Marcus Conlé

Anatomy of cluster development in China: The case of health biotech clusters

Focussing on China’s health biotech clusters the study explores the anatomy of interaction in as well as between various clusters. While the literature has identified the existence of a dense network of durable interactions among firms and between firms and academia at a particular location as one of the most important prerequisites for well-performing clusters, we show that network ties extending beyond regional boundaries are equally valuable for the innovative capacity of China’s biotech firms. Analysing the demographic process of cluster emergence we show that there exist different types of biotech clusters in China, which are closely linked and exchange knowledge and technology amongst each other. It appears as if further analysis of these cross-cluster links may provide important insights of how learning and innovation works in China’s health biotech industry. Although China’s science parks and industrial bases may on an individual basis appear to be badly structured, the organization of China’s health biotech industry turns out to be substantially enhanced once these external linkages are taken into consideration.

Regional specialization in China's biopharmaceutical industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore patterns as well as determinants of regional specialisation in Chinas biopharmaceutical industry. It identifies and characterizes different types of enterprises engaged in the biopharmaceutical sector in terms of their business organisation and regional set up.Design/methodology/approach – Based on data compilations not yet employed in academic analysis as well as personal interviews in China, structural determinants and driving forces of development are analysed against the background of the innovation systems literature.Findings – The geography of innovation in Chinas biopharmaceutical industry is determined by both, government policy and the strategic location decisions of entrepreneurs. While local‐government support of firm clustering has contributed to a dispersion of industrial activity throughout China, the firms” networks are spanning clusters. Effectively, domestic firms are turning into multi‐regional companies locating activities such as R&D ...

Korean Innovation Governance Under Lee Myung-Bak – A Critical Analysis of Governmental Actors’ New Division of Labour

One of the major challenges in the development of South Korea’s innovation system is the search for the institutional structure that most suitably supports the country’s ambitious plans to become one of the leading innovation-driven economies. In particular, this involves the search for a state structure that provides the most effective stimulus for the development of the indigenous innovative capacity within the national innovation system (NIS). In order to align policies and public services to the requirements of an effective system, the structure from which these policies and services emanate has to be adapted accordingly.