Identification of Some Major Research Gaps in Lean Manufacturing and Industry 4.0 Integration

Abstract

In the contemporary business world, digitalization has become a significant factor in economic development. Lean is a prominent topic in both academia and business. Due to the evolution of digital technologies that promote Industry 4.0 because of the industrial revolution, the integration of Lean Manufacturing and Industry 4.0 has attracted the attention of academics and managers. This conceptual paper discusses the integration of Lean Manufacturing and Industry 4.0, as well as the research gaps and prospective research opportunities related to integration. Systematic Literature Review (SLR) in the PRISMA framework has been used to identify research gaps, and future studies could be planned to close these gaps to benefit academia and industry stakeholders. Keyword co-occurrence analysis has been performed using VOSviewer software to identify areas that need the attention of researchers. Articles were extracted from the Scopus database using the keywords "Lean Manufacturing" and "Industry 4.0". This study concentrates on identifying research gaps that industry leaders and managers would be interested in, rather than the gaps in conceptual nature.