Reluctance in Industry 4.0 use within SMEs: empirical findings

Industry 4.0 is expected to revolutionize the manufacturing industry. Opportunities and challenges are widely identified by academics and organisations. However, studies on factors that potentially influence the reluctance of Industry 4.0 use were, to our knowledge, lacking. A research model consisting of six relevant Industry 4.0-related factors that potentially could influence the reluctance of Industry 4.0 use is hypothesised. In order to test the model, multiple regression analysis is applied on a sample of 30 Dutch Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) from 19 sectors. The empirical findings show that Risk of Change and Difficulties to Adjust the Production Process are positive drivers of the reluctance of Industry 4.0 use. Data Risks and Risk of Job Losses showed a significant negative relationship to the reluctance of Industry 4.0 use, and the hypotheses Lack of Time and Costs were rejected due to insufficient empirical evidence. Moreover, it is shown that SMEs have a completely different perspective concerning Industry 4.0, when compared to each other.