A reference model to determine the degree of maturity in the product development process of industrial SMEs

Along with the emergence of new competition rules, namely, the need to reduce the time to launch a product in the market and the capacity to modify and adapt it based on the identification of consumer choices, the approach of an interactive innovation model requires that small and medium industrial enterprises have a technological innovation strategy. This paper presents a support model to small and medium enterprises, starting from the diagnosis (definition of their degree of maturity) of technological innovation factors. This mapping aims to guide the technological innovation effort by offering a set of guidelines to be used, in this category of companies, as a strategy to select and manage the most suitable tools and technologies for the development of new products, according to their specific activities and contingencies. This reference model is exemplified by its application, using actual data, in industrial SMEs in the region of Sao Paulo, Brazil. A case study is also presented for the definition of the degree of maturity of an industrial SME of the metal-mechanical sector, including the resulting proposals of guidelines to the company. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.