| Title |
Implementation of digital technologies for a circular economy and sustainability management in the manufacturing sector |
| ID_Doc |
2567 |
| Authors |
Schöggl, JP; Rusch, M; Stumpf, L; Baumgartner, RJ |
| Title |
Implementation of digital technologies for a circular economy and sustainability management in the manufacturing sector |
| Year |
2023 |
| Published |
|
| DOI |
10.1016/j.spc.2022.11.012 |
| Abstract |
There is growing consensus in literature and practice that digital technologies (DTs) can offer a wide range of po-tentials for implementing a circular economy in companies. However, empirical insights on how the potentials of different DTs are already realized across various industries are lacking. This study addresses this research gap through descriptive, hierarchical cluster and non-parametric analyses (Kruskal-Wallis tests and Spearman rank correlations) of the use of DTs for circular economy and sustainability management based on data collected in a structured telephone survey with 132 sustainability managers and CEOs of Austrian manufacturing companies. The paper shows for the first time the degree and stage of implementation of four key enabling DTs for a sustain-able circular economy and 31 specific applications of those DTs across eight different industries. Of the four DTs, Internet of Things (IoT) technology is most widely implemented, followed by big data analytics, artificial intelli-gence (AI), and blockchain technology. However, their use in sustainability management is still very limited and is currently mainly in pilot phases. Of the 31 applications surveyed, IoT technology is most frequently used for collecting data from production processes, AI for predictive maintenance, big data analytics for demand forecast-ing, and blockchain technology for tracking product origins. Statistically significant differences were found in the degree of digitalization, in general, and for sustainability management between industries and company sizes. A strong positive correlation between the implementation of digital technologies in general and their use in a sustainability management context indicates synergies and spillover effects. The findings may help to tailor context-specific and purpose-driven strategies that selectively leverage the benefits of different DTs and supporting sustainability management effectively. Further research may identify scalable best practices, optimal enabling conditions, and environmental and social outcomes.(c) 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Institution of Chemical Engineers. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
| Author Keywords |
Digitalization; Industry 4; 0; Sustainable production; Circular economy; Empirical study; Survey |
| Index Keywords |
Index Keywords |
| Document Type |
Other |
| Open Access |
Open Access |
| Source |
Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED); Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) |
| EID |
WOS:000975857600001 |
| WoS Category |
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology; Environmental Studies |
| Research Area |
Science & Technology - Other Topics; Environmental Sciences & Ecology |
| PDF |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2022.11.012
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