How the marriage of Industry 4.0 and the Circular Economy can radically transform waste management—and our world Do we really have to make a choice between a wasteless and nonproductive world or a wasteful and ultimately self-destructive one? Futurist and world-renowned waste management scientist Antonis Mavropoulos and sustainable business developer and digital strategist Anders Nilsen respond with a ringing and optimistic “No!” They explore the Earth-changing potential of a happy (and wasteless) marriage between Industry 4.0 and a Circular Economy that could—with properly reshaped waste management practices—deliver transformative environmental, health, and societal benefits. This book is about the possibility of a brand-new world and the challenges to achieve it. The fourth industrial revolution has given us innovations including robotics, artificial intelligence, 3D-printing, and biotech. By using these technologies to advance the Circular Economy—where industry produces more durable materials and runs on its own byproducts—the waste management industry will become a central element of a more sustainable world and can ensure its own, but well beyond business as usual, future. Mavropoulos and Nilsen look at how this can be achieved—a wasteless world will require more waste management—and examine obstacles and opportunities such as demographics, urbanization, global warming, and the environmental strain caused by the rise of the global middle class. · Explore the new prevention, reduction, and elimination methods transforming waste management · Comprehend and capitalize on the business implications for the sector · Understand the theory via practical examples and case studies · Appreciate the social benefits of the new approach Waste-management has always been vital for the protection of health and the environment. Now it can become a crucial role model in showing how Industry 4.0 and the Circular Economy can converge to ensure flourishing, sustainable—and much brighter—future.

How can companies survive and prosper in the new economic age of the 4th Industrial Revolution? This book collects a variety of cases and quality management strategies for companies to put in place in the face of Industry 4.0. It argues that organizations that practice good quality management throughout the whole organization, and focus on satisfying their customers, employees and other stakeholders better than their competitors, are well equipped with the necessary capabilities to survive. It is a must read book for academicians, practitioners, managers and students interested in learning about the quality management philosophy, principles, tools and methods to be used in building a sustainable future where the challenges of the 4th Industrial Revolution — Industry 4.0 —are regarded and used as opportunities for survival and further growth.

The radical transformations to which the economy and society have been subjected for decades have gained momentum in recent years, not least because of the coronavirus pandemic, the consequences of which are yet to be fully understood. As a result, certain economic models and business practices are becoming less sustainable. One of the reasons for this is the rapid advance of Revolution 4.0. The issues raised in this book are central to understanding the theoretical and practical aspects of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and its overwhelming impact on emerging socio-economic relations. The book addresses the future and flexibility of the labour market in the era of digital transformation; issues related to the emergence of new patterns of production and the distribution of public services. It examines the impact of Revolution 4.0 on the global business services sector and business project management models, in times of increasing complexity. The book covers a broad spectrum of concerns associated with Industry 4.0, such as social, economic, technological, and environmental, making it a comprehensive resource offering state-of-the-art knowledge. Further, it includes a discussion on the perspectives for the development of Revolution 4.0 in the context of the post-pandemic world. This book skillfully combines theoretical considerations with practical applications, offering a valuable, engaging and accessible resource for researchers, scholars, students, policymakers, public decision-makers, and businesspeople alike.

Nowadays, the restriction of resources and the environment is very severe. A circular economy is the only way to sustainable development, but how this works still needs more exploration. The series of studies carried out by the author are described in detail in this book.

Industry 4.0 technologies are expected to have a positive impact on the global economy by promoting autonomous interoperability, agility, flexibility, decision-making, efficiency or cost reduction, which are also expected to be resource efficient. However, new and emerging technologies can also have potentially harmful social and environmental impacts that must be considered. The goal of this book is to provide a deeper understanding of how Industry 4.0 technologies can benefit or harm the environmental sustainability of companies. To this end, it presents a classification of Industry 4.0 technologies and evaluates for each typology the positive and negative aspects of their implementation. Thus, the book considers Industry 4.0 technology and environmental sustainability from the perspective of management on the one hand and from the perspective of technology users on the other. The book is of interest to researchers from various disciplines who approach Industry 4.0 technologies from a business perspective, and on the other hand to managers and strategic consultants who want to promote sustainable change in their companies.

In the ever-increasing landscape of industry and technology, companies worldwide face an unprecedented challenge. The relentless march of progress, epitomized by the revolution of Industry 4.0, demands adaptation for survival and competitiveness. The integration of technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing, and robotics has irrevocably altered manufacturing and supply chain operations. What was initially a quest for augmented quality and production has now become an inexorable pursuit of sustainability. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG) 2030 have left no room for exemptions, making sustainability an imperative at the heart of every business strategy. The answer to this pressing challenge lies within the pages of the book, Convergence of Industry 4.0 and Supply Chain Sustainability. It serves a meticulously curated collection of research that illuminates the intricacies of implementing Industry 4.0 and the ramifications for sustainable supply chains. Our work focuses on the associated challenges and opportunities encountered by the adoption of Industry 4.0 in supply chain management (SCM).

This book provides the interplay between digital transformation, industry 4.0 technologies, and sustainable supply chain performance. The book mainly focuses on presenting case studies and empirical studies demonstrating how the industry 4.0 technologies interact with the conventional manufacturing practices such as lean manufacturing, circular economy practices, total quality management, and maintenance management, while achieving enhanced sustainable supply chain performance. The book guides the practitioners to consider the status of conventional supply chains in their organisations while designing industry 4.0 systems. This book is a useful resource for researchers and academicians to understand the interplay between existing technologies, industry 4.0 technologies, and sustainable performance in the digital transformation journey.

Organizations need to stay competitive and transition from a linear make-use-dispose supply chain model to a sustainable one. This book covers techniques and basic principles, historical developments and recent issues facing the adoption of a circular supply chain model. The Circular Supply Chain: Basic Principles and Techniques presents the key principles and techniques for the effective integration of a circular economy into supply chains. It discusses sustainability, digitization and the application of blockchain to enhance operations within the realm of Industry 4.0. Principles to assist managers in effectively adopting circularity business models for sustainability improvements are provided, along with the historical background, so the reader can have a better understanding for implementation. Case studies and reading comprehension questions are also offered to help with the effective integration of a circular economy into supply chains. This book is written to assist students, practicing engineers and business professionals that work in the industrial and manufacturing sectors, supply chain management, and with advanced technologies associated with Industry 4.0, sustainability, blockchain and digitalization integration techniques of circular supply chains.