Companies invest in research and development (R&D) in order to obtain knowledge which can lead to the development of new products and/or procedures, or help improve existing products and/or procedures (and thereby increase business sales and profits). R&D can be conducted in-house, under contract, or jointly with others. Organizations that do R&D work for businesses include: universities, government labs, independent R&D organizations, suppliers, and other companies. A few examples of private research and development businesses include: independent inventor, patent agent, licensing consultant, drafting service, product design service, engineering service, etc.