Communicating innovations in the construction industry through academic/industry networks

B. DIMITRIJEVIC, D. LANGFORD AND S. ARNETT

Department of Civil Engineering, University of Strathclyde, 107 Rottenrow, Glasgow G4 0NG, United Kingdom

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the results of the activities of the Network of Construction Creativity Clubs (NCCC),  which is a one year project funded by the Engineering and Physics Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). The NCCC was initiated by the Association of Researchers in Construction Management (ARCOM) as an academic/industry network for disseminating innovations. The paper presents the current results of this project,  examines the problems encountered, and discusses possible solutions for similar projects for disseminating innovations in the construction industry.

KEYWORDS:

Dissemination of innovation, construction industry

INTRODUCTION

Language, a primary means of communication, is regarded as the first and greatest of all human inventions (Gabor, 1970), especially because it is the main tool for spreading knowledge about all other inventions and innovations. Invention is frequently defined as ‘the discovery of a new device, product, process or system’ (Walsh et al, 1993). Definitions of technological innovation vary. Walsh et al (1993) found in the work of economists such as Freeman et al (1982) that it was considered a ‘milestone’ in the process from invention to diffusion and adoption of a new product or process in practice. However, it could also be considered as the whole activity from invention to the point of first commercial or social use, including research, design, development, market research and testing, manufacturing, engineering, etc. (Walsh et al, 1993). Gabor (1970) offers a more encompassing definition of innovations as ‘all methodical  creations of the human spirit’ which ‘can be usefully and repeatedly applied’. It follows that an innovation is an invention which is developed for practical use.

‘Usefulness’ of innovations,  the goals that human kind want to achieve with them, has become an ethical and political issue. The first human inventions and innovations helped basic survival by reducing the impact of natural threats, through overpowering other species, and then other human groups. Further development of innovations brought a significant wealth to those who owned them, not necessarily to those who developed them (Kingston, 1993). In the last three decades there has been an increasing awareness of  the dangers of unlimited growth, which destroys natural resources and diminishes the quality of life on our planet. Instead of the emphasis on growth, there are calls for innovations which will work towards improving the quality of life (Gabor, 1970).

Concerns for the global welfare of humanity and our planet were expressed by the world community in the document Our Common Future, prepared by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED, 1987) and at the United Nations (UN) Conference on Environment and Development, held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 (Grubb et al, 1993). Policy which leads towards sustainable development lies in optimising the goal achievements across the economic, social and environmental systems (du Plessis, 2000) while including the principles of equity, futurity, environmental value (Pearce et al, 1989) and public participation (Mitchell et al, 1995). The consensus among governments on common policies for achieving sustainable development is not easy to reach, as demonstrated by the suspension of talks on Framework Convention on Climate Change at the UN conference in the Hague in November 2000 (UN, 2000).

However, many national governments have adopted a proactive role in defining the goals and policies for sustainable development and innovation in different sectors of economic and social life. Concerning the construction industry, the United Kingdom government policy has been outlined in several documents such as ‘Rethinking Construction’ (DETR, 1998) and ‘Building a Better Quality of Life: A Strategy for More Sustainable Construction’ (DETR, 2000a). It is supported through ‘Partners in Innovation’ (DETR, 2000b) which is a Department of Environment, Transport and Regions (DETR) collaborative scheme that sponsors collaborative research in partnership with industry, academia and government. The report ‘Rethinking Construction’ identified committed leadership, a focus on the customer, integration of the process and the team around the product, a quality-driven agenda and commitment to people as the key drivers required to implement change and develop substantial improvement to the project process. The report asserts that the project process can be radically improved by fostering innovative methodology. The innovations are categorised under the headings of product development, project implementation, partnering the supply chain and production of components. The report also highlighted the need for industry to set clear measurable objectives and to create a performance measurement system to aid benchmarking and provide tools for sustained improvement.

The report proposed the creation of a “movement for change” which would be a non-institutionalised body of people who believed in the need for radical improvement within the construction industry. The Movement for Innovation was subsequently launched in November 1998 with the following mission statement:  "The Movement for Innovation (M4I) aims to lead radical improvement in construction in value for money, profitability, reliability and respect for people, through demonstration and dissemination of best practice and innovation" (DETR, 2000c). The dissemination of the results of this and other government initiatives is managed through conferences, publications, dedicated websites, and ‘Knowledge Exchange’, which is  ‘an extranet facility designed to facilitate sharing and learning across the industry through “portals”, each covering different segments of the industry’ (DETR, 2000d). The portal provides links to the websites ‘Movement for Innovation’, ‘Construction Industry Board’, ‘Housing Forum’ and ‘Construction Best Practice Programme’.

Apart from these government initiatives, other forms of innovation dissemination are being developed. One of them is the Network of Construction Creativity Clubs (NCCC), an initiative by the Association of Researchers in Construction Management (ARCOM), funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) as a one year project. This paper presents the current results of this project,  examines the problems encountered, and discusses possible solutions for similar projects for disseminating innovations in the construction industry

ABOUT THE NCCC

Four regionally based construction creativity clubs (CCCs) were established to serve as a focal point for construction sector innovation in each location:

As Gabor (1970) points out, new developments can be found every week in the trade journals, and even in daily newspapers. Each CCC relies on regional industry and academic networks to identify the innovations and to encourage the participation of SMEs in putting forward examples of innovative practice from their areas of expertise. The NCCC offers an opportunity to innovators from the industry and academia to communicate their knowledge directly by presenting them at events. Some innovations are presented by innovators from other sectors who have an interest in the development of the construction industry (e.g. marketing, insurance).The regional CCC's organise up to 6 meetings over a 12-month period.  By the end of December 2000 the clubs had organised 23 events with the participation of 80 presenters. Summaries or complete presentations are also published on the NCCC web site (www.ce.strath.ac.uk/nccc). A standard template is used to collate information on innovative companies/organisations and their innovations. At the end of a yearly cycle, the majority of innovations will be published in a book. An analysis of innovations presented at the events organised across the United Kingdom during the year 2000 will provide an insight into the types of innovations and innovative organisations in the construction industry.

The NCCC web site offers a complete listing of 80 innovations, the companies and academics who presented them, and a summary of the presentations which have been made available so far. An analysis of the type of companies and institutions who contributed their presentations shows that a wide range of organisations have shown an interest in promoting and disseminating innovations in the construction industry (Figure 1.)

Figure 1. Presenters at the NCCC events

Each NCCC event usually has a main theme which encapsulates the common link in the presentations. The selection of themes offers the possibility of including topics which are dominant in the construction industry today. Questions and discussions between the presenters and the professionals from the SMEs participating at the event follow all presentations. The events are an opportunity for networking, and this is further supported through the NCCC web site by publishing contact addresses of the companies and organisations which present their innovations. An analysis of the types of innovations presented at NCCC events (Figure 2.) shows that improvements are taking place not only in the construction industry, but in the areas related to this sector (e.g. insurance, marketing) as well.

Figure 2. Types of innovations presented at NCCC events January – December 2000

The series of events will be completed in February 2001, when the final analysis of the presented innovations will be prepared. This will include not only the types of innovations and organisations who presented them, but an analysis of the following as well:

By the end of December 2000, among the 80 companies/organisations which presented their innovations at the NCCC events, 32 have provided the complete information as required in the above list. This information was used for an analysis which will be presented in the paper at the CIB World Building Congress in April 2001 in Wellington, New Zealand (Dimitrijevic et al, 2001).

Communication of innovations

Rogers (1983) sees the diffusion of innovations as part of a larger process which begins with a perceived problem or need, through research and development on a possible solution, the decision by a change agency that the innovation should be diffused, and then its diffusion. Companies may have structures in place for disseminating the innovation (e.g. 60 % of companies among 25 who provided this information to NCCC have such structures). The dissemination structure can focus on lead company, partners, subcontractors, clients, wider industry or other sectors (Figure 3.)

Figure 3. Focus of dissemination structure of the 25 companies who provided this information to NCCC

The NCCC provides the following networking opportunities and dissemination formats to complement the existing structures for disseminating the innovations or to initiate the creation of such structures:

The networking opportunities and dissemination formats offered through the NCCC should facilitate communication between the industry and academia, which is a novelty with regard to other initiatives and networks provided by government and professional organisations. 

Difficulties

Sandal (1997) remarked that the knowledge system, that is the network of persons and institutions devoted to the production, use and dissemination of knowledge, represents a very important part of the social system which helps the interaction between various parties in the economic system. He urged governments to support and develop institutions that make people meet. Whitfield (1972) points out the importance of social valuation of innovations by saying that the innovation must be seen to be desirable by those who shape the environment: the government, industrial management, the trade unions, the universities and the professional institutions. These statements about values of innovations for the whole of society are generally accepted. However, some difficulties arise in the research focused on the environment of innovations and this was evident in this project as well. Clarification of the difficulties and proposals for their resolution, which follow,  should contribute to future management of similar projects.

The companies/organisations were mostly interested in presenting their innovations at NCCC events, and less on the web site or in the planned book. Despite significant effort on the part of CCC co-ordinators, the complete information on only 32 out of 80 presentations has been collected at the time of writing this paper. A letter was sent to all companies/organisations with reassurance that their identity would be protected and that the information would only be used for writing the research papers. However, even those who provided answers to the research questionnaire withheld some information (e.g. on financial turnover). The difficulties in collecting the information on innovations and innovative companies/organisations in this research project can be summarised as follows:

Although a letter was sent to the companies/organisations emphasising the opportunities for wider dissemination of innovations through the NCCC web site and book, all participants have not embraced this opportunity. Without research into the reasons for such an attitude we can only guess what they might have been. One of the reasons for the reluctance of the innovative companies/organisations to disclose all requested information may be in the conflicting aims with regard to the dissemination of innovations. The conflict lies in the need to promote the innovations in order to achieve competitive advantage in the market on one hand, and  the need to protect confidential information from their competitors on the other hand. NCCC co-ordinators have tried to reassure innovators that their identity will be protected. However, some companies/organisations have not replied to this call for collaboration in the research work. Regrettably, the research about the environment which supports the innovations will be less comprehensive without the information from all participating companies/organisations in the NCCC project.

Lessons learned

Dynamism of the whole process of identifying the innovations which could be presented,  and of organising the events did not leave enough time for completing the questionnaires about the innovative companies/organisations and their innovations ahead of the events. However, this should be a requirement in organising future similar events. This approach will guarantee that the information needed for research is collected and that it is comprehensive in order to enable an analysis of the background and environment of innovations. The importance of such research is in providing feedback which can influence cultural change towards supporting innovations and improvements in the construction industry.

Most of the presenters provided the material for publishing on the NCCC web site in Power Point format. Although a general idea about the innovations can be understood in this way, there are several disadvantages in providing only Power Point presentations for publishing on a web site, and they are as follows:

The advice would be to require from presenters a summary of their presentation in a similar format as it would be for a book. A template web page with titles (e.g. challenges, innovative approach and solutions, implementation, benefits, and future development; contact names and addresses) and space for selected illustrations could be prepared ahead of the presentation.

The advantages of using live events, web site and a book about innovations as an additional and far reaching dissemination route should be emphasised in the communication with companies/organisations. The organisers of the events and researchers who will use the information on innovations must guarantee the protection of all confidential information. In order to contribute to the cultural change which will support innovations and their dissemination in the construction industry,  the innovative companies must be informed about the importance of research in innovations. Their contribution to this research is in providing the necessary information, and thus enabling the researchers to give feedback on the background and environment of innovations. Without this feedback, a comprehensive picture about supporting and managing the innovations will not be available to wider industry and without such an understanding, innovations in the construction industry will remain more or less sporadic and accidental,  and the industry as a whole might be less competitive in the global market.

CONCLUSION 

The United Kingdom government has adopted a proactive role in defining the goals and policies for sustainable development and innovation in the construction industry. The Movement for Innovation,  launched in November 1998,  aims to lead radical improvement in construction in value for money, profitability, reliability and respect for people, through demonstration and dissemination of best practice and innovation. The dissemination of the results of this and other government initiatives is managed through conferences, publications, and dedicated websites and web site portals.

Other forms of innovation dissemination are also being developed, such as the Network of Construction Creativity Clubs (NCCC), an initiative by the Association of Researchers in Construction Management (ARCOM), funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) as a one year project.

The NCCC consists of four regionally based construction creativity clubs which are managed by the academic departments at eleven universities across United Kingdom. The regional CCCs organise up to 6 meetings over a 12-month period.  By the end of December 2000 the clubs had organised 23 events with the participation of 80 presenters. Summaries or complete presentations are published on the NCCC web site (www.ce.strath.ac.uk/nccc). A standard template is used to collate information on innovative companies/organisations and their innovations. At the end of a yearly cycle, the majority of innovations will be published in a book. An analysis of innovations presented at the events organised across the United Kingdom during the year 2000 will provide an insight into the types of innovations and innovative organisations in the construction industry. The networking opportunities and dissemination formats offered through the NCCC should facilitate communication between the industry and academia, which is a novelty with regard to other initiatives and networks provided by government and professional organisations. 

NCCC events are a forum for sharing information on innovations between academia (33% of presenters), industry (59%), professional organisations (3%) and government initiatives (5%). Architects, engineers and consultants (19%), and contractors (19%) form the largest group of presenters from the industry. However, many other sectors of the construction industry and related professional areas are interested in presenting their innovations as well, e.g. developers, material suppliers, public investors (NHS), building services, manufacturers, software developers, accountants, insurance, research institutions. EU and UK professional organisations, and UK government initiative for support and dissemination of innovations have presented their programmes which support innovations.

The highest number of presentations were about environmental impact management (9 presentations), procurement (7), and contracting and partnering (7). Sustainable technologies, safety and risk management, the construction process, and financial management were topics of four presentations in each area. Three presentations covered each of the following topics: training, team-working, energy efficient design, innovation in SMEs, general case studies of innovations, and government initiatives for improvement of the construction industry. Barriers in innovating, product standardisation, product innovation, innovative housing, virtual reality, IT in information strategy plan, and liability legislation and insurance were each covered by two presentations. One presentation covered each of the following topics: social issues, marketing, developing opportunities, design and productivity, asset management, performance measurement, quality control, virtual organisations, and IT in estimating.

The lessons learned from managing this one-year project can be summarised as follows: