Combining lean and agile manufacturing competitive advantages through Industry 4.0 technologies: an integrative approach

Lean manufacturing and agile manufacturing have been two prominent manufacturing paradigms over the past decades, with the respective aims of reducing waste to achieve low-cost and being flexible in production processes. Industry 4.0 is transforming traditional manufacturing systems into smart ones. The current competitive market requires manufacturing companies to improve both cost-efficiency and flexibility with the application of Industry 4.0 technologies. This study is the first systematic literature review linking Industry 4.0 with both lean and agile manufacturing. A conceptual framework is proposed concerning their relationships. It shows Industry 4.0 supports both manufacturing systems, and they, in turn, facilitate the implementation of Industry 4.0. The integration of Industry 4.0 with lean manufacturing mainly enhances cost-competitiveness in the performance dimension; with agile manufacturing, it mainly enhances flexibility. The finding implies Industry 4.0 is the enabling technology that allows two manufacturing systems to co-exist while overcoming the trade-off among various competitive objectives.