<p>We investigate the relationship between the location of private sector R&D labs and university research departments in Great Britain. We combine establishment-level data on R&D activity with information on levels and changes in research quality from the Research Assessment Exercise. The strongest evidence for co-location is for pharmaceuticals R&D, which is disproportionately located near to relevant university research, particularly 5 or 5* rated chemistry departments. This relationship is stronger for foreign-owned labs, consistent with multinationals sourcing technology internationally. We also find some evidence for co-location with lower rated research departments in industries such as machinery and communications equipment.</p>
Authors
Helen Simpson
Laura Abramovsky
Research Fellow Institute for Fiscal Studies
Laura is a Research Fellow at IFS. Her current work focuses on tax and social protection policy and programme evaluation in developing countries.
Rupert Harrison
Journal article details
- DOI
- 10.1111/j.1468-0297.2007.02038.x
- Issue
- April 2007
Suggested citation
L, Abramovsky and R, Harrison and H, Simpson. (2007). 'University research and the location of business R&D' (2007)
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