Unpacking the provision of the industrial commons in Industry 4.0 cluster

Abstract

This paper argues that provision of industrial commons (IC), might be considered as a crucial factor of a cluster's attractiveness in digital transformation, e.g. in Industry 4.0 (I4.0) time. By drawing on the qualitative case study method of Hamburg Aviation cluster (HAv), it aims at exploring the nature of IC in the leading German I4.0 cluster. Proximity emerges, even if sometimes not explicitly, as the recurring topic facilitating the provision of IC, along with the advancement of I4.0. As Industry 4.0 stipulates much uncertainty, the closeness featuring in clusters, seems to bring various benefits, which can help address challenges associated with I4.0, and faced mainly by small and medium firms (SMEs). The vicinity to key actors and the gains of networking, reflect the importance of (un)articulated proximity. 3

A Taxonomy on Influencing Factors Towards Digital Transformation in SMEs

“…In addition to the previously mentioned aspects, the sub-category of competencies plays a central role. The sample shows on the one hand, that there is either a lack of competencies and skills within SMEs (Benitez et al, 2020;Buer et al, 2021;Cieciora et al, 2020;Götz, 2019;Pamuła, 2020;Rakovic et al, 2020) or a different level of knowledge with regards to digitalization among the SME (Götz, 2019) and on the other hand how to overcome these hurdles. To enable the organization and build the required knowledge and competences, it is necessary to develop the relevant skills for example by providing trainings on IT and soft skills, by best practice sharing, job rotation, knowledge sharing, tutorials (Heins et al, 2021;North et al, 2020;Saleh & Manjunath, 2021;Soluk & Kammerlander, 2021) as well as the introduction of change management competencies (Ghobakhloo & Iranmanesh, 2021;Zoppelletto et al, 2020).…”

Economic agglomeration in the age of Industry 4.0: developing a digital industrial cluster as a new policy tool for the digital world

“…Finally, the DIC is the only policy tool to highlight the relevance of Industry 4.0 and the synergy between them (Götz, 2019b; Park, 2018; Tsakalerou and Akhmadi, 2021). The DIC expects to bring substantial amounts of data from real-world processes – including manufacturing, provisioning and transportation – to a virtual environment, where it can be processed to digitally support other processes; therefore, Industry 4.0 has the most appropriate approach to make such an idea possible, making possible the digitalization and decentralization of traditional in-place activities (Almeida et al , 2020; Götz and Jankowska, 2017; Jasinska and Jasinski, 2019; Maresova et al , 2018).…”

“…However, the readiness of the industries to deploy Industry 4.0 will determine the potential for geographical dispersion of the DIC and the kind of clusters involved in its development. Jasinska and Jasinski (2019) stated that clusters with high rates of Industry 4.0 adoption are better prepared to deal with geographical dispersion, interdisciplinarity, flexibility and decentralization; moreover, literature shows that high-value-added manufacturing clusters appear to be better prepared to embrace the approach of extended cluster based on digital platforms and Industry 4.0, particularly in industrialized countries such as Germany and others on its way to industrialization as Poland (Götz, 2019b(Götz, , 2021Götz and Jankowska, 2017).…”

Industry 4.0 and industry 5.0: can clusters deal with the challenges? (A systemic approach)

“…, 2018; Götz, 2019a; Herrmann et al., 2021; Popa et al. , 2022) as well as on cases of specific successful clusters (Götz, 2019b; Grashof et al. , 2021; Gudelite, 2021; Jankowska et al.…”