Factors Necessary for Location of Manufacturing Industries in a country that can satisfy industrial needs
Some of the major factors are discussed below: that's include raw material,power,labour transport and communication,market,water site
Raw materials
The significance of raw materials in manufacturing industry is so fundamental that it needs no emphasising. Indeed, the location of industrial enterprises is sometimes determined simply by location of the raw materials.
Some raw materials are bulky and heavy and transporting them over long distances may be very costly. For this reason, industries which use heavy and bulky raw materials in their primary stage in large quantities are usually located near the source of the raw materials. For example, iron and steel industries in Germany are located in the iron mining areas of the Ruhr region.
It is also true in the case of raw materials which lose weight in the process of manufacture or whose transport cost cannot be afforded or cannot be transported over long distances because of their perishable nature. For instance, vegetable and fruit processing industries are often located in areas close to the source of these raw materials.
The same case applies to those industries which depend on imported raw materials. They are normally located close to the points of arrivals e.g. the sea ports or along the coasts. For example, industries in Japan are concentrated close to the coast because they use imported raw materials.
Power
Regular supply of power is a pre-requisite for the location of industries. Coal, mineral oil and hydro-electricity are the three important conventional sources of power. Most industries tend to concentrate at the source of power.
The iron and steel industries which mainly depend on large quantities of coking coal as source of power are frequently tied to coal fields. Others like the electro-metallurgical and electro-chemical industries, which are great users of cheap hydro-electric power, are generally found in the areas of hydro-power production, for instance, aluminium industry. Therefore, large and heavy industries are quite often established at a point which has the best economic advantage in obtaining power and raw materials.
However, as petroleum can be easily piped and electricity can be transmitted over long distances by wires, it is possible to disperse the industries over a larger area if need be.
Labour
Adequate supply of cheap and skilled labour is necessary for an industry. The attraction of an industry towards labour centres depends on the ratio of labour cost to the total cost of production. Labour supply is important in two respects: (a) workers in large numbers are often required; (b) people with skill or technical expertise are needed
The nature and amount of labour required will depend on the type of an industry and the kind of goods and/or services produced. Labour-intensive industries such as automobile industries require a large workforce. So, such industries are located in places with abundant labour. Some industries require skilled while others need semi-skilled or unskilled labour
Industries requiring semi-skilled and unskilled labour are often located in urban centres where the availability of such labour is not a problem. However, unskilled labour force is also abundant in urban centres, which mainly consists of unskilled job seekers who move from the countryside to seek for greener pastures in urban centres.
Transport and communication
Transport by land or water is necessary for the movement of raw materials and for the marketing of the finished products. A good transport and communication infrastructure is important for carrying raw materials to the industry and transporting finished goods from the industry to consumers. It is also required for moving workers, machinery, chemicals and other materials.
Communication is important in connecting with buyers and suppliers. Communication links are facilitated by phones and computers. Manufacturers can easily market and advertise their products via the internet. This also enables the buyers to make their order online, a fact that lowers their trading costs significantly.
The entire process of manufacturing is useless until the finished goods reach the market. Nearness to market is essential for quick transport of manufactured goods. It helps in reducing the transport cost and enables the consumer to get things at cheaper rates.
A ready market is most essential for perishable and heavy products. Perishable products are such as vegetables, breads and milk. Industries producing heavy products should be located close to potential markets so as to reduce the transportation costs and eliminate the problems encountered in transportation of such products.
Water is another important requirement for industries. Many industries are established near rivers, canals, and lakes because of this reason. Iron and steel, textile, coffee pulping, sugar cane processing, paper mills, brewing, soft drink and chemical industries require large quantities of water for their proper functioning
Market
The entire process of manufacturing is useless until the finished goods reach the market. Nearness to market is essential for quick transport of manufactured goods. It helps in reducing the transport cost and enables the consumer to get things at cheaper rates.
A ready market is most essential for perishable and heavy products. Perishable products are such as vegetables, breads and milk. Industries producing heavy products should be located close to potential markets so as to reduce the transportation costs and eliminate the problems encountered in transportation of such products.
Water
Water is another important requirement for industries. Many industries are established near rivers, canals, and lakes because of this reason. Iron and steel, textile, coffee pulping, sugar cane processing, paper mills, brewing, soft drink and chemical industries require large quantities of water for their proper functioning.
Site
Site requirement for location of an industry is of utmost significance. An industry can only be located in an area if there is enough land space to build it. Sites, generally, should be flat and well served by adequate transport facilities. A large piece of land is required to build factories. Now, there is a tendency to set up industries in rural areas because the cost of land in urban centres has shot up.
Climate
Climate plays an important role in the establishment of industries at a place. Harsh climate is not much suitable for the establishment of industries. There can be no industrial development in extremely hot, humid, dry or cold climate. Cotton fabric industries require humid climate because cotton threads tend to break in dry climate.
Capital
Modem industries are capital-intensive and require huge investments. A lot of money is needed in the establishment of infrastructure and transportation of raw materials, goods and other requirements. Capital is also required to set up industrial machinery. However, capital does not influence the location of an industry to a large extent. It is only a problem in case the cost of land and rent rates, especially in urban areas, are extremely high.
Government policies
Government policy in planning the future distribution of industries, for reducing regional disparities, elimination of pollution of air and water, and for avoiding their heavy clustering in big cities, is an important factor in location of industries. The government may discourage the concentration of industries in one place due to a number of reasons as outlined below:
- Economic reasons: Industries should be distributed equitably in the country to ensure equitable development of all regions of the country. This will lead to job creation and hence solve the problem of rural-urban migration. For example, the location of many industries in different regions of Tanzania soon after independence was due to this reason.
- Political reasons: This is a case whereby political leaders dictate the location of an industry in a certain area for mere political gain.
- Environmental reasons: Industries produce much smoke and harmful waste. So they are always located away from residential areas, arable land or community water sources. This is done in order to avoid environmental pollution.
- Security reasons: All industries are not concentrated in just one area to avoid great loss in case of any sabotage or attack by terrors. It is, therefore, important to establish industries in different locations.
Industrial location
Industries tend to develop at the place of their original establishment, though the original cause for their location may no longer exist. This phenomenon is referred to as inertia. It is sometimes termed as geographical inertia or industrial inertia. Such industries may continue to exist in their previous locations due reasons such as:
- The availability of skilled and experienced labour.
- The presence of well developed transport and communication network.
- Avoiding the expenses that may be incurred in moving to a new place.
Generally labour are most thing to consider while wanting to produce industrial hence they can perform industrial work at any place hence there is capital that's deals with everything
