IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsoctx/v15y2025i4p88-d1623802.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Industrial Revolutions and Automation: Tracing Economic and Social Transformations of Manufacturing

Author

Listed:
  • Bence Márk Szeszák

    (Innovation Management Doctoral School, Obuda University, H-1034 Budapest, Hungary
    Emerson Automation FCP Kft, H-3300 Eger, Hungary)

  • István Gergely Kerékjártó

    (Emerson Automation FCP Kft, H-3300 Eger, Hungary)

  • László Soltész

    (Thermo Fisher Scientific, H-1137 Budapest, Hungary)

  • Péter Galambos

    (Innovation Management Doctoral School, Obuda University, H-1034 Budapest, Hungary)

Abstract

The rapid evolution of automation has become a defining phenomenon of the modern era, underscoring its great influence on industries and economies. Since the First Industrial Revolution, advancements in technology have consistently transformed manufacturing processes, progressively introducing mechanization, electrification, and digitalization. The current Fifth Industrial Revolution incorporates these changes through the integration of robotics, cobots (collaborative robots), and AI-driven (Artificial Intelligence) systems, representing unprecedented levels of human–machine collaboration. This paper examines the historical evolution of automation and industrial robotics and, based on the current state of the art, highlights the current standing of its economic and societal impacts. The adoption of automation and robotization in the supply chain and manufacturing has significantly enhanced productivity and precision, reducing errors and operational costs. However, it has also contributed to job displacement, especially in repetitive and manual tasks, necessitating the reskilling of the human workforce. Automation brings two main financial effects: it reduces long-term labor costs and boosts efficiency, but the upfront investments in advanced robotics and infrastructure are significant. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for navigating the challenges and opportunities presented by automation, which ensures a balanced approach to economic growth, workforce development, and technological adoption across all sectors influenced by successive industrial revolutions.

Suggested Citation

  • Bence Márk Szeszák & István Gergely Kerékjártó & László Soltész & Péter Galambos, 2025. "Industrial Revolutions and Automation: Tracing Economic and Social Transformations of Manufacturing," Societies, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-31, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsoctx:v:15:y:2025:i:4:p:88-:d:1623802
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/15/4/88/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/15/4/88/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Melanie Arntz & Terry Gregory & Ulrich Zierahn, 2016. "The Risk of Automation for Jobs in OECD Countries: A Comparative Analysis," OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers 189, OECD Publishing.
    2. Rushan Ziatdinov & Madhu Sudhan Atteraya & Rifkat Nabiyev, 2024. "The Fifth Industrial Revolution as a Transformative Step towards Society 5.0," Societies, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-15, February.
    3. Lawrence F. Katz & Robert A. Margo, 2014. "Technical Change and the Relative Demand for Skilled Labor: The United States in Historical Perspective," NBER Chapters, in: Human Capital in History: The American Record, pages 15-57, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Daron Acemoglu & Pascual Restrepo, 2018. "The Race between Man and Machine: Implications of Technology for Growth, Factor Shares, and Employment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(6), pages 1488-1542, June.
    5. Wim Lambrechts & Jessica S. Klaver & Lennart Koudijzer & Janjaap Semeijn, 2021. "Human Factors Influencing the Implementation of Cobots in High Volume Distribution Centres," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 5(2), pages 1-24, May.
    6. Ben Vermeulen & Jan Kesselhut & Andreas Pyka & Pier Paolo Saviotti, 2018. "The Impact of Automation on Employment: Just the Usual Structural Change?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-27, May.
    7. Dmitry Ivanov, 2023. "The Industry 5.0 framework: viability-based integration of the resilience, sustainability, and human-centricity perspectives," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 61(5), pages 1683-1695, March.
    8. Zeki Murat Çınar & Abubakar Abdussalam Nuhu & Qasim Zeeshan & Orhan Korhan & Mohammed Asmael & Babak Safaei, 2020. "Machine Learning in Predictive Maintenance towards Sustainable Smart Manufacturing in Industry 4.0," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-42, October.
    9. Kai-Chao Yao & Dyi-Cheng Chen & Chih-Hsuan Pan & Cheng-Lung Lin, 2024. "The Development Trends of Computer Numerical Control (CNC) Machine Tool Technology," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-33, June.
    10. David F. Noble, 1978. "Social Choice in Machine Design: The Case of Automatically Controlled Machine Tools, and a Challenge for Labor," Politics & Society, , vol. 8(3-4), pages 313-347, September.
    11. Hobijn, Bart & Kaplan, Robert S., 2024. "Occupational switching during the second industrial revolution," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 238(C).
    12. Muhammad Bilawal Khaskheli & Yongchen Zhao, 2025. "The Sustainability of Economic and Business Practices Through Legal Cooperation in the Era of the Hainan Free Trade Port and Southeast Asian Nations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(5), pages 1-26, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Azio Barani, 2021. "Innovazione tecnologica e lavoro: automazione, occupazione e impatti socio-economici," QUADERNI DI ECONOMIA DEL LAVORO, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 0(114), pages 51-79.
    2. Dosi, G. & Pereira, M.C. & Roventini, A. & Virgillito, M.E., 2022. "Technological paradigms, labour creation and destruction in a multi-sector agent-based model," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(10).
    3. Kinga Hat & Gernot Stoeglehner, 2020. "Spatial Dimension of the Employment Market Exposition to Digitalisation—The Case of Austria," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-29, March.
    4. Aikaterini Manthiou & Phil Klaus & Volker G. Kuppelwieser & William Reeves, 2021. "Man vs machine: examining the three themes of service robotics in tourism and hospitality," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 31(3), pages 511-527, September.
    5. David Kunst, 2019. "Deskilling among Manufacturing Production Workers," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 19-050/VI, Tinbergen Institute, revised 30 Dec 2020.
    6. Montobbio, Fabio & Staccioli, Jacopo & Virgillito, Maria Enrica & Vivarelli, Marco, 2022. "Robots and the origin of their labour-saving impact," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    7. Songul Tolan & Annarosa Pesole & Fernando Martinez-Plumed & Enrique Fernandez-Macias & José Hernandez-Orallo & Emilia Gomez, 2020. "Measuring the Occupational Impact of AI: Tasks, Cognitive Abilities and AI Benchmarks," JRC Working Papers on Labour, Education and Technology 2020-02, Joint Research Centre.
    8. Damioli, G. & Van Roy, V. & Vertesy, D. & Vivarelli, M., 2021. "May AI revolution be labour-friendly? Some micro evidence from the supply side," GLO Discussion Paper Series 823, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    9. Stehrer, Robert, 2024. "The impact of ICT and intangible capital accumulation on employment growth and labour income shares," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 211-220.
    10. Andrea Gentili & Fabiano Compagnucci & Mauro Gallegati & Enzo Valentini, 2020. "Are machines stealing our jobs?," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 13(1), pages 153-173.
    11. Massimiliano Nuccio & Marco Guerzoni & Riccardo Cappelli & Aldo Geuna, 2020. "Industrial pattern and robot adoption in European regions," Working Papers 03, Venice School of Management - Department of Management, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.
    12. Hong Cheng & Lukasz A. Drozd & Rahul Giri & Mathieu Taschereau-Dumouchel & Junjie Xia, 2021. "The Future of Labor: Automation and the Labor Share in the Second Machine Age," Working Papers 20-11, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
    13. Arntz, Melanie & Gregory, Terry & Zierahn-Weilage, Ulrich, 2019. "Digitalization and the Future of Work: Macroeconomic Consequences," IZA Discussion Papers 12428, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Dou, Bin & Guo, SongLin & Chang, XiaoChen & Wang, Yong, 2023. "Corporate digital transformation and labor structure upgrading," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    15. Fierro, Luca Eduardo & Caiani, Alessandro & Russo, Alberto, 2022. "Automation, Job Polarisation, and Structural Change," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 499-535.
    16. Zhang, Xinchun & Sun, Murong & Liu, Jianxu & Xu, Aijia, 2024. "The nexus between industrial robot and employment in China: The effects of technology substitution and technology creation," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    17. Davide Dottori, 2021. "Robots and employment: evidence from Italy," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 38(2), pages 739-795, July.
    18. Gorny, Paul M. & Woodard, Ritchie C., 2020. "Don't Fear the Robots: Automatability and Job Satisfaction," MPRA Paper 103424, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. A.V. Popov & T.S. Soloveva, 2021. "The Present and Future of the Employment Paradigm in the Context of Global Changes," Journal of Applied Economic Research, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, vol. 20(2), pages 327-355.
    20. Stähler, Nikolai, 2021. "The Impact of Aging and Automation on the Macroeconomy and Inequality," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsoctx:v:15:y:2025:i:4:p:88-:d:1623802. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.