Clusters

In the case of companies for which knowledge is their primary asset, clusters represent an invaluable competitive edge in contrasts to companies struggling on their own. The added resources nurture new ideas, driving input and creativity. Infrastructure can be used optimally.

Clusters were formed in Austria a long time ago. Some were even set up back in the 1950s, for example the biopharmaceutical cluster in Tyrol, which was established in 1946 with the founding of Biochemie Kundl (now Sandoz). More than 40 clusters were in operation in the year 2008, in which companies, research facilities, universities, suppliers and service providers in a particular branch or sector work closely together.

Strong clusters. The most high-performing clusters are the automobile cluster (>50,000 employees, >250 companies) and the material cluster in Styria, the plastics cluster (>60,000 employees, >400 companies) and the mechatronics cluster (>49,000 employees, >290 companies) in Upper Austria, the biopharmaceutical cluster in Tyrol, the wood cluster in Salzburg and the creative industries cluster in Vienna.