Title: The changing structure of US industrial research: implications for R&D organization in the Russian Federation

Authors: David C. Mowery

Addresses: Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720, USA

Abstract: This paper surveys the historical development and current status of industrial R&D in the USA, in order to examine the factors affecting the location of R&D within industrial firms and the relationship between intrafirm R&D and research activities external to the firm, and to draw some implications for the reorganization of the Russian Federation|s network of independent research institutes. As I note in my conclusions, the weight of historical and contemporary evidence suggests that externally performed R&D is likely to prove most effective as a complement to, rather than a substitute for, research activities within the firm. The need for close links between manufacturing practice and technology development, the |tacit| character of much of the knowledge incorporated into industrial technology, and the difficulties in transmitting this knowledge across organizational boundaries all suggest that the contributions of contract or external research to industrial technology development will be greatest when this research is parallelled by R&D activities within the firm.

Keywords: industrial R&D; USA; United States; contract research collaboration; university-industry-government collaboration; national laboratories; technology transfer; Russia; research institutes; manufacturing practice; technology development.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.1994.025590

International Journal of Technology Management, 1994 Vol.9 No.5/6/7, pp.547 - 563

Published online: 23 May 2009 *

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