Report of the Federal Government on research 1993 : abridged version / Federal Ministry for Research and Technology.

  • Germany. Bundesministerium für Forschung und Technologie.
Date:
1993
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Report of the Federal Government on research 1993 : abridged version / Federal Ministry for Research and Technology. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    new methods and processes need to find a wide range of applications as fast as possible. This can only be achieved if new technologies are used as soon as possi- ble also by SMEs. The promotion of small and me- dium-sized enterprises under specialised BMFT pro- grammes is therefore of considerable importance. En- couraged by special administrative simplifications such as the consolidation of cost unit rates into a lump sum, the firms are involved in technology develop- ment at a relatively early stage. They are also sup- ported in quickly introducing new technologies by indirect specific promotion schemes. Such indirect spe- cific tools are used in those cases where there are se- vere obstacles to technology dissemination and where financial support seems to offer a suitable approach to overcoming these impediments. To remain successful in the increasingly tough and complex technology race SMEs depend more and more on R&D cooperation. The driving force is not only cost savings; more and more SMEs are only able to master new technologies by means of cross-sectoral cooperation. In the process of market globalisation transnational cooperation will also become more im- portant for such firms. In the past, the Federal Govern- ment has already successfully encouraged such coope- rations through various schemes such as cooperative industrial research, the promotion of contract research and development and the promotion scheme “Indus- try/science research cooperation”. But in this respect small companies in particular are still suffering from major deficits in whose elimination they should be supported. In assisting the rapid development of efficient market- driven industrial R&D capacities in the new Lander, special priority is on supporting highly innovative SMEs. Without such medium-sized structures indus- try in the new Lander will not be able to achieve the level of performance and innovative strength that in- dustry in the old Lander has. Also, SMEs are indis- pensable for lastingly improving the employment and training situation in the new Lander. The fact that in the former GDR small and medium- sized businesses had largely disappeared and that, consequently, no recent experience is available repre- sents a specific challenge in the new Lander. Since SMEs can only survive in the long term if they are competitive at the national and international levels right from the beginning, they have to strive to reach the technological top. This is a major challenge for the R&D capabilities of these companies. ' This is why particular importance is attached to found- ing new technology-based firms in the new Lander as well as to the infrastructure which technology centres provide for such companies. This also applies to the work of the agencies, to technology transfer and inno- vation promotion as well as to the innovation consult- ancy centres at the Chambers of Industry and Com- merce. It is also necessary to establish a large-scale transfer of experience from the SMEs in the old Lan- der. An important starting point is the promotion of R&D cooperation between SMEs in East and West. But government promotion schemes can only accomplish 22 this formidable task when they are supported by the determined commitment of small and medium-sized enterprises in the old Lander with their invaluable ex- perience. Also the traditionally close cooperation between Fach- hochschulen and SMEs can help provide the SMEs with the impetus necessary to secure R&D capabilities. The Federal Government has therefore made great ef- forts to support the speedy establishment of Fachhoch- schulen in the new Lander. 2.1.5 International interdependence International trade has been one of the principal driv- ing forces of economic growth in the past few decades. At the same time, there has been a radical qualitative change of the international exchange of goods and services. Today it is no longer raw materials or fin- ished products alone that are exchanged. There is also from all production levels between the various na- tional economies. Since the mid-1980s this develop- ment has been accompanied by an extraordinary in- crease in transnational direct investment. This process was favoured by efficient transport systems and mod- ern communication technologies which have made distance a negligible factor. Thus the internationalisa- . tion of trade was followed by the internationalisation of production. Often multinational companies are no longer characterised by transnational capital links alone, but also by a multinational or even global organi- sation of sequences of operations. The limits of national markets are playing an increasingly weaker role in terms of both sourcing and marketing (cf. Figure I/4). At the next stage internationalisation is advancing more and more into the area of industrial research and development. The importance of so-called strategic al- liances in this field has increased lately and aroused public interest. It is primarily companies from the triade Japan, the USA and Europe, in other words, the most highly developed economic regions, which en- gage in this form of cooperation. In addition to the R&D cooperations within individual economic re- gions, more and more alliances develop between com- panies based in two or all three of these regions. This also shows that people tend to think no longer in terms of economic blocs. In future, companies will increasingly set up their re- search facilities in those parts of the world where the environment seems to be best suited. This develop- ment is described by the buzzwords “technology glob- alisation” and “international sourcing of technologi- cal resources”. Because of its excellent research infra- structure Germany can offer favourable conditions for siting such international R&D facilities in this country. But even Germany — as a research location — was con- fronted with a drain of R&D capacities in the field of bioengineering and genetic engineering. In view of the changed geopolitical situation it can be expected that internationalisation trends in all areas of economic activities will tend to increase.