Technology goes local: A showcase program in Florida spurs local implementation of proven highway technologies - Local Technical Assistance Program

Public Roads, March-April, 2003 by John J. Sullivan, IV

Small and rural transportation agencies are responsible for building or maintaining nearly 4.8 million kilometers (3 million miles) of roadways and more than 29,000 bridges in the United States. Ensuring that these local agencies have access to the knowledge and tools they need to do their jobs effectively depends on getting information about proven, new technologies and processes from the laboratory into the hands of the transportation professionals who can implement them in the field.

Federal and State agencies and metropolitan planning organizations often have the talent, funding, and communication mechanisms in place to stay abreast of new technologies and implement those offering the most promise in a timely manner. But at the local agency level, technology buy-in is complicated by financial and political risk, and implementation can take years, even decades.

In the 1980s, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) introduced the Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) to facilitate information exchange in support of local road and bridge agencies. Today, LTAP has 58 centers across the United States, one in each State and Puerto Rico plus seven Tribal Technical Assistance Program centers. Through training, workshops, and reference materials, the LTAP centers quickly proved to be an effective mechanism for raising awareness of new technologies at the local level. Facilitating the actual implementation of new products or processes or the discontinuation of inefficient ones, however, remains an ongoing challenge.

In 1995, to meet the technology needs of local agencies, the LTAP center in Florida launched an innovative Product Demonstration Showcase (PDS) program with the goal of reducing the timeline for moving new technologies from "state-of-the-art" to "state-of-the-practice" at the local level. The purpose of the showcase program is to speed up the implementation of roadway and bridge technologies in the municipal arena by providing decisionmakers with unbiased, hands-on project experience with field-applied technologies and processes.

Given that post-showcase investment in the demonstrated technologies is running into the millions of dollars, the realized value of the program speaks for itself. Energized by the success of the showcase program in Florida, organizers are eager to spread the word about this innovative format for technology transfer to other States.

The Showcase Format

The showcase program unites a user agency--a municipality or other public agency--and a vendor in delivering a presentation on a successful technology. Each 1- to 3-day showcase includes workshops, demonstrations, and site visits focused on demonstrating the value of a particular product or process that the user agency has implemented successfully. Attendees hear about the agency's motivation for implementing the product or process, satisfaction to date, and cost/benefit analysis. They also have the chance to participate in real-time demonstrations and site visits.

According to Gib Peaslee, coordinator of the showcase program at Florida LTAP, the showcases target decisionmakers at the local level, including crew chiefs, road supervisors, public works directors, and elected officials. "We were flabbergasted by the breadth of talent representing different professions that showed interest in attending the demonstrations," Peaslee admits. "With the goal of speedy implementation, we encourage attendees to bring the decisionmakers."

Each showcase must consist of five essential elements: (1) a neutral sponsor (usually a State LTAP center), (2) a user agency to host the showcase, (3) an industry contractor or consultant, (4) site visit(s) to fludiitate real-time evaluation of the technologies in use, and (5) a live demonstration of the technology.

The typical showcase agenda begins in the morning with representatives from the local agency and the company or manufacturer making presentations on product development, the agency decisionmaking and approval processes, costs and benefits, and results to date. In the afternoon, participants visit completed project sites and witness hands-on demonstrations.

Neither the LTAP nor participating public entities present a showcase event as an endorsement, implied or otherwise, for a particular product, service, technology or vendor. Industry demonstrations are limited to products or services currently in field use by the hosting agency.

According to Peaslee, city and county engineers proposed and endorsed the showcase format as the most effective method for providing professionals and elected officials with the information balance needed for a practical evaluation.

Overcoming Barriers

The showcase format is designed to reduce traditional barriers to technology implementation. In consulting with transportation personnel at local agencies, Peaslee found that one of the greatest barriers to technology transfer is risking professional reputations.

"Local officials put their jobs on the line when they embrace a new technology," Peaslee says. "They don't want to listen to a salesman telling them how great a new product or service is. Before they buy something, they want to hear how it works from a satisfied customer, see the product or process in person, and make their own call about the benefits."