Towards the Development of Digital Manufacturing Ecosystems for Sustainable Performance: Learning from the Past Two Decades of Research

Abdulrazak F Shahatha Al-Mashhadani,Muhammad Imran Qureshi,Mohd Shamsuri Md Saad,Nohman Khan,Yamunah Vaicondam,Sanil S Hishan

doi:10.3390/en14102945

Abstract

Although the Internet of Things (IoT), advanced manufacturing technologies, and cloud manufacturing contribute to developing a digital manufacturing ecosystem that enhances energy efficiency and resource utilization, manufacturing processes are vulnerable to timely production and delivery. The digital manufacturing systems in Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0) minimized the human-technology interactions to foster productivity and material flow. However, there is scarce research to gauge the efficiency of these digital technologies in the entire manufacturing process; also, little is known about the collaborative efforts among countries to achieve sustainable manufacturing performance through the digitalization of the production process. Thus, this systematic review aimed to highlight the effectiveness of the digital manufacturing systems for sustainable product development and the collaborative research on the subject. We selected 52 research articles for this review by following the 2015 Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA) statement. The literature classifications were developed using text frequency algorithms in VOSviewer (Centre for Science and Technology Studies, Leiden University, The Netherlands) Results exposed literature from 2005 to 2020 can be categorized into four major research streams: digital transformation, digital manufacturing ecosystem, performance management, and sustainability. The study’s findings revealed that the manufacturing processes are moving towards the IoT, digital devices, and smart factories that are entirely dependent on digital technologies. The digital manufacturing ecosystem is dependent on the availability of digital technologies to all stakeholders. The study concluded that digital technologies are improving manufacturing efficiency and process effectiveness. However, this requires infrastructure that primarily available in developed countries; thus, the digital transformation in underdeveloped regions is deliberate and requires more collaborative research.

Highlights

The recent development in the digitalization of industries is becoming the digital transformation system of the whole market
Several articles published per year on the digital manufacturing ecosystem
Past research showed that quality work in digital manufacturing, especially manufacturing procedures and supply-chain channels, moves to use digital technologies

Summary

Introduction

The recent development in the digitalization of industries is becoming the digital transformation system of the whole market. The fundamental nature of the digitalization procedure in the framework of the Fourth Industrial Revolution’s deployment is the method of understanding information communication and devices into the processes and industry practices of the actual segment of the economy [1]. The fourth industrial revolution and the fundamental digital transformation, established as Industry 4.0, is growing exponentially. The digital transformation is reforming the way people living and working fundamentally, and the community stays positive concerning the prospects. The development of new digital technologies in the era of Industrial Revolution 4.0, such as machine learning, big data, smart sensors, drones, cloud computing, robotics, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and the Internet of Things (IoT) [2]. Industrial Revolution 4.0, according to [3] describes an approach to create a transformation from machine-leading industrial to digital production.

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