Industry 4.0 Technologies Impact on Supply Chain Sustainability

Abstract

A supply chain is a network that links technology, activities, resources and organisations involved in the manufacturing and distribution of product and services. Supply Chain Operations Reference model (SCOR) defines basic processes of the supply chain (SC) into five categories as Plan, Source, Make, Delivery and Return. The search for a more sustainable production and consumption system is so relevant today that the United Nations (UN) have selected it as one of their paramount societal objectives for sustainable development. The implementation of sustainability in production and consumption processes aims to mitigate negative pressures on the ecosystem generated by products, services, and transportation. Industry 4.0 (I40) technologies have sparked interest in recent years. The advanced digital technologies of I40 such as big data analytics (BDA), artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), internet of things (IoT) and sensors, block chain technology (BCT), robotic systems (RS), cloud computing (CC), cyber-physical system (CPS), additive manufacturing (AM) /3D printing (3D), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), autonomous vehicles (AV), and drones have found applications in many processes of manufacturing, logistics and SC. The benefits are sustainability, efficiency, cost reduction, transparency, traceability, and collaboration. In addition to benefits, I40 implementation is not free from challenges.