The Role and Impact of Industry 4.0 on Business Models

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Development of the concept Industry 4.0, dictated by the need to reverse the downward trend in industrial production of European enterprises, forces modern enterprises to adapt quickly and flexibly. These adaptations affect demand conditions, production costs, and the search for new business solutions. The dynamic development of industrial digitization and telecommunications technologies allows for better integration of processes, machines, employees and individual products within the framework of intelligent network structures. Industry 4.0 facilitates data collection and analysis, evaluation of productivity and continuous improvement of processes. The development of the Industry 4.0 concept was needed to develop new competitive business models. These business models need to be based on cooperation and better use of the available resources. As a result, enterprises could achieve a competitive advantage through the personalization of products and low production costs. This fourth industrial revolution affects the operational activity of enterprises and results in new strategic thinking. The basis of new business models modified value chains within the network of cooperating enterprises. Supply chains equipped with the latest cyber–physical solutions ensure fast reorganization of logistics processes and a very flexible adaptation of commercialization. These new forms of supply chains offer the most personalized customer expectations. With the development of the Industry 4.0 concept, questions arise: what new forms will business models adopt? What will the cooperation of enterprises that are inherently competitors be? What tools will be able to support network cooperation of enterprises? The aim of this study is to identify the challenges related to the adaptation of business models. The Industry 4.0 concept, includes issues such as reconfiguration of value chains, customization and sharing resources in the network of companies operating under flexible supply chains.