Universities worldwide are increasingly conscious of their responsibility for harnessing intellectual capital for the creation of wealth and economic development. The University of Stellenbosch has been at the forefront in translating the rhetoric of the debate about ‘academic entrepreneurship” into concrete action.
‘When it comes to interaction with business and industry, we are leading the higher education sector in South Africa. We have a remarkable record regarding Thrip [Technology and Human Resources for Industry Programme], having gained more funding than any other university for the past five years in a row. Last year our Thrip grants totalled almost R25-million, the largest in the country,” says Vice-Chancellor Professor Chris Brink.
The university has taken a number of steps to bridge the gap between research and industrial application of research findings. In 1999 it adopted a consolidated policy on intellectual property and established an office to manage all matters relating to intellectual property. Innovation and commercialisation was made an executive portfolio at the university. Its pursuit of industrial contracts (including Thrip) has been aggressive.
Commercialisation can take place through the Unistel Group of companies, wholly owned by the university. The formation of innovative spin-off companies is encouraged. Cutting-edge research is thus applied to the advantage of the community, industry and the university. Successful companies have been established in the fields of information technology, automotive engineering, medicine, aquaculture, public management, space technology, human genetics and boat design.