Conceptualising Transfer of Wicked Industry 4.0 Opportunities Through Learning Factories

Abstract

Industry 4.0 (I4.0) implies significant wicked opportunities for manufacturing. However, manufacturing companies lack competencies to innovate their processes to transfer these wicked opportunities quickly and thoroughly. Process innovation can support the utilisation of a new or significantly improved method for production or distribution, with the intention to decrease unit costs of production or distribution, to increase quality, or to produce or distribute new or significantly improved products. However, transfer of I4.0 related methods often requires significant changes in the manufacture's technology, software, tasks, structures, and employees' competencies. To advance the development of employee's competencies to transfer wicked opportunities of I4.0, the concept of Learning Factories can help employers in transfer, learning, and training. A Learning Factory that facilitates transfer, learning and training can be organised and facilitated as either a personal or collective in situ experimental learning process that networks industry participants, faculty, and students. Learning Factories offers opportunities to improve the learning and transfer processes; however a stronger conceptual frame for the innovation of learning and transfer processes could aid the development of Learning Factories. Consequently, this study unites and synthesises existing research on transfer to advance theory building, to strengthen process innovation in Learning Factory settings. Based on the findings, the initial work of an operational model for knowledge transfer of I4.0 wicked opportunities in Learning Factories is discussed.

Keywords: Knowledge transfer, cognitive; situated, sociocultural, Learning Factory