation challenges were studied by Kolberg and Zühlke (2015); Oztemel and Gursev (2020), Frank et al (2019) and Kumar et al (2021b) developed an implementation model/framework, while some others studied implementation readiness (Basl, 2017; Hizam-Hanafiah et al , 2020; Kiel et al , 2017; Mogos et al , 2019). Different aspects related to the I4.0 regime, such as maturity models (Caiado et al , 2021), sustainability functions (Ghobakhloo, 2020), sustainability aspects (Bai et al , 2020; Machado et al , 2019; Müller et al , 2018), relation/integration with other industrial practices (Davis et al , 2020; Javaid et al , 2021; Tortorella et al , 2019), supply chain (Hofmann et al , 2019; Tiwari, 2020), possible impacts (Kumar et al , 2020b; Ulusoy et al , 2021), facility layout (Ficko et al , 2021), robotic collaborations (Dobra and Dhir, 2020; Goel and Gupta, 2020; Inkulu, 2021), human factors and ergonomic analysis (Laudante, 2017; Neumann et al , 2021) and others are also highlighted in the literature. Recently (Kumar et al , 2021c) proposed a labeling system and comparative index for comparing the automation levels in two or more I4.0 systems.…”

Framework development and evaluation of Industry 4.0 technological aspects towards improving the circular economy-based supply chain

“…This German deliberated initiative purposes of creating intelligent factories where various emerging technologies, such as cloud computing, big data analysis, Internet of Things (IoT), robotic systems, additive manufacturing (AM), virtual and augmented reality assist in attaining a series of cyber-physical systems (CPS) and human equipment interfaces that advance the manufacturing and service sector (Kamble et al , 2018). The principle of Industry 4.0 is the establishment of “smart manufacturing,” meaning intelligent networking between industrial units, improving flexibility of processes, providing versatility and interoperability in industrial activities, better customer and supplier integration and the introduction of digital and innovative business models (Javaid et al , 2021; Jazdi, 2014). The digitalized system used by Industry 4.0 has proven to be a promising technology for efficiency, precision and accuracy.…”