Technology readiness in maintenance: an Industry 4.0 case study in the Swedish sawmill sector with Industry 5.0 human-centric insights

The sawmill industry presents unique opportunities for adopting emerging technologies due to its capital-intensive operations and dependence on high reliability. However, despite increasing digitalization, there remains limited understanding of how maintenance organizations can assess and develop technology readiness, particularly with respect to organizational and human factors. Understanding these factors is important not only for operational efficiency but also for supporting the human-centric, sustainable, and resilient ambitions of Industry 5.0. This paper investigates the technology readiness of maintenance operations in a Swedish sawmill. The study is based on a qualitative case study involving 21 in-depth interviews and three workshops with personnel from the maintenance organization (technicians, engineers, coordinators, and managers) and related functions (production, operations development, health and safety, and management). Findings reveal that while the organization demonstrates strengths in technology adoption and operational structure, challenges remain in areas such as strategic integration, workforce competence, and data utilization. The study highlights that advancing technology utilization and work processes alone is insufficient for successful development of maintenance. Thus, the study emphasizes human-centric perspectives such as leadership visibility, shared responsibility, cross-functional communication, and long-term planning, are critical for achieving technology readiness. The study concludes that technology readiness in maintenance depends on the combined development of technological, organizational, and human capabilities. Maintenance can serve as a strategic entry point for this transformation, enabling improved sustainability, resilience, and safer operations. Further research is recommended to combine methods and explore how human-centric factors influence the successful adoption of smart technologies.