Impacts of Industry 4.0 on the Specific Case of Mass Customization Through Modeling and Simulation Approach

Ali Raza (), Lobna Haouari, Margherita Pero and Nabil Absi
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Ali Raza: Politecnico di Milano
Lobna Haouari: ESIEE Paris
Margherita Pero: Politecnico di Milano
Nabil Absi: Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Saint-Etienne

A chapter in Customization 4.0, 2018, pp 217-234 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract Since the last decades, companies have been increasing product variety, thus forcing manufacturers to create more and more customized products. To manage such contexts, manufacturing companies are adopting mass customization, i.e., a manufacturing strategy that aims to offer customized goods at low cost. Recently, advancements in information system technologies provide new opportunities for the manufacturing sector. In particular, the concept of Industry 4.0, i.e., the application of the concepts of smartness and networking to the manufacturing environment, is providing tools to reduce the complexity of managing production systems. Despite the relevance of both areas, how mass customization can be integrated with Industry 4.0 concept and what are the benefits of such an integration are still open issues. Therefore, this study investigates how to implement the Industry 4.0 concept for the specific case of mass customization industry and, by using modeling and simulation, proposes a quantification of the benefits of such implementation. Implementing Industry 4.0 solutions requires high level of investments, and there is a great need of research that outlines its quantifiable benefits to justify the investments. To the aim of the research, two conceptual models, one integrating Industry 4.0 and mass customization and one featuring only mass customization, have been developed. Afterward, these two models have been simulated in FlexSim software in order to measure the performance. The results obtained seem to be extremely favorable for the implementation of Industry 4.0 solutions on mass customization systems. Significant improvement in product completion rate on time, customer satisfaction rate, utilization of equipment, and waiting time in queues has been observed. This study will help mass customization industries to understand the opportunities and criticalities concerned with the implementation of this concept.

Keywords: Mass customization; Industry 4.0; Simulation; Future mass customization industries (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-77556-2_14

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