Location, technology and filter-down theory An analysis of the United Kingdom pharmaceutical industry

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THE ROLE OF PROXIMITY AND KNOWLEDGE INTERACTION BETWEEN HEAD OFFICES AND KIBS

The extant literature suggests that a mutual dependency exists between head office location and the location of knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) in major cities and capital regions. This is often referred to as a joint head-office-corporate-service complex. However, few studies have looked into the functioning and outcomes of these complexes. How concentrated are KIBS and head offices in major cities? How important is geographical proximity in the knowledge interaction between head offices and KIBS? What are the actual outcomes of head office-KIBS relationships, especially as far as innovation is concerned? These issues are discussed by using empirical evidence from Norway. The empirical results indicate that geographical proximity in itself is neither a sufficient nor a necessary condition for successful relations between KIBS and head offices in cities. However, agglomeration in city regions can provide positive externalities for both parties. Other types of proximity, such as social and cognitive proximity, also play a vital role in the outcome of KIBS-client relations. There is therefore a certain degree of heterogeneity, but not all projects lead to profound learning and innovation in the actors in this complex. Copyright (c) 2007 by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG.

The Regional Location of Knowledge Based Economy Activities in Israel

The article analyzes the spatial location behavior of economic activity that is knowledge based, by decomposing the Knowledge-based Economy Index developed by the OECD (1999) and elaborated by Cooke and Schwartz (2003) into major components that represent groups with different characteristics. The spatial behavior is analyzed in Israel in the years 1995–2002. We find that business services and high tech services tend to concentrate in metropolitan areas. Business services are found in the main city and high tech services in the satellite urban ring, with the outer-cities becoming stronger over time. Public services supporting the knowledge-based economy are concentrated in the center of the country, though not necessarily in the principal city, and they can represent an important tool in regional policy. The high tech manufacturing is concentrated around the big cities, mainly around the main metropolis. The other knowledge-based manufacturing activities tend to leave for the periphery. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, Inc. 2006knowledge economy, high technology industry, services, R11, R58, O14, O18, O53,

Entrepreneurial social capital: conceptualizing social capital in new hi-tech firms

Although the literature on social capital has increased dramatically in recent years, concerns have been raised about the expanse of applications of the term, diversity of constructs, definitions and variety of analyses. The purpose of this article is to clarify the conceptualization of social capital in entrepreneurship. To achieve this, the article begins with a review of the extensive literature on social capital. This provides a preliminary theoretical framework about the nature and categories of social capital. Thereafter, an account is provided of an empirical study in which in-depth and extensive data were gathered about the social interactions of entrepreneurs from 10 technology firms. Findings demonstrate that social capital is a social relational artefact produced in social interactions. It is not owned but represents a pool of goodwill residing in a social network and it can be envisaged as a revolving mutual fund of traded and un-traded interdependencies

ENTREPRENEURSHIP, PROXIMITY AND REGIONAL INNOVATION SYSTEMS

Research on regional innovation systems (RIS) suffers from two research gaps: The lack of focus on the entrepreneurial dimension and the dominance of empirical studies on "intra"regional networks and linkages between innovative actors. Referring to the agenda set by Oinas and Malecki, this paper deals with both interrelated issues. It is shown that while intraregional connections are without any doubt of great relevance for the functioning of RISs they bear the risk of lock-in effects. The complementary importance of extra-regional relationships for the innovativeness of economic regions is emphasised. Entrepreneurial migrants play a crucial role in such relationships. This paper provides a discussion of the five dimensions of proximity recently introduced by Boschma. It is argued that geographical proximity is only one, but often not the most important dimension. For international connections of innovative actors within RIS, cognitive and institutional proximity might be even more relevant. Copyright (c) 2007 by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG.

Critical care usage after major gastrointestinal and liver surgery: a prospective, multicentre observational study

Background Patient selection for critical care admission must balance patient safety with optimal resource allocation. This study aimed to determine the relationship between critical care admission, and postoperative mortality after abdominal surgery. Methods This prespecified secondary analysis of a multicentre, prospective, observational study included consecutive patients enrolled in the DISCOVER study from UK and Republic of Ireland undergoing major gastrointestinal and liver surgery between October and December 2014. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Multivariate logistic regression was used to explore associations between critical care admission (planned and unplanned) and mortality, and inter-centre variation in critical care admission after emergency laparotomy. Results Of 4529 patients included, 37.8% (n=1713) underwent planned critical care admissions from theatre. Some 3.1% (n=86/2816) admitted to ward-level care subsequently underwent unplanned critical care admission. Overall 30-day mortality was 2.9% (n=133/4519), and the risk-adjusted association between 30-day mortality and critical care admission was higher in unplanned [odds ratio (OR): 8.65, 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.51–19.97) than planned admissions (OR: 2.32, 95% CI: 1.43–3.85). Some 26.7% of patients (n=1210/4529) underwent emergency laparotomies. After adjustment, 49.3% (95% CI: 46.8–51.9%, P<0.001) were predicted to have planned critical care admissions, with 7% (n=10/145) of centres outside the 95% CI. Conclusions After risk adjustment, no 30-day survival benefit was identified for either planned or unplanned postoperative admissions to critical care within this cohort. This likely represents appropriate admission of the highest-risk patients. Planned admissions in selected, intermediate-risk patients may present a strategy to mitigate the risk of unplanned admission. Substantial inter-centre variation exists in planned critical care admissions after emergency laparotomies

Body mass index and complications following major gastrointestinal surgery: A prospective, international cohort study and meta-analysis

Aim Previous studies reported conflicting evidence on the effects of obesity on outcomes after gastrointestinal surgery. The aims of this study were to explore the relationship of obesity with major postoperative complications in an international cohort and to present a metaanalysis of all available prospective data. Methods This prospective, multicentre study included adults undergoing both elective and emergency gastrointestinal resection, reversal of stoma or formation of stoma. The primary end-point was 30-day major complications (Clavien–Dindo Grades III–V). A systematic search was undertaken for studies assessing the relationship between obesity and major complications after gastrointestinal surgery. Individual patient meta-analysis was used to analyse pooled results. Results This study included 2519 patients across 127 centres, of whom 560 (22.2%) were obese. Unadjusted major complication rates were lower in obese vs normal weight patients (13.0% vs 16.2%, respectively), but this did not reach statistical significance (P = 0.863) on multivariate analysis for patients having surgery for either malignant or benign conditions. Individual patient meta-analysis demonstrated that obese patients undergoing surgery formalignancy were at increased risk of major complications (OR 2.10, 95% CI 1.49–2.96, P < 0.001), whereas obese patients undergoing surgery for benign indications were at decreased risk (OR 0.59, 95% CI 0.46–0.75, P < 0.001) compared to normal weight patients. Conclusions In our international data, obesity was not found to be associated with major complications following gastrointestinal surgery. Meta-analysis of available prospective data made a novel finding of obesity being associated with different outcomes depending on whether patients were undergoing surgery for benign or malignant disease