Journal of Improvement Management

Journal of Improvement Management

Identification and Prioritization of Components of Industrial Cluster 4.0 Using Grey Delphi and Grey Best-Worst Method

Document Type : Research Article (Original Article)

Authors
1 Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Industrial Management, Faculty of Economics, Management and Social Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
2 Assistant Prof, Department of Industrial Management, Faculty of Economics, Management and Social Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
3 Prof., Department of Industrial Management, Faculty of Economics, Management and Social Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
4 Associate Prof., Department of Industrial Management, Faculty of Economics, Management and Social Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
Abstract
Purpose: Industrial clusters serve as critical platforms for strengthening productivity, fostering innovation, and enhancing regional competitiveness. These clusters must transform in response to the emergence of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This research aims to identify and prioritize the key elements involved in conceptualizing and theorizing Industrial Cluster 4.0.
Method: To accomplish the aim, a systematic review and the Grey Delphi method were conducted to identify and then classify 26 key components into five main categories. Subsequently, the Grey Best–Worst Method was applied to determine the weights and priorities of these components based on the evaluations of ten industry experts who were selected using purposive sampling.
Findings: The results showed that the "smart economic development" dimension has the highest weight (47%) in the industrial cluster 4.0 model; also, the "international smart value creation" component ranked first with a weight of 20%. The dimensions of smart human capital development, smart service provision, smart market development, and smart spatial focus were ranked next.
Conclusion: These findings indicated that implementing Industry 4.0 technologies in industrial clusters requires coordinated economic, human, and managerial infrastructure, along with multi-level interaction between the government, cluster managers, and supporting institutions.
Keywords
Subjects

اسعدی، مرضیه. 1398. "انقلاب صنعتی چهارم و اقتصاد دیجیتال: پیشران­های رشد اقتصادی پایدار". مطالعات کاربردی در علوم مدیریت و توسعه، 4(3): 9-33.
روحانی قادیکلایی، محسن. 1399. "نقش خوشه­ی صنعتی رقابت­پذیر بر سازماندهی فضایی منطقه­ای (موردپژوهی: شهرستان ساری)". برنامه­ریزی و آمایش فضا، 24(2): 85-109.
سعادت یار، فهیمه سادات.، وظیفه، زهرا.، و یعقوبی، نورمحمد. 1398. "بررسی چالش­های پیاده­سازی خوشه صنعتی فرش استان سیستان و بلوچستان در سطح استانی: رویکردی کیفی". بهبود مدیریت، 13(2): 130-154.
شهابی، وحید.، آذر، عادل.، فائزی رازی، فرشاد.، و فلاح شمس، میر فیض. 1400. "مدلسازی تاثیر انقلاب صنعتی چهارم بر زنجیره تامین خدمات بانکی با استفاده از رویکرد پویایی سیستم و تکنیک دیماتل فازی". مدیریت کسب­وکار بین­المللی، 4(1): 67-89.
شیرویه­پور، شهریار.، مرتضوی، سید مرتضی.، و بیات، روح­الله. 1402. "ارائۀ مدل عوامل مؤثر بر توسعۀ آیندۀ شهرهای هوشمند پایدار با تأکید بر مدیریت بهینۀ انرژی". اقتصاد و برنامه­ریزی شهری، 4(4): 116-130.
عارف، محمدرضا.، جعفرنژاد، احمد.، و کیانی بختیاری، ابوالفضل. 1398. "ارائه چارچوب مناسب (شاخص­های ترکیبی) ارزیابی آمادگی بنگاه‌ها و شهرک­های صنعتی برای پیاده‌سازی مولفه­های بنیادین انقلاب صنعتی چهارم و توسعه سرمایه‌گذاری". دانش سرمایه­گذاری، 8(31): 23-48.
منوریان، عباس. عباسی، طیبه. سلیمانی، غلامرضا. و آقامحسنی فشمی، علی. 1396. "طراحی و تبیین مدل خط‌مشی‌گذاری توسعه خوشه‌های کسب‌وکار در ایران". سیاست‌گذاری عمومی، 3(4): 9-28.
موید، میترا.، طاهری، فاطمه.، صباغ­زاده، محمدفؤاد.، حسینی، محمد.، و کشاورز، حمید. 1404. "مدلسازی راهکارهای مدیریت موفق پروژه­های توسعه خوشه صنعتی با کمک تئوری داده­بنیاد". بهبود مدیریت، 19(2): 166-184.
میرقادری، سید هادی. عالم تبریز، اکیر. فارسیجانی، حسن.، و فرزد، فرهاد. 1394. "شناسایی ابعاد عملکردی خوشه­های صنعتی به روش تحلیل خوشه­ای توافقی سلسله مراتبی". فصلنامه علمی پژوهشی مطالعات مدیریت صنعتی، 13(38): 1-21.
Aref, M., Jafarinejad, A., and Kiani Bakhtiari, A. 2019. "Development of a Suitable Readiness Assessment Framework for Firms and Industrial Parks for the Adoption of the Fundamental Components of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (I4.0) and Investment Development". Journal of Investment Knowledge, 8(31): 23-48. [In Persian].
Asadi, M. 2019. "The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Digital Economy: Drivers of Sustainable Economic Growth". Applied Studies in Management Sciences and Development, 4(3): 9-33. [In Persian].
Cannavacciuolo, L., Ferraro, G., Ponsiglione, C., Primario, S., and Quinto, I. 2023. "Technological innovation-enabling industry 4.0 paradigm: A systematic literature review". Technovation, 124: 102733.
Chen, L., Yu, W., Zhang, B., Wang, W., Dai, G., Zhu, J., ... and Zhao, X. 2025. "A BWM-TOPSIS Based Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Framework for Design of Cold Patching Asphalt Binder". Case Studies in Construction Materials, e04806.
Citkowski, M. 2021. "Managing relational competences of industrial cluster and the challenges of Industry 4.0—theoretical approach". Marketing i Rynek, (12): 3-16.
Dalkey, N., and Helmer, O. 1963. "An experimental application of the Delphi method to the use of experts". Management science, 9(3): 458-467.
Dalmarco, G., Ramalho, F. R., Barros, A. C., and Soares, A. L. 2019. "Providing industry 4.0 technologies: The case of a production technology cluster". The journal of high technology management research, 30(2): 100355.
Dyba, W., and De Marchi, V. 2022. "On the road to Industry 4.0 in manufacturing clusters: the role of business support organisations". Competitiveness Review: An International Business Journal, 32(5): 760-776.
Enzmann, P., and Moesli, M. 2022. "Seizing opportunities: ASEAN country cluster readiness in light of the fourth industrial revolution". Asia and the Global Economy, 2(1): 100021.
Fernandez-Escobedo, R., and Cuevas-Vargas, H. 2023. "The Digital Industrial Cluster (DIC) in a post-pandemic era: Exploring its theoretical deployment and potential benefits". Procedia Computer Science, 221: 1131-1138.
Gökşen, H., and & Gökşen, Y. 2021, March. "A review of maturity models perspective of level and dimension". In Proceedings, 74(1): p. 2. MDPI.
Götz, M. 2019. "The industry 4.0 induced agility and new skills in clusters". Форсайт, 13(2 (eng)): 72-83.
Götz, M. 2020. "Primer on the cluster impact on internationalisation in the form of FDI in the time of industry 4.0". European Spatial Research and Policy, 27(1): 195-220.
Götz, M. 2021. "Cluster role in industry 4.0–a pilot study from Germany". Competitiveness Review: An International Business Journal, 31(1): 54-82.
Götz, M., and Jankowska, B. 2017. Clusters and Industry 4.0–do they fit together?. European Planning Studies, 25(9): 1633-1653.
Götz, M., and Jankowska, B. 2018. "On the role of clusters in fostering the Industry 4.0". In International Business in the Information and Digital Age, 13: 379-390. Emerald Publishing Limited.
Grashof, N., Kopka, A., Wessendorf, C., and Fornahl, D. 2021. "Industry 4.0 and clusters: complementaries or substitutes in firm’s knowledge creation?". Competitiveness Review: An International Business Journal, 31(1): 83-105.
Jankowska, B., Di Maria, E., and Cygler, J. 2021. "Do clusters matter for foreign subsidiaries in the Era of industry 4.0? The case of the aviation valley in Poland". European research on management and business economics, 27(2): 100150.
Janmaijaya, M., Shukla, A. K., Muhuri, P. K., and Abraham, A. 2021. "Industry 4.0: Latent Dirichlet Allocation and clustering based theme identification of bibliography". Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence, 103: 104280.
Kim, M. K., Seo, J., Kim, N., and Chung, J. B. 2023. "Emerging industrial clusters of disaster safety industry in Korea". Heliyon, 9(7): 1-13.
Li, X., Ran, Y., Yu, H., Chen, Y., and Zhang, G. 2021. "Maintenance decision of meta-action unit based on Grey-BWM". In IOP conference series: materials science and engineering, 1043(3): 032032. IOP Publishing.
Ma, Z., Shao, C., Ma, S., and Ye, Z. 2011. "Constructing road safety performance indicators using fuzzy Delphi method and grey Delphi method". Expert systems with applications, 38(3): 1509-1514.
Mackiewicz, M., & Götz, M. 2024. "The role of clusters in advancing Industry 4.0 solutions: insights from the Polish automotive context". Digital Policy, Regulation and Governance, 26(4): 357-374.
Magagula, M. M., and Awodiji, O. A. 2024. "The implications of the fourth industrial revolution on technical and vocational education and training in South Africa". Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 10: 100896.
Malik, S., Muhammad, K., and Waheed, Y. 2024. "Artificial intelligence and industrial applications-A revolution in modern industries". Ain Shams Engineering Journal, 102886.
Marshall, A. 1890. ""Some aspects of competition." The address of the president of section F--Economic Science and Statistics--of the British Association, at the Sixtiet Meeting, held at Leeds, in September, 1890". Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, 53(4): 612-643.
McKernan, D., and McDermott, O. 2024. "Industrial clusters, creating a strategy for continued success". Heliyon, 10(7): 1-14.
McPhillips, M. 2020. "Trouble in paradise? Barriers to open innovation in regional clusters in the era of the 4th industrial revolution". Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 6(3): 84-97.
Mirghaderi, S.H., Alam Tabriz, A., Farsigani, H., and Farzad, F. 2015. "Identifying Performance Dimensions of Industrial Clusters Using Consensus Cluster Analysis". Industrial Management Studies, 13(38): 1-25. [In Persian].
Mitra, A. 2024. "Cellular Automata-based MapReduce design: migrating a big data processing model from Industry 4.0 to Industry 5.0". E-Prime-Advances in Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Energy, 100603.
Monavarian, A., Abbasi, T., Soleimani, G., and Aghamohseni Fashami, A. 2017. "Designing and explaining of policy-making model for business clusters development in Iran". Iranian Journal of Public Policy, 3(4): 9-28. [In Persian].
Moubed, M. Taheri, F., Sabbaghzade, M. F., Hosseini, M., and Keshavarz, H. 2025. "Modeling Successful Project Management Solutions for Industrial Cluster Development using Grounded Theory". The Scientific Quarterly Journal of Improvement Management, 19(2): 166-184. [In Persian].
Muzamwese, T. C., Franco-Garcia, L., and Heldeweg, M. 2024. "Industrial clusters as a vehicle for circular economy transition: A case study of networks in four industrial clusters in Zimbabwe". Journal of Cleaner Production, 141479.
Olomu, M. O., Binuyo, G. O., and Oyebisi, T. O. 2023. "The adoption and impact of Internet-based technological innovations on the performance of the industrial cluster firms". Journal of Economy and Technology, 1: 164-178.
Papagiannidis, S., See-To, E. W., Assimakopoulos, D. G., and Yang, Y. 2018. "Identifying industrial clusters with a novel big-data methodology: Are SIC codes (not) fit for purpose in the Internet age?". Computers & Operations Research, 98: 355-366.
Park, S. C. 2018. "The Fourth Industrial Revolution and implications for innovative cluster policies". Ai & Society, 33: 433-445.
Piron, M., Wu, J., Fedele, A., and Manzardo, A. 2024. "Industry 4.0 and life cycle assessment: Evaluation of the technology applications as an asset for the life cycle inventory". Science of the Total Environment, 916: 170263.
Porter, M. E., and Strategy, C. 1980. "Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors". Competitive Strategy. New York: Free, 1.
Quiroga, O. D. 2022. "Adoption of Advanced Technologies in Industrial Clusters. A Study in Latin American Industries". IFAC-PapersOnLine, 55(10): 1846-1851.
Rezaei, J. 2015. "Best-worst multi-criteria decision-making method". Omega, 53: 49-57.
Rodrigues, V., Breda, Z., and Rodrigues, C. 2024. "The implications of industry 4.0 for the tourism sector: A systematic literature review". Heliyon, 10: 1-20.
Roohani, M. 2020. "The Role of Competitive Industrial Clusters on Regional Spatial Organization". Journal of Spatial Planning and Geomatics, 24(2): 85-109. [In Persian].
Ruben, R. B., Rajendran, C., Ram, R. S., Kouki, F., Alshahrani, H. M., and Assiri, M. 2023. "Analysis of barriers affecting Industry 4.0 implementation: An interpretive analysis using total interpretive structural modeling (TISM) and Fuzzy MICMAC". Heliyon, 9(12): 1-17.
Saadatyar, F. S., Vazife, Z., and Yaghoobi, N. M. 2019. "The study of Faults and Limitations of Successful Implementation of Carpet Industrial Cluster with Emphasis on Localization Role: A Phenomenography Study". The Scientific Quarterly Journal of Improvement Management, 13(2): 130-154. [In Persian].
Saleem, S., Dhuey, E., White, L., and Perlman, M. 2024. "Understanding 21st century skills needed in response to Industry 4.0: Exploring scholarly insights using bibliometric analysis". Telematics and Informatics Reports, 100124.
Shahabi, V., Azar, A., Faezy Razi, F., and Fallah Shams, M. 2021. "Modeling the Impact of the Industry 4.0 on the Banking Supply Chain Using Fuzzy DIMATEL Technique". Journal of International Business Administration, 4(1): 67–89. [In Persian].
Shirooyehpour, Sh., Mortazavi, S. M., and Bayat, R. 2024. "A Model of Factors Affecting the Future Development of Sustainable Smart Cities with an Emphasis on Optimal Energy Management". Urban Economics and Planning, 4(4): 116-130. [In Persian].
Sony, M., and Naik, S. 2020. "Key ingredients for evaluating Industry 4.0 readiness for organizations: a literature review". Benchmarking: An International Journal, 27(7): 2213-2232.
Tsakalerou, M., and Akhmadi, S. 2021. "Agents of innovation: clusters in industry 4.0". Procedia Manufacturing, 55: 319-327.
Unterberger, P., and Müller, J. M. 2021. "Clustering and classification of manufacturing enterprises regarding their industry 4.0 reshoring incentives". Procedia computer science, 180: 696-705.
Wang, X., and Lin, P. 2024. "Research on the Development Mechanism and Path of Wenzhou Digital Industrial Cluster under the Background of Digital Economy". International Journal of Global Economics and Management, 3(1): 431-438.

  • Receive Date 19 October 2025
  • Revise Date 23 December 2025
  • Accept Date 05 January 2026