Knowledge Transfer from Universities to Industry Through University Technology Transfer Offices

Introduction. This paper focuses on knowledge generation and the way in which it is transferred from universities to industry. Most well reputed universities have several departments and university-run enterprises that engage in research. The purpose of these research units is to help universities provide breakthrough innovation through the generation of new knowledge.
Problem Statement. For this we chose to study China's University Technology Transfer Offices (UTTOs) to gather concrete evidence of university knowledge generation for commercial use in industry. The objective of this study is get indepth information about the role of UTTOs in the transfer of such knowledge.
Purpose. The generation of new knowledge contributes to the field of science and technology; in turn, industry can use this knowledge to produce new innovative products or improve existing ones. This study aims to identify the process of knowledge transfer from universities to industry in China.
Materials and Methods. Our study was carried out as a qualitative case study in the Anhui province of China. Data was mainly collected through semi-structured interviews with technology transfer experts working in technology transfer offices. Collected data were analyzed using a knowledge transfer model with six phases: 1) awareness, 2) acquisition, 3) transformation, 4) association, 5) application, and 6) feedback.
Results. In China, universities and their research groups dominate in the generation and commercialization of research results, with UTTOs acting as technology bridges between the two parties, as well as providing legal and business services.
Conclusions. This paper contributes by offering a detailed description of the knowledge transfer process and specifically the role and activities of UTTOs. This research also helps Chinese and international researchers currently carrying out research on the technology transfer process in China.