Student Assignment Covering Form
Course/Unit Information
Course Pearson BTEC Level 5 Higher National Diploma
Unit No. Unit 8
Unit Name Innovation and Commercialization
Unit code M/508/0494
Batch SRE-IC-Assignment Brief-Sharmila Subramaniam-2005
Instructor Information
Name Prof. Sharmila Subramaniam
Phone +971 55 984 5866
Email sharmila@westford.org.uk
Assignment Information
Full/ Part Assignment Full
Date Assignment Issued May 10, 2020
Date Assignment Due June 6, 2020
Turnitin Class ID 24743711
Turnitin Password IC2005
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I, ________________________ hereby confirm that this assignment is my own work and not copied or plagiarized. It has not previously been submitted as part of any assessment for this qualification. All the sources, from which information has been obtained for this assignment, have been referenced as per Harvard Referencing format. I further confirm that I have read and understood the Westford University College rules and regulations about plagiarism and copying and agree to be bound by them.
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Achievement Feedback Summary
Assessor’s Name Prof. Sharmila Subramaniam
Pass Merit Distinction Grades Awarded
LO1 Explain the context for innovation and determine the difference between invention and innovation.
P1 Explain innovation and determine its importance to organizations in comparison with invention. M1 Analyse different sources of innovation, and how organisations can foster and develop an environment and culture of innovation. LO1 & 2
D1 Critically analyses how
innovation is developed,
embedded and measured P1 Achieved / Not Achieved
P2 Achieved / Not Achieved
P2 Explain how organizational vision, leadership, culture and teamwork can shape innovation and commercialization. M1 Achieved / Not Achieved
LO2 Explain the different types of innovation.
P3 Explain the 4Ps of innovation and explain the use of the innovation funnel to examine and shape innovative ideas. M2 Analyze and apply the innovation funnel in an organizational context. P3 Achieved / Not Achieved
P4 Achieved / Not Achieved
M2 Achieved / Not Achieved
P4 Explain developments in frugal innovation and provide examples of how it is used in an organizational context. M3 Evaluate the role of frugal innovation in an organisational context.
M3 Achieved / Not Achieved
D1 Achieved / Not Achieved
LO3 Discuss the process required to commercialize innovation.
P5 Explain the importance of the commercial funnel and the application of New Product Development (NPD) processing for commercialization of innovation. M4 Build a detailed Innovation Business C as which includes how to measure its overall effectiveness using appropriate techniques available to test, iterate and improve. LO3 & 4
D2 Critically evaluate the
nature of innovation and
developed, providing
evidence-based
judgments on how
Organizations can overcome challenges to develop successful innovations.
P5 Achieved / Not Achieved
P6 Achieved / Not Achieved
P6 Build an Innovation Business Case for an organization, including ways to access funding. M4 Achieved / Not Achieved
LO4 Evaluate the range of methods for protecting ideas and understand their advantages and disadvantages.
P7 Evaluate the different tools that organizations can use to develop, retain and protect knowledge and intellectual
Property.
M5 Present supported evidence-based evaluations of these different tools in the context of the wider business environment. P7 Achieved / Not Achieved
M5 Achieved / Not Achieved
D2 Achieved / Not Achieved
Over All Result/Grade PASS/MERIT/DISTINCTION/RE DO [To Achieve a PASS, all P grade descriptors should be achieved; To achieve a MERIT, all P and M grade descriptors should be achieved; To achieve a DISTINCTION, all P, M and D grade descriptors should be achieved.]
DATE:
Summative Feedback:
Overall Feedback on current work with emphasis on how the student can improve and achieve higher grades in future.
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Innovation and Commercialization: Assignment Task
Assignment title Business Case on Innovation and Commercialization
LO1 Explain the context for innovation and determine the difference between invention and innovation.
LO2 Explain the different types of innovation.
LO3 Discuss the process required to commercialize innovation.
LO4 Evaluate the range of methods for protecting ideas and understand their advantages and disadvantages.
Case Study: CHICAGO -- 3M Co
Dow Jones Newswires
CHICAGO -- 3M Co. is developing a new type of hybrid power line that can handle as much as three times more electricity than standard wires and may in turn help utilities reduce the number of outages and blackouts. The new power line is also stronger and doesn't sag when heated during the summer months, addressing a problem that has plagued engineers for decades. When power lines are overworked, they expand and can droop onto nearby tree limbs or other objects, sometimes causing an outage.
Sagging power lines in northern Ohio last year were blamed for triggering a series of events that led to the nation's largest blackout, putting some 50 million people in the dark in the Northeastern U.S. and Canada. Utilities are buzzing about 3M's technology because it eliminates the burdensome regulatory hurdles and the high costs associated with siting and building new towers, which have been the typical remedy for easing congestion on the power grid. There are some 158,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines in the U.S.
3M's power line, which became available earlier this year, got a boost in August when Xcel Energy Inc. agreed to use the material as an upgrade to a 10-mile section of the utility's transmission wires in Minnesota. Xcel Energy, of Minneapolis, got early access to the material through a special pilot program with 3M and -- after putting the material through the paces -- was impressed enough to begin commercial installation next year.
-We're confident that the 3M product has the reliability we need and will perform as promised,- said Steve LaCasse, an Xcel Energy transmission engineer. -There's no doubt that the need is out there.-
Industry analysts expect other utilities to sign on over the next several months and say the material could generate as much as $100 million in annual sales within the next five years.
Most known for its Post-it Notes and Scotch tape, 3M, of St. Paul, Minn., suddenly finds itself as a pacesetter for an industry in flux. The growing demand for electricity brought about by computers and other electronic gadgets during the 1990s has placed increased stress on the nation's power grid. Though new power plants are coming online at a steady rate, utilities have historically neglected the cables and wires that keep the juice flowing smoothly.
The construction of high-voltage transmission lines is expected to increase by only 6% in the next 10 years in contrast to an expected 20% increase in demand and generation capacity, according to a recent study by the U.S. Department of Energy. The department says at this rate, the reliability of electricity service is in trouble. The situation is made more complex by deregulation, which has turned the frail links between local utilities into national-electricity superhighways. Though wholesale-power sales lower consumers' electricity bills by nearly $13 billion a year, the grid has become overloaded and plagued by bottlenecks as power traverses wide regions of the country. Outages are more commonplace.
Some believe 3M's technology will ease the growing pains. 3M's power line, developed with the help of the Department of Energy, is made of a high-temperature aluminum-zirconium alloy wrapped tightly around a composite base consisting of thousands of tiny, high-strength ceramic fibers developed by the company. Standard power lines consist of conventional aluminum wrapped around a steel cable. Side by side, the two cables look identical, but 3M says the aluminum-zirconium alloy can handle a continuous temperature of 410 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas standard aluminum breaks down at above 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, 3M's composite core is stiffer and stronger than steel but half the weight. That means it won't sag as much and can carry more electricity.
The characteristics make the 3M power line particularly attractive to utilities that want a quick fix to congested and overloaded power lines, said Tracy L. Anderson, the program manager for the 3M project. Because no new towers are needed, it can be restrung directly where the old line resides. The material is also good for long stretches of line where utilities can't risk a lot of sagging, such as river crossings, Mr. Anderson said. The development of the new power line is a classic 3M tale. Just as early versions of Scotch Tape were intended as an alternative to string for meat packaging in butcher shops, the power-line material was first intended to reinforce metal used in jet engines. It bounced around 3M for a number of years before the company considered using it for the energy industry.
Utilities have confidence in 3M's power line because of the breadth of its field testing. The material has been scrutinized by a wide range of agencies and utilities, such as the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee and Western Area Power Administration. In addition to the greater capacity, the testing has shown that the power line can withstand varying weather conditions from ice and cold to saltwater corrosion and high winds.
American Electric Power Inc., which has roughly 39,000 miles of transmission wires in 11 U.S. states, has been following the development of 3M's power line and has held meetings with 3M officials to discuss the details, said Dale Krumman, who oversees transmission research for the Ohio utility. Though the company hasn't yet signed any deals, AEP has a handful of areas that would be well suited for such an upgrade, he said.
-It's clearly addressing an identifiable need and can make a difference,- Mr. Krumman said.
Cost is an issue. Though 3M's Mr. Anderson wouldn't discuss specifics, he conceded that the company's cables are more expensive than conventional wires. But because the product is designed as an alternative to new tower construction, it can still be a big money saver for utilities, he said.
Just being innovative doesn't mean that 3M will succeed. Analyst David Begleiter of Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. in New York says the company -will need to invest sufficient capital- to ensure that its power lines are cost competitive with rival solutions.
Dozens of smaller players are developing power-line technologies of their own, though few have gained the same degree of early market acceptance. One such company is Composite Technology Corp., of Irvine, Calif. It makes an aluminum power line that has a composite core made of glass and carbon fibers. The company completed its first installation in August and aims to sign on additional commercial projects over the next several months. Composite Technology President C. William Arrington asserts that his company's power lines, though at an earlier stage of development, are cheaper than 3M's and have many of the same advantages.
Copyright (c) 2004, Dow Jones & Company Inc. Reproduced with permission of copyright owner. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission
Scenario:
You are an innovation consultant that the company has hired to evaluate the current state of 3M company, critically examine how innovation is developed, embedded and measured in 3M context. Also, provide recommendations on how the company should move forward.
You are to produce a business report to present to 3M Company to provide evidence-based judgments on how organisations can overcome challenges to develop successful innovations.
The business report will address the following:
1. Analyze different sources of innovation that can be adopted at 3M Company, and what can the leadership do to develop an environment and culture of innovation.
1.1 Explain the value and importance of innovation to organizations and how this can be embedded within the organizational vision, leadership, teamwork and culture at 3M Company.
1.2 Explain the difference between invention and innovation and their significance in an organizational context. [This should be answered in general and not specifically with reference to 3M Company].
2. Analyze and apply the innovation funnel to 3M Company and evaluate the feasibility of whether frugal innovation model can be adapted to its main product?
2.1 Critically analyze how 3M Company can measure the success of its newly developed hybrid power line.
2.2 Explain the 4Ps of innovation and how this supports capability and management of innovation. Advise 3M Company which form of innovation they should engage in.
3. Determine techniques for testing the effectiveness of the new product for commercialization. Identify the solution to the problem and build a detailed business case of 3M Company, using the commercial funnel to highlight strategic capability meeting following guidelines:
3.1.1 Matching goals to funding resources and ways to access funding.
3.1.2 Assessment of risk.
3.1.3 Value analysis applying frugal innovation.
4. Evaluate and present with evidence which different tools 3M Company can use to develop, retain and protect the knowledge and intellectual property rights of a new hybrid power line. Critically evaluate what challenges are envisaged during the New Product Development of 3M Company and how can these be overcome to develop a successful innovative product.
The submission on the LMS is in the form of an individual written report. This report should be written in a concise, formal business style using single spacing and font size 12. You are required to make use of headings, paragraphs and subsections as appropriate, and all work must be supported with research and referenced using the Harvard referencing system. Please also provide a bibliography using the Harvard Referencing System. The recommended word limit is 3,500–4,500 words, although you will not be penalized for exceeding the total word limit