- enough amass and reach a Critical Threshold ,
- giving it a in a given economic branch of activity,
- with a decisive over others places, or even a world supremacy in that field.
Generally two types of competitive clusters, based on different kinds of knowledge, are recognized:
- Techno Cluster s - These clusters are High Technology -oriented, well adapted to the Knowledge Economy , and typically have as a core renowned universities and research centers like the '' Silicon Valley ''.
- Historic knowhow-based clusters - These are based on more traditional activities that maintain their advantage in Know-how over the years, and for some of them, over the centuries. They are often industry specific.
The concept is named after Michael Porter , a Harvard professor who developed it. He claims that clusters have the potential to affect competition in three ways:
- by increasing the productivity of the companies in the cluster,
- by driving innovation in the field
- by stimulating new businesses in the field
The process of identifying, defining, and describing a cluster is not standardized. Individual economic consultants and researchers develop their own methodologies. All cluster analysis relies on evaluation of local and regional employment patterns, based on SIC Codes .
An alternative to clusters, reflecting the distributed nature of business operations in the wake of globalization is Hubs And Nodes .
Well known examples are
- The Silicon Valley , in California in the field of Computer technology
- Bangalore , in India, for Software outsourcing
- Paris , in France, for Haute Couture
- Toulouse , in France, for Aerospace
- The Silicon Fen in Cambridge , UK, for Biotechnology and Computer technology
- Antwerp , the Diamond center
- Rotterdam , the main Container Port
- Albany Tech Valley , in New York State, in nano technology
- The Finnish Maritime Cluster
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