Industry 4.0, started in Germany in 2011, was fervently promoted by various advanced countries and followed by the introduction of "smart manufacturing". As an innovative strategy of the manufacturing industry "smart manufacturing" has attracted considerable attention in the field of academics...

Purpose: This paper describes the perceived effects of implementing lean production in a Swedish SME contract manufacturer. Especially focused are the effects on, and possible trade-offs between, cost-efficiency and flexibility. Design/methodology/approach: SME suppliers need basic capabilities...