Further research into a convention for measuring the state-of-the-art of products or processes

In a 1980 study, an attempt was made to provide some degree of quantitative precision to the term “state-of-the-art” by developing an SOA measure for computers and antibiotics. This study expands on the convention developed in the earlier work and applies the approach to five technologies: aircraft turbine engines, high-temperature materials as used in blades and vanes, manmade fibers, farm tractors, and coal gasification. Satisfactory state-of-the-art measures were developed for aircraft turbine engines and high-temperature materials, and the maturity of farm tractor technology was confirmed. The convention also revealed that manmade fiber technology has been in a refining mode since the introduction of nylon. Coal gasification has not gained enough commercial experience to merit a state-of-the-art measure.