OPEN INNOVATION IN A STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM: THE AEROSPACE PROGRAM IN BRAZIL

摘要

This paper presents a case of strategic technology development in Brazil, analyzed under the framework of open innovation. The aim was to study competence development in an area of high technology which is strategic to the country, namely the aerospace sector, in which the complete cycle of integrated circuits for satellite applications is addressed, as well as how this conditions the relations between the different participating institutions, both public and private, which lead to a focused development of the resources which are necessary to enhance the aerospace program and to develop critical products. The main motivation is that some critical components suffer international commercial restrictions, and must be developed internally. The aerospace program acted as a mechanism to foster open innovation among participating companies, establishing links with universities and research institutions. The open innovation framework proves useful for this analysis to be conducted, in which many complementary competencies, available in different institutions throughout the country and also in foreign countries, need to be coordinated, under the objective of building competencies in Brazil in the complete development cycle of integrated circuits for aerospace applications (specification, design, simulation, layout, manufacturing, encapsulation, test, and qualification). By analyzing this specific development program as a case study, links between institutions were identified. Specific issues such as business aspects, funding, intellectual property, technological trends, and coordination of the group at the inter-organizational level are discussed and alternatives for the network are proposed. Main results indicate that there is a network, and an open innovation approach may help to increase awareness of and help clarify intellectual property issues, as the analysis revealed this may be a significant bottleneck, along with funding issues and scarcity of qualified human resources. The orientation should be more on long term programs than on specific missions, and a catalogue of critical technologies is needed, in which all participants recognize their role in the development. Intellectual property issues should be discussed between participants at all levels, to reach consensus on which are the critical technologies and the types of licenses involved in each phase, because of the public interest of the program. The main source of funding is public, and this shall trace the guidelines of the intellectual property policy that should be followed. Due to the complexity of the needed components, a technology roadmap for trend study is proposed, in which each institution or company contributes with a significant part of the development. The geographical proximity of the main part of the institutions participating in the program facilitates exchange of knowledge, both formally and informally.