Third-level institutions need to develop more effective commercialisation programmes to translate academic research into new products and companies, and must foster greater links with industry if Ireland is to sustain its current economic momentum, according to the co-author of a new book on the subject.
Recently established technology transfer offices (TTOs), which aim to help researchers in universities and institutes of technology create more patents, licences and company spin-offs, have yet to achieve their full potential, mostly because of understaffing and poor structures, says Dr James Cunningham, who co-wrote Strategic Management of Technology Transfer: The new challenge on campus with Brian Harney.
The two authors are lecturers at NUI Galway and research associates at the university's Centre for Innovation and Structural Change.
The book, published in June, examines how universities and companies need to step up collaboration to ensure the Government's plans for a knowledge-based economy become a reality. The lecturers argue that if the Government is to deliver a real return on its planned investment in a knowledge economy, links between academia and specific industries need to improve, and the transfer of technology from the campus to the company should be managed better.
Cunningham and Harney say they are the first to lay down specific guidelines on how TTOs should be developed to ensure the Government's investment is successful.
Companies require access to relevant research to build expertise and to become competitive in international markets, according to the publication.
While Enterprise Ireland has allocated €30 million to strengthen TTOs and promote a culture of technology transfer within third-level institutions, co-operation between enterprise and academic institutions has been limited in Ireland compared to European countries.
"If we don't get this right, Ireland will become a technology taker instead of a technology maker," Cunningham says. "The TTO is critical in capturing and bringing to market effective company spin-offs, patents and licences.
"This would help attract the best researchers in the world to Ireland, along with multinationals looking for new technology platforms."
The Government announced an investment in June of €3.8 billion under the Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation. The goal of the strategy is to use public money to expand Ireland's research base in third-level institutions and the private sector to help create an enterprise culture based on innovation.
This, in turn, is expected to attract more high-quality inward investment by technology-driven global companies and to create more employment and wealth.
However, just half of academics working in research do not collaborate with other academics or industry, a study released last year revealed.
Only 30 per cent of those polled had been involved in commercialisation activity arising from academic research.
The majority of those surveyed - 58 per cent - said commercialisation programmes at their institutions could be improved. This could be achieved through greater communication from industry, and a better ownership and reward structure for academics based on commercialisation activity.
"There's a lack of awareness of what's involved in patenting and licensing," Dr Cunningham says. "There are also cultural aspects at work, because academics don't value commercialisation much. Often, the benchmark isn't money but their reputation."
Third-level institutions should consider performance metrics to increase commercialisation of their research, complete with national and local targets, Cunningham recommends.
Key metrics could include the number of company spin-offs, patents and licences the institution produces each year, while commercialisation could be used as a performance metric when evaluating academics for promotion.
Indeed, the lecturer believes that any PhD programme in science or technology should involve improving students' business acumen.
He also advocates creating shared services facilities to help TTOs pool their resources and leverage economies of scale. Areas that require many resources need access to pooled expertise, such as patent applications, licensing, market research, venture capital, commercial partnerships, asset management and staff training.
Ireland's economic expansion has made it a model for developing countries, especially for the 10 new entrants to the European Union. The authors argue, though, that the tendency to promote Ireland as a benchmark for knowledge-based economies is premature - we still have a long way to go.
