Czech Republic: Prumysl 4.0

Průmysl 4.0 (Industry 4.0) is a national initiative aiming to maintain and enhance the competitiveness of the Czech Republic in the wake of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The concept was firstly presented during the 57th International Engineering Fair in Brno, September 2015 and approved by the Government of the Czech Republic in August 2016. The Ministry of Industry and Trade plays a key role in the implementation process, however, there is a strong interdisciplinary cooperation between the ministries, social and industrial partners and academia.

The goal is to prepare not only industry but the whole society for the economic and societal changes related to the fourth industrial revolution. P40 has a wide focus on the creation of business and the social environment, in which the Czech economy can reach its full potential. At the same, the initiative aims to mobilise the private sector, R&D and industry associations, and academia to actively participate in the implementation process.

Until today there is no time frame for P40’s implementation, yet the Czech authorities are currently creating a consistent framework enabling all the parties involved to adapt to new market conditions. Since no extra budget has been earmarked for P40, the Government is planning to use already existing financial tools, e.g. operational programmes.