There is no doubt that technological innovations are one of the main source of competitive advantages for a growing number of industrial companies. The first part of this paper presents a brief appreciation of the innovation process while shows the difterences between radical and incrementaI innovations, two distincts but complementary kinds of innovation. The n, a conceptual distinction between two approaches to set incrementaI innovations is analysed. Final/y, this paper discusses the role of operation activities and production management tools in the technological innovation process, taking into consideration the new approach related to the total quality movement.
competitiveness; incrementaI innovation; implementation process; continuous improvements; simultaneous engineering; organizational innovation