Technological agglomeration and the emergence of clusters and networks in nanotechnology

TL;DR

This paper examines how technological agglomeration, involving co-location and coordination of research activities, fosters the development of nanotechnology clusters and networks, highlighting the role of institutional entrepreneurs in this process.

Contribution

It provides an empirical analysis of nanotechnology clusters in Europe, illustrating how technological agglomeration contributes to cluster emergence and development.

Findings

Co-location and coordination are key for nanocluster emergence.

Institutional entrepreneurs actively shape technological agglomeration.

Strong nanoclusters depend on integrated research and innovation platforms.

Abstract

Research and development at the nanoscale requires a large degree of integration, from convergence of research disciplines in new fields of enquiry to new linkages between start-ups, regional actors and research facilities. Based on the analysis of two clusters in nanotechnologies (MESA+ (Twente) and other centres in The Netherlands and Minatec in Grenoble in France), the paper discusses the phenomenon of technological agglomeration: co-located scientific and technological fields associated to coordinated technology platforms to some extent actively shaped by institutional entrepreneurs. Such co-location and coordination are probably a prerequisite for the emergence of strong nanoclusters