The dominant role of the user in semiconductor and electronic subassembly process innovation

In an earlier study of scientific instrument innovations, we found that instrument users rather than instrument manufacturers dominated the innovation work in approximately 80 percent of the innovation cases studied. In the present paper, we extend this work by examining 55 process innovations used in the manufacture of semiconductors and electronic subassemblies. In 67 percent of the process innovations studied in this field which involved novel process machinery, we find that it is the process machinery user rather than the manufacturer who “dominates” the innovation process by: recognizing the need; inventing a solution; building a prototype; and using the prototype in commercial production prior to any involvement of a manufacturer of process machinery in the innovation work. The presence of a mix of user dominated and manufacturer dominated innovation cases in our sample (“manufacturer dominated innovation” embraces those innovation cases in which the maximum user contribution was recognition of need) allowed us to test various parameters which we hoped would discriminate between these two innovation patterns. Our success at this effort was unfortunately low — the only statistically significant pattern found was that users always dominated the innovation process leading to the first commercial practice of a given manufacturing process step, while both patterns are found in the case of improvement innovations. In a final section, the data and findings of two studies of process innovation in industries other than those studied by us are examined for indications of the innovative role played by the process user. The role of the user in each appears large, thus implying that the findings of our study may apply to process innovation in many industries.