The changing geography of manufacturing employment in the post 1970 period: tentative interpretations of the Norwegian case

Abstract

The article discusses how the changing geography of manufacturing employment in Norway over the last 20 years can be interpreted. The article considers the current debate on whether a transition from the mass production of Fordism to small batch, flexible production is occurring, and what the geographical consequences of this assumed transition might be. Thus, the relevance of three different pairs of concepts for the Norwegian case is examined, that is industrial restructuring/spatial divisions of labour, flexible production methods/new industrial spaces, and flexible specialization/industrial districts.