Suchergebnisse

ABSTRACTThe article addresses the embeddedness of automotive production in Poland in terms of supply networks. A comprehensive analysis of more than 550 suppliers, supported by company interviews, shows that foreign‐owned producers become embedded in Poland in the automotive supplier networks they have largely created themselves. Numerous local suppliers gain access to export markets and become integrated in a Europe‐wide production system. This trend has been accompanied by significant upgrading of foreign affiliates and domestic firms in terms of product quality, cost efficiency, adaptability, and fast response, but far less in nonproduction competences such as R&D. It is argued that the competences of automotive suppliers in Poland are built upon the localized capabilities, which are a product of the dynamic interplay between the activity of foreign firms and the changing local environment comprising various stakeholders. The localized capabilities constitute elements of a company's sunk costs and are embedding automotive producers in Poland. At the same time, the dependence on decisions and innovations from abroad and the limited development of local design and brands may constrain the future role of suppliers from the semiperipheral economy of Poland.

In 1994 special economic zones (SEZs) were introduced in Poland as an instrument supporting regional development. Initially, the idea was to open just a handful of zones located in single-function industrial regions affected by or exposed to structural unemployment. Investor benefits included a full income-tax holiday for a half of the special zone's life (typically ten years) and exemption from real-estate taxation. Subsequently, the initial conditions were considerably modified under the influence of various pressure groups, including the European Commission, the central government, major international investors, and local authorities. The tax benefits were reduced, but the eligibility was extended to new industries and new company types while the overall number of special zones consistently increased. With more than 150 locations enjoying a special status, the SEZs have lost their nature of regional policy tools, almost becoming standard forms of public aid for companies, regardless of their location. This shift in the approach to the special zones had a fundamental impact on the effects generated by the special zones. The investor appeal of areas where state support was essential to overcome a structural economic crisis was further undermined. Indeed, the bulk of investment and jobs was channeled to the zones comfortably located in southwestern Poland near large urban agglomerations with a labor market that was attractive to the investors (the Katowicka, Legnicka, and Wa-brzyska zones). However, few large and middle-sized investments were acquired by single-function industrial areas in crisis (Starachowicka and Tarnobrzeska SEZs) or by peripheral agricultural regions (Warmińsko-Mazurska i Suwalska SEZs). A notable exception to this rule is the first Polish special zone in Mielec: although peripherally located, it achieved success using the first-comer advantage it had over the subsequent zones.

The aim of the paper is to identify the main factors and mechanisms behind the development of low-emission public transport vehicles in Polish cities. This innovation is primarily connected with growing environmental requirements for transport, with the EU environmental and transport policies being the key factors. However, strategies of local governments and municipal transport companies as well as the organization of urban transport - which differs significantly between cities - also play an important role. Three basic types of approach towards low-emission buses can be observed in Polish cities: tests of electric and hybrid vehicles, purchases of small quantities of buses in order to implement new solutions, and finally attempts to replace the majority or even the entire transport fleet with low-emission vehicles. It should be emphasised that an important element which affects the development of low emission public urban transport in Poland is the fact that the country has become one of the main bus producers in Europe - a fact which is a result of both large-scale foreign investments and the success of Polish manufacturers.

The aim of the paper is to identify the main factors and mechanisms behind the development of low-emission public transport vehicles in Polish cities. This innovation is primarily connected with growing environmental requirements for transport, with the EU environmental and transport policies being the key factors. However, strategies of local governments and municipal transport companies as well as the organization of urban transport - which differs significantly between cities - also play an important role. Three basic types of approach towards low-emission buses can be observed in Polish cities: tests of electric and hybrid vehicles, purchases of small quantities of buses in order to implement new solutions, and finally attempts to replace the majority or even the entire transport fleet with low-emission vehicles. It should be emphasised that an important element which affects the development of low emission public urban transport in Poland is the fact that the country has become one of the main bus producers in Europe - a fact which is a result of both large-scale foreign investments and the success of Polish manufacturers.