Lean and Industry 4.0: A bibliometric analysis, opportunities for future research directions

Abstract

Lean is a philosophy that helps organizations develop a continuous improvement culture by eliminating waste and minimizing the use of resources. On the other hand, Industry 4.0 is a complex high-tech model that contributes to flexible organizations using different technologies such as IoT, cloud computing, blockchain, virtual reality, and Artificial Intelligence. The concept of integrating Lean Principles and Industry 4.0 is still very recent and limited, and the literature lacks a bibliometric perspective. The integration is challenging in terms of contentment-wise and is a broad multi-dimensional research area. This study aims to analyze Lean Industry 4.0 or Lean 4.0 and Lean digital transformation literature using bibliometrics, identifying its state of art, benefits, challenges, and scientific gaps. In this study, articles published between 2010 and 2022 from the Scopus database are analyzed to identify significant publications, journals, authors, institutions, and countries based on the number of publications and frequently used keywords and subject areas. This study contributes to developing the state of art of Lean Industry 4.0 and Lean digital transformation and helps researchers and practitioners direct their future studies. The literature performance is measured based on both the number of publications and the number of citations; this bibliometric analysis covers most of the published papers in both research domains.

Keywords:

• digitalization
• digital transformation
• Industry 4.0
• Lean
• Lean principles
• Lean 4.0

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Juman Alsadi

Juman Alsadi obtained Her Bachelors of Science in Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management from University of Sharjah, a Master of Science in Engineering Systems and Management from Khalifa University. Juman’s current research interests include Industry 4.0, digital transformation, Lean Six Sigma, Quality 4.0, and Supply Chain.

Jiju Antony

Dr. Jiju Antony is recognized worldwide as a leader in Lean Six Sigma methodology for achieving and sustaining process excellence. He is currently serving as a Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, UAE. He is a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society (UK), Fellow of the Chartered Quality Institute (CQI), Fellow of the Institute of Operations Management (FIOM), Fellow of the American Society for Quality (ASQ), Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, Fellow of the International Lean Six Sigma Institute, Fellow of the Institute of the Six Sigma Professionals (ISSP) and an Academician of the International Academy of Quality (IAQ). He is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt and has trained over 1400 people as Lean Six Sigma Yellow, Green and Black Belts from over 20 countries representing over 180 organizations in the last 12 years. Professor Antony has coached and mentored several Lean Six Sigma projects from various companies in the UK ranging from manufacturing, service to public sector organizations including the NHS, City Councils, NHS 24, Police Scotland, ACCESS, Business Stream, and a number of Universities. Professor Antony has authored over 500 journal, conference and white papers and 12 text books. He has won the outstanding contribution to Quality Management Practice Award in 2019 from the Chartered Quality  Institute (UK); Life time Achievement Award for his contribution to Lean Six Sigma from the International Lean Six Sigma Institute (UK) in 2020 and Outstanding Contribution to Six Sigma Practice award from the Institute of Six Sigma Professionals, UK in 2021. His book on Ten Commandments of Lean Six Sigma: a practical guide for senior managers has won Walter Mazing Book Price in 2021 (International Academy of Quality, USA) and Crosby Medal (American Society of Quality, USA) in 2022. He is the founder of the International Conference on Lean Six Sigma for Higher Education. He is currently serving as the Editor of the International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, Editor of the International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, Associate Editor of the TQM and Business Excellence Journal (Europe’s top ranked Quality Management Journal) and) and Associate Editor of the TQM Journal (Emerald). He has worked as a strategic advisor for several companies especially on their journey of Operational Excellence. He has supervised over 20 PhD students of which more than 12 are senior managers from world class companies.

Toufic Mezher

Dr. Toufic Mezher is a Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Khalifa University since 2017. Before Joining KU, He was a Professor of Engineering Systems and Management at Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (2008–2016) and Professor of Engineering Management at the American University in Beirut from 1992 to 2007. He earned a BSc in Civil Engineering degree from the University of Florida, and a Master’s and ScD in Engineering Management from George Washington University in 1988 and 1992, respectively. His research interests include energy strategy and policy; technology strategy; entrepreneurship and innovation; knowledge management; and sustainable development.

Raja Jayaraman

Dr. Raja Jayaraman is an Associate Professor at the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE. He received his Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Texas Tech University, a Master of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from New Mexico State University, Masters and Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from India. Raja’s current research interests include operational excellence, Industry 4.0, systems engineering, and optimization techniques to characterize, model, and analyze complex systems with applications to supply chains, maintenance planning, and healthcare delivery. His post-doctoral research focused on technology adoption and innovative practices in healthcare supply chains, operations, and service delivery. He has led several successful research projects and pilot implementations on supply chain data standards in the US healthcare system.

Maher Maalouf

Dr. Maher Maalouf received his PhD in Industrial Engineering from the University of Oklahoma, OK., USA. He is an associate professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Maher’s research interests include applied operations research, machine learning methods, imbalanced and rare-events data models, pattern recognition, Industry 4.0, Lean Six Sigma and operational excellence methods.