Centre for Industry and Innovation Studies

Welcome

Welcome to the Centre for Industry and Innovation Studies (CInIS) one of the University of Western Sydney’s eight flagship research centres. The centre is also supported by the College of Business at UWS.

CInIS conducts research and analysis of all aspects of innovation and industry competitiveness in Australia. The Centre contributes to public policy debates relating to industry development strategies both in Australia and internationally and it provides industry with organisation-focused research on innovation and improvement. The primary element of all CInIS research is the analysis of the dynamics of innovation.

Innovation is increasingly being recognised as the key driver of organisational improvement and growth, in all sectors and in both public and private organisations. This has been recognised through both the dramatic increase in research interest in innovation, and through the recent National Innovation Systems (NIS) Review instigated by the recently elected Australian Government through their new Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research.

Overall the research program at CInIS is built around two key themes:

• Research, science and innovation policy, conducted at the level of the economy, and covering issues such as institutional capacity building for knowledge transfer and knowledge based industry and economic development,
• Innovation, technology management and continuous improvement in manufacturing and service sectors, conducted at the level of the organisation, and including issues concerned with performance, entrepreneurship and the maintenance of competitive advantage through environmentally responsible development.

Both of these themes are enacted through a strongly engaged research agenda. Research projects are undertaken in a variety of industry sectors, including the manufacturing, healthcare, information and communication technology (ICT) and education and training sector. Four specific research program areas under these overarching themes categorise the range of individual CInIS research projects undertaken by CInIS members.

More information on the centre’s activities can be found in CInIS 2008 Marketing Material (PDF, 32Kb) prepared by the University’s Marketing Department.

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Areas of Expertise

CInIS has four key program areas, building upon a solid base of prior and continuing research. The following provides a brief description of each program area with examples of current projects taking place in each area.

Innovation Policy - Knowledge based economic and industrial development

This research program examines how universities, industry, business and non-government organisations can more effectively engage and the policies and programs that facilitate higher levels of engagement. It examines the processes for knowledge transfer between higher education, government, business and the community and the ways in which the creation of knowledge in an academic context can be transferred and translated for adoption, application and use in practical settings, in business and in non-government organisations.

The research will involve a consideration of the range of policies and programs adopted by Australian Federal and State Governments, and national and provincial governments in other countries, to promote regional economic development, and the impact of such initiatives; and examine the contribution and impact of knowledge created in publicly funded research agencies and higher education institutions to industrial innovation.

Projects in this area of research include:

• Research Training, Scientists, Mobility, and Innovation: Enhancing comparative methodologies - collaborative methodologies for evaluating their impact on the public/private sector (interface).
  
• The Role of Vocational Education and Training (VET) Institutions in National Innovation Systems - identifying and analysing data that describes the role and effect of the VET trained workforce in the national innovation system.

For more information on this program area, please contact Professor Tim Turpin, Dr Richard Woolley or Dr Phil Toner.

Technological Innovation - Emerging technologies, technology diffusion and industrial innovation

This research program explores the role of emerging technologies such as information technology, biotechnology and nanotechnology in enabling innovation in industries where Australia has traditionally enjoyed a competitive advantage. The research focuses on the way in which 'old economy' businesses have adopted and applied information technologies through the value chain and how this has enhanced value creation.

The research will examine the factors that influence decisions regarding the way growing firms manage growth and deliver results through combinations of 'make or buy' in relation to critical functions, including design and development, manufacture/production, marketing and selling, support and infrastructure. It will also examine the implications for management, organisation, education, and the acquisition and retention of workplace skills.

Projects in this area of research include:

• SAP Possibilities in the Airline Industry - assembly/maintenance planning control and execution using SAP R/3 system.
  » Release about Dr Prem Samaranayake receiving funding from SAP America (PDF, 117Kb)
• Bridging the Barriers: A Study of Innovation in the NSW Manufacturing Sector In July 2007, the Department of State and Regional Development, in support of the NSW Manufacturing Council, commissioned the Centre for Industry and Innovation Studies (CInIS), at the University of Western Sydney to undertake a study to:

  Ø   provide a gap analysis of the policy goals of the NSW Statement on Innovation as they relate to manufacturing

  Ø   establish the availability of public and private sector programs and services to assist manufacturers

  Ø   analyse the effectiveness of these programs and services in addressing the goals of the NSW Government Statement on Innovation

  Ø   identify priority actions to foster innovation in NSW manufacturing.

  The CInIS report, Bridging the Barriers: A Study of Innovation in the NSW Manufacturing Sector, provides an analysis of NSW manufacturing trends, and selective inputs on the policy issues of the NSW Government Statement on Innovation. The report of detailed discussions with manufacturers (pp 37-42) also provides useful guidance on priority issues facing the sector.

•  DEST Innovation Access Program 2006-2007. ISL Program: AmI-4-SMEs - to develop processes for the successful application of Ambient Intelligence (AmI)technologies to support innovation in Australian Manufacturing small to medium enterprises (SMEs).
  »Release about Technology-Assisted Innovation in SME’s 

For more information on this program area, please contact Professor Ross Chapman, Dr Kate Hayes, Dr David Low or Dr Prem Samaranayake.

Managerial Innovation - management capacity and capabilities for innovation performance

This research program aims to identify the specific management capacities and capabilitiesthat are most closely associated with successful innovation and business success in Australia generally and the Western sydney region in particular. capacities to make decisions under pressure, leadership and creativity are sought-after higher level management skills that are raely considered in management training programs.

Current research as well as courses and programs in innovation focus on product development and commercialisation processes; little attention is given to the key role of general management in driving and enabling innovation performance. Specifically this research will identify, recommend and where necessary, deliver education programs designed to build management capacities and capabilities in the relevant industries and appropriate firms to executive and general management.

Projects in this area of research include:

• Can the Instinctive Drive System^TM Predict and Reduce Occupationally Induced Stress? - the project is to further understand how organisational performance can be enhanced by first determining an individual's natural capacity and willingness to perform and then looking at how the organisation can seize opportunities to help an individual's peak performance.
  
• Study of Current Status of Business Process Management Practice in Australian Organisations - this project was produced and distributed by Dash Forghani and Dr Vijay Khandelwal. Download full BPM report

For more information on this program area, please contact Professor Tim Turpin, Associate Professor Terry Sloan, Dr Anneke Fitzgerald and Dash Forghani.

Service Sector Innovation - Innovation and performance improvement in service and support industries

The main purpose of the research is to identify how innovation and performance improvement in the service and support sectors creates value and wealth along industry value chains and can assist these industries respond to changing social and demographic contexts - both nationally and internationally. The research will focus on industries that are significant for Western Sydney.

Examples are:

• The Healthcare Services sector, including healthcare management research, is of major importance to Western Sydney - and will become more so as the demand for and technology relating to healthcare services and technology expands. In addition , dynamics in and between professions within the healthcare sector are particularly complex.
• The Transport and Logistics industry has a key role in the provision of goods and services to the end consumer. Performance improvement and innovation within this service-based industry is becoming increasingly important as markets become global, competition requires greater efficiency and complex products require international networks of firms for production.
• Innovation in the Creative Industries has increasing relevance to manufacturing and serviceindustries through the growing importance of creativity as an essential component of innovation, particularly radical or discontinuous innovation. The increasing contribution of this sector to national and regional worth is also recognised.

Projects in this area of research include:

• UWS IRIS Grant in 2006 -2008 - Visiting Scholars -Funded by IRIS grant and college and centre funds, CInIS hosted Professor Koos Krabbendam and Dr Erwin Hans to share their knowledge and experience about the use of Operations Management principles in hospitals. This has led to the submission of an ARC Linkage grant entitled 'Visual optimisation of patient Flow in Hospital emergency Departments that is currently under review. In addition, CInIS has 5 PhD candidates working in the area of Health Services Management Innovation.

For more information on this program area, please contact Dr Anneke Fitzgerald, Assoc Professor Terry Sloan and Dr Ann Dadich.
 

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