From idea to business - successful construction innovation processes
| Reference number | |
| Coordinator | CHALMERS TEKNISKA HÖGSKOLA AKTIEBOLAG - Institutionen för teknikens ekonomi och organisation |
| Funding from Vinnova | SEK 200 000 |
| Project duration | May 2016 - December 2016 |
| Status | Completed |
Purpose and goal
The purpose has been to identify conditions essential for innovative ideas to be developed into commercial products, services and processes within the field of the built environment. The analysis of projects awarded innovation grants within the Bygginnovationen programme has been intended to emphasize the possibilities for firms to select strategies for initiating and exploiting innovative ideas.
Expected results and effects
Firms that had successfully commercialized their ideas were slightly younger and had slightly more employees than those who had not (yet) been able to reach the market. One fifth of the project ideas had been commercialized, and for most of the remaining projects, development was still going on. The two greatest obstacles to commercialization appear as complexity of the project idea and insufficient market size. Advice given by the Bygginnovationen Business Council was often seen by applicants as helpful, and it was often so that projects were strengthened by new competences.
Planned approach and implementation
Innovation and planning grants for 87 projects through Bygginnovationen were listed and analysed. A workshop with construction sector experts made an in-depth study of documentation related to five representative projects. Results were used for designing a questionnaire sent to 76 grant recipients. Analysis of the 62 responses included reasons for projects not having been commercialized at the time of the survey and also recipient views on the advice given by the Bygginnovationen Business Council.