Innovation in Construction By Dr Tim Lees – licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution – Non-Commercial – Share Alike License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/

Socio-technical systems Dr. Tim Lees

Learning outcomes What is a socio-technical system? An appreciation of the process on innovation. An understanding of users in the user process.

Question 1 What is a socio-technical system? People Technology Cultural Legal Financial Political Science Technology Organisations Process

Why? There is a growing realisation that we have the technology. Technologies are becoming more economically viable. Government and public will appears to be increasing. .... and yet we see little or no change! Is the assumption that if a technology is cleaner and cheaper then economics will drive technology uptake always valid?

The ‘conventional package’ of technocratic beliefs (Shove 1998) Virtually all current sustainable built environment research focuses on: 1. Establishing the 'Technical potential' for change; 2. Identifying and overcoming 'Non-technical barriers'; and 3. Implementing 'Technology transfer' onto the necessary recipients

Question 2 What is an innovation? Innovation: The action of innovating; the introduction of novelties; the alteration of what is established by the introduction of new elements or forms (OED 2011). Innovation: An innovation is an idea, practice or object that is perceived as new by an individual or the unit adopting it. (Rogers, 1995).

Question 3? What types of innovation are there? Product versus process? Radical versus incremental? Component versus architectural?

Types of Innovations Product versus process Sequences, steps, ways of doing things Things, material, widgets! What about services?

Types of Innovations Radical innovations can redefine markets making the incumbents’ skills obsolete. This is competence destroying innovation and makes it easier for new entrants. Incremental innovation builds upon incumbents’ knowledge and strengthens market position. This is called competence enhancing innovation. Competence enhancing innovation makes it harder for new entrants.

Types of Innovations Radical versus incremental Radical Incremental

Types of Innovations Component innovation involves improvement within a part that makes up a product without changing the way in which the parts are connected. Architectural innovation is a reconfiguration of the way in which components relate to each other without changing any of the part themselves.

Diffusion of Innovation In order to become more than a new idea an innovation needs to be adopted. Diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time amongst the members of a social system. Key message: innovation is not an isolated event.... The adoption of new technologies relies upon a complex network of social and technological elements. A SOCIO-TECHNICAL NETWORK!

Models of Diffusion Increased market pull & feedback Increased complexity Increased integration and networking Rothwell’s five generations (5G) of innovation diffusion:- 1G (1950s) Technology push 2G (1960s-70s) Market pull 3G (1970s-80s) R&D coupling with marketing 4G (1980s-90s) Integrated processes 5G (1990s-) Systems integration and networking

Question 4? What factors impact on the diffusion of innovations?

Diffusion of Innovations Initially, technologies are used by many marginal users for different purposes Technologies succeed if appropriated by a sufficiently powerful user group The technology then evolves to fit the needs of that group (Bijker, Latour, Law, Akrich et al) Getting the technology into use relies on the whole supply chain – all of which have to see it as being in their interest. Key stakeholders have to ‘buy in’ if the technology is to succeed. Developers modify the technology to achieve this ‘buy in’ (Latour)

Diffusion of Innovations People ‘domesticate’ energy consuming technologies. They develop patterns of use of the technology partially determined by the technology, and partially determined by prior routines and practices. Technologies which aren’t domesticated are rejected. (Sørensen et al) There is no clear separation between invention, innovation and diffusion of technologies. “Organisational and institutional innovations are inextricably associated with technical innovations” (Chris Freeman 1994)

Diffusion of Innovations Are there any criteria we can use to understand diffusion? Relative advantage – perceived as being better than the previously used technology. Compatibility – perceived as consistent with existing capabilities and context. Complexity – perceived as relatively difficult to understand and use. Trialability – the degree to which a technology may be experimented with and trialled. Observability – the extent to which the benefits (and to some extent the technology) are visible to others. (Rogers, 2003)

Question 5? Who decides how a technology/innovation is used? Designers, Manufactures, Users, Retailers…..

Technology Use Socio-Technical Systems perspectives see social systems, and technological systems, as co-evolutionary. Social systems change in response to technological innovation. Technologies are only effective when they work with existing social systems. Renewable energy and energy efficiency approaches in buildings are part of a socio-technical system - they are not just a technical process.

The ‘instruction’ problem Latour’s ‘programmes’ & ‘anti-programmes’ Designers create implicit ‘programmes’ for users to enact in prescribed ways. Users create ‘anti-programmes’ (work-arounds) to subvert these programmes and get systems to do what they want. The history of low energy buildings is littered with examples of these.

The ‘instruction’ problem Users have many different mental models of how the world works Users’ actions are based on their mental models – not the design engineer’s. STS argues that technologies should be optimised to the users’ model of reality – it’s the only reality that matters! This leads to… ‘…designing user-friendly artefacts by making design understandable and in line with users’ mental models of the artefacts’ [Aune 2002]