Smart Manufacturing and Industry 4.0: A Preliminary Approach in Structuring a Conceptual Framework

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Engineering concepts usually, are complex concepts, thus many times are difficult for infusing into curriculums or to be comprehensive for practitioners. A concept that still now is not fully understandable is that of Industry 4.0, an approach that increases the complexity of production systems. Nowadays production systems are facing new challenges, as physical productions systems and internet technologies are directly linked, hence increasing the complexity but also the productivity of the systems. The paper introduces an approach of visualizing the concept of smart manufacturing in the context of Industry 4.0, as the term is not clearly specified, although has attracted attention both academicians and businesses. Concept mapping is a method of capturing and visualizing complex ideas. Concept maps are graphical tools for organizing, representing and communicating complex ideas by breaking them into more key concepts. As Industry 4.0 is a factor that can boost innovation and competitiveness of business, all parties involved in shaping the strategy of an organization, should perceive the issues to be covered. Furthermore, learners must be prepared to meet these challenges and knowledgebuilding activities may enhance their process of learning. The paper makes an interesting and valuable contribution, by identifying key concepts within the subject of smart manufacturing and Industry 4.0, using the method of concept mapping. Taking into consideration these concepts a conceptual framework will be introduced, by using the software tool CmapTools. The map can be used as a basis for future research in constructing a more comprehensive framework and identifying the concepts that describe smart manufacturing in the context of Industry 4.0, in a more thorough manner.