Systemic and Cyber-Physical Methodology for the Implementation of Industry 4.0 in Mexican Automotive Manufacturing Companies

Abstract

The transition toward the new technological paradigm in production systems resulting from Industry 4.0 (hereinafter I4.0) pursues, among its main objectives, greater operational efficiency and productivity, a greater scope of automation, customization, and flexibility in production, an increase in man–machine interaction, and the creation of more complex but better-paid jobs and new business models. For this reason, a broad understanding of what constitutes I4.0 today and what can represent the future requires knowledge about the technologies that make it up, as well as different tools that can help to carry out a correct and comprehensive implementation. The relevance of the Mexican automotive manufacturing industry in the national economy, as well as the importance of the I4.0 transition in this sector, is addressed. As a fundamental component of this work, a new methodology with a systemic character, given by the use of the Soft Systems Methodology, and with a cyber-physical character, given by the use of tools such as a reference architecture, is presented, and the tools used and its different stages are described. As an added element, an illustrative example is provided of how the application of the proposed methodology would be in an automotive manufacturing company.

Appendices

Appendix A: Industrial Internet Reference Architecture (IIRA)

The development of an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) system ensures its cyber-physical character in the industrial environment, thus facilitating the introduction of I4.0 technologies. For this, version 1.9 of IIRA published in 2019 accompanies the main document that contains the structure and application of the architecture, a set of documents that swell and provide robustness to it, which provide more detailed and valuable information on aspects that are mentioned in the main document [12]. Then, for its application in a company, IIRA proposes the execution of 4 points of view, which intend to examine everything related to an IIoT system, from its conception to its implementation, where each one will require information and implementation from the previous viewpoint, mutually improving through an iterative process. These are the Business Viewpoint, the Usage Viewpoint, the Functional Viewpoint, and the Implementation Viewpoint [11].

The Business Viewpoint pursues the identification of the fundamental human actors that are part of, or in some way intervene in, the system where the IIRA is going to be applied. It also proposes the definition of essential aspects such as vision, values, main objectives, fundamental capabilities, and key characteristics, intending to have the broadest possible vision of the business [11].

Once the main actors and parties involved in the operation of the system have been defined, the Usage Viewpoint allows a deeper understanding of the IIoT system to be built, serving as feedback and validation of the aspects raised in the Business Viewpoint. In this, the relationships between them and the roles, tasks, and activities that detail how they interact with each other and with external agents will be defined textually and graphically, taking into account the different scenarios or changes in the environment through which the process could go system. In addition, the behavior of the system will be described to obtain the fundamental capabilities defined above [11].

The Functional Viewpoint’s main purpose is to develop the various functions that the system must perform to support the uses, activities, interactions, and roles identified in the previous viewpoints. For this, the system will be functionally decomposed into 5 domains, the Business Domain, Application Domain, Information Domain, Operations Domain, and Control Domain [11].

The Business Domain groups a set of administrative functions typical of the business, such as Customer Relation Management (CRM), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Product Lifecycle Management (PLM), and Manufacturing Execution System (MES), among other functions that an IIoT system must integrate to support its operations. The Application Domain groups the functions that apply the business logic and rules, based on the information provided by the Information Domain and the guidelines developed in the Business Domain. From this domain, requests are made to the Control Domain for advice regarding compliance with security measures, among others. Another component of this domain is user interfaces for interaction with clients. In the Information Domain, the collection, transformation, and analysis of data from the other domains occur to acquire intelligence of the complete system and thus optimize operations [11].

In the Operations Domain, as its name indicates, the functions that guarantee the continuous operations of the assets present in the Control Domain are developed through remote management and monitoring of production parameters, as well as the correct configuration, periodic updates, diagnosis, and preventive maintenance of said assets. Finally, in the Control Domain are the business assets that are part of or directly intervene in the production or distribution of the final product. These assets can operate independently or autonomously, interact with external agents, and be coordinated through the functions designed in the other domains. In this, the functions for the closed-loop control of the automated system are implemented, such as the reading of sensor data, as well as the action to achieve the desired results in the product, following the rules and business logic that come from the Application Domain. In addition, the modeling and simulation of future processes, systems, and products to be developed in the business are carried out to obtain information and evaluate the feasibility and possible results [11].

Coming to the last viewpoint of IIRA, the Implementation Viewpoint aims to arrive at a general description of the new IIoT system, where all the elements, relationships, activities, functions, interfaces, and others defined in the previous viewpoints can be seen reflected and technically described. For this, IIRA provides an architecture pattern that represents the common, typical, and essential characteristics of the implementations of IIoT systems and, in turn, provides a simplified view of the implementation of said system. This is the 3-Tier Architecture Pattern (hereinafter, 3.T.A.P.), where each level will perform specific functions in data processing and control that take part in usage activities [11].

The 3-tiers mentioned in the architecture pattern are the Enterprise, Platform, and Edge tiers. At the Enterprise Tier, the rules and the desired direction of the business are designed, as well as decision support systems and interfaces for users; furthermore, data processed at the Platform Tier are received, and control commands are sent to it. As mentioned, the main function of the Platform Tier consists of the processing and sending of data and control orders to and from the perimeter tiers ((Edge and Enterprise), as well as the management of operations of the assets present in the Control Domain. Then, at the Edge Tier, the elements and actors directly related to the production and delivery of the final product will be located [11].

The 3-tiers of the 3.T.A.P. are connected through networks, where the Proximity Network connects the sensors, actuators, devices, control systems, and assets of the Edge Tier, while the Access Network establishes connectivity to guarantee data flows and control commands between the Edge and Platform tiers. Finally, the Service Network, as its name indicates, provides the connection between the services of the Platform Tier and those of the Enterprise Tier, as well as the services within each of these tiers, and in turn guarantees the flow of data and control commands between these [11].

Appendix B: Added Questions to the Diagnosis

• Is the company part of any of the automotive clusters in the country, for the exchange of experiences, initiatives, and talent training around the new technologies that are applied in the sector? (1st Dimension)

• Does the company know or apply the principles of the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) model in the implementation of Industry 4.0? (1st Dimension)

• Does the company apply measures and technologies regarding the treatment of waste from production? (1st Dimension) (3rd Dimension)

• Does the company use new technologies to guarantee the efficient use of its energy resources, raw materials, etc.? (3rd Dimension)

• Does the company maintain a satisfactory level of complexity in its production processes? (4th Dimension)

Appendix C: Comparison Between Various Methodologies for the implementation of Industry 4.0

To achieve a broader perspective on the magnitude and scope of the proposed methodology in this work, Table 2 was prepared, where it is compared with several of the methodologies found in the literature that address the implementation of the I4.0 and that were prepared between 2018 and 2023. To prepare it, the main strengths of the proposed methodology were chosen as aspects to compare, such as the systemic nature, the cyber-physical component, self-assessment, and quantification and validation of the processes, the flexibility in quantitative indicators of the indicators, the scope of the methodology, and the country where it was developed and the country of application. It should be noted that no works were included whose objective and/or result was a partial introduction of I4.0 in any specific process, nor were government strategies included, since these do not represent research works by any specific author or authors, but rather result from the political and macroeconomic wills and objectives of each nation. For the systemic character section, this is evaluated using a triadic scale, giving a low level for jobs that, despite making an implementation proposal for an entire business, leave aspects of it such as the workforce and other factors that should be included; a medium level for works whose proposal is complete, although they are not supported by a systemic methodology; and a high level for works in which the basis of their proposal lies in a systemic methodology.

Table 2 Selection of articles that present methodologies for the implementation of I4.0

Appendix D: Manual for Step-by-Step Intervention of the Proposed Methodology

In this 4th Appendix, the user manual prepared as a result of the development of the proposed methodology is concisely described, to facilitate its application in any company in the Mexican automotive industry that requires it. It highlights each of the stages of the methodology, and in several of them, you can find sub-stages written in orange, which are intended to draw the user’s attention before moving on to the next stage, to carry out some adjustments as necessary before continuing. This provides a feedback component to the application of the manual, which is based on 2nd-order cybernetics, as mentioned in Section 3.2.

• 1. General diagnosis

  • 1.1 Evaluate dimensions 1 and 2 of the diagnosis (new maturity model) through the questionnaires.

• 2. Specific diagnosis

  • 2.1 Evaluate dimensions 3, 4 and 5 of the diagnosis through the questionnaires.

  • 2.2

  • 2.3 Once the 5 questionnaires have been completed, the final diagnostic evaluation will continue. To do this, the most convenient average should be used, averaging all the evaluations given to each of the questions asked in each dimension of the diagnosis. If the company obtained a Level 0 or 1 as a final evaluation, it must continue with the next stage; otherwise, a Level 2 or higher will mean a successful implementation of I4.0, thus completing the application of this methodology.

• 3. Business definition

  • 3.1 Conceptualize the business from the base, defining basic and core aspects such as the vision, values, key objectives, fundamental capabilities, and key characteristics, as well as each conceptual element that is considered necessary to shape the new IIoT system, as indicated in the Industrial Internet Reference Architecture (IIRA) business viewpoint.

  • 3.2 Define each of the actors (humans, systems, or processes) that are considered of vital importance and participation in the production process, as indicated in the IIRA business viewpoint.

  • 3.3 Define the roles and activities to be developed by each of the defined actors, as well as the interactions between them, as stated in the IIRA viewpoint.

• 4. Functions for managing and processing business data

  • 4.1 Define the necessary functions to be performed in the business, operations, information, and application domains, belonging to the IIRA functional viewpoint. The functions defined in this step will be carried out by the actors defined previously.

  • 4.2

• 5. Functions for production

  • 5.1 Define the necessary functions to be performed in the Control Domain, as part of the IIRA functional viewpoint.

  • 5.2

• 6. Interconnection and implementation of the management and processing of business data

  • 6.1 Interconnection and implementation of the functions contemplated in the Domains developed in stage 4, relying on the company and platform levels of the 3-level architecture pattern (3.T.A.P.) of the IIRA implementation viewpoint.

  • 6.2

• 7. Interconnection and start-up of production

  • 7.1 Interconnection and implementation of the functions contemplated in the control domain of stage 5, relying on the edge level of the 3.T.A.P from the IIRA implementation viewpoint.

  • 7.2

• 8. Self-evaluation Apply stages 1 and 2 of the methodology again, in order to corroborate the success of its application.