Purpose: Industry 4.0 represents a special challenge for businesses in general and for SMEs in particular. The study at hand will examine companies' awareness, readiness and capability to meet this challenge taking into account the special role of SMEs Design/methodology/approach: The results of...

This special issue of the Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management is dedicated on the most recent and relevant research, theories and practices in Industrial Engineering and Operations Management presented at the 11th International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Industrial...

Purpose: Data-driven decision-making is a growing trend that lots of companies are nowadays willing to adopt. However, the organizational transformation needed is not always as simple and logical as it could seem and the comfort of the old habits can dim the change effort. The purpose of this...

Purpose: Design an industrial production model with a focus on industry 4.0 (Big Data) and decision-making analysis for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the clothing sector that allows improving procedures, jobs and related costs within the study organization Develop a sustainable...

Purpose: The growing adoption of Industry 4.0 offers opportunities and promotes changes in markets, business models, supply chains and operations. However, adopting new technologies and practices is beyond the simple rational decision and the search for efficiency. There are contextual social...

Purpose: This research investigates Portuguese manufacturing companies' Industry 4.0 (I4.0) maturity perception level and proposes an index to measure that aim.Design/methodology/approach: This study uses a survey method to gather the companies' perceptions of their I4.0 maturity level and...

Purpose: To identify the skills that, in the processes of digitalization and Industry 4.0, contribute to improving the professional behaviours of the employees involved in these processes.Design/methodology/approach: For this purpose, a Delphi study was carried out, collecting the opinions of 38...

Purpose: This study aims to review the previous literature on the topic contained in the title in order to identify gaps in the existing research relating to lean supply chain-related issues within the pharmaceutical industry since limited attention has been devoted to this sector....

Purpose: Provide a coordination strategy using multiple common replenishment epochs (MCRE) for a single-supplier multi-retailer supply chain. Design/methodology/approach: The demand of a product occurs only with a group of heterogeneous and independent retailers with constant rates, whereas all...