Integrating Agenda 2030 with Lean practices and Industry 4.0 Technologies: Case Study in an Automotive Industry

Abstract

Competitive companies constantly seek continuous increases in productivity, quality and services level. Lean Thinking (LT) is an efficient management model recognized in organizations and academia, with an effective management approach, well consolidated theoretically and empirically proven Within Industry 4.0 (I4.0) development concept, manufacturers are confident in the advantages of new technologies and system integration. The combination of Lean and I4.0 practices emerges from the existence of a positive interaction for the evolutionary step to achieve a higher operational performance level (exploitation of finances, workload, materials, machines/devices). In this scenario where Lean Thinking is an excellent starting point to implement such changes with a method and focus on results; that I4.0 offers powerful technologies to increase productivity and flexibility in production processes; but people need to be more considered in processes, in a context aligned with the Industry 5.0 (I5.0) concept created by the European Commission (2021), which represents a differentiated and broader focus, which includes: human-centric, sustainability and resilience, going beyond the production of goods and services solely for profit. Thus, an opportunity arises to discuss how the automotive industry can meet the Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by employing I5.0. This article aims to discuss the Agenda 2030 evolution in an automotive industry through the alignment and application of Lean and I4.0 technologies, to boost operational results, and thus correlate the 169 A3 project results through the A3 methodology application with the SDGs. Thus creating the opportunity to discuss the SDGs in the automotive industry, approach reflected that the mains SDG's classified in the A3 projects are 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth (44%), 9 - Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure (36%) and 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production (11%), those three present a result of 91% of mentions, because it is possible to classify the A3 project with more than one SDG's. This article contributes to reinforcing the links between Lean Thinking, industrial digital transformation, and the SDGs, pointing out human implications.