MODELING SYSTEMS OF INNOVATION - II - A FRAMEWORK FOR INDUSTRIAL CLUSTER-ANALYSIS IN REGIONS

We present a model for describing and assessing the strengths and weak nesses of industrial clusters from a regional perspective. The model i s a symmetrical framework combining dimensions of the Porter competiti veness 'diamond' with an equally explicit accounting of infrastructure and markets, important in a regional framework. Measures are organize d under headings of Groundings, Enterprises and Markets, which gives t he model its name: GEM. The characteristics of regional innovation sys tems are contained in the overall competitiveness framework. The GEM d eterminants are organized in a way that facilitates subjective scoring and allows a mapping onto a more conventional production-system struc ture. We have developed scoring criteria for each of the six determina nts that relate to overall competitiveness of the cluster and have est ablished an heuristic competitiveness function (GEM Assay) that captur es the substitution/complementarity relationships among the determinan ts. We present some examples of the use of the use of the framework an d the assay in assessing regional clusters and policies for strengthen ing them. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.