The document discusses the concept of open innovation within a cluster of micro, small, and medium-sized companies in the construction industry, specifically in South Tyrol, Italy. It emphasizes the importance of collective intelligence and knowledge sharing as a means to drive continuous innovation and competitiveness among local firms. The cluster's mission involves enhancing innovation processes by integrating various theoretical models and leveraging insider knowledge to increase the effectiveness and success rate of innovation initiatives.

1. Building Value
C us e Constructions
Cluster Co s uc o s @ TIS Innovation Park
S o a o a
Beyond Clustering: Open Innovation in Constructions through Collective
Intelligence
By Carlo Battisti and Gabriele Paglialonga
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS
12.06.2011

2. Innovation: quo vadis?
Our whole work starts from the
consideration whether it i
id ti h th is
possible to generate continuous
innovation processes within a
cluster of micro, small and
medium-sized companies.
Is fi ll
I it finally possible t go
ibl to
beyond a cluster, and create a
network solely based on
innovation performances?
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS

3. According to the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, “cluster” is defined as a
“group of at least 30 independent companies […] aiming at optimizing their
economical potential through development of projects and enterprises in the
field of co-operation, technological transfer, innovation in products, services and
processes as well as research and development in a wide conception […]”.

4. Cluster Constructions
1. Established in 2002 according to The Cluster Constructions at
„Cluster Al i N t
Cl t Alpine Network“ initiative
k“ i iti ti TIS Innovation Park is the
I ti P k i th
of the Province of Bolzano network of innovation-oriented
South-Tyrolean firms belonging
2.
2 Start up year: 2003
to the construction industry.
3. Inclusion of the cluster within TIS
Vision: South Tyrol as the most
in July 2006
y
competitive region worldwide in
4. Gained 170 members the field of constructions. The
best ideas, technologies, talents
5. Members are all among the value
must be M d i S th T l
t b Made in South Tyrol.
chain (architecture, engineering,
plants, installations, material Mission: enhance local SME‘s
producers and suppliers )
suppliers…) competitiveness through the
creation of value, innovation
6. No membership fee required
and sustainable growth.
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS

5. Clustering vs. Open innovation
Our inspiration starts from Henry Chesbrough’s “open innovation” and goes
to Eugene Fitzgerald’s “real innovation”.
Inside real innovation (Fitzgerald, 2010)
Open innovation (Chesbrough, 2003)
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS

6. How to make innovation real

7. Inspiration through collective intelligence
Innovation only becomes real when cognitive inputs get multiplied
over titime. Thi i th part of th th
This is the t f the theory of Pi
f Pierre L
Levy about collective
b t ll ti
intelligence.
In a network society ideas get shared by an increasing number of
society,
unbound people, and this could be of advantage of those recipients
who can translate those unrelated ideas into a final product.
If we take the cluster networks as an
example of neuronal connections we can
connections,
consider collective intelligence as an
iterative source of sharing and producing
information that is not too different from the
one existing in IT systems.
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS

8. A new strategy for the cluster constructions
The Cluster Constructions applies the three models to help firms
become more innovative and adds the fundamental role of the
insiders t it which can have several advantages for the growth of a
i id to it, hi h h l d t f th th f
cluster: Project 3
Knowledge Cross-pollination
C lli ti
generation
Cluster
Risk-reduction feeling
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS

9. Examples
WIN-TECH
High performance glasswall
g p g
ACTIVE HOUSE
Smart metering energy systems.
LISA
“Barrier free” living concepts
Barrier free
low-cost housing
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS

10. Thank you for your attention!
Conclusions: our mission to generate innovation let us decide to focus
our work on processes, i
k investing our resources i th t
ti in the transfer of most
f f t
renowned theoretical models in our daily job.
This was done with the consideration that despite all barriers a correct
that, barriers,
use of open innovation, stuffed with the role of the insiders, can make a
tortuous process a little more efficient, predictable, and likely to
succeed.
succeed
Carlo Battisti Gabriele Paglialonga
C l B tti ti & G b i l P li l
Alpine Technologies Area
Cluster Constructions
Via Siemens 19, 39100 Bolzano, Italy
+39 0471 068144 - 068152
2011 © Cluster Constructions TIS http://edilizia.tis.bz.it