International Scientific Journals
of Scientific Technical Union of Mechanical Engineering "Industry 4.0"

This publication analyzes the opportunities, problems and challenges associated with the implementation of Industry 4.0 in Bulgarian industrial enterprises in condition of a dynamic changing competitive environment and extending digitalization. An analysis is made on the base of the four fundamental principles that are used for application of solutions related to the implementation of Industry 4.0 and that influence on the organizational activities in all functional areas in the industrial enterprise. Various industrial sectors are analyzed to identify the trends, problems and challenges of the introduction of Industry 4.0 in manufacturing activities. Opportunities for improving their competitiveness are identified by means of using the principles and advantages of the modern digitalization. Up-to-date statistics and various methods for analyzing of the existing information are used. The specifics of development of the leading sectors in Bulgarian economy  are identified. The results show that there is a growing number of Bulgarian industrial enterprises focused on deploying Industry 4.0 to reach new higher levels of productivity, quality and efficiency. This is a new approach in seeking favorable opportunities for their further sustainable development and competitiveness. Some fundamental problems, challenges and barriers in industrial enterprises, in the process of introduction of digitalization in the industry are discussed, which hinder the fast pace of their development. As a result of this analysis are presented some appropriate solutions.