Industrialization as a key element of sustainable product-service solutions

Product-service systems are seen by many authors to offer potential for significant sustainability benefit. Manufacturing companies are said to be essential to such a change through their influence over product performance and over the use and end-of-life stages. Yet linking these stages such that the producer is incentivized to improve the performance of later stages is still a challenge. This paper argues for placing the producer at the centre of a new arrangement: by seeking to utilize the producer's knowledge of designing and the knowledge of volume production, through creation of platforms, while cooperating closely with other actors. The paper describes three case studies that have used such an approach to design and implement new food production systems. Based on 12 months of action research observations, 10 participating organizations from the cases were studied, and the implemented solutions assessed for environmental, economic and social performance. The results demonstrate a high level of sustainability benefit is achievable using platforms and partners to design product-service systems, while highlighting that changes to production arrangements are necessary but not sufficient to improve whole life-cycle environmental performance of product-service systems, and that producers need to cooperate closely with other actors to achieve the claimed benefits.

Late industrialization and the increased merit selection hypothesis - Ireland as a test case

The Irish case provides a particularly appropriate test of the increasing merit selection hypothesis deriving from the liberal theory of industrialization. This is so not only because the lateness and speed of economic change allows us to capture such change through a set of national surveys conducted in the past three decades, but also because such change was based on a sustained policy of increased openness to international competitive forces. The functional requirements of the economy and a rapid increase in the supply of those with higher educational qualifications provided an ideal context in which to observe the movement from ascription to achievement predicted by the liberal theory. However, while changes in the class structure and a rapid expansion of educational opportunity had significant consequences in terms of absolute mobility, there was no evidence of a significant shift towards meritocratic principles. At the same time as the service class increased their advantage over other classes in the pursuit of educational qualifications, the impact of educational qualifications on class destination diminished. Controlling for education, we find that the impact of class origin effects is substantial and shows little sign of diminishing over time. In our conclusion we discuss the implications of our findings in the context of the recent debate on meritocracy.

Industrialization and industrial policy in Colombia: a tale of economic development

This paper analyzes the main features and historical factors that played a central role for the industrialization process in Colombia during the twentieth century. The document surveys the legislation and policy instruments used in the programs of import substitution industrialization, nontraditional export promotion, and economic openness

How resource rich countries attract foreign direct investments: a study of Western Asian countries and strategies of industrialization and diversification

Fuel is a self-depleting resource and long term dependency on this commodity alone will not suffice. An export trade oriented approach can lead to faster industrialization while diversification leads to economic sustainable growth. This research seeks to understand how countries compete for foreign direct investments, and how certain activities have the most impact in the competitive global marketplace. Research suggests that when companies decide to invest abroad, they seek only to find countries that facilitate their strategic objectives. The results conclude with appropriate levels of government accountability, credibility and visibility with the private sector, foreign direct investment is attracted by policy advocacy and policy reform. By reviewing countries such as United Arab Emirates in direct comparison to Western Asian countries, including Kuwait and Iraq with high levels of fuel exports, along with Qatar with optimistic marketplace indicators and plentitude of skills and capabilities – research seems to suggest that despite high capabilities and attractive GDP, promotional investment activities yield the highest returns using policy advocacy and reform.

Estudio preliminar de los efectos de la industrialización de postguerra sobre la composición de las importaciones y la vulnerabilidad externa en América Latina = Preliminary study of the effects of post-war industrialization on import structures and external vulnerability in Latin America

Incluye Bibliografía

Quality of Latin American and Caribbean industrialization and integration into the global economy

Includes bibliography

Protectionism and industrialization in Latin America

Includes bibliography

Algunas conclusiones relativas a la integración, la industrialización y el desarrollo económico de América Latina = Some conclusions on integration, industrialization and economic development in Latin America

Incluye Bibliografía

Exports and industrialization in Argentina, 1973-1986

Includes bibliography