Although I haven't had any experience working in industry research, it seems that industry research is the most impactful work in terms of changes to our lives and ways of doing things. Companies like Du Pont have created countless products that are ubiquitous in our lives, and pharmaceutical companies continuously churn out new medical interventions on a daily basis. Academic research, in my experience, is more focused on the foundational aspects of our knowledge. With a lack of direct, monetary motivation, there is no need to have work translate into a product, and so much of academic research stays within the realm of those in the field. Industrial research is targeted towards affecting society and gaining capital from it, so as far as visibility and impact go, it would be the more "successful" of the two.

Looking into the divides between industry research and academic research, what stands out is the underlying motivation of each. Industrial research labs will tend to place most if not all their resources on monetizing their results. The end goal for industrial research is to bring forth a functioning and viable device that will reap in profits. All of my experience with research has been in academic research. For me in academic research, the focus of the study is very specific, sometimes niche. Each principal investigator has specific interests and ideas but the project they work on will be something super specific such as a metabolic pathway or the effects of knocking out one particular gene. Because of the specificity involved in academic research, monetary gain is not the end goal. Rather it is to develop and broaden the foundation of knowledge in that particular area of study.

I have had experience in both academia and industry. There are obvious differences. In academia, I can come up with couples idea, just like the branch. After searching and professors agree, I can do my research. That may help to enrich the research. Do the research that no one did and publish is of great importance. But in the industry, there is only one goal for one project. Everything to do is do the research around the target, complete the research. Shorten the time and lower the cost is crucial.

Considering the steps and output gotten from both forms of research I prefer the academia to the industry because the academia research is for the sole aim of researching towards solving a problem and as time goes on the academia research is always relevant and more researches can be built upon my earlier findings.

The industry differs from academia in many ways that allows it to be completed faster. As stated by some people above I believe finances have a lot to do with it. When a company chooses to move forward on a project they tend to be financially ready to handle the project. They make sure they have the money they want to spend. Many grants are a fixed amount and can be below what the project needs to be completed. The Industry also has a larger managerial background that can increase a company’s ability to correctly time manage and have an outsiders perspective on the project. Industry tends to choose projects that can be completed in a reasonable amount of time and can be brought to market and begin to profit in a reasonable timeline. Academic research is often more focused on knowledge and can allow for longer projects to be investigated.

In the Industry research has a shorter time limit as there is time ticking and there is much more pressure on making it work as it has to be sold and make money otherwise the company is at a loss. In terms of time malmanagement there is always a deadline and if they realize the deadline cannot be met the plan is usually redone to compensate for that.in academia at the end of one’s research that kind of it. It either become the professors of the schools. My experience in Industry when research is done with something it moves to the next stage and could possible move back. Once research is done the product goes to product development and then eventually manufacturing. That give a layer to the success of the product. In industry research is not done to just get results, there is always a driving purpose to eventually make money. The step we would took would be to communicate with the other departments that contributes to the success of the product, by making sure all the necessary test is being carried out in the most efficient manner. Though when it gets to another department, the rate at which they work is out of the researchers hands.

I agreeance total with dag56,i would like to add few points. In an Industry, the deadlines are generally based on a necessity and the resources are allocated accordingly where money is not a constraint. When a new project is started and timelines are set, groups or teams with various skills are assigned to get the job done within the timeline. when job is at stake, no team is going to delay unless some unexpected results or scenarios occurs. However, in an academic research lab, almost always the lab is low on resources (both in terms of people with skills and money) and there is a lot of catching up with deadline. Also , their research goals are altered when they propose and write a grant. This doesn't happen in industry and always there is a fixed goal.

I agree with most of the participants in the posts above that there are pros and cons of academia versus industry. I believe there is a mutual relationship between the two as industry is based on the research performed by academia. In academia, there is no profit or money involved and its heavy research based environment. On the other hand, industry is directly related to profit and releasing innovative products to the market. Also, there is a direct affect to people’s lives from the products launch by the industry. In academia, the research must be validated and it requires multiple release of papers. All in all, both can be innovative and rewarding in their aspects, and both require the time and effort to be successful.

Many times there are critical deadlines assigned to the project, and if one is not able to meet the timeline, he or she should effectively communicate to the project manager to avoid any delays. It is is important to release the end product with highest quality even if it means extending the deadline.

I agree with the fact that research in the industrial sector takes a short time because of availability of resources. However, I would point out that research should take a reasonable period to be completed even if money is available. I buy the idea that medical research requires a lot of time and it is needless to rush things through for the danger of coming up with conclusions which do not represent the research.

I have a friend that is currently transitioning from academic research to industry research. She said she is happier in her new role because she feels like she gets more feedback on her performance. Her job evaluates her performance frequently and it allows her to do better and grow in her new role. My friend also pointed out that in academic research she wasn’t really able to deviate from the plan from her PI. In her industry role, she is able to suggest processes improvements and even suggest product design improvements.

One of the biggest differences between industry research and academic is revenue. Industry end goal is to make the most money by having the best products and in academia, it is to find new approaches/solutions to a problem (whether relevant or not to the end goal) to receive more funding. I think a more effective model would be to tie in industry or outside entities looking for real and quick results with the manpower/talent of academic research. With companies providing funding for a solution to a concrete problem will provide more results. An example I can think of is Dr. Chandra doing research for the armed forces. He is heavily funded by them which entails a huge lab with promising results. There are other labs that we know of in NJIT BME that have barely seen groundbreaking results, some labs are doing the same things as they were during my freshman year. Using academic talent to a more practical and relevant topic is more effective in engineering research. I believe the engineering research would always have the goal of patents, just like companies.

Depending on how urgent that research is, it can be done within the specified timeline or it may be put on the back burner for years. For example, in the company that I am a co-op at, I have found that research and development is not as high of a priority as manufacturing and production. This may be because the market is relatively stable and there is no need to research to further better the product. The minimal research that is being conducted is by a smaller team of engineers and the projects have been awaiting approval for several months even though the results are already looking successful. However, if a company is trying to get a competitive edge or if customers/patients are high in demand for a certain product, the funding and time allotted for research will be a much higher priority. In those cases, there will always be delays but the end product is something that everyone involved is satisfied with.

I think that research in academia allows for more flexibility to the researcher to control the research process because they don't have a company giving them strict guidelines and deadlines. In academia there may also be a limited supply of fund. On the other hand research in industry is funded for and the researcher has access to more resources.

I had no opportunity to do industry research, but I can feel that money is the most important thing that people care about in the industry research.When I worked in academia research, I found that people more care about having good papers. Basically, the fundamental goal of both researches are making money. No money, No research. But the reason why the academia research is different with the industry research because of the system, I think. Academia research is not directly contact with the market and the reason they want to write good papers since good papers can let them make more money eventually.

In academic research there is more independence of doing whatever research you want and you are answering the questions that are interesting to you personally . While in industry the project is selected by business and marketing department and sometimes you have to work on the project that is no more interesting for you or no one needs it and it required no creativity. In industry you have a lot of work in form of last minute project and you have to take those challenges and opportunities. Companies focus on right objectives and right time to ensure that their product makes solid first impression in market .Targeting a specific customer and allow free and honest feedback help in success of product. Companies rely on careful research and planning, communication and tactical skills to ensure their product’s success.