agglomeration
An extended city or town area comprising the built-up area of a central place (usually a municipality) and any suburbs linked by continuous urban area.
assembly line
A manufacturing process (most of the time called a progressive assembly) in which parts (usually interchangeable parts) are added as the semi-finished assembly moves from workstation to work station where the parts are added in sequence until the final as
basic industry
Industries that sell their products or services primarily to consumers outside the settlement.
bid rent
A geographical economic theory that refers to how the price and demand for real estate change as the distance from the central business district (CBD) increases. It states that different land users will compete with one another for land close to the city
break-of-bulk
(p. 402) A location where transfer is possible from one mode of transportation to another.
brownfield
Former commercial land with hazardous waste or pollution.
bulk-gaining industry
(p. 400) An industry in which the final product weighs more or comprises a greater volume than the inputs.
bulk-reducing industry
(p. 398) An industry in which the final product weighs less or comprises a lower volume than the inputs.
capital
Assets available for use in the production of further assets
cottage industry
(p. 395) Manufacturing based in homes rather than factories, commonly found prior to the Industrial Revolution
deindustrialization
A process of social and economic change caused by the removal or reduction of industrial capacity or activity in a country or region, especially heavy industry or manufacturing industry. It is the opposite of industrialization
economies of scale
The cost advantages that enterprises obtain due to size, output, or scale of operation, with cost per unit of output generally decreasing with increasing scale as fixed costs are spread out over more units of output. Often operational efficiency is also g
export processing zone
A geographic area where goods may be landed, handled, manufactured or reconfigured, and reexported without the intervention of the customs authorities.
footloose industry
A general term for an industry that can be placed and located at any location without effect from factors such as resources or transport. These industries often have spatially fixed costs, which means that the costs of the products do not change despite w
Fordist production/Fordism
(p. 422) A form of mass production in which each worker is assigned one specific task to perform repeatedly.
post-Fordism
The dominant system of economic production, consumption and associated socio-economic phenomena, in most industrialized countries since the late 20th century. It is contrasted with Fordism, the system formulated in Henry Ford's automotive factories, in wh
gross domestic product (GDP)
A monetary measure of the value of all final goods and services produced in a period (quarterly or yearly). Nominal GDP estimates are commonly used to determine the economic performance of a whole country or region, and to make international comparisons.
GDP per capita
GDP of a country divided by its population
Gini coefficient
A measure of income distribution of a nation's residents; the most commonly used measure of inequality.
Hotelling model
An observation in economics that in many markets it is rational for producers to make their products as similar as possible.
industrial inertia
A stage at which an industry prefers to run in its former location although the main alluring factors are gone. For example, the raw material source is depleted or an energy crisis has emerged.
Industrial Revolution
(p. 395) A series of improvements in industrial technology that transformed the process of manufacturing goods.
infrastructure
The fundamental facilities and systems serving a country, city, or area, including the services and facilities necessary for its economy to function.
international division of labor
(p. 420) Transfer of some types of jobs, especially those requiring low-paid, less-skilled workers, from more-developed (MDC) to less-developed or developing (LDC) countries.
labor-intensive industry
(p. 408) An industry for which labor costs comprise a high percentage of total expenses.
least-cost theory
Alfred Weber's theory of industrial location, explaining and predicting where industries will locate based on cost analysis of transportation, labor, and agglomeration factors. It emphasizes that firms seek a site of minimum transport and labor cost.
location theory
Addresses questions of what economic activities are located where and why.
manufacturing region
A region where things are manufactured.
maquiladora
(p. 421) A factory built by a U.S. company in Mexico near the U.S. border, to take advantage of the much lower labor costs in Mexico.
mass production
The production of large quantities of a standardized article (often using assembly line techniques)
nonbasic industry
Industries that sell their products primarily to consumers in the community.
outsourcing
(p. 420) A decision by a corporation to turn over much of the responsibility for production to independent suppliers.
primary industry
The portion of the economy concerned with the direct extraction of materials from Earth's surface, generally through agriculture, although sometimes by mining, fishing, and forestry.
raw materials
Unprocessed materials extracted from the Earth's surface.
site factors
(p. 398) Location factors related to the costs of factors of production inside a plant, such as land, labor, and capital.
situation factors
(p. 398) Location factors related to the transportation of materials into and from a factory.
secondary industry
The portion of the economy concerned with manufacturing useful products through processing, transforming, and assembling raw materials.
substitution principle
The maxim that processes, services and products should, wherever possible, be replaced with alternatives which have a lower impact on the environment.
textile
(p. 410) A fabric made by weaving, used in making clothing.
varignon frame
A system of weights and pulleys used by geographers to help determine optimum location. For example, the weights might represent the relative cost of transporting particular goods to or from particular locations, to help a firm decide the most cost effect
Weber's Theory of Industrial Location
Least-cost theory PLUS the bulk-gaining versus bulk-reducing concepts.