The future of maintenance work at a Swedish steel producer : Effective and Attractive workplaces through Industry 4.0

Abstract: Industry 4.0 is being investigated all around the world and it brings an entire arsenal of new tech-nology. It is during major technological changes where we have the chance to change old pat-terns. It is through knowledge of the future and discussion that SSAB and IF Metall will be able to steer the technological changes into the desired direction; A direction which promotes economic and environmental sustainability as well as creating an attractive workplace.There were three objectives with this project. The first objective was to map the current state of maintenance work at SSAB. The second was to develop a future vision within the concept Indus-try 4.0, which promotes attractive workplaces. The last objective was to evaluate the method used to develop the vision. The mapping of the current state of maintenance at SSAB is based on interviews and obser-vations. We decided to delimitate us to shift maintenance. The reason to focus on the shift main-tenance unit of SSAB was that because contain many competences and work all over the pro-duction area. The result of the mapping is that the work is characterized by variating tasks, personal development and pride. It is also male-dominated and characterized by old traditions, tough jargon and macho culture. In general, we conclude that it is an attractive workplace for those who belong to the current homogeneous group.The future vision was developed using personas and workshops. Three personas were created to represent the target group. They were used as a basis of discussion for us and for the participants in the three workshops. The goal of the workshops was to generate a high quantity of futuristic and abstract ideas. The ideas were then combined with theories regarding Industry 4.0 and at-tractive workplaces to form a future vision. To create attractive work content, the future vision focused on placing the worker in the centre of decision-making as a problem solver. This was ac-complished by using new technology to provide information to the worker so he or she can make an informed decision: a digital assistant. To enhance the learning capability of workers the vision contained a VR world where the worker can practise different scenarios. The VR can also be used for marketing to attract people from outside the company. The futuristic vision also presented crowdsourcing of experts and tutors to improve the troubleshooting process and shorten the learning period. If an error is too complicated, the worker has the opportunity to connect to an expert using AR to get their guidance. At the beginning of an employment, every worker is enti-tled to a tutor who will assist you on your missions. To make the workplace more attractive and to change the old picture of the steel industry the vision presented three improvement areas. Firstly, clean & bright facilities which will attract a wider range of people. Secondly, centralised office where employees can meet, work and network. Thirdly, new working roles focusing on troubleshooting and sustainable solutions.Our recommendation is to explore the other maintenance divisions at SSAB and other industries to see if maintenance of acute problems can be centralised over the borders of industries. We also recommend future projects to use participation of managers and workers throughout the implementation process to create higher acceptance and understanding, but also to reduce fear, resistance and promote ownership to the change process.