SBR-9506542 William B. Beyers Harold L. Fossum University of Washington Dissertation Improvement Research: Flexible Specialization and Specialty Wood Products in the Rural Northwest This project identifies several groups of specialty wood products producers in a four-state Northwest region and examines firm behavior within and between clusters. The study will develop important empirical knowledge about the shape of flexible specialization in this prominent rural industry and lead to the development of theory relevant to the conditions found in the Northwest wood products industry. Most recent research on flexible specialization has concentrated on change in urban mass production industries. This proposal examines how clusters of rural firms may be generating collective efficiencies. The goal is to make a significant contribution to understanding the nature of industrial diversification in this peripheral and largely non-industrialized region in this age of industrial flexibility.
