Open Access Articles

The assertion “Our people are what set us apart from our rivals” is a common statement made by nearly every company, highlighting the significance of their people as the most valuable asset. Similarly, a corporate culture emphasizing risk awareness and learning from experiences has played a key role in shaping supply chain resilience (SCRES) amidst competitive dynamics in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Employee engagement, communication, and collaboration, as dimensions of SC risk awareness, determine the effectiveness of firms’ cultures in handling large-scale disruptions with robustness and agility. Additionally, the COVID-19 crisis has had a positive impact on firms’ learning orientation. The crucial necessity of digital supply chain (SC) transformation to enhance SCRES under pandemic conditions has further reinforced the need for dynamic adaptation and reconfiguration of firms’ culture and employee skillsets through digital upskilling.

Small and medium-sized enterprises still face the challenge of shaping their digital transformation. Maturity models offer a way to capture the situation within a company and support the formation of an Industry 4.0 vision. This paper presents a methodology that companies can use to develop a roadmap for shaping digital transformation by enabling the transfer of this vision into concrete decision-making steps.

Artificial Intelligence methods can be structured according to different aspects. Applications within Industrie 4.0 can also be classified into levels and process groups using the RAMI framework or the ISA95 standard. However, a taxonomy is lacking that relates the classification of the application areas to the processes improved by machine learning methods while at the same time locating and evaluating them. Such a framework helps to classify new processes and solutions and supports finding suitable machine learning methods for concrete problems in the Industry 4.0 context.

The industrial internet-of-things is built on heterogeneous hardware/software platforms, which vary in their architecture and performance. Virtualization is an important technology for building secure and portable applications on scalable IoT deployments. Bytecode based virtual machines are coming back into focus with WebAssembly, a technology that started in the web browser and now raises interest in other use cases. In this paper we discuss a vision of scalable WebAssembly deployments in the industrial internet-of-things.

Due to the sharp rise in energy prices, compressed air, or compressor performance and its power consumption, are once again in the foreground as part of energy management. Due to the fact, that compressed air often escapes via leaks and these are difficult to localize or measure, a niche topic is becoming very noteworthy again. Automated leak detection can determine the need for repairs and help increase energy efficiency. It is important that not only leaks are detected, but that the extent of the leaks can also be quantified. A cost-effective method of detecting leaks is energy monitoring of the air compressor. Continuous monitoring and evaluation of the energy data means that you can react quickly.

The political and social request for environmentally compatible products is putting companies under increasing pressure. Small and medium-sized companies (SME) in particular have to quickly find or develop solutions to these demands. This paper presents a methodological approach that combines the proven strategies of agile development with the specific activities of so-called ecodesign. The methodology is first discussed theoretically and then experimentally evaluated and discussed by means of a case study in a real company context.

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing companies. To be able to define strategies for decarbonizing their business activities, companies need to start accounting for their emissions. Calculating Scope 3 emissions is a complex, resource- intensive, and often imprecise process for companies. By using digital technologies, Scope 3 carbon accounting can become more transparent, efficient, and secure. This article highlights the potential of digital technologies in Scope 3 carbon accounting.

The planning of logistics processes and their efficient implementation are decisive competitive factors for customized plant construction. On the construction site, however, the collection of logistics data is often neglected, preventing the project planner from building a reliable database. Related information gaps can be closed with the help of a digital shadow that collects logistics-relevant data (partially) automatically, stores them in a consistent manner and makes them available to project management. This article describes the first important results of a research project on information and communication processes in construction site logistics and explains their vital role in the development and use of a digital shadow.

Emergency organizations such as fire departments or technical relief organizations are expected to react very quickly – sometimes to unknown situations – and provide the appropriate assistance. Can principles used in these organizations be transferred to IT support, e.g. for ERP systems? An experiment in an IT service unit investigates this question – with surprising results.

With the increasing availability of IoT devices and significantly greater incorporation of Internet-enabled technologies into manufacturing processes, the idea of improving factory control through the use of artificial intelligence (AI) is also coming to the fore. Using the example of high-variation series manufacturing, this article describes which steps need to be taken to improve factory control with AI.