The Role of High-Tech Industry in the Sustainable Development
THE ROLE OF HIGH-TECH INDUSTRY IN THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Drd.Ing. Gornoava Valentin 1,2, a 1 Institutul Naţional de Cercetare Dezvoltare pentru Mecatronică şi Tehnica Măsurării Bucureşti, România 6-8 Şos. Pantelimon, sector 2, Bucureşti, România 2Şcoala Doctorală Inginerie Mecanică, U.V.Târgovişte;
[email protected] Abstract - The global competitiveness of Europe and, of course, of the Romania, depends on a strong high-tech sector as technology plays a key role in nearly every industry, especially in automotive industry and intelligent products, who can help in the efficient use of the natural resources . A healthy high-tech sector is an engine of innovation, which can provide important support for industrial companies in a highly competitive environment. The european Commission officials acknowledge the importance of technology to increase competitiveness and sustainable development of Europe and noted that the efforts of policy makers have not done enough to promote a healthy high-tech sector, which led to a reduction of this industry in recent years, including the carrying position in the world ranking, because the momentum achieved by the Asian countries. Keywords: competitiveness, high tech.
2. The high tech industry in Romania in the European context
1. Introduction Definition of sustainable development When we talk about sustainable development, we must follow the definition given by the World Commission of Environment and Development: The term,, sustainable development 'implies a development model that provides all the essentials of life for the present generation without depriving future generations of such possibilities. This is a general definition and it does not specify the mechanisms or specific actions that allow the application of this paradigm. Human psychology requires a clear and detailed picture of this start and thus Rio'92 Declaration regarding the Environment and Development provides 27 principles that constitute the Sustainable Development. Romania's competitiveness gaps are due to several factors, among which an important place is occupied by the insufficient development of high tech industries that are sui generis and clean industries that can contribute to the improvement of technological and other industrial equipment superior processing of natural resources of our country. Romania has three major disadvantages which are reported periodically in the EC reports for industrial performance monitoring: small capacity for innovation; large-scale consumption of resources and energy to produce a unit of gross domestic product (GDP); and the low share of high-tech industrial products incorporating high added value.
Since 2005, high tech industry in the EU 27, experienced higher growth indices in the assembly industry. Despite the financial crisis, the EU high tech industry production increased by 26% between the first quarter of 2005 and third quarter of 2012, while medium high tech industries increased by only 7%. Compared to the industry as a whole, the industry in 2012 is about the same as in 2005. In contrast had a high growth industry (Thomas Jaegers, Carmen Lipp-Lingua, Digna Amil, 2013: High technology and medium-high technology industries main drivers of EU-27's industrial growth, in Statistics in Focus, Eurostat. The biggest challenge for the Romanian industry is increasing of the share of high-tech products, intensive research with high added value. From this category includes products from aerospace, computers and office machines, electronics and telecommunications, pharmaceutical industry products, scientific instruments, electrical machinery, chemicals and weapons. From chart 2 shows that, unlike countries such as Poland, Austria, Hungary, Estonia, Belgium, for which industries high - tech had higher growth rates than medium or low tech industries in Romania, the highest rate growth they had medium and low tech industries.
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The Role of High-Tech Industry in the Sustainable Development
Source Statistics in Focus, Eurostat, 1/2013, p.1 Chart 2
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The Role of High-Tech Industry in the Sustainable Development In Romania, although there have been some progress in the modernization products and technologies, the use in many branches of technology and equipment outdated, energy-intensive, drastically reduce productivity in these industries, high tech industries are underdeveloped. (High Tech industry is divided into three groups: group branches "High-tech", which comprises the following divisions and groups: Basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations; Computers and electronic and optical products; Group branches "Medium-high-tech", which includes: Chemicals and chemical products Electrical equipment Machinery and equipment Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other means of transport; Group branches "Medium-low-tech" and the following divisions and groups: coke and refined products produced from crude oil processing (19); Rubber and plastic products Other non-metallic mineral products industry steel industry steel construction products and metal products (except machinery and equipment and group branches "Low-tech", which includes:
Food, beverages, tobacco products , products of the textile, clothing, leather and leather products, products of wood (except furniture), articles of straw and plaiting materials, paper and paper products furniture and other industrial products). 3. Exports of high-tech products in Romania, compared to those in other countries It can be seen repair to the structure of exports due to rising share of exports with high added value, which are included in groups Medium-High-tech and high-tech. In this context we can say little more than half (approx. 53% -54%) of exports of manufactured goods represented by them. Group is very dynamic high tech recording significant increases in recent years (Fig. 1). However, it is important to note that if in 2012 their growth was 49.5%, as of late 2013, the pace of growth has slowed, so that for 2014 it is estimated that exports of high tech will increase only by 15.6%.
Fig. 1 Developments in manufacturing exports classified by the technological intensity Romania mainly exports products from machinery and transport equipment (40.4%) and other manufactured products (34.1%). The main imports are part of the same group of products only in lower percentages, respectively 33.7% and 29.3%. Regarding the structure of exports of manufactured goods, in the last time, there is a positive trend, reflected in the increasing share of high tech exports in total exports from 10.3% manufactured as represented in 2009, up to 11.9 % in 2011. Thus, can be see an improvement in the structure of exports due to the increasing share of high valueadded exports, which are included in groups MediumHigh-tech and high-tech (Fig. 2). In this context, we can say that little more than half (approx. 53% -54%) of exports of manufactured goods are represented by these.
Hungary exported in 2012 high-tech products worth 10 billion euros with a population of 10 million, while Romania which has a much larger population of high tech exports products worth 2,837. According to Eurostat European Statistical Office, high-tech products accounted for 6.3% of the total Romanian exports, well below the average share of UE28 - 15.6%. The lowest average appear in Portugal, which never excelled in this chapter - 3.2%, Greece 3.3% and Bulgaria - 3.8% of total exports. Of the former communist countries, Hungary and the Czech Republic are better, with 17.3% and 16.2% of total exports represented by high-tech products. Hungary has better results, both as percentages of total and absolute numbers - accounting for 17.3% of total exports and value of 13.976 billion euros in 2012, according to data published.
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The Role of High-Tech Industry in the Sustainable Development Last update 21.11.2013 datas source: Eurostat The share of high tech exports in total ( %)
Fig. 2 The growth of high tech export recorded in 2012 was driven by higher exports of computers and electronic and optical products and those of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations (Fig. 3). The High Technology category, according to Eurostat, enter high value-added products in aerospace, computers, electronics and telecommunications equipment, TV and radio, pharmaceuticals, electrical
equipment, armament industry, medical instruments, optical and precision, watches, cars fall into the category of medium-high-tech The year saw high-tech exports peak Romanian high tech exports value tripled between 2007 and 2010, with a spectacular leap between 2009 and 2010, when the volume increased by over a third, to 3,670 billion.
Fig. 3 Among other things, 2010 was, according to the Professional Association of Software and Services Industry (ANIS), and an year of recovery software and 28
services exports - increased both the number of projects and their value as a result of international clients adapt to changes caused by global crisis.
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The Role of High-Tech Industry in the Sustainable Development The increased values were recorded in 2011, almost four billion, followed by a collapse in 2012 to 2.8 billion. The share of high-tech products in the early 90 of total manufactured exports in developed countries was
two times higher than that of developing states. High-tech exports of developing countries have been rising rapidly, which in 2004 resulted in a 21% share of total manufactured exports.
The share fell slightly in both groups of countries with a low benefit from developing states - where hightech products accounted for 18% of the total, according to the World Bank, and in the developed countries –
17% of total exports of manufactured products. (Share of high-tech products in total exports manufactured is an indicator of innovation economies).
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4. Conclusions With these data we can conclude that: - Sustainable development is impossible without the support of science, - the high-tech businesses at small scale associated science are an important mechanism for sustainable development, - the economic stability and social situation refers to the business environment. Small businesses with high-tech technology have an important role in the effective introduction of scientific innovations in industrial production and daily life, - High-tech technologies influence the progress in scientific research, enabling many scientific innovations coming to the market and stimulate new research, - High-tech technologies help as guide through psychological research of the market economy, - High-tech businesses at small scale are essential, but insufficient condition for sustainable development, implementing additional factors is needed to lead the business in the right direction. Some of these factors are linked to social and environmental problems. If hightech businesses at small scale are the principal factor in the technological sphere, that fact that they intersect with social and environmental interests should influence business environment , - The importance of high-tech technologies in the sustainable development is a new one, so it is hard to try to get along nature, we could say that business is in early stage of development with these high-tech technologies with a non significant percentage.
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Acknowledgements This paper has been financially supported within the project entitled „SOCERT. Knowledge society, dynamism through research”, contract number POSDRU/159/1.5/S/132406. This project is co-financed by European Social Fund through Sectoral Operational Programme for Human Resources Development 20072013. Investing in people!” 5. Bibliography [1] Ionescu Sorin Cristian, 2007 Managementul Inovării, Editura politehnica. [2] United Nations Economic Commission for Africa Innovation and technology transfer for enhanced productivity and competitiveness in Africa, Ninth session of the Conference of African Ministers of Economy and Finance 30 March 2014 [3] The Europe 2020 Competitiveness Report 2012 Edition, Building a More Competitive Europe, [4] Maarten Goos, Ian Hathaway, Jozef Konings, Marieke Vandeweyer, December 2013, HighTechnology Employment in the European Union [5] Strategia Națională de Export 2011-2015 [6] Innovating for Sustainable Growth: A Bioeconomy for Europe, COM(2012) 60, Comisia Europeană, Bruxelles, 2012 [7] James W. Halloran (2014). Your Small Business Adventure: Finding Your Niche and Growing a Successful Business. ALA/Huron Street Press. ISBN 978-1-937589-44-8 [8] Moser, Petra. 2013. "Patents and Innovation: Evidence from Economic History." Journal of Economic Perspectives, 27(1): 23-44 [9] PND 2007-2013 Creşterea competitivitătii economice şi dezvoltarea unei economii bazate pe cunoaştere.
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