The Forces of Codification: Knowledge, Supply Chain Restructuring and Innovation in the Windsor Ontario Machine Tool and Mould Cluster

There is a growing recognition that despite the difficulties confronting firms in formalizing knowledge, the contemporary economy is characterized by intensifying pressures for the conversion of tacit into codified, if not commodified knowledge. Thus researchers are increasingly recognizing that globalization is associated with strong pressures for the codification of often highly localized tacit knowledge through the construction of ‘global pipelines’ to tap into ‘local buzz’. In this paper we examine the impact of supply chain restructuring in the auto industry, the adoption of new technology and state innovation policy on innovation and knowledge in the Windsor, Ontario machine tool die and mould (MTDM) cluster. While much research emphasizes the need for trust and reciprocity in knowledge exchange we argue that the codification of knowledge is occurring in a context of significant asymmetries in power relations between Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and suppliers, in which overcapacity and price and profit pressure determine the nature of knowledge transfer.