Describe and Explain the Importance of Energy in the Location of the Manufacturing Industry.

Energy sources may not be influential in themselves; oil fields and gas fields are often not associated with the development of a manufacturing area. This is mainly due to the fact where these raw materials are collected.  For example in the UK, most gas and oil is collected from the North Sea. An area with very harsh weather conditions, which is remotely located off land and in the sea! Also Prudhoe Bay in Alaska, the area experiences very harsh inhospitable conditions with temperatures reaching as low as -60oC. However these energy resources may influence the location of manufacturing, i.e. in the development of electricity. Location near raw materials reduces transport costs, particularly if they are bulky or loose weight during the manufacturing process. Ports became important also, as they were the source of any imported raw material. An example of a location where oil/gas availability has led to manufacturing is the port in the Bay of Kobe Japan. Kobe is an important city of the Osaka-Kobe industrial zone. Its principal industries involve iron and steel, transport machinery, rubber and foodstuffs. Most of the factories are concentrated in the coastal areas. Kobe port is a typical trade port of Japan. It has trade contacts with over 120 countries and has regular shipping service with all-important ports of the world.

In recent years the electricity as a source of energy has become increasingly important, especially as it can be taken to quite remote areas. Electricity is such a versatile form of energy, because it can be transformed into different forms of chemical energy and also as it can be transported effectively and efficiently via the National Grid (cables and pylons) as it has many connections from a national, regional to a local basis. The part played by electricity in the new locations of industry is that there is no real limit to where an industry can develop if it is dependant on electricity. Modern secondary industries are not tied down to their source of raw materials or power and can locate where they like. Local and regional authorities may offer money and other incentives for a firm to locate in their area because they want the jobs and affluence the industry will bring. Places in the developed and less developed world that have been able to benefit manufacturing based on electricity, for instance the car manufacturing industry, for example the Toyota Car factory in Burnaston, England and the Moto Honda da Amazonia Ltda, Brazil both of which deal with the manufacture and distribution of their products internationally.

Areas where energy is not easily available invariably remain without the benefits industry can bring. This is because these areas are predominately located in remote regions, for example at higher altitudes and areas, which experience harsh weather conditions. These physical factors prevent the distribution of energy into these areas. Examples of this are in the Scandinavian region, where the northern areas are less developed than the south. Also northern areas of Russia where the extreme cold conditions makes the region unsuited to be able to distribute energy to the region, as the network connections would not be able to withstand frequent cold periods.

Even when the source of energy is no longer important, the legacy of the established manufacturing remains, a situation known as ‘Industrial Inertia’. It is possible for the industries to continue because of the imports of raw materials from other countries into shipping ports and airports and also by the use of alternative energy, such as nuclear power and hydroelectric power stations. Industry remains due to the refusal of original companies to leave its location even when the reasons that made the original location suitable or advantageous have disappeared, such as the around the coalfields of Britain, i.e. the development of Sheffield during the Industrial Revolution. Sheffield has the M1 and M18 good motorway links to the city centre and other parts of the country; large numbers of students from two universities have computer skills (which is now an important and sought after skill to gain in the workforce) and the unemployment rates are quite high in the city, meaning that there is a ready workforce; land costs are lower than the south of England and Brownfield sites close to city centre which allows for space for expansion. Furthermore the City Council welcomes new industries because of jobs and wealth the centre will bring.

The growth of cities, population distribution and social and employment changes have all been affected by the location of industry. Traditional industry grew during the nineteenth century. It depended on the supply of raw materials and coal for power. These were bulky and expensive to move, so industries located near to where they were found or could be easily imported. However, today many of the UK’s raw materials have either depleted, like iron ore, or are imported from overseas. Many heavy industries therefore using bulky raw materials from abroad, for example steel, oil and chemical industries have developed at the nearest source, i.e. at the coast at ports. Also the resource electricity has meant that industry can go to a much wider selection of locations and the main issues that now need to be considered are reliability, cost and environmental considerations.