Abstract
This article explores the learning and technology transfer processes that placed Spain among the firstcomers of nuclear energy in the late 1960s. It is an example of a infantindustry that, under the protection of the State and the action of the business consortiums and of the North American multinationals, was able to replicate a complex technological challenge. We analyzed how an entrepreneurial ecosystem was created in which the leadership of some engineers and the cooperation and competition between industries, engineering and consultants were key. The business history of the Zorita and Garona nuclear power plants exemplifies a model of learning by doing that, through turnkey contracts, allowed a rapid growth of the sector, convincing the dictatorship government and the electric promoters that it was possible to carry out one of the most ambitious nuclear programs in Western Europe.
Highlights
It is an example of a infantindustry that
how an entrepreneurial ecosystem was created in which the leadership of some engineers
Nuclear power and learning processes: the role of Westinghouse and General Electric in the Spanish experience (c. 1955-1973)
Summary
El objetivo general de este trabajo es estudiar las estrategias utilizadas por los consorcios empresariales (privados y públicos) que convirtieron la oportunidad de la energía nuclear en una industria naciente. Para comprender por qué España logró, esta vez sí, situarse entre los firstcomers de la energía nuclear pacífica hay que centrarse en el estudio de los procesos de aprendizaje de un reto tecnológico que apenas acababa de arrancar en algunas de las grandes economías industriales y que se pretendía imitar en un país de un nivel fabril relativamente pobre. En este artículo pretendemos indagar sobre cómo las grandes multinacionales norteamericanas transfirieron el know how nuclear para construir esas primeras centrales y en qué grado fue internalizado por las empresas españolas. Del lado del receptor, tanto la acumulación de conocimientos técnicos como de habilidades para construir la infraestructura industrial y, más tarde, hacerla operativa (sea una planta nuclear o una fábrica de enriquecimiento de uranio) por personal local, mejorando procesos y productos. FIGURA 1 ▪ Transferencia tecnológica como proceso de aprendizaje dentro del ecosistema empresarial nuclear
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
