D Policy

CHICAGO—A campaign to increase federal support for research and industrial applications of new technology began last month with a series of conferences held throughout the country. The conferences were designed both to garner support and thinking on new R&D initiatives and to provide regional views on global competitiveness and the declining technological status of the United States. Sponsored by the businessoriented Conference Board and the Council on Research and Technology (CORETECH), the four day-long meetings featured calls to action by prominent figures in science and industry as well as workshops on federal programs to encourage cooperative research efforts. “There’s a consensus on such issues as the need to safeguard our basic scientific and technical resources,” explained Stephanie Becker of CORETECH, a Washington-based lobbying coalition of research universities, high-tech industries and trade and professional organizations formed last February. “But there’s a lot of new ideas, too, such as innovative ways to commercialize new technologies.” The focus of the symposia emerged early in the first meeting, which attracted 110 people to the Chicago campus of the University of Illinois. (Subsequent meetings were held in Boston, Santa Clara, Calif., and Austin, Texas.) “The role of the federal government in R&D is the fundamental question for the day,” said Joseph Saloom, chairman of CORETECH and senior vice president of M/A COM Inc. Although a succession of speakers stressed the importance of federal funds in expanding cooperative efforts, no one suggested where in a deficit-plagued federal budget the money could be found. In the keynote address here, William Norris, chairman emeritus of Control Data Corp., stressed the need for increased cooperation at the community level, including greater use of technical innovation by small businesses, to respond to fierce global competition. But Norris acknowledged the dominant position of the federal government by reiterating his call for federal assistance to what he called “the flagship of large-scale technological cooperation,” the 20-member Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corp. (MCC) in Austin that he helped to create in 1982. The consortium is discussing the possibility of federal support for work in several areas, said MCC spokesman Bill Stokesberry. “We hope to know more by the end of the year, or early next year.” Another cooperative venture, the Midwest Technological Development Institute, is backing the Advanced Integrated Manufacturing Service Center partnership. The partnership would allow companies to use regional computer-aided design and computer-integrated flexible manufacturing centers on a pay-as-you-go basis via workstations on their premises. The result, Norris said, is a wide range of products manufactured quickly and at low cost, allowing even small companies to compete worldwide. The cost of operating 10 such regional centers would be $800 million over eight years, he estimated. “The U.S. has the most advanced manufacturing technology in the world,” said Norris, “but it’s not being widely used by most companies.” He said companies not only lack the necessary capital and technological capability, but also suffer from a short-term view. The shallow roots of economic cooperation in American society, involving industry, universities and federal laboratories, is another major problem impeding progress. “President Reagan has just appointed another major committee to investigate privatization of certain governmental activities,” remarked Donald Langenberg, chancellor of the University of Illinois at Chicago. “Is federal involvement in R&D consistent with current philosophies?” he wondered. Later in the day, small groups discussed CORETECH draft issue papers on commercialization of new technologies, expansion of cooperative research, and strengthening of the U.S. research infrastructure. They also learned about the planned NSF university-based science and technology research cen- ters, the Technology Transfer Act, the Basic Research Credit law, and how to write corporate-university contracts. The results of the regional forums will be presented next month to CORETECH’s board of directors, which will plan strategy for Congress and the 1988 presidential campaign. Becker said the group’s legislative proposals are likely to include a larger tax credit for corporate R&D, a permanent credit for basic research, and new funding for university facilities. McBride is a freelance science writer in Chicago.

D Policy

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