Concept and Diffusion-Factors of Industry 4.0 in the Supply Chain.

The purpose of this exploratory study is to understand how technology innovations discussed with respect to the fourth industrial revolution diffuse within the supply chain. First, the main characteristic and interrelated features of the term "Industry 4.0" are identified to come up with a definition. We understand that the fourth industrial revolution is characterized by the technological trends of digitalization, autonomization, transparency, availability of real-time information and collaboration. Based on the assumption, that all technological innovations addressing these characteristics, are contributing to diffuse the concept of Industry 4.0 in the supply chain, causal hypotheses are stated within a structural model to further discuss the diffusion-factors and barriers of implementation. All results are conceptually derived based on a structured literature review.