Sociotechnical factors and Industry 4.0: an integrative perspective for the adoption of smart manufacturing technologies

Abstract

PurposeAs the level of implementation of Industry 4.0 increases, misalignments between adopted technologies and organizational factors may result in benefits below expected. This paper aims to analyze how organizational factors can contribute to a higher level of adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies. The paper uses a sociotechnical perspective lens to achieve this aim.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of 231 manufacturing companies in Denmark, a leading country in Industry 4.0 readiness, the paper analyzes through cluster analysis and logistic regression whether the development of four sociotechnical dimensions – that is, Social, Technical, Work Organization and Environmental factors – in these companies can benefit the achievement of higher levels of Industry 4.0 technology adoption.FindingsThe results show that companies focused on the development of sociotechnical aspects generally present higher Industry 4.0 adoption levels. However, some sociotechnical factors are less supportive than others.Originality/valueBased on these results, practitioners can plan the adoption of advanced technologies, using a systemic organizational view. This study provides evidence on a growing field with few empirical studies available. The paper contributes by providing an analysis of a leading country in Industry 4.0 implementation, presenting a systemic view on technology adoption in the Industry 4.0 context.

Developing a learning-to-learn capability: insights on conditions for Industry 4.0 adoption

“…However, they stressed that a technocentric adoption approach toward I4.0 does not improve operational performance. Instead, it is a people-centric change of mindset, behavior, and work practices that constitutes a genuinely lean organization, representing the enabling influence of I4.0 (Cagliano et al, 2019;Marcon et al, 2021). A lean organization is characterized by the presence of an organizational learning-to-learn capability (Powell and Coughlan, 2020).…”

The workers' perspective: emotional consequences during a lean manufacturing change based on VSM analysis

“…In this sense, in the literature, we find a multitude of papers encouraging future research to be combined with professionals in the workplace to implement improvement processes such as LM techniques in order to analyse their effect on workers (e.g. Chowdary and George, 2012;Hasle, 2014;Marcon et al, 2021). This recommendation is due to the gap of evidence in this area, as LM papers generally focus on technical improvements in production and do not address workers' perceptions of them.…”

“…In this sense, in the literature, we find a multitude of papers encouraging future research to be combined with professionals in the workplace to implement improvement processes such as LM techniques in order to analyse their effect on workers (e.g. Chowdary and George, 2012; Hasle, 2014; Marcon et al. , 2021).…”

Electronic User Authentication Key for Access to HMI/SCADA via Unsecured Internet Networks

“…One of the current ideas about modern production has found its reflection in the concept of Smart Manufacturing (SM). SM is a production concept that implements computer integration, and a high level of adaptability and a rapid change in production levels, which depends on the demand and the required tasks to solve [ 2 ]. Moreover, [ 2 ] showed that for the usage of digital information techniques that can be implemented for more flexible multiscale dynamic production systems, a single end-to-end industrial network based on IIoT is required.…”

“…SM is a production concept that implements computer integration, and a high level of adaptability and a rapid change in production levels, which depends on the demand and the required tasks to solve [ 2 ]. Moreover, [ 2 ] showed that for the usage of digital information techniques that can be implemented for more flexible multiscale dynamic production systems, a single end-to-end industrial network based on IIoT is required. Indeed, the single end-to-end industrial network provides the access to the global Internet network, which supports the connection to all information control actions, besides the interaction with all constituent elements of the SM.…”