Quality 4.0: Let's Get Digital - The many ways the fourth industrial revolution is reshaping the way we think about quality

TL;DR

The paper discusses how the Fourth Industrial Revolution, driven by advanced digital technologies like AI, IoT, and blockchain, is transforming quality management and organizational performance across industries.

Contribution

It provides an overview of how emerging digital technologies are reshaping quality practices and organizational strategies in the context of Industry 4.0.

Findings

Digital technologies enhance product and service quality.

Connected automation enables smarter decision-making.

The revolution requires a new perspective on quality management.

Abstract

The technology landscape is richer and more promising than ever before. In many ways, cloud computing, big data, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), blockchain, additive manufacturing, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6), cyber-physical systems and the Internet of Things (IoT) all represent new frontiers. These technologies can help improve product and service quality, and organizational performance. In many regions, the internet is now as ubiquitous as electricity. Components are relatively cheap. A robust ecosystem of open-source software libraries means that engineers can solve problems 100 times faster than just two decades ago. This digital transformation is leading us toward connected intelligent automation: smart, hyperconnected agents deployed in environments where humans and machines cooperate, and leverage data, to achieve shared goals. This is not the worlds first industrial revolution. In fact, it is its fourth, and the disruptive changes it will bring suggest we will need a fresh perspective on quality to adapt to it.