Commercializing Cleaner New Technologies: The Case of Microturbine Generators

Abstract

Based on a study of the emerging microturbine industry, this paper argues that recent trends towards preventive and product-oriented industrial environmental management are problematic from the technology suppliers’ perspective. This is especially evident in the suppliers’ initial efforts to define markets and applications during early stages of commercialization. The distinction between product innovation driven by explicit or perceived user needs and innovation in environmental technology driven by regulatory demands has become blurred. This means that suppliers have had to interact simultaneously with both users and regulators in order to articulate the demand and acceptance for the new technology.