Assessing industry 4.0 readiness and maturity in the dairy sector: a case study in Sardinia

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the dairy sector are under increasing pressure to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies to enhance competitiveness, operational excellence, and sustainability. The research presents a digital maturity model tailored to the dairy supply chain, encompassing both structural and operational levels. The model was derived from the DREAMY framework and adapted for application to the dairy industry, demonstrating its feasibility. Through extensive literature review and qualitative interviews with industry specialists and academics, this study examines digital readiness across four principal dimensions: monitoring and control, process execution, organization, and technology infrastructure. It has functional sectors, including production, logistics, energy management, maintenance, warehousing, and sustainability. Validating the model through implementation in two Sardinian-based dairy companies substantiated its suitability, versatility, and efficacy in measuring digital maturity and highlighted actionable pathways for improvement. The outcomes reveal industry-specific actions to connect generic maturity models with the real-world practicalities of agrifood SMEs. The previously developed maturity models have remained generic, rather than being specific to dairy SMEs. The present study makes an original contribution by using the DREAMY framework specifically and implementing it with two case studies related to the dairy sector. The model provides managers with concrete guidelines for prioritizing digitalization activities, structuring investments, and synchronizing technology implementation with available resources. By targeting dairy SMEs, the research provides a systematic, adaptable framework that facilitates digital transformation in traditional agrifood sectors and contributes to expanding maturity model theory into underrepresented sectors.