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Introduction

Many factors will have influenced where a firm is located. These factors have changed in relative importance in recent years; for example, the quality of modern-day transport and communications means that it is less important nowadays for a firm to be based either near the source of its raw materials or very close to the market for its finished products. Land and the Site It is often said that there is no perfect for a factory, there is always room for improvement. Rent is obviously an important factor but first the company has to consider the new premises, whether the building is correct type or it is large enough. A small manufacture will need 60% to 70% of the floor space for production, 20% for storage and 10% to 15% for offices. The site also must have easy access for lorries and the privilege of allowing lorries to turn easily on the site and for staff and visitors to park their cars outside. Labour Owners of a firm will be encouraged to locate it where there is an available, adequately skilled workforce. The business- person will need to consider whether the right kind of skilled or semi-skilled labour is available, or grants for retraining are available, what the local wage rates are like and whether the housing, school and leisure facilities will attract and keep labour in the area. ...read more.

Middle

It has the largest population of the four locations, giving the firm much more business. Also, as Lodwick is the centre of trade more business people will need more financial advice. A DIY hypermarket would be best located in New Berkley. Being the closet to the raw material from the National Park of the four is a large advantage. Seaton is a good location for a craft shop. As Seaton is a retirement town, more of the older generations will be interested in various types of crafts as they have more time than the working population. Seaton is not particularly near to the National Park that may be a source of raw materials for the craft shop. However, its good road communications counteract this disability. * Three locations where a firm producing chemicals will not be allowed to locate are first of all Lodwick. Being the main town in the area with a population of 500,000 and being the centre for trade and commerce, it can not afford to be polluted with toxic chemicals, which will endanger public health. Seaton would also not be a location allowed by the authority. This is due to Seaton being a popular holiday resort and a retirement town. ...read more.

Conclusion

The land on which the steelworks is situated will have decreased in value. The steelworks market will have changed, as will have some government policies. In my project I have found that many factors affect the location of a business. Many of these factors have changed over recent years due to excelled transport communications. For example nearness to the raw material might not be a necessity due to the increased road network in the surrounding area. The main things that affect the location of a business are markets, raw materials, other firms, transport, labour, communications, climate and government policies. Each one of these factors must be carefully assessed and agreed on before a firm would move sites or establish a new site. There are various "push"/"pull" factors affecting where a firm locates itself. A "push" factor may be that the company is expanding and needs more land to produce on. A "pull" factor may be that there is higher unemployment rate in a certain area and the firm thinks that it can obtain easy labour. The location of a firm is an important factor in the firms business; it reflects the image of the business and what the business is trying to achieve. These factors may attract and repel customers and consumers away from a business, hopefully for the firm, it a more of an attract attitude. ...read more.

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