The knowledge base for product development The ability of a company to build a knowledge core and continuously create new nowledge is critical to the success of product development. There are four areas where knowledge is needed for product development the different cultures of the world their needs wants and attitudes. and how they can assimilate and absorb new products basic knowledge and skills of present raw material production and food processIng high technological knowledge and problem-solving skills to develop new technolo Basically this is applying the total technology concept to food product development- society, company environment, company resources, knowledge organisation, techniques and the practice of product development. Management selects and integrates the knowledge in the company, and provides the conditions for knowledge to be created. There has to be a communications system in the company so that knowledge spreads and grows throughout the company Knowledge is dynamic, causing change. It is important to recognise that knowledge is not just information and databases, but it is part of the active development in the company in organising the present system and activities, and also in developing new systems and activities. Information can be the basis for revealing and creating knowledge, but knowledge is in people-in their heads, in their problem-solving skills. It is in their understanding of the interaction between technology and society and also of the specific interactions of the consumer and the product, the worker and the processing plant, the salespe erson ai outlet, the cook and the kitchen, and so on
The ability of a company to build a knowledge core and continuously create new knowledge is critical to the success of product development. There are four areas where knowledge is needed for product development: • the different cultures of the world, their needs, wants and attitudes, and how they can assimilate and absorb new products; • basic knowledge and skills of present raw material production and food processing; • high technological knowledge and problem-solving skills to develop new technologies; • product development systems and organisation. Basically this is applying the total technology concept to food product development – society, company environment, company resources, knowledge, organisation, techniques and the practice of product development. Management selects and integrates the knowledge in the company, and provides the conditions for knowledge to be created. There has to be a communications system in the company so that knowledge spreads and grows throughout the company. Knowledge is dynamic, causing change. It is important to recognise that knowledge is not just information and databases, but it is part of the active development in the company in organising the present system and activities, and also in developing new systems and activities. Information can be the basis for revealing and creating knowledge, but knowledge is in people – in their heads, in their problem-solving skills. It is in their understanding of the interaction between technology and society and also of the specific interactions of the consumer and the product, the worker and the processing plant, the salesperson and the retail outlet, the cook and the kitchen, and so on. 4 The knowledge base for product development
150 Food product development Knowledge causes change; information is the basis of change. Today, there is increasing emphasis of this being a knowledge society,, as if knowledge is something new. Knowledge has been around for a long time; there are periods when it increases and sometimes. as in the dark Ages, when it seemed to lose ground. What is different at the beginning of the new millennium is that communication between people has been made much easier; and communication does increase knowledge if the information is absorbed and used in the minds of people. But what does this increasing interchange mean to the food industry? 4.1 Technology, knowledge and the food system Technology takes knowledge and creates products, processes and services for the use of people. At the heart of technology lies the ability to recognise a human need or desire(actual or potential) and then to devise a means- an invention or a new design-to satisfy it economically. Having done so, the model or prototype has to be scaled up and adapted to become a marketable item. The process of turning the full-scale product into something that satisfies market requirements of safety, cost/profit effectiveness and customer acceptance is a difficult one (Cardwell, 1994). A company not only has to have a store of knowledge but it ha to create knowledge during the development of the product, process and service It also has to connect different types of knowledge during the development technological, commercial and organisational. After the development, it has not only transformed the knowledge into practical applications but it has increased its own store of knowledge by the knowledge it has created Two types of knowledge are recognised disembodied(before and during development)and embodied(after development). The disembodied knowledge goes eventually to the embodied product in product development Disembodied knowledge Disembodied innovative activities Embodied product That is. Tacit knowledge in people's heads Explicit (codified) knowledge in records → Knowledge creation in PD Process→ New product There are four important areas of disembodied and embodied knowledge technology, technological change, innovative activities and technological indicators that are important for product development(Evangelista, 1999),as shown in Table 4.1. A company has a stock of technological knowledge, and then generates more knowledge during its innovative activities to produce productive assets, including products, plants and marketing systems In product development, as in all engineering and design, there is a major use of the knowledge that is in people's heads from their education and more importantly from their experience called either tacit(as used in this book)or embedded knowledge. There is also use of recorded knowledge in reports
Knowledge causes change; information is the basis of change. Today, there is increasing emphasis of this being a ‘knowledge society’, as if knowledge is something new. Knowledge has been around for a long time; there are periods when it increases and sometimes, as in the Dark Ages, when it seemed to lose ground. What is different at the beginning of the new millennium is that communication between people has been made much easier; and communication does increase knowledge if the information is absorbed and used in the minds of people. But what does this increasing interchange mean to the food industry? 4.1 Technology, knowledge and the food system Technology takes knowledge and creates products, processes and services for the use of people. At the heart of technology lies the ability to recognise a human need or desire (actual or potential) and then to devise a means – an invention or a new design – to satisfy it economically. Having done so, the model or prototype has to be scaled up and adapted to become a marketable item. The process of turning the full-scale product into something that satisfies market requirements of safety, cost/profit effectiveness and customer acceptance is a difficult one (Cardwell, 1994). A company not only has to have a store of knowledge but it has to create knowledge during the development of the product, process and service. It also has to connect different types of knowledge during the development – technological, commercial and organisational. After the development, it has not only transformed the knowledge into practical applications but it has increased its own store of knowledge by the knowledge it has created. Two types of knowledge are recognised – disembodied (before and during development) and embodied (after development). The disembodied knowledge goes eventually to the embodied product in product development: Disembodied knowledge Disembodied innovative activities Embodied product That is: Tacit knowledge in people’s heads + Explicit (codified) knowledge in records Knowledge creation in PD Process New product There are four important areas of disembodied and embodied knowledge: technology, technological change, innovative activities and technological indicators that are important for product development (Evangelista, 1999), as shown in Table 4.1. A company has a stock of technological knowledge, and then generates more knowledge during its innovative activities to produce productive assets, including products, plants and marketing systems. In product development, as in all engineering and design, there is a major use of the knowledge that is in people’s heads from their education and more importantly from their experience – called either tacit (as used in this book) or embedded knowledge. There is also use of recorded knowledge in reports, 150 Food product development
The knowledge base for product development 151 Table 4.1 Concepts of technology Disembodied Disembodied technology: stock of technological knowledge both embodied in people and Disembodied innovative activities: activities carried out at the firm level to generate or Disembodied technological indicators: R&D expenditures and personnel, design and engineering activities, patent and licence counts, technology flows measured by the technological balance of payments and bibliometric data technological mbodied technological change: accumulation of new technical assets(machinery, quipment, plant and operating systems) ies consisting of the new productive assets with enhanced technical and technological performances compared mbodied technological and innovative indicators: investment in new mach measuring the adoption and diffusion of embodied technologies Source: From Evangelista, 1999, by permission of Rinaldo Evangelista and Edward Elgar Publishing textbooks and journals, called either explicit(as used in this book) or codified knowledge 4.1.1 Knowledge in the food system In a study of the Italian industry, Evangelista(1999)placed the food and drink industries in the investment intensive sector. The other sectors were R&D/investment intensive R&d(research and development) and d&e (design and engineering) technology users In his investment intensive sector, investment activities play an important role, while research, development, design and engineering play marginal roles Process innovations are very common and innovation performance is linked to investment in technologically new machinery and equipment. Other processing ndustries. chemicals and sugar in the investment intensive sector and pharmaceuticals in the r&D/investment intensive sector had higher research, development, design and engineering activities. Pharmaceuticals had high r&D and d&e expenditures accompanied by medium or high levels of investment in machinery, innovation being clearly oriented towards the introduction of product innovations. Comparing companies in Europe in Table 4.2, this greater emphasis
textbooks and journals, called either explicit (as used in this book) or codified knowledge. 4.1.1 Knowledge in the food system In a study of the Italian industry, Evangelista (1999) placed the food and drink industries in the investment intensive sector. The other sectors were: • R&D/investment intensive; • R&D (research and development) and D&E (design and engineering) innovators; • technology users. In his investment intensive sector, investment activities play an important role, while research, development, design and engineering play marginal roles. Process innovations are very common and innovation performance is linked to investment in technologically new machinery and equipment. Other processing industries, chemicals and sugar in the investment intensive sector and pharmaceuticals in the R&D/investment intensive sector had higher research, development, design and engineering activities. Pharmaceuticals had high R&D and D&E expenditures accompanied by medium or high levels of investment in machinery, innovation being clearly oriented towards the introduction of product innovations. Comparing companies in Europe in Table 4.2, this greater emphasis Table 4.1 Concepts of technology Disembodied Disembodied technology: stock of technological knowledge both embodied in people and expressed in a codified form. Disembodied technological change: process of advancing technological knowledge. Disembodied innovative activities: activities carried out at the firm level to generate or develop new technological knowledge. Disembodied technological indicators: R&D expenditures and personnel, design and engineering activities, patent and licence counts, technology flows measured by the technological balance of payments and bibliometric data. Embodied Embodied technology: stock of technological productive assets consisting of machinery, equipment, plant and operating systems (both tangible and intangible). Embodied technological change: accumulation of new technical assets (machinery, equipment, plant and operating systems). Embodied innovative activities: innovative activities consisting of the use or adoption of new productive assets with enhanced technical and technological performances compared with those used before. Embodied technological and innovative indicators: investment in new machinery, equipment and plant incorporating new (or not yet used) technologies; indicators measuring the adoption and diffusion of embodied technologies. Source: From Evangelista, 1999, by permission of Rinaldo Evangelista and Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd. The knowledge base for product development 151
152 Food product development Table 4.2 Product and process innovations in European companies Percentage of firms introducing Product Product and process Innovation Innovation Mechanical 91.6 Food drink 63.9 tobacco Source: From Evangelista, 1999, by permission of Rinaldo Evangelista and Edward Elgar Publishin on process innovation in the food industry was clearly shown(Evangelista, 1999) One recognises that food manufacturing is essentially a supplier-dominated industry with ingredients from the chemical industry and large food ingredients processors and equipment from mechanical/electrical manufacturers. Knowl- edge is bought in by food manufacturers from the suppliers, there is often less creation of knowledge than in the supplier industries(Hood et al, 1995). This knowledge generation and transfer is emphasised at the food congresses where a large number of suppliers not only exhibit their products and equipment but also give or sponsor many of the papers at the meeting. An interesting recent example demonstrating the limitations of product development when relying heavily on outside sources of technology was shown by Martinez and Burns (1999) when studying the Spanish food and drink industry. They found product technology was predominantly in-house generated, process technology com- bined internal development with external acquisition mainly from equipment suppliers. Purchase of equipment emerged as the main source of external technology acquisition as opposed to information gathering procedures. This eliance on externally generated technological developments had brought about low levels of technological independence in general and process technology in particular. The importance of in-house technological capabilities in product and process innovation, indicates the problems in product development a company and indeed an industry faces if it relies largely on external sources as opposed to internal developments. Is it time for food manufacturing to include more R&D and D&e in product development so as to produce a more sophisticated technological content in consumer food products? The food manufacturing industry is probably never going to be a high technological industry but there is a need for a different balance between R&d, d&E and capital investment in plant as these are joint determinants of the performance of companies. Wallace and Schroder(1997) made the following statement which the management of food industry development might ponder:
on process innovation in the food industry was clearly shown (Evangelista, 1999). One recognises that food manufacturing is essentially a supplier-dominated industry with ingredients from the chemical industry and large food ingredients processors and equipment from mechanical/electrical manufacturers. Knowledge is bought in by food manufacturers from the suppliers, there is often less creation of knowledge than in the supplier industries (Hood et al., 1995). This knowledge generation and transfer is emphasised at the food congresses where a large number of suppliers not only exhibit their products and equipment but also give or sponsor many of the papers at the meeting. An interesting recent example demonstrating the limitations of product development when relying heavily on outside sources of technology was shown by Martinez and Burns (1999) when studying the Spanish food and drink industry. They found product technology was predominantly in-house generated, process technology combined internal development with external acquisition mainly from equipment suppliers. Purchase of equipment emerged as the main source of external technology acquisition as opposed to information gathering procedures. This reliance on externally generated technological developments had brought about low levels of technological independence in general and process technology in particular. The importance of in-house technological capabilities in product and process innovation, indicates the problems in product development a company and indeed an industry faces if it relies largely on external sources as opposed to internal developments. Is it time for food manufacturing to include more R&D and D&E in product development so as to produce a more sophisticated technological content in consumer food products? The food manufacturing industry is probably never going to be a high technological industry but there is a need for a different balance between R&D, D&E and capital investment in plant as these are joint determinants of the performance of companies. Wallace and Schroder (1997) made the following statement which the management of food industry development might ponder: Table 4.2 Product and process innovations in European companies Percentage of firms introducing Product Process Product and process innovation innovation innovation Mechanical 92.8 69.8 62.6 machinery Chemicals 91.6 75.5 67.1 Food, drink 70.3 93.6 63.9 & tobacco Source: From Evangelista, 1999, by permission of Rinaldo Evangelista and Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd. 152 Food product development
The knowledge base for product development 153 Research and development in the food industry is a well-recognised case of market failure with its private costs and benefits differing from its so- cial ones. The end result is an under-investment in R&d by private firms and attempts to justify government supporting it. The question is how to solve this dilemma In the meantime, increasing masses of scien- tific and technical information and analysis are being super-imposed on a world wide background of rapid legal, political and social change Organisations can be grouped as functional, processed-based and societal knowledge-based. This means that a compal be based departments such as marketing, production; or it can be an integrated technological entity, or lastly it can be a technological entity integrated into ociety.Is the food industry, which has been mainly functional, moving towards an integrated technological organisation with management based on societal knowledge? If so, the knowledge needed in the industry will have to increase exponentially 4.1.2 Creation and movement of knowledge in the food system The passing of knowledge between suppliers and food manufacturers emphasises that one cannot think of a part of the food industry by itself. In knowledge creation, each part of the food system is affecting knowledge in another part. In primary production, knowledge creation has been very much government-financed and often government-led. In early years, farming and fishing were essential for the production of food for the population, and were often the occupations of many individuals and families. Governments therefore elt that R&D in food production was their social responsibility. Today scientists in private and publicly managed agencies do significant basic and applied research. Governments are still funding agricultural research from government revenues and often organise agricultural research. For example in the United States, the US Department of Agriculture is still a major player in agricultural research and State governments are also involved. Internationally, there are also United Nations organisations and other world governmental agencies funding and organising agricultural research. The roles of the different public agencies and private firms are intertwined in complex ways(Alston et al, 1997) Surprisingly, research for the fishing industry has never been so extensively government funded, and one might think that the over-fishing and lowering of ish stocks has been due to lack of knowledge as much as human greed. Distribution research has also been an area of government research for many years because of the need to store and transport food to urban areas, and internationally. So knowledge increase in the food system is still dependent on governmental funding and support, except for the food ingredient processing and onsumer product manufacturing which have been among the low spenders on R&d related to sales among the industries based on process eng may be due to its only recent emergence as a science-based industry, the
Research and development in the food industry is a well-recognised case of market failure with its private costs and benefits differing from its social ones. The end result is an under-investment in R&D by private firms and attempts to justify government supporting it. The question is how to solve this dilemma. In the meantime, increasing masses of scientific and technical information and analysis are being super-imposed on a world wide background of rapid legal, political and social change. Organisations can be grouped as functional, processed-based and societal knowledge-based. This means that a company can be based on functional departments such as marketing, production; or it can be an integrated technological entity; or lastly it can be a technological entity integrated into society. Is the food industry, which has been mainly functional, moving towards an integrated technological organisation with management based on societal knowledge? If so, the knowledge needed in the industry will have to increase exponentially. 4.1.2 Creation and movement of knowledge in the food system The passing of knowledge between suppliers and food manufacturers emphasises that one cannot think of a part of the food industry by itself. In knowledge creation, each part of the food system is affecting knowledge in another part. In primary production, knowledge creation has been very much government-financed and often government-led. In early years, farming and fishing were essential for the production of food for the population, and were often the occupations of many individuals and families. Governments therefore felt that R&D in food production was their social responsibility. Today scientists in private and publicly managed agencies do significant basic and applied research. Governments are still funding agricultural research from government revenues and often organise agricultural research. For example in the United States, the US Department of Agriculture is still a major player in agricultural research and State governments are also involved. Internationally, there are also United Nations organisations and other world governmental agencies funding and organising agricultural research. The roles of the different public agencies and private firms are intertwined in complex ways (Alston et al., 1997). Surprisingly, research for the fishing industry has never been so extensively government funded, and one might think that the over-fishing and lowering of fish stocks has been due to lack of knowledge as much as human greed. Distribution research has also been an area of government research for many years because of the need to store and transport food to urban areas, and internationally. So knowledge increase in the food system is still dependent on governmental funding and support, except for the food ingredient processing and consumer product manufacturing which have been among the low spenders on R&D related to sales among the industries based on process engineering. This may be due to its only recent emergence as a science-based industry, the The knowledge base for product development 153
154 Food product development Government-funded research Direct access Direct access Knowledge ConsarmeT con allies gradient Information storage Knowledge to use directly (raries, information systeme (strategie an Fig. 4.1 Information and knowledge in the food company from outside r&D marketing domination in many food companies, the difficulty of controlling intellectual property in the food industry, and the small margins on which the food industry works(Earle and Earle, 1997). Much of the knowledge in the food manufacturing company has been created in incremental product development, which unfortunately has often not been recorded so it is not an explicit knowledge base for future product development. Much of the private knowledge in the food industry is in the large multinational companies, and tends not to go into the public arena even for the teaching of students in food science/food technology/food engineering Knowledge for product development in the company can be acquired from outside r&D. It is important to identify the direct access to knowledge and also the indirect access through information as shown in Fig. 4.1. Many government agencies provide information in reports, databases and published papers, which can be developed into useful knowledge by the company. This information can be stored in libraries or other information storage facilities and on the Internet But the company can also work directly with government research agencies consultants, ingredients/equipment suppliers, and consumer research companies to develop specific knowledge for the company
marketing domination in many food companies, the difficulty of controlling intellectual property in the food industry, and the small margins on which the food industry works (Earle and Earle, 1997). Much of the knowledge in the food manufacturing company has been created in incremental product development, which unfortunately has often not been recorded so it is not an explicit knowledge base for future product development. Much of the private knowledge in the food industry is in the large multinational companies, and tends not to go into the public arena even for the teaching of students in food science/food technology/food engineering. Knowledge for product development in the company can be acquired from outside R&D. It is important to identify the direct access to knowledge and also the indirect access through information as shown in Fig. 4.1. Many government agencies provide information in reports, databases and published papers, which can be developed into useful knowledge by the company. This information can be stored in libraries or other information storage facilities and on the Internet. But the company can also work directly with government research agencies, consultants, ingredients/equipment suppliers, and consumer research companies, to develop specific knowledge for the company. Fig. 4.1 Information and knowledge in the food company from outside R&D. 154 Food product development
The knowledge base for product development 155 It is important to recognise the science and technology information tracks so that they can be tapped into as problems arise in product development Research in industry is focused primarily on advancing technology to fulfil changing consumers'needs, whereas in universities and in many research institutes it is focused primarily on advancing either science or generic technology(Betz, 1998). In the science track, the knowledge is published in peer-reviewed journals and is eventually summarised in textbooks and taught to students although with modern funding in universities a significant amount of the knowledge is not published but is transferred directly and exclusively to the sponsors of the research. From an understanding of the current state of scientific knowledge, researchers in engineering and technology advance the knowledge in their disciplines by research on the basics of the technologies. This basic technological knowledge is published and taught to the next generation of engineers and technologists, and transmitted to their counterparts in industry in conferences and journals. In the early years of a new technology, a company works mostly with knowledge discovered during the industrial development Gradually technological knowledge sources are built up and these can be used in later development projects. A combined knowledge of the food system, and in particular the company's segment of it, is built up over the years by the companys R&D and its experience in marketing, production, distribution and engineering. This is the basis for future product development The company also looks for knowledge from its competitors, by studying their actions and products in the marketplace and their production, raw materials and processing. Most industries work from a similar technological base; 80% of the knowledge is known by everyone, maybe even more. In product development it is the extra 10-20% knowledge that makes the competitive edge, but the company also needs to have the capability to use fully the basic knowledge The company is creating knowledge along the whole system from the initial R&d to the final outcomes of the product in the market(Quinn, 1992)as shown in Fig. 4.2. Knowledge is being created and then extended in the next stage Long-term Sources Sources undamental research Development Product developmen rategic research Engineering Improved products, services Shareholder value Understanding Community value Company knowledge ban Fig. 4.2 Movement of knowledge through the company ( Source: After Quinn, 1992)
It is important to recognise the science and technology information tracks so that they can be tapped into as problems arise in product development. Research in industry is focused primarily on advancing technology to fulfil changing consumers’ needs, whereas in universities and in many research institutes it is focused primarily on advancing either science or generic technology (Betz, 1998). In the science track, the knowledge is published in peer-reviewed journals and is eventually summarised in textbooks and taught to students, although with modern funding in universities a significant amount of the knowledge is not published but is transferred directly and exclusively to the sponsors of the research. From an understanding of the current state of scientific knowledge, researchers in engineering and technology advance the knowledge in their disciplines by research on the basics of the technologies. This basic technological knowledge is published and taught to the next generation of engineers and technologists, and transmitted to their counterparts in industry in conferences and journals. In the early years of a new technology, a company works mostly with knowledge discovered during the industrial development. Gradually technological knowledge sources are built up and these can be used in later development projects. A combined knowledge of the food system, and in particular the company’s segment of it, is built up over the years by the company’s R&D and its experience in marketing, production, distribution and engineering. This is the basis for future product development. The company also looks for knowledge from its competitors, by studying their actions and products in the marketplace and their production, raw materials and processing. Most industries work from a similar technological base; 80% of the knowledge is known by everyone, maybe even more. In product development it is the extra 10–20% knowledge that makes the competitive edge, but the company also needs to have the capability to use fully the basic knowledge. The company is creating knowledge along the whole system from the initial R&D to the final outcomes of the product in the market (Quinn, 1992) as shown in Fig. 4.2. Knowledge is being created and then extended in the next stage Fig. 4.2 Movement of knowledge through the company (Source: After Quinn, 1992). The knowledge base for product development 155
156 Food product development where more knowledge is created. Even at the final stages where the new development has become a commercial reality, there is still knowledge being created about the product, production and marketing. Although there is a clear movement of knowledge from one stage to the next. there also needs to be interconnecting communications of knowledge between all stages so that the new knowledge is shared and the total company knowledge grows. There is also a need to evaluate the use and creation of knowledge in product development usually the embodied knowledge, particularly the product and its success in the marketplace, is used as the indicator of the knowledge achieved in the project Companies have difficulty in relating the knowledge created by fundamental research to the company's final profit. But fundamental research can be evaluated on the new knowledge and understanding that is passed on to product development. Just ask the product developers what it would cost them in the long term if the fundamental or the strategic research disappeared; or if strategic research improved its performance what extra value would that give to development! In the food industry in the past 20 years, R&D has tended to be either dropped or reduced one wonders how the company valued this asset, and how much it cost them to buy in this knowledge in the following years, and how many opportunities were lost. It is important that each knowledge-creating area is evaluated regularly to find which area is performing in creating knowledge that leads successfully to the long-term goals Invention is difficult to place in the knowledge flow because it is based on observation of what is happening maybe in a technology or in the community, unlike science, which is trying to discover new knowledge. Invention is not necessarily limited by the extent of scientific knowledge, inventors rely on their accumulated practical knowledge and their own intuition( Cardwell 1994). Invention requires some conceptual or imaginative creativity. To make an imagined transformation physically real, it also has to have the necessary technology, knowledge and skills. So it is an idea that has come to its time the idea may have been imagined a long time before but cannot be made real unless the various factors are present in people s knowledge and skills litcham, 1994). The concept of invention is the opposite of the incremental change. As well as taking place in an individual's mind over a short period, it can develop in a group through time together, but not substantially through systematic design. It is intuitive or even accidental events that lead to invention. The food industry has in the last 60 years been looking for the magical invention of a major new method of food preservation, but it has not come. There have been many improvements in drying, freezing, chilling and heat sterilisation, but there has not been the invention of a completely new method. Atmospheric control has been the one new preservation method that has gradually grown as packaging technology and inert gas production have improved. Although scientists have been studying it for over 60 years, the scientific knowledge has grown very slowly, but it is now expanding in combination with chilling for long-term storage and transport of vegetables, fruit and meat. Other methods, such as irradiation and the use of gases such as
where more knowledge is created. Even at the final stages where the new development has become a commercial reality, there is still knowledge being created about the product, production and marketing. Although there is a clear movement of knowledge from one stage to the next, there also needs to be interconnecting communications of knowledge between all stages so that the new knowledge is shared and the total company knowledge grows. There is also a need to evaluate the use and creation of knowledge in product development; usually the embodied knowledge, particularly the product and its success in the marketplace, is used as the indicator of the knowledge achieved in the project. Companies have difficulty in relating the knowledge created by fundamental research to the company’s final profit. But fundamental research can be evaluated on the new knowledge and understanding that is passed on to product development. Just ask the product developers what it would cost them in the long term if the fundamental or the strategic research disappeared; or if strategic research improved its performance what extra value would that give to development! In the food industry in the past 20 years, R&D has tended to be either dropped or reduced – one wonders how the company valued this asset, and how much it cost them to buy in this knowledge in the following years, and how many opportunities were lost. It is important that each knowledge-creating area is evaluated regularly to find which area is performing in creating knowledge that leads successfully to the long-term goals. Invention is difficult to place in the knowledge flow because it is based on observation of what is happening maybe in a technology or in the community, unlike science, which is trying to discover new knowledge. Invention is not necessarily limited by the extent of scientific knowledge; inventors rely on their accumulated practical knowledge and their own intuition (Cardwell, 1994). Invention requires some conceptual or imaginative creativity. To make an imagined transformation physically real, it also has to have the necessary technology, knowledge and skills. So it is an idea that has come to its time – the idea may have been imagined a long time before but cannot be made real unless the various factors are present in people’s knowledge and skills (Mitcham, 1994). The concept of invention is the opposite of the incremental change. As well as taking place in an individual’s mind over a short period, it can develop in a group through time together, but not substantially through systematic design. It is intuitive or even accidental events that lead to invention. The food industry has in the last 60 years been looking for the magical invention of a major new method of food preservation, but it has not come. There have been many improvements in drying, freezing, chilling and heat sterilisation, but there has not been the invention of a completely new method. Atmospheric control has been the one new preservation method that has gradually grown as packaging technology and inert gas production have improved. Although scientists have been studying it for over 60 years, the scientific knowledge has grown very slowly, but it is now expanding in combination with chilling for long-term storage and transport of vegetables, fruit and meat. Other methods, such as irradiation and the use of gases such as 156 Food product development
The knowledge base for product development 157 methyl bromide, have been used in food preservation, but they are rather blunt instruments that certainly did not fit with the societal environment Think break Consider your company and its sources of knowledge for product development 1. Identify a new product that has come from an invention inside the company. What knowledge did the company need to bring this invention to a commercial product? 2. Choose a product that is being developed at the present time. Identify the tacit knowledge that was used in the first stage of the product development process, and the people who supplied this tacit knowledge 3. Choose a product that has been launched. Identify the knowledge that was used in the final stages of this product explicit ercialisation and launching 4. Describe how in your company the knowledge created in the product development project is saved as tacit and explicit knowledge for use in future projects. Discuss how the saving of this knowledge might be improved in the 4.2 Knowledge management or knowledge navigation? Technological capabilities in product development consist of the resources needed to generate the technological opportunity and manage the technical ding skills, knowledge and experience, and the institutional structures and linkages. Technological knowledge is usually the most important A large part of technological knowledge in product development has a tacit nature, being incorporated in people skills, competencies and organisations Tacit knowledge is often not codified and is largely company-and indeed often rea-specific, and may be difficult to transfer to explicit knowledge. Learning is often the central method for passing tacit knowledge and building it in the product development team There is also an ever-increasing bank of explicit knowledge used in food product development, from consumer changes to advancing technology, and it is difficult to find all the appropriate knowledge for a specific project. It is not sufficient just to have storage systems for information; there need to be clear paths to find and assess total knowledge in different areas of the company and indeed outside the company Knowledge navigation is a better description than knowledge management; knowledge navigation includes the strategic directions for knowledge as well as the knowledge systems. One of the key roles of top management is to create a culture and environment that is conducive to knowledge capture and knowledge sharing. Management leads the company into strategic directions for knowledge
methyl bromide, have been used in food preservation, but they are rather blunt instruments that certainly did not fit with the societal environment. 4.2 Knowledge management or knowledge navigation? Technological capabilities in product development consist of the resources needed to generate the technological opportunity and manage the technical change, including skills, knowledge and experience, and the institutional structures and linkages. Technological knowledge is usually the most important. A large part of technological knowledge in product development has a tacit nature, being incorporated in people skills, competencies and organisations. Tacit knowledge is often not codified and is largely company- and indeed often area-specific, and may be difficult to transfer to explicit knowledge. Learning is often the central method for passing tacit knowledge and building it in the product development team. There is also an ever-increasing bank of explicit knowledge used in food product development, from consumer changes to advancing technology, and it is difficult to find all the appropriate knowledge for a specific project. It is not sufficient just to have storage systems for information; there need to be clear paths to find and assess total knowledge in different areas of the company and indeed outside the company. Knowledge navigation is a better description than knowledge management; knowledge navigation includes the strategic directions for knowledge as well as the knowledge systems. One of the key roles of top management is to create a culture and environment that is conducive to knowledge capture and knowledge sharing. Management leads the company into strategic directions for knowledge. Think break Consider your company and its sources of knowledge for product development: 1. Identify a new product that has come from an invention inside the company. What knowledge did the company need to bring this invention to a commercial product? 2. Choose a product that is being developed at the present time. Identify the tacit knowledge that was used in the first stage of the product development process, and the people who supplied this tacit knowledge. 3. Choose a product that has been launched. Identify the explicit (codified) knowledge that was used in the final stages of this product commercialisation and launching. 4. Describe how in your company the knowledge created in the product development project is saved as tacit and explicit knowledge for use in future projects. Discuss how the saving of this knowledge might be improved in the future. The knowledge base for product development 157
158 Food product development 4.2.1 Strategic directions for knowledge It is management's role to ensure that there are the technological knowledge and capabilities to fulfil the companys overall innovation strategy and to implement product development strategies for the company. It is important to understand where they have been, where they are at present and where they are going. In the 1990s, there was a spurning of historical knowledge, which ended many times in reinventing the wheel. Today, there is recognition that there is a need to store reasonable percentage of this knowledge in a codified form for the future, because of the much greater turnover of staff and the loss of tacit knowledge. Total quality management introduced much more recording of production and product quality information. Now improved information systems make it much easier to store and retrieve knowledge of formulations and processing differences. Product formula tion is an area where there have been attempts to develop recording systems which an be used in later product development. For example using case-based systems the records of previous formulations- both successful and unsuccessful as a knowledge source with the product properties and their specifications can be retrieved to find a possible formulation for a new product(Row Over the years, this becomes a valuable source of company explicit knowledge hich can lead also to fundamental knowledge in the specific area of the company This is taking the tacit knowledge learned by experience and building it into generally available explicit knowledge Management needs to ensure that there is the needed knowledge in the company for their product development plans to be carried out. But there is al ways the question of how much money should be spent on knowledge in the company both in people's minds and in recorded knowledge how much on people and how much on an information technology system? Then how should this be split between the different stages of the product development project? If one looks at the stages of the product development project and the expenditure of money and man-days Cooper and Kleinschmidt, 1988)in Fig. 4.3, then we could say that the knowledge created is related to the man-days expended in gaining it. Figure 4.3 shows how the expenditure increases as the project goes to commercialisation, but the proportion of man-days spent was greatest in the product design and testing stage. There is a large capital expenditure in the later stages of the PD Process at the latest stages, but it is interesting that in Cooper and Kleinschmidt's study there was not a related increase in knowledge as epitomised in the time spent by people in the project Management needs to study the pattern of knowledge creation by people in product development and decide if it is optimal Management has also to ensure there is sufficient communication in the company to make full use of the present knowledge in the There is always a need to identify the knowledge needed in the future, both short term and in the long term; there may be a need to create new knowledge in the present product development project. In the incremental innovation strategy, this is building a bank of knowledge for future projects. But when innovation is more discontinuous, maybe to a new product platform or a new processing technology, then there is need for a new knowledge base. This can be a difficult
4.2.1 Strategic directions for knowledge It is management’s role to ensure that there are the technological knowledge and capabilities to fulfil the company’s overall innovation strategy and to implement product development strategies for the company. It is important to understand where they have been, where they are at present and where they are going. In the 1990s, there was a spurning of historical knowledge, which ended many times in ‘reinventing the wheel’. Today, there is recognition that there is a need to store a reasonable percentage of this knowledge in a codified form for the future, because of the much greater turnover of staff and the loss of tacit knowledge. Total quality management introduced much more recording of production and product quality information. Now improved information systems make it much easier to store and retrieve knowledge of formulations and processing differences. Product formulation is an area where there have been attempts to develop recording systems which can be used in later product development. For example using case-based systems, the records of previous formulations – both successful and unsuccessful – are used as a knowledge source with the product properties and their specifications, which can be retrieved to find a possible formulation for a new product (Rowe, 2000). Over the years, this becomes a valuable source of company explicit knowledge, which can lead also to fundamental knowledge in the specific area of the company. This is taking the tacit knowledge learned by experience and building it into generally available explicit knowledge. Management needs to ensure that there is the needed knowledge in the company for their product development plans to be carried out. But there is always the question of how much money should be spent on knowledge in the company both in people’s minds and in recorded knowledge – how much on people and how much on an information technology system? Then how should this be split between the different stages of the product development project? If one looks at the stages of the product development project and the expenditure of money and man-days (Cooper and Kleinschmidt, 1988) in Fig. 4.3, then we could say that the knowledge created is related to the man-days expended in gaining it. Figure 4.3 shows how the expenditure increases as the project goes to commercialisation, but the proportion of man-days spent was greatest in the product design and testing stage. There is a large capital expenditure in the later stages of the PD Process at the latest stages, but it is interesting that in Cooper and Kleinschmidt’s study there was not a related increase in knowledge as epitomised in the time spent by people in the project. Management needs to study the pattern of knowledge creation by people in product development and decide if it is optimal. Management has also to ensure there is sufficient communication in the company to make full use of the present knowledge in the company. There is always a need to identify the knowledge needed in the future, both short term and in the long term; there may be a need to create new knowledge in the present product development project. In the incremental innovation strategy, this is building a bank of knowledge for future projects. But when innovation is more discontinuous, maybe to a new product platform or a new processing technology, then there is need for a new knowledge base. This can be a difficult 158 Food product development
