Listening to Research Clients

Abstract

As many researchers in engineering research organizations do not engage extensively in engineering practice, in the sense of routine involvement in design and operation activities, they may become out of touch with the needs of engineering practitioners and, thereby of research clients. To remain in touch and keep research relevant, it is important that researchers listen to what their research clients and sponsors say about their engineering and research needs. Technological progress, after all, is a two‐way process between research and practice. Whereas researchers may provide special expertise and facilities for solving difficult engineering problems and for advancing engineering methodologies, research clients often provide critical insights and special knowledge and identify new research areas that, in turn, enable researchers to apply their expertise and facilities effectively and to sustain their research vitality. Experiences and perspectives of a university‐based research institute, an institute of hydraulic research, are used herein to illustrate the importance of listening to the research client. The institute, a long established self‐funding unit of a state engineering college, has maintained its vitality, in part, by nurturing close contacts with diverse engineering‐practitioner clients.