Strategic Issues of the Current Context of Smart Cities and the Industry 4.0. Case Study: Trends on the Romanian Market

The industry 4.0 has become one of the main strategic issues globally in terms of automation and interconnectivity of several sectors, being considered the fourth industrial revolution. Industry 4.0 factors, such as cloud computing, internet of things as smart metering or smart traffic lights, but also cyber physical systems have emerged in different regions of the world sustaining more efficient business, infrastructure, city and cost management, but also interconnected systems to make decentralized decisions regarding these matters. Such elements support numerous parties involved, including users, companies, institutions and municipalities, in managing waste reduction, more effective cost, energy consumption and information transparency, leading to a dynamic environment of adaptation to contextual and environmental situations, that otherwise could be difficult to manage. While there is a trend of automating and interconnecting systems in all sectors of activities, there are still challenges and limitations in regard to the implementation of these industry 4.0 factors, especially in terms of smart cities. Through the Delphi method based on interviews and questionnaires we inquired the implementation degree, needs and costs of some of the most important Smart City and Industry 4.0 tools in the Romanian market, as well as expected trends for the coming years. While there is still a significant gap between the needs of the population, infrastructure and city and the current implementation level of these tools, significant progress has been made though. The relevance of the study lies in the novelty of the practical approach for the Romanian market referring to the industry 4.0 and smart city tools, that have not been inquired previously.