An important feature of any industry is its technology and the process whereby it changes. The aim of this chapter is to provide some understanding at both a theoretical and factual level of this important facet of our industry in the late Victorian and Edwardian era: a period in which British industry in general has been castigated for its failure to keep up with its main competitors technologically.

The first section of this chapter will give a brief survey of the rival theories of technological development, followed by an analysis of the structure and nature of technological change in the paper industry. The process of technological change in the industry in the second half of the nineteenth century can best be described as a gradual accumulation of technological knowledge rather than a process characterised by discontinuity. In the third section the origins of technological progress in the industry are more closely investigated. In particular, the importance of innovation resulting from knowledge acquired in production is emphasised. Following this, a theoretical exploration of some of the factors which affect these origins is undertaken. The findings of this exploration are of great relevance to later chapters where the diverging technological performance of the American and British industries are examined. In the final section a profile of innovative activity in the trade is constructed from British patent data.

Technological development

At the heart of industrial decline and success lies technological change.