Advantages and difficulties of implementing Industry 4.0 technologies for labor flexibility

Abstract

Labor flexibility is widely recognized as a critical component of manufacturing flexibility to achieve a competitive advantage in the marketplace. This becomes more important in the context of Industry 4.0, where machines, products, components, Information, and communications technology (ICT) systems and workers collaborate to create an intelligent network. Several studies address the benefits of industry 4.0 technologies for workers. However, there is a concern about the future of work organization with the increased use of digital technologies and the extent to which these technologies allow flexibility or make workers’ activities more rigid. Thus, this study aims to identify the advantages and barriers perceived by the operator in the implementation of these Industry 4.0 technologies. To achieve this objective, a literature review was performed. The results obtained show that Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies increase flexibility since it provides the necessary information to carry out the work task and train operators, thus reducing the occurrence of errors and task duration. However, operator flexibility can also be affected, due to ergonomic aspects, the design of the system interface, as well as how these technologies are implemented. Collaborative Robots (CR) are an important instrument for flexibility, because the robot replaces the operator in the most demanding activities, leaving him available to perform other types of tasks and thus increasing his versatility.