Agility and Industry 4.0 Implementation Strategy in a Quebec Manufacturing SME

Stéphanie Bouchard, Georges Abdulnour and Sébastien Gamache
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Stéphanie Bouchard: Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC G8Z 4M3, Canada
Georges Abdulnour: Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC G8Z 4M3, Canada
Sébastien Gamache: Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC G8Z 4M3, Canada

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 13, 1-25

Abstract: The emergence of new information technologies, market globalization, climate change, labor shortages, and changing consumer habits have led to dynamic demand and the need for customized mass production systems. This has forced companies, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME), to rethink their product design, production, and marketing models to remain competitive by increasing their agility in the face of growing and changing demand. It becomes relevant to investigate how to move efficiently towards customized mass production in an Industry 4.0 (I4.0) environment. The objective of this research is to develop a strategy for implementing I4.0 in manufacturing SME, based on lean, agility, and intelligent modular product design. A literature review made it possible to target the following performance measures: reducing inventory, minimizing makespan, and reducing time to consumer (reaction time). A case study was conducted in an SME in the agri-food sector to validate the proposed strategy. Inventory levels were reduced by more than 70% and time was cut by almost 65%.

Keywords: modular structure; dynamic demand; standardization; dynamic cells; Quebec manufacturing SME; customized mass production; agility; connectivity; industry 4.0 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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