Industry

1. Industry

2. Case Study- Old Industrial Area • The Sambre Meuse coalfield Belgium • The valley was noted for its iron industry in the middle ages, several hundred year before the industrial revolution. • Belgium was the first country on mainland Europe to undergo an Industrial revolution

3. The process started in 1823, by this time coal had replaced charcoal as a fuel source. • A man called Cockerill a Yorkshire man provided the technical knowledge, a skilled immigrant workforce and the capital required for this industrial innovation.

4. Location Factors • In the 19th Century the iron and steel industry in the Sambre Meuse Valley developed because of • Availability of the energy source and raw materials in close proximity • The industrial tradition of the valley and the availability of a workforce skilled in coal mining and metal infrastructure

5. continued • A strategic position which facilitated the ‘pulling in’ of migrant workers • Excellent transport facilities- cheap water transport on rivers and canals, and then the rail network • Inward investment from entrepreneurs from England and France in transport, mining and iron working and the application of the latest technology • Close proximity to markets

6. Vertical Integration of Industry • By the 1830s when the railway network was growing steadily, this area became the largest producer of coal in the whole of Europe • The Cockerhill company employed 2500 workers • Shrewd investment had resulted in Cockerhill gaining control of all the stages of production from mining to the final processing- the company was an example of vertical integration.

7. The Multiplier Effect • The expansion of iron and steel industry. Improvements in the transport network and the rapid increase in population and skilled workforce resulted in the attraction of other industries e.g. engineering and gas works to clothing and household goods • Such a snowball expansion in industry is an example of the multiplier effect

8. De-Industrialisation • As one of the pioneering areas in the Industrial revolution the sambre valley was one of the first to suffer from the effects of the de-industrialisation. • Iron and steel industry is still found in the valley , in a contracted form, although the original location factors have ceased to apply. This is an example of what is known as industrial inertia- an industry that remains in its original location, relaying on imported raw materials and fuel, its skilled workforce and government subsidies to keep it going.

9. De industrialisation – • competition from other areas • Lack of investment in the steel industry • A rapid decline in coal production- high costs of mining and geological difficulties could not compete with cheaper imports, also competition from alternative sources of energy • Inland location which increased the cost of production

10. The loss of both home and export markets increased competition from Japan and South Korea • A negative external image-poor landscape, polluted area, discouraged investment.

11. Consequences of De-industrialisation For the Environment • Derelict industrial buildings • Spoil heaps • Pollution of the atmosphere and rivers For the people • unemployment • Lack of opportunity • Permanent migration • Substandard housing

12. Solving the problems • The regional government and the EU have both played a major part in the economic regeneration of the area. • European Regional development fund-to improve the area • The European coal and Steel community-the Rechar programme made substantial financial provision for the regeneration of the degraded industrial environment

13. Provided vocational re-training and early retirement schemes • A massive modernisation of the transport network • The beginning of the reclamation of the industrial wasteland • The building of new industrial estates • The attraction of new sunrise industries- electronics • Economic incentives for companies to locate in area • Work opportunities increased (although unemployment still remains high.)

14. Task Time • Read through the notes carefully and pages 284-292 • Complete activities 15 a-e from page 4 of your workbook