Industry 4 0 In Smes Across The Globe

The field of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) digitalization is becoming more mature and stands to significantly contribute to the full development of the agenda of Industry 4.0. Although national digitalization programs have their own goals, the common focus is on the role of SMEs in global value chains. Since SMEs are known to have challenges around Industry 4.0 implementation, this book integrates experiences from 14 countries worldwide. Industry 4.0 in SMEs across the Globe: Drivers, Barriers, and Opportunities provides an in-depth overview of Industry 4.0 in SMEs, covering various national, historical, and geographical settings in nine European countries: Finland, France, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Serbia, and the UK, complemented by five other countries from around the world: Brazil, China, India, Iran, and the U.S. Each chapter describes the national digitalization program, along with barriers, drivers, and opportunities to implement Industry 4.0 in local SMEs. It subsumes the findings across these countries to identify common themes and clusters of drivers, barriers, and opportunities. The book concludes that there are common approaches of SMEs across the world to adopt Industry 4.0, which are to be understood to increase industrial competitiveness globally. This book is a great resource for digitalization leaders and laggards, business consultants and researchers, as well as Ph.D. and master’s students from industrial engineering and manufacturing backgrounds. Policy makers can also use the contents to better understand the commonalities and differences of national digitalization programs and further support SMEs in their digitalization process.

This open access book explores the concept of Industry 4.0, which presents a considerable challenge for the production and service sectors. While digitization initiatives are usually integrated into the central corporate strategy of larger companies, smaller firms often have problems putting Industry 4.0 paradigms into practice. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) possess neither the human nor financial resources to systematically investigate the potential and risks of introducing Industry 4.0. Addressing this obstacle, the international team of authors focuses on the development of smart manufacturing concepts, logistics solutions and managerial models specifically for SMEs. Aiming to provide methodological frameworks and pilot solutions for SMEs during their digital transformation, this innovative and timely book will be of great use to scholars researching technology management, digitization and small business, as well as practitioners within manufacturing companies.

Industry 4.0 refers to the fourth industrial revolution that began in 2011. It has revolutionized the ways in which companies carry out their operations, and manufacture and distribute their products. The industrial environment is drastically changing with the introduction of technologies such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, Internet of things (IoT), machine learning, and data analytics. Modern smart technologies are used for analyzing and diagnosing problems that enable the companies to make better decisions without human intervention. Smart manufacturing incorporates computer-integrated manufacturing to increase automation and self-optimization of process improvements. Although Industry 4.0 practices are largely beneficial for all industries, their application in SMEs face certain challenges in terms of safety and ergonomics of the workplace, lazy change management approach, and lack of a roadmap for Industry 4.0 implementation. This book explores the concept of Industry 4.0 for small and medium enterprises. It is a resource guide for professionals and students.

Focusing on the broader areas of Industry 4.0 as it applies to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), this book offers a smooth adoption of techniques and technologies and presents advances, challenges, and opportunities for implementation. It will also enhance the role of academia by training new engineers on Industry 4.0 and digital transformation. Industry 4.0 in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs): Opportunities, Challenges, and Solutions presents concepts of predictive maintenance, digital factory, digital twin, additive manufacturing, and machining for sustainable development. It discusses the challenges faced by adopting Industry 4.0 including new security and privacy measures in the whole smart manufacturing setup while also explaining the impact of Industry 4.0 on Lean production systems. Implementation recommendations in the form of case studies, research studies, and the role academia can play are also provided. Practitioners, research scholars, academicians, and those studying or working in the Industry 4.0 sector will find this book of interest.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have been widely acknowledged to be an important agent of development because of their potential for addressing unemployment, inequality, and poverty, as well as promoting inclusiveness in economic development. The sector is critical for achieving the country’s sustainable growth. However, there is a lack of research on the adaptations SMEs are making in today’s technologically driven market. Challenges and Opportunities for SMEs in Industry 4.0 is a collection of innovative research on the methods and applications of modern business development and innovative strategies for small and medium enterprises in the age of smart industrialism. This book features a wide range of topics including business intelligence, collaborative manufacturing, and organizational networking. This reference source is ideally designed for managers, policymakers, economists, entrepreneurs, strategists, researchers, industrialists, academicians, educators, and students.

This open access book addresses the practical challenges that Industry 4.0 presents for SMEs. While large companies are already responding to the changes resulting from the fourth industrial revolution , small businesses are in danger of falling behind due to the lack of examples, best practices and established methods and tools. Following on from the publication of the previous book ‘Industry 4.0 for SMEs: Challenges, Opportunities and Requirements’, the authors offer in this new book innovative results from research on smart manufacturing, smart logistics and managerial models for SMEs. Based on a large scale EU-funded research project involving seven academic institutions from three continents and a network of over fifty small and medium sized enterprises, the book reveals the methods and tools required to support the successful implementation of Industry 4.0 along with practical examples.

Utilizing Industry 4.0 technologies is essential to meet consumer expectations of personalized products and services but not without obstacles and challenges. This book provides comprehensive knowledge on the operating conditions and challenges of small- and medium-sized enterprises operating in the era of Industry 4.0 and proposes a Business Model 4.0 concept. The authors provide insights on the general conditions for the development of Economy 4.0 and Society 5.0, the expectations of modern consumers in product personalization, customization, servitization and the SME sector's requirements. In addition, the book offers a business model of cooperation between enterprises and the concept of rapid network prototyping methodology for the implementation of personalized products. It proposes the creation of e-business platforms that will allow for better integration of the customer with the manufacturer and the possibility of greater involvement in product configurations. The empirical research offered in this book will provide valuable insights for scholars and upper-level students across business disciplines, including strategic management, entrepreneurship, technology and innovation management.

SMEs represent more than 95% of businesses operating in global markets. These businesses are the fabric of any economic system both in developed and emerging countries, and are the main constituents of any global supply chain throughout the world. However, research on new 4.0 marketing strategies for this kind of businesses has been largely neglected. Extant literature mostly neglects, or fails to articulate the importance of emerging technology such as Big Data, Artificial Intelligence and VR/AR for SMEs. Building on that, this book reviews existing literature on innovation and new technology in marketing for SMEs, what they could do and should avoid. Then, presenting multiple case study from SMEs operating in diverse industries (fashion and design, food and wine, financial services), it develops a practical strategic framework that could be used by SMEs wishing to effectively innovate their marketing strategies in our contemporary digital era. It will be an essential resource for students and researchers of marketing, innovation and industry 4.0.