See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/350923461

Knowledge-transfer routes for accelerating economic recovery

Conference Paper · September 2013

CITATIONS READS

0 28

2 authors:

Bhekisisa Nyoni Tenson Nyoni

National University of Science and Technology, Bulawayo National University of Science and Technology
3 PUBLICATIONS 1 CITATION 2 PUBLICATIONS 0 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Left behind? Towards Smart Villages through appropriate technology View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Bhekisisa Nyoni on 16 April 2021.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 Knowledge-transfer routes for accelerating economic recovery
(A study of how to exploit engineering research output from universities to grow the economy: A Case study of
NUST)

Nyoni Bhekisisa*, Nyoni Tenson

Electronic Engineering, National University of Science & Technology (NUST), Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
bhekiburgs@gmail.com or bhekisisa.nyoni@nust.ac.zw
Graduate School of Business (PhD), National University of Science & Technology (NUST), Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
tnytmbyo@mweb.co.zw

Abstract

This paper discusses the various approaches of exploiting research output from the department of
Electronic Engineering at the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) to augment the
economic recovery program of Zimbabwe. As part of the curriculum, the final year students of the
department of Electronic Engineering are expected to identify a problem, design and implement the
solution to the problem as a final year project. This has resulted in numerous brilliant designs being
generated yearly to address a myriad of social and industrial problems identified by the students and
members of staff. A major concern though, which motivated the study is the fact that very little has
been done to tap the economic benefits of most of the ideas showcased by students at university over
the years. A review of the period 2005-2013 was conducted to bring to the fore the different efforts
that have been applied by the department in conjunction with the Technopark at NUST to exploit the
research output. In addition the study investigated the hindrances to the successful implementation of
the numerous strategies identified by the university to use research output in a beneficial manner.
Finally the possible solutions to these challenges are outlined. The results suggested that there is great
potential for the enhancement of economic recovery through ideas that are generated at universities by
research students. It showed that in addition to providing manpower in terms of graduate engineers,
the department needs to revive the Industry Advisory Board annual meetings. Furthermore the
department needs to solicit for funding of research and secondly explore the idea of licencing their
innovations to established companies and/or establish start-up companies at the university.

Keywords: Start-up, spin-out, licencing, incubation, Intellectual Property (IP), proof of concept

I INTRODUCTION

This paper discusses the role that can be played by electronic engineering research done at the
National University of Science and Technology (NUST) in the economic recovery program of
Zimbabwe. It is generally agreed that economic growth and socioeconomic development are strongly
influenced by innovation and entrepreneurship [1]. Therefore ideas that are generated at universities by
research students can play a role in the recovery of the economic. Most of these ideas have been
showcased and left to sink into oblivion over the years yet they could have had an impact on the
economy and the society had they been pursued further. Therefore the problem is that very little has
been done to tap the economic benefits of research pursued by engineering students.

Since the introduction of the multi-currency era in Zimbabwe on the 30th of January 2009 [2], the
Government formulated the Short Term Emergency Recovery Programme (STERP) covering the
period March to December 2009 and Zimbabwe‟s National Development Plan, the Medium Term
Plan (MTP) launched in July 2011 to chart the way towards economic recovery [3]. All these are
efforts to grow the economy again. Experts suggest that one way of reviving the economy is to
increase domestic revenue mobilisation efforts [4]. Hence exploitation of research output to increase
the production locally could be one of the means of increasing domestic revenue.

1
The Technopark at NUST, is the unit that was setup to spearhead the university‟s efforts of utilising
research output. The responsibility of this unit is sorely to catalyse the economic and social
advancement of the Zimbabwean society by stimulating economic growth, modernisation and
resultant prosperity through the exploitation of research outputs and innovative ideas that are
generated at the University.

Audretsch et al [5] posits that it is the knowledge filter that stands between investments in research on
the one hand, and its commercialization through innovation, leading ultimately to economic growth,
on the other. Simply put, well documented research proposals attract research funding and well
documented research results tend to resonate with industry and hence exploitation of the idea(s).

Hodges [6] suggests that although progress has been slow, there is now persuasive evidence that both
universities and businesses realise substantial benefits from participating in cooperative research.
Figure 1 shows that universities are a key pillar in wealth creation. However efforts by universities are
successful and only effective when coupled with corresponding commitment from the other
stakeholders such as industry and other support institutions.

Figure 1. Source: Dietrich 1996

The following is a discussion of the findings from a study of projects that were done between 2005
and 2013, the efforts made by the university over the years to utilise research output from the
Electronic Engineering department. This discussion is followed by a look at the challenges faced by
the institution in its efforts to do so. Then numerous knowledge transfer routes are discussed before
making recommendations of how the institution can exploit the research output.

II THE RESEARCH SAMPLE

Over two hundred research projects have been conducted by engineering students between 2005 and
2013. From these projects, the study zeroed in on a sample of twenty-two (22) of these research
projects. The 22 projects that were sampled from over 200 projects are shown in Table 1. The
sampled research projects may not necessarily be the best that came out of the department in terms of
functionality, however they have been singled out to show the potential for exploitation of the output
and/or its applicability in society and industry had it been pursued beyond the „proof of concept‟
model designed by the student.

From the table it is clear that the projects are not necessarily novel in nature but they answer to a need
in society or industry which renders them applicable. Another interesting observation is the nature of
designs that were coming out of the department as early as 2005, case in point is the PC-based
electrocardiogram monitor, which would have been an essential instrument in hospitals after polishing
of its design to align with regulations for medical instruments.

2
Sample Code Title Year Research output Current Status
1PR13 Remote antenna 2013 A system that rotates and tilts the antenna Archived in the
mechanical tilt and azimuth to ensure the best coverage by a base department
angle control system station.
2PR13 Integrated VID e-testing 2013 A system that makes the testing and Archived in the
system issuing of both Provisional and Drivers department
licences as transparent as possible, thus
eliminating corruption at the VID.
3PR13 Mine monitoring system 2013 A system that ensures that one person Student took the
votes only once during an election or prototype
opinion poll.
4PR13 Application of RFID to 2013 A system that enforces the payment of Student took the
vehicle licencing and fine road fines. It detects the identity of the prototype
payment. vehicle and queries the database for the
status of the vehicle‟s account.
5PR13 Vehicle speed violation 2013 A system that can be implemented to Archived in the
detection system ensure that motorists who violate speed department
limits are brought to book.
1PR12 RFID based Enhanced 2012 A system that makes it possible to scan Archived in the
supermarket billing system multiple goods at once and sums up the department
amount due.
2PR12 Unmanned petrol pump 2012 An automated system that dispenses the Archived in the
amount of fuel that corresponds with the department
amount ordered by the client.
3PR12 Bus terminus register and 2012 A system that ensures order in Commuter Student took the
management system terminuses and eliminates the need for prototype
„touts‟
1PR11 RFID Tollgate vehicle 2011 A system that used an RFID interrogator Archived in the
detection and billing to detect tags on vehicle, identify department
vehicles and bill them automatically at
the tollgate.
2PR11 Computerised Water 2011 A portable water purification system for Student took the
Purification system domestic use. prototype
3PR11 Telemetric data logger and 2011 A system for remote monitoring of Student took the
monitor for mining industrial systems using Zigbee RF prototype
vehicles communications.
1PR10 Micro-controlled elevator 2010 A proof of concept of the operation of a Archived in the
model microcontroller based elevator. department
2PR10 Client flow management 2010 A system that manages queues and thus Archived in the
ensures order. department
1PR09 Handheld soil analysis 2009 A portable device for testing various Student took the
system characteristics of the soil. prototype
2PR09 Industrial temperature 2009 A system that monitors the temperature Student took the
monitor with ICSP in industry. prototype
functionality
1PR08 SCADA monitoring for 2008 A system that monitors and controls a Student took the
PLC controlled water water treatment plant from a remote prototype
treatment plant location with the aid of a graphics based
computer application.
1PR07 GSM based Vehicle 2007 A system to track vehicles with the Being developed
Tracker tracker. Enables fleet owners to monitor further by the
the movements of their vehicles. student.
1PR06 FPGA based Automatic 2006 A system that dispenses a drink upon Archived in the
drinks dispenser payment of the required amount. department
2PR06 Electronic notice board 2006 An embedded system for communicating Student took the
different messages at different times. prototype
1PR05 Greenhouse environmental 2005 An embedded system that monitors and Archived in the
control system controls the conditions inside a department
greenhouse within the known thresholds.
2PR05 Solar system for TCZ 2005 A system for harvesting the sun‟s energy Archived in the
to power a complex. department
3PR05 PC-based 2005 A system for monitoring the function of Student took the
Electrocardiogram monitor the heart. prototype

Table 1. A sample of Projects and the research output.

3
III EFFORTS TO UTILISE THE RESEARCH OUTPUT.

The authorities at the National University of Science and Technology realised the economic potential
of research output earlier on and this gave birth to the Technopark which is a Strategic Business Unit
(SBU) of the university.

Students from the department of Electronic Engineering have worked on control engineering-based,
power engineering-based and communication engineering-based research projects. The vast majority
have been embedded systems designed to solve real life problems. The Technopark has been doing
various activities to ensure that this kind of research output is exploited.

The mandate of the Technopark is to interface between the research efforts of the University
Community on one hand and the private and public enterprise sectors in the country on the other
hand. As the SBU of NUST the Technopark has tried since its inception to carry out its mandate amid
with very little success.

The Technopark has been monitoring the research being done by the department with the view of
commercialising the output. In addition the Technopark has been trying to get the industry to come on
board and support research work. It has made efforts to utilise the Intellectual Properties generated at
the University. Secondly the Technopark has been managing the Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)
of the researchers at NUST. Thirdly it has made efforts to facilitate the transfer of technology through
licensing the technology to business organizations and communities in the country. Finally it has
sought to incubate start-up ventures of research output from the science and engineering department.
Hai Embedded Systems operated from NUST for many years, manufacturing locally designed
electronic products, and it tapped into the knowledge of the students to develop and build its product
line for the market.

The study revealed that the Technopark has made efforts to enhance the exploitation of the research
output though with limited success in many regards.

IV FINDINGS

The secondary aim of the study was to trace back and find out what was done with the research output
of the projects included in the research sample beyond the graduation of the different researchers. The
findings were meant to point out if the research output was being utilised effectively by the university.

Out of the 22 sampled cases, the study indicated that none of the cases under study has been
developed and adopted in any sector of the economy over the years. However cases 1PR11, 3PR11,
1PR12, 1PR13 & 5PR13 generated interest in potential investors when they were showcased at
various expos which include the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF), the Research and
Intellectual (RIE) Expo and the Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) Expo. The study further
underlined that beyond the supposed interest nothing came out of the projects as far as further
development and commercialisation of the ideas goes.

Notably case 1PR07 is still being developed and modified by the designer out of interest. The
designer is now based in Switzerland. Among the researcher included in the sample none of them has
been retained by the university to pursue further research.

V HINDRANCES TO THE EXPLOITATION OF RESEARCH OUTPUT

The Technopark at NUST has been trying to encourage collaborative research and foster partnerships
with Industry, Commerce and the Communities on the other hand so as to create opportunities for
developing and sharing knowledge, know-how, skills and experiences; resulting in tangible benefits
that are shared equitably by all the stakeholders. Despite their best efforts coupled with those by the
department of Electronic Engineering the study unearthed several hindrances to the success of these

4
efforts. Price et al [7] point out that even the most promising breakthroughs face very real hurdles as
they struggle to translate into the market where they can make societal impact.

The study revealed that lack of substantial venture capital may be attributed to the failure to exploit
research output from NUST. Insignificant amount of funding of mutually beneficial research by the
industry was cited as a major drawback to the transfer of knowledge from the university to the
communities in the form of finished products or processes. Closely tied with this is the issue of
funding within the university that goes towards developing „proof of concepts‟ into finished products.
NUST has a budget towards the commercialisation of innovations through its Technopark wing
however „this crucial stage of the innovation process has been greatly underfunded to date‟, assets
Agrawal et al [8].

The Southern Eye newspapaper of 30 August 2013, reported that “Bulawayo industry is currently on
its knees. Eighty-four companies closed shop last year, while a total of 64 companies are reported to
be on the verge of collapse.” [9] This means that there is hardly any money that companies can channel
towards funding Research and Development in institutions such as universities. According to Jensen
[10]
, the levels of industrial and government funding has a direct bearing on the quality of the
engineering faculty. Hence the collapse of the industry in Bulawayo may be cited as a contributing
factor to the failure of the university to exploit research output. Closely related to the lack of funding
is the fact that venture capitalists are more likely to invest in institutions referred to them by their
colleagues or that are founded by people that they know.

Lack of awareness by the researchers was also cited as another reason why hardly anything is done
with the research output from the department. This means that the researcher may not be aware of the
potential impact of their design in industry and the community and hence they may not bother getting
IPRs for their designs. The few that decide to pursue the commercialisation of their research output
often face convoluted procedures with insufficient guidance to commercialise their innovations. On
the other hand students may be reluctant to allow the Technopark to process IPR on their behalf
because then the university also has part-ownership of the IPR. Hence students finish their
programmes and leave the university.

The study showed that another challenge to the successful exploitation of research output stems from
the fragmentation of departments that conduct and support research at the university. This implies that
the department of Electronic Engineering is conducting its own research more or less in isolation from
all the other departments, whereas collaboration with other departments such as Environmental
Science, Biology and Physics to name a few would enhance the chances of luring funding of a large
scale project targeted at meeting people needs. For instance a project to install a solar power plant in
some remote area will bring together different departments and since it is in line with Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs), such a collaborative project can attract funding and its output will be
there for all to see.

Generally African markets are sceptical of „home-made‟ technologies and this tends to discourage the
desire to establish start-up companies out of the research output. Instead students conduct research,
get their degree and leave the university to find employment elsewhere and forget about the research.
Consequently there is no continuity of research.

University policies are a contributing factor towards the failure to exploit research output. Policies are
vital for safeguarding the interests of the university and its community, however in some cases some
policies have dealt a major blow in the quest to getting funding that would avail better research
equipment and thus better and more polished research output. One thorny issue is that of the
distribution of royalty rates between investors, the university and the researcher. This tends to
influence the propensity of entrepreneurs to firms to exploit university inventions. Secondly the
department has had challenges finalising offers by some well-wishers to setup state of the art
laboratories in the university for the benefit of research and this failure can be attributed to policies.

5
Audretsch [5] assets that faculty members who have spent their entire professional lives as students or
employees of academic institutions do not understand the industrial world well enough to build
effective cooperative relationships (walk in each other‟s shoes). Inferring from this assertion, this
could be the reason why the department struggles to strike buy-in from industry. While conversely the
profit-orientation of business people may make it difficult for industry-university relations to thrive.

According to Jensen et al [11], inventions may require two or more years of further development before
a commercial product will emerge. For established firms trying to licence such early-stage inventions,
there is considerable uncertainty over the feasibility of an invention. This “technological uncertainty”
can deter established firms from licencing early-stage inventions. Add onto this uncertainty the fact
that most the industry is struggling to break even, this renders it better to import solutions and ignore
funding locally developed solutions.

The discussion of the hindrances brings to the fore issues that need to be tackled to have a way
forward.

VI KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER ROUTES

Knowledge from the university can be transferred to other stakeholders via a number of routes. These
could include producing graduates for industry, consultancy and of primary importance is working in
collaboration with industry and the community in research to generate output that solves the problems
in society. The Utah Economic and Business Review journal summarises this as follows; the
commercialization of research can take many forms, including licensing technologies to established
firms, university-industry research partnerships, and the creation of new companies formed around
technologies developed at the university. Such collaborations and efforts translate to economic value
when new concepts become prototypes for new products [12]. Meanwhile since the 1990ies, ETH
Zurich (Switzerland) has been supporting the foundation of companies based on its research results.
The objective is to push such research results into marketable products and to create qualified jobs [13].
In 2013 ETH has 38 electronic and electrically oriented start-up companies.

A study conducted by the Office of Research at Cornell University puts forward that a university can
accelerate the economic and societal impact of research by creating and nurturing relationships with
existing business entities and start-up companies. The relationships can take many forms such as
creating or inventing IP that it licences to the business entity. Secondly the university can originate or
take a financial interest in a start-up company that utilises its IP. Additionally university staff can
consult or serve on advisory boards of the licencee. Lastly the study suggests that the university can
receive funding from the licencee to advance knowledge in areas related to that of the original IP or in
new areas of research [14].

According to the BiGGAR Economics it all starts with identifying sponsors and commercial partners
for research projects and then licencing the new technologies developed by university researchers [15].
The BiGGAR Economics states that one of the main ways in which research activity is translated into
economic activity is when new spin-out or start-up businesses are created in order to exploit research
outputs commercially. Lowe [16] concurs that start-ups are an important vehicle for moving technology
out of the university lab and into commercial development. Garner et al [17] define a start-up as an
enterprise created by people outside the research institution. A start-up they say is built on a licence
for one or more technologies but draws its other resources elsewhere. While according to them, a
spin-out is created when an institution invests its own resources to ideate and incubate the company
up through the first round of venture capital investment.

There is widespread consensus that a bad economy is a good financial climate for a start-up [18].
Cashman [18] suggests that start-ups create employment opportunities in a non-hiring economy
especially for recent graduates. Secondly he states that start-up groom well-rounded professionals.
Working in a small team encourages the individuals to multitask, learn and gain an appreciation of
role played by their colleagues.

6
Cashman [18] continues to propose that start-ups result in a healthier economy and a more varied
market. Since Zimbabwe is coming from an economic meltdown, an influx of new ideas from
university research and subsequently products will present numerous investment options and thus
entice the injection of capital into the economy. Between 1980 and 1999, university start-ups in the
United States created $33.5 billion in economic value, at an average of $10 million per start-up [9].
This highlights the untapped potential of economic growth that Zimbabwe has in universities.

Cashman [18] also puts forward that the start-up route fuels the local economy. Start-ups become
involved in the communities in which they operate. Start-up companies at NUST will go a long way
in boosting the Bulawayo economy as well as the national economy ultimately. In his last assertion,
Cashman [18] argues that start-ups are the future of big business. This is evidenced by companies such
as Google, Facebook etc.

Licencing technologies to established firms is another route for exploiting research output [12].
Research activity is translated into economic activity through licencing agreements between the
university and industry. Companies pay royalties or licence fees in exchange for the right to use a
particular patented technology or other type of IPR to generate additional sales, reduce costs or
improve their profitability [15].

Two other routes for knowledge transfer which are less capital intensive are providing industry with
access to academic expertise (consultancy) and encouraging companies to locate in the university.
The university can be used as a „Proof of concept‟ centre in which the research is done to show the
possibility of realising an electronic solution to a problem and to complement this effort the university
can create university incubators and science parks. The UKBI (UK Business Incubation) defines
„Incubation‟ as a unique and highly flexible combination of business development processes,
infrastructure and people, designed to nurture and grow new and small businesses by supporting them
through early stages of development and change. Meanwhile the Intenational Association of Science
Parks (IASP) shows that a science park manages the flow of knowledge and technology amongst
universities, R&D institutions, companies and markets; it facilitates the creation and growth of
innovation-based companies through incubation and spin-off processes; and provides other value-
added services together with high quality space and facilities. Incubators are a subset of the science
parks.

Findings from a study undertaken in 2010, revealed that research activities at the University of
Edinburgh contributed around £414.2 million Gross Value Added (GVA) to the Scottish economy
each year and supported 8,182 jobs [15]. Research conducted in Scotland, reveals that an alternative
method of driving the economy through research output is through licensing agreements between the
University and industry. Licence agreements give companies the legal right to use a particular
patented technology or concept to generate additional sales, reduce costs or otherwise improve their
profitability. In return, companies pay the University royalties or licence fees [19].

Figure 2 Interactions among stakeholders. Lalkaka (2001)

7
According to Lalkaka [19], the success of knowledge transfer hinges on five inter-linked rings of
stakeholders, namely the government (public policy), the university (knowledge base), business
(private sector partnerships), professional networking and community involvement. Community
engagement can take the form of project selection, mentoring, and industry and investor connections.
[20]
.

VII RECOMMENDATIONS

Following the discussion above, it is apparent that to successfully exploit research output the
university through the Technopark needs to deliberately engage all stakeholders within and without
the university. In addition inter-disciplinary research must be promoted because collaboration tends to
attract funding. University-industry research partnerships will assist in luring funding and getting
companies to exploit research output. Hence the department must have Industry Advisory Board
meetings with key personnel from the different sectors of industry to strengthen these bilateral
relations.

In order to come up with research output that produces socially relevant solutions and facilitates
knowledge transfer, members of staff in the department of Electronic Engineering must take
responsibility for suggesting research ideas or topics to students. In so doing they ensure that most of
the research being conducted appeals to the immediate community of NUST, the society at large and
industry. As a preliminary but important step, inspiring hi-tech entrepreneurial ventures and teaching
the start-up process may go a long way in instilling a culture among researchers of pursuing their
research beyond the „proof of concept‟ stage.

The research being done in the department must primarily aim for reverse engineering to solve
prevalent problems and secondarily, novelty if achieved would be a plus. The university must have a
deliberate plan to absorb students who excel in research work so that there is continuity until
economic benefits are obtained from the initial „proof of concept‟.

VIII CONCLUSION

In summary the study and related research reveals the countries that have invested immensely in
exploiting research output have witnessed both short term and long term benefits in the creation of
wealth and economic growth. Deliberate plans and strategies must be formulated and implemented to
ensure that the different routes of knowledge transfer are used to augment the economic recovery
program of the nation. It may appear like the commercialisation of such research output will render
some people unemployed for instance the „unmanned petrol pump‟, however on the contrary more
people will be employed if this „proof of concept‟ is developed further and goes into production.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Many thanks to Mrs M.B. Nleya, Mr Fidelis Nhenga-Mugarisanwa, Professor Londiwe Nkiwane and
Mr Aleck Ncube for their support and cooperation during the gathering of information.

8
 REFERENCES

[1] J. Bercovitz and M. Feldman. Entrepreneurial Universities and Technology Transfer: A

Conceptual Framework for understanding knowledge-based economic development. The
Journal of Technology Transfer, 2006, 31 (1), p175-188
[2] The Zimbabwe Situation. Whereto after multi-currency? [Online] Available from:
http://www.zimbabwesituation.org/?p=15105 [Accessed 5 June 2013]
[3] UNDP Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe Recovery on Course But Challenges Remain, Say Experts. [Online]
Available from: http://www.undp.org.zw/news/132-zimbabwe-recovery-on-course-but-
challenges-remain-say-experts [Accessed 5 June 2013]
[4] C.N. Umutoni. Zimbabwe Recovery on Course But Challenges Remain, Say Experts. Brown
Bag Dialogue Series, 2012, 1(1)
[5] D.B. Audretsch, M. Keilbach and E. Lehmann. Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth. New
York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
[6] D.A. Hodges. Industry-University Cooperation, and the emergence of start-up companies.
University of California, Berkeley, USA.
[7] S.C. Price and P. Z. Sobocinski. Gap funding in the USA and Canada. Industry and Higher
Education, 2002, 16 (6), p387-392.
[8] A. Agrawal and R. Henderson. Putting patents in context: exploring knowledge transfer from
MIT. Management Science, 2002, 48 (1), p44–60.
[9] Southern Eye. Zimtrade targets Bulawayo firms. [Online] Available from:
http://www.southerneye.co.zw/2013/08/30/zimtrade-targets-bulawayo-firms/ [Accessed 12
August 2013]
[10] R. Jensen. Startup firms from research in US universities. University of Notre Dame, USA,
2009.
[11] R. Jensen and M. Thursby. Proofs and prototypes for sale: The licensing of university
inventions. American Economic Review, 2001, 91, p240-259.
[12] J.E. Crispin. The Economic Impact of Start-up Companies and Invention Licensees
Originating from Research at the University of Utah. Utah Economic and Business Review,
2010, 70 (4).
[13] ETH Transfer. Spin-off - Foundations. [Online] Available from:
http://www.vpf.ethz.ch/transfer/firmgruend/index_EN [Accessed 17 June 2013]
[14] Office of Research. Guidelines for Addressing Potential Conflicts of Interest and
Commitment in Faculty/Staff Involvement in Start-up Companies. Cornell University
[15] BiGGAR Economics. Economic Impact of the University of Edinburgh’s Commercialisation
Activity. Report: 29th May 2012
[16] R.A. Lowe. The role and experience of Investors and start-ups in commercialising
university research: Case studies at the University of California. Research & Occassional
Paper Series: CSHE, 6 (02), 2002.
[17] C. Garner and P. Ternouth. New companies to commercialise IP: Should you Spin-out or
Start-up? Handbook of best practices. MIHR, Oxford, UK, 2007.
[18] A. Cashman. Why Start-ups are good for the economy. [Online] Available from:
http://www.deskmag.com/en/why-start-ups-are-good-for-the-economy-coworking-spaces-374
[Accessed 18 June 2013]
[19] R. Lalkaka. ‘Best Practices’ in Business Incubation: Lessons (yet to be) Learned.
International Conference on Business Centers: Actors for Economic & Social Development,
Brussels, 14 – 15 November 2001.
[20] K.Z. Holly. IMPACT: Innovation Model Program for Accelerating the Commercialization of
Technologies. University of Southern California
[21] F. Dietrich, H. Fiedler and P. Nagy. The concept of business incubators and innovation
centres. ICECE-Focus, Vol. 1, Berlin, 1996.
[22] C.A. Gulbranson and D.B. Audretsch. Proof of concept centers: Accelerating the
commercialisation of University innovation. Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, 2008.

View publication stats