Geography #16: Industry

What is an industry?

Any economic activity carried out to generate income or to provide livelihood and resources.

Industrial systems have inputs, processes, and outputs. What are inputs?

Basic items needed to begin the process. 

Industrial systems have inputs, processes, and outputs. What are processes?

Activities that take place to make a finished product (goods).

Industrial systems have inputs, processes, and outputs. What are outputs?

Finished products, by-products, products for continued manufacturing elsewhere and waste.

What are examples of inputs?

Raw materials, labor, energy, capital, land, water supply, and site. 

What are the examples of processes?

Cutting, sewing, welding, brewing, painting, steel moulding, etc.

What are some examples of outputs?

Cars, clothing, soda, shoes and waste from manufacturing, which costs money to dispose of.

What are the 4 types of industries?

Manufacturing, processing, assembly and high technology.

What is the manufacturing industry?

The production of new products by industrial processes, usually in a factory using large quantities.

What is the processing Industry?

The preparation of raw material into finished products, either for direct sale to consumers, to change a natural product into a longer lasting form, or to turn it into a form which can be further changed by the manufacturing industry.

What is the assembly industry?

The putting together of component parts to make a product.

What are high tech industries?

Industries that use advanced research, science, and technology to produce goods and services.

What is an example of a manufacturing industry?

Car Manufacturers like Ford or Toyata

What is an example of the processing industry?

Cheese from milk, skin to leather, and leather to shoes.

What is an example of the assembly industry?

Electronics & Automobiles

What is an example of high tech industries?

Information Technology, biotech, aerospace, electronics, and pharmaceuticals. Cambridge Science Park & M4 Corridor in UK.

How does land influence the distribution and location of factories and industrial zones?

Because large factories need flat, well drained land of solid bedrock. Also helpful if land is cheap.

How does labour influence the distribution and location of factories and industrial zones?

Labor-intensive industries, such as textiles or shoe manufacturing, often locate in countries with cheap and plentiful labor to reduce costs. High-tech industries need a highly skilled workforce, so they are located near universities and research centers to attract workers. They also choose locations where the labor force is reliable and stable, since frequent strikes or political unrest can disrupt production.

How does raw materials influence the distribution and location of factories and industrial zones?

Heavy industries such as the iron and steel industries use bulky, heavy, or perishable raw materials that are expensive to transport. They locate close to the source to reduce costs. Light industries are more footloose as their inputs are not expensive to transport, so they are not tied to a location near their inputs.

How does energy influence the distribution and location of factories and industrial zones?

Heavy industries, such as aluminium smelting are located near cheap and plentiful power as energy is important. Modern industries can use electricity, transmitted by electric grid systems but they still require a cheap and reliable supply.

How does transport influence the distribution and location of factories and industrial zones?

Heavy industries are located near rivers and railways to reduce the cost of moving bulky materials. Export-oriented industries, such as car factories in Japan, are near ports for international trade. High-tech industries depend on fast transport and communication systems, and are located near airports and fibre-optic networks, to connect globally.

How does market influence the distribution and location of factories and industrial zones?

Being close to the point of the sale is important for some industries. For example, dairy processing plants are located in urban areas so milk can reach consumers quickly before spoiling. Industries producing heavy goods, such as furniture, also locate near markets to avoid high transport costs. Export industries, such as electronics in South Korea, locate near ports to reach international markets. High-tech industries like those in Silicon Valley benefit from being close to wealthy, educated populations who demand advanced products, beating competitors.

How does political factors influence the distribution and location of factories and industrial zones?

They can provide financial incentives to companies to locate to specific areas plus the tax systems.  

What factors depend on the scale of production?

Small scale industries occur when there are only a few resources available. High scale industries occur when there are abundant raw materials, skilled labor, reliable power, good transport, big markets, and government support.

What factors depend on location?

Heavy industries depend on raw materials, market, energy, and transport so they are located near raw material sources and transportation networks like ports, railways, and highways.

High-tech industries depend on labor, transport, government support, and capital so they are located in urban & suburban areas, universities, and research institutes.

Labor-intensive industries depend on cheap labor, ports, and export markets so they locate in developing countries like Bandaglesh.

What factors influence method of organization?

Site, climate, raw materials, and water supply affect where activities are located. Population, labor, infrastructure, political influence, and technology shape organization. Markets, capital, and transport costs influence how industries and work are arranged.

How factors influence product of the system?

Cheap labor and foreign markets encourage the production of low-cost products for export. Manufacturing industries such as Toyota produce high-quality cars due to advanced technology, skilled labor, and strong global demand. In High Tech Industries, the combination of highly skilled workers, link to universities, and capital results in high-tech products like pharmaceuticals, software, and electronics.

What is an economic sector?

A major division of the economy.

What are the four sectors in economic sectors?

Primary such as agriculture, fishing, and mining. Secondary, such as manufacturing. Tertiary, services. Quaternary, such as R&D, and information processing.

What is a sector shift?

Processes by which a country moves from one sector to another also know as staircase climbing.

What is agglomeration?

When several firms choose the same area for location to reduce costs.

What is the informal sector?

A sector made up of jobs where there is little or no official control. The people are self-employed and activities are on the small scale. It is not taxed or monitored by the government. It includes jobs such as street sellers, shoe cleaners, and small workshops such as hairdressers, shoe repairers, and dress makers.

What are the advantages of the informal sector?

It employs & supports a large number of people with no alternative employement, little capital is needed so its fairly easy to start a business, cheap or recycled raw materials are often used, they develop skills that could lead to better employment in the future, and any profits will be used locally and will stimulate other local activities.

What are the disadvantages of the informal sector?

The activity is often illegal, no taxes will be raised for the country, the standard of tech and goods are low, and the income generated is uncertain and irregular.

What are the factors that influence location of high tech industries?

Large Capital, Labor, Land, Market, Transport, Political Influence, Link to Universities, and Pre-existing High Tech Industries

How is capital an influence of the location of High-Tech Industries?

Large amounts of capital are required as highly specialized experts are needed to do the research and development work as it involves advanced technology. Highly educated employees like these demand high salaries.

How is labor an influence of the location of High Tech Industries?

They need a large number of high skilled and qualified workers so they locate to best attract and accommodate them. They are located near universities, engineering colleges, and technological research institutes as they need experts. They are located in the suburbs as workers prefer to live there or on pleasant rural areas on greenfield sites. They locate where the climate is pleasant, scenery attractive, and where there are good quality housing, shopping opportunities, cultural facilities, and entertainment.

Why is market not really a factor when it comes to the location of High Tech Industries?

Because many of their products are exported worldwide.

How is transport an influence of the location of High-Tech Industries?

Rapid transport is needed for the management and products as they need to beat its competitors in the market. So, they are located near international airports, expressways, and railways.

How is political influences an influence of the location of High-Tech Industries?

The governments interest can encourage the development of high tech industries. They can fund science parks, improve the infrastructure, and reduce tax for the companies.

How is links to universities an influence of the location of High-Tech Industries?

Because universities provide an input for high tech industry. Science parks provides knowledge from university scientists to develop their industry. Research papers are available in university libraries, allowing companies to stay ahead of their competitors by being close to the lastest research.

What is a Transnational Company (TNC)?

A huge enterprise which operates on a global scale and is involved in a wide variety of businesses.

What is an example of a Transnational Company?

Toyota, Coca-Cola, Shell.

What are the characteristics of TNCs?

HQ is located in developed countries for management, research, and finance while their factories are in developing/emerging countries for cheap labor, markets, and resources, they have global supply chains, and have a huge influence on trade, investment, and employment.

Why do TNCs choose certain locations?

LEDCs for cheap labor to reduce costs, MEDCs for skilled labor for high-tech production, markets so they are close to customers, transport links so they are near ports, airports, and highways to receive products more quickly, for government incentives like tax breaks or subsidies, and for raw materials & energy as they are important for industries like oil, steel, cars.

What positive impacts do TNCs have on their host country?

They bring employment opportunities, transfer of technology & skills, increased exports, and economic growth.

What negative impacts do TNCs have on their host country?

Workers may face low wages/poor conditions, the profits are often sent back to HQ so they arenot reinvested locally, and causes environmental probelms such as water, air, noise, and land pollution from the factories and resource use.

What positive impacts do TNCs have on their origin country?

The profits they make return home therefore strengthening the economy. It creates High-value jobs in HQ (management, R&D).

What negative impacts do TNCs have on their origin country?

It creates a loss of manufacturing jobs if production moves abroad and deindustrialisation in developed countries.

What are the processes and outputs of High Tech Industries?

They use the most advanced technology to make outputs such as pharmaceuticals, medical optical, and other precision instruments such as computers, televisions, mobile phones, air craft, and new kinds of food, drinks, and vaccines.

How do economic activities cause water pollution and how does it affect people and the environment?

Through industrial waste, untreated sewage, and oil spills causing diseases, contaminated drinking water, and loss of fish stocks. The environment suffers as the ocean is polluted with plastics, causing marine ecosystems to collapse. 

How do economic activities cause air pollution and how does it affect people and the environment?

Through factories, chemical industries, cars, and burning fossil fuels. This causes smog, ulcers, and respiratory diseases such as lung cancer, asthma, and bronchitis. This causes greenhouse gases to occur, increasing global warming and acid rain.

How do economic activities cause noise pollution and how does it affect people and the environment?

Through heavy industries such as mining, iron, and steel manufacturing and airports. This causes stress, hearing loss, and a reduced quality of life for local residents. It affects the environment by harming land and marine wildlife through behavioral changes, increased stress, and physical damage, disrupting predator-prey relationships and breeding cycles, decline in population, altered species distribution, and overall damage to ecosystem.

How do economic activities cause visual pollution and how does it affect people and the environment?

Through factories, open mines, and waste dumps. It disrupts animal behavior, causes mental fatigue and stress in humans, reduced tourism, and degrading the natural beauty of landscapes.

How do economic activities cause soil erosion and how does it affect people and the environment?

Through overgrazing by livestock, deforestation for farmland, and mining. The loss of fertile topsoil leads to lower crop yields, causing food insecurity. It pollutes waterways with sediments and nutrients, harming aquatic life and human health. It causes increased flooding, landslides, loss of biodiversity by destroying habitats, and contributes to climate change by releasing stored carbon. 

How do economic activities cause desertification and how does it affect people and the environment?

Through unsustainable farming and deforestation. This leads to increased poverty, food insecurity, water scarcity, and forced migration for people, while the environment suffers from loss of biodiversity, dust storms, air pollution, and an increase of climate change.

How do economic activities cause enhanced global warming and how does it affect people and the environment?

By burning fossil fuels, transportation, deforestation for farming, and power stations. This causes heatwaves, flooding, and rising sea levels affecting low-lying communities, forcing people to migrate threatening their physical and mental health. Melting ice caps, storms, floods, droughts, and wildfires, leads to food & water scarcity, habitat loss and species extinction. 

What is sustainable development and management?

Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. And controlling how resources are used so they are not over-exploited.

Why is sustainable development and management needed?

Because certain resources such as fossil fuels, minerals, metal ores, and non-renewable natural resources are finite and when used up or destroyed, are gone forever, making life difficult for future generations. Without it, it can lead to overused resources, deforestation, desertification, loss of biodiversity, extinction of species, pollution, enhanced global warming, poverty, collapse of local industries, and a decline in health due to air/ water pollution. 

What are some ways to development and manage sustainbly?

Selective logging, Afforestation, Recycling, educating the public to save energy, replanting, ecotourism, protect breeding areas, banning destructive methods, using renewable sources like wind, solar, HEP,  drip irrigation, rainwater harvesting, and dry farming techniques.

Why is resource conversation important?

To ensure resources are available for both present and future generations. Environmentally, it prevents problems such as deforestation, soil erosion, and loss of biodiversity. Economically, it protects industries from collapse when non-renewable resources are overused. Socially, it ensures people have enough food, water, and energy, while reducing health risks from pollution.

What is global warming?

The increase in the Earth’s average temperature due to the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

How does industralized growth cause global warming?

Factories, power stations, and increased transport systems burn fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas. This releases large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Agriculture produces methane and nitrous oxide, and deforestation reduces the number of trees that can absorb carbon dioxide. The build-up of these greenhouse gases traps more of the sun’s heat in the atmosphere, enhancing the greenhouse effect and causing the Earth’s temperature to rise.