Transition from a manufacturing economy to a knowledge economy

[rapid_business]

After listening to Glen Murray speak to the public at an LRT meeting in KW, I began wondering of the plans in Hamilton to make the inevitable transition from a manufacturing economy to a knowledge economy in the future.

A good comparison would be Pittsburgh, and the steps they've taken to become a knowledge based (university, med. tech, arts, etc.) city as the steel industry left town. Globalization has changed the western hemisphere and our economies, and cities either make the transition, or die.

That being said, does Hamilton have a plan of attack?

[raisethehammer]

yup, build Walmart in as many strategic places as possible.

[SteelTown]

Yes, check out the Innovation Park that's taking place in West Hamilton. It's under the development section of Local:Hamilton. That combined with a growing McMaster University and Hamilton Health Sciences, it's the two largest growing employment sector. Hamilton Health Sciences has overtaken Stelco or Dofasco for having the largest employees.

[raisethehammer]

Originally Posted by SteelTown

Yes, check out the Innovation Park that's taking place in West Hamilton. It's under the development section of Local:Hamilton. That combined with a growing McMaster University and Hamilton Health Sciences, it's the two largest growing employment sector. Hamilton Health Sciences has overtaken Stelco or Dofasco for having the largest employees.

yes, Steeltown is correct.
My response was sarcastic as one can only take so much bad news from city hall for so many consective days.
Education and Health Care are becoming huge in Hamilton.

[markbarbera]

Seriously, Hamilton has been very late coming to this table, but it is making up for lost time with the development of McMaster Innovation Park. With CANMET as a confirmed anchor tenant, the future is very promising for this site. Here is a link to the official MIP website.

This city has always had a vested interest in R&D. We have had a world-class university for nearly 150 years now, with an international reputation for its medical research, and a well-respected engineering department that has had an operational nuclear reactor and accelerator long before neighbouring universities even dreamed of having one.

McMaster University, combined with their new innovation park, and the medical research facility being built at Hamilton General are all giving new focus to the development of knowledge based industry in our city. Also, Dofasco and the Ontario government recently announced a joint manufacturing innovation research initiative that will contribute to this drive as well. The key is diversification in the new knowledge economy rather than focusing on one small segment of that industry.

[markbarbera]

Further to your original question, here is an article that ran as part of the 'Hamilton Next' series in The Spec:

Hamilton Next


December 05, 2007
The Hamilton Spectator
(Dec 5, 2007)

What should Hamilton aspire to? How does it get there? We asked leaders of the city's many communities and sectors for their perspectives. Richard Allen, executive director of Industry-Education Council of Hamilton, gives his perspective

Q. What kind of city should Hamilton aspire to be? What should we look like in 10 years?

A. Hamilton has positioned itself to be a leading centre for educational opportunity, research and discovery. This is the aspiration of Hamilton Education City, a collaborative initiative that is currently showcasing the essential role our local education sector plays in building prosperity and enriching quality of life.

As an education city, the Hamilton of tomorrow will have a distinct look and feel based on developments occurring today. We will see more physical infrastructure that announces our city's commitment to education, including new multipurpose schools, research laboratories in the West Hamilton Innovation District and corporate training facilities situated in new business parks along our transportation corridors.

We will also see less tangible yet equally important signs of a city that has chosen to capitalize on its education advantage -- a growing youth population that elects to live, learn and work in our community; the re-emergence of liberal arts education and a vibrant bohemian culture that returns life to our urban core; a list of grassroots revitalization projects spearheaded by the education sector in partnership with local businesses; and increased participation in lifelong learning by older Hamiltonians who understand the myriad benefits of continuing education.

Q. How do we rebuild Hamilton's economic and social vitality?

A. People living their dreams build prosperity. More than ever, young people require skills, knowledge and attitudes to thrive in a world economy that rewards creativity, collaboration and continuous learning.

Stable long-term employment, low-skill/ high-pay industrial jobs and other characteristics of Hamilton's past economy have all but disappeared.

Now, as a community, we need to build on existing education and career management programs that enable students to explore and experience the new world of work that has arisen in response to Hamilton's emerging knowledge- and service-based economy.

Hamilton's 21st-century economy -- which most observers predict will be built upon advanced manufacturing, health sciences, biotechnology research and discovery, and transportation -- will be reliant on a new generation of highly educated people who know how to add value to the workplace and the local community.

Hamilton has the people pipelines in place to direct a flow of competent and motivated young people toward the types of work that will define Hamilton Next.

These networks, coupled with local firms that care about the growth and well-being of their employees, are essential parts of the soft infrastructure that progressive cities need in order to retain young people in a world that's increasingly competing for scarce talent.

Q. What specific efforts or initiatives will it take to get us there?

A. There are many initiatives already happening across our local education sector that are moving Hamilton toward a better future. Here are some additional efforts that many agree will accelerate progress:

* Job Creation: Hamilton's focus on job creation represents a solid step forward. Our local education sector must continue as a key player on a number of fronts, including helping to attract new businesses to Hamilton, re-skilling and up-skilling the employees of existing businesses, engaging more employers in experiential learning programs and apprenticeship training, and incubating new high-tech startups -- tomorrow's job providers.

* Hamilton Learning Index: Many cities are adopting frameworks to measure the impact of a local education sector on community prosperity. Indicators range from readiness to learn in the early years, to retention of postsecondary graduates, to the intensity of partnership activity among education and business. The Canadian Council on Learning is doing good work in this area and could provide Hamilton with helpful advice.

* Student Engagement: We all need to find ways to engage students. For example, successful employers work closely with local schools, colleges and universities to access the skills and knowledge of students -- a practical solution to forming early relationships with prospective employees. Organizations that don't nurture these relationships will be at a significant disadvantage as the battle for talent heats up.

Q. Are there any risks in taking these steps, things we should avoid?

A. Hamilton is at a turning point. The risks associated with not continuing our collective aspiration to be an "education city" are profound and will have a negative impact on all Hamiltonians.

These risks include an ongoing competency drain as highly educated young people continue to leave our community, stalled efforts to recast our city's reputation in the image of the creative economy, lost opportunities to attract and retain knowledge-dependent businesses and an overall sense of striking out on a limited-time offer to become the sweet spot of Canada's Greater Golden Horseshoe.

The vision of Hamilton Education City includes an obligation to help ensure success for all.

This can only be accomplished through educating and retaining a highly competent workforce needed to fuel a strong local economy which in turn will support quality social programs.

Hamilton Education City is a collaborative initiative co-led by the IEC and the City of Hamilton in partnership with Hamilton's education sector and with the support of the Hamilton Future Fund. Visit www.iechamilton.ca to discover more.

[SteelTown]

If we get more and more of R&D type of jobs than people like me post-graduate will stay and live in Hamilton. I nearly moved to Toronto to work at MaRs but McMaster offered and I stayed.

[rapid_business]

It sounds like good initial steps, but I fear it's not nearly enough/drastic enough.

I think the key to transforming Hamilton into a knowledge economy is to make it a place where people WANT to live. When you think about it, people are a lot more mobile than they were before. Skilled workers with specialized skills can live anywhere they want and generally aren't tied to places because of manufacturing advantages anymore. Let me illustrate what I mean. Tech worker Bob is looking at getting a new job and is considering 2 similar offers. One is in the stylish city of San Francisco and the other is in Detroit. Where do you think he'll want to go?

In one of my courses, we had a guest lecturer come in from a local organization called Communitech, which is an organization of representatives from tech companies in Waterloo Region. One of the biggest challenges for the Region's tech sector is labour shortages. There are currently over 2000 positions vacant in Waterloo Region's tech sector, which is a deterrent for new companies who'd otherwise set up shop here. He believes the reason for this is because the Region doesn't offer the same diversity of lifestyle benefits that are offered in more urban cities like Austin or the Silicon Valley area, which appeal to the younger crowd, fresh out of university and looking for an exciting place with a deviant culture, great nightlife, etc. Most of what we get here are people in their early 30s wanting to settle down and have kids and live the suburban lifestyle.

I think the key to making full use of local universities and building the city's knowledge economy is a combination of appealing to a broad demographic group and having the right partnerships and a government that is progressive and forward thinking. Hamilton may not have the latter of those things, but I think a group of patriotic (to their city) residents could have a profound effect in the city reaching its full potential.

[rapid_business]

I guess it's chicken or the egg. Who's going to move to an area where there isn't jobs in the emerging fields? Both arguments work, but there needs to be employment before people will come.

[markbarbera]

R&D is a larger employment sector in Hamilton than you realize, onishenko. For example, Hamilton is already home to 31 biotechnology research companies.

[raisethehammer]

interesting stat markbarbera. where did you find that info?

[markbarbera]

Here is a link to the report I had been reading:

http://www.investinhamilton.ca/Pdf/H...echProfile.pdf

The list of biotech companies begins on page 18 of the report.

[SteelTown]

There's a lot more than 31 biotech research jobs, list is from 2002. It doesn't include Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute, the new Caradic research centre at the General, CANMET, Golden Horseshoe Biotech, and other smaller biotech centres.

[tokie1]

Originally Posted by onishenko

I guess it's chicken or the egg. Who's going to move to an area where there isn't jobs in the emerging fields? Both arguments work, but there needs to be employment before people will come.

For a lot of university grads, getting a job is only half what makes up choosing where to live. It has much to do with quality of life, and let's face it, Hamilton still is tough-and-gritty. Something needs to be done about that if Hamilton wants to attract the best and brightest, and the City can do something, but no one wants to take any bold risks.

[raisethehammer]

bang on. quality of life is key.
tokie1 - what would you list as your top 3 or 5 'quality of life' issues that you'd like to see addressed in Hamilton?

[flar]

Quality of life: depends where you live. My day to day life is pretty much between Dundas and West Hamilton so I never see any grit or poor people and my quality of life is very high.

[go_leafs_go02]

bingo.

just improving general aesthetics in the long run would help i think. Concentrate on enforcing property standards on private property owners and making sure they make their section of land look presentable.

Dundas and West Hamilton/Ancaster are generally the areas in Hamilton that need the least amount of work to make it more presentable. Once you get past John St. downtown the quality drops significantly. Up the mountain is better in some ways, but it can be defined as very bland as well.

Looking forward to see what this city looks like in 5-10 years, especially if city council gets its rear into gear and sees the potential that this city has.

[tokie1]

Originally Posted by raisethehammer

bang on. quality of life is key.
tokie1 - what would you list as your top 3 or 5 'quality of life' issues that you'd like to see addressed in Hamilton?

i'd say there are a few things. the waterfront with the industrial stuff needs to disappear (and it will without any pushing anyways) and be made into greenspace. the city also needs to do something to attract high income people here. i think one thing that could be done is to foster the creation of a large condo project (think small-scale CityPlace/Concord Pacific, or the one being planned in Pickering or Whitby) by the time the SuperGO (if it ever comes to be) arrives. generally though, with regards to the gritty character of hamilton, any large-scale addition of glass or modern-looking development will help. the entire city rightly looks like it was made in the 70's and that doesn't turn people on.

the mountain is also a problem for people who want to start families. it's a pretty low-income and run down place, but i'm not sure if the city can do anything to fix that since it's all pretty sprawled-up already. they could perhaps stop that sprawl from spreading (which it is already) into ancaster & surrounding areas.

[flar]

While the transition to a post industrial economy is happening (and a good thing), traditional industry will continue to be an important part of Hamilton's economy. The waterfront will remain heavily industrialized during our lifetimes. Both Stelco (er, US Steel Canada) and Dofasco are profitable. In the future, employment in the steel industry may continue its decline, but the steels mills will remain, perhaps their focus will shift to specialized types of steel since they won't be able to compete with foreign companies making plain old steel. Hamilton still has a lot of manufacturing jobs and like it or not, the population is proportionately blue collar. The CANMET lab is moving here because this region is a centre of manufacturing and because of the steel industry. Add to this the fact that Hamilton Harbour is a major port, and you can bet that the waterfront will remain heavily industrialized for the foreseeable future.

There are plenty of areas in Hamilton for white collar and upper middle class types: Kirkendall, Durand, St. Clair, Westdale, Dundas, Ancaster, Aldershot and Burlington for example. Hamilton is not lacking in wealthy people, it's just that the underclass here is highly concentrated and extremely visible.