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THE COOPERATIVE RESEARCH CENTRE FOR PREMIUM QUALITY
WOOL: 1993 - 2000
AN EVALUATION
THE CRC PROGRAM
An evaluation of any cooperative research centre (CRC) has to be
undertaken within the context of the broad objectives of the
Commonwealth’s CRC program which began in 1991. It aims to enhance
Australia’s economic growth by improving the efficiency and
effectiveness with which research resources are used. Specifically,
the program facilitates a much higher level of cooperation by
encouraging:
- Collaboration between research scientists, both
within institutions and between research teams.
- Industry participation in research and collaboration
with participating scientists.
- An integration of research, industry and education
resources in developing and implementing education programs.
The Commonwealth’s funding of the CRC Program provides the
incentive for parties to participate in individual CRCs and the
framework which provides a cooperative approach to scientific research
in Australia. Successive reviews of the CRC program during the 1990s
concluded that it was meeting its goals and should be continued.
THE WOOL CRC
The Cooperative Research Centre for Premium Quality Wool (Wool CRC)
commenced in July 1993 with six core parties; CSIRO (Animal Production
and Wool Technology), AWRAP, Agriculture WA, University of WA, Uni of
New England and University of NSW. A seventh party, University of
Adelaide, joined in 1995.
The Wool CRC’s overall objective was:
| To undertake high quality strategic research focused on improving
productivity and product quality at all stages of the wool pipeline
and to support this activity with innovative education and technology
transfer programs to achieve a more competitive and profitable
Australian wool industry. |
The four individual research programs and one education program had
the following goals:
Program 1: “To develop genetic technologies that enable
manipulation of important determinants of textile fibre quality,
especially fibre diameter, and at the same time maintain or enhance
other economically important aspects of productivity”.
Program 2: “To develop and commercially evaluate new
technologies that increase wool strength and processing performance,
especially in wools from Mediterranean and other production
environments where there are dramatic seasonal variations in feed
quality and quantity.
Program 3: “To develop improved understanding of a) he
process of fibre growth and the impact of changes in follicle function
on the physical structure and chemical composition of the fibre and
its ultrastructural components, b) the relationships between fibre
composition, fibre structure and processing performance and to assess
the significance of these relationships of the development of new
products and processing practices”.
Program 4: “To develop and utilise transgenesis technologies
for improving wool quality, production efficiency and parasite
resistance by manipulation of biochemical pathways, follicle function,
fibre composition and structure”.
Program 5: “ To develop the resources of the CRC into an
integrated academic network, specialising in education and training at
all levels and for all sectors of the wool industry, and utilising
modern technology in local and distance communication to deliver
education and training programs Australia-wide”.
During its seven-year funding period to June 2000, the Wool CRC
received $15.5m from the Commonwealth Government and approximately
$12.5m from industry, a high proportion of which was contributed by
AWRAP on behalf of wool growers. In addition to its cash funding,
in-kind contributions by core parties and supporting groups (eg. NSW
Agriculture and South Australia R&D Institute) totalled around
$40m, comprising the estimated cost of scientists and research
facilities.
Although funding of the Wool CRC ceased in 2000, approval was
received to undertake some final activities into an eighth year to
utilise residual funds of approximately $500,000.
FORMAL EVALUATION
Towards the end of its seventh year, the Wool CRC, as part of its
formal reporting to the Commonwealth, commissioned the BDA Group to
conduct an independent evaluation of the benefits generated by the
Wool CRC relative to the associated costs. Reporting in June 2000, the
Group’s report stated:
“…the economic pay-off on funds invested by the Wool CRC and it
partners was attractive from an economic perspective. The net present
value of investment in the Wool CRC between 1993 and 2000 was
estimated at $322 million and the benefit:cost ratio was estimated at
5:1”.
The report also tested, under a range of assumptions, the timing
and benefits arising from the Commonwealth’s contribution and
concluded:
“The economic pay-off from the Commonwealth’s support is likely
to be considerable”.
In preparing its estimates the BDA Group did not attempt to
evaluate individual outcomes because of the difficulty of isolating
the contribution by the CRC to specific developments and the level of
subjectivity involved. The Group therefore adopted an ‘organisational
approach’ in which an estimate was prepared of the impact of the CRC
on the current and future rate of profit growth in the wool industry.
In addition to the formal evaluation at the end of its funding
period, the Wool CRC was subject to major reviews by the Commonwealth
during its third and fifth years. Reports from the reviews, which
examined progress of outcomes against milestones as well as financial
and administrative management, were extremely positive. The Year 5
Report concluded (in its overview):
“…the overall objectives of a cooperative research centre have
been successfully meet … (and) … the review panel recognises the
particular value of the Wool CRC in establishing and linking a single
research ‘pipeline’ covering the full range of activities from
farm production, through harvesting and processing. The presence of
the CRC acted as a major catalyst in linking together researchers in
these otherwise disparate disciplines and groups. It is unlikely that
this coverage would have been achieved without the establishment of
the CRC”.
A LESS FORMAL EVALUATION
The quote from the Year 5 Review Report illustrates one of the
inherent difficulties in evaluating a CRC; namely, the evaluation of
cooperation and the linkages that are established within and between
research disciplines.
The overt outcomes can be readily stated. For example, for the Wool
CRC:
- Growers now have the genetic technology by which to
more rapidly reduce the fibre diameter of their clip over a much
wider geographic area and to do so without sacrificing average
fleece weight.
- Through a combination of genetic and nutrition
technologies and improved pasture management, growers are now able
to achieve economically significant control of staple strength in
a wide range of climatically diverse regions.
- Much more is known about how on-farm practices affect
characteristics of the raw wool fibre and the implications they
have for subsequent processing and spinning performance.
- The Wool CRC has achieved gains in fundamental
technology through its successful breeding of genetically
engineered sheep, providing new insights into fibre structure and
composition.
- For five years, the Wool CRC used experts in their
fields from universities, research institutions and industry to
present four undergraduate wool science course by videoconference
simultaneously to its four participating universities, and that
material, having been captured electronically, is now available
commercially on the internet and as CD Roms.
Nobody would suggest that these outcomes resulted only because of
the Wool CRC, but the Commonwealth’s funding and the collaborative
structure it provided was a significant contributing factor. Moreover,
there is no evidence to suggest that effective collaboration would
have been achieved without the CRC structure. Collaboration can be
seen from two perspectives:
- The Wool CRC’s central position relative to the
institutions and industry sectors it services (Figure1)
- Within the CRC, the linkages established within and
between the research programs and their collective contribution to
education and training (Figure 2)
FIGURE 1
The Wool CRC's central position relative to the institutions and
industry sectors it services.
FIGURE 2
Within the CRC, the linkages established within and between the
research programs and collective contribution to education and
training.
Among the more important subjective outcomes to which it is
difficult to assign a value are the following:
1. The Wool CRC’s research program was based on a strategic
seven-year plan that increased efficiency of resource use, avoided
duplication of research effort and provided strong links between
research teams.
2. The resulting comprehensive network facilitated
communication at three levels:
- At program level - regular telephone hook-ups
across Australia
- Across programs - through regular teleconference
meetings of Program Managers
- With industry through the Executive Committee
(Program Managers plus industry representatives) and the Board,
all of which contributed to sharing of information, joint
planning and as collaborative approach to technology transfer.
3. Cash funding injected by the Commonwealth and industry
sources had a significant impact on decisions by research
institutions to commit their own resources to wool research (a
reverse effect has been witnessed as CRC funding ceased).
4. Strict accountability standards established by the
Commonwealth have been instrumental in creating a disciplined
environment in which high priority was given to efficient resource
utilisation, technology adoption and monitoring of progress
against milestones.
5. Arising from the emphasis on technology adoption, the Wool
CRC has established a technology transfer framework within which
the ongoing adoption of CRC technologies over future years is more
assured.
Had there been no Wool CRC, wool R&D would have continued, but
with less total resources, less efficiently used and with a further
decline in education and training in the wool sciences. The wool
industry is significantly better off as a result of the Wool CRC’s
seven-year set of programs and it has set a precedent that will
encourage ongoing cooperation in wool research. The measure of those
net gains, however, will remain a matter of subjective judgement.
Lionel Ward
Director
26/4/01
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