Clusters and competitiveness - PRO INNO Europe

Table 3. Relative importance of industries in LPSs in Catalan industry as a whole
Data from 2003
Sectors LPS Firms
% of sector in
Catalonia
66 CLUSTERS AND COMPETITIVENESS: THE CASE OF CATALONIA (1993-2010)
LPS workers
% of sector in
Catalonia
LPS turnover (*)
% of sector in
Catalonia
Food and beverages 576 20.4% 12,288 16.4% 3,475 19.5%
Textiles-clothing and leather 1,190 20.2% 22,564 26.4% 2,400 28.5%
Wood, furniture and cork 441 10.5% 4,238 12.6% 525 17.0%
Paper, publishing and graphic arts 1,056 25.9% 20,881 35.6% 2,650 29.7%
Chemical industries 384 33.8% 25,470 40.5% 11,000 59.6%
Plastic materials 803 52.3% 28,182 76.2% 3,800 70.0%
Metallurgy and metal products 2,680 36.3% 39,018 42.8% 4,250 40.3%
Machinery and mechanical equipment 798 30.1% 14,078 27.9% 2,155 33.2%
Electrical and electronic equipment 383 32.8% 15,378 38.7% 3,250 39.5%
Transport materials 449 64.6% 50,714 90.5% 11,975 84.8%
Various manufacturing industries (**) 247 – 1,399 – 160 –
Total sectors 9,007 26% 234,210 36% 45,640 39%
(*) In millions of euros.
(**) A comparison cannot be made as this is residual and multi-sectoral.
Source: Hernández, J. M. et al. (2005): Map of Local Industrial Production Systems in Catalonia.
4.3.2 Operational rethinking
It has already been mentioned that mapping existing local industrial production systems
in Catalonia opened the door, in 2004, to the second stage in cluster policy in Catalonia.
This mapping initiative aimed to find out more about the situation on the ground and
critically review the previous experience, in particular everything related to the limitations
of a model focused exclusively on micro-clusters and put into practice by subcontracting all
the competitiveness reinforcement initiatives launched. It led to an operational reappraisal
in two broad areas:
• On the one hand, a knowledge and information unit was created within the public
administration, one of whose goals was to analyse the industrial sectors and clusters
of the Catalan economy in order to diagnose their situation and propose measures and
initiatives to reinforce their competitiveness.
• On the other hand, a gradual process of diversifying competitiveness reinforcement
initiatives was started.
Creating the Observatory for Industrial Foresight
In effect, in the Strategic Agreement for the Internationalisation, Quality of Employment, and
Competitiveness of the Catalan Economy, signed by the Catalan government and by the
main economic and social institutions in the country (Foment de Treball, FEPIME, PIMEC,