2. Commercialization of Nanotechnology
Discoveries in nanotechnology have continued to increase
as technologies have advanced and commercialization
strategies have become better implemented.
A variety of industries manufacture products incorporating
nanotechnology including biomedical devices, home
appliances, batteries, industrial lubricants, computers,
cameras, food and beverage, clothing, cosmetics, fashion
and manufacturing.
To appropriately measure nanotechnology’s commercial
successes, it is essential to first define what it is exactly.
The National Nanotechnology Institute defines
nanotechnology as “the understanding and control of
matter at dimensions between approximately 1 and 100
nanometers.
3. Commercialization Strategies
There are two basic commercialization strategies for
nanotechnology - product innovation or process innovation.
Product Innovation
In most instances, nanotechnology is used to facilitate a
product innovation, often in response to anticipated
and/or actual demand for specific product characteristics.
(Ex. Tennis Racket made of carbon nanotube, bicycle)
Nanotechnology is use to augment current technologies to
enhance products and/or processes which already exists.
In such cases, the use of nanotechnology becomes almost
an incremental decision – one that allows for the
achievement of a requisite characteristic already valued
by the market.
4. Process Innovation
By contrast, process innovations are more embedded, but
potentially more radical.
These tend to be much broader, focusing on developing
new technologies and thus new markets.
Funding
Research and development spending and
commercialization costs represent significant barriers to
entry for firms wanting to enter the nanotechnology
market.
Development and manufacturing of equipment can be cost
prohibitive for firms with limited access to capital.
Further, it also is necessary to develop and maintain
sufficient levels of human capital.
5. Nanosciences and its Convergence with other Technologies
Nanosciences and nanotechnologies are a rapidly growing field that
already generates many hopes within the scientific and technological
community of future discoveries, developments, and solutions to a
number of societal problems.
Simultaneously, fears of possible negative and uncontrolled impacts
on humans and the environment are also developing steadily.
In a potentially controversial context, political decision-makers have
the responsibility, with the active participation of scientists and
engineers, to initiate, stimulate, and organize the public debate.
Their objective should be to clarify the actual issues at stake, putting
aside purely imaginary ones which rather belong to science fiction, as
well as to identify methodologies to tackle these issues and to
implement regulations.
The possible toxicity of nanoparticles, which may be released
massively in the environment, poses a different problem than the
wide commercial diffusion of RFIDs, which may endanger the privacy
of personal information, even in a democratic society.
6. The convergence of bio, nano, and information technology
Nature has seen the evolution of extremely intelligent and complex
adaptive systems to drive the biological processes found in everyday
life. (Ex. Cell)
These basic processes that occur at the molecular level lead us
toward a compelling engineering approach: the fusion of
biotechnology, nanotechnology, and information science.
Nanotechnology has enabled the production of new materials and
molecular -scale devices.
Biotechnological advancements have allowed scientists to physically
manipulate genetic pathways or engineering strains of proteins to
possess novel functionalities.
Informatics has served as the catalyst for organizing and
understanding vast knowledge from a system point of view.
With this comes the hope of achieving a fundamental comprehension
of how to manipulate and control cells on the molecular level.
