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Les grappes industrielles en régions périphériques: le cas des biotechnologies marines à Rimouski (Québec)
Abstract
fr Figurant comme un élément important des politiques de développement économique, les grappes régionales ont été souvent présentées, à tort ou à raison, comme étant l'environnement le mieux adapté pour stimuler l'innovation et la compétitivité des entreprises et des régions. L'objectif de cet article est d'étudier le phénomène des grappes industrielles en région périphérique à partir du cas des biotechnologies marines à Rimouski. Pour ce faire, nous décrivons la structure et le fonctionnement de la grappe et nous analysons comment les dynamiques d'innovation résultent de processus et d'interactions qui se déroulent à différentes échelles spatiales. De plus, nous discutons en quoi le cas des biotechnologies marines à Rimouski illustre la difficulté de faire émerger une grappe dans un contexte périphérique.
Industrial clusters in peripheral regions: The case of marine biotechnology in Rimouski (Québec)
en As an important tool of economic development policies, regional clusters have often been presented (rightly or wrongly) as the most suitable environment for stimulating innovation and the competitiveness of firms and regions. The objective of this article is to study the phenomenon of industrial clusters in peripheral regions, basing our study on the case of marine biotechnology in Rimouski. To do this, we describe the structure and the functioning of the cluster and analyze how the dynamics of innovation result from processes and interactions that take place at different spatial scales. Finally, we explore how this case study sheds light on the theory related to clusters and the development of peripheral regions. In addition, we discuss how the case of marine biotechnologies in Rimouski illustrates the difficulty of a cluster to emerge in a peripheral context.
Collaborative innovation spaces (CIS) can bring together multiple actors to enhance creativity, collaboration and knowledge exchange, sometimes leading to innovation. In this paper, we suggest that CIS can be categorized into three broad types (internal to the firm, external and virtual) and that each type is related to innovation processes, knowledge‐sourcing and geographic context in specific ways. Our results, based on an original firm‐level survey, reveal that there is heterogeneity with respect to firm attributes and innovation activities associated with different types of CIS. In particular, whilst innovation is associated with the use of CIS in general, radical and technological innovations are more strongly associated with internal CIS, whereas smaller firms tend to use virtual CIS. External CIS, whilst not associated with technological innovation, are associated with high‐tech firms. CIS use does not vary across geographic context. These results emphasize the importance of in‐person, internal, CIS for radical and technological innovation and the need to distinguish between different types of CIS in order to understand how each is associated with different types of innovation, knowledge‐sourcing and firm.
Cet article porte sur le développement d'une nouvelle industrie, à savoir l'industrie brassicole dans la région périphérique de l'Est‐du‐Québec. Son objectif consiste à comprendre et décrire les principales activités des microbrasseries pour déceler leur apport au développement des régions de l'Est‐du‐Québec, à savoir le Bas‐Saint‐Laurent et Gaspésie–Îles‐de‐la‐Madeleine. Les résultats de notre analyse permettent d'apporter des enseignements nouveaux sur la contribution de cette industrie au développement de ces deux régions. This article focuses on the development of a new industry, namely the brewing industry, in the peripheral region of Southeastern Quebec. Its objective is to understand and describe the main activities of the microbreweries and to detect their contribution to the development of Southeastern Quebec, namely the Lower‐Saint‐Lawrence and the Gaspé peninsula‐Magdelen islands regions. The results of our analysis allow us to shed new light on the contribution of this industry to the development of these two regions. Cet article étudie le développement de l'industrie microbrassicole dans la région périphérique de l'Est‐du‐Québec. Les microbrasseries de cette région ont émergé selon des processus identitaires et sociaux forts et un attachement à l'environnement local. Les microbrasseurs répondent à des motivations qui sont à la fois économiques mais aussi la quête d'un style de vie, l'attachement à la région, et le désir de faire développer leur communauté. Cet article étudie le développement de l'industrie microbrassicole dans la région périphérique de l'Est‐du‐Québec. Les microbrasseries de cette région ont émergé selon des processus identitaires et sociaux forts et un attachement à l'environnement local. Les microbrasseurs répondent à des motivations qui sont à la fois économiques mais aussi la quête d'un style de vie, l'attachement à la région, et le désir de faire développer leur communauté.
The Silicon Valley model of entrepreneurship has captured the imagination of the public, the attention of the public policy community throughout the world who want to emulate it, and the focus of scholars seeking to understand it. Entrepreneurship has enabled the Silicon Valley region to harness the opportunities afforded by globalization rather than succumbing as a victim. The purpose of this paper is to suggest that there are limits to the Silicon Valley model of entrepreneurship in addressing the most compelling contemporary economic and social problems and that a broader, more inclusive understanding of and approach to entrepreneurship might be more useful.
Cluster theories have been applied in studies of various industries and regions, including tourism in rural areas, but rarely in the equestrian industry. The focus of this article is to report on the development of an emerging micro-cluster within, and related to, equestrian tourism industry in Northwest Iceland. The research was based on a document analysis and open-ended interviews. Through an account of the development of cluster-related activities and by drawing up a cluster map of both core and related equestrian activities in the Northwest, the study reflects on the impact and character of the cluster development. The conclusions reveal a progression towards a micro-cluster, intertwined with business activities and lifestyle. Education, knowledge transfer and spreading of know-how are important activities for both regular operation and innovation within the micro-cluster. Additionally, there are strong connections to tourism and agricultural clusters. The cluster development strengthens the business environment for equestrian businesses and the competitiveness of the Northwest. New markets and growth opportunities can be exploited and collaboration with supporting and related industries can be further intensified. Such a positive development leads to investment in infrastructure and innovation activities including creation of new jobs in the region, and growth in local rural development.
New industrial innovation policies like smart specialization aim at boosting economic growth by diversification towards more complex and higher value economic activities. This paper proposes a conceptual and analytical framework to support the design and implementation of such policies considering place-specific preconditions, particularly the differentiation of the regional system of innovation and entrepreneurship and the degree of current industrial diversification. The paper expands on the links between these preconditions and the barriers and opportunities for industrial diversification. Consequently, it proposes an archetypical place-based policy framework covering overall policy objectives as well as measures at the level of actors, networks, and the institutional and organizational support structures.
This paper discusses how network theory and social capital can help explain different patterns of inclusion of small and medium sized producers in agri-food clusters. We make the argument that despite the centralized nature of practices, the manner in which inclusion takes place can vary significantly depending on structural features of local networks and governance factors, especially social capital and the role of lead organisations. Social network analysis allows us to investigate how different patterns of bonding, bridging and centrality of key actors in agricultural clusters can influence diffusion of knowledge. We frame this discussion through a typology that allows us to identify diverse scenarios of inclusion of small producers. This is then used to guide an empirical analysis of two agri-food clusters of small producers in Peru (mango) and Colombia (palm oil). Judicious use of mixed methods and the typology can prove useful to explain diverse patterns of inclusion which have important implications for small-scale agricultural producers.
Scholars of the geography of innovation have produced an impressive body of literature over the last decades. However, until recently this research focused on successful core regions, implicitly assuming that there is no innovation in peripheral areas. This view is being increasingly questioned, which is reflected by a rising number of papers, special issues, and edited volumes on innovation outside of agglomerations. Hence, this rapidly emerging field calls for a critical survey. In order to identify a future research agenda, this article conducts a systematic literature review of the work on innovation in the periphery (1960–2016). As such, it explores the recurring themes and key issues of the field and discusses the various periphery concepts applied, ranging from a geographic to a functional perspective on various scales. In doing so, it outlines options for policy makers and suggests avenues for future research: first, the periphery concept needs more refinement. Second, future studies should include systematic comparisons of regions. Third, an evolutionary perspective might provide new insights. Fourth, future work could explore the benefits peripheries offer for certain kinds of innovation. Fifth, urban–rural linkages might be of higher relevance than assumed. Sixth, research should go beyond the well-known examples. Finally, the analysis could be extended by applying a broader understanding of innovation.
In the context of this Companion, this chapter aims to introduce coworking as a practice of “distributed, interorganizational, collaborative knowledge work” (Spinuzzi 2012, p. 400) and coworking spaces as “complex and heterogeneous relational innovation landscapes” (Schmidt et al. 2014, p. 245). It will explore how an understanding of coworking and coworking spaces can contribute to research questions in economic geography in three different ways. First, a look into coworking sheds light on a growing group of economic actors that have not been fully acknowledged in economic geography: freelancers. Second, it provides a comprehensive micro-perspective into social dynamics of knowledge generation because these spaces bring together heterogeneous groups of actors and different knowledge bases and could further illuminate the role of different types of proximity or distance and shared practice for knowledge generation and innovation. And third, coworking spaces themselves become meaningful actors within the urban creative economy mediating between freelancers, firms and organizations. As new and distinct knowledge sites, coworking spaces can provide an empirical lens into theoretical questions of relational and spatial proximity for creativity and innovation beyond the firm and within creative urban milieus (Boschma 2005; Amin and Roberts 2008; Desrochers et al., Chapter 14, this volume). In this chapter, I will combine sociological perspectives with recent research in economic geography on the social dynamics of knowledge creation, proximity and the spatialities of creative and innovative processes. The discussion will draw mainly on empirical literature from the field of culture and creative industries, where freelance work has been a subject of intense study for the past decade. However, that does not mean that all freelancers working in those shared offices are creative workers nor that all freelancers work in coworking spaces.
An extensive literature exists on regional innovation and knowledge-driven economic development, much of it claiming to be prescriptive. Yet attempts to translate insights from this literature into effective policies have met with mixed success. We identify some shortcomings in how much of this literature conceptualises policy and argue that a richer understanding of how real policy processes play out in the development of real places is a prerequisite for making more realistic and potentially effective prescriptions in the future, with particular emphasis on agency, institutional change, and multi-level, multi-actor dynamics.
Geographic research on firm-level innovation is generally premised on the idea of open innovation, suggesting that innovation occurs more readily in urban settings or clusters, which generate local buzz and allow access to external actors. However, a growing body of evidence demonstrates that firms also introduce first-to-market innovations in remote locations. In this exploratory paper, building upon work by Philip McCann, we outline a conceptual framework that connects innovators (differentiated by information source and frequency of interaction with interlocutors) and location (distance from a metropolitan area): slow innovators, relying on non-market-sourced information and infrequent contacts, will be overrepresented in isolated locations. Fast innovators, relying on market-sourced information and frequent interactions, will locate closer to cities. Our results confirm this. Our interpretation of these results – slow innovators are more reliant on technological information which loses value more slowly than faster decaying market-oriented information – requires further investigation.
The open innovation paradigm has become central for understanding firm-level innovation, and is being refined and questioned as researchers explore its limits. However, it has been rather uncritically adopted by many economic geographers since it provides backing for a variety of theories and observations that point towards innovation occurring in geographically concentrated clusters and cities and towards the role that proximity plays. Evidence that innovation can and does occur outside of clusters and cities, whilst widespread, has not displaced the prevailing idea that innovation and geographic concentration are intimately linked. In this paper, I first go over these arguments, focussing on the reasons why innovation is thought to be associated with cities and clusters. I then propose a framework that accounts for the clustering of innovative firms, for the role of cities, and for the fact that empirical work consistently shows that firms introduce first-to-market innovations in a wide variety of geographic contexts, including isolated and peripheral ones. The framework (re)introduces time and place as key factors, which determine not the diffusion, but the value to innovators, of different types of information.
Clusters and cluster policy have become a dominant paradigm in the world of both economic development theory and practice. Cluster theory suggests that firms that are part of a geographically defined cluster benefit from being part of that cluster and that these benefits result in growth in economic activity and output for the region. From here it is only a short step to argue that economic development practitioners can devise policies that can facilitate cluster development through various forms of intervention. Yet despite the large amount of writing on clusters, there is substantial vagueness and ambiguity about the concept itself as well as how clusters work to bring about economic growth and whether policies put in place to build or strengthen clusters actually achieve the desired result. In this article, the authors conduct a review of literature related to clusters to try to set forth what we know and do not know about clusters, what remains uncertain, and what the implications are for economic development practitioners.
It is widely accepted that firms in peripheral regions benefit to a lesser extent from local knowledge spillovers than firms located in agglomerations or industrial clusters. This paper investigates the extent to which innovative firms in peripheral regions compensate for the lack of access to local knowledge spillovers by collaborating at other geographical scales. So far, the literature predominantly suggests that collaborations complement rather than compensate
for local knowledge spillovers. Using data on the collaboration patterns of innovative firms in Sweden, this paper provides evidence that firms with low access to local knowledge spillovers tend to collaborate more. This effect, however, depends on firm size and in-house capabilities. Our findings suggest that firms with strong in-house capabilities do indeed compensate for a lack of local knowledge spillovers with collaborations while firms with weaker in-house capabilities depend more on the regional knowledge infrastructure.
L’analyse des relations de proximité s’est souvent tournée vers les questions de relations industrielles et d’innovation, en introduisant des raffinements successifs, qui tournent autour des notions fondamentales de Proximité Géographique et de Proximité Organisée. L’objectif de ce papier est d’analyser et de caractériser la diversité des relations de proximité entretenues par les entreprises innovantes au sein d’un cluster, puis d’en donner une lecture à partir d’un exemple appliqué. Nous commençons par mettre en évidence les principales caractéristiques des relations de Proximité Organisée et de Proximité Géographique (dans ses composantes permanentes et temporaires) et dessiner ainsi le schéma des différentes catégories de relations proches et à distance entretenues par les entreprises d’un cluster, en particulier en termes de collaborations de recherche et de développement. Nous appliquons ensuite cette grille de lecture au cas des entreprises du cluster de l’optique en Région Ile de France, en appliquant la méthode d’analyse portérienne des groupes stratégiques. Les résultats révèlent l’existence de quatre groupes différents d’entreprises innovantes, qui entretiennent des relations spécifiques à l’espace et mobilisent de manière différente les relations locales, les échanges à distance via la mobilité ou les TICs. En particulier, les schémas de mobilisation des proximités s’avèrent différents en fonction de la taille des entreprises, de leur place dans la chaine de valeur, de leur degré de spécialisation et de la maturité de la technologie.
Much recent work on innovation and regions takes as a starting point Marshallian districts, variously updated by concepts such as clusters, regional innovation systems and learning regions. The basic premise is that certain regional dynamics are conducive to innovation. This work has inspired regional development agencies, which regularly implement local innovation policies with the hope of stimulating local economic development. However, we argue in this paper that there is no necessary connection between local innovativeness and local development: indeed, it is quite possible that innovation in region A leads to growth (of employment and income) in region B, particularly if region B is better suited to developing the economic potential of innovations. In this paper the conceptual underpinnings of this argument are developed, and an exploratory empirical analysis undertaken. Using Canadian data (patent applications and census data for 203 urban labour markets) this paper explores whether there is a connection between local applications and local employment and income growth. The results show that there is virtually no connection between local innovation (as measured by local applications) and local development, and that local development is closely connected with access to markets, local industrial structure and wider-scale regional factors.
The idea of constructing regional advantage (CRA) has recently been emphasized by scholars as a new way for firms to gain competitiveness in a globalizing learning economy. The rationale behind the idea is that advantages in a regional industry can be constructed by proactive public–private partnership. This article uses, and examines the relevance of, the CRA framework in analysing the development and functioning of the marine biotechnology industry in Tromsø, which is a fairly peripheral region in Norway. Despite the fact that much effort has been put into education and R&D at the University of Tromsø and related research institutes, and the fact that many public policy tools have intended to create a blooming marine biotechnology industry in the area, the results have so far been meagre. This article explains the rather weak results in terms of the number of firms and jobs in the marine biotechnology industry in Tromsø as being due to a lack of synthetic knowledge on how to industrialize research results and little spillover of market knowledge. With regard to more general theoretical lessons linked to the CRA framework, this article argues for seeing the concept of related variety in a broader industrial and geographical sense in peripheral regions.
This paper examines the features of successful forms of innovation in rural areas characterized by geographical distance and sparse population. The core questions are: how firms compensate for the lack of a dense local network; how rural clusters are emerging and changing; how firms acquire knowledge for innovation processes; how firms face the challenges of globalization, notably at the level of value chains. The topics will be examined through an analysis of the development of one agricultural area in northern Finland which has industrialized since the mid-1990s in the wake of the growth of the national information and communication technology (ICT) cluster. The findings reveal that the knowledge needed for innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) stems from regional sources—clients of localized networks as well as regional educational and knowledge institutes—whereas the leading firms of the regional networks acquire knowledge from clients, non-local knowledge institutes and national technology programmes.
This paper reviews implications of recent research on competitiveness and clusters for regions and regional policy. A new
framing of competitiveness clarifies the role of regions. Its empirical findings align well with the literature on drivers
of regional performance, but there are opportunities for mutual learning. A step-change in the availability of data on clusters
and cluster policies has enabled new research approaches. Clusters are shown to have a close association with regional economic
performance and evolution. Cluster policies are largely focused on strengthening existing agglomerations, not creating new
ones. The paper discussed several practical insights for regional policy makers.
Teirlinck P. and Spithoven A. The spatial organization of innovation: open innovation, external knowledge relations and urban structure, Regional Studies. The increased use of external knowledge relations, complementary to in-house research and development, influences the way firms are organized to manage innovation. The ‘new’ imperative of open innovation promotes the idea that firms organize innovation, to a greater extent, in interaction with outside parties. This paper argues that both the organization of innovation as well as the use of external knowledge depends on the physical, socio-economic and cultural environment. The outcome of the analysis supports the idea that (open) innovation is spatially organized. Contrary to the expectations, innovative firms in less urbanized areas show a higher degree of openness.
Teirlinck P. et Spithoven A. L'organisation géographique de l'innovation: l'innovation ouverte, les rapports de connaissance externe et l'ossature urbaine, Regional Studies. L'emploi accru des rapports de connaissance externe, qui complètent la R et D interne, influe la façon dont les entreprises s'organisent pour gérer l'innovation. Le ‘nouveau’ impératif, à savoir l'innovation ouverte, laisse supposer que, dans une large mesure, les entreprises organisent l'innovation à partir de l'interaction avec le monde extérieur. Cet article cherche à affirmer qu'aussi bien l'organisation de l'innovation que l'emploi de la connaissance externe dépendent des milieux physique, socioéconomique et culturel. Le résultat de l'analyse soutient l'idée que l'innovation (ouverte) s'organise sur le plan géographique. Contre toute attente, les entreprises à caractère innovateur situées dans les zones moins urbanisées font preuve d'un taux d'ouverture plus élevé.
Innovation ouverte Rapports de connaissance externe Ossature urbaine
Teirlinck P. und Spithoven A. Die räumliche Organisation der Innovation: offene Innovation, externe Wissensbeziehungen und urbane Struktur, Regional Studies. Die zunehmende Nutzung externer Wissensbeziehungen zur Ergänzung der firmeninternen Forschung und Entwicklung wirkt sich darauf aus, wie Firmen zur Lenkung der Innovation organisiert werden. Der ,neue' Imperativ einer offenen Innovation fördert die Idee, dass Firmen die Innovation in größerem Umfang in Wechselwirkung mit externen Partnern organisieren sollten. In diesem Beitrag wird argumentiert, dass sowohl die Organisation der Innovation als auch die Nutzung von externem Wissen von der physischen, sozioökonomischen und kulturellen Umgebung abhängen. Das Ergebnis der Analyse bekräftigt die Idee, dass eine (offene) Innovation räumlich organisiert ist. Wider Erwarten weisen innovative Firmen in weniger urbanisierten Gegenden ein höheres Maß an Offenheit auf.
Offene Innovation Externe Wissensbeziehungen Urbane Struktur
Teirlinck P. y Spithoven A. La organización espacial de la innovación: innovación abierta, relaciones de conocimiento externo y estructura urbana, Regional Studies. El uso cada vez más frecuente de las relaciones externas de conocimiento, junto con la I + D del lugar, influye en el modo en que las empresas se organizan para gestionar las innovaciones. El ‘nuevo’ principio obligatorio de innovación abierta fomenta la idea de que las empresas organicen sus innovaciones en gran medida interactuando con entidades externas. En este artículo sostenemos que tanto la organización de innovación como el uso de conocimiento externo dependen del entorno físico, socioeconómico y cultural. El resultado del análisis respalda la idea de que la innovación (abierta) está organizada de forma espacial. En contra de todos los pronósticos, las empresas innovadoras en áreas menor ubanizadas muestran un grado superior de apertura.
Innovación abierta Relaciones de conocimiento externo Estructura urbana
The geographical concentration of related manufacturing and service firms is as old as economic development, but it has drawn renewed attention in the last two decades in the wake of the spectacular growth of a number of regional economies ranging from Silicon Valley (South San Francisco Bay) to Italian rural manufacturing districts. While numerous policy prescriptions for regional growth that built on this phenomenon have been devised, none has enjoyed more popularity among policy makers than the "cluster" based economic development strategy put forward by Harvard Business School's Michael Porter. In Porter's views, clusters are made up of firms that are linked in some ways and that are geographically proximate. Upon closer examination, however, this concept turns out to be so fuzzy that it is now commonly used in a variety of ways by a wide array of academics, consultants and policy makers. It is further argued that the regional specialization strategy commonly associated with clusters makes regions more likely to experience economic downturns, prevents the spontaneous creation of inter-industry linkages and hampers the creation of new ideas and businesses.
We developed a theoretical framework to explore how firms agglomerate and develop linkages within and across co-located clusters in a competitive urban economy. We applied our framework to Montreal, where we analyzed relationships among its aerospace, information technology and artificial intelligence firms. Using network community structure analysis, we show that firm linkages largely agglomerate within industrial lines. However, there are important nuances. Clusters themselves are not homogeneous and firms specializing in similar or complementary technological subfields develop denser connections with each other. Moreover, technological similarity and complementarity, as well as a common business context, force some groups of firms to develop linkages across clusters, creating significant overlap across certain industries.
The geography of innovation is changing. First, it is increasingly understood that innovative firms and organizations exhibit a wide variety of strategies, each being differently attuned to diverse geographic contexts. Second, and concomitantly, the idea that cities, clusters and physical proximity are essential for innovation is evolving under the weight of new theorizing and empirical evidence. In this Handbook we gather 28 chapters by scholars with widely differing views on what constitutes the geography of innovation. The aim of the Handbook is to break with the many ideas and concepts that emerged during the course of the 1980s and 1990s, and to fully take into account the new reality of the internet, mobile communication technologies, personal mobility and globalization. This does not entail the rejection of well-established and supported ideas, but instead allows for a series of new ideas and authors to enter the arena and provoke debate.
Whereas previous studies have not paid much attention to spatial units in buildings, and have merely measured diversity at the regional level, this study aims to calculate the industrial diversity in building units in the Seoul Metropolitan Area and examine the factors associated with such diversity using the multi-level model method. The results show that a vertical factory is an important industrial zone correlated strongly to diversity in building spaces. Industrial composition also positively associated with diversity. Industrial diversity tends to increase in technology-intensive industries, but decreases in traditional ones. Furthermore, this study reveals a pattern in which buildings with high diversity are spatially clustered in certain areas. Meanwhile, industrial parks have a negative association with diversity. High land prices also hinder the agglomeration of industries that aim for urban location, and may ultimately have a negative association with diversity.
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Conventional wisdom indicates that economic specialization can promote growth, whereas economic stability is associated with diversified economies. This conflicting relationship between specialization and diversity has been questioned, as regional scientists have suggested that specialization and diversity can coexist in a regional economy and proposed the concept of diversified specializations. To test this proposition empirically, two Herfindahl–Hirschman Indices were used to examine the relationship between economic diversity and economic performance among 359 metropolitan statistical areas in the contiguous United States. The first index measures industry diversity across 87 three-digit North American Industry Classification Systems sectors, and the second index quantifies cluster diversity among 51 economic specializations. This analysis confirms that cluster diversity contributes to both stability and growth, and regions can simultaneously pursue both high and stable economic growth.
A growing literature highlights the development of specific innovative patterns in peripheral areas and the need to better understand how and why firms can innovate despite the absence of agglomeration effects. These peripheral areas can, among other things, offer local resources (material and immaterial) for developing environmental innovations. Thus, the aim of this article is to gain a more in-depth understanding of innovation processes in peripheral areas by analyzing the dynamics of utilization of local (i.e. place-based) and extra-local resources for the building and development of eco-innovative projects. We adopt an evolutionary framework inspired by the literature on eco-innovation and geography of innovation, which articulates internal organizational factors and those external to eco-innovative organizations, including place-based factors. We use and enhance a mixed method borrowed from economic sociology that enables us to quantify the external resources utilized throughout the innovation process (nature, means of acquisition and location), through narrative analysis. We analyze five agro-food projects located in rural areas. Based on in-depth interviews, we identify 196 external resources that were utilized for developing these projects. We find that these projects are strongly embedded in their local environment and rely, to a large extent, on local resources and networks, which shows that, even in peripheral areas, the local context can be conducive to innovation. However, these eco-innovation processes are not confined to the local sphere; indeed, their stakeholders are able to tap into specific, more-distantly located resources and market opportunities, and do so increasingly as the projects develop. The results also point to the different roles of institutional and market actors in the acquisition of resources, according to their nature and location, and highlight the importance of institutional actors at the regional level.
Specialized knowledge is increasingly central in modern information- and technology-oriented economies, yet we know surprisingly little about how this knowledge is organized. We trace the evolution of specialized knowledge at both the individual- and network-levels by analyzing email exchanges shared among members of a large tech professional community in New York City over seven years. We find a shift over time toward the emergence of an increasingly specialized ecology of knowledge and information. This division of knowledge is driven by the influx of new cohorts of participants with different knowledge and interests than those already there. Yet, even as individual contributors increasingly sort into specialized niches, the community as a whole remains robust in its ability to address topics of diverse concern. This study illustrates how new sources of data enable us to see with greater clarity the structures underpinning modern knowledge-based innovation clusters.
Cluster theory provides a framework for analyzing regional industry dynamics. Definitions and categorizations of clusters vary, however, hindering the development of econometric models for cluster analysis. The authors propose empirical measures relevant to researchers and practitioners for cluster strength/specialization, cluster diversity/diversification, and identifying regional growth clusters. The latter measure uses location quotients, shift-share analysis, and other criteria to identify robust clusters that are important for thriving regions. These measures are calculated for local and traded clusters using employment data for 366 U.S. metropolitan statistical areas. Additionally, the authors estimated the relationship of their cluster performance measures to four traditional measures of economic performance: growth in gross domestic product, productivity per employee, compensation per employee, and personal income. The authors find traded cluster strength is positively related to compensation per employee growth and positively related to productivity growth, the latter being consistent with expected Marshall–Arrow–Romer externalities. Traded growth clusters are positively related to gross domestic product growth.
Agglomeration economies’ influence on logistics clusters’ growth and competitiveness. Regional Studies. This study identifies logistics clusters and explores their effect on establishment and employment growth to extrapolate the presence of competitiveness-enhancing agglomeration economies in clusters. The study uses a US ZIP code-level dataset to enhance past research by increasing spatial precision and statistically controlling for related variables. There is some evidence of disproportionate growth in the number of logistics establishments in clusters due to highly localized agglomeration economies, which appear to degrade quickly over space. However, the results are mixed, calling for research into the mechanisms purported to produce agglomeration economies in logistics clusters.
This paper analyzes industrial clusters in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area (HMA) in Finland. The HMA is the largest and most powerful concentration of population and economic activity in Finland. The paper analyzes knowledge-intensive industrial clusters and their structures. Clusters are identified according to a statistical analysis that provides a systematic perspective on the knowledge-intensive economic geography of the HMA. There are two main questions: how diverse are the identified clusters in terms of their internal structure; and, are there spatial irregularities identifiable in these structures? Knowledge-intensive clusters are strongly localized close to the infrastructural nodes: their physical localization is closely linked to road- and rail-structures and terminals. In general, clusters become smaller as their distance to the center of Helsinki increases: distance decay is evidently present. Our findings indicate that clusters are plural entities and their diversities do not follow a clearly identifiable pre-determined logic. Knowledge-based industries focusing on immaterial products tend to have closer central proximity than other industries but variations are extensive. This cluster diversity indicates that the HMA has a threshold for manifesting agglomeration gains that generate and extend industrial diversities within key clusters. The most diverse clusters tend to be located in the urban core, whereas the more narrowly focused clusters may be found in relatively peripheral locations.
The aim of this article is to explore how new industrial paths emerge and grow in peripheral regional economies. Current conceptualizations of regional path development are based on experiences from core regions and fail to provide satisfactory theoretical explanations of new path-creating activities in peripheral areas. Our conceptual approach combines the notions of path development and knowledge bases, enabling us to distinguish between an analytic and a synthetic route of path creation. We argue that due emphasis should be given to exogenous sources of new path development and policy actions in order to understand how analytical and synthetic routes unfold in peripheral regions. These factors are still underappreciated in prevailing models of path creation. The article contains an analysis of the emergence and evolution of new industries in two peripheral regions in Norway and Austria: the electronics and software industry in Arendal–Grimstad in southeastern Norway, and the software industry in Mühlviertel in Upper Austria. The two industries have developed differently: through the synthetic route based on the emergence and restructuring of manufacturing firms in Arendal–Grimstad and through the analytical route building on the establishment of research facilities in Mühlviertel. Our analysis suggests that the inflow of new analytical and synthetic knowledge from exogenous sources and various types of policy interventions have been vital in sparking the formation of new industrial paths in both regions. The findings clearly challenge uniform, narrowly conceptualized models of industrial evolution and support recent work that advocates a broader theoretical framework to capture exogenously led and policy-supported path-creation processes.
Analysis of proximity relations has often focused on the areas of industrial relations and innovation, introducing successive refinements centred on the seminal concepts of geographical and organised proximity. The aim of this article is to analyse and to assess for the diversity of proximity relations maintained by various types of innovative firms within a cluster, and to illustrate it with a case study analysis. We start with a presentation of the main characteristics of proximity relations: organised proximity and (permanent or temporary) geographical proximity, and define on that basis an analytical grid of the various relations maintained by the firms located in a cluster, be there local or distant ones. Then, we applied this analysis to an applied example, the one of the optics cluster in the greater Paris region. In order to identify groups of firms we apply the Porterian analysis method to strategic groups. The results reveal the existence of four different groups of innovative firms that maintain specific spatial relations and mobilize local relations and long-distance exchanges in different ways, via mobility or ICT. We show that the mobilization patterns of the different proximity types vary depending on the size of the firms, their place within the value chain, their degree of specialization and the maturity of the technology used.
Building on the case study of Quebec's coastal region maritime industry, the relevance of the regional innovation system framework to analyse and plan innovation development in the periphery is discussed. The analysis indicates that in Quebec's coastal region, while public policies using the regional innovation system framework have contributed to create a relatively well-developed knowledge infrastructure in the maritime industry, they have not yet succeeded in achieving the main goal of fostering a 'competitive regional production system'. This case suggests that a 'thickening' of the knowledge infrastructure does not automatically lead to significant development in the productive system in peripheral regions.
Current regional industrialization strategies encourage recruitment, small business development, and business retention and
expansion efforts to promote industry cluster development. In this paper, we provide an overview of the advantages and disadvantages
of promoting industry clusters as an industrial development alternative for rural areas. Advantages of successful cluster
promotion include stronger external economies, a more conducive environment for industrial reorganization, greater networking
among firms, and more efficient use of public resources. The disadvantages of an industry cluster approach are selecting industries
to target, overcoming latecomer disadvantages, and providing supportive institutions. Findings indicate that an industry cluster
strategy is not appropriate for many rural communities. Areas considering cluster promotion should compare costs of initiating
or expanding a cluster with the potential benefits of successful cluster development.
How do executive teams make rapid decisions in the high-velocity mi- crocomputer industry? This inductive study of eight microcomputer firms led lo propositions exploring that question. Fast decision makers use more, not less, information than do slow decision makers. The former also develop more, not fewer, alternatives, and use a two-tiered advice process. Conflict resolution and integration among strategic de- cisions and tactical plans are also critical to the pace of decision mak- ing. Finally, fast decisions hased on this pattem of hehaviors lead to superior performance.
The aim of this paper is to contribute to a greater understanding of the research on innovation systems in peripheral regions by providing a detailed account of the case of the La Pocatière region in Canada. In analysing this case, we raise the following two questions: (1) what are the actors and structure of the innovation system in La Pocatière?; (2) what are the key factors and dynamics leading to innovation activity, as well as to the transformation and growth of this regional innovation system? The empirical bases for the analyses are derived from various sources: historical documents, statistical data, and in-depth interviews with key individuals in private and public organizations.
This paper evaluates the role of regional cluster composition in the economic performance of industries, clusters and regions. On the one hand, diminishing returns to specialization in a location can result in a convergence effect: the growth rate of an industry within a region may be declining in the level of activity of that industry. At the same time, positive spillovers across complementary economic activities provide an impetus for agglomeration: the growth rate of an industry within a region may be increasing in the size and “strength” (i.e., relative presence) of related economic sectors. Building on Porter (1998, 2003), we develop a systematic empirical framework to identify the role of regional clusters – groups of closely related and complementary industries operating within a particular region – in regional economic performance. We exploit newly available data from the US Cluster Mapping Project to disentangle the impact of convergence at the region-industry level from agglomeration within clusters. We find that, after controlling for the impact of convergence at the narrowest unit of analysis, there is significant evidence for cluster-driven agglomeration. Industries participating in a strong cluster register higher employment growth as well as higher growth of wages, number of establishments, and patenting. Industry and cluster level growth also increases with the strength of related clusters in the region and with the strength of similar clusters in adjacent regions. Importantly, we find evidence that new industries emerge where there is a strong cluster environment. Our analysis also suggests that the presence of strong clusters in a region enhances growth opportunities in other industries and clusters. Overall, these findings highlight the important role of cluster-based agglomeration in regional economic performance.
All peripheral regions face significant challenges with tourism development. This research initially acknowledges the challenges facing peripheral regions, which can be either geographical, such as access and infrastructure, or perceptual in nature, such as image related. Subsequently the challenges for tourism provision and development in the northeast of Scotland are discussed. Primary data have been collected from tourism providers in the region in an attempt to identify the specific challenges that face northeast Scotland. This region of Scotland faces a unique challenge in that the region effectively has two micro-economies; Aberdeen city and its surrounding area benefit from the influence of a relatively buoyant oil industry, whereas the more remote areas to the north and west exhibit many peripheral tendencies. This juxtaposition of two contrasting operating environments in a peripheral area highlights the unique challenges for tourism development in this part of the world. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Increasing evidence indicates that firms benefit from a location in a geographic cluster of similar firms. The literature is nearly silent, however, on whether agglomeration economies accrue symmetrically across clustered firms. Drawing from the knowledge-based view, we investigate which firms benefit most from agglomeration and discuss how the implications for entrepreneurs are significant if some firms benefit more from geographic agglomeration than others. We investigate three particular firm attributes that may accentuate or mitigate benefits tied to participation in a cluster. We test our hypotheses on a sample of biotechnology firms and find strong evidence that firms benefit asymmetrically. Younger firms and firms with higher knowledge stocks benefit more from agglomeration.
Over the past decade, there has been growing interest in local industrial agglomeration and specialization, not only by economic geographers but also by economists and by policy-makers. Of the many ideas and concepts to have emerged from this new-found focus, Michael Porter's work on clusters has proved by far the most influential. His cluster theory has become the standard concept in the field, and policy-makers the world over have seized upon Porter's cluster model as a tool for promoting national, regional, and local competitiveness, innovation and growth. But the mere popularity of a construct is by no means a guarantee of its profundity. Seductive though the cluster concept is, there is much about it that is problematic, and the rush to employ cluster ideas has run ahead of many fundamental conceptual, theoretical and empirical questions. Our aim is to deconstruct the cluster concept in order to reveal and highlight these issues. Our concerns relate to the definition of the cluster concept, its theorization, its empirics, the claims made for its benefits and advantages, and its use in policy-making. Whilst we do not wish to debunk the cluster idea outright, we do argue for a much more cautious and circumspect use of the notion, especially within a policy context: the cluster concept should carry a public policy health warning.
Firms and workers are much more productive in large and dense urban environments. There is substantial evidence of such agglomeration economies based on three approaches. First, on a clustering of production beyond what can be explained by chance or comparative advantage. Second, on spatial patterns in wages and rents. Third, on systematic variations in productivity with the urban environment. However, more needs to be learned about the causes of agglomeration economies. We have good models of agglomeration through sharing and matching, but not a deep enough understanding of learning in cities. Despite recent progress, more work is needed to distinguish empirically between alternative causes. Copyright (c) 2010, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Economic geography in an era of global competition poses a paradox. In theory, location should no longer be a source of competitive advantage. Open global markets, rapid transportation, and high-speed communications should allow any company to source any thing from any place at any time. But in practice, Michael Porter demonstrates, location remains central to competition. Today's economic map of the world is characterized by what Porter calls clusters: critical masses in one place of linked industries and institutions--from suppliers to universities to government agencies--that enjoy unusual competitive success in a particular field. The most famous example are found in Silicon Valley and Hollywood, but clusters dot the world's landscape. Porter explains how clusters affect competition in three broad ways: first, by increasing the productivity of companies based in the area; second, by driving the direction and pace of innovation; and third, by stimulating the formation of new businesses within the cluster. Geographic, cultural, and institutional proximity provides companies with special access, closer relationships, better information, powerful incentives, and other advantages that are difficult to tap from a distance. The more complex, knowledge-based, and dynamic the world economy becomes, the more this is true. Competitive advantage lies increasingly in local things--knowledge, relationships, and motivation--that distant rivals cannot replicate. Porter challenges the conventional wisdom about how companies should be configured, how institutions such as universities can contribute to competitive success, and how governments can promote economic development and prosperity.
Case study research: Design and methods. 2 ième ed
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Austin, Boston, Silicon Valley, and New York: Case studies in the location choices of entrepreneurs in maintaining the Technopolis
- B. Stephens
- J. S. Butler
- R. Garg
- D. V. Gibson
The life cycle of clusters: A policy perspective
- E. Uyarra
- R. Ramlogan
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