| Industrial cluster is one of the key subjects of economic geographical studies and focus of regional policy.Bathelt,a famous economic geographer,proposed a multi-dimensional analytical framework for exploring the development of industrial clusters from five dimensions: horizontal,vertical,institutional,external and power relations.However,this framework neglects another important dimension,which is“resilience”.The previous literature on industrial cluster have sparsely quantified the cluster resilience,and the external relations and power relations in the cluster is weakly analyzed.The industrial cluster formation mechanism is also a single mechanism of interpretation,rarely reveal much mechanism effect of cluster formation and development.The empirical studies for the engineering machinery cluster are rare.Based on this,this study took the engineering machinery cluster in Chang-zhu-tan region as the research object,and revealed the spatial-temporal evolution process of this industrial cluster by using the methods of questionnaire survey,interview,GIS spatial analysis and Mathematical statistics.The "six dimensions" analysis framework of industrial cluster is constructed to analyze the multi-dimensional characteristics of the industrial cluster.Finally,the multiple mechanisms to promote the formation and development of the cluster are summarized,and the suggestion for cluster optimization development are put forward.The main conclusions are as follows:(1)Based on the time-space perspective,the developmental situations of engineering machinery industry cluster in Chang-zhu-tan region are analyzed.The scale of the industrial cluster has experienced a process of slow growth,rapid growth,and volatility.The spatial patterns of the engineering machinery industry have changed from spatial dispersion gradually to the multi-cores cluster.The towns of Xingsha-Langli and Yinpenling are the spatial cores,with Shaping town,the urban area in Yuhu district,the the northeast area in Ningxiang city,and Yongan town as sub-core.The spatial distribution of industrial clusters is coupled with industrial parks majoring the engineering machinery industry.The development process of the engineering machinery industrial cluster in Chang-zhu-tan region can be roughly divided into four stages: the embryonic stage from 1960 s to 1980 s,the initial development stage in 1990 s,the rapid growth stage from2001 to 2011,the transition and adjustment phase after2012.According to the characteristics of different development stages of industrial clusters,it is judged that the industrial cluster has gone through three stages of life cycle,starting period,growth period and transition period based on the industrial cluster life cycle theory.(2)We builds the "six-dimensions" analytical framework for industrial clusters consisting of horizontal,vertical,institutional,external,power relations and resilience dimensions.This framework can better test the development characteristics of the engineering machinery industrial cluster in Chang-zhu-tan region.Firstly,in the horizontal dimension,the number of mainframe manufacturing enterprises above designated size shows a slight downward trend after long-term growth,spatially presents agglomeration distribution pattern,and the regional differentiation pattern is relatively stable.The local start-ups and spin-offs are the main modes for the generation of the cluster enterprise.There is no obvious interaction and cooperation relationship between the horizontal dimension enterprises,but competition is the leading factor.Meanwhile,competition brings the improvement of innovation level of clusters and promotes the evolution of clusters.Secondly,in the vertical dimension,The local suppliers of core enterprises present a significant agglomeration distribution pattern in space,and most of thesuppliers are concentrated in Changsha City,forming a high-density agglomeration area.Xiangtan and Zhuzhou are rarely distributed,and their nuclear density values are relatively low.In general,the local parts and components supporting capacity is weak,and the production service industry is lagging behind,so the industrial chain is imperfect,resulting in the vertical dimension is not developed.Thirdly,in the institutional dimension,the continuous policy support and effective institutional arrangements of local governments run through the entire process of the development of the industry cluster.Cultivating engineering machinery industrial cluster has always been the policy focus of local governments,and in recent years the policy has become more specific,but there are still imperfections.Fourthly,in the external dimension,external market orientation and cross-regional linkages have driven the development of the industrial cluster.The cluster has formed cross-regional production links based on the supply chain.Fifthly,in the dimension of power relations,there is a clear power asymmetry relationship among the enterprises in the cluster.The core enterprises are in the center of the cluster network and have been embedded in the higher value-added links of the global value chain.They have absolute technical advantages and take the initiative in transactions,and alto are the source of the diffusion of knowledge and technology in the cluster.Finally,in the resilience dimension,the resilience of the industrial cluster changes from fluctuation to steady growth.Based on the characteristics of the above dimensions,the cluster is not yet a mature industrial cluster.(3)The formation and development of the engineering machinery industrial cluster is the results of various mechanisms,and the influences of different mechanisms are different at different development stages.Specifically,the cluster is formed and developed under the premise of certainindustrial development foundation in the region through various mechanisms such as accidental factor trigger,Spin-off,agglomeration effect,policy intervention,and guidance of core enterprises.Local industrial development foundations provide the growth potential and its ability to resist crises for the cluster.In the 1960 s,the enterprise of Puyuan and the Institute of Construction Machinery of Ministry of the First Machinery Industry moved to the city of Changde in Hunan and then to the city of Changsha for political reasons,which became an accident that Chang-zhu-tan region entered the field of engineering machinery industry,and the "location-opportunity window" was opened.Spin-offs by parent firms setting up subsidiaries and employees leaving an incumbent setting up firms are key mechanisms to promote the growth of the number of engineering machinery companies.Market demand is the continuous driving force for the growth of the engineering machinery industry,and market competition has urged core companies to go international.With the increase in the number of local engineering machinery enterprises,the effect of spatial agglomeration appears,the localization of local supply has increased,the skilled labor has increased,and infrastructure and other resources have gradually improved,which has strongly supported the development of industrial clusters.Core enterprises dominate the cluster network and play the role of the "knowledge gatekeeper" for the cluster,which promotes the development of cluster power relations and external dimensions,and its strategic decisions affect the overall resilience of the cluster.Finally,institutional arrangements provide institutional support for the formation and development of industrial cluster.(4)Targeting at the problems of this cluster development,such as the underdeveloped vertical dimension,the lack of extensive external linkages,the weak independent innovation capability of SMEs,and the imperfect institutionalenvironment,this research finally proposes to strengthen strengthen top-level design,optimize the industrial cluster layout,enhance the local supporting capacity to promote the vertical development of clusters,establish extensive internal and external cooperation network to integrate internal and external resources of the cluster,and establish innovation coordination mechanism to improve the innovation capability of the cluster,by which to cultivate the engineering machinery industrial cluster in Chang-zhu-tan region into a world-class industrial cluster. |
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