Alfred Weber
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- For the Swiss, see Alfred Weber (Swiss politician).
Alfred Weber (July 30, 1868 in Erfurt, Thuringia, Germany - May 2, 1958 in Heidelberg) was a German economist, sociologist and theoretician of culture whose work was influential in the development of modern economic geography.
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[edit] Life
Weber was one of seven children born to Max Weber Sr., a prominent politician and civil servant, and Helene Fallenstein. Weber Sr.'s engagement with public life immersed the family home in politics, as his salon received many prominent scholars and public figures. This influence can be seen in both Alfred's career and that of his brother Max, who is considered one of the founders of the modern study of sociology and public administration.
From 1907 to 1933, Weber was a professor at the University of Heidelberg until his dismissal following criticism of Hitlerism. Weber lived in Nazi Germany during the Second World War, but was a leader in intellectual resistance. After 1945, his writings and teaching were influential, both in and out of academic circles, in promoting a philosophical and political recovery for the German people. He was reinstated as professor in 1945, and continued in that role until his death.
[edit] Work
Weber supported reintroducing theory and causal models to the field of economy, in addition to using historical analysis. In this field, his achievements involve work on early models of Industrial location. He lived during the period when sociology became a separate field of science.
Weber maintained a commitment to the "philosophy of history" traditions. He contributed theories for analyzing social change in Western civilization as a confluence of civilization (intellectual and technological), social processes (organizations) and culture (art, religion, and philosophy). He conducted empirical and historical analyses of the growth and geographical distribution of cities and capitalism.
[edit] Least Cost Theory
Alfred Weber formulated a least cost theory of industrial location which tries to explain and predict the locational pattern of the industry at a macro-scale. It emphasizes that firms seek a site of minimum transport and labour cost.
The point for locating an industry that minimizes costs of transportation and labor requires analysis of three factors:
[edit] 1. Material Index
The point of optimal transportation based on the costs of distance to the "material index" - the ratio of weight to intermediate products (raw materials) to finished product.
In one scenario, the weight of the final product is less than the weight of the raw material going into making the product -- the weight losing industry. For example, in the copper industry, it would be very expensive to haul raw materials to the market for processing, so manufacturing occurs near the raw materials. (Besides mining, other primary activities (or extractive industries) are considered material oriented: timber mills, furniture manufacture, most agricultural activities, etc.. Often located in rural areas, these businesses may employ most of the local population. As they leave, entire cities lose their economic base.)
In the other, the final product is heavier than the raw materials that require transport. Usually this is a case of some ubiquitous raw material, such as water, being incorporated into the product. This is called the weight-gaining industry.
[edit] 2. Labor
The labor distortion: sources of lower cost labor may justify greater transport distances and become the primary determinant in production.
A. UNSKILLED LABOR –industries such as the garment industry require cheap unskilled laborers to complete activities that are not mechanized. They are often termed "ubiquitous" meaning they can be found everywhere. Its pull is due to low wages, little unionization and young employees.
B. DESKILLED LABOR - High tech firms, such as those located in Silicon Valley, require exceptionally skilled professionals. Skilled labor is often difficult to find.
[edit] 3. Agglomeration and deglomeration
Agglomeration is the phenomenon of spatial clustering, or a concentration of firms in a relatively small area. The clustering and linkages allow individual firms to enjoy both internal and external economies. Auxiliary industries, specialized machines or services used only occasionally by larger firms tend to be located in agglomeration areas, not just to lower costs but to serve the bigger populations.
Deglomeration occurs when companies and services leave because of the diseconomies of industries’ excessive concentration. Firms who can achieve economies by increasing their scale of industrial activities benefit from agglomeration. However, after reaching an optimal size, local facilities may become over-taxed, lead to an offset of initial advantages and increase in PC. Then the force of agglomeration may eventually be replaced by other forces which promote deglomeration.
[edit] Globalization
Similarly, industrial activity is considered a secondary economic activity, and is also discussed as manufacturing. Industrial activity can be broken down further to include the following activities: processing, the creation of intermediate parts, final assembly. Today with multinational corporations, the three activities listed above may occur outside MDCs.
Weber's theory can explain some of the causes for current movement, yet such discussion did not come from Weber himself. Weber found industrial activity the least expensive to produce. Least cost location then implies marketing the product at the least cost to the consumer, much like retailers attempt to obtain large market shares today. Economically, it is explained as one way to make a profit; creating the cheapest product for the consumer market leads to greater volume of sales and hence, greater profits. Therefore, companies that do not take the time to locate the cheapest inputs or the largest markets would not succeed, since their product costs more to produce and costs the consumer more.
[edit] Works
- History of Philosophy 1908
- Über den Standort der Industrie (Theory of the Location of Industries) 1909
- Ideen zur Staats - und Kultursoziologie (1927)
- Kulturgeschichte als Kultursoziologie (1935)
- Farewell to European History... (1947)
- Einführung in die Soziologie (1955)
