Industry 4.0 investments in manufacturing firms and internationalization

There is a growing attention on the relationship between investments in industry 4.0 technologies – specifically 3D printing – and internationalization processes. Such technologies can modify the scale and the organization of manufacturing processes, potentially pushing firms in the redefinition of their activities worldwide. At the same time, firms with manufacturing activities located in high-cost countries can benefit from industry 4.0 investments for increasing productivity. Although these relevant implications, limited attention is given to explore how manufacturing firms adopt industry 4.0 technologies in relation to their degree of internationalization. Based on an original dataset of about 1,400 Italian manufacturing firms, the paper analyzes the technological investments strategies of 200 Industry 4.0 adopters in terms of intensity of technological adoption, differences in the technological solutions used and related motivations, taking into account the location of their manufacturing activities as well as export. Results suggest that the adoption of 4.0 technologies per se is independent from the level of internationalization, while internationalized and domestic firms invest in different technologies. Among the four groups of firms identified (global/domestic sourcing – export/domestic market) differences in motivations arise as well as in the steps of value chains where technologies have been implemented.