Industry 4.0 maturity assessment: a multi-dimensional indicator approach

Purpose: Industry 4.0 has offered significant potential for manufacturing firms to alter and rethink their business models, production processes, strategies and objectives. Manufacturing organizations have recently undergone substantial transformation due to Industry 4.0 technologies. Hence, to successfully deploy and embed Industry 4.0 technologies in their organizational operations and practices, businesses must assess their adoption readiness. For this purpose, a multi-dimensional analytical indicator methodology has been developed to measure Industry 4.0 maturity and preparedness. Design/methodology/approach: A weighted average method was adopted to assess the Industry 4.0 readiness using a case study from a steel manufacturing organization. Findings: The result revealed that the firm ranks between Industry 2.0 and Industry 3.0, with an overall score of 2.32. This means that the organization is yet to achieve Industry 4.0 mature and ready organization. Practical implications: The multi-dimensional indicator framework proposed can be used by managers, policymakers, practitioners and researchers to assess the current status of organizations in terms of Industry 4.0 maturity and readiness as well as undertake a practical diagnosis and prognosis of systems and processes for its future adoption. Originality/value: Although research on Industry 4.0 maturity models has grown exponentially in recent years, this study is the first to develop a multi-dimensional analytical indicator to measure Industry 4.0 maturity and readiness.