The March 2008 issue of JOM presents a suite of articles on "the materials frontier," which, for purposes of this edition, comprises biomaterials, materials informatics, and nanotechnology. The commercial application of new materials presents more than challenges for just the marketing departments of organizations. What do you think presents the biggest obstacle to the introduction of a new materials technology?

Hey, feel free to comment as well. This is a discussion board, . . . so discuss.

I think environmental health and safety concerns have really become first level factors in product design and manufacturing as technologists and society have begun to learn the lessons taught by relegating these concerns to the second (or third) tiers in the past. Clearly this has been apparent in the case of the EHS focus on nanomaterials, and there is already an approval process in place for biomaterials (for saftey, not really environmental aspects, I don't think). One choice in the list that is not exclusive from environmental health and safety concerns is "lack of case law and precedent", which I think speaks to the fear that manufacturers have of the plaintiff bar. It would be interesting to hear from others, especially those with a) more legal knowledge and/or b) a non-US viewpoint as to whether this is a drivier as I suspect, and to what degree it is country-specific.