Cities as the Industrial Districts of Housebuilding
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Michael Buzzelli [1] ; Richard Harris [2]
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[1] Queen's University
Queen's University
Canadá
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[2] McMaster University
McMaster University
Canadá
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- Localización: International journal of urban and regional research, ISSN 0309-1317, Vol. 30, Nº. 4, 2006, págs. 894-917
- Idioma: inglés
- Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
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Resumen
In North America the housebuilding industry is ubiquitous and locally autonomous. In Ontario during the 1990s, 81% of urban single-family homes were erected by locally based builders, a proportion that varied with urban isolation. Urban areas may be regarded as the industrial districts of home builders: numerous small, specialized firms interact frequently within a rich, embedded market network; subcontracting is the norm; networks and firm boundaries are fluid. The theory of industrial districts offers a useful vocabulary for analysing the neglected building industry. Analytically, the building industry offers unequalled opportunities to explore the dynamics of industrial districts, and how economic globalization meets local limits.
