A fourth industrial revolution is occurring in global manufacturing. It is based on the introduction ofInternet of thingsandservitizationconcepts into manufacturing companies, leading to vertically and horizontally integrated production systems. The resultingsmart factoriesare able to fulfill dynamic customer demands with high variability in small lot sizes while integrating human ingenuity and automation. To support the manufacturing industry in this conversion process and enhance global competitiveness, policy makers in several countries have established research and technology transfer schemes. Most prominently, Germany has enacted itsIndustrie 4.0program, which is increasingly affecting European policy, while the United States focuses onsmart manufacturing. Other industrial nations have established their own programs on smart manufacturing, notably Japan and Korea. This shows that manufacturing intelligence has become a crucial topic for researchers and industries worldwide. The main object of these activities are the so-called cyber-physical systems (CPS): physical entities (e.g., machines, vehicles, and work pieces), which are equipped with technologies such as RFIDs, sensors, microprocessors, telematics or complete embedded systems. They are characterized by being able to collect data of themselves and their environment, process and evaluate these data, connect and communicate with other systems, and initiate actions. In addition, CPS enabled new services that can replace traditional business models based solely on product sales. The objective of this paper is to provide an overview of the Industrie 4.0 and smart manufacturing programs, analyze the application potential of CPS starting from product design through production and logistics up to maintenance and exploitation (e.g., recycling), and identify current and future research issues. Besides the technological perspective, the paper also takes into account the economic side considering the new business strategies and models available.

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The adoption of advanced manufacturing intelligence technologies requires managing the interaction of information in Product-Service Systems (PSS) by combining Product (PLM) and Service Lifecycle Management (SLM). While up to now no sound methodology exists, there is a strong need to have bi-directional coordination and interaction between PLM and SLM in a systematic way. A further challenge is to close loops, for example feedback from service delivery to the beginning-of-life phase of products. The objective of this paper is therefore to identify the interactions between SLM and PLM in manufacturing firms, based on expert interviews and illustrated in PSS use cases.

Recent economic transformations have forced companies to redefine their value propositions, increasing traditional product offerings with supplementary services—the so-called Product-Service System (PSS). Among them, the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies is very common. However, the directions that companies are undertaking to offer new value to their customers in the Industry 4.0 have not yet been investigated in detail. Based on a focus group, this paper contributes to this understanding by identifying the main trajectories that would shape a future scenario in which PSS and Industry 4.0 would merge. In addition, future research directions addressing (a) the transformation of the PSS value chain into a PSS ecosystem, (b) the transformation inside a single company towards becoming a PSS provider, and (c) the digital transformation of the traditional PSS business model are identified.

These days, manufacturers need to improve both their products and services, as well as their technological base to achieve a more sustainable value proposition, to become more efficient and effective in the market, and to satisfy user needs. Significant emerging technologies being discussed in various research studies include networked and smart-environments connected by Internet of Things (IoT), wearable technologies, tangible interfaces, human-robot collaboration, evolving tools, processes and interactions, virtual reality, the ubiquitous use of machine learning, and deep-learning algorithms. Such aspects are increasing the benefits of technology and opening the way toward technical breakthroughs, and have led to the emergence of cyber-physical systems (CPSs), which can be seen as systems of systems, requiring collaboration among different disciplines such as mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and computer science for their realization. To enable the full potential of a CPS and generate a substantial competitive advantage, however, the service perspective cannot be neglected. Servitization of product offerings has recently accumulated in so-called product-service systems (PSSs), which describe the integrated development, realization, and provisioning of product-service bundles as a solution for customers. Thus, it is more and more important to consider both the technological and service aspects early in the development process. An integration of the two concepts will lead to product-service bundles provided on a cyber-physical basis, creating cyber-physical product-service systems (CPSSs). To base these complex systems on stakeholder needs and allow a successful and dynamic change to CPSSs in industry, multi-disciplinary requirements engineering (RE) for the hardware, software, and service components is a key aspect. The objective of this paper is to provide an introduction to the CPSS concept, understand its application in an industrial case, and elaborate on the specific challenges for systems engineering, focusing on the RE process.