Evolution mechanisms and its pattern of co-located cluster networks:A case study of the home appliance industry in Shunde-Zhongshan region
Co-located clusters and inter-cluster relationships from the perspective of'multi-cluster'are emerging as frontier topics in economic geography.The co-location of two or more clusters in urbanized areas is quite common.As urbanization processes accelerate in developing countries,co-location clusters have become more prominent in China and other developing economies with strong government intervention.Industrial clusters are likely located in the same area in such countries because clusters often develop or are incubated in industrial parks and science parks that are planned by the countrywide,provincial and urban cluster development policies.Research on multiple co-located clusters within the same industry is still in its early stage,and numerous questions regarding the nature and development of co-located clusters remain unanswered.On the basis of related literature,this study proposes the mechanism of co-located cluster networks evolution and illustrates it through a case analysis of clusters dominated by the home appliance industry in Shunde-Zhongshan region.The case cluster is a typical co-located cluster not only because two clusters within the co-located cluster are geographically proximate but also the connections between clusters in two cities are diverse and frequent.This study analyzes the spatial pattern evolution of the co-located cluster by quantitative methods such as kernel density spatial analysis and reveals the evolutionary paths of organizational networks in co-located cluster by semi-structured interviews with key industry stakeholders including manufacturers,local governments,and industry associations.It is found that the co-located cluster is more likely to build multi-scale nested connection networks including enterprises,intermediary organizations,individual social relations,talents flow,industry associations,and governments because of multi-dimensional proximity.The networks in the co-located cluster vary across different development stages.Clusters within the co-located cluster in Shunde-Zhongshan region evolve from co-located independence and coexisting competition to cooperation and collaboration,even merge eventually.The evolution of cluster organizational networks enhances the spatial agglomeration of co-located cluster,accompanied by the geographical centres of two clusters getting closer.This study enriches geographical understanding in the field of co-located clusters.Our findings provide practical insights for constructing co-located clusters and managing the flow of production factors among clusters within the framework of a nationally unified market.
co-located clusterslinkages between industrial clustersorganizational networks evolutionhome appliance industryShunde-Zhongshan region
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