High-technology Manufacturing Industries Research Articles

Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Manufacturing Industry Global Value Chain Position

Using transnational panel data from 61 nations and regions from 2000 to 2019, this article empirically examines both the influence of artificial intelligence on the Global Value Chain as it pertains to the manufacturing industry and its mechanism of action. According to the report, AI significantly improves the industrial sector’s GVC position; this finding still holds after multiple robustness and endogeneity tests of the model. The findings of the heterogeneity test at the national level demonstrate that, in developing nations as opposed to developed countries, AI has a stronger impact on advancing the GVC position of the manufacturing industry. Heterogeneity tests at the industry level show that AI has a significant role in promoting the GVC of high, medium and low technology manufacturing industries. The mechanism test demonstrates three primary ways by which AI contributes to improving the GVC position of the manufacturing industry: by improving both production efficiency and technological innovation capacity, and by reducing trade costs. This study provides policy implications for the promotion of AI with respect to China’s manufacturing industry GVC position.

Determinants of exports performance: Evidence from Indonesian low-, medium-, and high-technology manufacturing industries.

This study explores the determinants of the export performance of Indonesia's low-, medium-, and high-technology manufacturing industries by focusing on the role of raw-material imports and technical efficiency. Micro firm-level data from 2010-2015 were utilized for the analysis in this study. The stochastic frontier analysis was employed to measure technical inefficiency and to determine its effect on export performance. Our findings indicate that in all categories of industry technical efficiency, raw materials imports, foreign direct investment (FDI), location, firm size, labour productivity, and concentration of industries were significant determinants of export performance. While high efficiency increases exports in low- and medium-technology firms, exports decrease in firms with high efficiency accompanied by high imports, FDI, size, and labour productivity. Furthermore, in high-technology industries, efficiency reduces exports and again increases them when mediated by a concentration of industries and location. The empirical strategy also supports the positive effect of imports on export performance in both industries, which also aligns with decreased exports in firms with high imports accompanied by high FDI, efficiency, labour productivity, the concentration of industries, and size. To this end, the study has implications for low-, medium-, and high-technology manufacturing that are mainly concerned with increasing exports.

How does digital technology affect total factor productivity in manufacturing industries? Empirical evidence from China

Extensive studies have discussed the relationship between digital technology and total factor productivity (T.F.P.) in manufacturing industries, but far less attention is paid to the nonlinear relationship. Based on the panel data of China’s manufacturing industries and matching data of National Intellectual Property Public Service Network from 2000 to 2019, this article aims to explore how digital technology affects T.F.P. in manufacturing industries. The result demonstrates that a significant inverted U-shaped relationship is between digital technology and T.F.P. The threshold in high technology manufacturing industries is larger than that in low and middle technology manufacturing industries. With the progress of digital technology, the expenditure of technology and equipment upgrading is increasing. However, the marginal return of technology and equipment is decreasing, besides technology innovation. The case of China perhaps provides new insights into manufacturing industries in developing country to gain sustainable development.

Greening manufacturing: Technology intensity and carbon dioxide emissions in developing countries

Industrialisation is an important engine of growth and ‘catch up’, but also associated with harmful carbon dioxide emissions and hence with climate change. This poses a challenge for sustainable industrial development, particularly for late industrialisers on how to industrialise while also mitigating carbon dioxide emissions. This paper investigates the effect of technology intensity across manufacturing industries on carbon dioxide emissions: are medium- and high-technology manufacturing industries less emissions-intensive than low-technology manufacturing industries in developing countries? The paper analyses this relationship for a panel of 68 developing and emerging economies over the period 1990–2016, by adapting the environmental Kuznets curve and the stochastic effect by regression on population, affluence and technology approaches. Using two alternative measures of emissions and estimating generalised method of moments model, the results show that medium- and high-technology manufacturing industries are associated with lower carbon dioxide emissions than low-technology manufacturing industries. The results also show that these differences vary by the income levels of countries. These findings have important policy implications, suggesting that a shift towards more technology-intensive manufacturing production processes may be a more environmentally sustainable industrialisation path for developing countries.

Foreign Financial Services Adoption in Manufacturing by Asian Economies: New Index from the Global Value Chain Perspective

In this paper, we employ the input–output framework and recent global value chain (GVC) results to construct the index of foreign financial services adoption in manufacturing (FFSAM) that captures the role of foreign financial services in facilitating domestic manufacturing production. The FFSAM index shows that foreign financial services adoption by Asian economies has rapidly caught up with the Western world between 2007 and 2017. Asian economies tend to deploy more foreign financial services from high-income economies than low-income economies, and in high-technology manufacturing industries than low-technology manufacturing industries. Manufacturing industries that produce for domestic consumption and for exports tend to attract different groups of financial servicification providers. It is found that the FFSAM index is affected by the GVC position, financial institution factors, and financial market characteristics.

BETA CONVERGENCE ANALYSIS OF GROSS VALUE ADDED IN THE HIGH-TECHNOLOGY MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES

The paper examines the recent developments in the high-technology manufacturing sectors in the EU28 countries, focusing on the β-convergence of gross value added in the Manufacture of computers, electronic, and optical products, and the Manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations. We employ two dynamic panel models estimated using the system of generalized method of moments (GMM) to address the risk of an endogeneity bias. The panel data analysis indicates a higher convergence for the Manufacture of computer, electronic, and optical products at 16.4% compared to 2.2% for the Manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations, which is consistent with the existence of fewer barriers and higher exposure to competition in the case of the first analyzed sector. In the context of the role of the high-technology manufacturing industries as an engine of growth and the existing performance differences between the EU28 countries in terms of gross value added in the analyzed sectors, we investigated the β-convergence for two groupings EU15 and the new EU member states. We found that the new EU member states display a higher β-convergence rate than EU15, but also that they have a lower capital intensity. The result highlights the potential risk of some of the new EU member states becoming laggers in terms of the underlying factors behind gross value added as investment and labour force.

Qalification assessment practices: new possibilities and constraints

Introduction. The transformation of the educational system and the labour market determines the need for objective procedures for independent assessment of qualifications that meet the needs of all stakeholders. The need to overcome the qualification gap is becoming more acute, and it is necessary to change the configuration of connections and relationships in the process of qualifications assessment, which determines the relevance of the current research.Aim. The present publication is aimed to analyse social processes related to the development of practices for evaluating qualifications obtained in both formal and non-formal education in Russia.Methodology and research methods. The methodological framework of the research is based on the principles of the activity approach and the concept of structuration, in which the practice of qualifications assessment is viewed as a combination of social relations between individual and collective actors in the space of social and labour relations. Data collection and analysis was carried out using a qualitative methodology of the sociological approach. A semi-formal interview was selected as the method of expert survey. Twenty-four experts from various sectors of the economy (Moscow, Ekaterinburg and Tyumen) took part in the interviews.Results and scientific novelty. The possibilities and constraints of existing practices for qualifications assessment were identified: assessment centres, qualification assessment centres, internal certification, professional evaluation of working professions within the framework of the “WorldSkills” programme in Russia. The analysis of international experience is presented. Based on expert assessments, it was established that practices specific to the industrial model of the economy prevail in Russia. Thus, the infrastructure and regulatory field were established for the development of new practices of independent qualification assessment. However, the main participants of the process are not involved enough in mutual interaction. The primary sector of the economy hinders the development of the high-technology manufacturing industry and the employers who are interested in creating a competency framework. According to experts, the importance of non-formal education in the development of relevant competencies is increasing, and new mechanisms for qualifications assessment obtained in both formal and informal training are required. The authors presented the cases, which illustrate new configurations of participants’ relationships, when independent assessment of qualifications is integrated with the formal educational system at the stage of state final certification, ensuring the interrelated procedures. The article reveals the contradictions, which are manifested in the interaction between applicants/employees, employers and the state. It is concluded that such contradictions affect the institutional mechanisms for the formation of a national system of independent qualification assessment.Practical significance. The analysis of alternative models for qualifications assessment revealed the interests of different stakeholders involved in this process, the possibility of using “hybrid” forms of qualifications assessment, as well as a number of contradictions related to regulatory, functional and institutional features. The results of the study can be useful for managers of educational institutions and employers to synchronise the processes for mutual assessment of qualifications. As a result, recommendations for the development of an independent qualification assessment system in Russia are proposed, and the prospects for further research are outlined.

Testing the role of intra-metropolitan local factors on knowledge-intensive industries’ location choices

This paper contributes to the literature on entrepreneurship and economic geography by identifying factors that determine the attractiveness of a site in a metropolitan area, as the basis for the emergence of high-tech firms’ spatial concentration. The econometric model provides distinct advantages over the largely descriptive approaches that have been dominant in the point pattern analysis literature for clusters. We focus on the role of two types of knowledge spillovers on a firm’s location choices: (1) those that arise from collocating with other companies from the same industry, and (2) universities’ knowledge spillovers. A model is estimated using data on firm births in high and medium–high-technology manufacturing industries, during 2000–2016 in Madrid. Our results show that the main source through which firms benefit from knowledge spillovers is through proximity to firms in the same industry and not from universities.

Risk Assessment of Horizontal Wet Etching Equipment System in Manufacturing Plant Industry

Maintenance is one of the important roles in the high technology manufacturing industry. It is related to the key performance factors of the company such as quality, productivity, and cost. To achieve these factors, a reliability plan should be implemented which helps to maximise production value by implementing successful asset maintenance. This research project aims to focus on the critical process equipment known as Horizontal Wet Etching Equipment (HWEE) used in the wet etching process. The components in the HWEE system were identified by referring to the process and instrumentation diagram (PID) of the equipment and were categorised in different modes. Data on mean time to repair (MTTR) and mean time between repairs (MTBF) were collected based on previous company records. The data were analysed using MAROS software. Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) was done to understand the risk of each of the components. The result shows that piping and gearbox have the highest RPN with 126 and 105, respectively. This study helps to identify critical components and is able to help the company to improve equipment reliability and reduce maintenance cost. Corrective action can be implemented to reduce the RPN for both components. Thus, it would help the industry to increase the key performance and become more competitive in the business environment.

Dampak Spillover Penanaman Modal Asing terhadap Produktivitas Industri Manufaktur Medium-High Technology di Indonesia

This study examines the impact of foreign presence in the Medium-High and High technology manufacturing industry in Indonesia. Using a balanced panel data that consists of 2,397 firms and in the year of 2010-2014, the data was estimated using the multiple regression method. The results show that there is positive spillover when local and foreign firms are in the same industry. Conversely, in different industries, negative spillover occurs in forward linkage when local firms buy the output of foreign firms and no spillover occurs in backward linkage when local firms become the suppliers of foreign firms. The Indonesian government must assure that foreign investment policies must benefit the domestic companies, considering there are some potential losses for domestic enterprises by the presence of foreign direct investment in the domestic market.

The role of entrepreneurial orientation and family control of the firm in the economic recovery of underperforming firms

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyse how entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and the family control of the company influence the performance of underachieving firms and how they contribute to economic recovery.Design/methodology/approachThe authors test the authors’ predictions on a unique and representative sample of 1,500 Spanish small firms in high and medium technology manufacturing and service industries. Given the nature of the dependent variable, the authors estimate a series of regression models to test the hypotheses. In addition, the authors consider two interaction terms where the underperforming firms’ variable is interacted with family firms and EO.FindingsThe results of analyses show that both EO and family ownership separately increase subsequent performance for underachieving firms.Originality/valueThe study contributes to expand the literature on underperforming firms analysing how strategic and structural factors affect the performance of firms that face an economic downturn. It also provides some guidance for practitioners on the decision and contexts that better serve the economic recovery of underperforming firms.

Cross-industry distribution of R&D investments and economic growth

ABSTRACTThis study empirically investigates the relationship between the cross-industry distribution of R&D investments and economic growth across 14 countries for the period from 1996 to 2013. Although countries can invest disproportionately in a handful of industries hoping to use their limited resources efficiently and boost economic growth, complementarity between industries calls for balanced investments. Using the Herfindahl–Hirschman Index as the measure of R&D concentration, we find an inverted U-shaped relationship between the concentration of R&D investment and economic growth. Some level of concentration may be good for growth; however, beyond a certain point, concentration has a negative effect on growth. Moreover, heavy investment in high-technology manufacturing industry alleviates this negative effect of concentration. The opposite holds for much investment in the service industry. Lastly, we find that the importance of diversification increases when countries advance, while developing countries can benefit from strategic concentration.

The Long-Run Interregional Distribution of Human Capital in Austria: What Role for Knowledge Intensity of Production?

The objective of this paper is to identify the determinants of regional human capital endowments within Austria for the observation period 1971–2011. The two key questions are (i) whether, as observed in other countries, the spatial concentration of human capital increases over time and (ii) to what extent the knowledge intensity of current production affects current and future human capital endowments. The present paper combines an explorative with an explanatory study, where the latter consists of cross-sectional and panel regressions. The dependent variable equals average schooling years of the employed persons in a region, the observation area consists of Austria’s 99 districts. The estimations show that human capital endowments have converged across regions until 1991 and diverged again since then. Furthermore, the regression results display a negative impact of low and medium-low, but almost no impact of high and medium-high technology manufacturing industries on human capital growth. In contrast, the impact of knowledge-intensive services is positive.

How collaborative innovation networks affect new product performance: Product innovation capability, process innovation capability, and absorptive capacity

The current literature has investigated the direct relationship between collaborative innovation networks and new product performance, but the results are inconsistent. This research aims to explore the role of product and process innovation capabilities as two distinct mechanisms through which collaborative innovation networks improve new product performance. The study also examines the contingent effects of absorptive capacity on the relationship between collaborative innovation networks and the two innovation capability dimensions (i.e. product and process innovation). Survey data from 258 respondents from the Iranian high and medium technology manufacturing industries indicates the need for caution when developing collaborative innovation networks. We found that the effects of collaborative innovation networks on either product or process innovation capability are significant only in the presence of absorptive capacity. This finding suggests that the level of collaboration with different partners can enhance firms' innovation capabilities only if the focal firm's managers have developed the capacity to scan and acquire external knowledge. Our analyses further indicate that in the presence of absorptive capacity, only collaboration with research organizations and competitors have a positive effect on product innovation capability. In the case of process innovation capability, collaboration with research organizations and suppliers are the most important factors.

Technological structure of trade and BOP-constrained growth in Turkey

ABSTRACTThis study investigates the empirical validity of the Multisectoral Thirwall's Law for Turkey over the last half century. Multisectoral Thirwall's Law facilitates the discussion of the effects of the sectoral composition of trade on the extent of the balance of payments (BOP) constraint and consequently on the long run growth prospects of an economy. In particular, structural change favoring sectors with Schumpeterian and Keynesian efficiencies is expected to improve these prospects. Lall's commodity classification on a technology basis is adequate for delineating such sectors. In this study, distinct export and import functions are estimated for primary production, low technology manufacturing, medium technology manufacturing and high technology manufacturing industries using the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds test and Johansen approaches to cointegration. Resulting income elasticities are used to discuss the structural change in the technological content of Turkish trade and the validity of the Multisectoral Thirwall's Law. Results suggest that Turkey has come a long way in terms of improvements in Schumpeterian and Keynesian efficiency over the last 50 years and that the Multisectoral Thirwall's Law is empirically valid in the case of Turkey.

Skill Gaps and Employability: Higher Education in India

As India grows into a knowledge economy increasing the use of technology in manufacturing and service industries, the emerging gaps at the level of tertiary education are seen as a major constraint. In this article we address the growing mismatch between skills/education and jobs/occupations. We define types of skill mismatch in the labour market, nature of tertiary education, and occupation and industry, and classify high technology and knowledge-intensive industry (KII). To understand skill gaps we analyse where persons with tertiary education are employed and whether recent years have seen a significant change in the absorption of workers with higher education (HE) in different industry and occupation groups. An analysis of skill gaps in graduate intensity of occupations and high technology manufacturing and knowledge-intensive service (KIS) industry provides a policy perspective and inputs to explore ways to address skill mismatch relating to HE. We conclude that policy that encourages non-graduate technical and non-technical diploma/certificate holders into the lower graduate-intensity occupations would help to close the skill gap and reduce the pressure on graduate HE.

The developmental state in Brazil: comparative and historical perspectives

The record of successful developmental states in East Asia and the partial successes of developmental states in Latin America suggest several common preconditions for effective state intervention including a Weberian bureaucracy, monitoring of implementation, reciprocity (subsidies in exchange for performance), and collaborative relations between government and business. Although Brazil failed to develop the high technology manufacturing industry and exports that have fueled sustained growth in East Asia, its developmental state had a number of important, and often neglected, successes, especially in steel, automobiles, mining, ethanol, and aircraft manufacturing. Where Brazil's developmental state was less successful was in promoting sectors like information technology and nuclear energy, as well as overall social and regional equality. In addition, some isolated initiatives by state governments were also effective in promoting particular local segments of industry and agriculture. Comparisons with East Asia, highlight the central role of state enterprises in Brazil that in effect internalized monitoring and reciprocity and bypassed collaboration between business and government (that was overall rarer in Brazil).

Analysing China's foreign direct investment in manufacturing from a high–low technology perspective

Since China opened its economy to foreign investment in 1979, it has become the second largest foreign direct investment (FDI) destination in the world after the USA. Over the past three decades, the manufacturing sector has dominated China's FDI inflow, however, when manufacturing activity is bifurcated into low and high technology classes, it becomes evident that China is in a transition stage moving from FDI in traditional low-tech activity to a high-tech manufacturing environment. This paper attempts to analyse the key determinants of FDI inflow across low and high technology manufacturing industry across four geographical regions of China. In the paper we empirically investigate the determinants of FDI high–low tech inflow by market size, labour cost, labour quality, and government spending on human capita.

Revisiting the entrepreneur gender–performance relationship: a firm perspective

Research shows that firms started by women underperform those started by men but the relationship may not be as straightforward as previously thought. Using a sample of 4,540 Korean ventures in 2002 we investigated the effects of three firm characteristics—resources, industry, and regional location—on firm performance. Results indicate that firms started by male entrepreneurs, compared to female, have greater firm assets, compete in high-technology manufacturing industries, and are more likely to locate in clustered regions. Further, these firm characteristics are positively associated with domestic and international firm performance. Findings suggest firm resource and context characteristics fully mediate the entrepreneur gender–firm performance relationship. Overall, gender is not a determinant of domestic or international firm performance.

How field-level knowledge diversity affects the performance of technology innovation

Prior literature suggests that there are both benefits and hazards of working in a diverse knowledge space. On the one hand, knowledge-based diversity is argued to facilitate innovation; on the other hand, it can hinder the formation of consensus among the audience and field participants, preventing effective evaluation and learning. Drawing on insights from the organizational learning perspective on innovation as well as the literature of categorization in organizational theory, we argue that the diversity of knowledge sources and subject matters of a technology field has a curvilinear relationship to the performance of innovation developed in the field. We test this argument through an analysis of patent data from 1,185 firms in the high-technology manufacturing industries. Results suggest that, in general, innovative ideas are more likely to be evaluated favorably and generate satisfactory outcomes if they belong to fields with a moderate level of knowledge diversity.