Against the odds: Small firms in Australia successfully introducing new technology on construction projects

The methods by which small firms overcome the disadvantages of their size to implement innovation on construction projects are examined here through five Australian case studies. It is found that such methods include working with advanced clients, prioritising relationship-building strategies and using patents to protect intellectual property. Key obstacles to innovation implementation by small firms on construction projects are found to be bias in the allocation of government business assistance and regulatory inefficiencies under federal systems of government. The study's findings derive from a theoretical framework which emphasises firm capabilities and environment, and innovation typologies. Further research is recommended into the impact of government assistance and regulation on small innovative construction firms.

[1]  Clyde B. Tatum,et al.  Leaders and champions for construction innovation , 1997 .

[2]  Andreas Hartmann,et al.  The context of innovation management in construction firms , 2006 .

[3]  Clyde B. Tatum,et al.  Major characteristics of constructed products and resulting limitations of construction technology , 1988 .

[4]  K. Eisenhardt.  Building theories from case study research , 1989, STUDI ORGANIZZATIVI.

[5]  Karen Manley,et al.  Key influences on construction innovation , 2004 .

[6]  D. Third.  OECD/Eurostat . Oslo Manual-Guidelines for Collecting and Interpreting Technological Innovation Paris, France: , 2005 .

[7]  R. Rothwell.  Towards the Fifth‐generation Innovation Process , 1994 .

[8]  A. Manseau,et al.  Innovation in Construction: An International Review of Public Policies , 2003 .

[9]  Florence Yean Yng Ling,et al.  Managing the implementation of construction innovations , 2003 .

[10]  Karen Manley,et al.  Frameworks for Understanding Interactive Innovation Processes , 2003 .

[11]  D. Gann,et al.  Innovation in project-based, service-enhanced firms: the construction of complex products and systems , 2000 .

[12]  Graham Winch,et al.  Zephyrs of creative destruction: understanding the management of innovation in construction , 1998 .

[13]  Martin Sexton,et al.  A literature synthesis of innovation in small construction firms: insights, ambiguities and questions , 2003 .

[14]  Peter Barrett,et al.  Revaluing Construction: a holistic model , 2007 .

[15]  D. Gann,et al.  Last among equals: a comparison of innovation in construction, services and manufacturing in the UK , 2005 .

[16]  J. Nash,et al.  Strategic decisions and innovation in construction firms , 2003 .

[17]  J. Barney,et al.  The resource-based view of the firm: Ten years after 1991 , 2001 .

[18]  Karen Manley,et al.  Demonstrating the Benefits of Construction Innovation , 2005 .

[19]  C. Prahalad,et al.  The Core Competence of the Corporation , 1990 .

[20]  Ana M. Moreno,et al.  High-growth SMEs versus non-high-growth SMEs: a discriminant analysis , 2007 .

[21]  Chris Harty,et al.  Innovation in construction: a sociology of technology approach , 2005 .

[22]  Ina Drejer,et al.  Organisation, ‘anchoring’ of knowledge, and innovative activity in construction , 2006 .

[23]  E. Penrose.  The theory of the growth of the firm twenty-five years after , 1960 .

[24]  Steven Klepper,et al.  A Reprise of Size and R & D , 1996 .

[25]  D. Teece.  Profiting from technological innovation: Implications for integration, collaboration, licensing and public policy , 1993 .

[26]  Klaus Krippendorff,et al.  Content Analysis: An Introduction to Its Methodology , 1980 .

[27]  Mohammed Fadhil Dulaimi,et al.  Empowering innovative improvements through creative construction procurement , 2001 .

[28]  Graham Winch,et al.  How innovative is construction? Comparing aggregated data on construction innovation and other sectors – a case of apples and pears , 2003 .

[29]  Grahame F. Thompson,et al.  Markets, Hierarchies and Networks: The Coordination of Social Life , 1991 .

[30]  R. Leiringer.  Technological innovation in PPPs: incentives, opportunities and actions , 2006 .

[31]  Keith D. Hampson,et al.  Construction innovation and public policy in Australia , 2001 .

[32]  R. Yin.  Case Study Research: Design and Methods , 1984 .

[33]  Martin Sexton,et al.  Appropriate innovation in small construction firms , 2003 .

[34]  Martin Sexton,et al.  Innovation in Small, Project-Based Construction Firms , 2006 .

[35]  J. Barlow,et al.  Innovation and learning in complex offshore construction projects , 2000 .

[36]  G. George.  Slack Resources and the Performance of Privately Held Firms , 2005 .

[37]  Karen Manley,et al.  The innovation competence of repeat public sector clients in the Australian construction industry , 2006 .

[38]  Peter Barrett,et al.  Research as a kaleidoscope on practice , 2003 .

[39]  E. Sarah Slaughter,et al.  Implementation of construction innovations , 2000 .

[40]  Ezekiel Chinyio,et al.  Understanding the construction client , 2006 .

[41]  Panagiotis Mitropoulos,et al.  TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION DECISIONS IN CONSTRUCTION ORGANIZATIONS , 1999 .

[42]  P. Bierly,et al.  Analyzing innovation adoption using a knowledge-based approach , 2001 .

[43]  Z. Ács,et al.  Innovation and Small Firms , 1990 .

[44]  Martin Sexton,et al.  The role of technology transfer in innovation within small construction firms , 2004 .

[45]  Karen Manley,et al.  Exploring the drivers of firm‐level innovation in the construction industry , 2006 .