Complex agendas for new technology adoption in the UK water industry

The water industry acts an interface between the public and the environment , treating waters of various qualities to make them suitable for consumptio n or discharge. The particular technologies and products used will influenc e environmental quality as well as the efficiency of the treatment process itself. However the uptake of new products aimed at improving these two fun ctions is often hampered by a lack of appreciation concerning the complexit y of issues which influence trialing and purchase decisions. Understanding the nature and variety of agendas which preoccupy potential technology adop ters is arguably a significant form of knowledge for both product developer s and, in a wider context, policy makers. This paper reports how a relative ly simple multimethod approach has been used to generate a richer and more informed representation of those issues which influence new technology upta ke for four of the UK's major water utilities. Specifically, data relating to the adoption of an aluminium based polyelectrolyte (ABP) chemical produc t for use in wastewater treatment has been collated. Data from secondary so urces which relate to issues which are anticipated to influence decision cr iteria are used to establish variances in environmental, commercial and tec hnological motivations for take-up. This element of the study demonstrates how the criteria vary across contexts, Interviews carried out with R&D mana gers are then used to show how individuals with responsibility for new prod uct assessment are able to discriminate the same criteria. Expected motivat ions are found to be a poor predictor of stated motivations. However, when combined, these two data sets correlate well with observations of actual ad option intentions. The study's findings are primarily applicable at the lev el of industrial sectors where the complexity of decision issues, differing interpretations of operating environments and uncertainty about future dev elopments make an understanding of the motivations of product uptake proble matic. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.