Browsing by Subject "Agglomeration"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    From Mass To Motion: The Temporal Dynamics Of Industry Clusters
    (2020-05) Kim, Min Jung
    This dissertation zooms in an underexplored phenomenon that I refer to as the temporal dynamics of industry clusters: concentration levels of industry activity in a region change over time and patterns of growth do not necessarily follow life cycle stages or larger industry- or region-wide trends. Despite extensive work on cluster size (or “mass”), there has been little attention paid to their temporal dynamics (or “motion”). I propose that understanding cluster dynamics is important, because clusters are seldom stable, and cluster dynamics may have strategic implications not accounted for in existing approaches. In the first essay of my dissertation (Chapter 2), I build a framework for characterizing cluster temporal dynamics, develop a novel empirical technique that characterizes the dynamics, and document the prevalence of the phenomenon. The second essay (Chapter 3) builds on the first chapter framework and examines how cluster dynamics influence the nature of technology creation. I find evidence that innovation by firms in clusters experiencing greater sustained growth is likely to be more disruptive relative to innovation by firms in clusters of comparable size that are experiencing stable or declining periods. I also find that cluster dynamics influence innovation, at least in part, because of cross-cluster employee mobility, which has rarely been discussed as a key mechanism by which clusters influence firm innovation. In the third essay (Chapter 4), I conduct a qualitative study on cluster temporal dynamics based on interviews and historical case studies, unpacking the phenomenon of the temporal dynamics of the medical device industry in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region.
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    Intraurban Accessibility and Employment Density
    (2006-08-01) Iacono, Michael J; Cao, Jason X; Cui, Mengying; Levinson, David M
    This study investigates the relationship between urban accessibility and firm agglomeration, as reflected in patterns of urban employment densities. We use measures of accessibility derived from the regional highway network, combined with small-scale (Census block-level) data on employment from the Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD) data set to generate proxies for different sources of agglomeration, specifically urbanization and localization economies. These variables are employed in a set of employment density regressions for 20 two-digit NAICS code sectors to identify the propensity of each sector to agglomerate in response to varying levels of accessibility. The density regressions are applied to sample data from the Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota (Twin Cities) metropolitan region for the years 2000 and 2010. We find that in general urbanization effects tend to overshadow those of localization effects. Moreover, these effects tend to vary by sector, with many service-based sectors showing a stronger propensity to agglomerate than manufacturing and several "basic" sectors like agriculture, mining and utilities.
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    Where and why do firms choose to move? Empirical evidence from Norway
    (Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2020) Nilsen, Øyvind Lervik; Tørset, Trude; Díez-Gutiérrez, María; Cherchi, Elisabetta; Andersen, Stig Nyland
    A key goal for many public policies is to increase the competitiveness of local industries and make areas more attractive for firm location and development. However, little is known about firm relocations even though they are of crucial importance in understanding economic development within a region and the effectiveness of the policies proposed. This paper contributes to filling this gap by looking further into the firm relocation process by estimating models for the decision to relocate and to where. The studied area consists of four counties on the western coast of Norway that generate about half of Norway’s traditional exports. Changes in firm relocations for approximately 16,500 firms within this study area are analyzed. In addition, interviews with firms that relocated are also carried out to support the findings from the model. The results indicate that the decision to relocate is influenced by a firm's internal and external characteristics such as agglomeration. The results are relevant for regional planning and development as firms seem to have different preferences regarding what makes a location attractive or not. The results might serve as input in land-use interaction models, where changes in firm location patterns from transport investments are estimated.