Technology Transfer Barriers and Challenges Faced by R&D Organisations

The paper presents the definition and classifications of barriers in the field of innovation activity. As opposed to the literature background, the authors propose their own classification of technology transfer barriers comprising the following: (1) technical, (2) organisational-economic, and (3) system barriers. Taking into account the barriers analysed in literature and our own experience in research projects execution and co-operation with industry, the authors present barriers that they met in practice in the period of several years of conducting research and implementation activity. Examples of technology transfer processes hampered by the influence of different types of barriers encountered in practice by a Polish research organisation (Institute for Sustainable Technologies - National Research Institute - ITeE-PIB) in the area of developing innovative technologies have also been illustrated.