Old Industrial Areas: A Theoretical Approach

Abstract

The paper tries to put forward a hypothesis for the changing fortunes of old industrial areas. A regionalized version of the product cycle hypothesis is used as a link for various aspects of the lost dynamics of this type of region, as interpreted by different models of regional growth. It offers an endogenous explanation for the change from prosperous to 'old'. Old industrial areas are at the end of a regional 'life cycle', a stage of development that is marked by inflexibilities of the regions' supply and a lack of innovative ability. Some implications of this approach for policy implementation are considered.

The restructuring of the old industrial region of Grenland in Norway: Between lock-in, adjustment, and renewal

“…While the concept of 'lock-in' has been popular in terms of explaining some of the negative externalities that occur through institutional trajectories and structural concentrations in particular economic spaces (Hassink 2009), Martin (2010) and Simmie & Martin (2010) argue that evolutionary economic geography should move beyond the somewhat negative conceptual frame of lock-in to a more flexible conceptual frame of pathdependent evolution and change. Similarly, Hassink (2010) and Pike et al (2010) discuss whether and how resilience and adaptation can be fruitful additions to the conceptual frame of regional restructuring, echoing Chapman et al's (2004) dichotomy of adjustment versus renewal, as well as nuanced accounts of the restructuring of what are termed 'old industrial areas' (Steiner 1985;Hassink & Shin 2005;Hassink 2009;Trippl & Otto 2009) or 'old industrial regions' (Boschma & Lambooy 1999;Hudson 2005). However, few contributions have used this conceptual mix to explore the development of old industrial regions with production that is largely externally controlled.…”

Az ipar hagyományos terei: A régi ipari térségek

“…nem ad kielégít ő választ, és nem tér ki az endogén tényez ők jelentőségére. Steiner (1985) a modell tárgyalása során arra is felhívja a figyelmet, hogy maga a "szerkezet" fogalma nem egyértelműen meghatározott (egy széles körben elfogadott statisztikai definíció "a gazdasági mennyiségek és szub-aggregátumok összetételeként" értelmezi). Hasonlóan tisztázatlan az optimális vagy legalábbis jó szerkezet mibenléte, amelynek meghatá-rozása pedig "annál égetőbb kérdés, minél jobban regionalizáljuk a kontextusát -a csökken ő léptékkel szükségszer űen nő a specializáció mértéke és ezzel együtt a strukturális egyensúlytalanság veszélye" (Steiner 1985, 389).…”

“…Az exportbázis-modellek (Steiner 1985;Storper 1992) a gazdasági szerkezet helyett a külső kereslet alakulására helyezik a hangsúlyt. Az ipari inputok, félkésztermékek és tömegfogyasztási cikkek iránti éhség generálta a nagy iparvidékek fejl ődését és magas növekedési rátáit.…”

Divergent Patterns of Adaptation Among Central European Old Industrial Regions

“…Referred to as Old Industrial Regions (OIRs) or sometimes Old Industrial Areas in regional studies (cf. Steiner, 1985Steiner, , 2003Cooke, 1995;Boschma and Lambooy, 1999), these regions experienced widespread economic, social and environmental degradation, and were widely considered the losers of transition processes with prospects of long-term stagnation (Gorzelak, 1998). The failure of socialist economies was strongly associated with images of industrial dereliction and decay; criticisms of the planning system often focused on industrial policy as a central dilemma (e.g.…”

“…The positive outcome is a service economy conforming to the ideal of post-industrial society. Conscious tertiarisation is not usually mentioned as a possibility in works discussing industrial restructuring (Cooke, 1995;Horváth, 1998;Boschma and Lambooy, 1999;Steiner, 1985Steiner, , 2003; likely because if the strategy is successful, the region's growth is subsequently influenced by non-industrial factors. On the other hand, it crops up frequently in urban studies, as the physical reconfiguration of the abandoned industrial environment is a common challenge in the current urban renaissance; a host of new functions for abandoned real estate is possible, and the reimagined Industrial landscape may even become a valued asset.…”