Sustainable development and the circular economy are two important issues for the future and the competitiveness of businesses. The programs for the integration of sustainability into industrial activities include the reconfiguration of production processes with a view to reducing their impact on the natural system, the development of new eco-sustainable products and the redesign of the business model. This paradigm shift requires the participation and commitment of different stakeholder groups and industry can completely redesign supply chains, aiming at resource efficiency and circularity. Developments in key ICT technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), help this systemic transition. This paper explores the phases of the transition from a linear to a circular economy and proposes a procedure for introducing the principles of sustainability (environmental, economic and social) in a manufacturing environment, through the design of a new Circular Business Model (CBM). The new procedure has been tested and validated in an Italian company producing ceramic tiles, using the digitalization of the production processes of the Industry 4.0 environment, to implement the impact assessment tools (LCA—Life Cycle Assessment, LCC—Life Cycle Costing and S-LCA—Social Life Cycle Assessment) and the business intelligence systems to provide appropriate sustainability performance indicators essential for the definition of the new CBM.

This study examined the literature on social life-cycle assessment (S-LCA) published in the last 15 years (2003–2018) using bibliometric methods. Applying scientific mapping and analyzing publication performance, the study describes the structure of and trends in S-LCA publications in terms of related subject categories, authors, journals, countries, and highly cited articles. Challenges and research gaps in the S-LCA literature were also explored. The content of related papers published in the ISI Web of Science databases was examined to identify the main themes investigated, evolution of publication activity, and most representative elements. Analyses were conducted with SciMAT software. This tool enables researchers to map research specialties by extracting qualitative information in the specialized literature and representing it using quantitative measures. The results show rapid and exponential growth of the S-LCA research line in the past ten years, with a clear upward trend in related publications (mostly case studies), especially after publication of the UNEP/SETAC Guidelines for Social Life Cycle Assessment of Products in 2009: 66% of all articles published on S-LCA were published during the period 2015–2018, primarily by European authors. The findings also delineate S-LCA as a highly fragmented research field that has been applied to diverse sectors (agriculture, bioenergy, transport, water management, chemical products, electronics, etc.), mainly in non-European countries. Critical questions concerning methods, framework, paradigms, and indicators remain to be resolved. This study provides insight into the publication performance of S-LCA, characterizing its intellectual structure and salient authors and works. In identifying hotspots in the S-LCA research, the study provides a useful state-of-the-art reference guide for academics and reveals critical research gaps and potential research avenues for future studies to advance in consolidating the discipline.

Sustainability transition is becoming increasingly relevant at a manufacturing level, especially for resource- and energy-intensive industries. In addition, the 4.0 industry paradigm opens new opportunities in terms of sustainable development. The aim of this research is to analyze the introduction of sustainability in the corporate value proposition, through the evolution from a traditional to a sustainable business model. The business model innovation will be investigated in the case of a ceramic tile producer in the district of Sassuolo, Italy. The company has introduced several sustainability practices over the years and, through investments in Industry 4.0 technologies, is able to conduct impact assessments of its production process. The applied tool for the business model transition will be the Triple-Layered Business Model Canvas by Joyce and Paquin. The results illustrate the new company’s sustainable value proposition, considering all three pillars of sustainability: environment, economy, and society. Despite the limitations resulting from the individual case study, the findings can be easily adapted to other ceramic tile companies in the sector. Besides, the paper could inspire other manufacturing companies in the drafting of a sustainable business model. The paper explores the still limited literature on the application of sustainable business models in operational scenarios.

Circular economy is an alternative to the traditional production model and has therefore attracted a great deal of attention from researchers. The change in the production system is accompanied by new logistical needs related both to resources and waste and to the distribution and recovery of products. The circular supply chain involves return processes and the manufacturer intends to capture additional value in the supply chain. In this paper, value chains have been mapped to visualize the links and interactions between the different stages and actors to understand the complexities of these systems and to make informed decisions. For this reason, and based on thorough literature review, the final objective of this work is to achieve a conceptual framework to study circular supply chain, which uses the main theoretical perspectives in strategic management literature. Four dimensions have been identified to support the development of these new supply chains—greater intensity in the relationships established in the supply chain, adaptation of logistics and organizational, disruptive and smart technologies, and a functioning environment. It can be concluded that to develop a new relationship capacity will allow for reaching more frequent, closer relationships with more actors. These relationships will be developed within an adapted organizational and logistical framework that is framed in new business model archetypes. However, dimensions related to the business environment such as sectoral, legislative, and fiscal frameworks must be incorporated.

For manufacturing companies, the transition to circular business models (CBMs) can be hampered both by the lack of relevant data and by operational tools. Eco-design, associated with Industry 4.0 IoT (Internet of Things) technologies, can be an effective methodological approach in developing products that are consistent with the principles of the circular economy. The reason is that, in the design phase, decisions are made that can significantly influence the degree of sustainability of products during their lifecycle. Therefore, in the manufacturing environment, eco-design represents an innovative approach to include sustainability among the traditional industrial variables such as functionality, aesthetics, quality, and profit. This study aimed to test eco-design as a tool to define the equilibrium point between sustainability and circular economy in the manufacturing environment of ceramic tile production, and to demonstrate how new business opportunities can be created through evolution from a linear to a circular business model, thanks to IoT and Industry 4.0 technologies used as enabling factors. The main result of this paper was the empirical validation in a manufacturing environment of sustainability paradigms through eco-design tools and digital technologies, proposing the circular business model as an operational tool to promote the competitiveness of enterprises.