Appendix B
Examples of User Involvement To Promote Technology Transfer
Early user involvement has been identified in several studies as being essential to successful technology transfer (TRB 1998). This appendix presents three examples of successful user involvement that have helped achieve innovation in the public sector. The first section describes the early involvement of potential users in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP). The second illustrates how the state of Virginia organizes its R&D planning and technology transfer efforts to encourage the participation of the potential end-users at the earliest planning stages. (Note that other states, for example, California, New York, and Texas, have established other institutional mechanisms that have proven successful in facilitating the delivery of innovative highway technology.) The final section describes how the Construction Industry Institute (CII) addresses the issue of putting its research products to use.
NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM
NCHRP is a continuing program of highway research administered by professional staff of the Transportation Research Board (TRB). Established in 1962, it is sponsored by the member departments of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). To fund the program, each state contributes a portion of its federal-aid State Planning and Research (SP&R) funds. These funds presently form a cooperative pool of about $22 million annually.
AASHTO and FHWA work together on the formulation, approval, and acceptance of each annual NCHRP research program, primarily through the AASHTO Select Committee on Research (SCOR), which includes FHWA as a member. The emphasis is on projects that will provide solutions to well-defined problems and can be implemented quickly by the state highway agencies. Once a project has been approved, a panel of technically knowledgeable individuals is selected to determine its purpose and scope and to provide guidance and counsel throughout the course of the project. About half the panel membership consists of state highway and transportation department personnel. NCHRP staff and the project panels work together to ensure a balance between research objectives and the needs of highway practitioners.
Panel members become important links between the research effort and the eventual application of the project results. A major reason for NCHRP’s success has been its ability to involve highway practitioners in the research from beginning to end. NCHRP research recommendations have high credibility with AASHTO committees because the members know the project was closely monitored, and the final report was reviewed by a panel that included experienced practitioners, among them members of relevant AASHTO committees. NCHRP uses publications and widespread dissemination of its reports to further the transfer of the technologies involved.
VIRGINIA TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH COUNCIL
The Virginia Transportation Research Council is the R&D arm of the Virginia Department of Transportation. In keeping with its premise that the key to successful R&D is implementation, the Council involves many of the potential users of its R&D products in program decision making. The council has 13 research advisory committees, each with approximately 20 members. Committee members include representatives from the Virginia Department of Transportation, local government, universities, and the transportation industry.
Each committee meets at least once a year to provide research ideas for the next year’s program and an assessment of the current R&D products. The committees serve as an outside source of potential R&D topics, and the committee members become stakeholders in the R&D process, with a strong interest in the research outcomes. Indeed, com mittee members are in a position to implement the results of the R&D even before the final research reports have been published.
CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY INSTITUTE
CII is a research organization whose mission is to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of planning and delivery systems for capital projects in support of U.S. industry. CII represents a consortium of about 80 facility owners, construction and architectural/engineering companies, and government organizations that focus on the construction needs of the process industries and the light industrial/general building sector. In addition to annual dues, membership in CII requires participation by senior company personnel on the Institute’s Board of Advisors and participation of experienced company personnel on the Institute’s committees, councils, and teams. The typical annual investment for a member organization is approximately $250,000. CII members are also expected to share nonproprietary project information with CII research and advisory teams, as appropriate.
Ad hoc research teams oversee individual research projects that have been designated by the Board of Advisors for future study. These research teams take a general scope of work prepared by the Board of Advisors and focus on specific details, ultimately developing research
proposals that are presented to the Board for funding. Once funding has been approved, the research team spends 1 to 3 years conducting the research and reporting the results.
The Institute’s pooled-fund, member-sponsored research program is focused on research products that are ready for implementation and provide a payoff for the member organizations. CII’s Implementation Strategy Committee explores industrywide implementation opportunities and develops strategies designed to overcome barriers to implementation and increase its rate and extent. Mechanisms used to promote implementation include research reports and publications, implementation support manuals, multimedia presentations, education modules, workshops and seminars, and pilot projects. CII strives for research products that are convenient to implement. While individual companies are responsible for implementation, the Institute provides extensive support. The CII implementation model is shown in Figure B-1.