The Mole & The Snake

This article starts from the Foucaultanian notions of biopower and discipline, deal- ing with the strategies of the modern and contemporary capitalism. Introducing the term biopower into his research, Foucault is alluding to a series of transformations re- lated to the capitalist system: life enters into the scope of power in terms of \u201ccontrolled insertion of bodies\u201d in the social apparatus of production, as well as in terms of an \u201cadaptation of population phenomena to economic processes\u201d. It involves the exchange of services on which the Fordist social pact was founded in the twentieth century. The life that is claimed in and against the relationship of capital concerns \u201cneeds\u201d that refer to a \u201cconcrete essence of man\u201d. In the undeniable awareness of a \u201ctriangulation\u201d between sovereignty, discipline and biopower, the author, as a criterion for reading the dynamics of contemporary power, analyzes the theme of control referring to Deleuze. This is de- lineated in the double form of \u201cbiopolitical algorithms\u201d and of the normalization that by means of the selection and targeted processing of big data and information packages, incessantly produced by social activity in and on the network, capture forms of life at the service of capitalism

Factors behind international relocation and changes in production geography in the European automobile components industry

This article analyses business strategies in the automobile sector to determine the key factors behind production relocation processes in automobile components suppliers. These factors help explain changes in production geography in the sector not only in terms of location advantages but also from a perspective of corporate strategies and decision-making mechanisms within firms. The results obtained from an empirical study in Spain during the period 2001-2008 show how the components sector has used relocation to meet the requirements for efficiency imposed by automobile manufacturers. The search for lower labour costs, production concentration and specialisation in order to obtain economies of scale and improved productivity are found to be the main factors determining relocation in the sector. These processes are facilitated by the operational flexibility of the multinational firms that dominate the sector which allows them to transfer resources internationally. Lean supply, technological requirements for production processes and the integration of production plants in the institutional environment are the main barriers to such processes of mobility, and may also determine the geographical destination of migrated production

THE NEW ECONOMICS OF DISTANCE: LONG-TERM TRENDS IN INDEXES OF SPATIAL FRICTION

Distance-related costs have changed at different rates across categories of resource flows and across modes and media between 1960 and 1998. The cost of moving knowledge/information has dropped much faster than the costs of moving people or materials. The costs of processing and moving information have dropped by 98% and 92% respectively, in real terms since 1960. In addition, there are big differences in the rates of change within the real costs of moving people using different travel modes--just as big differences exist within the real costs of moving materials using different modes. For example, the real costs of moving materials by domestic rail and inland waterway have decreased by 58% and 42% in real terms, respectively, while inter-city trucking costs have not changed significantly in real terms since 1960. Thus, this paper suggests that the 'new economics of distance' is not about the disappearance of distance nor the demise of borders as factors in economics. Rather, 'the new economics of distance' is about the increasing role played by logistics management and the adjustment processes that are occurring as firms creatively seek to substitute between types of resources and between the modes and media for moving those resources.Industrial Organization,

Applications of living systems theory to life in space

The conceptual system and methodology of living systems theory appear to be of value to research on life in isolated environments. A space station, which must provide suitable conditions for human life in a stressful environment that meets none of the basic needs of life, is an extreme example of such isolation. A space station would include living systems at levels of individual human beings, groups of people engaged in a variety of activities, and the entire space crew as an organization. It could also carry living systems of other species, such as other animals and plants. Using the subsystem analysis of living systems theory, planners of a station, either in space or on a celestial body, would make sure that all the requirements for survival at all these levels had been considered. Attention would be given not only to the necessary matter and energy, but also the essential information flows that integrate and control living systems. Many variables for each subsystem could be monitored and kept in steady states. Use of living systems process analysis of the five flows of matter energy and information would assure that all members of the crew received what they needed

Trade in Northeast Asia: Why do Trade Costs Matter?

Trade costs are often cited as an important determinant of the volume of trade. This paper provides enough evidences to ascertain that today’s trade issues in Northeast Asia go beyond the traditional mechanisms of tariffs, and include “behind-the-border” issues. By estimating a modified gravity equation, controlling for endogeneity and remoteness, we find that variations in transaction costs along with trade infrastructure facilities have significant influence on regional trade flows in Northeast Asia. On average, 10 percent saving in transaction costs increases imports by about 5 percent in Northeast Asia. This paper concludes that when tariffs tend to become low in Northeast Asia, the economies in this region could potentially benefit substantially from higher trade provided trade costs are well controlled.trade costs, transaction costs, infrastructure, regional trade, tariff

ICEBOX

At the intersection of logistics and migration, I focus on US for-profit immigrant detention centres as nodes within global capital flows. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centres process humans through transnational, encoded power systems, which couple tightly to the logics, infrastructure, and public-private strategies that comprise the international logistics industry. Migrants move from the country of origin to the US as itinerant labour, and as bodies to meet detention-centre quotas, forming patterns where chain migration is transformed into supply chain. The immigration detention system is an industrialisation of humans, and its administration processes are intersectoral and vertically integrated. I use the southeastern US logistics hub of Georgia, and its capital Atlanta, to illustrate the intersection of logistics and immigration detention systems. I demonstrate how the immigrant detention systems’ scale and its architecture – its spatial contours and manifestations – mirror those systems of international supply chain coordination, assembly, transport, and sale

Business groups in network industries

The 2014 Winter issue of the Network Industries Quarterly is dedicated to the topic of “Business Groups in Network Industries”. Business groups are generally understood as collections of heterogeneous companies tied together by formal and informal links and are distinguished in the management literature as the unique organisational form differing from stand-alone companies. Business groups can be holdings, conglomerates or corporate groups and are particularly widespread in the network industries. This issue of the Network Industries Quarterly presents three articles discussing functioning of business groups in the specific conductions of network industries. Its goal is to provide the theoretical framework on business groups indicating the dimensions of their functioning as well as to confront the theory with some practical illustrations and cases. The issue also intends to open a wider discussion on the role, benefits and shortcoming of business groups operating in Europe and worldwide. In the first article Maria Aluchna using the examples of four cases from Poland discusses the characteristics of business groups and indicates the potential benefits they offer to network industries. The second contribution is delivered by Jana Pieriegud who analyses the evolution and organizational forms of corporate groups in the rail freight sector in Poland focusing on the strategies of PKP Cargo Logistics Group and CTL Logistics Group are discussed. Finally Miroslav Stojsavljevic in the third article presents the example of Serbian water management companies acting as a specific business group addressing the functioning of public companies dealing with natural resources and showing the complexity of this form of economic activity.-- Business groups in Network Industries, Maria Aluchna - Warsaw School of Economics, Poland -- Corporate Groups in Poland’s Rail Freight Industry, Jana Pieriegud – Warsaw School of Economics, Poland -- Water Management Companies in Serbia: Business Group or not?, Miroslav Stojsavljevic - University Business Academy in Novi Sad, Serbi

What Caused the Recent Surge of FDI into Japan?

In recent years, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Japan has jumped to unprecedented levels. This paper examines the underlying reasons, looking at both the international factors - the global boom in FDI and mergers & acquisitions(M&A) during 1998-2000 - and domestic regulatory, structural and other changes. It is argued that while domestic changes created the necessary conditions for Japan to participate in the global M&A boom, FDI inflows failed to develop a momentum of their own. Thus, rather than the result of a sudden transformation of the country into a major destination for global FDI flows, the recent surge in Japan was primarily driven by global trends.