Industry-university Partnerships Research Articles

Industry-university partnerships, technological advancement and collaborative innovation among universities in Guangzhou China: Basis for higher education institution continuous improvement framework

Industry-university partnerships, technological advancement and collaborative innovation among universities in Guangzhou China: Basis for higher education institution continuous improvement framework

Can Exclusion of Feral Ecosystem Engineers Improve Coastal Floodplain Resilience to Climate Change? Insight from a Case Study in North East Arnhem Land, Australia

Global climate change can interact with local drivers, such as ecosystem engineers, to exacerbate changes in ecosystem structure and function, with socio-ecological consequences. For regions of Indigenous interest, there may also be cultural consequences if species and areas affected are culturally significant. Here we describe a participatory approach between the Indigenous (Yolngu) Yirralka Rangers and non-Indigenous researchers that explored the interaction between sea level rise and feral ungulate ecosystem engineers on culturally significant floodplains in the Laynhapuy Indigenous Protected Area (IPA), northern Australia. A feral ungulate exclusion fence array (12 fenced and 12 unfenced plots) was stratified by elevation/salinity to disentangle the effects of salinity and ungulates on floodplain soil and vegetation. We found that exclusion of feral ungulates improved ground cover vegetation, which, according to our literature-derived ecosystem process model, may enhance soil trapping and reduce evapotranspiration to provide the antecedent conditions needed to improve floodplain resilience to sea level rise. The mid-zone of the supratidal floodplain study site was suggested as the region where the benefits of fencing were most pronounced after two years and ground cover species diversity was highest. Ongoing monitoring is required to investigate whether removal of feral ungulates can increase resilience against sea level rise and recruitment of eco-culturally significant Melaleuca species. An interview with a key Yolngu Traditional Owner of the study site demonstrated the importance and effectiveness of the partnership. Yolngu land owners and rangers were active co-researchers and will decide if, when and how to integrate results into feral ungulate management and climate adaptation responses, highlighting the importance of industry-university partnerships in maximising biocultural conservation outcomes.

Does policy enhance collaborative-opportunistic behaviours? Looking into the intellectual capital dynamics of subsidized industry–university partnerships

PurposeLittle is known about how subsidies enhance both collaborative and opportunistic behaviours within subsidized industry–university partnerships, and how partners' behaviours influence the intellectual capital dynamics within subsidized industry–university. Based on these theoretical foundations, this study expects to understand intellectual capital’s (IC's) contribution as a dynamic or systemic process (inputs?outputs?outcomes) within subsided university–industry partnerships. Especially to contribute to these ongoing academic debates, this paper analyses how collaborative and opportunistic behaviours within industry–university partnerships influence the intellectual capital dynamics (inputs, outputs and outcomes) of the subsidized projects.Design/methodology/approachBy combining two sources of information about 683 Mexican subsidized industry–university partnerships from 2009 to 2016, this study adopted the structural equation modelling (SEM) to analyse the effect of collaborative vs opportunistic behaviours in intellectual capital dynamics within subsidized projects.FindingsOur results show three tendencies about the bright/dark side of subsidies within the Mexican industry–university partnerships. The first tendency shows how collaborative behaviours positively influence intellectual capital dynamics within subsidized industry–university partnerships. The second tendency shows how opportunistic behaviours influence intellectual capital impacts (performance) and return to society (job creation). The third tendency shows how initial inputs of subsidized projects generate some expected socio-economic returns that pursued the subsidies (mediation effect of intellectual capital outputs).Research limitations/implicationsThis research has three limitations that provide a future research agenda. The main limitations were associated with our sources of information. The first limitation, we did not match subsidized partnerships (focus group) and non-subsidized partnerships (control group). A qualitative analysis should help understand the effect of subsidies on intellectual capital and partnerships' behaviours. The second limitation, our measures of collaborative/opportunistic behaviours as well as intellectual capital dynamics should be improved by balancing traditional and new metrics in future research. The third limitation is that in emerging economies, the quality of institutions could influence the submission/selection of subsidies and generate negative externalities. Future research should control by geographical dispersion and co-location of subsidies.Practical implicationsFor enterprise managers, this study offers insights into IC dynamics and behaviours within subsidized industry–university partnerships. The bright side of collaboration behaviours is related to IC's positive impacts on performance and socio-economic returns. The dark side is the IC appropriation behind opportunistic behaviours. Enterprise managers should recognize the relevance of IC management to capture value and reduce costs associated with opportunistic behaviours. For the university community, this study offers potential trends adopted by industry–university partnerships to reinforce universities' innovative transformation processes. Specifically, these trends are related to the legitimization of the university's role in society and contribution to regional development through industry–university partnerships' outcomes. Therefore, university managers should recognize the IC benefits/challenges behind industry–university partnerships.Social implicationsFor policymakers, the study indirectly shows the role of subsidies for generating/reinforcing intellectual capital outcomes within subsidized industry–university partnerships. The bright side allows evaluating the cost-benefit of this government intervention and the returns to priority industries. The dark side allows for understanding the need for implementing mechanisms to control opportunistic behaviours within subsidized partnerships. Accordingly, policymakers should understand the IC opportunity-costs related to industry–university partnerships for achieving the subsidies' aims.Originality/valueThis study contributes to three ongoing academic debates in innovation and management fields. The first debate about how intellectual capital dynamic is stimulated and transferred through the collaborative behaviour within industry–university partnerships in emerging economies. The second debate is about the “dark side” of partnerships stimulated by public programmes in emerging economies. The third debate is about the effectiveness of subsidies on intellectual capital activities/outcomes.

How experienced professionals develop their expertise in work-based higher education: a literature review

This study explores how industry-university partnerships contribute to the expertise development of highly experienced professionals, and what kind of challenges such development entails. We used an integrative approach to review literature and acquire a deeper understanding of how previous research has described the development of expertise in work-based postgraduate higher education. Consistent with earlier research, this review confirms that expertise is developed through transforming and integrating theoretical, practical and self-regulative knowledge. Results suggest that (1) learners should be supported but also allowed to self-manage their learning in order to build agency and self-regulative skills, (2) continuous problem solving with ill-defined, non-routine problems should be encouraged along with challenges that trigger learning, (3) learners’ personal transformation processes and change of identity should be supported, and (4) expertise development should be viewed as an ongoing, context-dependent and individualised process.

Research subsidies, industry–university cooperation and innovation

We evaluate the impact of the EC's Seventh Framework Programme, a large-scale research subsidy programme, on the innovation activities of subsidized firms, with a particular regard to industry–university partnerships. Using matching and difference-in-difference estimation, we find a positive effect on a range of innovation indicators. The number of project participants in general and university participants in particular positively affect performance, suggesting knowledge spillovers between project members. Research centres, on the other hand, do not exert positive externalities. We also find that the benefits of collaborating with universities are amplified by their academic quality.

Industry–University Partnerships: Engineering Education and Corporate Social Responsibility

AbstractIndustry-university collaborations have been promoted as a way to introduce students to the day-to-day activities and internal workings of industry and enhance student understandings of the...

PEGASUS Industry Alliance: Graduates’ Opportunities and Technology Transfer

Universities and industry have been collaborating for over a century, especially in the aerospace field, but the rise of a global knowledge economy has intensified the need for strategic partnerships and improved interactions that go beyond the traditional funding of discrete research projects. World-class research universities are at the forefront of pioneering such partnerships. They are designed to run longer, invest more, look farther ahead and hone the competiveness of companies, universities and regions. In short, they transform the role of the research university, anchoring it as a vital centre of competence to help tackle social challenges and drive economic growth. But it’s a big leap. It requires each side to engage far beyond the conventional exchange of research for funding. When they work well, strategic partnerships merge the discovery-driven culture of the university with the innovation-driven environment of the company. But to become a successful challenge, each side must overcome the cultural and communications divide that tends to impair industry-university partnerships of all types and undercut their potential. PEGASUS Industry Alliance (PIA) is moving in-line with this track in the European framework of the aerospace disciplines and some experiences are presented in this paper, along with suggestions, actions and developments for the near future.

Building strategic industry-university partnerships

Industry looks to universities and other collaborators as a mechanism for innovation and a source of future employees. Meanwhile, universities are increasingly encouraging R&D partnerships with industry to align with funding trends for research that yields practical outcomes. Recently, the American Chemical Society Committee on Science (ComSci) has focused on the interdisciplinary field of advanced materials. The committee organized an ACS division and journal roundtable and reception in August 2015 (C&EN, Aug. 3, 2015, page 41). Experts from industry and government joined leaders from ACS divisions and journals to discuss the need for interdisciplinary cooperation and collaboration between industry and academia to facilitate creative advances in materials science. Remarkably, however, the roundtable morphed into a valuable discussion about ways to facilitate industry-university collaborations in general, ensure productive outcomes, and prepare students for careers that encompass both industrial and acade...

大学と産業界との新たな連携を目指して

大学と産業界との新たな連携を目指して

A New Model for Industry–University Partnerships

A research partnership between the California Water Service Co. and San Jose State University has developed critical projects to help address gaps in the knowledge base within the drinking water industry and research communities.

Industry-University Partnership in an Emerging Market Economy: Developing Innovative Leaders

This paper explores an industry-university partnership and its role in developing innovative leaders in Russia. The authors apply to the field of study the analysis of a seven-year-experience of project-based learning, excelled by Perm National Research Polytechnic University in collaboration with large manufacturing enterprises and added governmental financial support. The findings reveal four success factors: philosophy of value co-creation, motivation of key participants, a project-based curriculum, as well as integrated and self-organized governance of such a partnership. The study contributes to extending the knowledge of new approaches in industry-university partnerships within emerging markets.

Scaffold to Build and Sustain industry-University Partnerships

One of the most difficult tasks for higher education leadership is to initiate and sustain industry partnerships. There are many reasons why. A particular one is that industry and academia have different cultures and values. This paper provides a scaffold or framework to engage with the productive sector and provides answers to some of the questions involved: Why do higher education, institutions need to reach out to industry? Who needs to be involved? What can each of the partners' roles, responsibilities and expectations be? How can industry help academia in strategizing to better educate the engineering workforce the country/region need? How to best approach industry? What are the benefits for the institution, industry, students and faculty of strong industry-university relationships? How to assess partnership outcomes? Finally, the author shares her experiences in participating and catalyzing three successful partnerships between industry and academia: the Learning Factory, the ASEE-NSF Industry Post Docs Program and the NEU@UNH, a new engineering education platform developed in California.

Challenges towards Employability: Higher Education’s Engagement to Industrial Needs in Japan

This paper examines the challenges and strategies of twenty-three Japanese universities working towards the improvement of employability skills. These universities have been selected for the national project “Improving Higher Education for Meeting Industrial Needs” funded by Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The purpose of this project is to improve the higher education systems that help develop employability skills that industry seeks by sharing their challenges and strategies in collaboration with companies. This paper analyses these challenges and strategies from the reports submitted by these universities for the preparation of the Second Conference of Industry-University Partnerships that took place in Nagoya, Japan on November 14, 2013. This paper concludes with discussion drawn from the reports and the conference.

Embedding Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneurship into University Culture: A Case Study at West Virginia University

Understanding faculty culture is critical to understanding how economic development fits into a faculty members’ and a university’s agenda. This manuscript provides a snapshot of the concepts of economic development, technology transfer, and innovation as a framework to the subsequent case study. This manuscript will 1) define faculty culture; 2) explore the role of economic development in higher education; 3) discuss the importance of technology transfer, commercialization, entrepreneurship and industry-university partnerships; 4) examine the actions taken by West Virginia University to encourage an innovative culture; and 5) identify six lessons learned on how to move forward in the higher education domain of changing paradigms. More specifically, this manuscript explores West Virginia University’s program, LIINC (Linking Innovation, Industry and Commercialization), which is designed to build a bridge between faculty researchers, graduate students and private sector representatives in the areas of energy and environmental research, bioscience and biomedical research, and security and intelligence research.

Industry Perceptions of Industry–University Partnerships Related to Doctoral Education in South Africa

An assessment of the extent to which industry–university partnerships in doctoral education, which have become increasingly prevalent in the knowledge economy, have begun to penetrate the South African higher education milieu, is reported. The factors that motivate large industries in developing countries such as South Africa to invest in doctoral education are explored and the nature of these relationships is examined. The data indicate the ambivalent attitude of those in industry to doctoral education in South Africa: knowledge at PhD level is regarded variously as ‘desirable’, ‘a luxury’ or ‘superfluous’, with industry in general preferring lower-grade skills. It is suggested that the low level of interest in doctoral education may relate, among other factors, to the ‘brain drain’ of graduates as well as to the overall commitment to R&D in the country, which is low in relation to global benchmarks, forcing industry to conduct research and innovation further afield.

Rebuilding Railroad Engineering Education in the United States with Industry–University Partnerships

Because of the growing volume of freight traffic, the increasing interest in intercity and in urban passenger rail, and the escalated retirement among industry professionals, the rail industry has been returning to university campuses in search of future leaders. In so doing, the industry has discovered that today's universities are a challenging environment in which to recruit because most of them eliminated railroad engineering from their curricula many years ago and graduates are not familiar with the rail industry. A research study at Michigan Technological University (Michigan Tech) assessed whether greater participation by universities would help to encourage students to pursue rail careers. Surveys targeting industry managers, recently hired engineering graduates, and university professors were used to define the demand and supply for university engineering graduates and to determine the effect on students’ career choices from pregraduation exposure to rail topics. The results indicated a high demand for railroad engineers for the next 5 to 10 years but few opportunities to expose students to rail topics before their graduation. The research indicated a strong correlation between exposure to the rail industry and career selection and identified the development of university–industry partnerships as an attractive approach for reintroducing railroad engineering at universities. This paper summarizes the study results and provides recommendations for developing these partnerships. It also presents a short case study on how Michigan Tech has successfully introduced rail transportation into its curriculum.

Research and Development Supporting Programs for Globalization of Industry-University Partnerships in New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization

Research and Development Supporting Programs for Globalization of Industry-University Partnerships in New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization

Deriving Value from Industry-University Partnerships: A Case Study of the Advanced Engineering Materials Centre

:This article presents a case study of an industry-university partnership and identifies benefits to participating companies and to the university. Engineering managers in both academia and industry can use this article to gain an understanding of the value of industry-university partnerships. Twenty-seven research and development (R&D) projects at the University of Alberta's Advanced Engineering Materials (UAAEM) Centre were evaluated. The projects were sponsored jointly by government and private sector companies. One important finding is that both university engineering researchers and engineering managers from industry can derive valuable but different benefits from the same research project. Another significant finding is that government investment can attract other investments to the projects. The research conducted for this report has revealed that UAAEM's R&D projects have significant positive impacts to the related companies, as well as to the university professors, and students. Government seed capital of $170,000 attracted industry investment of $580,000, indicating leverage of 4.4.

ARC Partnerships: Industry and Academia Explore Remote Sensing Applications

Abstract Incorporating remote sensing and GIS technology into forestland management requires significant investment in tools and expertise, for uncertain benefits. The NASA-sponsored Affiliated Research Center (ARC) program seeks to reduce the risk through industry-university partnerships. These partnerships help define feasibility, benefits, and costs for new or improved information, methods, and products. The projects described include inventory, stand height and volume classification, and species type mapping and incorporate the use of digital airborne and satellite imagery, radar, and lidar data. Partners may include forest companies, consultants, technology developers, public agencies, and nonprofit organizations. Case studies describe partnership projects of University of South Carolina and Westvaco; SUNY-ESF and Emerge; SUNY-ESF and Highland Geographic, Inc.; University of Wisconsin–Madison and George Banzhaf & Company; and Oregon State University, Pacific Meridian Resources, and Spencer B. Gross, Inc.

Industry-University Partnerships for Construction Engineering Education

Many construction engineering educators and construction industry leaders realize the value of establishing effective, working industry-university partnerships. By viewing the construction industry as its customer and by collaborating with industry leaders on matters influencing the undergraduate program, the university faculty can sustain and improve the quality of the educational program. The degree to which construction engineering graduates are prepared to perform well in practice can be enhanced by effective industry-university cooperation on such matters as the construction education mission and objectives, curriculum, course content, faculty qualifications and development, resources, co-ops and internships, and other issues. Based on 23 years of experience in Purdue University's Construction Engineering and Management program as well as on experience elsewhere, issues are discussed concerning ways of implementing effective industry-university collaboration in construction engineering education. Con...