The Internationalization of Corporate R&D and the Automotive Industry R&D of East-Central Europe.

• Autores: Petr Pavlínek
• Localización: Economic geography, ISSN 0013-0095, Vol. 88, Nº. 3, 2012, págs. 279-310
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This article examines the development of corporate research and development (R&D) in the automotive industry of East-Central Europe (ECE) in the context of the internationalization of corporate R&D generally and the automotive industry R&D specifically. Driven by large inflows of foreign direct investment since the early 1990s, vehicle assembly and the production of automotive components grew significantly in ECE. In my study I investigated the extent to which these increases in production have also led to the development of automotive R&D as an example of a higher value-added function of the automotive value chain. I conducted a more detailed analysis of Czech automotive R&D because of its prominent position in ECE. Despite modest growth, my analysis uncovered inherent weaknesses of automotive R&D in ECE and strong barriers to its future development related to its peripheral position in the European and global automotive production networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]