Analysis of innovation in automated clinical chemistry analyzers

In this paper we examine the level of user innovation activity related to different brands of the same type of product — automated clinical chemistry analyzers. Strong interbrand differences are found in user involvement in such innovation tasks as the development of new chemical test methods for use on the different analyzers studied. We test the speculation of interviewees that the cause of the differences observed lies in details of analyzer design which makes some analyzers easier for users to modify than others and find this speculation supported by our data. As product design is a variable under the control of produce manufacturing firms, this finding suggests that manufacturers can, at least in some product categories, influence the level of user innovation related to their products via product designs which encourage or discourage such activity. Related costs and benefits are discussed.