GIGO

Innovations

Ten innovations sitting on the line
One lost its owners, and then there were nine.
Nine innovations through the starting gate
One's stuck at pilot stage, now there are eight.
Eight innovations on their way to heaven
One's not cost-effective, now there are seven
Seven innovations can do some clever tricks
One's over-specialised, now there are six.
Six innovations to help NZ survive
One has no agency, now there are five.
Five innovations at the market door
One's still being tested, now there are four
Four innovations, looking good to see
One's gone to MAFTech, now there are three
Three innovations, with little more to do
One's made no profit yet, now there are two.
Two innovations shining in the sun
One's an in-house service, now there is one.
One innovation, showing how it's done
Making export money, now our story's done

A nice piece of whimsy, but whimsy with a message. It could trace the ups and downs of many a potential product or service. In this case, it refers to projects put through DSIR Chemistry.

Dr Gordon Leary's verse identifies many of the problems faced in commercialising research.

The technology for extracting agarose from mixed seaweed crops looked promising. It seemed to be the classic case of a high value-added product, but it ultimately died due to a lack of capital to take it beyond the pilot scale. The photoacoustic mercury analyser was a technological marvel, but no-one was particularly interested in it. The portable photolab, featured in July's Quick Dips, has attracted some interest, but needs a great deal of marketing put into it before it has a chance of commercial success.

It is interesting to note that the one successful innovation is the oldest project of all those chosen, having begun in 1970. It's taken 21 years for DSIR Chemistry's expertise in the analysis of trace substances to become commercially viable.

The chemists needed to be able to detect tiny proportions of dioxin and PCBs for in-house use and, after many years, have found that they have a marketable service. DSIR Chemistry operates one of the few laboratories in the world registered by the World Health Organisation as able to detect substances at levels as low as parts per thousand million million (10¹⁵).

So, 21 years down the line, something begun as an internal project has begun returning millions of dollars in overseas orders. To many of our companies, 21 months is considered long-term -- hardly surprising in the current economic climate.

I know from living in Japan that much of that country's commercial success comes from a willingness to hang in there and wait. It may take years for a project to come to fruition, but they are prepared to make that commitment.

We need to have the time, the money and the patience to benefit from long-term research. It's nice to know that we do have organisations that are able to take the long view, even if it's more a matter of being around long enough than of directed forward planning.

Vicki Hyde is the editor of New Zealand Science Monthly.