Sea brings expertise together in
the Finnish Maritime Cluster
The Finnish Maritime Cluster is an operational coalition formed by companies in
various lines of business. The cluster encompasses businesses in the fields of
maritime shipping, maritime industry, and port operations in both private and public sectors.
All of these areas and companies are connected by one common denominator – the sea.
T
SOUTH WESTERN COAST OF
FINLAND FORMS THE CORE OF
THE CLUSTER
The Finnish Maritime Cluster is highly
concentrated in the south western part
of Finland. There you can find companies
from all areas of business included in
the cluster. The impact the cluster has
on the economy of the area is especially
significant in the south west of Finland.
The only region where the cluster has
more significance regarding the economy
is Åland which is located in the Baltic Sea
between Finland and Sweden. Altogether,
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south western Finland boasts roughly 400
companies which are members of the
maritime cluster. These companies have
nearly 500 places of business.
According to a study recently completed in the Centre for Maritime Study in
the University of Turku, in 2005 the total
turnover of the cluster’s member companies in the regions of Varsinais-Suomi
and Satakunta (in south western Finland)
was roughly 4 billion euros. Of that total
roughly 2.4 billion came directly from
the maritime sector (refers to operations
related to shipping, maritime industry, and
port operations). The direct economical
and multiplicative effects of the maritime
cluster reach not only the immediate area
of the operations but the rest of the nation as well.
Member companies of the maritime
cluster employ a total of approximately
17.000 workers in the regions of VarsinaisSuomi and Satakunta, roughly 11.000 of
which are involved in operations directly
related to the maritime sector. Some 7.100
of them work in maritime industry, 2.500
in maritime shipping, and 1 400 in port
operations. Additionally, the areas of the
public sector included in the maritime
cluster employ roughly 1.000 workers in
the maritime sector. In total, the maritime cluster employs approximately 6
percent of the working population in
Varsinais-Suomi and Satakunta. The
indirect employment effects are likely
to be at least 1.5 times larger and span
several areas of business. Direct and
indirect employment positions included,
the maritime cluster employs at least
27.000 people, i.e. some 8.5 percent of
the working population, in the area.
The regions of Varsinais-Suomi
and Satakunta encompass roughly a
third of the maritime cluster of the entire
country, but there is significant variation
between different fields. Shipbuilding
industry is most prominent in the area
(nearly 90 % of the shipyard jobs in Finland are located in the south western part
of the country). The area also holds nearly
75 % of the entire maritime industry in
the country and 25 % of the shipyard
industry. Approximately a quarter of the
maritime traffic between Finland and
other countries goes through the ports
in south western Finland.
HISTORICAL TRADITIONS
AS BASIS FOR MODERN EXPERTISE
The areas encompassed by the maritime
cluster – especially shipbuilding, mechanical engineering, and shipping industries
– have very long historical traditions in
the south west coast of Finland. These
Photo: Aker Yards
he core of the maritime cluster consists
of shipbuilding, as well as ship-owner
and port operations. These areas are complemented by a large array of subcontractors, suppliers and their partners, various
related fields, training and research
operations, public administration, and
different interest groups.
The following areas, among others, are represented in the Finnish
Maritime Cluster: shipbuilding and
repair yards, equipment manufacturers, turn-key suppliers of maritime
technology, ship design agencies and
offshore industry, shipping companies
transporting goods and passengers,
rating institutions, ports, companies
supplying technical solutions for ports
, port operators, and other providers of
services related to maritime shipping.
Important related industries include financing and insurance etc. All of these areas
together from the whole that is the Finnish
Maritime Cluster