The evolution of the project development process at SRI

Ten years ago, the research staff and board of directors of the Sugar Research Institute decided how the industry's funds for factory research should be spent. At that time, the funds from all mills were used collectively for every project. Ten years ago, when the Institute conducted a survey of mills, mill staff were hard pressed to list the SRI projects that had produced beneficial outcomes or to indicate what research outputs from SRI had been incorporated into their factories. Today, the situation is very different. Every mill or mill group has the opportunity for a direct input into the development of the projects they will fund and to decide which projects to support financially. Mills are now much more aware of the outcomes from all projects and, in particular, know those projects which have brought benefits to their mill and to the industry in general. This paper will review the evolution of the processes behind these changes and will touch on anticipated future developments. That evolution is part of the overall change in the way business is now conducted within Australia and overseas. The changes havc resulted in a much more commercial approach to research and development which has affected not only the way in which the industry thinks about its R&D but also the way that the staff at the Institute approach research. [n addition, the relationship between the Institute and its member mills is much closer as far as research activities are concerned.