Examine the factors which influence the Location of present day Manufacturing.

It is clear that the are a number of factors that are taken into account when a company, especially TNC, choose a location for a factory be it local regional or even national There are many Factors affecting the location of manufacturing industry: -

In the past raw materials had a greater influence over the location of industry as they had to be located close to them. This was mainly due to the immobility of the raw materials which where heavy and costly to move when transport was poor. Today this has changed with today’s industries said to be footloose, meaning they have no ties.

These days new forms of power have been introduced and it can now be easily transported thanks to the national grid and oil tanker making power a only a small influence when deciding on a location for an industry.

New types of transport and infrastructure have been introduced in the 20th century such as Lorries, railways and air travel which means that transport is no longer a major issue and transport only accounts for 2-3 per cent of a companies total expenditure.

The pull of the market is now of higher importance than the location of raw materials and power supplies and highly rated historians such as P. Boxall have rated as the most important.

Labour supply is know one of the major factors for a company to consider and is more important than the location of raw materials and ...

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The pull of the market is now of higher importance than the location of raw materials and power supplies and highly rated historians such as P. Boxall have rated as the most important.

Labour supply is know one of the major factors for a company to consider and is more important than the location of raw materials and power supply. It can be split into three criteria cost, availability and quality. Labour is pretty much immobile and it is important to Locate in an area with a Labour pool, which matches the needs of the company.

Due to overpopulated areas in towns and cites, governments are now putting restrictions on where people can build. They are trying to make companies build on brown field sites and not green field sites. The are certain site around the borders of cities, which have been designated, as green belts were no one is allowed to build. Recent British government policies has aimed to attract industries to brown field sites in inner cities in order to alternate the infrastructure.

Government polices have also been introduce in order to even out differences in unemployment. By given areas with large unemployment rates regional assistance. Also the EU has passed laws meaning that percentages of production has to occur within European states.

The are two main models which have been used in the past to show the best place to located and industry.

A man called Weber created one of these models. Weber claimed that four factors affected production costs: the cost of raw materials and the cost of transporting them and the finish product along with labour costs.

Pros

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Smiths

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LOCAL EXAMPLE

The choice of the location was announced in May this year after a thorough examination of alternative UK sites. Since then, there have been extensive discussions and consultations with local agencies, community groups and individuals with an interest in the scheme ahead of the formal submission of the planning application

The location provides a unique combination of available specialist skills - many associated with the area's bespoke boat-building industry - and excellent transport links to airports and seaports. Customers from all over the world will be pleased to find many opportunities for cultural entertainment, sight-seeing and sports activities such as golf, sailing, flying, horse racing, and last but not least the famous historic motoring events at Goodwood

MEDC (EUROPE) EXAMPLE

Britain's integration into a wider Europe, beginning with membership of the EC in 1973 and continuing with the Single European Act of 1986 and the 1991 Treaty of European Union (the Maastricht Treaty