IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/tefoso/v172y2021ics0040162521004807.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Managing industry 4.0 automation for fair ethical business development: A single case study

Author

Listed:
  • Margherita, Emanuele Gabriel
  • Braccini, Alessio Maria

Abstract

Manufacturing organisations are adopting Industry 4.0 (I40) technologies to automate decision making and operational tasks down the assembly line. Manufacturing organisations can achieve benefits at the level of capital and labour welfare through a more optimised production process, stable employment and enriched duties for workers. Nevertheless, the benefits of I40 adoption produce on the capital could be detrimental for the labour welfare. I40 automation can lead to job disruption, impoverishment of workforce roles and expertise along the production process. There is a lack of studies that explores how organisations adopt I40 technologies to reach a fair balance between capital and labour welfare benefits because management privileges the I40 automation potential over the workforce role in I40 adoption. We address this gap by conducting a single case study of the Italian production branch of an international manufacturing organisation adopting I40 technologies. The results show that organisations achieve a fair balance between capital and labour welfare benefits by deploying I40 technologies with a worker-centric approach. I40 assembly line operates with a sociotechnical interplay between technologies and workers. I40 technologies automate repetitive and dangerous activities, and workers reduce routine work and enrich their duties taking on supervision activities on the assembly line. To this end, workers are trained to acquire digital competencies and maintain a higher level of knowledge of the production activities.

Suggested Citation

  • Margherita, Emanuele Gabriel & Braccini, Alessio Maria, 2021. "Managing industry 4.0 automation for fair ethical business development: A single case study," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:172:y:2021:i:c:s0040162521004807
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121048
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0040162521004807
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121048?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Guilherme Luz Tortorella & Diego Fettermann, 2018. "Implementation of Industry 4.0 and lean production in Brazilian manufacturing companies," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(8), pages 2975-2987, April.
    2. Peter M. Bednar & Christine Welch, 0. "Socio-Technical Perspectives on Smart Working: Creating Meaningful and Sustainable Systems," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-18.
    3. Daniel Kiel & Julian M. Müller & Christian Arnold & Kai-Ingo Voigt, 2017. "Sustainable Industrial Value Creation: Benefits And Challenges Of Industry 4.0," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 21(08), pages 1-34, December.
    4. Li, Ling, 2018. "China's manufacturing locus in 2025: With a comparison of “Made-in-China 2025” and “Industry 4.0”," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 66-74.
    5. Christopher Michaelson & Michael Pratt & Adam Grant & Craig Dunn, 2014. "Meaningful Work: Connecting Business Ethics and Organization Studies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 121(1), pages 77-90, April.
    6. Frey, Carl Benedikt & Osborne, Michael A., 2017. "The future of employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 254-280.
    7. Peter M. Bednar & Christine Welch, 2020. "Socio-Technical Perspectives on Smart Working: Creating Meaningful and Sustainable Systems," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 281-298, April.
    8. Li Da Xu & Eric L. Xu & Ling Li, 2018. "Industry 4.0: state of the art and future trends," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(8), pages 2941-2962, April.
    9. Wright, Scott A. & Schultz, Ainslie E., 2018. "The rising tide of artificial intelligence and business automation: Developing an ethical framework," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 61(6), pages 823-832.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Nylund, Petra A. & Ferràs-Hernández, Xavier & Pareras, Luis & Brem, Alexander, 2022. "The emergence of entrepreneurial ecosystems based on enabling technologies: Evidence from synthetic biology," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 728-735.
    2. Sergi, Bruno S. & Ključnikov, Aleksandr & Popkova, Elena G. & Bogoviz, Aleksei V. & Lobova, Svetlana V., 2022. "Creative abilities and digital competencies to transitioning to Business 4.0," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 153(C), pages 401-411.
    3. Marina Crnjac Zizic & Marko Mladineo & Nikola Gjeldum & Luka Celent, 2022. "From Industry 4.0 towards Industry 5.0: A Review and Analysis of Paradigm Shift for the People, Organization and Technology," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-20, July.
    4. James, Ajith Tom & Kumar, Girish & Tayal, Pushpal & Chauhan, Ashwin & Wadhawa, Chirag & Panchal, Jasmin, 2022. "Analysis of human resource management challenges in implementation of industry 4.0 in Indian automobile industry," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    5. Latino, Maria Elena & Menegoli, Marta & Lazoi, Mariangela & Corallo, Angelo, 2022. "Voluntary traceability in food supply chain: a framework leading its implementation in Agriculture 4.0," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Emanuele Gabriel Margherita & Alessio Maria Braccini, 2023. "Industry 4.0 Technologies in Flexible Manufacturing for Sustainable Organizational Value: Reflections from a Multiple Case Study of Italian Manufacturers," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 25(3), pages 995-1016, June.
    2. Emanuele Gabriel Margherita & Alessio Maria Braccini, 2021. "Industry 4.0 Technologies in Flexible Manufacturing for Sustainable Organizational Value: Reflections from a Multiple Case Study of Italian Manufacturers," Post-Print hal-03442440, HAL.
    3. Emanuele Gabriel Margherita & Alessio Maria Braccini, 2021. "Exploring Sustainable Value Creation of Industry 4.0 Technologies Within the Socio-technical Perspective: A Meta-review," Post-Print hal-03410741, HAL.
    4. Gillani, Fatima & Chatha, Kamran Ali & Sadiq Jajja, Muhammad Shakeel & Farooq, Sami, 2020. "Implementation of digital manufacturing technologies: Antecedents and consequences," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 229(C).
    5. Eslami, Mohammad H. & Achtenhagen, Leona & Bertsch, Cedric Tobias & Lehmann, Annika, 2023. "Knowledge-sharing across supply chain actors in adopting Industry 4.0 technologies: An exploratory case study within the automotive industry," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 186(PA).
    6. Tortorella, Guilherme Luz & Fogliatto, Flávio Sanson & Espôsto, Kleber Francisco & Vergara, Alejandro Mac Cawley & Vassolo, Roberto & Mendoza, Diego Tlapa & Narayanamurthy, Gopalakrishnan, 2020. "Effects of contingencies on healthcare 4.0 technologies adoption and barriers in emerging economies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    7. Mariani, Marcello & Borghi, Matteo, 2019. "Industry 4.0: A bibliometric review of its managerial intellectual structure and potential evolution in the service industries," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    8. Grybauskas, Andrius & Stefanini, Alessandro & Ghobakhloo, Morteza, 2022. "Social sustainability in the age of digitalization: A systematic literature Review on the social implications of industry 4.0," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    9. Ghadimi, Pezhman & Donnelly, Oisin & Sar, Kubra & Wang, Chao & Azadnia, Amir Hossein, 2022. "The successful implementation of industry 4.0 in manufacturing: An analysis and prioritization of risks in Irish industry," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    10. Menti, Federica & Romero, David & Jacobsen, Peter, 2023. "A technology assessment and implementation model for evaluating socio-cultural and technical factors for the successful deployment of Logistics 4.0 technologies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).
    11. Özköse, Hakan & Güney, Gül, 2023. "The effects of industry 4.0 on productivity: A scientific mapping study," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    12. Bai, Chunguang & Dallasega, Patrick & Orzes, Guido & Sarkis, Joseph, 2020. "Industry 4.0 technologies assessment: A sustainability perspective," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 229(C).
    13. Rafael, Lizarralde Dorronsoro & Jaione, Ganzarain Epelde & Cristina, López & Ibon, Serrano Lasa, 2020. "An Industry 4.0 maturity model for machine tool companies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    14. Andreas Felsberger & Gerald Reiner, 2020. "Sustainable Industry 4.0 in Production and Operations Management: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-39, September.
    15. Luo, Shiyue & Yu, Mengyao & Dong, Yilan & Hao, Yu & Li, Changping & Wu, Haitao, 2024. "Toward urban high-quality development: Evidence from more intelligent Chinese cities," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    16. Dwivedi, Ashish & Moktadir, Md. Abdul & Chiappetta Jabbour, Charbel José & de Carvalho, Daniel Estima, 2022. "Integrating the circular economy and industry 4.0 for sustainable development: Implications for responsible footwear production in a big data-driven world," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    17. Nazareno, Luísa & Schiff, Daniel S., 2021. "The impact of automation and artificial intelligence on worker well-being," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    18. Cugno, Monica & Castagnoli, Rebecca & Büchi, Giacomo, 2021. "Openness to Industry 4.0 and performance: The impact of barriers and incentives," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    19. Gábor Szabó-Szentgróti & Bence Végvári & József Varga, 2021. "Impact of Industry 4.0 and Digitization on Labor Market for 2030-Verification of Keynes’ Prediction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-19, July.
    20. Hien Nguyen Ngoc & Ganix Lasa & Ion Iriarte, 2022. "Human-centred design in industry 4.0: case study review and opportunities for future research," Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, Springer, vol. 33(1), pages 35-76, January.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:172:y:2021:i:c:s0040162521004807. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00401625 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.