1st Edition
Industrial Transition New Global-Local Patterns of Production, Work, and Innovation
Recently, the international division of labour in industrial production has grown increasingly more volatile. The separation between 'high-end' tasks undertaken in the traditional core economies and 'low-end' tasks undertaken in newly emerging economies has become increasingly blurred. The new dynamics and unpredictability of actor and process configurations in internationalized production bring new challenges for research in economic geography, regional economics and management sciences. The allocation of R&D and production mandates within or between enterprises, the setting up, closing down, purchase or sale of subsidiaries at different localities, the shifting patterns of collaborative innovation, together with newly evolving forms of capitalism, all appear to interact in ways not seen before. It appears we have entered a new era termed 'industrial transition'. This book forms the first approach toward conceptualising the term and compiling illustrative empirical underpinnings. Contributions by an international set of renowned economic geographers highlight the major features and case studies of 'industrial transition' and address various questions that matter for the future of our global economy: How are regions and localities affected by the shift of product mandates? In which ways do changes differ between industrial sectors and economic regions? How can regions and localities adequately prepare for or react to foreseeable changes; and how can regional resilience and response capacities be built and enhanced?
Biography
Martina Fromhold-Eisebith, Full Professor (Chair) of Economic Geography, Department of Geography, RWTH Aachen University, Germany and Martina Fuchs, Full Professor of Geography, Department of Economic and Social Geography, University of Cologne, Germany
'This volume contains a rich collection of research-based chapters, studying a variety of industries, countries and regions. It sheds new light on the dynamics of globalization and the remaining role of local influences. Readers of the book will find stimulating insights and original empirical results, based on new conceptual ideas about the dynamics of "industrial transition".' Mike Geppert, University of Surrey, UK 'In an era of disruptive change and highly uneven adaptation, this rich and international collection of key voices provides an important contribution to our understanding of theory, policy and practice.' Andy Pike, Newcastle University, UK '... the industrial transition theme works as a template to draw together a strong collection of chapters, taking the reader to a diversity of changing industrial settings, and to consider a palette of potential research approaches.' Regional Studies
