Industry 4.0 (also known as I4) is the name for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Before I4, of course, there were three previous revolutions that marked major changes in industrial production. The first was at 18. century when water and steam became the primary fuel for production. Given that the transition from manual work to new technologies was necessary, the time has passed while new technologies were accepted in production. The first industries to experience this were the textile industry, the iron industry and agriculture. The second revolution marks the age of mass production. The mass production of steel had a butterfly effect, resulting in the growth of railroads, which increased connectivity between people and encouraged the spread of mass production. The changes I mentioned led to great economic growth, but also to an increase in unemployment as many workers were replaced by machines. The third or digital revolution occurred as a result of the development of computing and information and communication technologies. It has brought about many changes in everyday affairs and shaped the world as we know it today.
I4 means the development of automated and fully autonomous, intelligent systems that will communicate with each other, but also with the operational staff. It requires absolute digitization and full use of communication capabilities to achieve its maximum and accelerate the development of industrial production.
If we want to achieve that level of I4, it is necessary to develop the elements of I4 that make it what it is – autonomous robots, big data technologies, IoT (Internet of Things, a system of connected devices, machines, objects, people with the ability to communicate and transfer data without direct contact). , cloud storage, artificial intelligence, 3D printing and many others. All these I4 elements are connected within the CPS (Cybernetic-Physical Systems), which is a system that integrates the network, digitization and physical processes of the named elements.
Although this still seems like a distant future, today many I4 elements are used in everyday life, not only in industry. 3D printing can be seen at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing in Zagreb, online sales companies such as Amazon, e-Bay, Wish, ordering food and other necessities, using the cloud to store photos, audio or videos – the development of these everyday parts life caused the development of I4 itself.
Given that I4 is still developing, there are several open questions we still face – what will the world look like when I4 reaches its full capacity?, how to organize governance and resources?, how does one branch of I4 affect another? and many others.
The minor scientific articles on I4 that have been published have mostly focused on two branches – the economic branch and the ecological branch. Social, humanistic, the possibility of innovation, management strategies, political are just some of the many elements that were not mentioned, but come to the fore and open up new questions about I4 that need to be solved.
Some of the problems facing I4 have no indication of a solution. The economic branch, of course, was the most processed, but the price of implementing these systems is still too high to ensure investors a return of their money and that they will earn some more. And so on, the loss of privacy due to the rise of surveillance, artificial intelligence, the rise of unemployment due to automation, especially for blue-collar workers. Continuity, impossibility of regulation, problems with norms and work certificates, managers at the top of the hierarchy become redundant, any errors in IT systems can cause huge losses, just like errors in cyber security or firewall systems.
I4 is also being developed in Croatia, at least in theory. Smart factories are still a rarity, many business meetings are organized, university classes are increasingly focusing on it, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce has documents on its website dedicated to I4 and its primary characteristics.
However, in the practical world the situation is somewhat different – Croatia is still far from I4. Less than 30% of the industry can be called part of Industry 3.0, while the general picture shows that we are still in the age of Industry 2.0. If we compare it with other EU countries, it is even more visible. The European Parliament made four groups of countries, based on their involvement and I4 potential – the first group consists of leading countries, which are Germany, Sweden, Austria and Ireland, countries with potential are Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Great Britain and France, traditional countries are the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary and Lithuania. The last group is the so-called wavering countries, namely Italy, Spain, Estonia, Portugal, Poland, Bulgaria and Croatia. They are considered wavering because they do not have a good enough industrial base or they do not have enough economic resources for further growth. Croatia’s problem is that it allows many of its I4 workers to go to Germany or Ireland and supply their growth instead of its own.
Although I4 is still in its infancy, there are many challenges in its implementation. With good preparation, critical reading of already written scientific articles and creation of new ones, I4 has the potential to change the world we live in today. A good strategy is needed that includes all aspects and the transition period necessary for organizational changes to take place – the difference before and after the transition to I4 should make companies unrecognizable.
I4 has the ability to change our daily lives, but with bad management and strategies it can also threaten the economy, production or society in general. It all depends on us how we deal with I4 and how seriously we take it.