Flash Eurobarometer 187 (Innobarometer 2006)

Companies operating in clusters.<br>Topics: geographically close linkages with suppliers and service providers; cooperation with other firms, universities, or administrative bodies in the own region with regard to common problems or shared opportunities; concentration of firms working in the same business sector in the own region; awareness of the concept of clusters; clusters in the own field of activity in the own region; own company is part of a cluster or business network; innovative activities of the company in the last two years: market research for introducing new products or services, introduction of new or significantly improved products or services, introduction of new or significantly improved production technology, apply for patents, register for international trademarks, carry out research in own laboratories, contract out research to other firms, universities, or research institutes; company sector; cooperation with the following partners: public administration, educational institutions, public laboratories or research centres, large companies, small and medium enterprises, start-ups, financial institutions; advantages in competition due to being part of a cluster in the following markets: local, regional, national, European, world; importance of each of the following activities for own cluster: exchange information on technology, exchange information on market, exchange best practices, develop partnerships on specific projects, develop partnerships to compete on European market, hire skilled people, stimulate entrepreneur spirit, facilitate access to finance, facilitate access to land, facilitate sharing of infrastructures, access to research infrastructures, shorten time to enter market; demand for innovation in cluster compared to demand outside cluster; benefit of being in a cluster for selected departments in the own company: research and development, marketing, sales, production, human resources, procurement (including acquisition and supply); attitude towards the following statements with regard to competition in the cluster / in the own region: more intense compared to other regions, higher competition is positive for improved competitiveness, higher competition is part of success, higher competition limits development capacity of firms; extension of scope of activities in the last five years; impact of being in the cluster on location of firm; importance of public authorities with regard to supporting the cluster; activity of the company in strategic plans to make own region recognized for its competence; provision of the following instruments by public authorities to support cluster: direct financial support for specific projects, facilitated administrative procedures, buildings or other infrastructures, tax reduction schemes on research and development and innovation expenditures, tax reduction schemes on non-research and development and non-innovation expenditures, organisation of public events, facilitated networking with universities or administration, facilitated networking with firms, support of incubator development, support of the improvement of the reputation of cluster or region, facilitated transmission of information, facilitated trans-national relation with other clusters or geographic areas; most important instruments to be promoted by public authorities; assessment of developing relationships with other European clusters active in the same business area as threat or as opportunity.

Demography: information about the company: number of employees, year of company establishment; development of turnover in the last two years.

Additionally coded was: respondent ID; interview ID; language of the interview; nation group; country; date of interview; time of the beginning of the interview; duration of the interview; NACE-Code; weighting factor.