Vernon's product life cycle and maritime innovation: Specialised shipping in Bergen, Norway, 1970-1987

One of the most important developments in the post-war shipping industry has been the introduction of specialised ship types that have gained market shares in the transport of a large number of cargoes. The share of specialised tonnage in the Norwegian fleet increased from less than 1% in 1960 to more than 30% by 1987. This trend towards increased specialisation did not occur to the same extent in all maritime centres. In an international perspective, Norwegian owners held a large share of the new specialised ships. This can partly be explained within the framework of the Vernon product life cycle. However, even within Norway there were substantial differences in the degree of investment in specialised tonnage. Specifically, a disproportionate share of the specialised Norwegian ships was owned by shipping companies in the city of Bergen. In 1977 Bergen companies owned around 13% of the aggregate Norwegian fleet, but more than 40% of the specialised tonnage. The Bergen presence was particularly strong in two segments; chemical tankers and open hatch bulk shipping. Through closer studies of the companies involved it becomes evident that three factors - co-operation between individual companies, vertical integration and technological innovation - can explain Bergen's strong position within specialised shipping.shipping, Norway, specialisation, product life cycle, tankers, bulk carriers,

Creating Global Markets : Seaborne Trade in Pulp and Paper Products Over the Last 400 Years

The declining cost of sea transport has been a necessary condition for the growth of the global pulp and paper industry, especially in regions remote from economic centres. Thus, pulp and paper industries and international shipping have coevolved, especially since the 1960s, enabling producers to tap global markets and develop global production chains. The paper products trade flows, however, have changed a number of times over the last 400 years. This chapter describes and explains these developments and shows how the technological solutions in global shipping and strategic choices among the pulp and paper companies have been interdependent, especially since the 1960s.peerReviewe

Outcomes of Adults With Relapsed/Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia Treated With Venetoclax Plus Hypomethylating Agents at a Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a devastating disease with a poor prognosis and represents a major unmet medical need. We report on a real-world academic center experience of treating 25 patients with relapsed/refractory AML using venetoclax in combination with decitabine or azacitidine, which is not otherwise widely evaluated in the current literature. Our patients come from a large, socioeconomically and geographically diverse area including the majority of Northern California. Most had ELN Adverse Risk (52%) or Intermediate Risk (44%) AML, and most had an ECOG Performance Status of 1 (64%). Over half (52%) had prior hypomethylating agent exposure, and 40% had Secondary AML. We observed an overall response rate of 52%, with eight patients (32%) achieving composite complete remission. Median overall survival was 5.5 months, and for patients achieving composite complete remission this was 21.6 months. One-year estimated overall survival was 38%. Three patients were able to proceed directly to stem cell transplant for consolidation, and all three were alive at last follow-up, ranging 13.8-24.0 months. We found venetoclax in combination with hypomethylating agents to be well tolerated and potentially efficacious in securing long-term remissions for patients with relapsed/refractory AML

The role of Greek shipowners in the revival of northern European shipyards in the 1950s

This chapter examines how Greek shipowners combined their entrepreneurial skills with American finance and European maritime expertise to become the world’s leading shipowners in the post-war period. Led by Aristotle Onassis, they were able to exploit opportunities in the United States in the 1940s and led the way in tanker shipping in post-WWII Europe. Greek shipowners created and consolidated the new institution of the global shipping company, paving the way for today’s ‘stateless’ maritime industry. The chapter analyzes the growth of the oil market and tanker shipbuilding by following the activities of one of the leaders of Greek and world tanker shipping, Aristotle Onassis, during the period 1948–1954. In the second part, we examine tanker shipbuilding by the Greeks, in particular by Aristotle Onassis and Stavros Niarchos, in German shipyards. Today, Greece is the leading country in terms of ownership of the world fleet, and this chapter shows how this became possible

Downfall delayed: Danish shipbuilding and industrial dislocation

This article analyses the decline of the Danish shipbuilding industry. European shipyards dominated global shipbuilding markets in the first half of the twentieth century, but began to be challenged by the Japanese from the 1950s and by the South Koreans from the late 1970s. More recently, China has taken over large slices of the global shipbuilding market and currently is the world's largest shipbuilding nation. As a result of this new competition, European shipyards closed en masse and Europe experienced a process of maritime deindustrialisation in the 1970s and 1980s. Danish shipyards were not immune to these challenges, although maritime deindustrialisation in this country was almost two decades later than in many other European countries. This article examines how Denmark was able to escape this general maritime deindustrialisation for so long and offers three explanations: institutional, entrepreneurial and political.globalisation, industrial dislocation and decline, shipbuilding,