By Susanne Jensen and Poul Rind Christensen, University of Southern Denmark, presented at the 16th TCI Global Conference, Kolding 2013.

1. How can design be a platform for the development of
a regional cluster in the Region of Southern Denmark?
Susanne Jensen & Poul Rind Christensen
Academic Summit: Clusters as entrepreneurial ecosystems
4 September 2013

2. TCI conference 2013: Designing the future - Innovation through
strategic partnerships
How can design be a platform for the
development of a regional cluster in
the Region of Southern Denmark?
Susanne Jensen, post doc
Poul Rind Christensen, professor
Department of Entrepreneurship and Relationship Management
University of Southern Denmark

3. Background
• Industrial dynamics of the region:
– Fall in production activities
– Raise in activities facilitating production
• Pre-production activities– downstream
• Post-production activities - upstream
• A possible new role for design:
– Linked to pre- and post-production
– Linked to collaboration in global value chains
– Demand for new competences

4. Purpose
Purpose:
• What is a design cluster?
– Key factors of importance for the formation
– Key factors driving the development
– The roles of design

5. Theoretical setting - design
• Design seen as outcome and process
• Design as important for innovative activities and
creating value
– linking new ways of thinking to specific arenas of
application
• Dimensions in designers’ competences and skills:
– Practices – the methodological skills used in designers’
work
– Cognitive approaches – creative thinking styles
– Mindset: Experimental and visual approach

6. Theoretical setting - cluster
Five characteristics that identify a cluster (Ingstrup et al,
2009):
• Number of firms
• Geographical proximity
• Inter-firm relations
• Benefits based on synergies from e.g. specialized labour, tacit
knowledge, co-development
• Framework conditions favouring collaboration
Three common factors of clusters (Pedersen, 2005) :
• They are coherent
• They have a common (technological) knowledge base
• They have a common pool of specialized labour

7. Criteria's for a design cluster
• Size of potential cluster: is there a critical mass?
• Interaction and information flows developed
• Favourable conditions or sources of advantages
• Availability of a knowledge base in design including
the existence of relevant knowledge institutions

8. The empirical study
• Firm data on design suppliers from Statistics Denmark
• The firm database CD Direct
• Survey data From the Danish Industrial Authorities in 2010
• Data on enrolments of students at design educations from the
Coordinated Enrolment System at higher educations
• Policy documents and information on public initiated projects
with a design focus
Table 3: Design suppliers based on the Danish Industrial Classification codes 2007;
NACE/DB07 code Name
71.11.00 Architectural activities
73.11.10 Advertising agencies
73.11.90 Other advertising activities
74.10.10 Industrial design and product design
74.10.20 Communication design and graphic design
74.10.30 Activities of interior decorators and room design
Source: Statistics Denmark.

9. Region of Southern Denmark

10. Results and discussion
Suppliers of and demand for design services
• Region of Southern Denmark: 517 design firms with 2,284 employees; 1.3 per
cent of the total number of firms; average size 4.4 employees
• Denmark: 3,422 firms with 22,079 employees; 1.8 per cent of the total
number of firms ; average size 6.5 employees
• One third of firms within architectural activities; Nearly half in advertising
Figure 3. The Design Ladder and Danish firms’ use of design, 2010, per cent
Source: The Danish Industrial Authorities, 2011.

11. Results and discussion
Design knowledge base?
• More than 250 new students start at a design education in
2013 in the Region of Southern Denmark
Table 5. Employees’ education and work with design in Danish firms, 2010
The Region of Southern
Denmark
Denmark
Firms with at least one designer employed 18.5 20.5
Firms where at least one employee works with design even
though not having a design education
46.7 48.0
Firms that have bought design services externally 58.5 56.2
Firms that assess their employed designers to have the
necessary skills to a very high and high degree
70.0 76.1
Collaborate with external partners on design 57.0 55.5
Source: The Danish Industrial Authorities, 2011.

12. Results and discussion
Information flows and favourable conditions
• Regional Growth Forum: Experience industry including design
is one of three appointed areas for future industrial
development
• Projects: Design2innovate, Designers’ cooperation etc.
• SDU design
Table 7. Design collaboration partners for Danish firms, 2010
Collaboration partners The most important collaboration partner
Region of Southern
Denmark
Denmark Region of Southern
Denmark
Denmark
Firms 30.9 30.0 24.2 23.8
Universities 7.7 7.0 1.9 2.7
Public institutions 4.0 4.3 0.7 1.4
Customers 22.6 21.6 19.5 18.4
Other 5.4 5.0 3.5 3.7
No collaboration 43.0 44.5 - -
Source: The Danish Industrial Authorities, 2011.

13. Conclusion:
Wishful thinking design cluster or ..?
Table 1: The state of development of clusters
Type of cluster Critical mass Interaction and
information flow
developed
Self-reinforced/
organic
development
Favourable
conditions or
sources of
advantages
Working clusters Yes Yes Yes Yes
Latent clusters Yes No Yes Yes
Potential cluster Some Some Some Some
Policy driven clusters No No Some Some
‘Wishful thinking’
clusters
No No No No
Source: Based on Enright, M.J. 2003.