4.6 6.

Article

The Impact of Industry 4.0 on the

Steel Sector: Paving the Way for a
Disruptive Digital and Ecological
Transformation

Laura Tolettini and Eleonora Di Maria

Special Issue
Circular Economy in Europe: Governance, Economics and Industrial Strategy
Edited by
Dr. Giacomo Di Foggia and Dr. Massimo Beccarello

https://doi.org/10.3390/recycling8040055
 recycling
Article
The Impact of Industry 4.0 on the Steel Sector: Paving the Way
for a Disruptive Digital and Ecological Transformation
Laura Tolettini 1,2, * and Eleonora Di Maria 2

1 Feralpi Siderurgica SpA, 25017 Lonato Del Garda, Italy

2 Department of Economics and Management, Università Degli Studi di Padova, 35121 Padova, Italy
* Correspondence: laura.tolettini@studenti.unipd.it

Abstract: Since the creation of a common term to indicate a set of incremental and disruptive digital
technologies, Industry 4.0 has challenged European manufacturers to find a way to concretely exploit
these innovations in their own business strategy. During this journey, Industry 4.0 has recently
highlighted some evidence about its efficacy in enabling strategic goals on the three dimensions
(economical, environmental, social) of sustainable development, which is a key element for the
European Union’s goal to make manufacturers become carbon neutral until 2030. Industry 4.0 and
sustainability are together affecting manufacturers’ business models, forcing managers to take chances
and face challenges within their organization and in their supply-chain. As an energy-intensive
sector, steel industries will be intensively affected by sustainability paradigms. With 19 qualitative
interviews in the organization and supply chain of an internationalized steel producer, Feralpi Group,
we provide evidence that, beyond the use of main strategic technologies (Internet of Things and Big
Data analysis), the implementation of a sustainability strategy is also possible through the creation of
new partnerships beyond the own supply chain. The combination of Industry 4.0 technologies and
sustainability strategies, especially concerning the environment through Circular Economy practices,
pushes steel industries to revise their business models, paving the way for unexpected collaborations,
where suppliers, customers, and even more diverse stakeholders such as competitors could bring
benefits to the company sustainable economic growth and durability.
Citation: Tolettini, L.; Di Maria, E.
The Impact of Industry 4.0 on the Keywords: Industry 4.0; sustainability; circular economy; business model innovation; network
Steel Sector: Paving the Way for a
collaboration
Disruptive Digital and Ecological
Transformation. Recycling 2023, 8, 55.
https://doi.org/10.3390/
recycling8040055
1. Introduction
Academic Editors: Michele John, It is unfortunately well known how COVID-19 ignited one of the most terrible eco-
Pedro Simões, Massimo Beccarello nomic crises since World War II, affecting more than 50 million people and with more than
and Giacomo Di Foggia 1.25 million victims around the globe [1]. In 2020, there was a contraction of −3.4% in the
Received: 29 March 2023 global economy, with uncertain projections of growth due to virus variants spreading and
Revised: 22 May 2023 incomplete vaccine coverage globally [2]. All around the world, governments started eco-
Accepted: 15 June 2023 nomic initiatives in order to boost economic growth and to provide a strategic direction in
Published: 28 June 2023 these conditions of uncertainty. Many of these actions were intended to ignite technological
innovation, with the goal to incentivize more sustainable business models. In the United
States, President Joe Biden promised to invest $300 billion in breakthrough technologies
(lightweight materials, 5G, artificial intelligence, electric vehicles) [3] in order to fulfill the
Copyright: © 2023 by the authors. goals of the rejoined Paris Agreement, signed in December 2015 by 190 parties, to limit
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
global warming to 2 ◦ C [4].
This article is an open access article
In April 2020, as a result of the negotiation for a multiannual financial framework
distributed under the terms and
(€1800 billion in 2020–2027), the European Commission approved a recovery instrument
conditions of the Creative Commons
called “Next Generation EU” (European Union)—NGEU, injecting €500 billion in grants
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
and €250 billion in loans for member states [5]. The goal of this strategic plan is to push
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
EU companies toward more sustainable business models with the support of digital and
4.0/).

Recycling 2023, 8, 55. https://doi.org/10.3390/recycling8040055 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/recycling

Recycling 2023, 8, 55 2 of 23

Industry 4.0 technologies. Each member state has to dedicate at least 37% of the national
expense to the reduction of climate impact and 20% to the empowerment of the digital
transition [6]. Prime Minister Draghi has presented a total investment plan of €248 billion €,
with 40% dedicated to the ecologic transition and 27% to digitization and innovation [7].
The digital and green economy transitions are the two most important missions of the
Italian recovery plan. The digital transformation, especially based on high connectivity tech-
nologies, should foster the competitive advantage of Italian industries at an international
level. The ecologic transition should have energy efficiency, the use of renewable energy,
and the reuse of regenerated and recycled materials as core drivers [8]. Germany has also
focused on investing 90% of its resources in green and digital technologies, although with a
smaller amount compared to Italy (€11.5 billion and €14 billion, respectively) [9,10].
The EU Green Deal and Climate Action Plan contains very challenging goals until
2030 for the EU manufacturing industries, in order to become a climate-neutral economy
such as [11]:
−55% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (compared to 1990);
+32% renewable energy;
+32.5% improvement in energy efficiency
Technology has incrementally supported EU manufacturers to control industrial emis-
sions and to reduce environmental impact, by employing the so-called Best Available
Techniques (BAT) [12]. In particular, in the last few years, a set of key technologies centered
on the use of embedded Cyber-Physical-Systems (CPS) under the term Industry 4.0 can
connect machines, products, and people and exchange real-time information through high-
speed wireless networks [13]. CPS connect physical and software systems to integrate the
cyber and physical world [14].
Recent research has developed on the importance of Industry 4.0 as an enabler of
sustainable development, intended as the human strategic commitment to manage and
preserve ecosystem resources in order to fulfill current and future generations’ needs [15].
Sustainability can transform companies’ business models, defined as the way companies
make value from their economic activities, overcoming challenges by fostering the conver-
gence of multiple stakeholders’ interests and tensions [16]. A business model is the way a
company defines its competitive strategy, through its products and services offered to the
market, in a unique value proposition that is differentiated from competitors [17].
Sustainable business models consider the needs of diverse stakeholders and measure
performance based on three levels, economic, social, and environmental, the so-called
triple bottom line [18]. Sustainable economic activities encourage an optimized use of
resources, such as raw materials and energy, and integrate social and environmental
scopes, rather than only prioritizing consumerist growth; ecological, social, and economic
goals are fully integrated [19]. Specifically, at the environmental level, Circular Economy
(CE) represents an important sustainability paradigm, where environmental innovation
can enable durable competitive advantage and successful economic development from
a long-term perspective [20], and support an important integration among the social,
environmental, and macroeconomic dimensions [21].
CE could be considered a part of the sustainability strategy. CE is especially focused
on the economic and environmental dimensions, which can benefit from each other, while
the overall concept of sustainability looks at the interest alignment of all stakeholders on
the whole triple bottom line [22]. CE is a sustainability archetype affecting the technological
sphere, pushing companies to find new technical routes to reuse and recycle apparently
exhausted materials [23]. More specifically, CE implies a “closed-loop” ecosystem, where
waste is not generated or significantly minimized, (in the case of manufacturing industries,
we can speak of “zero waste” production strategies) [24,25], and where customers’ needs
are completely aligned with suppliers’ circular activities [26,27].
It has been often investigated and confirmed how the power of digitization and
interconnection offered by Industry 4.0 technologies can shape sustainable manufactur-
ing [28,29]. However, this has been mostly carried out on a theoretical basis and literature
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 3 of 23

review level, leaving space for further research to dig deeper in relation to these technolo-
gies with sustainability strategies in concrete manufacturers’ examples [30]. The focus
can be particularly set on all three levels of sustainable business models, not only on the
environmental aspect [31] but also on the social and economic dimension [32,33], while
highlighting the concrete benefits and challenges of those technologies. This is the literature
gap of our research, with the main novelty of investigating in a sector—steel industries—
which was almost unexplored from this point of view. Industry 4.0 and digitization seem
to become more and more a strategic enabler of sustainability performance [34].
Steel industries are highly impacted by the EU green economy and sustainability
goals. Steel industries represent the backbone of the European economy and they are
the most advanced in the energy-intensive sector in terms of the opportunities given by
environmental sustainability, with the use of breakthrough technologies such as hydrogen-
and electricity-based metallurgy and carbon capture and storage [35]. However, this sector
remains almost unexplored regarding how Industry 4.0 can enable and shape the strategy
of these industries, not only concerning the optimization and reuse of resources, under a CE
umbrella but also the further exploration of their sustainability strategy as a whole [36,37].
This analysis represents an important point in the current research on Industry 4.0 and
sustainability since steel industries will be powerfully affected by the digital and decar-
bonization transformation [38]. Analyzing the case of a leading internationalized company
in the steel branch, we take an innovative focus on the managers’ perspective, who are
the decisive protagonists for Industry 4.0 and sustainability practices in manufacturing
companies and who are the ultimate decision-makers in the fulfillment of digitization
processes in steel organizations [39]. In this sense, our explorative research question is
twofold:
RQ1: What is the prioritized sustainability strategy in the steel sector? Which are
the benefits and challenges brought by Industry 4.0 technologies in order to pursue this
strategy in the steel sector?
RQ2: Are Industry 4.0 and sustainable development causing radical changes in the
business model of such a traditional and long-established energy-intensive sector? If
yes, how?
In the following sections, we will go deeper into those themes: in Section 2, we will
present the literature review; in Section 3, methodology; in Section 4, the main findings; in
Section 5, the conclusion and insight into future research.

2. Literature Review
2.1. Industry 4.0 and the Path towards Sustainability
Industry 4.0 is a German term (Industrie 4.0)—launched at the Hannover Fair in
2011—in order to characterize the ongoing fourth industrial revolution affecting industries
with the use of the Internet of Things, Data, and Services [40]. Industry 4.0 collects a set of
enabling technologies leading to the efficient integration and interconnection of internal
production processes and to a tighter collaboration among different actors in the external
ecosystems of manufacturing companies [41,42]. Integrated connectivity is the basic design
principle of Industry 4.0, making internal production ecosystems collect data in real time
and facilitate decision-making [43].
Compared to the previous industrial innovation streams, the connectivity enabled
by Industry 4.0 fosters information availability and transparency, knowledge sharing [44],
and a decentralized and automated integrated decision-making process [45]. The literature
identifies nine enabling technologies; most of them have already been developed through
the years [46,47]:
1. Robotics: with a great range of capabilities, robots can fulfill tasks autonomously
and even collaborate with humans in the same working environment, facilitating
strenuous and dangerous activities;
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 4 of 23

2. Simulation: time for machine set-up and product as well as process configuration
can be reduced through virtual simulations, which can replicate real conditions very
precisely;
3. Vertical and horizontal systems integration: engineering and automation make pro-
duction phases and systems more integrated; digital platforms enable the real-time
information exchange in the supply chain;
4. Industrial Internet of Things (IoT): sophisticated sensors and embedded cyber-physical
systems make machines and products interact with each other and human beings by
employing wireless communication;
5. Cybersecurity: articulated and encrypted protocols, control, and identification pro-
cedures should protect real-time connected systems from cyber-crime attacks, which
can endanger production and business continuity;
6. Cloud: cloud-based software enables high-speed analytics and data-driven manufac-
turing systems, decreasing maintenance costs and enhancing Information Technology
architecture security;
7. Additive manufacturing: 3D printing leads to customized product design, supporting
manufacturing decentralization and stock reduction and increases the lightness of
material weight;
8. Augmented reality: virtual reality is connected to the concrete world through human–
machine interfaces (like glasses and tablets), creating opportunities for better mainte-
nance and training directly on the plant.
9. Big Data Analytics: from different heterogeneous sources large amounts of data can be
collected and interpreted in order to gain internal efficiency and durable competitive
advantage.
These technologies are pushing manufacturers to reshape their business models,
specifically, the way they conduct their business and create value with their key business
activities [48]. They pressure them to integrate their physical product portfolio with more
services and to satisfy customers’ needs more individually by offering new value proposi-
tions [49]. Industry 4.0 affects manufacturers’ business paradigms at various levels: from
a direct technological impact with organizational consequences to a pervasive evolution,
with a radical transformation of the business model to adapt to the new complex digital
ecosystem [50,51]. Since existing business models are put into discussion, manufacturers
have to face substantial challenges, from a technical and organizational perspective, such
as business future viability, production fit (high technical and financial implementation
efforts), and employee acceptance (employee fear and concern to be substituted by au-
tonomous technologies) [52–54]. However, Industry 4.0 leads manufacturers to undoubted
significant competitive advantages: a 10–40% reduction in maintenance costs, a 20–50%
reduction in time to market [55], an 85% increase in forecast accuracy, and a 3–5% increase
in productivity [56]. Table 1 shows a more detailed list of the opportunities and challenges
of Industry 4.0 technologies [57].
Recent research has underlined how Industry 4.0 can be a facilitator of sustainability
strategies, especially in the generation of CE practices from the perspective of a supply-
chain integrated collaboration [58,59]. Industry 4.0 technologies cause benefits affecting
all the triple-bottom-line dimensions: economic (increased productivity); ecological (in-
creased resource efficiency); social (increased job opportunities) [60], giving impulse to
manufacturers for sustainable development [61]. Sustainability reshapes the financial
and organizational architecture of firms and can characterize the firm in new business
archetypes [23]: technological (e.g., use of innovative technology for low carbon and
energy-efficient production, use of renewable resources in the process to ignite the best
practice of reuse, recycle, remanufacture); social (e.g., stewardship for sustainable growth,
like ethical business and consumer education); organizational (e.g., multi-stakeholder col-
laboration). Sustainable business models are driven by the triple-bottom-line approach
(social, economic, environmental) to assess performance, considering all stakeholders’
needs including those of the surrounding environment [18]. Sustainable business models
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 5 of 23

are attained through the consideration of the interests of all stakeholders in the value chain.
An important aspect to consider is the identification and tackling of conflicting values when
the interests of some stakeholders could damage those of other parties [62].

Table 1. Main opportunities and challenges of Industry-4.0-related technologies.

Main Chances and Challenges of Industry 4.0-Related Technologies

Chances Challenges
Production integration Integration with
IoT
and control existing technology
Advances in
Automation
Enhanced safety, Cooperation with
(Robots and
standardization, speed human operators
Vertical
Integration)
Homogeneous digital level of
Data Platforms Data integration in the
maturity of own
(horizontal integration) supply chain
business partners
Decision on the level of
Cybersecurity Business continuity
systems security
Additive Still higher production costs
Customized production
Manufacturing than the standards processes
Spare of prototypes
Simulation Setting the right parameters
and resources
Integration of all
The Cloud Data privacy control
technological devices
Augmented Simulation of
Still implementation costs
Reality dangerous activities
Data interpretation
Big Data Live information availability
and reliability

The economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability have become even

more specifically intertwined thanks to the recent development of sustainable financing. In
May 2021, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published a report that officially stated
the importance of sustainability criteria (Environmental, Social, and Governance—ESG)
at the base of financing. ESG criteria are a new important factor for banks to evaluate a
company’s industrial plans and the riskiness of their activities. Risks drivers are valued
under Environmental (e.g., the production level of gas emissions and protection of bio-
diversity), Social (e.g., personal data security, workplace health and safety, quality, and
innovation in customers’ relations), and Governance (Board of Directors independence,
shareholders rights, integrity in corporate conduct) categories [63]. Another important
driver for sustainable investments is the European Taxonomy Regulation, which came into
force on 12th July 2020. It classifies and assesses company investments based on six main
environmental objectives [64]:
1. Climate change mitigation;
2. Climate change adaptation;
3. Sustainable use and protection of water resources;
4. Circular Economy transition;
5. Pollution prevention;
6. Protection of biodiversity ecosystems.
The main benefits of Industry 4.0 in a sustainability strategy are found to be more
specifically connected to the concept of Circular Economy (CE). In contrast to the traditional
linear economy, CE is based on three fundamental concepts: design out waste (materials
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 6 of 23

are designed to be used again with the lowest energy consumption and highest quality
retention); diverse systems based on renewable resources (resilient systems adapting and
evolving in uncertain conditions); and eco-effectiveness (material flow is cradle-to-cradle,
where resources are reusable and accumulate intelligence over time) [65]. Moreover, CE is
a powerful ally for CO2 emissions reduction and climate change mitigation [66]. Several
quantitative studies and literature reviews have analyzed the connection between differ-
ent Industry 4.0 technologies and Circular Economy effects. IoT and Big Data especially
support the optimization of resource usage and energy consumption and emission and
waste reduction along with production process optimization and enhanced product qual-
ity [67–70]. The Cloud is mainly applied in order to maximize production flexibility and
customization [71].
Other research has focused on the combination of Industry 4.0 and Circular Economy
in order to fulfill Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the 17 goals ratified by the United
Nations focused on the main objectives of people, profit, and planet in order to develop a
fairer more sustainable and carbon neutral world [72]. The benefits of Industry 4.0 technolo-
gies regarding CE (IoT, Big Data, Cloud) can be linked to SDG 7 (affordable and renewable
energy), SDG 8 (resource efficiency through new circular business paradigms), SDG 12
(minimize waste production through redesign, reuse, and recycling), and SDG 13 (climate
mitigation) [73]. However, there is still space to explore the real connections between Indus-
try 4.0 technologies and sustainability strategy in manufacturing industries [74], looking at
the impact of digitization on the triple-bottom-line dimension (environmental, economic,
social) [75].

2.2. Digitization and Sustainable Business Models in the Steel Sector

There is space for deeper research on how Industry 4.0 and digitization can affect the
business model of manufacturing industries and their supply chains [76], especially for
energy-intensive manufacturers [37], and how these technologies can enable sustainability
strategies involving the entire triple-bottom-line approach, focusing particularly on the
environmental dimension [77]. In particular, the steel sector can offer an interesting research
landscape to analyze Industry 4.0 in terms of its opportunities and challenges in the context
of sustainability for energy-intensive industries. European and international regulations
concerning low carbon emissions are putting pressure on steel industries. These industries
are increasingly employing intelligent digital systems in order to fulfill not only strictly
environmental constraints but also to align with the interests of more diverse internal
and external stakeholders such as employees and local communities [78]. Industry 4.0
and digitization have often been viewed as powerful enablers of decarbonization and
environmental sustainability strategy in the steel sector, enhancing innovation and flexibil-
ity [79]. Due to their supply-chain structure and product lifecycle, different projects with
the objective of zero waste impact were being developed even before the boom of Industry
4.0 initiatives [80], taking advantage of the economic and environmental opportunities
offered by conscious sustainability strategies.
Steel is a continuously recyclable material. The recyclability of steel is of strategic
importance for our daily lives, not only from a circularity point of view but also for climate
change mitigation. If we increase current steel recyclability, we could avoid 500 million
tons of additional primary steel production by 2050, sparing 1 billion tons of CO2 emissions
per year [66]. For Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) steel manufacturers, scrap is the fundamental
primary raw material for production, enabling a more eco-friendly manufacturing pro-
cess [36]. With almost 2 billion tons of crude steel production worldwide in 2019, steel is
a recyclable material present in all domains of human life (52% building and infrastruc-
ture, 16% mechanical equipment, 12% automotive, 10% metal products, 5% transportation,
3% electrical equipment, 2% domestic appliances) [81]. Steel companies are challenged
in their business, technology, process, and organization by the decarbonization strategy.
Representing 8% of global carbon dioxide emissions; carbon-friendly steel products will
require more engagement in sustainable trajectories and in digitally driven disruptive
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 7 of 23

technologies [82]. Digitization stays a top priority for steel producers to achieve environ-
mental sustainability, across the complete value chain (from procurement, with automated
contract management; to production, with predictive maintenance; to sales, with facilitated
customer experience) [83]. Sustainability could present steel industries with an opportunity
to guarantee a durable business model, which is now faced cyclically by other important
threats such as the dramatic price fluctuation of transportation and raw materials [84]. A
more efficient production cycle can support low-carbon manufacturing for a material like
steel, whose product lifecycle is much longer than other components. For construction, the
long durability of steel facilitates CO2 emission reduction [85]. Steel supports sustainable
construction models, which can be enabled also by the use of new green materials such as
fine volcanic ashes [86] and nano-silica-modified concrete [87]. A fundamental aspect of
research in the steel sector is to discover how sustainability strategies ignite Industry 4.0
applications and vice versa [34]. In the following section, we will present the methodology
for our research development.

3. Methodology
Since the steel sector is still a broad field for our research questions, we decided to
use qualitative research, particularly, the case of a specific company, in order to gain new
insights about Industry 4.0 benefits and the impact on steel manufacturer business models
and practices in the context of sustainable growth [88]. The selection of the case of the
Feralpi Group is due to many significant reasons: its internationalization, giving insights on
different cultural perspectives [89]; its sustainability engagement on the three dimensions
(economic, environmental, and social) is rooted in its origins (“Produce and growth in re-
spect of human beings and the environment”, the vision of the founder since 1968); and it is
officially externally recognized, with different awards and acknowledgments (Italian Stock
Exchange Oscar 2022 for the voluntary non-financial disclosure and the Financial Times
Climate Leaders recognition for technological innovation and a long history of sustainabil-
ity) [90,91]. It also has an innovative sustainable financing strategy, with the first CE-linked
Interest Rate swap for €40 million investments linked to CE objectives [92]; its 5-year-plan
climate strategy, with €100 million designated to renewable energy production [93]. For the
listed reasons, the Feralpi Group represents a significant case study to be explored with
qualitative analysis [94].
Feralpi Group is an internationalized leader in steel products for the construction
industry and it was the first among competitors to voluntarily publish sustainability reports
since 2004. It is a family company founded in 1968 in Lonato del Garda, and since 1992,
it has been the first steel producer of its province to have a strategic production site
abroad, more precisely, Feralpi Stahl in Riesa, Eastern Germany. It is present in two of
the strategic EU nations for steel production, Italy and Germany. The Group currently
employs more than 1800 employees in six countries, with a steel production of 2.5 million
tons, a turnover of €1.2 billion (63% realized internationally), 2.5 million tons of steel
products, and net assets of €521 million. In 2020, the Feralpi Group invested €56 million
in strategic initiatives, for 20 innovative Research and Development (R&D) projects. In
its next industrial business plan (2021–2026), the Feralpi Group intends to invest €300
million in innovative technologies to foster the ecological and digital transformation of its
international companies, with a particular focus on the German subsidiaries [95].
We employed exploratory semi-structured interviews to give interviewees a certain
degree of freedom to underline possible additional aspects of the topic [96]. External
companies were selected based on their level of maturity and interest in Industry 4.0 and
sustainability initiatives. We pursued nineteen qualitative interviews, during two months
(from 21 March 2021 to 31 May 2021). Interviews were possible both in vis-a-vis and
video call modalities, due to COVID-19 restrictions, and lasted one hour on average. We
interviewed thirteen directors and managers within the Feralpi Group, with three diverse
perspectives to get further insight due to ethnographic diversity [97,98]: Group functions,
Italian parent company leaders, and German subsidiary representatives. Interviewees were
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 8 of 23

key figures of strategic departments dealing with company, sustainability, and Industry 4.0
strategies: the Board, the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) department, the Italian and
German environmental department, the Group Information Technology office, the Group,
the Italian and German technical, production and steel department, the Group financial
and administration office, and the R&D (Research & Development) Italian department.
Moreover, we added two additional interviews with two business partners of the Feralpi
Group, concerning Circular Economy models. They could create a new business model
starting from the disposal of materials from both the product cycle inside Feralpi (the black
slag resulting from the steel melting process) and outside Feralpi (polymers created from
urban waste). The Feralpi Group is a shareholder of the business partner reusing the black
slag. Finally, we interviewed three suppliers and one customer of the Feralpi Group, who
were engaged in sustainability and Industry 4.0 strategies, to counter-check the answers
given by Feralpi managers and add perspective to the topic from a more complete value-
chain point of view [99,100]. In Table 2, we summarize the list of interviews, underlining
their field of action and functional focus, connected to the main themes of the research:
Industry 4.0, Sustainability Strategy, Circular Economy, Digitization, and Innovation.

Table 2. List of all interviewees and roles.

Company Department Functional Focus

Italian Business Partner f
A CE, Innovation
(black slag regeneration) Production
Italian Customer Innovation,
B Board
(Drawing Mill) Sustainability
Italian Supplier Innovation,
C Board
(metal carpentry) Sustainability
Italian Supplier Digitization,
D Board
(Digital Service) Industry 4.0
Italian Business Partner Business Development Innovation, CE,
E
(Polymers) Department Digitization
German Supplier
F Board CE, Digitization
(Disposal Services)
Innovation,
G Feralpi Group Board
Sustainability
Group Technical Innovation,
H Feralpi Group
department Industry 4.0, CE
I Feralpi Group CSR Sustainability, CE
Information Digitization,
J Feralpi Group
Technology Industry 4.0
Innovation,
K Feralpi Group Board Sustainability,
Digitization
Finance and Sustainability, CE
L Feralpi Group
Administration
Environmental
M Feralpi Italy CE, Sustainability
department
Sustainability, CE,
N Feralpi Italy Technical department
Industry 4.0
CE, Sustainability,
O Feralpi Italy Steel plant
Industry 4.0
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 9 of 23

Table 2. Cont.

Company Department Functional Focus

Industry 4.0,
P Feralpi Italy R&D
Innovation
Environmental
Q Feralpi Germany CE, Sustainability
department
Sustainability,
R Feralpi Germany Board
Innovation
S Feralpi Germany Technical department CE, Industry 4.0

We received access to all Feralpi Group sustainability reports, balance sheets, and
environmental certifications both at the Italian and German sites, in order to triangulate
the answers given by the experts [97]. Based on the literature review, we developed a semi-
structured questionnaire with three central parts: the first question obtains exploratory
personal feedback on the definition and meaning of sustainability; the central part is an
in-depth insight into the sustainability strategy of the organization, enabled by Industry
4.0 technologies and with practical implications on the operative business model; the
last question is related to the possible future plan of action concerning sustainable and
digital development, also considering the value chain. For business partners of Feralpi
(including the customer and suppliers), the questionnaire was enriched with two additional
points, in order to have a perception of the sustainability and Industry 4.0 strategy on the
collaborative dimension in the value chain, which can also impact a company business
model [101]. Business partners’ perspectives helped to complete the view on the topic
and reach data saturation. In Appendix A, we provide the two questionnaires more in
detail. Interviews were transcribed and openly coded, with more detailed concepts on the
first level and then with more synthetized themes [102]. Interviews were conducted in the
interviewees’ mother tongues (Italian and German). Professional certified translations of
the interviews from Italian and German into English were carried out. In the following
section, we present the main findings.

4. Main Findings
4.1. Environmental Sustainability as the Key to Successful Business Performance
Interpreting the challenges and benefits of Industry 4.0 related to a sustainability
strategy means first getting insight into the perception of the concept of sustainability in the
steel sector. The majority of respondents agree on the definition of sustainability as durable
industrial activity, implying inclusive growth, encompassing all the triple-bottom-line
dimensions (economic, environmental, social). Sustainability is a change of paradigm,
both for the management and supply-chain partners (“The definition of sustainability
on three dimensions -economical, environmental, social-is overcome: sustainability is
now a company 360-degree strategy.”, Feralpi Group, Interviewee K; “Sustainability is a
change of paradigm: it means an inclusive, participated, equal growth, a durable economic
business activity, which creates value and does not only optimize resources.”, Feralpi
Group, Interviewee I).
However, sustainability in the steel sector has its central core in the Circular Econ-
omy [62] and eco-friendly strategies, enabling the operative business of this sector (“Until
the 90′ s the economic dimension was predominant in our sector. Then important challenges
were faced (such as plants dismantling due to overcapacity) and important restructuring ac-
tions were made concerning environmental sustainability.”, Feralpi Group, Interviewee G).
Results underlined, in particular, how even more a clearer EU taxonomy could help
companies in investing in environmentally sustainable activities, in order to calculate
economic returns and to plan technical changes more precisely. The first delegated act
on sustainable activities for climate change was published in April 2021; the second act
was published on 9 March 2022, including energy and gas activities to accelerate the path
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 10 of 23

toward a carbon-neutral economy [103]. EU Taxonomy was partially criticized since the
scope of action was too narrow and did not consider the carbon footprint of Small and
Medium Enterprises (SME), the heart of the EU economy [62,104].
Sustainability has to be fully integrated into the company business model and create
value for all stakeholders [18], which is confirmed both from the German Feralpi perspec-
tive and in the view of its customer (“Sustainability is a long-time company perspective,
involving all three dimensions (economical, environmental, social).”, Feralpi Germany,
Interviewee R; “Sustainability is now completely incorporated in the company structure.”,
Customer, Interviewee B). In particular, looking at the perspective of production managers,
sustainability “fulfills current generation needs, without compromising future generation
exigencies” (Interviewee O), which is very close to the definition given in the famous
Brundtland report, establishing the roots of the first definition of sustainability [15]. This
is confirmed also by the perspective of environmental managers, underlying how the
slogan of Feralpi’s founder already contained the company’s sustainability strategy since
its origin: “Sustainability is contained in the motto of our founder: produce and growth
with respect for human beings and the environment.” (Interviewee M). These perspectives
highlight how for operative business (production and environmental management) also,
sustainability is a complete paradigm, acting simultaneously on all its dimensions [105].
For Feralpi managers and their business partners, the economic dimension of sustain-
ability cannot exist without the environmental dimension and vice versa. CE practices
are the environmental dimension of sustainability [106] (“First of all, sustainability means
environmental sustainability, by employing all the best available technologies to be eco-
friendly.”, Feralpi Italy, Interviewee O; “Sustainability implies ecological sustainability, it
means applying Circular Economy practices.”, German supplier, Interviewee F). Circular
Economy has become a great vehicle of business opportunity [107] since raw materials are
becoming more and more expensive and scarce, the EU climate-neutral strategy is pushing
the steel sector to find new paths of competitiveness [108] (“Raw materials have become
more and more expensive, more costly. We have to better exploit renewable resources.
Waste can get new life.”—Interviewee N, Feralpi Italy).
As underlined by a digital service business partner of Feralpi, the social dimension
of sustainability also plays a fundamental role in the economic strategy of a company in
this industrial sector, by creating a workplace where employees can be personally and
professionally satisfied (“We are responsible for our employees. We have to listen to the
needs of our people. We have to know their ambitions, their expectations.” (Intervie-
wee D). Sustainable business models definitely create new economic value while facing
environmental and social challenges [109,110].
The overall sustainability strategy of Feralpi has grown with time and encompasses
both environmental and social dimensions (“We started our sustainability journey in 2004.
At that time, we were even criticized, since it was as if we wanted to show off. Actually,
environmental sustainability belongs to our DNA. We only want to be transparent, to show
our culture, values.”, Feralpi Group, Interviewee K). It is deeply rooted in its environmental
commitment and it has constantly grown to permeate all stakeholders’ dimensions. Today,
Feralpi engages in seven specific pillars (SDGs) of the Agenda 2030, which are reconciled
with its current industrial plan for the next five years and cover all three dimensions of
sustainability:
SDG 6: Clean Water and sanitation.
SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy.
SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth.
SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure.
SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production.
SDG 13: Climate Action.
SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals.
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 11 of 23

Feralpi actively participates in the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), an inter-
nationalized network of 18.000 companies from 173 countries with the objective to foster
the achievement of the 17 SDGs, and it is a founding member of the Global Compact Italian
Network [111] (“Our 7 SDGs are oriented to a Circular Economy approach. We want to
multiply the use of our materials, to have less waste and even more regenerated resources.”,
Feralpi Italy, Interviewee M).
Business partners of Feralpi confirm its sustainability strategy, especially concerning
the environmental dimension (“I have observed Feralpi for long. I can see its full engage-
ment in the ecological transition. I have complete esteem for its sustainability initiatives.”,
Italian customer, Interviewee B). The current path of Feralpi, as a family company, involves
structuring itself in its governance like corporations listed on the stock exchange, with
more formal internal procedures and sustainability independent experts, and allowing
members to contribute their expertise to the Board of Directors (“We can take as governance
model also companies outside our sector. Such companies settled an independent expert
for digitization and another for sustainability in the Board, to give constant contribution
in expertise fields.”, Feralpi Group, Interviewee L). Corporate governance, intended as
a structured system of processes, procedures, and responsibilities is a key element for
sustainability, together with transparent non-financial disclosure [112].
The environmental strategy of Feralpi is fully intertwined with the economic per-
spective. Feralpi Group was the first steel company to have signed a positive loan of
€20 million in 2019 to finance sustainability projects, and in 2021, it signed the first Circular-
Economy-linked Interest Rate Swap loan worth €40 million, linked to the fulfillment of
Circular Economy projects [113] (“This Circular loan has a more favorable interest rate
than the first positive loan linked to ESG criteria. Among the KPIs that we monitor are
the reduction of CO2 emissions/produced tons, the increase of scrap suppliers selected
through ESG criteria, the increase in percentage of recovered waste and strengthening
of our compliance model to make our corporate governance more transparent”, Feralpi
Group, Interviewee L). The Feralpi Group is committed to a five-year sustainability Group
strategy, where decarbonization, renewable energy, and CE play a central role. In 2021,
company investments were 96% eligible for the EU taxonomy; indirect CO2 emissions
Scope 2 resulting from electricity were 10.35% less than those in 2019, with an annual goal
of 90,000 t/a CO2 reduction at the full operation of innovative technical investments (such
as an induction electrical furnace for the rolling-mill plant both in Italy and in Germany
instead of the gas consumption); there was an 8% increase compared to 2019 in recovered,
recycled, and reused waste reuse on the total waste generated by steel processing [114].

4.2. Industry 4.0 Concrete Applications: Reconciliation with Sustainability Strategy

Concerning Industry 4.0 technologies, most interviewees confirmed that they are
enablers of sustainable production, with a particular focus on the environmental strat-
egy [115], although they are not exclusive to technologies supporting sustainable growth
(“In sustainability projects, we can identify two types of enabling technologies: digital and
Industry 4.0 technology, and process and technical innovation, which has not only to do
with Industry 4.0.”, Interviewee N, Feralpi Italy). This is an interesting point of view since
environmental sustainability can be achieved through a mix of innovative technologies,
enabled by digitization [116]
In particular, Industry-4.0-relevant technologies for the Feralpi Group are simulations,
IoT, machine learning, and Big Data analysis, which can support environmental strategy
in energy efficiency, monitoring of CO2 emissions, traceability, optimization of resources,
and employment of renewable materials in an optic of Circular Economy. The literature
has already underlined the strict relationship between Industry 4.0, Circular Economy,
and sustainability goals [117]. Thanks to the use of the IoT and Artificial Intelligence, the
production process is more integrated and more monitored [118]. Industry 4.0 is an enabler
of sustainability strategy, especially in the dimension of environmental protection and
reduction of emissions [75]. The Cloud is an important basis for internal collaboration,
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 12 of 23

while for Feralpi Group business partners, it could acquire a pivotal role in integrating
information in the supply chain and then enhancing the economic dimension by making
the supplying process more efficient. The Cloud has also enhanced the social benefits of dig-
itization [119], with the opportunity to utilize working from home, which was a powerful
tool during the lockdown time due to COVID-19. Concerning the social dimension, au-
tonomous and collaborative robots are important enablers of work safety for Feralpi Group
suppliers and customers, while Augmented Reality could become a strategic opportunity
to enhance safety [120], maintenance, and job rotation training, according to managers.
In conclusion, cybersecurity has become an important pillar in the Feralpi strategy in
terms of the implementation of Industry 4.0: secure interconnection can guarantee business
continuity considering the economic and social sustainability dimensions. In this sense,
we can speak in terms of cyber-resilience, creating an organizational and technical system
of processes and procedures, which can maximize downtime reduction and minimize
damages to operations in case of cyberattacks [121]. In Table 3, we present a synthesis of
the main Industry 4.0 technologies chronologically adopted at Feralpi Group, focusing on
their perceived sustainability benefits for managers, considering their impact on the three
dimensions of the triple bottom line.

Table 3. Main Industry 4.0 technologies used at Feralpi Group and related sustainability benefits.

Main Industry 4.0 Technologies Used at Feralpi Group and Related Sustainability Benefits
Type of Technology Triple Bottom
Main Sustainability Benefits
(Date of Adoption) Line Level
More efficient production process,
Economic and
Simulations enhanced product quality, and
Environmental
optimization of resources
Safer and more comfortable
Advanced Robotics Economic and Social
workplace, enhanced productivity
Enhancing collaboration and
facilitating information integration,
exchange and transparency, among
Cloud Economic and Social
departments, subsidiaries, and
potentially with suppliers
and customers
Economic and Monitoring of emissions and
IoT
Environmental energy parameters
Production phases integration and quality
Machine Learning and Economic and
enhancement, energy consumption,
Artificial Intelligence Environmental
resource optimization
Economic and
Big Data Analysis Energy consumption
Environmental
Guarantee of business continuity,
intended in an economic perspective and
Cybersecurity Economic and Social
in protection of the workplace
from cyberattacks

Trying to dig deeper into the different perspectives of the value chain, answers un-
derline how suppliers are more focused on the internal application of IoT and robots,
which have benefits for the standardization of processes and, in particular, in the case
of robots, of increased comfortability at the workplace. Similarly, Big Data Analysis and
Cloud and digital platforms not only enhance internal processes but also to build a bridge
of communication among suppliers, producers, and customers.
Nevertheless, some interviewees (both internally in Feralpi Group and externally in
the supply chain) highlighted the fact that sustainability benefits can be retrieved also with
other types of technologies, which do not exactly belong to the cluster of Industry 4.0 or
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 13 of 23

digital innovation (“We have both Industry 4.0 technologies and other types of innovation,
which can enable sustainability strategies.”, Feralpi Group, Interviewee J; “We do not have
real Industry 4.0 monitoring systems. We are going to first centralize our data with a
structured ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system. We could look in the future to
exchange data with our suppliers and customers.”, Italian customer, regenerating black
slag, Interviewee A, Feralpi Italy).
Looking at the implementation of innovative technology and sustainability projects,
interpersonal networking, people awareness, and openness to change are fundamental
ingredients [122]. In this sense, the social dimension of sustainability becomes an intrinsic
aspect to enable an environmental strategy (“Technologies are important, but people make
the difference. We have to make people network.” Italian Business Partner, Polymers,
Interviewee E).
The main opportunities of Industry 4.0 in sustainability strategy are bound to the eco-
nomic dimension (improved productivity and efficiency, cost and resources optimization),
which is confirmed by the current literature [123], but the creation of new partnerships in
the value chain beyond the traditional consolidated business relationship is perceived as
one of the greatest opportunities and it is an interesting novelty in our findings.
The characteristic of networking seems to unify the concept design of both Industry 4.0
and sustainability, especially concerning the use of innovative regenerated materials. Often
these new networks are generated through interpersonal contacts, arisen by sharing similar
sustainability values and strategies in their respective organizations (“We did not belong
to the supply chain of Feralpi. We were in a completely different sector, that is plastics
recycling. We knew Feralpi through its environmental managing director and then we
started to talk about our collaboration.”, Italian Business Partner, Polymers, Interviewee E).
Feralpi has been experimenting with the use of alternative resources instead of coke
in the steel melting process, in order to reduce CO2 emissions. The encounter with this
supplier not belonging to the habitual supply chain was significant because the supplier had
tried to diffuse the use of polymers instead of coke in some other steel producers, but there
was a general response of skepticism, except for one established internationalized special
steel producer. The experimental approach of the Feralpi management could enable the
creation of a pilot technical process to enhance environmental sustainability by sacrificing
the economic advantage at the beginning (“In Feralpi we found a young team, with a
dynamic approach for experimentation. We were new to the process of the electric arc
furnace. We started from scratch . . . At the beginning, the model was neither economical
nor successful.”, Italian Business Partner, Polymers, Interviewee E).
The basic ingredient of sustainable projects seems to be an open and experimental
attitude, where technologies are also not considered certain drivers for success (“Sustain-
ability projects do not at all give any guaranteed results at the beginning. They imply
experimentation. . . Also some technologies are completely new and still not tested. . . You
have to have a medium, long-term perspective, very different from the perspective of the
linear economy.”, Feralpi Italy, Interviewee N). Engwall et al. (2021) talk about an “experi-
mental network”, intended to be “a group of organizations collaborating in a time-limited,
cross-industry network to explore potential business models for an anticipated, profound
change in sociotechnical systems” [124] (p. 2). Actually, what could be observed in the case
of the Feralpi Group is that those new experimental networks start to create a prototype,
then they last over the period of experimentation and they continue, contributing to a more
traditional framework of projects (“The polymer supplier involved us in another interesting
project: thanks to DI.MA Interti (our participated company for the application of black
slag in the concrete industry), we will deliver our Qubeco blocks for the new production
site they are building. Moreover, we are talking about delivering together regenerated
material to an important Italian market player for concrete mixture and paving.”, Feralpi
Italy, Interviewee M).
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 14 of 23

As strongly underlined by Da Giau et al. (2020), a sustainability strategy should be a

gatekeeper for manufacturers to find opportunities and support the creation of strategic
alliances to capture change in the business context [125].
As highlighted by Feralpi business partners, the sustainability strategy enabled by
Industry 4.0 technologies can integrate a company into a broader network, reaching even
its own competitors [126]. In this sense, the social dimension of sustainability is reached
on the highest level of its fulfillment, as also represented in SDG 17—partnerships for the
achievement of the goal. An interesting example of partnership, looking at our case study,
is the creation of “Management 4 Steel” in 2019, an academy for the steel sector, which was
initiated by four Italian regional steel producers. Four competitors decided to collaborate
and network in the domain of advanced education (“We want to see what others are doing.
All of us—although competitors—need competent young people and need to create and
maintain competences in our sector.”, Feralpi Group, Interviewee K).
In the paradigm of Industry 4.0 and sustainability, benefits and opportunities can, at
the same time, be challenges. The management and employees represent a key turning
point in the implementation of digital innovative technologies and sustainable business
models [127]. Industry 4.0 can become a set of unrelated unsuccessful technological invest-
ment decisions bringing confusion and inefficiency if it is not coherently integrated into the
long-term company economic and environmental strategy. If sustainable business projects
have an experimental character, they can end in useless and ineffective results if they are only
driven by technological choices and not by concrete needs. People are the key to successful
sustainable innovative patterns (“We need motivated, dynamic people. . . We want to become
the Ferrari of the steel sector.”, Feralpi Group, Interviewee K; “I would need more internal
people with interdisciplinary competences in Industry 4.0 and sustainability, like you, rather
than consultants who one day will go to other customers. We need a spark. Time. An
occasion to sit together at a table.”, Customer, Feralpi Group, Interviewee B).
For Feralpi managers and business partners, the main challenges consist not only of
the technical implementation and integration of Industry 4.0 in the plant or in the intensive
financial capital needed to turn prototyping projects into successful business cases, but also
of the cultural and organizational shift accompanying the digital transformation and the
time and human resources to be rightly allocated for the innovation process [54]. The need
for new multidisciplinary, hybrid technical and soft-skill competencies is confirmed by the
existing research [53], as both an opportunity and challenge in terms of the fulfillment of
sustainability strategy in digital transformation contexts [128] (“Sustainability is a great
opportunity to make our management grow, to uplift their competences and capabilities.”,
Feralpi Group, Interviewee K). Industry 4.0, together with sustainability, requires a new
managerial leadership profile, where decisions are decentralized in small teams, rather
than a central authority [129].
Sustainability and Industry 4.0 practices enhance another aspect of maturity for the
management: the introduction of more structured governance in order to monitor and
control procedures and investments decisions [130] (“Sustainable strategies imply that we
structure ourselves with a more defined, transparent governance, like other corporations.”,
Feralpi Group, Interviewee L).

4.3. Sustainable Business Models through Supply Chain Integration: The Role of Industry 4.0
Industry 4.0 and sustainability practices are modifying the business model of the
steel industry. According to German Feralpi managers, some disruptive business patterns
will change the commercial business model of steel producers, especially for commodities
manufacturers like Feralpi Group. In this case, with the use of digital platforms and e-
commerce, the central figure of traders will be doomed to vanish with time since final
customers will be able to directly reach original producers, enhancing the control of the
quality of material and taking advantage of a shorter value chain (“The e-commerce will
come also for our sector, as already happened in the automotive industry and in the B2C—
Business To Consumer sector. It is not something new. It was already introduced in the
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 15 of 23

past (“Steel 24/7”), but it didn’t work. One day, when it will work for us, too, it will be
disruptive.” Feralpi Germany, Interviewee R). Industry 4.0 can maximize a company’s
financial performance, by improving both the internal business process performance (IBPP)
and the whole supply chain performance [131].
In Figure 1, we summarize the business relationships in the steel commodity sector.

Figure 1. Commercial distribution cycle for commodity steel producers.

Concerning the Business Unit of Specialties of Feralpi Group, digital platforms will
foster data exchange between suppliers and customers, with improved transparency and
product quality. Actually, future projects, which will eventually exploit NGEU funds,
arenot only focused on the implementation of digital and innovative technologies in the
organization but also on becoming a facilitator integrating and consolidating information
into their supply chain and beyond [76]. However, the lack of reciprocal trust in the use
of data and the lack of maturity in cybersecurity protection systems in the supply chain
hinder the initialization of such projects (“Data exchange in the supply-chain is important
both in the sector of commodities and special steels. As producers, we could give an
additional service to our customers, compared to our competitors. However, there is often a
speculative environment. Transparency could also mean being exploited by your business
partner. Moreover, data are sensible for us. Cybersecurity is still an open topic.”, Feralpi
Group, Interviewee G).
Industry 4.0 and sustainability strategy are opening steel industries to new possible
business model paradigms, where producers can also come closer to the end customers and
where byproducts can become an employable resource both in their own production cycle
and in other sectors [132]. However, some interviewees’ opinions underline how Industry
4.0 and sustainability are improving the profitability, performance, and environmental
impact of steel manufacturers. However, radical business models transformation is not
really being observed since the steel production process and market constraints are external
factors to be coped with in the best way possible (“Processes will be more and more
efficient. Yield will improve. We will optimize our emissions impact more and more.
But steel will always be melted at 1.560 degrees.”, Feralpi Germany, Interviewee Q; “We
improve our costs, our profitability, we can reach new markets, but basically our business
model remains the same.”, Feralpi Italy, Interviewee N; “We will further make steel.”,
Feralpi Italy, Interviewee O).

4.4. Final Discussion: Industry 4.0 Benefits and Sustainability Strategy

This research contributes to the current literature studying the impact of Industry
4.0, as related opportunities and challenges in the context of sustainability strategy for
manufacturing industries, especially considering the realm of energy-intensive producers,
and how some of these technologies are related to the economic, environmental, and
social domain of sustainability. The novelty of our study is to investigate these aspects,
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 16 of 23

especially, from a managerial point of view in a sector fundamental to the EU economy, i.e.,
steel manufacturers. Steel industries could be dramatically affected by the sustainability
paradigm pushed by the EU if they have yet to start investing in innovative technologies
and business partner networks, in order to fulfill demanding environmental goals. We saw
how different Industry 4.0 technologies (i.e., simulations, robotics, IoT, Cloud, Big Data
Analysis) can enhance sustainability strategies on different dimensions and with different
benefits:
- Environmental: more efficient production process and use of resources, enhancing CE,
energy efficiency, and CO2 emissions reduction practices;
- Social: safer working conditions and higher data transparency and exchange in and
outside the organization;
- Economic: enhanced efficacy in technical and organizational processes, including the
employment of more affordable regenerated raw materials.
Industry 4.0 can become a successful enabler of a long-term sustainability strategy,
which is intertwined with the development of Circular Economy patterns [133,134]. The
transformation of costly disposal materials into valuable byproducts is a paradigm of how
a new business model can be created thanks to the contribution of new business partners
of different sectors and expertise. This can build the basis for open innovation contexts,
where managers of manufacturing industries do not fear the collaboration of unexpected
stakeholders, even competitors [135], and take sustainability and Industry 4.0 contexts as
an opportunity to develop new managerial capabilities.
In this sense, company capabilities in the context of sustainability, with particular
attention to the environmental dimension, become a key competitive advantage [136]. It
lies in the dynamic capabilities of organizations to seize the opportunity of technologically
sustainable projects. It is fundamental for energy-intensive industries to create internal
routines that uniform the capabilities of managers to guide sustainability strategy and
Industry 4.0 projects successfully, to sense and seize market opportunities, and to manage
the correlated risks [137].
This paper contributes also to the current literature on sustainable business models,
which is a broad field for incremental and disruptive innovation since the organizational
and technological path to sustainability for energy-intensive industries is still an experi-
mentation field. Sustainability can bring companies new opportunities for value creation
(new values for existing stakeholders or new stakeholders), but if companies do not focus
on the right strategy, the existing value can also be destroyed [138].
With Industry 4.0, steel producers come closer to their customers, and their suppliers
want to support them in their digital transformation in the context of sustainable growth.
We also saw how, in the case of commodity producers, Industry 4.0 can enhance customer
centrality. The new value proposition of sustainability to have inclusive growth in all three
dimensions (economical, environmental, social) is also becoming important for customers
in energy-intensive sectors because current norms are pushing them to find alternative
material sources in their production model.
Thanks to the analysis of a company case in a special context put under pressure
by strong competition forces and high environmental constraints, this paper can offer
managers some insights into a successful model for sustainability strategy with the fol-
lowing key aspects: conscientious use of some Industry 4.0 technologies, openness to new
partner networks in the supply chain, trial and error approach in experimental projects,
and enhancing interdisciplinary competences of employees.
The experimental character of sustainable paths is a fundamental element to develop
a successful approach of management to business transformation and business model
innovation [139]. However, this represents a consistent challenge for the management
since this implies investments with new technologies, intensive financial capital, and no
guarantee of success, especially in the short-term perspective.
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 17 of 23

This gives further concrete insight into the complex process of business model inno-
vation and its key success factors and its challenges [140], which are mostly related to the
competencies of the own management and employees.

5. Conclusions
The sustainability paradigm pushed by the EU should not fear European manufactur-
ers, including those that are in an energy-intensive sector, such as steel industries.
Industry 4.0 can give energy-intensive manufacturers the opportunity to embrace long-
term economic, environmental, and social sustainable growth, strengthening the competitive
advantage in the current market, by creating diverse business partnerships and collaborations
to reach new markets. Further research should explore the nature of these collaborations in a
deeper way and look for some elements acting as facilitators, such as geographical nearness
or shared specific knowledge.
Sustainability and digital innovation would not only lead to consolidation of the com-
petitive advantage of those industries but they could change their business model radically
in a positive way if they are open to embracing organizational and technological change,
facing entrepreneurial courageous decisions, and finding new paradigms for technological
experimental applications. In this context, there is an open domain of research, since it
is still difficult to capture the evident effects of technological impact on the sustainability
strategy of manufacturing industries [133]. It is still being debated how companies can
build an assessment model with a set of precise indicators [134] in order to capture the
benefits of sustainability strategy on the three dimensions (economical, environmental,
social) for their business model. Economic KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are often
used to measure sustainability performance, although they are not sufficient. Our research
has the limitation of not deepening the analysis with quantitative data and indicators
associated with Industry 4.0 technology application in a sustainability strategy. Further
research should focus on the measurability of such advantages and the exploration of suc-
cess factors of sustainable business models and supply chain integration. We acknowledge
that our results are at the beginning of understanding the paradigms of Industry 4.0 and
sustainability for energy-intensive manufacturers, but we believe that a further deepening
analysis of such industries, not only in the environmental but also in the social-economic
dimension of the triple bottom line, could provide the impulse for other sectors to build a
successful path of digital and sustainable growth.

Author Contributions: All authors have contributed to all phases of the manuscript. All authors
have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: This research received no external funding.
Data Availability Statement: Not applicable.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Appendix A
APPENDIX 1: Questionnaire for Feralpi manager
APPENDIX 2: Questionnaire for business partners
APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE TO ITALIAN AND GERMAN FERALPI MANAGERS
(1) What does the term “sustainability” mean for you and which role does it play in your
company?
(2) What are, in your opinion, the essential objectives of your company, considered the
economic, environmental and social sustainability dimension? Which is the most
relevant dimension?
(3) Which Industry 4.0 technology does enable sustainability objectives? What are the
challenges and opportunities? Are opportunities measurable?
Recycling 2023, 8, 55 18 of 23

As a reminder, Industry 4.0 technologies are: —collaborative and autonomous robotics;

simulations; vertical integration (e.g., in the production, advanced integrated automation,
machine learning, artificial intelligence); horizontal integration (e.g., in the supply chain,
blockchain protocols and/or digital platforms to share data); IoT; cybersecurity; cloud;
additive manufacturing; virtual and augmented reality; big data analysis.
(4) How has the sustainability strategy modified or will modify the business model of
your company?
(5) How will the sustainability and Industry 4.0 strategy develop in your company in
the next future? Do you already have related strategic projects and do you think you
should apply for NGEU funds (as a reminder Next Generation EU funds represent
almost €2 billion for EU members in order to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic
crisis)?
APPENDIX 2: QUESTIONNAIRE TO ITALIAN AND GERMAN FERALPI BUSINESS
PARTNERS
(1) What does the term “sustainability” mean for you and which role does it play in your
company?
(2) What are, in your opinion, the essential objectives of your company, considered the
economic, environmental and social sustainability dimension? Which is the most
relevant dimension?
(3) Which Industry 4.0 technology does enable sustainability objectives? What are the
challenges and opportunities? Are opportunities measurable?
As a reminder, Industry 4.0 technologies are:—collaborative and autonomous robotics;
simulations; vertical integration (e.g., in the production, advanced integrated automation,
machine learning, artificial intelligence); horizontal integration (e.g., in the supply chain,
blockchain protocols and/or digital platforms to share data); IoT; cybersecurity; cloud;
additive manufacturing; virtual and augmented reality; big data analysis.
(4) How has the sustainability strategy modified or will modify the business model of
your company?
(5) How will the sustainability and Industry 4.0 strategy develop in your company in the
next future?
(6) Do you already have related strategic projects and do you think you should apply for
NGEU funds (as a reminder Next Generation EU funds represent almost 2€ billion for
EU members in order to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic crisis)?
(7) Which projects realized with Feralpi could enable the sustainability objectives of your
company? Could be they achieved thanks to Industry 4.0 technologies?
(8) Which kind of projects have you in plan with Feralpi for the future concerning sus-
tainable and digital development? Do you think you should apply for NGEU funds?

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