Roadmapping towards industrial digitalization based on an Industry 4.0 maturity model for manufacturing enterprises

Although industrial decision makers show increased readiness to invest in their company's digital transformation - currently referred to as Industry 4.0, they lack knowledge regarding their current status in Industry 4.0 and strategic guidance towards its realization. In this paper, we present a holistic procedure model that guides manufacturing companies from their first contact with Industry 4.0 until the definition of concrete action fields and their realization. Our model thereby builds on the maturity assessment of 65 critical success factors in Industry 4.0 and their sequencing to create company specific realization-paths and roadmaps following a 10-step approach. We validated and improved the model over a time-period of two years, whereby one application from a manufacturing company - aiming for the creation of their global Industry 4.0 strategy - will be presented.