Brennan, Nicola and Breathnach, Proinnsias (2009) The spatiality of Irish manufacturing linkages in the 'Celtic Tiger' era. Irish Geography, 42 (1). pp. 7-22. ISSN 0075-0778

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Abstract

Manufacturing investment from abroad has been of immense importance to Ireland’s economic development in recent decades. In particular, high levels of foreign investment in manufacturing were the main contributor to the unprecedented economic growth rates from the early 1990s which led to Ireland’s economy being compared with the Asian ‘Tigers’. Clearly it is desirable from a national economic point of view that the current base of foreign manufacturing firms should remain as embedded as possible. In this respect, the low level of local linkages developed by foreign firms has been a constant concern for policymakers. A number of studies have been conducted on the nature of linkages developed within the Irish economy by foreign-owned manufacturing plants in terms of the nature of these linkages and their potential for further development. However, there has been little research on the spatial patterns of external linkages of the plants in question. Based on a survey of 91 firms in four key manufacturing sectors, this paper examines the spatial configuration of the material input linkages of Irish manufacturing industry. The findings show that major sectoral variations exist in the spatiality of the linkage structures of Irish manufacturing industry. The paper concludes with a discussion of the possible implications of these variations for the future stability and embeddedness of manufacturing firms in the Irish economy.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Postprint version of original article © 2009 Geographical Society of Ireland. This is an electronic version of an article published in Irish Geograpgy, The spatiality of Irish manufacturing linkages in the ‘Celtic Tiger’ era, Nicola Brennan & Proinnsias Breathnach, Volume 42, Issue 1, March 2009, pages 7-22. Irish Geography is available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00750770902815588
Keywords:	spatial linkages; Ireland; Celtic Tiger; manufacturing industry;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Geography
Item ID:	3091
Depositing User:	Proinnsias Breathnach
Date Deposited:	14 Feb 2012 16:41
Journal or Publication Title:	Irish Geography
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://www.informaworld.com http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rigy20
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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