The strong and weak forces, as well as the changing nature of 14 representative industry-university-government consortia in 10 states, are intricately examined. The profiles that emerge are based on discussions with consortia participants during 1984 and 1985, and factual updates in 1986.
The organizations under study include the Manufacturing Engineering Applications Center, Worcester, Mass.; the Center for Integrated Systems, Palo Alto, Calif.; the Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corporation, Austin, Texas; the Corporation for Science and Technology, Indianapolis, Ind., the Center for Industrial Innovation, Troy, N.Y.; and the Microelectronics Center of North Carolina, Research Triange Park, N.C. These and others are examples of the research and development consortia of the 1980s that, according to the authors, "came forward as a great experiment in truly American style without master blueprints or even a clear sense of the ultimate outcome."
The book describes the consortin, which are depicted as precursors of fundamental change, ...
