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Exploratory empirical study finds a weak link between Industry 4.0 maturity and competitiveness in manufacturing firms, suggesting maturity amplifies performance.
Industry 4.0 has transformed manufacturing through the integration of cyber-physical systems, industrial internet of things, advanced analytics, and interconnected production infrastructures. Despite widespread investment in digital transformation, empirical evidence linking Industry 4.0 maturity to firm competitiveness remains limited. This exploratory empirical study investigateswhether higher Industry 4.0 maturity is associated with stronger competitiveness among global manufacturing firms. Using a datasetof 30 companies across seven manufacturing sectors, the study evaluates Industry 4.0 maturity alongside financial, innovation, andsustainability indicators. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, maturity-model comparison, and cluster analysis are employedto explore the relationship between digital maturity and competitiveness. The findings indicate a positive but statistically weak relationship between Industry 4.0 maturity and competitiveness. Revenue scale and research and development intensity show strongerexplanatory power for competitiveness than maturity alone. The results suggest that Industry 4.0 maturity functions primarily as acompetitiveness amplifier rather than a direct stand-alone driver of firm performance. The study contributes empirical evidence to the digital transformation literature and offers practical implications for manufacturing firms seeking to align maturity developmentwith business performance outcomes.
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Portia Hungwe (2026) studied this question.
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