DRAFT

and for the ergonomic improvement of assembly line jobs than the more highly publicized
google glass or similar applications of visual augmented reality.
Previous experiences with automation and the current state of research briefly reviewed above
justifies a radical shift of perspective. Within the context of Industry 4.0, automation is simply not
the most relevant question. Successful implementation will instead depend more decisively on
being able to generate and use experienced-based knowledge, which is going to be indispensable
for the organization of Industry 4.0 and for its smooth operation. Table 1 in the appendix
gives an overview of what lies ahead: experienced-based knowledge will be relevant in all three
dimensions of Industry 4.0 in terms of its initiation and organization. Increased complexity,
which continues to require (in part, now more than ever) subjectifying action for dealing with unpredictability,
is, in our opinion, most likely at the levels of nextGenProduction and data@IN-
DUSTRY.
4. From routine to experience: the Labouring Capacity
Index
In the previous sections we made the argument, first of all, that current constructions of taskbased
indices do not capture experience in all its dimensions because they work on the basis of
a routine/non-routine dichotomy. Second, we argued that experience will play a major role in the
lead-up to Industry 4.0 scenarios. Together, they make up our case for using a resource-oriented
understanding of experience in order to correct the deficits in the current understanding of
‘routine’ job tasks and their automation. From this new perspective, we revisit the 2012 BIBB/
BAuA Survey. Its items allow only a very crude modelling of the uniquely and genuinely human
abilities linked to the more dynamic aspects of experience, in part because these defy full formalization
and standardization. Nevertheless, some survey items are congruent with issues
treated in the qualitative research and thus, in our opinion, have a solid empirical basis. These
could be developed into a valuable augmentation of expert-based approaches to technical feasibility
issues. The essential principles for the understanding of experience from the perspective
of current research on subjectifying work action and labouring capacity lead to the following
guidelines for utilizing activity-based, large-N data:
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