Publications / 2006 Proceedings of the 23rd ISARC, Tokyo, Japan

Benchmarking Technological Competitiveness of Precast Construction through Patent Map Analysis

Wen-der Yu, Shao-tsai Cheng, You-lin Shie, Shao-Shung Lo
Pages 118-123 (2006 Proceedings of the 23rd ISARC, Tokyo, Japan, ISBN 9784990271718, ISSN 2413-5844)
Abstract:

Technological advancement plays a key role in business competitiveness of a construction firm in the market. Nowadays, there are many free patent databases worldwide, which provide important sources for information of the technological advancement of construction firms. By combination of patent mapping techniques and properly selected commercial patent analysis software, the knowledge of technological competitiveness from patent databases can be discovered. With such knowledge, the construction firm can benchmark its own technological competitiveness with other competitors’. As a result, better technology innovation strategies and appropriate investment portfolio are determined. In this paper, the patented precast construction technology (PCT) adopted in construction of high-tech plants are considered for analysis. The patent map analysis (PMA) techniques are employed for the analysis. The USPTO patent database is used as the major source for analysis; other databases such as WIPO and TAPAT are for supplement. A local leading PCT firm is selected for case study. The results of case study show potentials of patent mapping techniques in planning technological innovative strategies.

Keywords: Patent analysis, Patent maps, Technology innovation, Precast construction