Design strengthens industrial competitiveness – human-centered factory work at the core

The Fifth Industrial Revolution places human-centricity at the core of industrial competitiveness. While the Fourth Industrial Revolution introduced new technologies into factory environments—such as artificial intelligence, robotics, augmented reality, and digital twins—Industry 5.0 reminds us that companies cannot successfully adopt new technologies unless they are designed around the human-centered needs of work. Factories require tailored solutions, innovation, and therefore an increasingly skilled workforce.

In the HiFive project (Meaningful industrial work in hybrid human–technology–AI teams), future industrial work environments are designed in which people, technology, and AI operate together in hybrid teams.

“Through design, we can develop future work where technology supports people. This is not just about adopting new technologies, but about renewing work so that it is meaningful, sustainable, and attractive to new generations as well,” says Martina Čaić, Assistant Professor of Strategic Service Design at Aalto University.

The aim of the research is to identify innovative ways of working and business models that respond to the requirements of future work and strengthen industrial competitiveness.

HiFive is part of Konecranes’ Zero4 initiative, which belongs to Business Finland’s Veturi (Leading Company) program. Partners in the HiFive project include VTT, Aalto University, the University of Jyväskylä, Konecranes, AINS Group, Elomatic, ProVerse, and Tasowheel.

Konecranes, one of the world’s leaders in material handling solutions, serves its customers’ material handling needs with a broad range of products and services. Technologies are developing and digitalizing at a rapid pace.

“HiFive is a key part of our Zero4 leading-company initiative, as it brings a human-centered perspective to the whole. Collaboration with Aalto’s designers is an important asset for us, as it strengthens our internal design activities and opens a connection to international design research,” says Johannes Tarkiainen, Industrial Design Manager at Konecranes.

Martina Čaić emphasizes the role of Business Finland projects as bridges between research and industry.

“In these projects, we address companies’ everyday challenges. At the same time, we bring design expertise and new perspectives especially to companies that do not yet have in-house design capabilities,” she notes.

Factory workers are proud of their expertise

Within the HiFive project, Aalto is responsible for a work package in which researchers went into factories and, through interviews and observations, collected an extensive and unique research dataset.

“Konecranes enabled us to access the premises of nine of its customer companies. We interviewed 31 factory workers and discussed their daily work, expectations, and what makes their work meaningful,” says Juho Silmukari, a doctoral researcher at Aalto and a service designer at Konecranes.

The interviews showed that the meaningfulness of work is built above all on a strong culture of expertise, in which employees feel pride in their professional skills. New technologies such as automation and AI are viewed mostly positively, and technology is seen as an opportunity to make work smoother and more effective.

“It is often assumed that technology replaces physically demanding work phases. However, the interviews show that factory workers value the physicality of work, hands-on making, and the visible imprint of their craftsmanship on products. This is something they do not want to give up,” Čaić notes.

“The interviews revealed a clear divide between which work phases people want to transfer to technology and which they want to keep with humans. This makes the renewal of factory work demanding, as the design and planning of work require careful consideration,” Silmukari explains.

AI as a work partner – and even a coach?

Artificial intelligence can have many different roles in work environments. Today it most often functions as an assistant, but in the future its role may expand.

“At the next level, AI could be developed into a team member that makes decisions together with people. At the highest level, AI could even act as a coach, supporting factory workers’ development and flourishing at work,” says Anna Viljakainen, a postdoctoral researcher at Aalto.

This is a completely new research area that, in the long term, opens up new perspectives on work and how it is organized.

As a doctoral researcher in a company’s design team

Juho Silmukari has worked for a long time in Konecranes’ Industrial Design team and is now conducting his doctoral research alongside his work within the HiFive project.

“HiFive provides an excellent starting point and strong resources for research. The project got off to a fast start, and I was able to begin interviews just a few months after starting my doctoral studies. A clearly defined research topic supports smooth progress in the studies,” Silmukari says.

His dual role as a company employee and a doctoral student at Aalto has deepened his understanding of combining academic research with industrial practice.

“It’s great to work with Aalto’s top researchers. I can bring good research practices to Konecranes while also translating academic thinking into concrete practice,” Silmukari says.

According to Assistant Professor Čaić, the dual role is also a significant strength.

“It brings a genuine connection to everyday industrial practice into the research and enables the long-term integration of theory and practice. It is important that doctoral education also enables this kind of close industry collaboration,” Čaić concludes.

Text: Marjukka Puolakka