Exponential Disruptive Technologies and the Required Skills of Industry 4.0

Table 1

Industrial revolution transition.

Revolution and timeline	Technologies and capabilities	Main industries	Main engineering discipline(s)
Industry 1.0 1760-1900	Mechanization using water and steam (first mechanical weaving loom)	Coal, iron, textile	Mechanical engineering
Industry 2.0 1900-1960	Mass production using electricity (first assembly line)	Semiconductors, automobiles, steel, airplanes	Electrical engineering, industrial engineering
Industry 3.0 1960-2000	Automation using digital electronics and IT (first PLC system)^1	Electronics, mobile phones, internet, computer, robots	Computer and electronic engineering, software engineering
Industry 4.0 2000-today	Innovation based on the “fusion of virtual, physical, digital, and biological sphere” (cyber-physical production system)	Social media, self-driving cars, drones, virtual assistant	Integration of many engineering disciplines, e.g., mechatronic engineering, biomechanical engineering

¹PLC- programmable logic controller, modified from [1, 24, 38].