Criteria Definition and Recognition Mechanisms for Accelerated Innovation

Abstract

Lessons learned from the International Energy Agency six-year project``Co-operative Procurement{''}, which has just ended, show the largeimportance of criteria definition and creation of mechanisms forrecognition of future-oriented solutions. The objectives were toestablish a co-operative demand-pull procedure to bring moreenergy-efficient products to the marketplace and to test and drawlessons from pilot projects. Within this collaborative project, theparticipating eight countries have, with support also from the EuropeanCommission, defined an international procedure and possible areas forjoint actions and fulfilled pilot procurement and promotion projects.In general, theoretical research about innovation instruments on thedemand side, better communication, building up of networks in fragmentedareas and the creation of powerful buyer groups have been stressed asimportant components for successful technology procurement projects. Itis, however, very time-consuming to build up new buyer groups in areaswith a large degree of fragmentation. In the ``Co-operativeProcurement{''} project, it has been found that the creation of otherrecognition mechanisms, such as Awards with high prestige, can have alarge influence on the suppliers' decisions to concentrate developmentefforts in the actual area.The first Class A clothes drier with 50 % energy reduction, industrialmotors with 20-40% reduction of losses and a copier with reduction by70-75% down to 30% are promising results. The involved projectmanagers and experts identified 60 lessons learned from the pilotprojects and these were compared with findings made by an externalevaluator at a workshop.Understanding the market as a whole and all different performancecriteria, rules for procurement, competitions and the right mix ofdifferent support mechanisms, prestigious awards and an internationalforum, on a formal or informal basis, to enable exchange of ideas areimportant aspects for accelerated innovation.