Open Access Articles

In the era of Industry 4.0, many industrial companies are facing major transformations. In the process of digitalization, factory management is adopting new technologies such as cognitive assistance systems, which has led to changes in work processes. Regarding assembly in the metal and electrical industries, it is unclear to what extent this development has promoted work-integrated learning. Therefore, the topic of this paper is a qualitative analysis that explores employees' perceptions of the learning opportunities and risks presented by cognitive assistance systems. Results: Not all assembly employees benefit equally from these new developments.

The most important value-adding industrial business processes are product creation and order processing. For 40 years now, Industry 4.0 Science and its predecessor titles have supported the development and implementation of the software used in these industrial business processes. In honor of the journal’s 40th anniversary, a systematic literature review is carried out to identify trends that played a role in the past but no longer do today. The research provides some surprising insights into the topics that have been important in the last 40 years – as well as those that will remain relevant in the future.

Current developments in digitalization and data economy, especially multilateral data sharing platforms, offer the potential to accelerate the implementation of circular economy practices in the manufacturing industry. This article systematically examines the extent to which digitalization could serve as a catalyst for circular economy in the procurement of such companies. As a basis for the following research, eight experts from five leading global manufacturers and suppliers in the automotive and aviation industries were interviewed. This article demonstrates practical hypotheses for the sustainable design of supply chains and proposes two specific use cases for circular economy practices that can proactively counteract the use of resources.

Technical systems are characterized by increasing interdisciplinarity, complexity and networking. A product and its corresponding production systems require interdisciplinary multi-objective optimization. Sustainability and recyclability demands increase said complexity. The efficiency of previously established engineering methods is reaching its limits, which can only be overcome by systematic integration of extreme data. The aim of "hybrid decision support" is as follows: Data science and artificial intelligence should be used to supplement human capabilities in conjunction with existing heuristics, methods, modeling and simulation to increase the efficiency of product creation.

Artificial intelligence is often mentioned often mentioned in the same context as Industry 4.0, but the exact role of AI is unclear. Is AI just another 4IR technology or an essential "enabler" for other 4IR technologies? Six experts assess the impact of AI on 41 4IR technologies. AI could indeed be a decisive factor in unleashing the full potential of Industry 4.0.

Reducing CO2 emissions is one of the most urgent tasks of our time. Simultaneously, artificial intelligence is developing rapidly. However, AI often brings about its own significant CO2 impact. Experimental testing of Green AI strategies is therefore crucial for their long-term success. A management tool can support this process so that both users and managers can make optimal use of AI as a tool.

The rapid development of generative artificial intelligence is opening up new avenues for the manufacturing industry amid a shortage of skilled workers. Large language models can potentially make production processes in medium- sized businesses more efficient. But how exactly is this potential measured? Key areas of application such as communication, training and knowledge management show why a lot depends on employee acceptance.

Fake news are increasingly dominating the digital world. The question arises: Can modern technologies reverse this trend? The article highlights the potential of the GPT-4o language model for identifying fake news in online comments and news articles and for correcting false information. With impressive accuracy, the model shows how language technology can combat misinformation.

The double transformation describes the necessary change in the economy in the dimensions of ecology and digitalization. Motion capture systems offer new possibilities for recording and analyzing work processes in industrial assembly. They visualize motion sequences with high frequency, precision and resolution. The question therefore arises as to how the technology can be used in the context of digital transformation to further develop the analysis of work processes and the design of workplaces. Our article discusses this on the basis of solution principles and describes implementation principles for the development of upcoming digital assistance systems.

The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) is constantly opening new opportunities, particularly in training for the factory of the future. For employees, this not only means a significant advantage in the actual manufacturing process, but also in the field of continuing education. This paper provides an overview of AI tutoring systems continuing education in the context of Industry 4.0 by presenting a categorization that discusses different approaches of AI tutoring systems by learning methods, application areas and their respective technologies. In addition, an outlook on the disruptive effect of generative AI on AI tutoring systems in Industry 4.0 is given.