Within the framework of the German Government’s High-Tech strategy, the Industry 4.0 initiative was created, aiming to develop the “Smart Factory”. The approach assumes increased automation and a transparent, user-centred Production Planning and Scheduling. The “intelligent components” communicate with people and systems independently and find the optimal route through production.

The Smart Grid aims at making the current energy grid more efficient and eco-friendly. The Smart Grid features an IT-layer, which allows communication between a multitude of stakeholders and will have to be integrated with other “smart” systems (e.g., smart factories or smart cities) to operate effectively. Thus, many participants will be involved and will exchange large volumes of data, leadin...

The so-called smart factory is a novel paradigm that is rapidly gaining ground in scenarios for factories of the future. Many manufacturing companies try to raise the level of smartness by considering a number of aspects related to the smart factory. However, there is a lack of field-oriented systematic research to help them fit the interest of industry for promoting interest and diffusion of s...