Utilizing industry 4.0 on the construction site : challenges and opportunities

In recent years a step change has been seen in the rate of adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies by manufacturers and industrial organisations alike. This paper discusses the current state of the art in the adoption of industry 4.0 technologies within the construction industry. Increasing complexity in onsite construction projects coupled with the need for higher productivity is leading to increased interest in the potential use of industry 4.0 technologies. This paper discusses the relevance of the following key industry 4.0 technologies to construction: data analytics and artificial intelligence; robotics and automation; buildings information management; sensors and wearables; digital twin and industrial connectivity. Industrial connectivity is a key aspect as it ensures that all Industry 4.0 technologies are interconnected allowing the full benefits to be realized. This paper also presents a research agenda for the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies within the construction sector; a three-phase use of intelligent assets from the point of manufacture up to after build and a four staged R&D process for the implementation of smart wearables in a digital enhanced construction site

Lean manual assembly 4.0: A systematic review

In a demand context of mass customization, shifting towards the mass personalization of products, assembly operations face the trade-off between highly productive automated systems and flexible manual operators. Novel digital technologies—conceptualized as Industry 4.0—suggest the possibility of simultaneously achieving superior productivity and flexibility. This article aims to address how Industry 4.0 technologies could improve the productivity, flexibility and quality of assembly operations. A systematic literature review was carried out, including 234 peer-reviewed articles from 2010–2020. As a result, the analysis was structured addressing four sets of research questions regarding (1) assembly for mass customization; (2) Industry 4.0 and performance evaluation; (3) Lean production as a starting point for smart factories, and (4) the implications of Industry 4.0 for people in assembly operations. It was found that mass customization brings great complexity that needs to be addressed at different levels from a holistic point of view; that Industry 4.0 offers powerful tools to achieve superior productivity and flexibility in assembly; that Lean is a great starting point for implementing such changes; and that people need to be considered central to Assembly 4.0. Developing methodologies for implementing Industry 4.0 to achieve specific business goals remains an open research topic

How data will transform industrial processes: crowdsensing, crowdsourcing and big data as pillars of industry 4.0

We are living in the era of the fourth industrial revolution, namely Industry 4.0. This paper presents themain aspects related to Industry 4.0, the technologies thatwill enable this revolution, and the main application domains thatwill be affected by it. The effects that the introduction of Internet of Things (IoT), Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS), crowdsensing, crowdsourcing, cloud computing and big data will have on industrial processeswill be discussed. Themain objectiveswill be represented by improvements in: production efficiency, quality and cost-effectiveness; workplace health and safety, as well as quality of working conditions; products' quality and availability, according to mass customisation requirements. The paper will further discuss the common denominator of these enhancements, i.e., data collection and analysis. As data and information will be crucial for Industry 4.0, crowdsensing and crowdsourcing will introduce new advantages and challenges, which will make most of the industrial processes easier with respect to traditional technologies

Designing learning-skills towards industry 4.0

The world is shrinking now more than ever due to new scientific and technological breakthroughs that expand the boundaries of human knowledge, resulting in improvements in transportation, communication, space exploration and educational technologies. Today’s students will compete in a technological, diverse, multi-cultural world and must be prepared to thrive in this futuristic environment. Therefore, it is vital that today’s pedagogy produce lifelong learners, who can succeed in a global pulpit. To ensure our educational technology progresses at the rate demanded by today’s ubiquitous digital learners, we review emerging technologies and traditional teaching methods and propose desirable changes. Future companies will need employees with specific Internet of Things connected additive manufacturing skills across the value stream, including computer-aided design, machine operation, raw material development, robotics and supply chain management; but these are only island of excellence in industry 4.0 and not the consummate requirement of the manufacturing process

Implementing Industry 4.0 in SMEs

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

A Strategic Roadmap for the Manufacturing Industry to Implement Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 (also referred to as digitization of manufacturing) is characterized by cyber physical systems, automation, and data exchange. It is no longer a future trend and is being employed worldwide by manufacturing organizations, to gain benefits of improved performance, reduced inefficiencies, and lower costs, while improving flexibility. However, the implementation of Industry 4.0 enabling technologies is a difficult task and becomes even more challenging without any standardized approach. The barriers include, but are not limited to, lack of knowledge, inability to realistically quantify the return on investment, and lack of a skilled workforce. This study presents a systematic and content-centric literature review of Industry 4.0 enabling technologies, to highlight their impact on the manufacturing industry. It also provides a strategic roadmap for the implementation of Industry 4.0, based on lean six sigma approaches. The basis of the roadmap is the design for six sigma approach for the development of a new process chain, followed by a continuous improvement plan. The reason for choosing lean six sigma is to provide manufacturers with a sense of familiarity, as they have been employing these principles for removing waste and reducing variability. Major reasons for the rejection of Industry 4.0 implementation methodologies by manufactures are fear of the unknown and resistance to change, whereas the use of lean six sigma can mitigate them. The strategic roadmap presented in this paper can offer a holistic view of phases that manufacturers should undertake and the challenges they might face in their journey toward Industry 4.0 transition

Guest Editorial: Design and Analysis of Communication Interfaces for Industry 4.0

This special issue (SI) aims to present recent advances in the design and analysis of communication interfaces for Industry 4.0. The Industry 4.0 paradigm aims to integrate advanced manufacturing techniques with Industrial Internet-of-Things (IIoT) to create an agile digital manufacturing ecosystem. The main goal is to instrument production processes by embedding sensors, actuators and other control devices which autonomously communicate with each other throughout the value-chain [1]

Operator-centred Lean 4.0 framework for flexible assembly lines

This article provides a starting point for developing a methodology to successfully implement Industry 4.0 technology for assembly operations. It presents a novel multi-layer human-centred conceptual model in line with Lean philosophy which identifies the assembly operator functions and relates them to other production departments, identifying how they would be affected by incorporating new digital technologies. The model shows that assembly operators would only be directly supported by hardware digital technologies, while the production support departments would mainly employ Industry 4.0 software technologies. The work presented here paves the way for developing a methodology for implementing Lean Assembly 4.0

Application-driven visual computing towards industry 4.0 2018

245 p.La Tesis recoge contribuciones en tres campos: 1. Agentes Virtuales Interactivos: autónomos, modulares, escalables, ubicuos y atractivos para el usuario. Estos IVA pueden interactuar con los usuarios de manera natural.2. Entornos de RV/RA Inmersivos: RV en la planificación de la producción, el diseño de producto, la simulación de procesos, pruebas y verificación. El Operario Virtual muestra cómo la RV y los Co-bots pueden trabajar en un entorno seguro. En el Operario Aumentado la RA muestra información relevante al trabajador de una manera no intrusiva. 3. Gestión Interactiva de Modelos 3D: gestión online y visualización de modelos CAD multimedia, mediante conversión automática de modelos CAD a la Web. La tecnología Web3D permite la visualización e interacción de estos modelos en dispositivos móviles de baja potencia.Además, estas contribuciones han permitido analizar los desafíos presentados por Industry 4.0. La tesis ha contribuido a proporcionar una prueba de concepto para algunos de esos desafíos: en factores humanos, simulación, visualización e integración de modelos