Introduction

This book addresses the commercial exploitation of university research through new company formation. It is the outcome of six years research and 13 years practical experience of transferring technology to industry from the Queen’s University of Belfast. The research, which draws on the recorded experiences of 25 universities in Europe and America including 18 in Britain and Ireland, was set within the more general context of university/industry collaboration. New company formation was regarded, not as an alternative to more conventional means of transferring technology, but simply as part of a university’s repertoire of delivery mechanisms.