Digital Distilleries: Navigating Industry 4.0 Trends in Sri Lanka’s Beverage Industry

Industry 4.0 is a rapidly evolving paradigm allowing industries to explore digital transformation opportunities to provide services and products to both existing and new markets at competitive prices. Developed nations have largely capitalized on Industry 4.0, creating fresh market opportunities by embedding advanced technologies in industrial processes. This research assesses the readiness for implementing Industry 4.0 in Sri Lanka’s beverage sector through primary data. Using focus group interviews with managerial-level employees in large-scale beverage firms, this study identifies technical, operational, and market/environmental factors as key influences in adopting Industry 4.0 in this sector. The findings contribute actionable insights into strategic pathways for digital transformation. Keywords: Beverage Industry, Digitization, Industry 4.0, Manufacturing Industry, Technology